#and yes I didn't include her number on purpose I promise!

[officersnickers]

"Farewell..."

[stranger-marauders]

fractured

twenty-two: the snow ball

chapter summary: Kate and Steve both help their favorite members of the party get ready for their school dance.

chapter warnings: language

word count: 2.1k

series masterlist | masterlist

ABOUT A MONTH later, Kate found herself helping El get ready for the Hawkins Middle School Annual Snow Ball.

Hopper had finally given the Snow Ball date with Mike the okay only a couple of hours before the scheduled start time of the dance, making Kate's life extremely difficult rather quickly for a few hours. It wasn't like her father had done it on purpose, but he'd only gotten Dr. Owens's approval after meeting with him for lunch and officially getting El's birth certificate from him that day—officially, El was finally a Hopper, through and through.

That also meant, however, that Kate didn't have any time to go out and buy El a new cute dress for her date with Mike, and she certainly didn't have any time to try and figure out a way to style short hair well. She seriously contemplated calling Steve and asking for advice, but she figured that she wouldn't subject El to such torment, nor would she dare boost his ego.

Now, though, Kate was much more focused on doing El's makeup, more specifically trying to incorporate what little eyeshadow she had with an old dress she'd found for Eleven as Christmas music played loudly from the radio in the background. "All right, I know I'm not the best with this type of thing, but I'm trying my best, here, I promise."

Whenever El caught her reflection in the mirror, she smiled slightly. "Pretty."

Since Halloween, her hair had grown out a tad bit more, and Kate had styled it to where it had barely hung down from her head, slicking back some of her curls. Her dress, a simple but cute gray dress with pink dots and a pink belt that Kate had found in her closet from a past dance of her own that El had very quickly fallen in love with, not to mention it fit her perfectly.

"Um, no," Kate said, raising her eyebrows and smiling at her. "You're absolutely, drop-dead gorgeous."

El giggled as Kate made the finishing touches on her eyes. She could tell her sister was worried about what Mike would think, but Kate figured she couldn't go wrong with the pink eyeshadow.

"You are… pretty," El said, looking at Kate.

"Oh yeah, hot stuff?" she asked.

"Is it… Steve?"

Whenever El had said his name, Kate's face tinged with pink ever-so-slightly, and she pressed her lips together, trying to hide her smile.

El had been correct in pointing out Kate was pretty. At that moment, Kate was wearing one of her nicer sweaters and a pair of jeans, but she had put on a tad bit more makeup than she normally did. She hadn't even tied her hair back sloppily while she was fixing El's makeup because she'd done it so nicely, and she didn't even seem fazed by the pieces of hair that kept falling in her face (she was, in fact, very fazed). She looked too nice for just hanging out at the cabin by herself, so El knew she must've been busy with someone. That didn't even include the two hours that she'd listened to Kate in her room next door cursing about how she didn't have anything cute to wear for her date with Steve.

"Yes, Steven and I are going out, but that's after Dad and I drop you off at your dance. That is why you, hot stuff, are currently my number one priority."

El giggled as Kate continued putting makeup on her face. Without a moment's warning, her father knocked on her bedroom door. "Hey, we're gonna be late if you don't hurry up in there."

"Shit," Kate mumbled under her breath, rushing to apply the last bit of blush to El's face.

"What?"

"I'm hurrying!" Kate said, smiling as he opened the door. "Considering the time crunch, doesn't she look great?"

Hopper nodded, giving a smile. "Perfect."

Kate wasn't the only one that had decided to take a member of the party to the Snow Ball.

"All right, buddy, here we are," Steve said as he pulled up to the front of the middle school. "So, remember, once you get in there…"

"Pretend like I don't care," Dustin said, his hair looking strikingly similar to Steve's but definitely more flamboyant than his. The curls definitely messed with the style he had been going for, but made it all the more adorable—Dustin really did have good hair, with or without the Farrah Fawcett spray.

"You don't care."

"I don't care," Dustin repeated.

"There you go. You're learning, my friend. You're learning."

Dustin adjusted the mirror in Steve's car to look at his hair again, which Steve immediately adjusted back. "Hey!"

"What?" Dustin asked nervously.

"Come on. You look great, okay? You look… You look great. Okay? Now you're gonna go in there…"

"Yeah."

"Look like a million bucks."

"Yeah."

"And you're gonna slay 'em dead," Steve said.

"Like a lion," Dustin responded, purring to show off his teeth.

Steve gave him an awkward smile. "Yeah, don't do that, okay?"

"Okay."

"Good luck," Steve said, sticking his hand out to shake Dustin's.

Once he got out of Steve's car, he watched as Dustin went inside. He lingered for a moment to make sure he got inside okay, only to find Nancy move into view.

Jonathan and Nancy had almost immediately started dating after she and Steve had broken up. Steve knew he probably should have been completely torn up about it, but he wasn't. Watching her now, he smiled. He and Nancy were both finally with who they were always supposed to be with. They were happy. Without dreading on the thought for another moment, he parked off to the side in the parking lot, waiting for Kate to meet him there.

Out of all of the people living at the cabin, Hopper had been the most worried about the night that lay ahead.

While it worried him that his oldest daughter was going out on a date, his youngest, El, was going out for the first time in a public place. He decided just in case anything happened he was going to be right outside the gym of the middle school until the night was over. He knew he wouldn't be alone—Joyce would be there too. That didn't scare him as much as the thought that this was El's first date with Mike.

As for Kate, he was glad that out of all the douchebags in Hawkins, it was the one he'd known for most of the kid's life. Realistically, Steve hadn't been a douchebag for about a year, but Kate and Hopper had compromised on the fact that while Steve had been around forever, he was still automatically the douchebag that was dating his daughter (Hopper, however, would always have respect for Steve because of the promise he'd made, the same one neither of them would tell Kate about). Hopper was happy with that arrangement, and so was Kate: things were seemingly how they were meant to be.

Once Hopper, Kate, and El pulled into the school parking lot, both girls had gotten out of the SUV and greeted their father goodbye. He smiled, waving his two girls off as they went out for the night.

His girls were growing up.

"All right, you've got this," Kate said, walking her to the door. "Mike's your man tonight."

El giggled. "Thank you."

"Don't forget to have fun!"

"See you later."

Kate stifled a laugh. "Yes ma'am, you will." Once Kate had watched her walk inside of the Hawkins Middle School gym all on her own, she turned around to find a familiar red BMW parked not too far away from the front of the school.

Once she had gotten close enough to the car, Steve rolled the window down and smiled at her. "Hey, beautiful."

Kate laughed as she got into the car. "Hello, Steven."

As she sat inside of the car, he said, "I missed you."

"It's only been a few hours since you've seen me!" Kate said once she'd gotten the car door shut, trying not to smile.

"I know, it's been awful," he said, cupping her face and pressing his lips to hers.

He still couldn't believe it, even after six weeks of getting to kiss her, that he was actually kissing her. It still remained to be something of a fever dream for him, even when his lips were pressed against hers. It wasn't until they were both out of breath that they pulled away from each other, cheeks flushed.

"All right, where are we going?" Steve finally asked, intertwining their fingers.

"I don't know, you pick."

"Hm," he said, pondering over the few restaurants in town. "What about Enzo's?"

"Oh my God, we're definitely not dressed for that."

"I mean, you are."

She stifled a laugh. "You're adorable when you try and flatter me."

"Oh, come on, it's our first real date! We have to do something special to mark the occasion," Steve said, trying to ease her into the idea. Because it was now the middle of December, his original idea of taking her to Lover's Lake to see the stars with a cheap ass bottle of champagne and a picnic of her favorite foods just so they could go out and see the stars was a flop. He knew it was a lovely idea, mostly because Kate loved looking at the stars so much, but with it being so late and night without any true preparation for such a thing, the Lover's Lake picnic was off the table, at least for the time being. "I mean, you look great, as always, so…"

"You're so cheesy."

"You make me cheesy."

She rolled her eyes, trying to hide her smile. "Sure."

He shook his head, only smiling dopily as he gazed out the car window and to the gym. "Man, remember when we used to go to these things?"

"We never went together, stupid," she replied, only watching the gym windows as the lights outside changed. She could even hear the music that they were playing, which had been all selections of songs that were currently playing off the radio. Currently, "Every Breath You Take" played so loudly that she could hear it from inside the car. "You always had some cute date, and I would sit on the bleachers with Kim and Jess because no guys wanted to hang out with us."

He sighed. He always seemed to forget what things had been like for people other than him. "I'm sorry about that. Like, seriously, okay?"

"Steve, it was a stupid middle school dance. I really don't care," she said, laughing. "I mean, I didn't care about that stuff, like at all. I still don't."

"Yeah, but I still feel bad."

"Don't worry about it," she replied, shooing the thought away with her hand. "It'll just make it more fun whenever you force me to go to prom and I don't know how to dance."

He smiled. Without another word, he got out of his car. She could only watch as he walked around the car, staring at him in confusion. "What are you doing?"

Steve opened her car door, holding his hand out to her. "I would be honored if you would be my date to the Snow Ball."

She laughed, nodding her head. Cheesy asshole. "Yeah, okay. Sure."

Whenever she stepped out of the car, Steve pulled her in closer to her, putting his hands on her waist. He smiled and chuckled whenever she hesitantly put her hands on his shoulders, trying not to step on his feet as they swayed. "See? You've got it. It's not so bad, right?"

She shook her head and smiled, loosening her death grip on his shoulders. "Yeah, not so bad."

"Finally good to get that dance, huh?"

"Yeah," she said, putting her arms around his neck and her head on his chest. "This the perfect first date you have in mind?"

He stifled a laugh, looking down at her slightly. "Actually, no, but I think this is better than that."

She smiled. "After this, you wanna post-game at the diner and get milkshakes?"

He wrapped his arms around her waist tighter, pulling her in closer to him as he chuckled. "Why am I not surprised?"

As they enjoyed the presence of each other, trying to make the best of their time together, both of them couldn't think of a time when they'd ever been so happy.

That was, more than anything, what they deserved: Steve Harrington and Kate Hopper had waited entirely too long for it not to be that way.

repaired

taglist:

@thatsonezesty13 @cece5298 @thepowerstoner @alovelytardis @coolchick333 @stand-tall-pineapple @littlet-holmes @guichu @cinderellacauseshebroke @blackbirddaredevil23 @mads-weasley @ilovemarauders @pearlstiare @liableperfections @khaylin27 @girlwiththerubyslippers

[dragon-kazansky]

Made with love | Helmut Zemo

Chef Zemo AU! 👨‍🍳

Gender neutral reader

Collage by @realremyd

[Previous chapter]

Part 14 - Finale

Tony Stark stood at the opposite end of the square. He was staring right at the restaurant on the corner. The restaurant with the lovely view. The restaurant with the nice outdoor seating area. The restaurant he was to be at tonight.

Tony clenched his fist beside him. He just needed to get the rights to the building. He needed Helmut Zemo to accept the cheque and sign it over.

Sure, the restaurant looked fresh and new, but no amount of make overs would save it from the wrath of Tony Stark. He was a man with a plan, and tonight he would come out on top.

His eyes narrows on the movement in the window. Someone he didn't recognise was checking over the tables. With a sigh, he turns on his heel and disappears.

Veronica had a clipboard in hand with a checklist. She was checking off everything and making sure the whole restaurant was ready for tonight. You were by the bar with your own clipboard, going through a list with Sam.

"That's everything. Think you can handle it?" You ask him, looking over the shelves behind him.

"With Bucky and Natasha here, I think we got it. Just waiting for those coffee beans."

"Natasha has gone to get them. I got a few bags, though I think people will be more interested in your end of the bar," you chuckle.

Sam winks at you.

"I've got many tricks up my sleeve."

"Blow them all away!"

You check off the drinks list and turn around to face Veronica.

"All menus out?"

"All accounted for," she replies. She smiles and checks off her own list.

"Good. Left or right?" You asks.

"Right."

"Right is your side for the evening. I'll have left and outside."

"I can help with outside," she says.

"Outside is neutral territory then," you chuckle. She nods and you both mark it down. "I'll go check the kitchen, the waiting staff should be soon, make sure Wanda knows."

Veronica nods and you head into the kitchen.

Helmut has his back to you as he gives out orders. Chefs are spread throughout the kitchen, each with their assignments. You smile at the way he is handling it all.

You let him finish giving out orders before coughing softly and calling his name.

Helmut turns instantly and smiles at you.

"How's it going, chef?"

You haven't called him that since the day you made that paella with him. His lips curl into a mischievous grin as he steps closer to you.

"All is well in my domain. How about out front?"

"We are ready for the main event."

He kisses you.

"Your father would be so proud of you," you tell him.

Hearing you say that makes his heart flutter. That's all he ever wanted to do.

"Something smells delicious," you say, laughing softly.

Helmut glances over his shoulder.

"That could be a number of things."

You both laugh together before you kiss his cheek and let him crack on with it. You made a promise to see him later when you both head home to change.

When you go back out, Wanda is with her staff for the night. Wanda was beyond excited to play head waitress tonight, she wanted to be as useful as she could to you. You assured her she had ways been helpful. After all, she did play match maker.

Wanda turns when you approach, dismissing the staff who go ahead and make themselves busy with Veronica.

"Are you excited?" Wanda asks.

"I'm nervous. Tonight has so much to prove."

"We can do it."

"I know," you sigh softly. Wanda pulls you in for a hug.

"We're a team, we're going to do this."

You nod. You both take a deep breath together and smile.

"Let's finish the final touches and get our asses back so we can all change for the evening."

You nod and go through the last checklist.

Back at the apartment, you change your clothes. As a host you wouldn't be wearing your apron, so you wore something smart and presentable. Helmut was all ready to go, his apron back at the restaurant. He was just waiting for you to finish up.

When you were done, you stood in front of him in the living room.

"Ready?" He asks.

"Ready."

You take Helmut's hand and kiss him as he leans in. You both smile and leave the apartment.

It was becoming very real now.

You arrive at Escorpión Morado. Helmut has all staff gather in the kitchen. You stand beside your boyfriend as he faces his staff.

"We only have one shot to show Tony Stark that this is my restaurant. One shot to prove that we're not irrelevant. Escorpión Morado has stood here this long and it will stand for many years to come. He can offer me all the money he wants, but I will never sell my father's pride and joy to him. I need everyone focused, ready, and open for any changes. Nothing can go wrong here."

Everyone replies with 'yes chef!'

He turns to you and nods. You nod back and gesture for Veronica to follow. Wanda and the wait staff follow behind, Sam, Bucky and Natasha behind them.

You and Veronica stand in front of the doors. You can see all the people you invited waiting to come inside. The butterflies in your stomach are having a ball.

Sam, Bucky, and Natasha take their places behind the bar.

Wanda and the waiters stand to one side of the room.

You take a deep breath and put on a smile as both you and Veronica open the doors.

"Welcome everyone."

One by one you guide them inside. Veronica and yourself guide people to tables, having accounted for everyone you invited. That included extra guests of which you anticipated Tony to have considering you went to his party with more than he bargained for.

You smile, greet, talk them through the menu.

However, all but one table was full. You cast glances at Wanda, Natasha, and the boys. Each of them shrug.

Tony hadn't arrived yet.

Helmut stands by the kitchen door. You lock eyes with him and shook your head subtly. He glances toward the door and grits his teeth slightly.

Stark was doing this on purpose.

You turn to fine other guests. They're all local people. Some have been here since the restaurant was first built. Some who came here as children. Some who had been every day. They knew this place. They knew Helmut. They knew why this was happening tonight.

You smile at those who recognise you for your hard work these last few weeks.

"It's wonderful to see everyone. Thank you all so much for coming, though it appears our V.I.P of the night is running late. I hope you'll be happy to wait just a moment longer. Though, should he not arrive soon, we will just have to start without him."

There were no signs of negativity. They agreed to wait.

You looked at Sam.

"Perhaps drinks are in order?" You smile at him.

"Coming up."

Wanda nodded at the waiters. Each of them pulled out a notepad and began taking orders for drinks. You turned back to the door and waited.

"Where do you think he is?" Veronica asks, coming over to stand beside you.

"No idea, but he must be up to something."

Just as you said that three figures appeared up ahead. They walking across the square together. You narrow your eyes trying to work put exactly who they were. You knew for a fact none of them were Tony.

As they got a little closer, you could see them.

Pepper, Strange, and Heike.

You wanted to scream, but you were going to be a professional. He sent is entourage ahead.

As they come to the door, you greet them the same way you had everyone else. Heike was looking at you with such a piercing gaze, but you didn't let that bother you.

"Come in, Veronica, will you show them to their table?"

"With pleasure," she says, though not for a single moment did she mean it.

You watched as they followed Veronica to their table, but then turned back to the open door.

Helmut came up beside you, his hand on your back.

"Nothing?"

"Not yet. His party are here though," you say nodding at the table. He glances over and sighs when he sees Heike looking at him. She looks eager to gain his attention.

"Want me to wait with you?" He asks.

You shake your head.

"No, go back to the kitchen. We'll start taking orders now. You need to be ready for when they come in."

He kisses your temple and makes his way back to the kitchen. Heike rises from her chair and stops him at the kitchen door.

"Can we talk?"

He glares at her.

"No."

He pushes on and goes into the kitchen, not wanting to hear any more.

You turn Wanda and nod at her. She claps once and the waiters are on the floor taking orders. You pull put your own notepad and help them out.

You smile as you take the order for the nearest table. A lovely old couple who remember the days Heinrich ran this place. You chat with them before heading to the kitchen.

Orders are already pinned up and ready. Helmut is there to take your order. You smile at each other as you hand it over. He pins it up and shouts it out.

You wink at him and head back out front.

Headlights. You can see headlights at the other end of the square. Everyone in the restaurant can see them, all turning to look.

You stand by the door.

A red sportscar.

Tony Stark.

It cruises across the square. How he managed to get it there, you will never know. This square wasn't for cars.

It cruises along, only coming to a stop by the door. The headlights turn off and the drivers door opens. The man of the hour climbs out and turns to you. He closes the door and comes to stand in front of you.

"I hope you're hungry Mr. Stark."

"Starving."

You gesture into the restaurant. He walks in. Veronica shows him to the table and holds his chair out for him. The room was silent as they watched him take his seat. Veronica steps back and looks at you.

"As you were," he calls out.

You nod at Veronica who gets him a menu and takes his starter order.

You walk up to the bar and look at Sam. He already knows what you want. You had discussed it with him before hand. He pushes the drink across the bar to you.

You take it and present it to Tony yourself.

"Morado de Verano."

He takes it. He looks at it. He smells it.

You stand there and watch.

He sips it.

You are the way he seems to freeze for a moment. He tastes it. He's annoyed by how good it is. You can see he likes it, but he won't admit it.

You smile.

Sam sees you smiling. He gives Bucky a little high five behind the bar.

Just as you walk away, the waiters comes out with the starters. They flood the restaurant and present their dishes. You head into the lit hen to help.

Helmut looks up immediately as you enter.

"Well?"

"He's here. I gave him a drink. Veronica took his order."

"I have it," he taps the order.

You nod and take one of the orders waiting. Helmut tells you which table it is for and you nod.

"I love you!" He yells, before you leave his sight again.

You laugh and yell back, "I love you too!"

Things are going smoothly. People are enjoying their starters and there's conversation in the air. Every so often you glance up at Stark's table. There is not a single smile there.

You nod at Sam and makes another round of drinks for the table.

Orders for the main courses come in. You take Stark's order yourself. You ignore the way he stares at you. You especially ignore the way Heike is staring at you. You note down their orders and put on a smile, leaving as quickly as you could.

Natasha leans in before you reach the kitchen.

"I could take her out, you know."

You laugh.

"Not tonight Nat."

You go into the kitchen and give Helmut the order. He takes it from you, fingers purposely brushing against yours and making you blush. He smirks when he sees your reaction and then shouts out the order.

He looks at you.

"All good?"

"Yeah, in here?"

"Yeah. Though I am missing you terribly tonight."

"Aw, you'll see me later. You should bring out the main course yourself for Stark."

"Right. I'll be out."

You nod and leave, another exchange of 'I love you' being exclaimed to each other with laughter.

You go around and make sure everyone is doing OK, but as you do, Heike gets up and approaches you.

"What can I do for you?" You say, remaining polite.

"I want you to get Helmut for me."

"No, he's busy I'm afraid. He's cooking your meal."

"Then I want to go see him."

"No customers in the kitchen. You'll be in the way, plus, he's busy. I just said as such myself."

You hated how polite your voice sounded and how much it hurt to smile at her. God, you wanted to rip her hair out and kick her to the street.

"It's important."

"I'm sorry, but you need to sit back down now. The main courses will be out shortly."

Heike throws a mini tantrum as she stomps her foot before returning to the table.

You resist running a hand down your face as you retreat to the bar. Natasha is topping up some drinks as you approach.

"My offer still stands."

"At this rate I may accept it. She's just trying to annoy me, and it's working."

"Deep breaths."

You roll your eyes and take the tray. Natasha gives you the table number and you go on your way.

When the main courses come out, Helmut exits the kitchen with Tony's meal, and only Tony's. Behind him are a couple of waiters with the rest. They put down their first, Heike looking unimpressed they someone sent served her, and then Helmut presented Tony with his meal.

Before he could get away, Tony grabbed Zemo's wrist.

"This won't change anything," he said.

Zemo smiled.

"It changes everything. Look around you. These people live here. They came because I invited them in honour of my father. They came because this place matters. You're running a business, I'm running a family legacy. You can't win."

Tony let's go of him.

"We'll see about that."

On the table sits the cheque. The same amount of zeros on it as the day he presented it.

Zemo picks it up.

Tony begins to smile.

You stand beside Helmut.

"Try it," you urge, nodding at the dish.

Tony inhales. He looks at the food. Glancing between you and the dish he slowly takes a bite.

Once again he left blown away by what his tastebuds are experiencing.

You hold the cheque in both hands, out in front of you. The whole table looks up at you. Swiftly, you tear in two and let both halves fall to the table.

"You can't cook like Helmut can. You can't run a restaurant like Helmut can. You can't respect people like Helmut can," you say slowly.

Heike stands quickly, not even trying her meal.

"He doesn't love you, you know."

You roll your eyes again.

"No, he adores me. I adore him. Let it go, Heike. You just can't accept that he moved and run you after what you did to him. You need to leave. You're not welcome at our restaurant again," you tell her.

"Your restaurant?"

"Yes, our restaurant," Helmut says, smiling. He puts an arm around you and pulls you into his side.

You nod behind Heike once. Wanda and Natasha grab an arm each and escort Heike off the premises. The restaurant is filled with cheering as she is kicked out.

Tony sits there and looks at the pair of you.

"You'll fail. Within the year you'll fail," he tells you.

"No, I don't think we will."

Veronica comes up behind Tony and grabs the back of his jacket. She tugs it, urging him to stand. He sighs and does as she wants. Veronica escort him to the door where she let's go and gives him a hard kick. Tony stumbles forward onto the hood of his car which remained parked right outside the doors. Pepper and Strange are quickly to follow on their own.

You stand there hand in hand with Helmut as you watch them scamper away.

Once they are gone, the whole restaurant stands up and cheers.

You laugh loudly.

Helmut laughs with you and kisses your temple.

Tony Stark couldn't have that it takes true talent to run a restaurant. His food would never compare to Helmut's. His service would move compare to yours.

You look around.

"Eat up, it will go cold!"

The customers all dig in. Helmut gestures for the table Tony had been at to be cleared. He guides you into the kitchen as they do that.

"You handled that very well," he tells you.

You smile.

"I think we both did."

He places his hands on either side of your face and looks at you.

If someone had told him a few years ago he would be standing here falling in love all over again, though this time with someone who actually did mean the world to him, he would call them a liar.

Yet, here you were.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Helmut leans in and kisses you quite passionately in the middle of the kitchen. Neither one of you care for the staff that come and go as they prepares for deserts.

You pull apart and look at him, placing your hands on his.

"Let's finish up tonight."

"Yes, let's."

You kiss once more and he lets you go back out front.

It's late when you're looking the doors. The restaurant looks a bit askew from all the people moving about, but other than that there was nothing to worry about.

The waiters gathered the plates and glasses. Sam and Bucky tidied up the bar, putting everything back where it belonged. Natasha and Wanda worked together to while down tables and sweep the floors. Helmut was in the back helping the kitchen staff clean.

You were at the till counting up the profits for the evening. Deserts had been free simply because everyone had celebrated Tony Stark being kicked out of the restaurant.

You totalled it all up and bagged up the money, putting it away for safe keeping. When you came back, Helmut was waiting for you by the bar.

"Do you have a minute?" He asks, smiling softly at you.

"Of course," you say, going over to sit with him.

On the bar in front of him was a file. He opens it up for you and places a pen down on top of it.

"What's this?"

"My paperwork for the restaurant. I've had it reprinted."

"Why?"

"Because I want you to sign it."

You stare into those stunning brown eyes of his as he stares back. There's a soft smile on his face.

"What do you mean?"

He chuckles softly and his hand glides along the bottom of the page he had presented to you. You lean in a little to read it.

You gasp softly.

Owner & Manager - Helmut Zemo

Co-owener & Manager - ................

The space was blank. He wanted you to sign it. You look back up at him.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"This is quite a commitment."

"I know."

"I'd have shares in your restaurant."

"Our restaurant."

He didn't stop smiling.

You turn back to the page and slowly find yourself lifting the pen. You click it and look down at the space where your name should be.

You smile.

You can feel tears threatening to fall.

Helmut puts an arm around you and pulls you into his side. He kissed your cheek, lips lingering there.

"I want this," he whispers.

"Me too."

Then suddenly your hand is scribbling. Your name sits on the line. You drop the pen and smile.

Helmut litters kisses all over your face.

You both laugh.

"This is actually happening."

"Yes, it is."

You look at him and smile. He smiles back at you. You kiss him. This kiss felt so different from all the ones before. This one was sealing a deal. Sealing a future together.

He is yours and you are his, and together you had this restaurant to run. A restaurant which had a bright future ahead of it all because you entered his life.

“Lets go home,” he whispers.

You chuckle softly.

“Yes, chef.”

@namethathasnotbeentaken @belle82devart @cathrin2405 @lieutenantn @wilder-fangirl @latenightartist-author @lucky-luck-lucky @hb8301 @charistory @thatoneartgalsstuff @thesuitkovian @malkaviangirl @zemosimp420 @realremyd @the-chaotic-cow @lostghostgirl94 @zafiro-draco @lazygurl05 @pinkcutiepiee @goddessofmischief03 @whovianayesha @myybebe @awesomesauce-abbie @that-stupid-head-tilt-thing @swooning-for-mc-avoy @nonamec0s @apparrio @scuttle-buttle @alex-the-nb @my-blood-is-maple-syrup @greeneyedblondie44 @somethingthatsaysbubbles

[red-cape-morgana]

FIAT LUX

Everyone sees the girl of steel as an almighty, indestructible being. But before being a hero, she is a person, and this implies some quirks. Some fears as well.

Chapter 2

(Chp 1) // (ao3)

Of course Lena knows about Kara's love of phosphorescent things, and especially about those sneakers.

She can actually see the shoes' faint glow in her entry every single evening, when Kara gets back home. And if now it has become a comforting sight, something she looks for when she wakes up and Kara was on patrol the previous night, it has not always been that way.

The first time she had seen that greenish glow... she had thought of kryptonite.

She had been quietly reading perched on her couch, when Kara had finally gotten back home from a grueling long workday. The blonde had an agar look on her face, leaving her bag and kicking her shoes off. Lena had heard her mumbling something about breaking pencils, spilled coffee and needing a shower, before heading to Lena’s luxurious bathroom.

Lena had decided to let her girlfriend unwind for a while before asking about that apparently rough day. Now that she knew about Kara's alter ego, she understood her girlfriend's clumsiness on a whole new level and knew that a simple task could require a lot of focus from her. Consequently, the number of incidents grew up accordingly as the hours of the day passed, and many phones had been the innocent victims to the super's strength.

Lena was getting lost in her historical novel once again, when she had noticed a faint light in her entry.

Odd, she had thought. Lights are turned off. What’s there?

She had closed her book before getting up to check on that. On her way, she had grabbed her phone, just as a precaution. After so many assassination attempts, she had learnt that communication means where really what mattered (as well as an efficient punch in the nose from time to time).

A couple of meters away in the entry, she could distinguish a faint greenish light coming from the messenger bag that Kara had abandoned there.

A bomb.

She started to run toward the bathroom. She needed to warn Kara! The kryptonite would suppress her powers, she had to flee! She speed dialed Alex to ask for an intervention squad while barging in the bathroom.

"Lena?! What's going on? Why are…?" Kara stammered when Lena had opened the shower cabin.

"You have to go!" Lena had said in a hurry while dragging the soaping blonde out of the shower.

"To go? But, why? Lena, what's…"

"There's a bomb Kara!" Lena shouted at her, in a near panic

She needs to go, she thought to herself. If it's kryptonite, she is even more at risk then me. The residual radiations would deepen any potential injury and worsen her state. And considering the rate of cellular degradation from direct exposure, even the DEO may not be fast enough.

"Lena, you, hide while I take it away." Kara stated while fumbling to activate her suit.

"You don't understand. It's kryptonite. You can't risk getting anywhere near it!"

"What?" Kara exclaimed. "But, I thought you had installed a biometric security system after last time?"

"I did!" Lena answered while trying to shove the unmovable kryptonian toward their bedroom, where she could escape through the window.

"But there is that greenish glow in the entry, and I know how to recognize kryptonite Kara. Believe me if…"

Kara had held up a hand to stop her mid sentence.

"You said in the entry?" she had calmly inquired.

"Yes! Why do you care where it is? It's still a bomb Kara." Lena said, her voice filled with exasperation.

And Kara had laughed. She had laughed till tears streamed down her face, mixing with water and shampoo left from her half finished shower. She had laughed even harder when Lena started to scream at her to go while she had time.

The brunette started to fear it may be something else than kryptonite, and that it was messing up Kara's mind because who laughs at the prospect of a toxic bomb in their apartment for God's sake?!

Kara didn't stop before hearing her talking to Alex, asking for help in their apartment. That got her attention, and she took the phone out of Lena's hand before uttering between giggles

"No it's fine Alex. Lena… Lena thought my shoes were some kryptonite trap. Can you, can you believe that?!"

Lena felt as if she could hear the groan Alex surely made to accompany her “I’m tired of my sister” expression.

Well I guess 13 years of that kind of shenanigan does that to someone, Lena mused. She had only known Kara for 3 years, and yet she was sure she had her own special kind frown as well.

Kara ended the call, promising they would explain more clearly tomorrow, before proceeding to explain that what she had thought to be a kryptonian bomb was only the new sneakers she had bought that were phosphorescent.

“They are the best glow in the dark shoes one can buy Lena! I had to get them, you understand?” she said as if her point was obvious, bouncing on her feet like a kid who had just been promised a trip to the candy store after school.

Lena had debated throwing the shoes out the window, just for the scare they had given her, and also because she wanted to erase Kara’s smirk.

Now the blonde keeps referring to that moment to tease Lena, a reminder that the genius she is got fooled by glow in the dark material. But coming from the Luthor family, can you blame her for thinking of an assassination attempt first?

And if that incident wasn't enough, the hour-long rant Alex gave her about Kara's love for glowing things would have clued her on it.

The next day, Lena had dropped by the DEO, willing to apologize for the false alert of the previous day. She knew Kara had said they would all gather at the end of the day for a drink, but Lena felt the need to see Alex first thing in the morning. Those apologies also included freshly brewed coffee from the best roaster in town, and enough pastries to satisfy a small army. The redhead vented to her for an hour straight, using memories from their shared childhood in Midvale to illustrate her explanation. As well as justify her exasperation with her sister’s eccentricities.

Lena took the opportunity to learn what her girlfriend was like when she got on Earth, Kara oddly quiet about this period of her life. She also thought it was the safest move possible in her situation, to let Alex get it out of her system. No one wanna get on the bad side of their possible future sister in law, and even less when they work for a secret agency that has a knack for making people disappear.

What she learns though, makes her see some of her girlfriend's habits under a new light.

Lena knew it must have been incredibly jarring to not only start a new life on a foreign planet, but learning that she had been lost in space for decades, and that Kal-El didn’t need her anymore must have been devastating. It was her mission after all, the reason why her parents had sent her away. Knowing that now, she didn’t have any purpose anymore… And it goes without saying that the enhanced senses she suddenly gained thanks to the yellow sun, would be enough to drive anyone crazy on their own. Heart beats, motors, reading through a book, crushing your mug of hot chocolate accidentally,... And all that during teenage years. Earth must have looked like hell at first. No wonder why Kara is unusually quiet whenever this topic arises. But Lena sensed there may be something else lying there, and since she wouldn't pry at Kara's traumatic memories, Alex was the next best best source for informations.

So far, she only thought Kara was that kind of forgetful/lazy person that never really complete a task. When the blonde would leave the curtains in their bedroom slightly open, or their door ajar, or her phone on the bedside table and always displaying time. Lena simply thought that Kara didn’t mind any of it. And since it wasn't bothering herself much, she let her do.

For Lena it was just Kara's little quirks. Just like her love for phosphorescent things.

Though, now that she thinks of it, she can remember an incident that happened when Kara had first moved in with her.

So far, in their relationship, the blonde had rarely slept over at Lena's place. Either because Lena was actually the one sleeping over, or Supergirl was needed for an emergency mission, or when Lena was travelling the country for scientific and technological conventions and checking up on branches of L-Corp. They had decided to move in together to make things easier for both of them. There was no point in sneaking around like lovesick teenagers, and Kara had already claimed two drawers at Lena's (who was very keen on borrowing oversized sweaters from said drawers when her girlfriend couldn't be around).

The move in itself was as smooth as possible: Kara stacked her boxed belongings in the van, Alex drove it to Lena's place, Kelly had looked for the best itinerary during this busy week day, and Lena had prepared snacks for everyone once they'd arrive. All in all, it had been the matter of a day.

Alex and Kelly had stayed over for dinner at Lena's demand, and Kara had just dug out what she would need for the next day.

"It will all be unboxed tomorrow Lena. What would be the point in putting it all back in the boxes now?" Kara had said, when Lena pointed out she couldn't see the color of her couch anymore with all the stuff the hero had thrown on it.

At some point, Nia and Brainy had joined them, bringing a couple of bottles to celebrate "an event I didn't think I would get to see before having grey hair, considering the pace you were going!" Nia had said.

The evening had continued full of laughers, memories of moments the couple had been completely oblivious to one another, and potstickers of course.

When everyone had left it was finally time to go to bed, the super had become strangely agitated. Lena had brushed it off as all the emotions of the day and finally living with her.

It will all settle once we lay down and get some rest, she had thought.

She had been proven wrong. Kara had spent the night turning and tossing, unable to find sleep. Lena had tried to soothe her by pressing her front to her back, gently holding the blonde in her arms. But when Lena had woken up some hours later, Kara wasn't in bed anymore.

"Darling?" Lena gently called as she padded in the living room, barefoot and eyes still full of sleep.

Kara was on the couch, huddled against an arm rest and looking at her laptop without really seeing it.

Lena closed the distance between them before sitting next to her girlfriend. Sensing that she wasn't in the right headspace to explain what was going on, she simply decided to just lean against Kara, anchoring her in the present. Together.

After some time, the sun had started to rise.

Lena had slipped in a state between sleep and alert, still here but not fully conscious of how long they had stood there together. At some point Kara had closed her laptop, setting it aside on the coffee table, and she had pulled Lena on top of her, holding her close. The weight and warmth of her girlfriend must have calmed her nerves somewhat because Lena felt the stiff muscles finally relax under herself.

Lena was about to suggest they move to the kitchen to have a well deserved breakfast when Kara had softly said "It was so dark, you know. I just… it brought up some memories. I'm sorry."

Lena hadn't prayed any further. Kara had every right to keep some things secret, and she knew she would learn about it eventually, when the hero would be ready to face this.

After that, Kara had always left a small source of light in their bedroom. At the end of the first month living together, she even bought some star stickers that she put on their ceiling as well as on some furniture. Lena had raised an eyebrow at that, but Kara had brushed it off, saying something about how it remembered her of her apartment and that she thought it comforting to share this with Lena.

Showing the Luthor a part of the Super that very few select people had ever witnessed.

But now, after her talk with Alex, Lena knows that it comes from a different place.

From what Alex told her, on earth Kara had never liked total obscurity. Elyza and Jeremiah had tried to help her of course. They offered the teenage girl therapy, sophrology and many alternatives to help her conquer her fear. But nothing had worked.

Every night Kara would wake up drenched in cold sweat, her breath coming up in short pants, convinced she was back in the phantom zone. Those nights, Alex would begrudgingly get up and walk to this new sister she didn't ask for bed, and lay down with her. She would take Kara in her arms, because that was the only thing that would ground her in the present.

Until one night, when Alex slept over to a friend.

[ma-gic-gay]

Just as Michael's about to answer their question, Jason's phone goes off. "Perfect timing," he mutters before going outside to take the call. "Jason Morgan."

"Mr. Morgan, it appears Mr. Renault is at the office demanding to speak with you. What should I do?" One of his employees informs him.

"Cyrus has my number. If he would like to schedule a meeting, tell him he can call me and we'll have one."

"I've already told him that and he won't agree to it."

Dammit. Peace in this town is fragile enough; the last thing they need is an angry Cyrus. He's been unstable as of late, not agreeing to this could lead to a gunfight. Well, that's actually to be expected. "We'll meet at the office in twenty minutes then. Tell him to call off his men, including Brando. Look around the perimeter and have the rest of the guards check to make sure that there's no one on the premises or within range of hitting someone."

"Yes sir," the employee agrees, hanging up the phone.

"Business stuff?" Willow asks cautiously. After all, this is the first time she's been in this situation.

"Yeah," Michael answers, sensing from the businesslike stance he's taken in their kitchen. "Let's go check on the kids."

They leave the room and instantly Carly asks, "What did he do?"

"Demanded we meet. I don't know why or what this is about, so please tell me you didn't do anything stupid that could cost the truce to be undone."

"I haven't done anything. I've considered it, but I haven't done anything yet," she tells him. "How long til the meeting?"

"I've gotta get going. You have to stay here, this doesn't concern you. Cyrus is looking for a fight and you'll give him one. He's looking for any reason to violate the truce and take me out," Jason informs her. "I mean it. No showing up."

"Is it a solo meeting?"

"Yes."

"You want me to sit here and list out the times he's tried to kill you this past year and a half? Jason, you can't got to a meeting alone. You'll get killed!" Carly exclaims.

"No I won't, Carly. I've got it handled, I told you," he says, glancing at his watch.

"Yes you will! You need to stop agreeing to these one on one meetings because one of these days he's going to get you killed and I won't be able to survive that!"

"I told you, I'm not getting killed!"

"Can you predict the future? No, you can't! I know you might want to go and have this meeting but you can't do it alone!"

"I'm going to the meeting, Carly. You are going to stay here with your kids, grandkids, and Willow," he says, voice unbudging. She's not going to win.

"Promise me you'll come back."

"Carly-"

"Promise me, Jason, or you're not going!"

"I promise."

"Fine, you can go," she surrenders, hugging him. "But be safe."

"As safe as I can be, meeting with him," he agrees.

"Alright, well you better go now or you're not going to be able to say goodbye to the kids."

He bids them all goodbye, hugs Carly again, and leaves for the meeting. His gun is on him, as is his cell phone. Though the usefulness of a cell phone is to be questioned when it's a mob meeting he's having. Not like he can exactly call the police if anything happens, they'd arrest him.

Arriving at the office, he senses that today's going to be a long day.

"Hey Harry, is it clear?"

"Yes sir."

"Alright, thanks," he says before walking into the office. "Cyrus. What's so urgent?"

"Well, Sonny's been gone a year now. I was hoping we could revisit us joining together for a way to continue the peace in this town," Cyrus answers.

"Like I told you the day you found out he was missing, that isn't happening. You're not going to run your product through this town and ruin it. This was Sonny's territory and if he's not dead and comes back, it'll be his again. We both agreed no drugs. It's not happening. Is that all?" Jason asks, bored.

"No, actually. I was wondering how Mrs. Corinthos is holding up. Given that this is the anniversary of losing her husband, I'd presume not well."

"None of your damn business."

"No need to get so defensive, I'm merely posing a question. Trying to make conversation."

"If you don't have anything related to business to discuss, my men will escort you out."

"Oh, but I doubt you will," Cyrus says, laughing evilly. "You'll be too dead to even have the chance to get me out of this room." He takes his gun from his pocket rather dramatically for Jason's taste and aims for him.

Drawing his gun himself, the now mob boss ducks, narrowly missing the bullet before firing his own, missing the other mobster by only a few inches. That was on purpose; a warning shot of sorts. "It never occurred to me," the ponytail clad man continues unaffected, "that you'd be so easy to take out. I mean, really. Your reputation is that you're businesslike and directly to the point, but then you've agreed to several meetings with me alone. I was planning on having some fairly difficult plans to kill you, but you've simply fallen into my lap. I do suppose I feel a bit bad, however, that Mrs. Corinthos will have to deal with you being dead as well."

There's a line you just don't cross in business, and that's been crossed. He remembers his promise to not die and snaps into action. "Fire that gun again and I hit you right between the eyes," Jason warns, setting himself up for his shot.

"I sense I've hit a nerve," Cyrus smiles, "mentioning her like that. Tell me, Mr. Morgan, has it ever occurred to you that you're the reason she even knows about this business? With you gone, I suppose she'll be taking it over. Though I don't doubt her, I do doubt her ability to properly run this business. It's doubtful that she'll even make it a few weeks before she's ki-"

Another warning shot goes from Jason's gun, this one only barely above his head. "Last warning, Cyrus. This isn't a game. She's barely involved in this business and you have no right to bring her up when this fight is between us. So drop the gun and get on the ground."

Chuckling as though he doesn't even really believe that he's about to be taken out, Cyrus stupidly continues, "I'll probably send one of my men to kill her, you know. Try to make it painless out of respect for her."

"Talking about me?" Carly asks, walking in with armed guards. She's got the worst timing.

"Yes I was, Mrs. Corinthos. How are you?"

"I'd be better if you were in a casket six feet under," she answers calmly. "Now, put your gun down before I kill you with my bare hands."

Where the fuck did she learn how to do that? He didn't teach her, neither did Sonny. Who did? Not the point, Carly isn't supposed to be here. She's now got the chance to be shot. That would kill him faster than the bullet wound he feels he could get.

"You heard her," Jason says. "Gun down, on the ground."

Turns out that's what needed to be done. The guards with guns pointed at his head doesn't hurt either, he's sure, but Cyrus finally gets on the ground and drops his gun.

"Good. Get Mrs. Corinthos out of here, now," he orders, to her complaints. "Carly, just go."

"I, personally, have nothing against her being here," Cyrus voices.

"You have no say." When Carly leaves, Jason calmly continues, "You mention her name again in front of me and I'll kill you. Talk about your plan to take me out again and you'll be dead. Nothing is changing. This is your last warning. Next time you try to kill me or someone I care about, you'll be dead quicker than you can even move from the scene. Get out."

Angrily, the ponytail clad man leaves, escorted by the guards. Jason then makes sure everyone knows to make sure there's no evidence of what happened, and that there's especially none Carly was ever there before he joins her in her car.

It's a quiet ride, with him firing off orders for his men and her pouting.

"I was right! He wanted you dead! You fell right into his trap!" She exclaimed when they walked into the living room of her house.

"No I didn't! Carly, I had it all under control!"

"Gun pointed at you, Jason! I walked in and there was a gun pointed at you!"

"I had mine pointed at him too! You can't walk into a gunfight!"

"Oh, but you can start one? You can get shot, I can't? Is that how this works?"

"The only reason you'd be shot in general is because of me, Carly! I introduced you to the business, I'm the reason you and Sonny got together, and I'm the reason you're still apart of it. I can deal with getting myself shot, I've survived other bullets before, but I can't deal with you getting shot!"

"I didn't!"

"Yeah, because I kicked you out of there!"

"I brought the guards, I was safe!"

"You walked into a gunfight when I told you it was the stupid thing to do! I told you not to go but you couldn't help yourself, could you, and you went to the meeting."

"You want me to tell you I was wrong and apologize? I'm not gonna do that! You could've been killed! God knows what Sonny's livelihood status is, but yours is alive. Alive, Jason! I'm not risking you dying, alright?"

"I've survived bullets before, I'd survive this one!"

"How do you know that? I need you to stay alive, so I don't care what your feelings are on the subject and I'm not apologizing! If I had to do it again and it was the only option, I'd go unarmed and alone. I would've been shot if it meant saving you from that! Cyrus wants you dead!"

"I wouldn't be able to live with myself if you died because of me! Your kids need their mother! Cyrus wants you dead too and I'll be damned if I let it happen."

"So what, Jason, you'll do the noble thing and die instead of me? That'll kill me. I couldn't breathe when we thought you were dead last time. Imagine how I'd be if I knew I was the one who caused it!"

"You're not dying!" He shouts back, but there's no edge to his tone anymore. He's less pissed. "Not when it's preventable. You're not getting shot either Carly. If I cause your death, I'll hate myself."

"And you think I won't hate myself if I cause yours?"

To be continued after midnight bc I have thing to add to my blog

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