The photo was taken a few months ago. Kara and Lena were at a fundraising gala. They had their arms wrapped tightly around each other, smiles beaming at the camera. It was Lena's favorite picture of them. They looked perfect. She was glad the photographer captured that moment, she wanted to keep it forever.

She studied every detail of the photo, over and over again, the ache in her chest growing more prominent every time. This had become a nightly occurrence, sitting at the island across from her refrigerator staring at the picture. She would count how many glasses of wine she could have before she passed out. She never thought a picture could make her feel so damn broken. She never thought she would fall in love with her best friend. Her whole body ached knowing that the girl who lit up her entire world, would never feel the same way.

A knock startled Lena out of her thoughts and she snapped her head around to stare at the door. It had become a weekly occurrence. Every Thursday at eight, Lena would get a knock on her door.

She looked through the peephole and let out a small laugh. Alex is standing at her door with a bottle of her favorite scotch and a shit-eating grin to match. Lena opened the door after trying to attempt to look like she was not already drunk and moping. Alex took one look at her and shook her head. "I see you started without me," she pushed past Lena and headed straight for the kitchen.

Lena rolled her eyes and chuckled, "Please, do come in."

The CEO walked back to the kitchen and saw Alex rummaging through her cabinets. They have had enough of these nights that she knows exactly where to go. Lena resumed her seat at the island as she watched Alex pour their drinks.

After Maggie left, Alex felt her world turning into a downward spiral.

The more time she spent with Kara, Lena and Sam, the more she noticed the brunette's growing feelings for her sister. She was sure that Kara felt the same way, but Lena was unwilling to approach the blonde on the subject.

The saying really is true, misery does love company. They started having these drunken nights about a month ago. Alex showed up at Lena's door with a bottle of liquor and they sat in silence while they drank. They both had no idea what to say, what to talk about. They just needed someone who understood. It took a whole night before Alex worked up the courage to ask about Kara. She noticed that Lena had stiffened immediately, but after a few more drinks she got Lena to open up. They spent the night talking about Maggie and Kara, the women they loved, but couldn't be with.

They decided to keep these nights to themselves. Alex didn't want Kara to worry about her and Lena didn't want Kara to know that she had feelings for her. They figured that if Kara knew, she would want to join and they didn't want that. They needed a night to wallow, to feel like they could mope with a friend without being judged.

Alex handed Lena her drink and they clinked glasses.

"So, I'm guessing you have had a bad day?" Alex asked. She grabbed Lena's arm and led them into the living room. They both plopped down on the couch facing each other, their arms hanging over the back of the couch.

"Not necessarily," Lena began, once she got comfortable. "I had lunch with Kara."

"And?"

"And it was good, it was perfect." Lena sighed deeply and stared into her drink like she was asking it for answers. She ran her finger over the rim of the glass and looked back at Alex.

"Then what is the problem? Isn't that a good thing?" Alex responded, confused.

"Yes and no. I always love spending time with her, it's just that all the good moments just remind me that I'll never actually be with her. I'll never be hers. I always seem to want more."

They both remained silent for a while.

"Are you sure you don't want to at least try to tell her how you feel? I know my sister and you are great Lena, she would be crazy not to have feelings for you."

Lena gave her a gracious, but self-deprecating smile. "Thank you, I appreciate it. But Kara – Kara is like the sun. She is warm and bright. She could light up a whole room with her smile and I'm well – I'm me. What if I tell her and she runs in the opposite direction? What we have right now is so good, it's a friendship I have been searching for my whole life. I can't throw that away."

"Stop being so hard on yourself. It is never a bad thing to put yourself out there."

"Oh, really?" Lena says with a smirk. Alex knows exactly where she is going with that look and she quickly downs the rest of her glass.

The agent makes her way to the kitchen and brings back the bottle. She hopes that Lena will just drop the subject, but she is sure she won't be so lucky. "Yes, really," Alex says as she knocks back another drink. She revels in the feeling of the alcohol burning her throat on the way down.

"So, you don't think you were too hard on yourself for what happened with Sara?"

Alex shoots daggers at Lena. "Remind me to never tell you about my one-night stands ever again. And I may have been a little too hard on myself, and I may not be practicing what I preach. But what is the saying: 'do as I say, not as I do'?"

Last time they had hung out, Alex had mentioned her one-night stand to Lena. Granted she didn't tell her that she was fighting Nazi's on another Earth during the wedding of a superhero. She gave her the watered down 'I slept with a friend of Kara's at a wedding' version.

"Hmm, sure. You do realize I was a little too sober for all your drunken ramblings, right?" Lena clears her throat and makes her voice higher, "Oh, Lena! You had to see her abs! Oh, Lena! She has the sexiest voice! Oh, Lena! She did this thing with her fin—," Lena gets cut off when a pillow is thrown at her face.

The CEO throws her head back with laughter. Alex glares at her, before rolling her eyes and joining in.

"Asshole," Alex mutters under her breath.

Lena chuckles as she wipes at the moisture gathering in her eyes. "Damn, I think that was my favorite night so far. It was nice to hear that you let loose a little."

"Hey! I can be loose," Alex states. She crosses her arms and looks at Lena with a pout.

"You know, for adoptive siblings, you and Kara seem to have that identical Danvers pout."

"I don't pout," Alex stated. She tried to discretely stick her bottom lip back to its normal position.

"Oh, I'm sure I have no idea what I'm talking about." Lena gave Alex one of her signature eyebrow lifts.

Alex squirmed under Lena's watchful eye, "You don't." They stare each other down for a good minute, before they both smirked and downed their glasses.

It was Lena's turn to fill them both back up. Alex started to feel the buzz of the alcohol. She was sure Lena was there already considering she had started drinking before her. Their heads felt lighter and their bodies started to relax.

"How are you?" Lena asked as she brought the glass of scotch to her lips.

Alex let out a huge sigh, "Everyday it gets a little easier. I keep trying to remind myself that even if we did end up getting back together, it would never change how we felt about children."

"It is hard when you have to lose someone you are still so in love with. Most break-ups are because you grow apart or have a fight or something big happens. The hardest break-ups are the ones where you both still love each other so much, but are both walking away to give the other a shot at something better."

"How can something be better than what I had with Maggie?"

"You will find it someday. I know it may not seem like it right now, but someone will come along that will be able to give you everything you want." Lena looked at Alex and she could tell the short-haired women didn't believe a word she was saying. Lena sat up straight, "Let me ask you this, say that you got back together with Maggie, you gave in, told her that you didn't need to have kids to be happy. You had sacrificed something that is so vital to who you are. Do you think that you could be happy? Do you think that you wouldn't build some sort of resentment for her because she kept you from something you have looked forward to your whole life?"

Alex remained silent, mulling over Lena's words in her head.

"I wouldn't be happy without having children."

Lena nodded her head. "Just learn from this, Alex. Next time you meet a woman you think you can fall head-over-heels for, make sure that this is something that you are aware of. You need to make sure you are aware of your own values and desires and make sure they are too. You shouldn't have to sacrifice a part of yourself for someone else."

"I guess, I thought that was what love was supposed to be. That you would do anything – give up anything to be with someone."

"Love is a tricky thing. As a Luthor, I'm definitely no expert. I believe that there is a thing as too much sacrifice, though. Never be ashamed for putting yourself first. I may not have spent a lot of time with the both of you, but I know what you had was real."

"Yeah, it definitely was," Alex whispered.

"God, we are depressing," Lena muttered as she finished the remainder of her drink. She grabbed the bottle to get another refill and noticed that they were more than half of the way through. There was no way she was getting off this couch tonight. "Netflix time?" Lena asked.

"Please, I think I had enough talking for tonight."

"You are spending the night, so grab a blanket. I'm not having you drive home like this."

"I'm fine."

Lena raised an eyebrow and Alex gave her an eye-roll in response. "Fine, mom," Alex drawled.

Lena smiled satisfactorily and grabbed a blanket from the side of the couch. She turned on the television and they sat back to explore the shows.

"What are you feeling like tonight?"

"Anything, but romance. Sound good to you?"

"Perfect," Lena responded.

They got more comfortable on the couch. Alex put her feet on the ottoman and Lena set a pillow next to Alex's legs. She laid her head down and covered herself with her blanket. She knew that she wouldn't be awake for much longer. She picked a comedy to watch, "This is Where I Leave You".

Alex looked down at Lena, she was glad they had these moments. She felt like she adopted a new sister. She truly hoped that one day Kara and Lena would find happiness.

The pair of women passed out before the movie was over, too emotionally drained and drunk to keep their eyes open.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Kara made her way to Lena's house with two cups of coffee and Lena's favorite breakfast. Her friend had seemed off yesterday and she wanted to bring her breakfast in the hopes of cheering her up. It was a Friday morning so Kara knew that she would be up soon to get ready for work.

She said her good mornings to the doorman of the building and clicked the button to the top floor on the elevator. She made her way down the hallway and grabbed the key that Lena had given her. Kara texted Lena before she left home so the brunette should be expecting her.

She opened the door quickly juggling the coffees and the bag of food. She called out for Lena, but she didn't receive an answer. She set down her items in the kitchen and set off for the living room.

"Lena?"

Kara froze in her tracks at the sight in front of her. There on the couch was her best friend and her sister. They looked so comfortable with each other, like they had done this a thousand times before. Lena was laying with her head resting against Alex's legs. Alex had her arm draped over Lena's side as they slept peacefully. Kara felt a surge of something in her chest, but she couldn't put a name to it.

She knew she was hurt, though. Why had they kept this from her? Were they dating? She remembered walking in on Alex and Maggie like this once or twice. Was Lena dating her sister?

Kara debated what to do. She didn't know if she should wake them up or gather her things and go. She felt like she was intruding on a moment. She stared at the pair for another few minutes before making a decision.