Author's note: This is my first Supercorp fic ever, so... go easy on me?

I wrote this for my fiancé for Christmas so... Merry Christmas, darling! I hope you like where this is going.

Kara Danvers was the kind of girl who stayed out of trouble. 'Teacher's pet,' they called her. Class president. Always standing up for what was right.

Lena Luthor, on the other hand, was the kind of girl to light fires over the bathroom rubbish bins 'for science.'

"What are you doing?" Kara snapped, upon entering the bathroom where the woman in question was burning… something.

"Oh, nothing," Lena answered casually. "Just conducting an experiment."

"An experiment to see how fast you can get expelled?!" Kara shouted. "Put it out!"

"No," Lena replied coolly.

"What are you even burning?"

"It's magnesium powder."

"But why are you burning it?"

"For science."

"Okay, but why."

Now, Kara was just plain curious. Lena hadn't looked up from her experiment.

"You add magnesium powder into a hollow carved in two blocks of dry ice. Then, you insert a lit fuse made of magnesium ribbon. Placing the blocks together seals the magnesium from air. The magnesium burns inside the dry ice, producing a beautiful glow. When the fire is out, what remains is white magnesium oxide and black carbon."

Kara stared at the young woman with a sense of both wonder and confusion. Lena was right. The ice was glowing.

"You're literally using fire in a—"

"Thank you, Hall Monitor. I'm well aware that fire is necessary to create the chemical reaction I'm attempting to produce."

"Well… You have to stop."

Lena laughed – loud and cold.

"And you're going to stop me how?"

Feeling power course through her veins but knowing she couldn't use her abilities on a classmate at school, Kara clenched her fists and gritted her teeth.

"I'm going to get—"

"Do it," Lena dared her. "But don't tell me it's not cool."

Pausing to watch the experiment as the ice continued to glow, Kara hesitated. The bathroom was dark, so the light from the burning magnesium ribbon made Lena's face glow, illuminating her perfectly sculpted features in dim, white light. She was, Kara noticed, quite beautiful.

"Okay, well…" Kara said, after a longer pause than she would've liked to admit she allowed. "I'm still telling."

"You're a fucking senior in high school. Are you seriously going to go tattle to the principal?"

"It's my duty as class president to—"

But Lena's laugh cut her off, rendering her unable to finish the sentence.

"Alright, fine," Kara huffed, when the woman's laughter finally died down. "I'm leaving. But… make sure you clean this mess up when you're done."

Not even bothering to roll her eyes, Lena allowed Kara to leave the bathroom without so much as a passing glance.

~!~!~

A few days passed before the two had another encounter, as they didn't have any classes together. (Lena was in all AP courses, while Kara took all college prep classes.) When Kara finally did run into Lena again, it was long after class had been dismissed, around six. Kara's blonde hair was tied up in a loose bun, and her glasses were fogged up from her hot, panting breaths, after leaving her track practice. Still, she had no visible sweat.

Of course, she had to hold back during practice, given her… unique abilities. Regardless, she enjoyed the work out and spending time with her friends.

But the last person she was expecting to see late after class was Lena Luthor, given that the girl owned an overpowered Mercedes and could easily drive herself home after school. Kara, on the other hand, took the late bus after practice.

Kara found the girl hunched over a desk in the chemistry room, staring down at a pile of… Kara didn't know what.

"Now what?" Kara asked haughtily, a smug expression displayed on her lips.

"Hello, Girl Scout. Pleasure to have you interrupt me," Lena replied, voice dripping with sarcasm.

When whatever Lena was working on sparked loudly, Kara stumbled backwards in shock.

"What are you doing?"

"Using aluminum foil, saltwater, and activated charcoal to construct a simple battery strong enough to power a small motor or light. Thinking about how to turn it into something powerful enough to run the nuclear reactor in my basement."

Kara rolled her eyes and mumbled, "Speak English, would you?"

With a huff, Lena finally dropped the tools she was using to build the battery and looked up at Kara with annoyance.

"What do you want, Hall Monitor?"

Kara shrugged.

"Just making sure you're not going to burn the school down when no one is looking."

"Hey, at least you'd get out of school for a while," Lena said, smirking as she turned back to her experiment.

"That's not funny!" Kara shot back. "People could get hurt! You're not the only one in the building, you know!"

"What do I care?" Lena laughed. "You'll just run around at super Hall Monitor speed saving everyone. They'll be fine."

"You're insufferable, you know that?" Kara replied, glaring at Lena.

"Then why don't you walk away?"

Kara's mouth fell open as she stared at Lena, who was refusing to dignify Kara's protests by raising her gaze.

"Fine," Kara finally snapped. "I will. Just watch yourself, alright? Because next time I catch you burning stuff in the bathroom, I'm going to get you expelled."

Kara couldn't see it, but Lena rolled her eyes.

~!~!~

A week or so later, oil and water ran into each other again, this time behind the school.

Lena, to Kara's surprise, was sitting on the back steps with her head in her hands. Judging by the way Lena's shoulders were shaking, Kara could tell that she was crying.

"Uh… Lena?" Kara asked hesitantly.

"Piss off," Lena hissed, choking on the words.

"Lena, are you—"

"You can relax, Girl Scout," Lena said bitterly. "I'm not setting anything on fire. You can leave me the hell alone now."

Biting her lip and hesitating on the steps beside Lena, Kara looked down at the woman who was so obviously upset. At first, Kara wanted to leave. Wanting to leave the ungrateful smartass to cry on the steps. But she knew this was wrong, and something in her gut told her to stay. That being the case, Kara took a slow breath and sat down cautiously on the steps beside Lena.

"Hey… Seriously… What's going on?"

"Piss off," Lena growled, lifting her head only briefly to aim her shove at Kara's shoulders, attempting to push her back.

Kara didn't budge.

Lena blinked, startled by the firmness of Kara's body, and her inability to move the woman out of the way.

"Talk to me," Kara gently offered, her gaze softening as she looked into Lena's wet eyes.

The sweetness and sincerity in Kara's voice made Lena forget all about Kara's body of steel.

"I…" Lena started, before catching herself about to share real feelings. "I'm fine. Just leave me alone."

"It's okay," Kara assured her. "You can talk to me. I won't tell anyone."

"You couldn't even explain the most basic concept of quantum physics. Why should I talk to you?"

This blow Kara felt. Deeply. Lena was calling her stupid.

"I'm not an idiot, you know," Kara shot back. "Just because I hate science doesn't mean I'm stupid."

Lena hesitated, seeing the sudden pain on Kara's face.

"Look, I'm sorry. I just don't trust people, okay? Especially not preppy, self-righteous jocks. So, please, just leave."

Kara wavered before deciding, "I'm not leaving you to cry here by yourself."

"I'm not crying!" Lena screamed.

Raising an eyebrow, Kara gently pressed, "Why's your face wet then?"

"It was raining!"

"From your eyes?" Kara chuckled lightly.

When Lena scowled daggers in her direction, Kara offered a warm smile in response and bravely put her hand on the girl's shoulder.

"It's okay. Seriously. I'm not going to tell anyone. What's making you so upset?"

"My… My mother… She… She told me… that… that my brother's death was my fault," Lena finally confessed, Kara's sweetness pulling the words from her lips like a silk ribbon sliding between two fingers.

Kara's mouth almost fell open, but she held it together long enough to gently reply, "I'm sorry, Lena. That's a terrible thing for her to say."

Lena's brother, Lex Luthor had died the previous year, when they were juniors. No one knew the details of the accident, so Kara couldn't really speak to the validity of Lena's mother's assertion, but Kara did know one thing: that thought – the thought that she killed her own brother – would eat anyone alive if they let it fester.

"It's probably true," Lena sniffled, pulling a tissue from her bag and wiping her eyes and nose delicately.

"Hey… Don't say that. I'm sure that's not the case. You're…"

But Kara couldn't finish her sentence in good conscience. She was… what? Cold? Cunning? Calculating? Even a little creepy? Beautiful none the less? No, Kara couldn't say that. Besides… something gave Kara the strong, distinct feeling that Lena was so, so much more than that. But saying that much would be going too far, so Kara didn't say so.

"I'm what?" Lena pressed, feeling anger rise in her throat like lava.

"You cared about your brother."

This gave Lena pause before she replied with conviction, "That's very true."

"I don't think you'd hurt him. Everyone knows how close you were and how much you protected each other."

"Yeah, well… Apparently, my mother doesn't know that."

Again, Kara was stumped for words. What do you even say to someone whose mother blames them for their brother's death?

Realizing that she'd been silent far too long, Kara awkwardly stammered, "Hey… um… I'd… uh… be happy to, um…"

Lena looked up, confused by Kara's sudden lack of confidence, as demonstrated by her stammering.

"Spit it out, Four Eyes."

Shaken slightly by Lena's name-calling, Kara blurted, "We could hang out sometime if you… you know… need a friend."

Laughing bitterly at this as she wiped away the last of her tears, Lena answered, "Luthors don't need friends."

Raising an eyebrow and daring to challenge the girl, Kara retorted, "Well, maybe now one does."

"Yeah, right, Class President. Like I could ever be friends with you…"

But the way Lena wavered and trailed off slowly made Kara doubt her sincerity, and the realization that Lena was likely covering her loneliness to feign strength made the corners of Kara's lips turn upwards into a slight smirk.

"Okay, Lena. Have it your way. I'll be here if you change your mind."

Kara shrugged, rose to her feet, and began to walk away, but before she could even make it to the second step down, Lena asked, unfiltered, "Would you really be friends with a Luthor?"

Sporting an even broader smile, Kara turned around and looked at Lena, whose eyes were still red from crying.

"I don't judge people by their last name, Lena. You're just another person to me. You're your own person."

Feeling something hit her square in the gut, Lena almost fell backwards. Eyes wide as she stared, Lena found herself unable to speak. Never, not in her whole eighteen years, had anyone ever said those words to her. Kara was the first.

But old habits die hard, and lifestyles don't change overnight.

"Yeah, well… That's stupid anyway. I don't need friends. You can go now."

Shaking her head, never losing her glowing smile, Kara shrugged again and said, "As you wish."

~!~!~

Kara kept an eye on Lena from afar over the next week or so. Though she said nothing as they passed each other in the hallways, her thoughts drifted back to the Luthor frequently, and the way the girl's tears had stained her pale cheeks on the steps behind the school.

One afternoon, when Kara was gathering her books from her locker, she heard the distinct sound of something heavy slamming against metal. Wasting no time, Kara turned the corner down the second hallway and found Lena being held against the locker by a large, aggressive-looking football player.

"Hey!" the blonde shouted, hands on her hips as she approached the two. "Let her go!"

"Stay out of this, Danvers," the young man growled, glaring at Lena.

"I don't—" Lena choked, fighting against his forearm, which was crushing her windpipe "—know—what—you're talking about."

"Lex owes me a favor, princess," the young man growled. "And now that he's gone… you've gotta pay it."

Kara's hand gripped the man's shoulder tighter than steel as she hissed, "I said let her go."

"Jesus Christ!" he shouted, collapsing to his knees as she pressed down hard on his shoulder.

Kara had never appreciated her super strength more than in this very moment, where she was the one to save Lena from God-knows-what he would have done to her.

"Get out of here. And don't touch her again," Kara snarled.

The sweetness in her voice was gone. Tone, body, and nerves of steel all came together to build one strong front against evil, just as they always had. She'd deal with Lena's confusion about her ability to take a senior football player down with one hand later.

"How did you—" Lena gaped, rubbing her throat, which was already bruising.

"I work out," Kara said dismissively, shrugging her shoulders as she knelt down in front of Lena, who had shrunk to the floor. "Are you okay?"

Then, as Lena remained silent, Kara noticed something else. Lena was struggling with her belt. Reflexively, Kara dropped her gaze to find Lena tugging her jet-black, skin-tight jeans up. They weren't down far enough to see anything, but they were down far enough that Kara knew what had almost happened.

"Lena," she whispered. "I'm so sorry. Let me help you up."

Kara moved to stand, holding out her hand, but Lena slapped it away.

"Don't touch me. I'm fine. Just go. I don't need you to protect me."

"I know," Kara said, surprising Lena beyond belief. "I know you're strong. Still, it's really my pleasure to help. But… if you want me to leave, I'll go. Besides, someone has to go twist his balls off. Might as well be me."

"Well, if anyone can do it, it's you," Lena said, chuckling as the lighthearted comment slipped out on its own. "Seriously, though… How did you take him down like that?"

With a sly smile, Kara replied, "I'll see you around, Lena."

"Kara, wait," Lena called out, as Kara turned to leave. "I mean… I know you like to butt in and get involved in everyone's business, but… other than that… why did you come to help me?"

Kara laughed and rolled her eyes. Lena just couldn't ask a question without leaving an insult first.

"I like to do the right thing," Kara answered with a light shrug.

But she was also thinking, And I like you.

This, of course, she couldn't say – to Lena or herself – so she waited a moment as Lena gracefully rose to her feet, wiped a single bead of sweat from her brow, and pulled her zipped jeans up slightly on her hips.

"Lena…" Kara said, suddenly losing her confidence about walking away and leaving the girl alone after such an encounter.

"Yes, Girl Scout?"

Kara's lips parted as she tried to speak, but her mouth was dry.

"I don't want you to be alone right now."

"I'm fine. I was about to head home anyway, and I…" Lena answered slowly.

But she knew she wasn't fine. Her heart was still racing, pumping her veins full of adrenaline. She'd been terrified of what the jock was about to do. She might've been smarter than anyone else in the school, but he'd caught her off guard, and she hadn't been able to overpower him physically. But then… there was Kara. One handed, she took him down without so much as breaking a sweat. What the hell? Lena was thinking. And also: Why does she have to be so pretty?

"I don't want to call you a liar, Lena, and I'll take you at your word, but…" Kara started. "But I think anyone who was in your shoes just then would be terrified and shaken up, to some degree. I know I would."

"I'm not just 'anyone,'" Lena retorted, crossing her arms over her chest defiantly.

"No," Kara agreed. "No, you're not. But that doesn't mean you don't feel fear. And it doesn't mean you don't need a friend sometimes."

"Ugh!" Lena shouted, the sound echoing through the empty hallway. "Will you let up on that 'friends' thing? I already told you—"

"Luthors don't need friends. I know," Kara finished with a sigh. "But… even if you don't need one… you could want one… and that would be okay, you know."

"What makes you think I'd be friends with you?"

"This conversation is sounding awfully familiar."

"It is, isn't it? So why don't we both just end it and go our separate ways."

"You're awfully cold for someone who just got their honor saved."

"Hey!" Lena shouted. "Fuck you! I had it handled!"

"Can't you just say, 'thank you,' and stop acting like you're better than everyone else?"

Lena scowled, earning a sigh from Kara.

"Alright, Lena. Nevermind. I didn't do it for the thank you, anyway. I did it because I care about you." After a pause, Kara added, "Have a good night, Lena. Please, be safe."

Kara walked back to her locker as Lena turned to her own and removed her bag and textbooks, before both went their separate ways, each leaving the building though different doors.

All the way home, music blaring, Lena could only think about Kara's last three words: Please, be safe.

Author's note: Thanks for reading! Hopefully this wasn't too awful. I did my best. ;)