Cereal
Gently tapping the block of cereal floating around in her bowl of milk, Kara sighs once more when the cereal refuses to expand and instead just sits there, taunting her. She clutches at her stomach, the gnawing hunger urging her to just grab that block and eat it straight off. Except she’s trying to assimilate, to be more human, and humans wait for the cereal to fill up the bowl.
It’s been over ten minutes and it refuses to do as Kara wants.
She could call for Alex but the last time she called for Alex for something as mundane and simple as feeding herself, Alex seemed to hate her just a bit more. Kara didn’t understand why the television would not respond to her voice and physical hand waving. Turns out Earth’s technology is still so primitive that they need to use a secondary device.
“What are you doing?” Alex asks, stopping at the kitchen table to grab an apple. She bites into it, leaving it between her teeth as she texts on her phone.
“Waiting.”
Alex glances into her bowl, her eyebrows wrinkled in confusion. It’s an expression Alex always has around her. “Waiting for what?”
“For it to expand,” Kara explains softly.
“Wait…Kara, that’s a cereal bar!” Alex shakes her head and grabs a box from the shelf, jiggling it in her hand. “This is cereal, you pour it in.”
“Oh…” Kara’s cheeks burn. Yet another thing she fails at.
Alex uses her spoon to take out the cereal bar and places it on an empty plate before she pours cereal in it for Kara. Kara bites her lip, wanting to say she could do it herself, but Alex is actually being nice to her. She takes what she can get.
“Wait…” Alex says, sitting down on the stool next to her. Kara tries not to smile at Alex voluntarily talking and being close to her. “So…what your food used to…expand?”
Kara nods, shoveling a spoonful of cereal into her mouth, her stomach easing its protests now that it has food. “Some of it did.”
“How?” Alex’s eyes gleam. “Was it like dehydrated food…or…oh my god did you guys have like a shrink ray or something?”
Kara patiently explains what she knows about the technology that makes their food, glad she’d partaken in some of those courses before. Alex’s face lights up at how advanced Krypton’s food preservation and preparation is.
Kara’s drained the last of her milk and refilled her bowl twice before Alex’s phone beeps.
“Shit,” Alex mumbles, typing out a quick response. “You’ll be okay right? I’ll be back by dinner.”
“Of course.” Kara nods, determined. She can be alone unsupervised, no matter what Eliza says. She is not a child.
“I’ll bring back some pizza or something,” Alex says, taking her backpack and running out the front door.
“Bye Alex,” Kara says to the swinging door. Her ears catch Alex talking on the phone, apologizing for being late. This time, Alex doesn’t blame Kara at all.
Kara smiles softly.
Alex is late to meet Vicky.
Alex never forgets about Vicky.
Except Alex forgot all about hanging out with Vicky to talk with Kara.