"Good afternoon," Harleen said with a smile.
"Yeah... afternoon," Daniel replied, still trying to properly wake up.
Then he noticed her hand had slipped beneath the hem of his shirt, resting against his side. She was far too comfortable with the situation, that strange smile still fixed on her face.
Daniel stared at her. "Ummm... Harleen, are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," she said casually. "After all this, I'm completely fine."
He looked at her hand, then back at her face. "You're acting really strange."
She only smiled, making no move to pull her hand away.
Daniel sat up slowly, trying to make sense of it. "Okay... either I'm still dreaming, or whatever happened to my brain got a lot worse."
She didn't answer, just wrapped her arms around him again and rested her head against his shoulder.
He sat there a second, completely confused. "Harleen?"
She only held him tighter.
He tried to move toward the door, but she followed without letting go, eventually wrapping her arms around his back and clinging on.
"Okay, something is definitely wrong with you."
"I just want to stay like this for a little while," she said quietly.
"Since when do you do this?"
She smiled against his shoulder. "Since you disappeared." She sounded almost annoyed he'd even asked. "You were gone for two days. I didn't know where you were, and now you're back."
Daniel frowned. "Harleen, I was in Central City."
"I know."
"Then why are you acting like I disappeared for months?"
She didn't answer, just tightened her arms further.
He eventually gave up trying to move and stood there awkwardly.
A few minutes passed.
Then she suddenly pulled away, looking at him, then at herself, as if only now realizing what she'd been doing.
"Wait..."
He raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"Why was I hugging you?"
He stared at her. "You tell me."
"I don't know." She looked down at her hands, then back up. "Did I do something?"
"No. You were the one hugging me."
Her eyes went wide. "I was?"
"Yeah."
She looked genuinely horrified for a second. "Why the hell would I do that?"
Daniel rubbed his forehead slowly. "That's exactly what I'm trying to figure out."
A sudden gust of wind came through the open window, and Kara landed inside the room.
"Daniel, there you are. I've been looking for you."
Before he could answer, Harleen moved closer and grabbed his hand.
Kara stopped, noticing. She looked at Harleen, then at Daniel, then back at Harleen. "Okay..."
Without another word, she walked over and took his other hand. "You're coming with me. We're going somewhere fun."
Harleen immediately pulled his arm back toward herself. "No. He stays with me."
Kara frowned. "Why?"
"Because I said so."
Daniel stood between them, arms being pulled in opposite directions, staring at both women. "Can someone explain what the hell is happening?"
Neither answered.
Kara tightened her grip. "Come on, Daniel."
Harleen pulled harder on his other arm. "He's not going anywhere."
Daniel looked from one to the other, completely lost. Something was seriously wrong — Harleen had gone from her usual professional self to acting weirdly possessive, and now Kara was acting off too.
Then Harleen's expression shifted entirely. The polite smile vanished, replaced by a sharp, unpredictable grin Daniel had only ever seen when she was genuinely enjoying herself.
"Get in line, you spandex-wearing weirdo."
Kara stared at her. "Did you just call me a weirdo?"
"Yep." Harleen stepped between them, still holding his arm. "And before you start flying around and throwing a tantrum, let me make something clear. You don't get to swoop through a window, grab my patient, and decide you're taking him somewhere."
"Your patient?"
Harleen's grin widened. "That's right."
"Daniel isn't your property."
"I know that." She glanced at Daniel briefly, then back at Kara. "But I'm still not letting you drag him away."
Kara stepped closer. "You're acting crazy."
Harleen's eyes lit up. "Now you're figuring it out."
Daniel stared at her. "Harleen..."
"What?"
"You're smiling."
"So?"
"You normally don't smile like that when you're arguing."
She shrugged. "Maybe I'm having a good day."
Kara reached for his hand again. "Come on, Daniel."
Harleen slapped her hand away instantly. "Back off, Supergirl."
Kara's eyebrows shot up. "Oh, you did not just—"
"I absolutely did." Harleen planted herself in front of Daniel, grin turning almost playful. "You want him? Fine. Get in line."
Daniel looked between them, completely baffled. "Why does this feel like I'm watching two completely different people?"
Harleen glanced over her shoulder at him. "Don't worry, handsome. I'll handle this."
Daniel's face went blank. Whatever was going on with Harleen, it was starting to look less like a bad mood and more like something had actually changed in her — and he was definitely going to need help figuring out what.
*****
A/N: If you'd like to read ahead of the Webnovel release schedule, you can join my Patreon!
The Patreon version is 30 chapters ahead.
👉 patreon.com/Universal_Peace