who are you (pt. 2)
By popular demands... reviews work on me. I’ll try to make this good.
Alex limped along, her beanie hot and uncomfortable on her head. It was a warm fall day. Ever the diligent patient, she was taking a walk in the park while her mom went to work to deal with something that had come up at her lab.
The half-way point to her destination, she stopped to rest at a bench, and seeing no-one around, she took off her beanie and swiped her arm across her forehead. The sudden freedom from the beanie was cool on her mostly-bald head, the fine stubble of hair doing little to cover the large ugly scar across her skull. She was sweating buckets.
When Alex had cooled down a bit, she tugged the beanie back on her head and limped along again. Her walker might have been better on such a long walk, but Alex was... a bit embarrassed to be seen with it. She was angry that she was embarrassed. It would’ve made the walk to the stairs a lot easier.
She had remembered those stairs at the park. Funny how she remembered places and things about herself, but she didn’t remember people anymore. Alex spent a lot of time researching her own injuries. She wasn’t a medical doctor, but she was one of the foremost experts in xenobiology, so that skillset translated quite well for her to pick up human biology.
Alex had been focusing more on her physical rehabilitation first, studying the best methods to get her full mobility back, and the science behind artificial limbs, especially ones as advanced as what Lena had given her. Alex had read up on everything and was now slowly moving towards reading up on amnesia and found herself more and more distracted by pop-news stories on how people miraculously got their memories back. Alex liked those, they gave her a bit of hope that she wasn’t so brain-damaged, and that everything would come back with time.
When her memory situation became a bit too much, Alex would concentrate back on rehabilitating her body and getting full, unlimited motion back... Alex remembered being really active, and she remembered the gym... Why couldn’t she remember more than basic everyday things? Why can’t she remember people... Lena gave Alex all the literature on LEGolas that Alex wanted, protesting that Alex needed to pick another nickname for the prosthetic.
Alex had tried to joke, proposing to call it LEGardium Leviosa since her leg was gone, and Lena had thrown up her hands in exasperation and left her alone that day. Alex felt a bit guilty about that. Lena had looked so stricken, so sad, so furious at the joke... and Alex had just been trying to lighten the mood.
People didn’t find the fact that she had lost her right leg from mid-thigh down, a thing to laugh about. Sometimes Alex tried, but it just made the people around her upset. Only M’gann seemed to humour her, but Alex didn’t like telling M’gann those jokes because she would just smile at her in that soft, sad way.
When she got to the stairs, she started her exercises. Up one step fully, then down fully. Reps of ten, then rest. By the second rep, she was sweating again and her artificial leg was... sticking in the knee joint area. She was going to have to tell Lena and joke about how L-Corp products are shoddy.
“Hi.”
Alex stopped, looked back, recognising the blonde woman who had been at the rehab centre before.
“Hello.” Alex turned her body around slowly, using the handrail to carry her weight.
“Um.” The blonde fidgeted in place, biting her bottom lip nervously. “Um, hi.”
“Hi.” Alex held out her hand again. “Can I get a name this time?”
“It’s... it’s Kara.” Kara took Alex’s hand.
Alex smiled politely. “Just Kara?”
“Kara... Zor-El.” Kara replied, her hand still gripped in Alex’s. Kara only noticed a couple seconds later, too late for it to be normal, before pulling her hand back reluctantly.
“How do I know you?” Alex asked bluntly. She got straight to the point and felt her heart squeeze tightly at the sight of tears again.
“It’s all my fault.” Kara blurted out. “Everything--it’s all my fault.”
“You caused that explosion that blew off my leg? You were the terrorist?” Alex asked, eyebrow raised.
“Well, no, but--”
“If you didn’t set off that bomb, then it’s pretty much all me.” Alex shrugged. “The captain said I ran in to try and get the last hostages out--”
“I should’ve known there was another bomb. I should’ve been there--”
“You couldn’t have done anything.” Alex, for some reason, wanted to sooth the other woman. Wanted Kara to stop being so angry, wanted Kara to stop blaming herself. “And I came out okay. Sans leg, but they’re making me like, the billion-dollar woman now. Faster, harder, stronger.”
“But your head--”
“Hair grows back. And chicks dig scars, right?” Alex gave a wolfish grin. “I have like a million kajillion scars now. And if I don’t feel sorry for myself, I really don’t want you to, Kara. And--” Alex tapped the spot between Kara’s eyebrows, where a frown-induced crinkle had formed. “--get rid of that.”
Kara slapped a hand over her mouth, but Alex could hear that harsh sob that ripped out of the blonde. And at that sound, leg or no leg, suddenly Alex was down those steps, stumbling only slightly when LEGolas’ knee joint stuck a bit again--but had Kara in her arms, in less than a second.
“What’s wrong?” Alex asked frantically. “What’s wrong? Are you hurt? Are you okay?”
“Alex, Alex I’m so sorry. I’m sorry, I’m sorry...” Kara sobbed. “I should’ve--I should’ve--”
“Kara, even Supergirl can’t be everywhere at once. I don’t blame HER. So I don’t blame you either.” Alex rubbed Kara’s back. “I... don’t know who you are, but I’m guessing you were probably my... partner?”
Kara nodded, laughing wetly. “Something like that.”
“Something like that...” Alex smoothed away Kara’s hair from her face. “I... feel like I remember you.”
“What do you remember?” Kara asked, the anticipation in her eyes. Alex shook her head, hating that the gesture made Kara’s face fall.
“It’s not so much a memory. More of a feeling.” Alex suddenly felt... very tired. “Kara, sorry, do you mind if you walk me back home?”
Kara shifted away from the hug the were in, letting Alex loop an arm over Kara’s shoulders.
“Just lean on me.” Kara offered, when she heard the little grunt of pain Alex let out.
“Don’t mind if I do.” Alex relaxed against Kara. At first, she was hesitant to put all her weight on the blonde, but she found that Kara bore her weight easily, so relaxed her weight on Kara.
“Wow, you work out a lot, huh?” Alex gave Kara a little crooked smile. Kara blushed, ducking her head at the compliment.
“Well, I-I try.” Kara shrugged bashfully, the move almost lifting Alex off her feet.
“WOW.” Alex grinned at Kara. “Supergirl’s got nothing on you, Kara.”
Kara smiled again, this time slightly pained. They walked together in companionable silence for a bit, Alex concentrating on putting one leg in front of the other. In no time at all, Alex was back home.
“Do you wanna come up?” Alex blurted out, suddenly realizing she didn’t want Kara to go. Feeling like it was so wrong for Kara to even leave, like she belonged here, too. With Alex.
Kara’s lips turned up in a small pink smile.
“I’d like that.”
