steam - a supercorp au

chapter twelve

A/N: hey guys!! Just thought I'd let you guys know this chapter has a trigger warning for violence. I wanted to be on the safe side for all of you. Enjoy the chapter :D

---

k: heyy lena!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
l: hi darling!
k: can you come into supercafe today?
l: i was planning on it anyways. this wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that today is our anniversary?
k: WHAT?!?! no!!!! it has nothing to do with that at ALL!!!! silly goose.
l: i'll be down there in ten minutes <3

Kara had her hair tied up into a ponytail, strands falling out of place as she washed dishes at the back sink. With every creak of the door, her head turned against its own will, waiting for Lena to walk in. While adding foam designs to lattes, she made a mental list of everyone who entered. Blonde mother with child. Tall man in a striking suit. Old lady wearing pearls. Man in a black hoodie. No Lena, yet.
She imagined stories and histories for each person. The blonde mother was a powerful head of a company, who still managed to find time for her family. She took her daughter to the cafe every week for some bonding time. The suited man was an actor. He was on his way to a very prestigious award ceremony, where he would accept Actor of the Year. The old lady was Queen Elizabeth in disguise. She loved the taste of a triple-foam latte, and would travel across the world to get it. The man in the hoodie was an average guy, who was just really cold all the time. But none of them were Lena.
Finally, the door creaked, and as Kara finished a sparked leaf, the beautiful brunette strolled through the door. Kara grinned at her with shining teeth, tightening her ponytail and sliding the coffee across the counter to a customer.
Lena came to the register, and Kara met her with a wide smile. "What would you like today, Miss Luthor?" she teased with a wink.
"Are you on the menu?" Lena joked back, fondly remembering the day they met. "Happy anniversary, dear." Leaning across the counter, she looked into Kara's eyes, and lifted her hand to the barista's face-
Screams erupted behind her, and they broke apart. Lena spun around, letting out a gasp.
The man with the black hoodie was pointing a thick black gun at her. People behind rushed to the door, the mother grabbed her child and held her close, the old lady began to pray.
Chills went up Kara's spine, and she whispered, "don't. Y-you- don't. Don't you dare." This isn't happening.
The man glanced at Kara, and hoarsely muttered, "you like this girl? She's important to you?"
Kara nodded shakily, a high-pitched hum playing in her head. This isn't happening.
"Then put all the money on the counter."
This is really happening. The cafe is being robbed. My girlfriend is being held hostage.
"Now, Goldilocks, or I shoot her!"
Kara watched, terrified, as Lena craned her neck to move just an inch away from the gun. Her eyes shifted to Kara, fear puddling all across her face, searching for some small bit of comfort.
With trembling hands, Kara unlocked the register and began removing piles of bills. "Don't hurt her," she mumbled, a tear falling down her cheek. She wanted to add, it's our anniversary, but she knew he wouldn't care.
She glanced up at the man. Sweat beaded his forehead, and his lips were pursed in anger, worry, adrenaline. He had patches of brown stubble, old razor marks scratching his cheeks. His hand gripped the gun, knuckles white, his finger hovering over the trigger. He was unsteady.
His voice crackled like lightning, however, powerful lightning as he growled, "Keep going."
Kara hadn't noticed that her hands had frozen in place. She was reaching for a stack of 1s, but her hands hovered. Time had stopped, and she knew. She looked at Lena, her heart aching, soaking in every last inch of her. Her brunette hair, shimmering from mint conditioner, her icy eyes filled with tears, her lips a light pink. She never wore light pink, but it was a special occasion.
Kara swallowed, her jaw tight. In what felt like a second, the scene went black and the hum in her head went quiet. She couldn't hear the last drips of the coffee-maker in the background. She couldn't hear the breathing of the man, or of her girlfriend, or herself. She couldn't hear a single thing.
Only thinking of Lena's eyes, she knew.
Kara launched her torso forwards, gripping the gun by its nozzle and pulling it away from its target. The man fell towards the counter, his grasp on the gun still tight and unmoving. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lena double over, clutching her heart, her face contorted in stress. Kara wrestled with the gun, and she was fairly sure they were both yelling, but she didn't know. The world was still silent.
But in a slam, just a single slam, reality came crashing back down as the gun fell from his hands. Not before he yanked on the trigger. The gun propelled into her stomach directly after the bullet, and Kara collapsed.
"No!" Lena screamed, bloodcurdling, pained.
Choking, Kara felt around for the wound in shock. She mumbled, "call 911," or "I'm shot," but for some unknown reason, it came out as "Lena."
Rocketing around the counter, Lena ran to Kara, immediately falling to her knees. "Kara, darling, Kara," she rustled, tears pouring down her cheeks now. "Y-you-"
"Lena," Kara breathed out, feeling the blood gurgling out of her stomach. "Lena, I'm sorry."
"You have nothing to be sorry for," Lena cried, pulling Kara's head into her lap. "Y-you saved me. That was reckless, b-but you saved me, and now-"
Kara winced in pain. "My apron pocket," she sighed, feeling her consciousness begin to fade. "Check my apron pocket."
She tried to stay focused on Lena's face, but the features were getting blurry. She tried to listen to her own breathing, but that was unreliable. She tried to keep her eyes open, but they refused.
"It's your anniversary gift," Kara murmured.
"That can wait."
"Please."
Lena placed a shivering kiss on Kara's forehead, and then reached into her apron pocket.
"I-it's lipstick," Kara laughed. "It seems s-shallow, I know."
Lena's eyes were wide. "It has- has our anniversary date engraved." She held the gift delicately, as if it contained magic. "Y-you did this for me?" She uncapped the tube, and smiled faintly at the color. "And this is the color I described, my color."
"'Bold, but not too bold," Kara recited. "A shade of red that's welcoming, like the fall, but holds passion, like the summer.' You would talk about that imaginary shade for hours. And then, you'd complain about how no one had invented it yet."
"So you invented it for me," Lena said, love pulsating through her words. "Don't die. I-I love you so much, Kara Danvers."
But before she could reply, Kara's senses faded, and she passed out with the happiness of a thousand years on her face.