Hey everyone! I'm back at last with my 2nd SnowWells one-shot! Apologies for taking so long, I promise the next one won't be delayed by more than a few days, I have a Harrison-centric fic coming up soon &&& mayyyybe another SnowWells story if you'll want, I'll elaborate on the idea after everyone finishes reading this! Thank you to all the lovely readers, reviewers and fellow writers out there for enjoying "Safe & Sound" and I hope you like this one too; even though the genre says 'angst' it isn't really that much, I'm still not used to writing angst but there is a little sad stuff in the middle! And before the complaints begin, I am well aware that Harrison Wells might come across as OOC here and maybe even Caitlin? There's no mention of Ronnie or any ulterior motives so... yeah... just don't expect too much! I tried my best at something a little different, more romantic?
Harrison Wells was having a bad day; it wasn't altogether unusual for the doctor to experience some moments which proved to be unsatisfactory, but today of all days, everything seemed to have gone wrong, which would suggest that maybe it was more than just a bad day... catastrophic maybe? He sighed deeply, removing the glasses he wore and ran a hand over his eyes, hoping that since night had already fallen, nothing else could happen to make the day any worse. Sitting in the quiet isolation of his office at S.T.A.R. Labs, Harrison finally gave into the temptation of staring at one tumbler of scotch on his desk and poured himself a drink.
"Cheers." He said out loud to the nothingness that surrounded him, letting the alcohol take effect. This was the numbing feeling he so desperately needed, but the night was still young and the bottle only half-empty.
Using the controls of his wheelchair, Harrison moved away from the desk and headed towards a secluded corner of his office where something important was located. He sat there, swirling his drink around, staring at the ice cubes, wondering why the events of that day had gotten under his skin to such an extent? Anyone who lived in Central City had their share of good days and bad days alike; being the Director of S.T.A.R. Labs meant that he would also experience both sides of the same coin and yet... ever since meeting the young Barry Allen and taking him under his wing, Harrison realized that they had rarely encountered 'losses' which would result in a bad day. Until now.
"I suppose it couldn't be avoided." He mused whilst running his fingers across the pristinely polished wood, debating whether or not he would make use of this... it felt like another lifetime to him... those days were gone when he would simply relax and enjoy a peaceful night in the office after a long day's work.
Raising the glass to finish off the drink before refilling it again, Harrison couldn't help but think about all the disasters that he had encountered in 12 hours or so - Barry had been severely injured after an impulsive showdown fight with the new meta-human whose powers were still beyond the doctor's comprehension and was sent to recover at home, the meta-human in question was out on the streets or perhaps in hiding but still at large, General Wade Eiling had paid yet another unannounced visit to try and threaten Wells into working together but had retreated once things at the lab got testy, Detective Joe West had also shown up later that evening in order to discuss the Nora Allen case with Harrison which had led to more questions and not enough answers, Cisco had made another blunder in reconfiguring the calculations for something new which would protect Barry and so was disappointed in himself which led to him calling it an early night in order to work on fixing the mistake at home. It seemed as if the only person who hadn't caused any blunders or accidents was Caitlin who spent most of her time patching Barry up and fussing over everyone else as she always did.
"Caitlin. Caitlin Snow." Simply thinking about her name brought the faintest of traces of a smile to Harrison's lips and it was only then did he make the decision of what to do next.
The precious item that lay in that dark corner of his office was a piano, but it was more than that to Harrison Wells because for him, this piano had been his single companion over the last several years on quiet night's when he needed to be alone and lose himself in the throes of music. Not many people were aware of this side to their boss and that was how he preferred things to be, his private life kept separate from his professional. Tonight was the first in more than three years since he'd opened it up; perhaps playing something to ease his mind would actually work in his favor. After leaving the wheelchair to one side and sitting properly in front of his piano, Harrison noticed the music sheets which were left behind and flipped through them for only a moment before settling on a choice of song. A slightly challenging but soothing piece of classical genius.
"Here goes nothing." Harrison realized that he had been talking to himself out loud a couple of times already but figured it was because of the scotch; he flexed his fingers and dove straight into the music, emptying his mind of everything else as he focused on each note and the keys.
For the next several minutes, there was only the soft tunes of music echoing throughout his office as Harrison played the piano like he'd never left it for even a day. What he did not know was that the sound actually extended far beyond that room and into the corridors of S.T.A.R. Labs, across the walls, through the hallways... suddenly the entire floor was filled with music; what had been eerily silent, now turned melodious and alive. It also happened to catch the attention of another person who was still inside the building, Caitlin Snow. She hadn't left after all this time because she continued to work on analyzing blood and tissue samples of the meta-human which Barry had managed to retrieve; it was certainly safe to say that Caitlin was pleasantly surprised when she heard the music flitting in the office for she had no idea that there was someone else around either. Almost instantly, the song captivated her as she stopped all work and Caitlin let curiosity get the best of her as she left the office and began to follow the sounds towards the direction it was coming from; she did not know what she would find but upon nearing Dr. Wells' office, Caitlin was wide-eyed as she realized that the music indeed originated from within. The door was open and when she got close enough to see an unexpected sight before her eyes, that was when her captivated feelings turned to enchantment. She had never in all her years of working at S.T.A.R. Labs known that Harrison Wells was an experienced piano player and yet there he was, seated in front of the magnificent instrument with his eyes closed and a look of content across his features as he reached the end.
All this while, as Caitlin stood by the doorway to his office, Harrison had been completely unaware of anything around him but the music; but once his song ended and he opened his eyes, it was obvious that he sensed another presence nearby. Glancing up and turning around to see who else was there, he did not betray any signs of emotion when he noticed the young woman standing at the threshold of his private domain. They may have been separated by the distance which lay between the piano and the door but Caitlin was sure that she could feel Harrison's eyes on her as he continued to gaze silently; it may have been the music which had led her all the way to this office, but there was something else entirely that lured her inside as she found herself walking across the room towards where he sat.
"Caitlin. What a pleasant surprise." Harrison was the first to break the silence as he watched her walk closer, "I didn't realize you were still here." He was also surprised at his ability to think and speak clearly; perhaps two glasses of scotch weren't enough to get his senses addled anymore.
"I... I was just finishing up my work..." Caitlin started to say, hoping that he wasn't going to be annoyed at her disturbing the moment for him, "I thought no one else was here... but then I heard the music playing... so..." She drifted off, unsure of how to explain what she'd felt when her ears had perked up on listening to the familiar tune, attracting her to come all the way and investigate its source.
"Ah. Well... that was just something I did to try and get my mind off things." While he wasn't one to divulge any details, Harrison suddenly felt the need to brush off the piano playing innocently, whatever peace he'd managed to find with the music was now turning into something different with Caitlin around and he didn't know what these new feelings were.
"It was beautiful!" Unable to help herself, Caitlin beamed brightly as she sat down at the far end of the bench abruptly and stared at the piano in front of her. "I knew the song as soon as I heard it playing and at first I thought maybe the stereo was left on but then it occurred to me that Cisco probably doesn't listen to this kind of music and Barry doesn't even know how to work the sound systems yet. So I came here... to see where it was coming from; I've never heard the song being played live before and it was wonderful." She explained almost breathlessly.
Harrison was intrigued by this; he hadn't expected the young woman seated across him to be so well versed in classical music and show an interest in something which he enjoyed. The night was definitely not as bad or catastrophic as it seemed a half hour ago and maybe it would end on a much better note.
"Thank you, that is very kind of you to say. This song is one of my favorites and I am glad to hear you liked it." Harrison replied, a small smile forming just then.
"Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini. It's my favorite song too." Caitlin admitted, not realizing that there was a faint blush on her cheeks as she continued to stay seated; something about being in the office at such a late hour with no one else around seemed strangely appealing to her, it was like a private safe place.
"You're a fan of Rachmaninov?" He asked her, it was one thing to recognize a song but another to actually call it a favorite.
"I am! Yes! I heard it in a movie which I saw a few years ago, "Somewhere In Time" and ever since then I've always listened to it whenever I feel low in spirits, have you not seen the movie?" She questioned him in return, wondering when this fondness for music had begun.
Somehow, the sincere honesty and pure innocence in the way Caitlin posed her question to Harrison made him almost grin as he saw the confusion on her face; whereas music was one of his strongest forte's and an old passion, films had never been appealing to him.
"No, I haven't seen the movie Caitlin. I don't really watch many movies." He said to her directly, "I was fortunate enough to discover a video tape of Rachmaninov's concert many years ago and that was where I heard the song."
"Seriously? You're not a movie-buff at all?" Caitlin had barely registered anything Harrison said after hearing the first sentence he'd spoken as she was genuinely shocked, taking a long time to process the words. "How is it that you've not seen this movie though? "Somewhere In Time" is an 80's hit! One of the most romantic movies ever made. Christopher Reeve? You do know who he is right?" She asked, switching topics for a minute.
"Yes, I am aware of who Christopher Reeve is Caitlin. And I have heard of this movie you're talking about but I'm saying that I have not seen it." Harrison didn't understand why such frivolous things were so important that he was having a discussion about it with Caitlin at half past 1 in the night, but that didn't stop him from letting it continue.
"Wow. Okay. I'm going to change that for you. Remind me to start a monthly movie night with the boys and I'll make sure that you get to see this film in no time. Cisco said something about a projector screen once, and Barry could use the night off once in a while..." Caitlin started to rattle off ideas that were forming in her mind; more team-bonding opportunities with all 4 of them didn't sound like such a bad idea.
"No." It was very softly spoken but firm and stressed just enough that when Harrison rejected the notion, Caitlin couldn't help but snap her eyes up to glance at him in shock.
What she didn't realize, and probably never would was that Harrison did not have a problem with the idea itself; in fact, if anything, upon hearing Caitlin initially suggesting that she would make sure he got a chance to see this movie, no matter how silly it seemed, Harrison had been surprised to feel ever-ready to accept her offer thinking that perhaps it would just be the two of them together and somehow that sounded like a wonderful idea to him. And then she'd gone ahead and finished off her thought by saying this movie night idea of hers would include Barry and Cisco as well... which was something he normally wouldn't have minded; the three young adults had formed a habit of going out together many times already and yet at this moment, it felt like Caitlin's suggestion meant that he would have to share her with the others, share the moments that he'd normally experience only with her. Shaking his head clear, Harrison felt that maybe the alcohol was starting to affect him after all, he was never a possessive person and in this situation, Caitlin was not his anything at all, so why was he thinking so much about her? And where had the thought of her being his even come from?
"I... I apologize if that sounded harsh Caitlin." He didn't even realize when he said sorry to her. Since when did he apologize to anyone? "I only meant to say that perhaps this idea of yours could distract everyone from their work, we all have important roles to play and if something were to happen to Barry or any one of you while we were unprepared... I can't take that chance for something frivolous like this... I have no objections to the three of you spending time together outside of the lab, your personal lives are yours alone... but even then we shouldn't forget why we're here, doing what we do." Harrison finished explaining his response to her, surprised he'd been able to form such coherent thoughts.
All this while, Caitlin had been stunned into silence as she sat mere feet away from Harrison and watched as the stern look had flashed across his face when he'd shot down her idea; she'd also caught sight of something else in his eyes, but it had disappeared as soon as she noticed it and couldn't be sure of what she had seen. And when she heard what he had to say, Caitlin barely registered his words for her focus was still on him. Even though she'd been here for a while now, she mentally whacked herself for not realizing what was right in front of her sooner; the bottle of scotch, the melancholic song, the sadness radiating across the room and the fact that Harrison had even removed his glasses... clearly the events of that day had affected him more than he had let on earlier when she questioned him. He was exhausted and just wanted some peace and here she was, making things worse.
"You're right." She said at last, wondering in that moment why she hadn't gotten up to leave. It was the best thing to do and yet Caitlin found herself unable to move; she couldn't... no, she wouldn't leave him alone.
Harrison frowned when he heard her admit that he was right about whatever he'd just said; when he turned back to look at her, he saw that she was staring at him intently, but he wouldn't back down and held her gaze.
"Tell me more about your music." Caitlin finally spoke up after a few minutes of quietness had filled around them, but it felt normal to her, was it supposed to be otherwise? She didn't know, she couldn't understand why she was starting to feel peace herself but focused her attention on keeping things more pleasant in her talks with Harrison. Music was the key, she knew that when he was playing the piano earlier, he had managed to relax and so she went with that.
"What would you like to know about it?" Harrison knew what she was trying to do and for once, he was thankful that the topic had changed; he was a little curious as to why the young woman continued to stay with him, as if she didn't have anywhere else to be, but he indulged her in the chance to have a simple conversation.
"Where you learned how to play the piano? Who are your favorite musicians? And if you've ever composed any music of your own?" There may have been more questions on her mind but Caitlin couldn't remember anything else, she simply blurted out the first three that she could make sense of.
There it was. A tiny sliver of a smile forming on his lips again, Harrison was amused at her enthusiasm over music and wondered if she would reveal something about her interests to him or not.
"I was very young when I started to take a deep interest in music; I knew there was always going to be the part of me which wanted to be a scientist and do something which would revolutionize the world and help people in need, but I also found that music was my safe haven when I needed to get away... from everything sometimes." He replied, answering her first question, "I mostly learned everything myself, but at one point I did have a teacher to help refine my skills, an elderly woman who lived in my neighborhood, she saw me like a grandson and taught me all the things I still had to discover about music at that time. The piano has been the only thing I can really feel comfortable with, I did try my hand at the guitar and flute but I wasn't very good at it. I'm certainly not good enough to compose any music though. As for my favorite musicians... the classics I suppose." Harrison didn't realize when he'd opened up to Caitlin so much; for a moment, he had been caught up in the nostalgia of his past that he almost forgot he wasn't alone anymore.
"Really? So... Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Bach, Chopin, Vivaldi?" Caitlin was delighted to hear Harrison's taste in classical music was very much like hers and wondered if... no, she couldn't ask her boss for something like that.
"Not to mention Beethoven, Debussy and Rachmaninov of course." Harrison added to the list and noticed a sudden change in her demeanor; Caitlin had something on her mind and he had no idea what it could be about but he found himself curious enough to ask. "Are you alright Caitlin?" Why did he care so much? What was it about this young woman that he wanted to spend this whole night with her talking about music and more music if that's what it took for her to stay?
"Huh? Oh yes... yes I'm fine Dr. Wells... I was just thinking..." She started to say, unsure of how to go on, but then decided to take the plunge and with a deep breath continued, "Would it be too much to ask you to play something of Beethoven's? It's... I... well I tried my hand at playing the piano once when I was in school for a recital but it didn't work out very nicely... and I've always been biased towards learning about Beethoven, there's just something about his music which is..." Before she could describe what she felt with the music, Harrison had interrupted her.
"Enchanting. Beethoven's music feels enchanting. Doesn't it?" He said, finished her sentence as he suddenly thought of something. It was rash and possibly not very professional of him but tonight of all night's, Harrison found that he didn't care much for boundaries of being Caitlin's boss and mentor.
"Yes, it does feel enchanting." Caitlin nodded in agreement, letting the rest of her thoughts go unspoken, Just like the piano music he had played was enchanting too.
"So what is your request? One of the symphonies?" Harrison turned his attention towards the piano once more, still debating whether he should go ahead with his idea or not.
"Fur Elise actually. That's one of my favorite songs too." She couldn't help but smile and feel like a weight had been lifted off her chest; she'd been worried that maybe her asking him to play a song for her would be too much or too odd, but he had accepted without question.
"Ah, yes. It is quite beautiful." Luckily for him, the music sheet he had used earlier also contained the notes for this particular song and so at first, he began to make a show of flipping through the pages, looking for the right page before starting to play the song.
Starting off very slowly, Harrison ran his fingers along the keys very deftly, playing the first stanza effortlessly and flawlessly; for those few long seconds there was nothing but silence and calm as Caitlin listened to the familiar tune with her eyes closed. To say it was unexpected would be an understatement when she suddenly found that her fingers were touching the keyboard when the tempo hastened instantly; her eyes widened in surprise when she saw that Harrison had reached over and taken her hands in his, covering them completely and using her fingers to play the rest of the song. The touch of his skin on hers was soft and tender but hard and strong all at once, his fingers were longer and more slender than her own and yet, somehow it looked as if they fit together; most of all, Caitlin was also very much aware of the fact that there was barely any distance between them for their shoulders were touching and she could feel the cool air of his breath tickling her cheek as he reached the final portion of the song, not having said anything at all in these few seconds. Or was it minutes? Surely it couldn't have been longer than that and yet to Caitlin, it felt as if she was frozen in this moment. With him by her side.
"It looks like you're not so bad after all." Harrison mused out loud when he finished playing the piano but made no move to let go of his hold on her.
Caitlin didn't know what to say or how to react, her mind was thinking of a hundred different things and absolutely nothing at the same time; she simply turned to glance up at Harrison who was so close to her that she could see every inch of his face clearly as if she never had before. The blue eyes, which always shone brilliantly whenever Harrison had a breakthrough with his creations or when faced with an impossible situation while working with Barry, were mesmerizing as he stared into her eyes, the sharp but normal bridge of his nose, his cheekbones which revealed a tiny hint of dimples... and his lips... Caitlin didn't know what to think when she found herself staring at his lips... except for one question on her mind which appeared out of nowhere. What did Harrison Wells taste like?
Completely oblivious to the thoughts of Caitlin in those prolonged minutes of silence wherein she simply stared at him, Harrison couldn't help but notice that the distance between them barely existed now and he wasn't sure what to make of it since she showed no signs of moving away. He wondered if he should say something else, about how he hadn't really planned to make her play the piano along with him without asking beforehand, or anything at all, but during these seconds ever since the song had ended, Harrison knew something had changed.
"Caitlin..." Her name was safe enough, but that was all he could manage until he found himself interrupted rather unexpectedly.
Without thinking twice, Caitlin had leaned forward and pressed her lips to his in a quick but not-so-innocent kiss; it was long enough for her to taste the remnants of scotch on her tongue but short as well for she pulled back when she realized what had just happened. What she had just done. She had kissed her boss, her mentor and... now her thoughts were drifting to those fingers of his which had reached up to touch her left hand where she'd touched his cheek.
"I... I shouldn't have done that." Caitlin found herself saying, not meeting his eyes anymore, she couldn't say that she was sorry though, no matter how wrong it seemed in theory and maybe even in her mind, her heart said otherwise; this felt right. Maybe the only thing she could apologize for was kissing Harrison so abruptly, not the kiss itself.
However, they both were in for another surprise when a second later, Harrison's arm went around her waist and pulled Caitlin even closer to him as he bent down and captured her in another kiss, biting the lower lip gently, making her whimper softly as she wound her fingers in his hair and let him slip his tongue inside so that she could finally taste him. There was more to Harrison than just the scotch, there was a hint of spice and musk and a fire within so strong that Caitlin found herself melting into his embrace as the kiss deepened and they both fought for dominance. She wanted this like she wanted air to breathe, she had never been kissed, never been touched, never been needed like Harrison made her feel.
It was over as soon as it had begun though, Harrison was the one who broke apart first and pulled back just enough so that he could see her clearly, his breath slightly erratic, matching his heartbeats and once again Caitlin swore she saw something glisten in his eyes, something... cold. She was breathing heavily and holding her heart with one hand while the other touched the lips that he had kissed all the while staring at him, wondering what was going on. She had kissed him first and then he kissed her back but then pulled away without saying anything; but when he finally did speak, Caitlin wished that he had never said a word to her after.
"You need to leave." Four words, that's all it took. Four words which were quietly spoken but so definitively and coldly that Caitlin felt the wind getting knocked out of her when she heard how Harrison sounded. He wanted her gone, it wasn't a request.
Blinking a few times to make sure her mind had processed everything that had just occurred, Caitlin didn't even attempt to say something in reply as she suddenly stood up from the piano bench and turned to walk out of the office. She didn't understand what it all meant and why he had said those words to her, but she left in spite of wanting to stay. This time she had to leave, but she was not walking away from him; when she reached the door once again, Caitlin glanced back and saw that Harrison had turned to his drink and wore his glasses now, he didn't look over to where she was but a part of her knew that he was aware that she hadn't left yet. Only when she finally had gone did he turn around and stare at the emptiness stretched in front of him.
Sighing deeply, Harrison rubbed his forehead as he felt the frustration growing within himself. Caitlin had kissed him first and then he had been careless enough to kiss her again. The biggest problem about this situation was something he hadn't anticipated at all; the fact that he didn't regret the kiss was equal parts shocking as it was bewildering too. And then he had to go and send her away which was something he hadn't intended either, but it was a necessary thing he had to do. For her sake. Harrison knew that this was a risk; these feelings he had begun to have for Caitlin was dangerous and risky and wrong and no matter if he felt otherwise, he knew better. He may have been harsh, but he was thinking about her when he told her to leave. No matter what kind of a person he was, Harrison did not want Caitlin to be hurt. Ever. It was safer for her this way; he had to keep his distance, he couldn't let her into his life when there was nothing but secrets and lies and pain, even if it meant that he was already starting to feel his own heart aching at the loss of her presence. How she had managed to affect him in such a way was a mystery he might never solve, but somehow, she had touched him, deeply; making him feel like he hadn't felt in a long time ago, as if that Harrison Wells was from another lifetime than the Harrison Wells he was today. Caitlin Snow had melted his cold heart. And in return he had rejected her.
For the next several weeks, Caitlin found that unless there was work to be done and there was someone else around, Barry or Cisco or even Detective West who was starting to become a frequent visitor to S.T.A.R. Labs, Dr. Wells was avoiding her. She tried to ignore the ache in her heart which had only grown deeper and more painful with each day that went by. He barely spoke to her, he wouldn't look in her direction for more than a few seconds, he couldn't be with her in the same room if no one else was there, and all she could do was wonder why? What had gone wrong? Was it because she had kissed him? Was it because she hadn't apologized for doing so? Why did he continue to torture her so? Caitlin couldn't understand anything that was going on; she was able to bury herself in work for as long as it was humanly possible but the rest of the time, she kept her distance from everything else. She was the one to leave first the building before Harrison even knew that she had gone, she stopped hanging out with Cisco and Barry and his friend Iris and her boyfriend Eddie, she stayed at home and thought about Harrison until all the questions and no answers made her angry and upset because she had no idea what to do with these thoughts and feelings.
Little did she know that Harrison was suffering in a similar way, going through the same thing more or less. It killed him to be so close to Caitlin every single day and yet be so far away at the same time, he was getting more frustrated, angry, and short-tempered although he never let her see that side of him; this was not helping things at all. He had thought that with time and enough space then he would finally stop thinking about Caitlin, but the distance only made things worse; it had gotten to a point where Harrison spent the nights alone in his office, playing the piano, hoping that maybe she had stayed back late even once and would hear him like she had that first night and would come. For a whole month, he kept dreaming, wishing, hoping... and then... one night, he remembered something she had said, "Have you ever composed any music of your own?" That was the answer he had been looking for without even knowing it. Harrison had started to regret his decision to push Caitlin away by now; he knew that she was a strong woman who deserved to be happy and even if it wasn't possible with him, or maybe not now, she needed to know that he had handled the aftermath of their kiss badly but he hadn't meant to. In truth, he had been caught off-guard and should have said something to her, but perhaps instead of saying what she meant to him, he could show her.
"Caitlin? Earth to Caitlin! Are you there Dr. Snow?" Barry Allen snapped his fingers in front of his friend and teammate, knowing full well that she had changed during this past month but he was clueless as to why.
"What?" Caitlin came out of her reverie when she heard Barry calling her name. She rubbed her bloodshot eyes, sleep was the farthest thing possible these days, but she didn't want him to worry. "Barry? What is it? Did Cisco get the results of that DNA test already?" She asked, stifling a yawn with one hand as she ruffled through the files on her desk with the other.
"No. It's only 7 in the morning Caitlin. Cisco isn't even here yet." Frowning slightly as he wondered if Caitlin was coming down with a sickness, Barry didn't hesitate to reach out and touch her forehead to check for a fever. "Are you okay Caitlin? You look like hell froze over. No offense." He winced at his poor choice of words and wondered if it even made sense, but she didn't seem to have noticed.
"Of course. I'm fine. And I do not have a fever." She was awake enough by now to gently whack his hand away from her neck, although it was for a completely different reason; Caitlin vaguely remembered her dream from last night, it had something to do with a certain spectacled man leaving kisses down her neck and she really didn't want to think about that.
"Sorry for checking to see if my friend was fine." Barry feigned being hurt as he made a face at her, before remembering why he had come to her in the first place. "Oops, I almost forgot to give you this." He said as he removed a brown manilla envelope from his satchel which he used when working a case with the CCPD.
"What is it?" Caitlin took the package in her hands, puzzled as to why the name and address had been printed instead of handwritten, with no signs of a return address, "Where did you get this?" She asked Barry, glancing around the lab to see that it was indeed morning and they were alone for the moment.
"Outside actually. I came in early cause Dr. Wells said he needed to talk to all of us about this new meta-human we discovered yesterday and thanks to the precinct files, I may have a lead on where we can find him. This was lying near the workstation by the computers and since it has your name on it, I figured Cisco might have left the mail behind before leaving last night?" He guessed.
"Oh. Okay. Thanks anyway." Slightly distracted by the mention of a team meeting taking place soon which meant coming face to face with Harrison again and going through another day of pretending nothing had ever happened between them, Caitlin was barely paying attention to what the package was when she tore it open.
The glint of something silver barely caught her eye before it fell to the floor from inside the envelope but luckily, Barry hadn't moved from beside the desk and grabbed the object just in time. He handed it over to Caitlin and stared at her without saying anything but decided to give her some space having just heard Cisco come in. When she was alone once again, she couldn't help but gasp softly when she saw that there was a CD in her hand; there was something else inside the envelope. She carefully placed the cd on her desk and slowly removed... a sheet of paper from within. It took her only a second to read what was written at the top to realize what this was and when realization struck, Caitlin felt choked up as her eyes started to water. And for the first time in over a month, her heart started to hurt less as she traced the symbols on the page and tried not to sob in case Barry heard her and came over to worry again. She couldn't believe what she was seeing and yet, in that moment when the elevator doors opened and she turned around, Caitlin knew that she would find herself face to face with Harrison.
It was as if no one else existed in the room other than the two of them just then. Only Harrison and Caitlin, who finally looked at each other as they had that night in his office all those weeks ago, and for the first time in what Caitlin believed was a really, really long time, she was the one person who happened to witness the biggest and most real smile that Harrison had ever smiled; and he was smiling at her. There was no need for them to say anything just then, for she understood what the gift meant, it was an apology, an explanation, a confession and a promise. They would have to talk about this in private, tonight if possible and Caitlin knew that maybe there was a chance of something more, she could hope for something more now. Harrison Wells may have been a complex man, hard to understand, almost impossible to read, tough and strong-headed but he also was terrible at expressing himself easily, which is why, when the meeting began, Caitlin stayed by her desk for a minute longer as she hid the envelope inside a drawer and locked it until she would remove it later that night; this was a secret that she shared with him and something she would cherish forever. After all, it wasn't everyday that Harrison composed a song specially for her and burned the music on a CD as well as write the notes to it on a music sheet and give it the perfect title - "A Song For Caitlin Snow."
Well... umm... reviews anyone? As for the next SnowWells one-shot, I was thinking it could be a sequel or stand-alone to this, if anyone is interested in seeing what a movie night with just the two of them would be like? ^_^