Catching Up

Notes: I was very liberal with this story because it takes place during season two, Invasion, but you don't know where the heck these two are!
That bugs me.
Oh. and please review. I'll even take flames.

Disclaimer: I do not own.

He promised that he'd be home by 7:00. After all, it's his turn to cook dinner and he still has to go buy the ingredients and then actually, well cook. And while it'll take him but a minutes to zip down to the grocery store and collect all the items, waiting in line and then cooking the actual food will have to factor in. Not that it matters, because his shift is done and he's cleaning up his rags and his tools, waving goodbye to his co-workers and doing all the good things he should be doing. When the coast is clear, he zips off and is about to make it to the grocery with enough time when his stomach growls and rumbles loudly, reminding Wally that it's been a while since he's eaten anything and he should really get something in his stomach before he goes to the grocery.

So he stops by the coffee shop he's running by. Caffeine has been okay for him since he's entered college, but his friends will never let him live down his years as a teenager and what he had been like on caffeine. His ears turn as red as his hair when he recalls some of the antics he'd find himself in when hyped up on the drink. But it's okay now, because he's 21 years old and he can handle his caffeine (he can handle his alcohol much better, as his metabolism burns through the alcohol at an insane rate; Roy stopped challenging him to drinking games after they found that out).

The bell above the door rings and Wally greets patrons with a smile as he decides what to order. He's in no particular hurry to decide because there's no line behind him and his phone has just alerted him to a text and she says that her class is running late so they can just eat out together. He smiles at the blessing in disguise. He got off cooking dinner. Not that he minds cooking; he likes it- it's relaxing, somewhat and forces him to have patience. Plus, it's fun watching his girlfriend try his food, especially when she doesn't fake liking it.

After about thirty seconds, his speed kicks in and he thinks it's been too long. So he takes a quick look at the young woman in front of him and he knows, if it wasn't for his current relationship, he would have hit on her faster than Roy could- he didn't finish that thought and cleared his throat, embarrassed at his comparison.

And then it hit him and he felt his jaw drop. "Artemis?" He says and takes a hesitant step forward. That would totally explain why the figure looked so familiar to him and so…alluring.

When she turns, there's no mistaking those eyes, despite how her appearance has aged with her, Wally knows her eyes. Right now, they're wide and surprised, probably like his own, he supposes. But his surprise is replaced by joy and he grins widely, a goofy grin and before he can help it, he's hugging her, just as surprised at how well she still fits into his form. She's hesitant, but she hugs back and still looks taken aback.

His grin widens at that and he sidesteps her, pulling out his wallet and placing his order to the barista behind the counter. "I'll pay for us both." He tells the barista and he can feel Artemis' indignant aura, but he ignores it. That doesn't intimidate him as much as it should and he knows that she knows it and that just annoys her even further. He thanks the barista when he hands Wally back his change and turns to meet face to face with the enraged archer.

"I can pay for my own drink, you know!" She seethes at him.

Wally rolls his eyes and tucks away his wallet, leading them to a high table near the window and decides against pulling out her chair for her. While it would be entertaining to annoy her even further, his body is a bit lacking in muscle from under use (but he exercises!) and he's pretty sure that her punches have gotten stronger with age, not weaker. "Geez, Arty, a 'thank you' would have sufficed." He teases. "I know you can pay for your own drink, I just thought it'd be nice to treat an old friend." He shrugs.

She huffs once and crosses her arms, refusing to look at him, but he catches the small blush on her face. She really hasn't changed in five years. But she looks so much older to him, more mature and experienced, like the rest of their team. She looks 21, but he knows too well that she's much older than that on the inside. They all are. The thought sobers his smile.

"What?" She asks, her temper slowly ebbing out of her at his face. Her eyebrow quirks. "You aren't really hurt that I snapped at you are you?" Her voice is hesitant, as if she can't believe that he would be pouty over something like that, although he had been known to be quite childish when they were dating.

And suddenly, it hits Wally. He's sitting across from Artemis Crock, his ex-girlfriend. Just that title alone could land him in a lot of trouble if his current girlfriend were to walk in on them. But she's at class and…Wally mentally slaps himself. He sounds like he's trying to justify meeting with someone to cheat on her, not coincidentally running into an old friend. Who he just so happened to have dated in the past.

But hey! He'd heard from Dick that Conner and M'Gann could make it work so he and Artemis should have been able to..right?

Wally really hopes so.

"Hey. Wally?" Artemis is waving her hand in front of his face and looks slightly concerned. "Wally, I was just kidding okay? Don't look like someone kicked your puppy." She tries to smile and falters. "Wally?"

"Sorry, I was just thinking." He gives her a softer grin and jumps when their drinks are called. Putting a bit of speed into his step, he makes it there and back in almost a second. She rolls her eyes again and he just grins and sets her drink in front of her. "So, Arty, what brings you to Central City, home of the Flash?" He asks with an almost roguish grin.

She blinks rapidly as she grips her cup. "Oh, shit. Is that where I am?" Her face is genuinely surprised and she give Wally an almost apologetic look. "I didn't know. The past couple days have sort of blurred together you know and…" She waves her hand dismissively. "Too many days running into each other."

He takes a sip of his drink and studies her carefully and in concern. "Artemis, you should get some rest if the League is running you down like that." He tries to recall when she was admitted to the League and is a bit ashamed to say he can't pull the date up.

Artemis shakes her head. "I'm not part of the League, remember? You, Kal, Zatanna and Rocket were the only ones who decided to join." She says gently. "This is just a quick mission I'm running for Green Arrow and I guess I've forgotten how to take a rest." She shrugs.

Wally regards this young woman before him. It hurts him to see her like this and he's suddenly wondering where the time had gone. After all, it feels just like yesterday that he scooped her up into his arms and kissed her on New Year's Eve/Day. Even since their break up three years ago, he's hates to admit that he hasn't been keeping up with her current life, even if he's done that sporadically for the rest of the team.

It's just been more difficult now that he's given up his superhero career.

Not many people are aware of that. Most assume that there are two Flashes. One in the League, who would be his Uncle Barry and him, who would stay and protect the city. Wally can count on two hands how many people actually know the truth. One if he doesn't count family members. Around his seventeenth year, his powers caused him too much pain when he ran, when he tried to do good with his speed. It reached the point where he simply couldn't run as a hero any longer. His decision to give up the spandex came around the time their old team broke up. Blessing in disguise.

"You were always kind of obsessive when it came to missions." Wally recalls fondly, giving her a teasing grin. "I'm sure that you rivaled Robbie when he reached his anal retentive stages."

"Heard he goes by Nightwing now?"

"Protector of Bludhaven and shit. Actually, that's what the city's like. Shit. It's about on par as Gotham." He chuckles at her expression. "Yeah, that's what I said. Or looked like. But Nightwing can handle himself; he's been trained by Batman after all." He shrugs.

"Oh. Well, nice to see he's found something darker than the Batman to fight." She mutters. She's not privy to the argument that caused Robin to become Nightwing, but she's heard stories. And none of them are pretty.

They sit in companionable silence for a while, watching the passerbyers of Central City walk past the coffee shop as they drink their drinks and mull over their current and unexpected situation. The silence is nice and comfortable and it's meant to end sooner or later.

"How are you, Wally?" She asks suddenly, still staring out the window. He sees her eyes slide briefly over to him.

He smiles. That question is loaded. He's fine, he's not fine. He's missing the hero life, missing being able to run without the pain. He's not missing the hero life; no need to explain odd absences to his girlfriend; he can have a normal life. Normal's overrated. She should try it sometime. He takes a drink and shrugs. "You're gonna have to be more specific, Arty."

"What have you been up to? I know you've got a personal life, don't you?" She hesitates. "Unless you don't want to talk about it, I get it." She says hurriedly.

Wally rolls his eyes. "Arty, you've known about my personal life since we dated. There's nothing wrong with asking. That's what friends do when they haven't seen each other in a long time." He says cajolingly. "I've been busy, I guess. College, working part time…all the normal young adult stuff that I can't believe Roy ever could stand."

"I assume you're taking online classes?"

"Nope." He pops the 'p' before taking another sip. "Enrolled on campus and attend my classes in person."

Her brows furrow in thought. "Doesn't that interfere with your hero life?" She asks.

It's a valid question, but he doesn't want to explain to her, can't. So he shrugs in a non-committal way, effectively closing that avenue of questioning.

Artemis realizes that she's crossed a line and silently apologizes to him. It puts a stopper to the rest of the questions she wants to ask and they sit in a semi-tense silence for a few moments before Wally's phone begins to ring. He glances at her apologetically and answers the device, a smile lighting up his face when the speaker talks to him.

"Linda! You're out?" He asks and just that tone of voice brings back a wave of memories for Artemis and she realizes that that's his girlfriend. As he chats with her, she looks out the window again and realizes that this is how it was supposed to be.

She and Wally never exactly meshed, when she thinks about it. Half the time they were arguing, the other half they were acting like a couple. There was never a healthy in between and they had both agreed to that. It doesn't hurt like she expected it to, knowing that he had moved on. Instead, there's this feeling of relief within her. Besides, Wally's happy and, despite not keeping up with him since their team's breakup, she still cares about his happiness.

He tucks away his cellphone and there's this stupid grin on his face that remind her of their time on the team.

"So her name's Linda, huh?" Artemis grins and Wally's face turns as red as his hair.

Time may have moved on, but they're beginning to catch up. And it's a nice feeling.

I might add some more to this only because I can see Linda and Artemis going on a lunch date or something.
For those of you unawares:
Linda Park, Wally's girlfriend in this fic, is his wife in comic canon.
Wally does stop being a hero temporarily in the comics as well. The time line for that and this don't fit though :D

AND PLEASE REVIEW!
Seriously, even if you want to flame me to heck. I welcome it.

.chary