World's Apart

n i n e | k a r a

I get out of bed and quickly get ready. My mom came into my room last night, telling me they will leave early in the morning for a meeting. 

I shower and get dressed within ten minutes and walk into the kitchen. I begin to make pancakes, my favorite. 

As I start the stove, I hear a voice behind me, "Morning." Mon-El.

"Good morning. Did you sleep well?"

"Are all beds on Krypton this comfortable?" He asks with a chuckle.

"Pretty much," I turn around to face him.

"I was wondering if there is a place I could get clothes. I didn't know we would stay here," he says, looking embarrassed. 

"Yeah, of course. After breakfast, I can take you to the market," I say with a smile.

"Um, I don't have any money on me, can I pay you back when my parents arrive here?" He asks.

I can tell he's nervous.

"It's okay, Mon-El, you don't have to. Let's just go the market and pick up a few things for you," I say.

Does he feel guilty for asking me?

"Is there anything I can do to help prepare the food?"

"Sure, can you mix these two in a bowl?" I hand him a large spoon and a bowl filled with different ingredients. 

He nods and takes it from my hand. I watch as he continues to mix the ingredients together. 

Together, we make the pancakes and eat them after cleaning up the mess in the kitchen. "I never thought I'd be able to cook," he says. I look at him and spot syrup on his nose, causing me to giggle uncontrollably. 

"What's wrong?" He asks.

I walk over to him with a napkin in my right hand and dab it on his nose, wiping the syrup off completely.

"Syrup," I say with a smile.

"That's embarrassing," he says, rubbing his nose, making sure it's gone.

"Don't be, I do it all the time," I say honestly, making him laugh.

"Come on, let's go to the market before it gets too crowded."

He nods and follows behind me.

We walk into the first store in the market. "The men's clothing is on the left," I say. "Pick out things you like," I say.

I watch as Mon-El picks out two shirts, a pant and a pair of shorts. 

"That's all?"

"Yeah. I don't think I'll be staying any longer, and I think this will be more than enough," he says. "Please tell me how much this will be so I can pay you back," he starts.

"Mon-El, I told you to not worry about the money, why don't you wait outside, I'll pay for this and come and find you," I say. He sighs in defeat and walks out of the store while I go and pay the woman at the front.

"Thank you, Kara, have a nice day," she smiles. 

"You too," I say back. I walk over to Mon-El, who is waiting by the fountain in the middle of the street. He takes the bag from my hand.

"Thank you," he says.

"You say that too much," I say to him as we walk back.