MADC Chapter 10 Groceries (Patreon)

The automatic doors of one of Metropolis’s supermarkets, Wayne Mart, whooshed open, welcoming Kara and Zack into a world of cool air and the scent of fresh baked bread and produce. Kara took the lead, her fingers curled around the handle of a shopping cart, while Zack followed close behind.

“Alright,” Kara said, her voice bright as she maneuvered the cart toward the produce section. “Let’s stock up. Zack, what do you think about these? Or should we go for the organic ones?”

Zack looked at the wall of greens with a blank expression, his mind reaching for a preference that simply wasn't there. “Uh… they both look like lettuce to me, Kara. I’m fine with either.”

Kara paused, hovering her hand over a bag of spinach. “Well, do you like spinach? Or are you more of a kale person? Oh! Or maybe we should get the ingredients for that stir-fry you liked yesterday?”

Zack rubbed the back of his head, offering a sheepish grin. “That’s the thing… I don’t actually know if I liked it because it’s my favorite or just because I was hungry. I don't really have an opinion on what I like or dislike yet”.

Kara’s brow furrowed in concern. “You really don’t have a preference for anything? Not even snacks?”

“Not really,” Zack admitted. “I’m not exactly a picky eater. Honestly, I don’t even know if I’m allergic to anything”.

Kara froze, her eyes widening as she turned to face him fully. “You don’t know if you have allergies? Zack, that’s dangerous! What if we buy something with peanuts or shellfish and you—you…” She trailed off, the thought of him in medical distress clearly weighing on her.

“Hey, don’t worry about it,” Zack said, reaching out to give her arm a reassuring squeeze. “We’ll just deal with it as we come across it. If I start sneezing or turning blue, we’ll know to put that item back next time.”

Kara didn’t look convinced, her expression softening into something more somber. “Doesn’t it bother you? Losing your memories like that? Not even knowing the basic things about yourself?”

Zack went quiet for a moment, watching a mother and her child laugh in the next aisle. “It’s annoying,” he finally said, his voice quiet but steady. “But I don’t want to let it worry me. I don’t have any way to understand what I lost anyway. For all I know, the ‘old me’ was some total jerk”.

He looked back at her, a genuine, crooked grin touching his lips. “I actually kind of like the current me.”

Kara blinked,confused wondering why it didn’t bother him. “Why is that?”

“Because,” Zack said, his eyes meeting hers with an honesty that made her heart skip. “If I hadn’t lost my memory and ended up in that dumpster, I never would have met you”.

Kara quickly blushed to a vivid red color, and she quickly turned back to the shopping cart, hiding her face behind a stack of cereal boxes. “You’re sweet, you know that?” she mumbled, her voice thick with a happy, flustered warmth.

“I try,” Zack laughed and the two continued their shopping with the hum of the supermarket’s refrigeration units filling the silence as Kara leaned over the frozen food section, carefully inspecting a bag of potstickers. Zack watched her for a moment, her casual clothes were a stark contrast to the sterile white of the aisle.

“Hey, Kara?” Zack started, leaning his weight against the handle of the cart. “I’ve been doing all the talking about my… well, my lack of history. But what about you? I want to know more about who you are. Not just the hero stuff, but you.”

Kara’s movements hitched. She went still for a heartbeat, her hand lingering on the frosted glass of the freezer door. A shadow of reluctance crossed her face, a flicker of something old and heavy that Zack hadn’t seen before.

Seeing her expression, Zack immediately waved his hands. “Wait, sorry—is that too much? You don’t have to tell me anything if you don’t want to. I didn’t mean to push.”

Kara quickly looked up, forcing a small, reassuring smile as she dispelled the idea. “No! No, it’s not that I don’t want to tell you, Zack. Truly. It’s just… it’s a delicate subject for me. A lot of it is tied to things that are… gone.”

She took a quick, cautious look around the aisle. After making sure a nearby elderly man was sufficiently distracted by a choice of canned peas and no one else was watching, she leaned in closer to Zack, her voice dropping to a soft, confidential murmur.

“As you already know, I’m an alien,” She began, her eyes searching his. “A Kryptonian, to be exact. That’s why the yellow sun gives me all those ‘cool abilities’ you see me do. Flying, the strength, the speed… it’s all just my biology getting stronger under this sun.”

Zack nodded along, a look of genuine wonder on his face. “Kryptonians. It sounds like something out of a comic book. And for the record, you look incredibly cool doing all of it. Like you were born to be in the sky.”

Kara felt a familiar warmth bloom in her chest at his words, but she pushed through the bashfulness. “Maybe you can do things like that, too,” she suggested, her eyes brightening with a sudden thought. “I mean, whatever your powers are, they must be incredible if they’re affecting me and Galatea like this. Maybe you’re just waiting for your own ‘yellow sun’ moment.”

Zack felt a sharp pang of guilt twist in his gut. He looked down at his hands, thinking of the mechanical voice that whispered percentages in his head, the System that was essentially tethering her to him without her full knowledge. He hadn’t told her about the system and he didn’t really know how to approach it.

He opened his mouth to speak, but the words died in his throat, his hesitation clear in the way his shoulders slumped.

Of course, Kara saw it, the flicker of uncertainty, but she didn't press him. Instead, she reached out and placed a hand over his on the cart handle, giving it a gentle squeeze. She was sure he would tell her eventually, when he was ready.

“Anyway,” Kara said, changing the subject to break the tension. Kara leaned against the handle of the shopping cart, her gaze dropping to the linoleum floor as she began to speak, her voice taking on a hollow, distant quality. "My world was called Krypton," She said softly, the words feeling heavy. "It was beautiful, Zack. So much more advanced and bright… many of us called it a utopia. But it was dying. My parents and uncles knew the end was coming. And they put me in a pod, and they put my baby cousin, Kal-El, in another. I was supposed to protect him. I was the older one."

She let out a short, bitter-sweet laugh, the sound catching in the back of her throat. 

"But space is vast, Zack, and things went wrong," Kara said, her eyes drifting toward the ceiling as if she could see through it to the stars. "My pod got knocked off course, stuck in stasis while time just... kept moving. By the time I crashed on Earth, I was still a teenager, but Kal-El had arrived decades before me. The baby I was meant to protect? He was already an adult, a man the world called Superman. He had to be the one to teach me how to live."

She went quiet for a moment, her fingers tracing the metal handle of the food cart. 

"But if only that was all of my issues I could deal with it." She continued, her voice dropping to a strained whisper. "The moment I stepped out of that pod, it was like the world was screaming. The yellow sun... it made my skin feel like it was on fire from the inside out. Back home, we were just people. Here? I was just so much stronger. Every heartbeat in the city sounded like a drum in my ears. I couldn't even breathe without wondering if I’d blow a house down." 

She looked at her hands, her grip tightening.

"I had to relearn how to move. How to touch things without breaking them. If it weren't for Kal..." She then trailed off, her expression clouding. "He’s wonderful, but looking at him is a constant reminder that we’re the last ones, Zack. Just two of us. Sometimes, the silence of everything we lost is so loud that I feel that I want to cry."

 Zack listened in stunned silence, his heart sinking further with every detail. "I’m so sorry, Kara," Zack whispered, reaching out to tentatively touch her arm. "To lose everything and then wake up in a world that doesn’t make sense... no one should have to live through tragedies like that."

Kara looked up, seeing the genuine pain in his green eyes, and she quickly shook her head, offering a small smile. "Hey, don't look like that. I’ve had time. Kal helped me through the worst of it, and I’ve learned to accept this life. Earth is my home now. I have friends, a job... I have this."

"Still," Zack insisted, his voice firm with emotion. "I wish it could have been easier for you. I wish you hadn't had to lose the people you loved just to end up here."

Kara felt a lump form in her throat. She looked at him, really looked at him and the heavy weight of Krypton’s ghost seemed to lift just a little. "Thank you, Zack. That’s sweet. But honestly? Lately, I haven't felt that burden as much. Ever since you showed up... I’ve been a little too distracted with... other feelings."

The air between them suddenly felt charged. Zack froze, his hand still on her arm, as a deep crimson flush crept up his neck. Kara’s cheeks flared a matching bright pink, both of them acutely aware of exactly what those "other feelings" were.

"Oh," Zack managed to choke out. "I... uh..."

"I mean—!" Kara started, her voice jumping an octave.

"Finally!" A sharp, familiar voice barked from the end of the aisle.

The spell broke instantly as Galatea marched toward them, looking disheveled and thoroughly annoyed. 

"There you are," Kara said, trying desperately to regain her composure and failing as she fanned her face. "What took you so long? You were just supposed to leave our bags, ages ago!"

Galatea halted in front of them, her eyes narrowing as she looked between Kara’s red face and Zack’s awkward stance. She let out a huff of pure irritation.

"Oh, stow it, Princess," Galatea snapped. "With those ears and eyes of yours, you should know exactly why I’m late. Some idiots decided to try and hijack a security van two blocks over. I had to spend ten minutes peeling them off the pavement and waiting for the cops. Unlike some people, I don't just ignore 'trouble' because I'm busy making heart-eyes over a grocery cart!"

Kara smirked as she maneuvered her shopping cart through the aisle, glancing over at her clone. "You know, thanks sis," She teased, her tone light but carrying a playful edge. "You’re actually making my life a lot easier today. If I didn’t know you were already in the area, I would’ve had to drop everything to deal with it myself". She nudged Galatea with her shoulder, adding with a wink, "Plus, let’s be honest—if you were in my position, you’d be doing the exact same thing for me".

Galatea didn’t offer a sharp retort for once. Instead, her gaze lingering on Zack for a second longer than necessary. It was clear she’d much rather be spending the time with him than patrolling the city streets.

"Whatever," Galatea muttered, her voice tinged with a hint of annoyance as she looked toward the ceiling. "When exactly is Superman coming back from his vacation? This is technically his duty to babysit this city, isn't it?".

Kara chuckled, shaking her head. "It won’t be for a few more days. I gave him a full week off to actually relax for once". She glanced around the peaceful supermarket. "Thankfully, things have been pretty slow. Nothing truly crazy has happened since he left".

Zack, who had been listening while trying to decide between two types of cereal, looked up with a confused expression. "Wait... 'nothing truly crazy'?" he asked, his brow furrowing. "Does it actually get any crazier than what I’ve already seen in this city?".

Both blondes stopped and looked at him simultaneously, their expressions turning uncharacteristically serious.

"Zack, Metropolis is a total hot spot for trouble," Kara explained quickly, her voice dropping an octave. "You’ve seen the street-level stuff, but we haven’t even had to deal with the actual Supervillains yet".

Galatea nodded in agreement, her smirk replaced by a grim line. "She's right. You have no idea how dangerous they really are. When the heavy hitters show up, the 'crazy' you've seen looks like a playground".

Zack let out a slow breath, his grip tightening on his shopping basket. "Okay... noted. I guess I should be grateful I haven’t seen the 'too crazy' side of things yet".

With the gravity of the conversation hanging in the air for just a moment, the group shared a quiet look before Kara broke the tension by tossing a bag of snacks into the cart. They continued their shopping, moving deeper into the aisles of the supermarket.

—---------------------------

Outside Wayne Mart

The three of them stepped out of the Wayne Mart, their arms laden with overstuffed bags of groceries. The afternoon sun beat down on the Metropolis sidewalk as they began the walk back toward Kara’s apartment.

“I’m just saying,” Galatea muttered, shifting a heavy bag of frozen goods. “If we don’t get these home in the next ten minutes, the ice cream is going to be a soup, and I’m blaming you, Kara”.

Kara rolled her eyes, her own arms full. “It’s two blocks, Tea. Relax. Besides, Zack’s the one who insisted on the extra-large tub of Rocky Road”.

Zack, who was struggling with two of the heavier bags, gave a sheepish grin. “In my defense, it was on sale. And it’s not like I’m the only one who’s going to eat it.”

The lighthearted bickering was suddenly cut short by a sharp, rhythmic chirping from Kara’s pocket. She stumbled slightly, trying to balance her bags while fishing out her phone.

“Who’s calling you at this hour?” Galatea asked, her eyes narrowing as she noticed Kara’s expression shift from playful to focused.

Kara quickly managed to tap the screen. “Kara here. What’s going on?”.

A voice, low and gravelly, crackled through the speaker. Even from a few feet away, Zack could hear the weight and authority in the tone.

“Supergirl. We have a situation,” The voice, Batman, said. “An experimental WayneTech satellite has been knocked out of orbit by a meteoroid. It’s on a terminal descent trajectory toward the Atlantic. I need you to intercept and return it to its proper coordinates immediately.”

Zack blinked, looking between the phone and the two women. “Uh, who is that? And why does he sound like he hasn’t slept?”.

Galatea’s face twisted into a sour, unmistakable scowl. “The Big Bad Bat,” she hissed under her breath. “Always so dramatic. Does he think he’s the only one with a schedule?”.

Kara didn’t miss a beat, her posture straightening despite the grocery bags. “I’m on it. What are the coordinates?”

After a brief exchange of technical data, Kara hung up and sighed, looking at her companions with an apologetic wince. “Sorry, guys. Duty calls. Apparently, there’s a satellite trying to make a very expensive splash in the ocean.”

“Go,” Galatea said, her voice softening slightly as she stepped forward to take the bags from Kara’s hands. “I’ll handle the groceries and make sure Zack gets back to the apartment in one piece”.

Zack offered a supportive nod. “Go save the world, or the satellite, or whatever. We’ll save the ice cream”.

“Thanks,” Kara said, flashing a quick smile before stepping into a nearby alley to take flight. “I’ll be back before the Rocky Road even thinks about melting!”.

—----------------------------

Kara’s Apartment, Evening

The walk back to the apartment was considerably quieter without Kara’s energetic presence. As soon as Zack and Galatea stepped through the door, the cool air of the apartment greeted them, a welcome relief from the Metropolis humidity.

Zack immediately set to work, hauling the heavy bags onto the kitchen counter. "Okay, priority one: the Rocky Road," he muttered, quickly fishing out the tub of ice cream and wedging it into the crowded freezer. He began sorting through the rest, placing produce in the crisper, snacks in the pantry, milk in the fridge, moving with a focused efficiency.

Galatea, meanwhile, had dropped her share of the bags with a heavy thud and headed straight for the living room. She then quickly collapsed onto the couch with a long, dramatic sigh of relief, immediately fumbling for the remote.

Zack looked over his shoulder, a half-empty bag of chips in his hand. "Uh, Galatea? Don’t you think you could give me a hand with the rest of these?"

Galatea didn't even look away from the TV as she began channel surfing. "You’re doing a great job, Zack. Truly. It’s a very domestic look for you."

"Very funny," Zack sighed, turning back to the groceries.

"Besides," she added, the flickering light of the TV dancing in her blue eyes, "I carried them halfway across the city. My 'manual labor' quota for the day is filled. Come sit down when you're done."

Zack didn't complain further. He finished organizing the last of the vegetables and wiped down the counter before heading into the living room. And then sank into the couch beside her, but his eyes kept drifting toward the window, looking up at the darkening sky.

"Do you think Kara’s okay?" he asked quietly. "I mean, it’s a satellite in space. That sounds... complicated."

Galatea stopped her surfing on an old action movie and tossed the remote aside. She turned her head toward him, a confident smirk on her lips. "Don't worry about it. For us, going to space is basically just a very windy commute. She’s probably back in orbit playing catch with a multi-million dollar piece of tin right now. She’ll be fine."

Before Zack could respond, Galatea reached out and gripped his shoulder, pulling him toward her. With a sudden, firm movement, she guided his head down until it rested squarely against her chest.

"You’re too tense," she murmured, her voice vibrating against his ear. "Relax. See? This movie has explosions. Focus on that."

Zack’s face went instantly, brilliantly red. The sudden proximity and the undeniable softness of her—sent his heart into a frantic rhythm. He tried to focus on the screen, but all he could think about was the warmth of her body and the faint scent of the afternoon sun that seemed to cling to her.

"Galatea, I—uh—"

"Shh," she teased, her hand resting gently on the back of his head, holding him there. "Movie's starting."

Zack swallowed hard, trapped in a mix of embarrassment and comfort, and resigned himself to the most high-pressure movie night of his life.

But as they continued to watch the movie on the couch. The explosions on screen flickered across the living room wall, casting shifting shadows over Galatea's face. And seeing that the atmosphere was just right, she decided that now was the perfect moment to make their relationship closer as her fingers began a slow, deliberate exploration through Zack's hair, nails scraping lightly against his scalp before trailing down the back of his neck. 

Each touch sent a shiver through his spine, his breath hitching against the fabric of her shirt."Your heart's pounding," She murmured, not looking away from the screen. "I can feel it through my chest."

He opened his mouth to apologize, but her hand slid lower, palm flat against his shoulder blade, then down his arm until her fingers intertwined with his. She lifted his hand from where it lay frozen on his thigh and placed it squarely on her waist, guiding him to grip the curve of her hip.

"Better," she said, a hint of approval in her voice. "Now you're participating."

Zack's fingers curled instinctively into the soft material of her top, bunching the fabric. His thumb brushed against the bare skin just above her jeans, warm and smooth. He heard her inhale sharply, felt the subtle shift of her body pressing closer against his cheek.

The movie droned on as it showed a car chase with gunfire, but neither of them registered it as Galatea's other hand dropped from his head, sliding down his chest, tracing the line of his collarbone through his shirt before resting just above his belt. Her palm flattened against his stomach, feeling the rapid rise and fall of his breathing.

"Relax," She repeated, but this time the word came out lower, rougher. Her fingers toyed with the hem of his shirt, slipping underneath to brush against the tense muscles of his abdomen. "You're too tense. Let me help."

Before he could protest, she twisted slightly, hooking her leg over his and pulling him closer until he was half-lying across her lap. The movement forced his face into the hollow of her neck, his nose brushing against her pulse point. He could smell her as she smelled just like Kara.

His hand on her hip tightened involuntarily as her fingers continued their path downward, slipping past his waistband just an inch, teasing the sensitive skin below his navel. Zack gasped, his hips jerking forward of their own accord.

"Galatea—" he started, voice cracking.

"Shh," she whispered against his hair, her breath warm. "Just feel."

The movie became nothing but a smear of noise and color as Galatea's fingers slid deeper under his shirt, spreading across his stomach, feeling every twitch of his muscles. With a slow, purposeful movement, she grabbed the hem of her own top and pulled it over her head in one fluid motion, tossing it to the floor without a second glance.

Zack's breath caught in his throat. Even in the dim light of the television, her skin seemed to glow as it showed her smooth curves, her bountiful breasts that were barely held together by her tight bra. His eyes traced down the length of her torso, watching the gentle rise and fall of her breathing.

"Your turn," She said, her voice a low command wrapped in velvet. Her fingers found the bottom of his shirt, tugging at it insistently. "I want to feel you, Zack."

He fumbled with the fabric, his hands trembling as he pulled it over his head and discarded it somewhere behind the couch. Before he could second-guess himself, Galatea's palms were on his chest, sliding up to his shoulders, then down his arms. She traced the lines of his body like she was memorizing them, her touch both possessive and reverent.

"Good," she breathed, and then she was leaning in, her mouth capturing his.

The kiss was deep from the start. No tentative brushes or testing the waters as she pressed her lips against his full of intent, her tongue sweeping across his lower lip before slipping inside. Zack moaned against her mouth, his hands finding her bare waist, pulling her closer until there was no space left between them. Her breasts pressed flat against his chest, the sensation of skin sliding against skin sending jolts of heat straight to his groin.

Her fingers tangled in his hair, tilting his head back, deepening the kiss until he felt like he was drowning in her. When she finally pulled away for air, her lips were slick and swollen, her pupils blown wide.

"Lie back," she whispered, pushing against his chest until he was flat on the couch cushions. She rose above him, straddling his hips, the heat of her cunt pressing against the growing bulge in his jeans through the thin layers of fabric. She rocked forward experimentally, and both of them groaned at the friction.

Her hands roamed across his chest, nails dragging red lines down his pecs, across his stomach. She leaned down, her hair falling around them like a curtain, and captured his mouth again, messier this time, full of teeth and tongue and desperation as his hands slid up her sides, thumb brushing the underside of her breast.

"Touch me," She gasped against his lips. "Zack, touch me."

His palms cupped her breasts, thumbs circling her nipples in slow, deliberate strokes. She arched into his touch, a low moan rumbling in her chest. He squeezed gently, feeling the weight of her, the heat radiating from her skin. She bit his lower lip, hard enough to sting, and ground her hips down against his cock.

The sensation made his vision blur. His grip on her tightened as she began to roll her hips in a slow, torturous rhythm, grinding against him through their clothes. The friction was maddening, not enough but too much at the same time.

Galatea broke the kiss, sitting up straight. Her hands found the clasp of her bra, already loose from the removal of her shirt and she unhooked it with practiced ease, letting it fall away. In the flickering light of the television, her bare breasts swayed free, nipples pebbled and dark. She took his hands and placed them back where they belonged, letting him feel her fully.

"See?" she said, her voice husky. "That's better."

Zack sat up just enough to take one of her nipples into his mouth, tongue circling the sensitive peak before sucking gently. Galatea's head fell back, a shuddering breath escaping her lips. Her fingers dug into his shoulders as he worked her breast, alternating between soft licks and firm suction.

She reached between them, her palm pressing flat against his cock through his jeans, squeezing. Zack gasped against her skin, hips bucking up into her hand.

"That's it," she murmured, her fingers working at his button. "I want to see all of you."

But just in that moment, the door to the apartment swung open with a click that sounded like a gunshot in the quiet room. Kara stepped inside with a hum of a tune on her lips that died the second her eyes landed on the couch. Her jaw quickly dropped, and a crimson flush surged from her neck all the way to the tips of her ears.

"I—I... what in the name of Rao is going on?!" Kara stammered, her voice pitching up an octave as she stared at the scene of Galatea partially undressed and Zack looking like he wanted to phase through the floorboards.

Galatea for her part didn't scramble or try to hide; instead, she slowly sat up, her eyes narrowing as she fixed Kara with a look of pure, unadulterated annoyance. She let out a sharp tsk against her teeth, her tongue clicking in irritation. "Really, Kara?" Galatea drawled, her voice husky and dripping with venom. "Your timing is impeccable. We were just getting to the good part, and you barged in."

Zack, meanwhile, was a whirlwind of panicked motion. He fumbled for his nearby shirt, clutching it to his chest as if it were a tactical shield, his face burning a shade of red that rivaled Kara’s cape.

"Kara! It’s—it’s not—we were just—" Zack’s voice cracked as he tried to find a plausible explanation while simultaneously trying to button his jeans with trembling fingers. "We were just goofing around! It got out of hand!".

Kara’s eyes darted between Galatea’s defiant smirk and Zack’s frantic scrambling. "Goofing around?!" she echoed, her voice trembling with a mix of embarrassment and indignation. "You’re half-naked on my couch! In my apartment!".

Galatea rolled her eyes, leaning back with a sigh of frustration. "Don't be so dramatic. If you'd stayed in space for an hour, you wouldn't have had to see anything at all".

Done. Tell me what you think and if I made any mistakes?