Flying on Supergirl Airlines

Fifteen minutes later, I was stuffing my apron, paper hat, and name tag in my work locker while trying my best to calm my nerves. Not that I shouldn't be nervous: I was about to go on a date with freaking Supergirl. Most guys would kill to be in my position, and I didn't want to screw it up. Then again, most guys didn't have Supergirl obsessing over them so much.

Yes, despite living out the fantasy of every straight young man in the country (and the not-straight girls, presumably), I couldn't help but be a bit unnerved with Kara's behavior. She outright admitted to stalking me before, and now despite promising to slow down just this morning, she shows up at my work unannounced to take me to brunch even though she was supposed to be meeting up with a friend. Why was a famous superheroine like her so obsessed with a nobody like me? The question ate away at the back of my mind even as I made my way back to the front of the store.

As I passed the front counter, Tom gave me a friendly slap on the back, "Have fun, man. And hey, if you need an extra half-hour or so to play Supergirl with her again, I'll cover for you with Judy."

"Uh, thanks," I muttered, not sure what else to say. He grinned at me, and I managed to smile back briefly before making my way outside.

The second I exited the Metro Burger, Kara whipped her head around to face me. With a sunny smile she ran over and gave me a big hug, squeezing nearly all the air out of my lungs.

"Charlie!" she squealed, planting another kiss on my lips, "I missed you so much!"

"Uh, y-yeah, me too," I barely managed to **** out, "But maybe you could... ease up a bit..."

"Oh, sorry," she said, letting go of me, "I'm just so excited. And nervous."

Even while catching my breath, her statement stood out to me. Doing my best to articulate my question, I managed to gasp out, "Nervous? ...You? Why?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Kara asked, "It's our first date! I mean sure, we won't be alone exactly, but it's still a big deal."

"Yeah, I guess it is," I said, my breath now back in me, "But, uh, I thought we were still deciding what exactly 'we' were."

Kara pouted a bit at this, "Oh, right... well, isn't that what a date is for? Figuring out if we are compatible romantically?"

I thought about what she said a moment, then sighed, "You got me there. Okay S- Kara. Where are we going for our first date?"

She grabbed my arm and tugged, forcefully but not to the degree to cause pain, and I took the signal to follow her. As we walked she explained, "We're gonna meet a friend for mine for brunch. It was going to be just me and her, but I was missing you so much, and I figured she'd love to meet you anyway!"

Okay, at least she was telling the truth earlier about meeting a friend. I was honestly starting to worry that she had made up the whole brunch date thing to make it seem like she had a social life beyond just me. Actually, what kind of social life did she have? Before I assumed her social circle was filled with superheroes and celebrities and the like, but now that I know she had a secret identity...

"Oh, perfect!" Kara said, interrupting my thoughts, "Quick, down here!"

Before I could ask what she was talking about, Kara dragged me into an abandoned alleyway. Letting go of me, she took a quick look around, then peeked out onto the street we just left, "Okay, coast is clear. Let me change real fast and we can get going."

Before I could even ask what she was going to change into, Kara started spinning around in place at an insane speed, becoming a yellow whirlwind. I shielded my eyes from the gusts she was whipping up, though the roaring winds only lasted a few seconds before they started to die back down. Putting my arm down, I caught Kara doing her final rotation before slowing to a stop. However, now she was dressed in her Supergirl costume, hovering a few inches off the ground. The civilian clothes she had been wearing only moments before were now neatly folded in her arms, black-rimmed glasses resting on top.

All I could manage after a display like that was, "Whoa..."

"You like that?" she asked with a wry grin, "Wonder Woman taught me that one. Anyway, you ready to go?"

Once I managed to untie my tongue, I stammered out, "Um, h-how nice is this place? Is this going to be a superhero thing, or..."

"Superhero thing? What are you...?" She looks down at her costume, then laughs, "Oh, no, this isn't like a Justice League event or anything. Just a casual date with friends. Only reason I changed is so I could fly you there."

My eyes went wide, "F-Fly?!? Wait, we're gonna..."

"Yup," she said, landing and tucking her clothes under a nearby dumpster, sans her glasses which she slipped somewhere underneath her cape, "It's the only way we'll make it there in time, and if someone spots us it'll be easier to explain why you're flying with Supergirl than why you're flying with Kara Danvers."

She walked up and effortlessly picked me up in a bridal carry, just like she did when she first saved me, "You might want to put your arms around my neck. We're gonna be going pretty fast, and while I would never drop you, the extra support will make the ride a bit more comfortable."

I followed her instructions, putting my arms around her as I asked, "You sure I don't need to change? I mean, if nothing else I probably reek, and I don't know if..."

Kara brought her face right up to the nape of my neck and inhaled deeply, and as she did so I could actually feel her fingers digging into me, pressing me even closer against her body. After a long moment, she pulled back with a dopey smile and said, "Nope, you smell fantastic as always. You'll be fine."

"If you say so," I mumbled, idly wondering if maybe Kara had a secret body odor fetish. That might explain her odd behavior.

Composing herself, Supergirl said, "Alright, ready or not here we go. Up up and away!"

With a rush of wind Supergirl rocketed straight up into the air, clearing the roofs of the surrounding buildings in less than a second, then angled herself to begin traveling while continuing to gain altitude. Hanging on for dear life, I watched as the city below me started to grow more and more distant, until it was obscured by a haze of clouds. I felt like I was sitting on the wing of an airplane as it was taking off, except the airplane was hugging me, and had boob pillows attached to it.

Unsure of how long the trip would take, I decided to take the opportunity to ask one of the many questions swimming through my mind, "So, um, Kara. You have a secret identity?"

"Oh, yeah," she replied, "It was Kal- er, Superman's idea. When I first came to Earth, he told me that living among humanity as one of them would help me connect with people. I didn't really get it at first, but honestly being able to have a normal life is great."

"And it works? It's just a pair of glasses."

"It fooled you, didn't it?" Kara pointed out with a smirk, "It's not just the glasses. It's how you carry yourself, how you dress, the expressions you give off, even the tone of your voice. It all adds up, especially when people assume you don't have a secret identity to begin with. You get what I mean?"

Now that I was actively thinking about it, I realized what she was talking about. Supergirl tended to give off an air of confidence and strength, neither of which I would use to describe the dorky girl-next-door at Metro Burger.

"I think so," I said, "But why reveal it to me? It seems like a pretty big deal, and we only just met."

"I know, but..." Kara bit her lip, an admittedly amusing contrast with the way her golden hair was whipping majestically in the wind, "...but I love you, Charlie. A lot. And I trust you with my life. My whole life."

I admit, that made me feel pretty damn special. But now I suddenly felt a bit guilty.

"So I shouldn't have told my friend back there that I had sex with Supergirl last night, huh?" I asked sheepishly.

"Oh don't worry about that," Kara said with a smile, "I thought it was cute, even if he didn't believe a word of it. Besides, it's not like we've decided who you want to be publicly associated with."

This caught my attention, "Huh?"

"Privately I'll be yours no matter what identity I'm in, but if we're going to be dating, or even just hanging out in public on a regular basis, you'll need to decide whether you want me to be doing it as Kara Danvers or Supergirl," she explained.

My eyes went wide, "Wait, you'd be willing to date me openly as Supergirl? In full costume and everything?"

"Well if I'm being honest, I'd prefer if I dated you in my civilian identity, if only to keep the paparazzi and super-villains off our backs," Kara admitted, "But if you'd rather let everyone know you're close with Supergirl, I'm willing to do that too. Like I said before, I'm okay with whatever relationship you want with me, publicly or otherwise."

"Okay, wow, that's... that's a lot to take in," I said.

"You don't need to answer right away," Kara said, "I know it's a big decision, but I trust your judgement no matter what you choose."

I seriously doubted that I deserved that level of trust, but I knew better than to say that out loud, especially given how high up we currently were. Instead I asked, "When we're alone though... which one is the real you? Kara Danvers or Kara Zor-El?"

Kara frowned, "Both. And neither. It's... complicated. I guess you could say that the 'real' me is a mix of the two. But I promise that the Kara that loves you is the real deal, whether she's wearing glasses or a red cape. And that when it's just the two of us, I'll be completely open with you."

We both fell silent at this point, the conversation reaching a somewhat awkward lull. Before I had time to fully process the implication of everything she had told me, she suddenly said, "Okay, we're here. Hang on while I find a place to land."