Nia had just gotten home from Catco and was hoping for a few minutes alone before Yvette showed up, probably with a friend or two. Mackenzie had pitched the fashion article before her again, so she had to cover the stock market for this week.
It was just after seven and Nia made herself a bowl of noodles from the packages in their pantry.
She wondered if she would get a chance to use her powers again. Nia hoped she had made a good impression on Kara as a fighter, but she was worried that maybe she should have been more aware, and that they might not want her on the team if she wasn't capable enough.
She had asked Brainy to train her, but hadn't heard from him for over two days. It had been busy at the DEO, with the Sons of Liberty causing issues.
Maybe Brainy was mad that she had gone to Kelex to learn more about her powers, possibly "destroying the fabric of space-time."
She had forgotten to ask what his problem was with Kelex.
Last time they had gone to the fortress, she had been a little unprepared and he had given her his jacket, the one he always wore around the DEO. Something in her chest warmed a little whenever she thought about that.
She sat on the couch and decided to try her astral projecting again. It was getting much better, and she could walk a few feet away from her body before flickering out.
She tried a few times, and before she knew it, almost an hour had passed.
One more time, she thought. She had told herself that the last three times, but had been disappointed in her performance and kept going.
She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She focused, and was able to slowly pry her spirit from her body.
She looked at her body, sitting upright on the couch. It got weird if she watched it for too long, so she started walking, wanting to see how far she could go before she flickered out.
To her surprise, she was able to get through the door of her apartment and into the hallway. She turned right and almost ran into someone as they came down her hallway.
Or at least, she would have run into them had her body been there.
She realized the person in her apartment building was Brainy.
"What are you doing here?" she asked. Much to her confusion, he didn't look her way. He knocked on the door of her apartment. There was no response, since she was standing there next to him.
She waved her hand in front of his face.
"Why can't you see me?" she asked.
He opened the door to her apartment. She had left it unlocked for when Yvette came home. He saw her body sitting upright on the couch and realization dawned on his face.
"Given the circumstances, there was a seventy-four percent chance that you would be astral projecting when I arrived. But you can't be far from here, Nia Nal.
"I have now calculated that there is an eighty-seven percent chance that you tried to communicate with me in the hallway and were perplexed when you were unable to."
Nia closed her eyes and returned to her physical body.
She opened her eyes and said, "You were right. About all of that."
"It's comforting to know that I wasn't just talking to myself in an empty apartment building," he replied.
"Supergirl has requested your presence at the fortress for more training. Although, I see you have been doing quite well on your own," he added with a small smile.
"Thanks," replied Nia.
"I also brought you a jacket that will be equipped for the temperature of the fortress and still allow you to train unencumbered," he said, handing her a black DEO jacket.
"Thank you," she said, putting it on.
"I will fly you to the fortress. Supergirl plans to be there when we arrive," said Brainy.
"Okay," replied Nia.
He led her to the balcony of her apartment.
"It will take us about ten minutes to get there, so you will want to hold on tightly," he warned.
He awkwardly approached her.
"May I?" he asked.
"Yeah," replied Nia. She hoped the darkness of the night sky would hide her blush. It had been a little different with Kara.
Brainy picked her up bridal-style and she wrapped her arms around his neck, hoping she wouldn't fall.
They were flying over cities at incredible speeds, and her face was numb from the cold wind. At least it would be harder to tell how much she was blushing.
She was trying to relax, but being this close to him was not helping. She was ignoring the fluttering in her stomach, trying to just associate it with excitement to go back to the fortress.
But she was pretty sure he might like her too. The "date" maybe hadn't turned out the way she had thought it would, but that didn't mean it was impossible.
The ten minute flight went by both incredibly fast and so slowly.
They landed in the fortress in front of Kara, and Nia was finally able to be on solid ground again. Brainy walked off, saying he needed to prepare the training area, leaving Nia and Kara together.
"So how was the flight here?" asked Kara in a teasing voice.
"It was fine. Why do you ask?" asked Nia, trying to sound nonchalant instead of panicked.
"You're blushing. A lot," she commented.
"I-"
"Nia, it is painfully obvious that he also likes you. Don't think I didn't notice he gave you his jacket last time we were here," said Kara.
"He's from the future, it might not mean the same thing as it does now," reasoned Nia.
"Nia, he fell for you. Literally. On your apartment floor," Kara said, trying not to smile.
Nia laughed at the reminder of their first meeting.
"Okay, but now is a bad time. We have so much on our hands with the Children of Liberty and the Elite-"
"You need to take the leap," said Kara. "You never know what will happen. You may have less time then you think." She paused, remembering Mon-El.
"Thank you, Kara, I will definitely keep it in mind," said Nia.
"Nia, I have prepared your training exercises for this evening," called Brainy from the other room. Nia smiled at Kara and made her way out of the room.
She wouldn't tell him today. But she would eventually, and maybe there was a chance that it could work.
Maybe they could be together, when the time was right.
