Broken Hearts

Reunited

"How are you...How are you alive?" Alex asked softly, her voice fragile. After holding each other up, as if the world would collapse if the let go, J'onn helped them back the DEO. The martian had tears streaming down his cheeks, but he would never admit it. Now, they sit in a private room, and haven't said much until Alex finally built up the strength to break the silence that made her feel strained.

Kara hung her head. "The bomb didn't kill me, but I was really hurt. I was able to get away though. I was about to come back before they stopped me. They knew I could stop them, so they threatened you. They threatened Eliza. Everyone I loved. So, I stayed low." She explained, seeming ashamed. "I tried to fight back. Many times. But they had cameras and outlets in and out of all the houses of those I care about. If I showed my face, or the public found out I was alive, you, Eliza, Winn, Mon-El and so many others would have been killed."

Alex didn't say anything. Her eyes were dry but she was still able to shed a few tears after relentless crying. "I'm sorry." Kara said finally, after the millionth time, and looked up to meet her sister's gaze. "I really am."

Kara's eyes are bloodshot and cheeks puffy and blotchy. "I didn't know how to fight this one." She admitted. "I knew Lillian was capable of anything. I mean..." She hesitated. "I murdered her son."

"I just..." Alex's voice trailed. "I've just missed you so much." Which is all she could bear to say. Over the past two years, she could have written novels and novels of everything she would want to tell to Kara if she could just see her one last time. But the biggest words that weighed on her was that she missed her sister. Her comfort. Her playfulness. Her love for everyone and how optimistic she is. How, even after everything she has been through, her smile can shine brighter than any star in the galaxy.

"I missed you too." Kara spoke, wiping her cheeks and nose with her sleeve.

Until suddenly, the door barged in and voices carried along with it. "Don't go in-!" You could hear J'onn shouting, but Mon-El, Winn, and even James came tumbling through. Their eyes searched, just for a moment, until they landed on Kara.

They didn't say anything, but crowded the kryptonian with big, warm hugs. You could hear them choking on their own sobs, but struggled not to. Kara smiled, her swollen eyes filling with joy as she tried to wrap her arms around all three.

"Oh my god, I'm so relieved to see you guys." Kara breathed, sinking into the embrace. Her last memories with them seemed almost foggy. Over the past two years, she's learned to cut ties with her past to survive, building a wall between herself and her past family. But as Kara sees their faces again, a little older with a few more wrinkles, but still the same, she feels everything flooding back at once. Date nights with Mon-El, crime fighting with Winn, and bickering with James. Happy memories from days before her vanishing. When they were oblivious of the events that came.

And in the moment, Kara felt as if her heart was inflating and everything growing warm, but she couldn't tell if she was happy being back with them all. The guilt she bared on her shoulders weighed more than even a kryptonian could carry. Kara knew they didn't deserve her. They deserved better.

And as the trio departed from the hug, nose red and tears streaking their cheeks, they smiled brightly, so happy their Kara was home. They seemed to all glance over at once to Alex who sits behind them. And although she didn't say anything, her body drained and shoulders slumped, they could see the plea in her eyes. And her eyes begged for them to leave. Begged for them to leave so she could have a conversation with her sister. Something she's wanted for a long time now.

Winn, Mon-El, and James look up at Kara. "We should probably go, leave you two alone, but we're really happy to see you again, Kara." Winn said, his voice weak but joyful none the less. Her name almost felt foreign in his mouth for whenever he would speak it, it carried loss and sadness, but now it carried nothing but happiness.