There was something electric in the air, something wrong. I stood frozen in place, one hand still on the doorknob, as Karen, Kara stood in my doorway, her civilian clothes fluttering slightly in the breeze behind her.
My heartbeat thundered in my chest, louder than it should've been. My skin felt hot. My pupils dilated. My body tensed overreacting, hyper-aware, like I was being pulled toward her by some invisible string. My manhood grew, making a giant bulge in my sweatpants.
She had that same distant, dreamlike expression on her face as the last time I saw her. The moment she stepped forward, a thin trail of blood ran down her nostrils. My own nose bled in sync. The sight snapped something loose in my gut. "…Karen?" I managed, my voice sounding weirdly distant even to myself. "Why are you here?"
She blinked slowly, like she was trying to remember something. "Hey, Cain," she said, her voice too soft, too calm. "Can I talk to you? It's about earlier, and your nose is bleeding." I wiped under my nostril with the back of my hand, stepping back automatically as she advanced. "Y–yeah… yours too."
She crossed the threshold without waiting for permission and closed the door behind her. The click of the lock echoed unnaturally loud in the quiet space. "I can help with that," she whispered and then floated, rising to my height, hovering inches from me.
My body locked up, and I stopped retreating. Every nerve ending was on fire, telling me that this was right and to embrace her and take her, but the part of my mind built for discipline was slowly going silent. This was… instinctual.
Her hands moved to my shoulders as she leaned in, crossing her arms around me. Then a streak of warmth touched me as her tongue traced the trail of blood from my nose to my lips. Time began to fracture as everything around us faded. Her lips met mine, and a surge of fire ran through my body as our mouths collided hot, wet, without hesitation. Her breath hitched, a soft sound of longing escaping her throat. Her legs wrapped around my waist leg locking me, and I instinctively caught her, my hands supporting her ass like they belonged there.
Her kiss was heavy, burning with passion, like she was trying to anchor herself in the moment through sheer contact. It wasn't just passion. It was primal and sexual. She started to grind on the bulge in my pants and moaned slowly and heavily. The pleasure shot through my spine like a surge of electricity. I grabbed her ass tighter and brought her closer to me.
Then I had a moment of clarity. One thought that this isn't her. I pulled away sharply, gripping her short ponytail not violently, but enough to create space. Her head tilted back with a soft moan, eyes wild with lust.
"Karen, we need to stop." I placed her gently on the couch and stepped back, my breath uneven, mind spiraling. She landed gracefully but didn't sit still. She turned, eyes locked onto mine, no longer dazed, but focused like a predator. A hungry lioness circling prey. "I like it when you're rough," she said, her voice lower now, more dangerous. "It's been so long since I got to cut loose. Don't stop now."
She glanced down at the obvious bulge in my pants and smirked. I cursed under my breath. "Karen—Karen, listen. This is the pheromones. It's not real."
She tilted her head, licking her lips like she didn't hear me. Then she started walking toward me again, slow and deliberate like a lioness ready to pounce on her prey. I panicked. "…Diana, forgive me," I muttered, and slapped her across the cheek, not full strength, but enough to stun her.
She paused as the slap echoed. Then she turned back with wide eyes and bit her lip. "Just like that". "Oh no," I breathed. "That made it worse…"
She took another step. "Kara. Stop." I shouted. That did it. Her entire posture shifted, and the lust drained from her eyes, replaced by confusion, then shock. "…What did you just call me?"
"I said Kara. Kara Zor-L. That's your real name. You're not Karen Starr, not really." She froze. "…How do you know that?" she asked quietly. Her fingers brushed her lips. " Wait, why did I—what just happened to me?"
I held up my hands. "Look, I didn't do anything. I was trying to stop you, remember? Whatever that was, it's connected to my biology. My people emit pheromones… sometimes involuntarily. It's why you had a nosebleed at the same time I did earlier." She stared, processing. "…You damn Viltrumites," she whispered. "Half," I corrected, trying to make a joke. Kara slumped into the couch, head in her hands. "Rao… What was I doing?"
I sank into the nearby armchair, rubbing my face. "It's the pheromones. I'm still learning how to suppress them. You walked in when I was exhausted and… honestly, you looked amazing. I wasn't exactly strong enough to push you away right away." She glanced at me, cheeks red with anger and something else. "You're not blaming me, are you?"
"No. Not even a little," I admitted, cracking a small grin. "In fact, I'm impressed I managed to stop. You're… not exactly easy to ignore." Her lips twitched in a reluctant smirk. "Flatterer." We sat in silence for a moment, the atmosphere finally cooling. Then she looked at me again, this time sharply. "How do you know who I am, Cain? How do you know that?"
My stomach turned. That was the question I'd been avoiding. I leaned back, trying to think. Because this is Earth-2 Kara, and if that's where she's really from wasn't quite the same as the comics. This wasn't the "World's Finest" storyline with her and Helena Wayne trapped on Earth-1. This was something… similar, but something else, since it's a merged universe. There is no telling what is the same and what is different.
The League didn't even know her true identity, so how did I explain it? I stared into her questioning eyes, realizing I was out of time.