Wally smiled at the woman behind the counter before he reached out to grab the bouquet. "Thank you."

The woman, whose name was Alice, smiled back warmly. "You're welcome, Wallace. I hope these flowers are going towards a good cause."

"Of course they are. They're her favourite, you know."

Alice studied the boys face for a moment. "You keep mentioning a her every time you come here. Can I ask her name?"

Wally looked down at his feet, his smile turned sad. "Her name was Artemis."

A sudden understanding made her pause, and her smile turned apologetic. Wally was used to this kind of reaction, but it never made it feel better. "Ah. I see."

Wally nodded, his grip tightening on the flowers as he turned to leave the small flower shop. This was all part of his morning routine. No matter what was happening, whether he had study to do or if it was storming outside, he would make his way down the the flower shop, buy the bouquet of tiger lilies, and then take a taxi down to the graveyard.

Now sitting in the taxi, Wally stared absently out the window as buildings and other cars went past. The world was always moving, yet he seemed to be stuck doing the same old things. He didn't mind, it was a familiarity he enjoyed. He had college to keep him busy and shows to watch on TV, a dog to look after and friends to visit. Everything would be perfect if Artemis was still here to share this with him.

He missed her, so much. He missed hearing her voice waking him up each morning, he missed the smell of her in his sheets, he missed coming home from a long day and seeing her there, reading or studying or just waiting for him to come home so they could talk. They never got tired of talking to each other. There was always something new to say.

Now, whenever he talked to her, she never had anything to say back to him. She had no new stories or jokes and nothing to say about her day. He wasn't even sure she could even hear him. She was, after all, buried a few meters underground with only a slab of stone to mark her whole life.

The taxi came to a stop and Wally climbed out of the back, standing on the side of the road and staring into the open gate of the cemetery. It always made him sad, coming here. So many forgotten people were resting here. He knew he too would be buried here, next to Artemis if he can. And together they would be forgotten by the world, just two slabs of stone with their names growing unreadable as the years pass by.

With what seemed like great effort, he began walking, entering the cemetery and moving past all the gravestones towards the far left corner. He kept his eyes down, not wanting to disturb anyone else who might be having a private moment with a loved one. He swallowed thickly, waiting for the moment when he would spot her grave and it would hit him that she's actually dead. It happened every single time he came here. He knew it, he had accepted her death long before. But every time he saw her grave it was like a punch to his heart, and he would again feel the hole that she had filled which was now empty. It was a reminder. Artemis was dead. She was gone. Never coming back. Already the sound of her laugh was dull in his ears, he couldn't exactly remember the smell of her shampoo or the feel of her calloused hands on his skin. With her being gone, she was also slowly being forgotten. And that was the complete opposite of what he had wanted for her.

Wally cut away from the main path, his track worn into the grass because of how often he visited. He no longer needed to count the rows, but he did so anyway. It was routine, what he had always done.

1… 2… 3… 4… 5. Lucky number five.

Wally held his breath, then looked up.

It hit him, like he knew it would. There she is. All that's left of her. Right here in front of him. Stone, grass, dirt, and the wilting flowers from his last visit. If she could see this now, she would hate it. She hated staying still for so long. She always had to be doing something. Now all she did was lay a few meters underneath his feet and mix with the earth.

Wally let out his shaky breath, his heart heavy and his stomach coiling into itself. He bent down and put his legs out to the side so he could sit, staring up at her name engraved in the stone.

Artemis Lian Crock.

Wally squeezed his eyes shut, bowing his head to hide his tears.

"Hey, Artemis." His voice was shaky, and he cleared his throat, trying to hide that he was crying. She didn't need to know that.

"The Team's gotten bigger. They've recruited another speedster, a little firework called Bart. But get this—he's from the future. Also, turns out Aunt Iris is pregnant. He keeps giving off all these 'spoilers' without even realising it. He's a fun kid. Barry loves him, the only downside is that he's faster than me. Hey, I can hear you laughing. Being shown up by a kid isn't funny." But Wally found himself chuckling, and he swore he could hear an echo of another laugh, but it was just some vague memory.

"So, M'Gann was sent undercover a couple days ago. I'm worried about her, but she's strong. I'm sure she'll be okay. I just hope Nightwing knows what he's doing. But you know me, if he needs any help I'll come running. 'S what best friends are for, right?" Wally blinked, fiddling with the stems of the bouquet of flowers.

"I've been okay. College is getting harder each day, though. And there's a Vietnamese Lit paper I have to do, that's due Monday. I don't know how you found all this stuff so easy, I guess you were just naturally great at everything."

Wally was silent for a moment, and then he looked back up at her name, a sad smile on his lips. "I miss you, babe. I wish you were here. Things just aren't the same without you. But then… I guess I tell you that every time I come, huh? Well, it's still true. I do miss you. It's funny, it's been a couple months since you died, and yet I'll find myself standing in the supermarket wondering what kind of cereal you'll want this time." He laughed again, but it was bitter, and it died off into a heavy silence that he didn't know how to fill.

His eyes travelled down to the old flowers, a small bunch of red roses, and he picked them up, replacing them with the freshly bought ones. "I got your favourite this time. I remember how much you loved the colours on these."

Wally again fell into silence, and he leaned back, putting his arms out behind him so he could stare up at the sky. He watched the clouds drift slowly across the endless blue, every once in a while bathing him in shadows as they passed over the sun. He didn't know how long he sat there, just looking up at the sky, with his sad smile and depressing thoughts.

On sunny days like this Artemis was always dragging him out to do something. Get away from studying for a while, maybe go to the park or go to the beach. Just walking and laughing and enjoying each others company. They would hold hands, and every few steps Wally would lean over and kiss her, just because he could. He'd earn them disgruntled looks from the passers by but he didn't care. All he cared about was that he was with Artemis, and that she was as happy as he was.
He missed the little things like that. He missed sharing these experiences with someone as special as she was. He just missed her.

Without a word, Wally got to his feet. Slowly his hand reached out and touched the rough stone, wishing that instead he could be touching her face. He quickly pulled his hand back and shoved them both into his jacket pockets, taking a small step back.

"I'll see you later, babe." He smiled. "Love you."

Turning, he made his way back down towards the road. He had a paper he had to start on.