Close.
Wally was so close.
Dick almost amused the thought as he flicked his cigarette off to the side, standing in the chilly November air with his pals behind him. His adopted brother, Jason, or better known as "Horny Pothead" (a nickname he earned after Dick discovered he was having girls... occasionally guys... give the teen blowjobs in exchange for weed), was not in his usual grumpy, sexually frustrated manner. Instead, the freshman was quiet and glum, wrapped in a blood-red-and-midnight-black winter coat that shielded him from the freezing air, and soft but harsh winds that blew through the open sky. Kaldur, the one who had graduated in the summer but still stuck around for friendships' sake, had a hood from a thick winter coat covering his head, looking down at the crunchy snow that surrounded his boots.
"I miss him." Dick said blandly. Jason glared his green eye-daggers at the senior, giving a "no-fucking-shit" look.
"We all do, Richard." Kaldur said in a clear, gloomy tone.
"If we could have just-" Dick began, but was cut off by the sound of crunching snow behind him. The three teenage boys turned their heads to find Barry Allen, the uncle that Wally had been particularly close with. The blond simply nodded in acknowledgement of their presence and looked back at the shiny, new, gravestone. The other boys followed his actions. They simply stared at it for a few minutes, all four still trying to accept that it was in fact, "Wallace West" written on there.
Barry broke the silence. Though his voice was small from the grief of the loss of his nephew, he was still the loudest thing nearby, which threw all three teenage boys off guard.
"Flash," he began, "Remember Flash?"
The three boys nodded. Flash was the dog that Wally had saved from being hit by a semi when he was ten. The dog, who was a puppy then, had a broken leg and was trying to escape the winter cold. Wally was playing in the snow when he noticed the struggling puppy, and then the semi coming. His impulsiveness caused him to run out into the street, risking his own life. He grabbed the puppy and ran to the other side, barely missing the semi. But the puppy was okay.
Wally had brought home the dog, and his parents didn't seem to mind the pup, other than the fact that their son ran out into the street to retrieve it. The dog had obviously been a stray; fur so tangly and dirty you couldn't tell what it's original color was, she, say-to-speak, was never spayed, or given vaccines. When they brought her to the vet, she didn't have a chip. After a few days, the family decided to keep her. She was now a beautiful, healthy, and spayed pup, with silky ginger fur and soft brown eyes.
However, Mrs. West had a severe allergic reaction to the dog when it licked her soon after. They had no choice but to rid of Flash (who was only called 'Puppy' at the time), but all was not lost. They sent her to live with Barry and Iris Allen, and being only one town over, Wally visited Puppy often. When Puppy's leg fully healed, she soon proved to be a great runner, to which, she earned her name, 'Flash'. Wally even claimed that Flash was the dog that inspired him to become a full-time runner. Flash and Wally were two peas in a pod; he would often have races with her, play with her, and he wouldn't just walk the dog, oh no- he'd run the dog. It was an activity the two loved doing together. Flash would sleep at the end of Wally's bed whenever he stayed at Uncle Barry's (which was quite often) to ensure the protection of the young boy.
Not a surprise that two years later, when Wally was in sixth grade, he joined the cross-country team in the fall, and track in the spring, proving to be one of the best runners. He went to State all three years of middle school, and by the time he reached high school, he was an absolute legend. He was proven the fastest runner in the entire school during his freshman year, and earned the nickname 'Mister Speedster'.
Wally would run. He loved running with Flash. He loved running alone. He just loved running. Every step he took, he'd act like he was having some sort of serial killer chasing after him with a chainsaw in hand, except he'd run with confidence, not fear.
When Wally was a sophomore, he had started dating a girl named Artemis. The two were the cutest love-hate couple Dick and Kaldur had ever laid eyes on. They were in total bliss together, hell, Artemis made a trio when it came to runs, Wally would run side-by-side with her and Flash.
Dick would watch with pride on what his best friend accomplished, and being so busy with all of his sports, Wally still found time for his newly-formed friend group that had been officially created in the start of junior year. It was Wally himself, Dick, Kaldur, Jason, Wally's younger cousin Bart, Artemis, and Dick's girlfriend, Barbara. The large group of seven were inseparable- they weren't the most well behaved kids on the block. The simple thought of the memories made Dick smile. They always had a special spot in the woods where they would smoke pot and drink, laughing the weekends and summers away. Dick remembered the one cozy Christmas Eve party at Kaldur's place, where Wally announced he was officially together for a year with Artemis, and the two kissed underneath a mistletoe to confirm it. Cheesy, but memorable and sweet.
Wally would have turned eighteen last week.
They were celebrating his birthday one night early, a huge party erupting in Wally's house while the parents were gone. Half of the school was there, loud music blasting, shots being gulped down, the smell of pot emerging from the basement; as bad as it sounded, it was almost fortunate Wally had gotten sick.
Dick had been there to support his friend as he puked into the toilet after he drank too much. Wally finally recovered after a full five minutes, and asked where Artemis was. Dick had bitten his lip, honestly not knowing. Wally was still sort of out of it, but sober enough, just going through one hell of a hangover. He walked out of the bathroom, using Dick as support. They found Artemis in the front yard, drunk off of her ass, having a slurred conversation with Barbara, who was just as drunk.
"Megan, come back!" she called as she saw her friend on the other side of the street near the woods, who was giggling and obviously high off of her mind.
"Megan, you-gonna disappear into the woods n' never come back!" Artemis screamed once more.
Megan wouldn't stop giggling, and randomly started prancing around like a reindeer.
"Megan..." Artemis groaned, stumbling her way across of the street.
Wally snapped alert as he saw the bright lights of a car heading towards them, "Artemis, wait!"
He ran, this time like a serial killer was truly being chased by a serial killer with a chainsaw. He couldn't pick her up and run away fast enough. People were screaming at the person to stop the car, but there was obnoxious and loud rap music playing from it, and the driver obviously didn't hear. Wally hoped for the best as he rolled over and shielded Artemis.
That was probably Wally's last thought, Dick assumed.
"Yeah, I do." Dick said, "How's she taking it?"
"I wish I could tell her. She won't stop whining at the door and looking for Wally." Barry sighed, thinking of the ginger dog that now had gray fur clear on her muzzle.
Dick's thoughts began to wander back to Artemis. The girl was alive, the body of Wally had provided enough shielding for her; however, she was in critical condition. The doctors said she would probably never fully heal, and may be paralyzed leg-down for the rest of her life. The irony stabbed Dick in the heart like a knife, as Artemis' own mother was confined to a wheelchair permanently.
The irony didn't end there, however. Wally had saved Flash because he ran in front of a semi to grab her. Wally had also saved Artemis because he ran in front of a car to save her.
"He was fast enough." Dick heard himself mutter. The other three men looked at him in confusion.
"I-I mean, if he could have picked her up as easily as he could have picked up Flash, then they both would have been okay. They both would have been fine. He was fast enough." Dick insisted.
Barry only nodded his head in agreement.
Once the word of Wally's death got out, the local newspaper immediately wrote an article dedicated to the teen. In the school, he was given a tribute on a wall, his full name on the top of the board that was supplied, the name 'Mister Speedster' underneath it, so everyone who attended would remember Wally for who he was; an amazing runner, funny guy, who gave his life for his girlfriend, who unfortunately, was still unaware of Wally's death. Dick wondered when she would just wake up.
He chuckled to himself. Mister Speedster. That sounded like some sort of superhero.
Yet again, Dick knew that his redhead friend was indeed, a superhero.
A proud grin slowly made it's way across his face as he lit up another cigarette.