Woke the F*ck Up

22

April 22nd, 2018

Lena grabbed her backpack from the overhead compartment. It feels heavy on her shoulders as exits the plane, pulling the baseball cap low. She's jostled from behind as other passengers pass her by. She doesn't regret her decision to come, no. That's not it. She is just dreading every step she takes towards her brother. She hasn't seen or heard from him since he was arrested. Lena makes her way through the throngs of people to baggage claim and waits next to a family of excited tourist, talking about all the sights they want to see in Metropolis. Lena smiles to herself and grabs her suitcase.

She makes her way outside to hail a taxi. Lena had been trying to avoid drawing any attention to herself. That meant flying business class and not renting a car. The only people who knew she was coming were Sam and Jess. And the prosecuting lawyer but she didn't know Lena's itinerary. Lena walks out into the bright daylight to look for the usual line of taxis only to be greeted by a sunny smile and bright blue eyes. She held up a paper that read 'Elena Colby,' joke sparking in her eyes. Lena heard herself squeal and raced into Kara's arms for a hard hug. Kara wraps her arms tightly around Lena's shoulders.

"Hi," Kara sighs out.

"Hi," Lena breaths in Kara's familiar scent. This was just what she needed right now.

"What are you doing here?"

"Jess called. She told me you were going to the trial. She heavily implied that you might want some moral support. Then she emailed me your flight information in a not so subtle manner."

"You always were Jess' favorite." Lena chuckles at her old friend's antics. Lena had kept her in the loop about Kara, not the vigilante stuff but the reconnection. Kara laughs and pushes Lena back to really look at her. Bags under her eyes speak to sleepless nights. Kara leans against the car she rented that morning when she herself got into Metropolis.

"How are you, Lena?" Kara asks. Lena shrugs.

"Tired and stressed."

"You don't have to do this. They have enough evidence to lock him up for good."

"No. I have to see him. One last time."

"Okay. Let's get you to your hotel and we can go grab something to eat. When does the trial start?"
"I have to be there at eight-thirty tomorrow morning. The trail starts at nine-thirty."

"Okay-" Kara cuts off whatever she was saying and does a quick double take over Lena's shoulder. Suddenly she opens the passenger side door.

"Get in," She says almost harshly. Lena looks behind her and sees a couple of men with professional photography equipment. She gets in the car without another hesitation. Kara closes the door behind her and rushes to the driver's side. Kara starts the car a quickly peels away.

"How did they know?" Lena growls out.

"I think the witness list was released today. They must have come hoping to catch you. There is no way they knew what flight you were on."

"You're right. If they knew then there would be no way for me to get out of there unseen." Lena agrees. Kara swerves through traffic.

"Geeze, Kara, slow down." Lena cries out as Kara swerves into another lane despite the busy mid-afternoon traffic.

"Right. Sorry. I just wanted to get you away from them. I didn't realize." Kara immediately slows down to just above the legal speed limit.

"Thank you, but there really is no need to get pulled over too." Lena chuckles at Kara's red cheeks and sheepish look. The rest of the trip to the hotel is uneventful. Lena checks in under a fake name and hands over a LuthorCorp Credit card. The prosecutor's office was reimbursing everything anyway so Jess told her to put it on the card to avoid detection. In the room, Kara flops on the bed while Lena goes to shower. She felt like her skin was crawling after spending so much time in an enclosed space with so many strangers. She emerges to a gently snoring Kara and smiles, then hits her with a pillow.