Next of Kin - SuperCorp

Next of Kin - Part 23 Tick-Tock

It had been two days since Kara and Lena had literally kissed and made up. Kara had been stopping in for lunch every day. Then the door would stay open, and the two women would keep their distance, Lena's body language stiff and Kara acting her meek self. Dinner time included a closed door and closer quarters. Kalia seemed content to make herself scarce during Kara's visits, and both Kara and Lena knew the night nurse was encouraging them toward a relationship. At this point, she seemed to be of the 'don't ask don't tell' mindset.

Lena was progressing with therapy. She was doing exercises in her wheelchair, the extent of which were her moving and lifting her legs with assistance while seated. She could sit without the straps, but she still used them when she became tired. She did therapy twice a day, sitting up as much as she could and working. Her usual ten to fourteen hour work days had dwindled down to far fewer and were leaving her exhausted instead of tired. The amount of healing she was doing was tapping her out quickly.

Kara stepped into the hospital room, closing and locking the door behind her. She smiled down at Lena who was sitting in a wheelchair and typing on her laptop on a tray. "Well, hello there pretty lady."

Lena looked at the time on her laptop. "Dinner time already? I swear it was only 3:00 o'clock twenty minutes ago. I have so much work piled up. I don't think I'll ever dig out of this hole."

"Well, you can grab your shovel and start digging again in the morning because I brought food!" Kara said with a broad smile as she held up a bag from Noonan's.

"Ah." Lena nodded. "Well, my broth and jello aren't here yet. Could you ask Kalia to get my dinner please?"

"No, I brought food for both of us," Kara replied, setting the bag on the floor

"Noonan's has jello?"

"Uh...actually no, but they have soup." Kara said, pulling containers out of the bag. One was a soup container with a lid. "It's noodle soup with dumplings."

Head tilted forward, Lena stared for several seconds before saying, "Do they know you brought actual food to me?"

Giggling, Kara nodded. "It was Kalia's idea. Apparently, you're doing really well. You're upright most of the time, and...uh...things are working the way they're supposed to work down there. You know, down there, right?"

Lena rolled her eyes.

"Right, you know. So Kalia called me and said, 'Hey Goldilocks, our patient can eat something besides broth. How about you bring her some soup with a little something in it. Don't get her anything too rich.' So I said since I was Goldilocks, she must be a grumpy bear. I asked which bear she was. She said she was the one who didn't want the soup too hot or too cold for her patient, so I better get it just right. Then she hung up on me." Kara was smiling. "You know when Snapper calls me a nickname like that it pisses me off, but I like it when Kalia does it."

"Oh, be sure to tell her that. I'm sure she'll be quite pleased," Lena said with a hint of a smile. "Also, hugs. I have it on good authority she's awfully fond of physical affection."

"Awesome!" Kara said, pulling out several food containers for herself. "So, how about we put you into bed to eat. You know you're going to fall asleep after you eat."

"I might stay awake for a little bit."

"Ten minutes tops," Kara said with a grin as she pulled back the blankets then moved the table from in front of Lena. She lifted Lena effortlessly and put the woman onto one side of the bed.

"You'll sit with me?"

"Always," Kara said.

She set their food on the long tray that went over the bed and then climbed onto the bed next to Lena. Together they sat and ate, both talking about their work for the day. It was incredibly comfortable, familial. It was a reminder of all of the lunches they'd shared for so many months. It was a promise of so much more to come.