Chapter Text
L-Corp was always busy at this hour. Employees scurried back and forth, their heels clicking against the marble floors as they carried files, answered calls, and tried to impress their superiors. But one employee stood out—not for her speed, not for her ambition, but for her kindness.
Kara Danvers.
A bright-eyed, slightly clumsy, perpetually optimistic woman who worked tirelessly despite the way her coworkers sneered at her behind her back. She had no connections, no powerful family name to protect her, and no one to vouch for her. She was an orphan, a nobody. That’s what they called her when they thought she couldn’t hear.
And yet, she smiled. Every single day.
Lena Luthor, who didn't notice at first, heard some voices. And not the kind one, and intrigued, she watched her from the shadows. A new recruit, blonde with beautiful blue eyes. Always smiling and polite. A very sweet woman, to be honest.
Of course, no one knew Lena was there. She wasn’t in her usual Luthor-black power suit or perched atop a throne-like chair in the CEO’s office. No, today, she was just "Lena," a supposed IT employee who worked two floors below Kara in a dimly lit department no one cared about. It was the perfect disguise to see if the rumors were true about bullying. And in her own empire.
Because if Kara had known she was working under Lena Luthor, she might have treated her differently.
And Lena couldn’t have that.
No, she wanted Kara’s kindness to be real. She wanted those sweet, unguarded smiles, the way Kara always stopped to help her pick up her coffee “accidentally” spilled, the way she leaned in and whispered, You’re so beautiful, Lena.
It made Lena’s heart race every time.
She had never been seen before—not truly. People either feared her, hated her, or wanted something from her. But Kara? Kara was different.
And Lena would do anything to protect her.
Today, it was a day like any other. Unfortunately.
“Kara, can you get me a coffee?”
A sharp voice cut through the office, making Kara pause mid-typing. She turned to see Tricia, one of the executives' assistants, staring down at her like she was something beneath her presence.
“Oh, um—”
“Didn’t you hear her, Danvers?” Mark, another assistant, scoffed. “Or do orphans have selective hearing?” The words were rough and powerful, hurting.
Lena clenched her fists from her hidden vantage point near the printers. How dare they! She didn't expect that to be real. Lena was used to people talking badly about her because of her name, but this time, she felt furious for Kara.
Kara hesitated, and then, with her usual soft smile, she nodded. “Of course! How do you take it?”
Tricia rolled her eyes. “Black. And hurry up, okay? Contrary to someone, we are important.”
Kara was already hurrying off when Mark snickered. “Guess it’s nice to have someone to boss around. No family to teach her anything. It will be so easy to manipulate her.”
Lena bit the inside of her cheek so hard she tasted blood. Patience, Lena. Patience. She had plans for them. They’d regret every word.
But for now, she had to focus on Kara.
Kara came back a few minutes later, carrying the coffee with both hands. She carefully placed it on Tricia’s desk and smiled.
“Here you go!”
Tricia barely acknowledged her. As if she didn't exist.
Kara sighed and turned, almost colliding with Lena, who had suddenly appeared behind her.
“Oh! Lena!” Kara beamed. “Sorry, I didn’t see you there.”
Lena softened. “No, it’s okay.”
Kara hesitated. “Um… is everything alright? You look upset.”
Lena blinked. Was she that obvious? Or was it only Kara who saw it?
Kara’s brow furrowed. “Lena, if someone’s being mean to you, you’d tell me, right?”
Oh, Kara. If only she knew that Lena was the one making sure no one dared lay a hand on her. That woman was so sweet and didn’t understand the bullying.
“Of course,” Lena lied.
Kara smiled in relief. Then she tilted her head. “Hey, you know… I really appreciate you, Lena.”
Lena’s breath hitched. “You do?”
“Yeah! You’re always so sweet to me.” Kara chuckled, rubbing the back of her neck. “And, um… I don’t know if this is weird to say, but you’re really beautiful. And kind. People don’t appreciate that enough.”
Lena’s brain melted.
She could handle being called brilliant, intimidating, powerful. But beautiful? Kind? Those were words people never used for Luthors.
Kara kept talking, completely unaware of the war happening inside Lena.
“I mean, you’re always helping me. I feel like I can be myself around you. And I don’t know, there’s just something really warm about you.”
Warm?
Warm.
Lena had never felt warm in her life.
She swallowed hard. “Kara…”
Kara tilted her head. “Yeah?”
Lena opened her mouth—ready to confess something, anything—but then Mark’s voice cut through the air.
“Danvers! We’re not paying you to flirt with IT nerds. Get back to work, or I will make your life a living hell.”
Kara winced.
Lena saw red. They hated them.
But before she could say anything, Kara turned back to her with a shy smile. “Sorry. I’ll catch up with you later, okay?”
And then she was gone.
Lena stood there, gripping the edge of the desk so hard her knuckles went white.
She was going to ruin them. Every single one of them. It would be Lena to bring them to Hell.
Later that evening, Mark found his computer mysteriously wiped. Every file gone. Every email deleted. And it was a nightmare. He panicked. If he didn't have a solution, he would lose his job. He tried to find backup, temporary files, but nothing. He searched online for a solution, but it was impossible.
"Shit, shit!" He barked, hitting his fists on his desk. It was over. This kind of mistake meant the end of his career at L-Corp.
Tricia came in the next morning to find her office reassigned. Somewhere in a lost city, far away from civilization. She tried to beg her superior, but he said to change her job if she was not happy.
Within the week, every person who had so much as looked at Kara the wrong way had either been transferred or mysteriously let go.
Kara, of course, didn’t notice.
She was too busy being grateful when a promotion suddenly appeared on her desk, too caught up in thanking the “kind” L-Corp executives who had apparently taken notice of her hard work.
And through it all, Lena stood in the background, smiling.
She would never tell Kara the truth.
That she was the reason Kara was safe.
That she was the owner of L-Corp.
That she was hopelessly, helplessly obsessed with her. That she couldn't stop worrying about her. Wanting to see her.
And Kara, sweet and oblivious, just kept smiling at her like she was worthy.
Lena would make sure no one ever took that smile away.
Even if she had to burn the world down to protect it.