grasping at sand

by MariaWest

Remembering each grain of sand that has slipped through your fingers is hard, but that doesn't mean it isn't worth trying to.

Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice

Author's Note: This was for a holiday exchange on tumblr and was given to tumblr user thesycorax.

---

"This school is just so... Dude, this school is preppy. I'm not preppy," a tall, lanky teen said. He was sitting on a bench in the courtyard of a university with a look of great disdain on his face.

"Right, Farm Boy, this very prestigious and highly acclaimed school is well below your Kansas standard," a slightly shorter boy sitting next to him droned. "How will you ever survive?"

Enter Wally West. Eighteen years old, armed with an angry and fiery personality (almost as fiery as his ginger hair), science enthusiast, and ready to see the world. And by world, he means his normal neighbourhood, with his normal friends, and his normal wheat field backdrop. He was prepared to never leave Kansas for more than a vacation at a time, so he could easily say that today was definitely not his idea of good. Gotham City was not what he considered normal.

What was he doing in Gotham City and not his normal habitat? Well, there was the fact he parents wanted him as far away from home to 'go live life' for a few years, and then there was the fact he was starting college. He knows he shouldn't complain; he got into a very good school, and mostly on scholarship. He knows his parents want the best for him; he wants the best for him. But Gotham? There were tons of options in Kansas. But he figured he might as well please his parents. And there was the bonus of his best friend living in Gotham City.

Now enter Dick Grayson, the boy next to him, best friend. Unfortunately, he was younger, so Wally was going to be entering college alone this year. He knew that he was going to be fine, but it would have been nice to not have to go into this alone. Well, almost alone. He did have a roommate now. One he still had to meet.

Wally sighed, looking around at the buildings that were surrounding him. He couldn't completely say he wasn't excited. He had been dying to start college, to use working lab equipment, work with people how understood the field they were studying, start doing experiments that weren't 'drop this in this and see what happens'. But he wasn't going to tell Dick this, he didn't need to have it rubbed in his face he was actually excited.

"We should head back to your room, maybe your roommate will be there," the younger boy said, standing up. "Don't want to make a bad impression meeting the dude you'll be living with for the next year."

"Are you implying I can make a bad impression? I'll have you know everyone loves me off the bat. I'm amazing," Wally asked, following his friend. Dick smirked, raising an eyebrow at him. "Fuck off."

His friend began to laugh, pushing into his shoulder. The two boys made their way out of the courtyard into the school. It took them awhile to find their bearings but soon they were on their way to the residential building Wally was living in. It was called Queen, after a wealthy man from Star City who made a donation to have another residence made. The others were Wayne which is the other traditional residence, named after Bruce Wayne who is Gotham's resident billionaire (and just happened to be his best friend's guardian), and Kord Village which is the townhouse styled residence, named after a third wealthy man.

After about a ten minute walk, they found themselves on Wally's floor. The boy was just checking his room key as they walked when he bumped into someone. "Shit, sorry. Wasn't paying attention," he said, looking up at the victim of his carelessness.

You see sand. You can't remember where it's from but you know it's real. Well, okay, that it was real at some point but that's not the important part. The important part is sand. You feel it scraping against your knees. You feel it in your socks and shoes. You're consumed by it. All you can feel is sand. It's also warm. All around you is warmth you had forgotten you knew. Well, almost forgotten. You find it in your dreams, when it's cold outside and you unknowingly need warmth. You would wake up confused and longing for it to return. The warmth and the sand, a distant memory from your past that you constantly reach out for. If only you could just reach a little further…

He blinked a few times, ignoring the flash that went through his brain. Turning his focus back to the present, he noticed that in front of him was a very blonde and seemingly somewhat surprised girl. "Sorry."

"It's fine, pay attention in the future," she said, pushing her incredibly long ponytail behind her shoulder. "What room?"

"Hm? Oh, 416. You?" he asked, grinning at her.

"417, looks like we're across the hall from each other," she said, trying to avoid his eyes. "You're not a crazy partier or something, are you?"

"What, me? No, definitely not," he answered.

"He's lying, he's a known partier. Better find a new across-the-hallmate," Dick said, stepping up next to his friend. "And his snores are extremely loud, you'll probably be able to hear it from across the hall."

"Shut it," Wally muttered, elbowing his friend. "Ignore him, he's just bummed he's not old enough to join the big kids this year."

"Right," the blonde answered. "Well, I'll see you around then."

The ginger nodded as she walked past him. He could smell spices and that distinct city smell that normally he hated but on her… "Hey, wait, what's your name?" he shouted down the hall after her.

"It's Artemis. It was... sort of nice meeting you, Wally," she called back, already at the exit of the floor. "Good nickname, better than Wallace somehow."

"Thanks, I guess… Wait! How do you know my name?"

"Take a guess, idiot," and with that she was gone. Wally stood there, suddenly aware his breathing was a little off, watching where she had been for a few moments before grinning and looking at his friend.

"I think she likes me," he said, starting to head down the hall again. He watched the numbers go by until he found his door. Once he got there, the ginger started to laugh. He unlocked it, walking by his (and his roommate's) nametag. "She had a fifty-fifty chance, I guess."

"Yeah, and you do look like a guy whose name would be Wallace," Dick said, throwing himself on his friend's new bed. The ginger rolled his eyes, refusing to start their age old argument about whose name was worse.

The ginger looked around the room and saw boxes sitting on the other bed, "Hey, looks like… Conner is here. That's what his name is, right?"

The younger boy nodded, looking across the room. They looked for any clues as to what this person would be like, but all they had to go with was four cardboard boxes. Wally cringed thinking of the numerous amounts of boxes and suitcases he had brought. Great, he was going to be the messy roommate.

He sighed as he walked over to his desk. Grabbing his schedule for the week, he shoved his friend's feet over and sat on the bed. "Looks like I have a floor dinner at five, what time is it now?"

"Four," the dark haired boy said, sitting up. "I should get out of your hair. Call me later when you have your freak out about college, deal?"

"Yeah, sure. Thanks for helping me out, dude," Wally answered, lifting his fist up. Dick grinned as he bummed his against it. The ginger watched his friend leave before flopping down completely on the bed. He gazed around aimlessly, starting to consider if a nap was possible when the door opened again. "Did you forget something, Dick?"

"Dick?" a strangers voice asked. Wally sat up quickly and felt the colour from his face drain. There was a tall, broad shouldered boy with a very angry look on his face. "This is my room… why would I have forgotten something?"

"No, no, no," the ginger exclaimed, jumping to his feet. "No, my friend who was helping me moving in, he's name is actually Dick. I thought… No. You sir, are in fact not a dick. Hi. I'm Wally, Wally West, your roommate, don't hurt me."

"I'm not going to hurt you," the newcomer muttered, walking over to his side of the room. After a few beats, he turned to face the ginger. "Conner Kent."

"Well Conner, hopefully we can move past me accidentally calling you a dick and become wonderful friends," he said, reaching a hand out. Conner shook it slowly before moving to sit on his bed. They stayed silent for a while, glancing around the room. Eventually, moving towards his desk, Wally broke the silence. "So… we have some time to kill… want to watch some YouTube videos or something?"

"No," the boy muttered, but he got up and joined the red head.

For the next hour, the two boys spent their time messing around on the computer, only to be stopped by a knock on their door. They stared at it a second before Wally sprinted to the door. Artemis, and a freckled ginger girl were standing in the hall, the blonde glancing behind him.

"It's five, dumbass. We have the floor dinner, remember? We're heading to the lounge now," she said, looking back at him. "Stop watching the videos and let's go."

The red haired boy nodded and went to shut down his computer. Soon, Conner and he were in the hall with the two girls. They passed around introductions (the ginger girl's name was Megan Morse, and Artemis' last name was Crock, giving Wally the evilest grin on his face).

Before the dinner, they all got to meet their RA, Roy Harper, and Wally was convinced they got the grumpiest one of all times. Roy went through all the rules and regulation before they left for the actual dinner part, and this probably took an hour at least to do. By the time their floor got to go to the dining hall, everyone was grumpy enough to rival their RA.

Though it wasn't all boring, Wally made more acquaintances throughout the evening. There were a couple of boys down the hall name Kaldur and Garth that seemed pretty cool, and these two girls, Tula and Raquel, who were also a ways down the hall.

By the end of the meal, it seemed are though the eight of them had formed into a group. They walked back to their floor together, chatting away brightly, jumping from topic to topic: what classes they had, any teams or clubs they were thinking of doing, just how expensive the food here actually was. They were planning when they would meet up the next day for frosh week events when Wally noticed how close Megan and Conner were standing.

When they got back to their end of the hall, Artemis grabbed Wally's arm, keeping him from going into his room. "So, you noticed them too?" she asked, gesturing between their two doors.

"Unfortunately yes," he tried to say as gravely as possible. "I was just thinking how cute your roommate is."

"Can we make a deal that we can crash in the other's room if they get together… whenever it may be necessary?" Artemis asked, grinning at him. "If it comes to it, and let's be honest, it probably will."

"Deal, though this doesn't mean anything between us is happening," Wally said, smirking. "I know it'll be hard to resist me, but you'll have to try."

"Get over yourself," the blonde said, rolling her eyes. She turned to her door, shaking her head. "Trust me when I tell you I can easily resist you."

"Hey, Artemis," he said quickly. She stopped, looking back at him. "Have we… Never mind. See you tomorrow."

He turned and went into his room, not waiting for any sort of response from the girl. He nodded to Conner before lying down on his bed. He stared up at the ceiling, trying to figure out the weird feeling he had like he had forgotten something important. Eventually he gave up and started talking to Conner, ignoring it. If it were important, it would come back, right?

---

The next week went by so quickly Wally could barely keep up, most of it was a blur to him. Event after event, meeting after meeting, Roy constantly yelling at them, it was hard to find the time to breathe. When they all had time to think again, it was the night before classes started. The eight of them from the floor decided to throw a mini party in their lounge to 'celebrate' school starting. With multiple bags of chips and board games, they crowded around a table ready to enjoy their last night of freedom for a while.

Wally was sitting between Kaldur and Megan, smirking at the other side of the table. Everyone groaned as he bought another piece of property in Monopoly, though Megan merely congratulated him (it could be because she was in close second, but he was choosing to ignore that). He grinned as he passed the dice to her.

"Thanks Wally," she said, beginning to shake the dice.

"It's nothing babe, though I'm really hoping this turn goes horribly for you," he replied.

"Yeah, because you're kicking all of our asses," Garth supplied, rolling his eyes. The rest of the table laughed as Wally high fived a reluctant Conner. "Give the rest of us a chance."

"No way, this will be my first win in Monopoly ever so let me have it," the ginger boy exclaimed. "My uncle kicked my ass for years, I want to know the taste of sweet victory."

"Megan's buying boardwalk so we'll see how well you do now," Raquel stated, pointing to the board. Wally groaned and looked at a now very smiley Megan.

"Megs, babe, how could you? I thought we had something special, you know, a ginger thing. Tula, you were feeling it, right?" he whined. Tula merely chuckled, accepting the dice from Megan. "How can you betray me like that?"

The group laughed, even Conner managed to. By the end of the game, Megan was declared the winner, Kaldur came in second, and Wally barely managed to take third. Both Kaldur and Megan were patting the boy on the back as the game was being cleaned up.

"You put up a great fight, Wally. You'll win at Monopoly one day, just wait," the girl next to him said. She shot a glance around the table, trying to suppress a smirk. "Just… maybe be quicker about buying boardwalk next time."

"Good advice Megs," the boy muttered, though he couldn't suppress his own smile now. Sighing dramatically, he leaned back in the couch. "Now what? Do we play another game or…"

"It is getting rather late. Perhaps we should all make our way to bed now? I for one know some of us have early morning classes," Kaldur said, placing the lid on the game's box.

"Always the voice of reason," Artemis said, smiling at the boy. They all stood up slowly, the blonde girl falling in time with Wally. She pointed to Megan and Conner. "Hand holding already?"

"Well… Frosh week, anything can happen," he answered, running his hand through his hair. "Like we've sort of become friends."

"Mhmm, sure."

"What? Come on, we're friends! Jesus, Artemis why do you always have to have a stick up your ass?" the boy groaned. The girl stopped walking down the hallway. He looked back at her. "What?"

"Really, that's the best you can come up with? You are definitely the most annoying person I've met, grow up," Artemis snapped.

"I'm annoying? All you do is insult me. I mean, seriously, what did I ever do?" Wally shouted at her. He could feel his blood rising and was starting to feel very warm. "And, I'll have you know, every time I've reached out to you this week you've been kind of shitty to me."

"Well you aren't exactly Prince Charming, though you sure think you are. I'm sorry, how many girls have you hit on, babe?" she began shouting back.

"Oh sorry I actually want to interact with people and I don't know, make friends," he shouted.

She glared at him before starting to walk down the hall again. A few moments later he started down the hall as well.

"Stop following me," she snapped over her shoulder when she realized he was walking.

"Well gee, I live across the hall from you so I can't really," he shot back her. The biggest groan of frustration left her lips as she charged ahead. Wally ignored when he door slammed behind him and he made his way into his own.

Megan and Conner were sitting on Conner's bed, Megan frowning as the second door slammed. "But you two were fine a second ago," she said, staring at the door.

Wally fell onto his bed, turning away from the couple. "Well, your roommate's a pain."

A sigh left the girl's lips as she moved to leave. Wally heard muttering between the two and the sound of the door opening and closing. He crossed his arms, ignoring his roommate now moving around the room.

Well, if Artemis wanted to be a pain in the ass, who was he to stop her. Just so long as she did it away from him.

Dropping his backpack on the table, Wally slid into the chair next to Conner. They were in the library with Kaldur and Megan, meeting for their study group. Almost two months of school had passed and the ginger was starting regret his love for science. The amount of work that came from his multiple labs was beginning to wear him down. He laid his head on the table, listening to his friends talk.

"I convinced Artemis to come, so you wouldn't be stuck with just Conner and I. Come on, Kaldur, a party would be fun," Megan said. Wally lifted his eyes to watch the girl. "We'll all be dressing up. I think Raquel said she wouldn't mind coming. I still have to asked Tula and Garth."

"I have an assignment due the week after though. I was hoping I would be able to get a head start on it," the boy answered. He had his schoolwork out in front of him already, not to anyone's surprise. Kaldur was clearly the most responsible in their group (though Wally has gotten him to slack of a few times, those were probably some of the best nights). "But I will try."

"Perfect," the girl said, clapping her hands together. That's when her eyes fell onto Wally. "And what about you, Mr. Science?"

"What about me what?" he asked, sitting upright.

"The Halloween party this weekend! One of Conner's friends in Kord Village is throwing a party, you should come," she explained. "Everyone will be there, Artemis will be."

"Why would Artemis being there make me want to go?" the boy asked, crossing his arms.

"Oh, is that fight still going on?" Megan asked, her shoulders dropping.

"Which one?" all three boys said at once. They grinned at each other as the ginger continued. "Seriously, Megs, Artemis and I are at each other's throats every day. I'll pass. I don't want to know what drunk Artemis is like."

"Fine, but you're welcomed to change your mind," she said, shrugging. She reached across the table to grab a book in front of Conner. She smiled at him before opening it. Time to start studying.

Though Wally couldn't really study. He mind was wandering towards the blonde girl. They did seem to fight frequently… quite frequently. But every argument only lasted a short time and they would always been fine the next time they saw each other. And it always changed who pissed off whom first. It was almost a game now, definitely a competition.

And while it was most definitely the most annoying thing, he sort of liked it. He liked how his blood surged through him and how warm he was around her. He liked that he was never bored. It wasn't like they were anything special, it was most definitely nothing of that sorts. He just enjoyed spending time with her. But only he knew that.

The week went by and Wally was definitely not going to the party. After receiving a major assignment for his chemistry course, it was completely and utterly out of the question. He was about to agree to it when he got the assignment and everything, some luck he had.

So instead, the boy found himself at his best friend's house to avoid the Halloween festivities at the school.

"You're probably the most boring college student out there," Dick said, passing the pizza box over to him. The ginger shrugged, grabbing a slice before going back to his work. "You're at your younger not in college friend's house instead of partying. Really boring."

"If it helps, my best friend's house is a mansion and we're eating really good pizza," Wally said, smirking at him.

"You are very fortunate to have me around. How late are you planning on staying?" the younger boy asked.

"How long will Bruce tolerate me?" the boy asked, laughing a bit. "I guess I'll head out at midnight. If I'm lucky everyone will have left the floor by then and I can rest in peace."

"So that means you're going to work hard for the next three hours or…"

"Spit it out, Dick," the red head said, sighing. He put his pencil done and spared his friend a look.

"So that Artemis girl, how are things with her?" Dick asked, edging his chair closer to his friend.

"Yeah, knew that was coming. We're… We're whatever we are. I think it qualifies as friendship," Wally said, leaning back in his chair. "A very angry friendship."

"Have you admitted you have a massive crush on her yet? Cause the way you talk about her, it's pretty obvious that you in fact have a massive crush on her," the dark haired boy said, smirking from ear to ear.

"Pretty sure I'd rather set myself on fire than admit something like that… if it were true, which it's not," the ginger grumbled, turning from his friend. He was not going to give his friend the satisfaction of seeing him blush a bit.

Okay so maybe he did have a crush on Artemis, but it was miniscule. She was gorgeous; there was no denying that. There definitely was a spark of something, though calling it romantic would probably a stretch. When they weren't argue they got along well, like really well. But the arguing happened so frequently it seemed impossible for them to have anything more than that.

"Dude, I'm your best friend, I've been with you through less obvious crushes," the teen said, his smirking somehow getting bigger. "Just ask her out already."

"Or we drop this topic, I work for two hours and then maybe I'll consider playing a video game for an hour, how about that?" Wally offered, holding his hand out to his friend.

"I can accept those terms for now. I'm far from done though, believe me," he said, shaking the ginger's hand.

"I wouldn't believe anything else."

---

Wally stood in front of his door, a groan slipping out of his lips. There on the handle was an elastic band and he really wanted to punch something (himself mostly, why did he actually tell Conner to put the on the door handle whenever he… Stupid Wall-man). This is probably the worst thing that could happen.

"Aren't you two supposed to be at a party?" he muttered under his breath, looking up and down the hallway. There were a couple options he had now: go wait in the lounge and be bombarded by any potential drunk person, sit in the hall and wait and be bombarded by all the drunk people, or…

Sighing he turned and prayed she was there and not at the party their roommates should be at. Knocking on 417, he held his breath. Almost immediately he heard the sound of someone moving and left out a breath. The door opened and he smiled.

"What do you want?" Artemis said, though her voice sound off.

"Wait… Are you sick?" the ginger asked, reaching out to place his hand on her forehead. She sighed and swatted away his hand, but not before he felt her skin. She was warm and now he could see how flushed she looked.

"Yes, but that doesn't answer my question. What do you want?" she repeated.

"Well, it just so happens that in fact our roommates are having a sleepover," Wally said, gesturing to the door across the hall, "so I was hoping to take you up on our deal from the beginning of the semester. But if you're sick, don't worry about it, I'll hide in the lounge."

He stepped away from the door before she grabbed his hand. Hers was clammy and she suppressed a cough before speaking, "Don't be an idiot. A deal's a deal. Come in. I'm just watching a movie."

He nodded and let the girl lead him into the room, grateful no one was in the hall to see them. It looked just like his, though Megan obviously knew how to decorate a dorm room more effectively. He smiled, dropping his bag at the door before following to her bed.

"What movie are you watching?" he asked as she lay down. She patted the spot next to her and he climbed onto the bed.

"Dawn of the Dead. Megan won't let me watch horror when she's around, so I figured tonight would be perfect," the girl said, wriggling herself under her blankets. Wally shifted to give her space then settled down next to her again, his arm draped over the top of the propped up pillows. "You good with zombies?"

"I adore them. I plan on marrying one next week. She's blonde and grumpy," he answered while nudging her with his knee. She rolled her eyes before pressing play.

The movie went by and when it finally ended, Artemis was fast asleep in the crook under the boy's arm. He turned the TV off before shifting to get comfortable on the bed.

His heart was racing but that was just because it was warm, right? It really had nothing to do with the girl tucked under his arm. Nothing to do with how her hair fell over her or how he wanted to run his fingers through it. Nothing to do with the fact He was going to be sleeping here as well now.

Slowly, as he finally gave into running his fingers through her hair, Wally's eyes closed and where filled with the memories of sand.

You walk up to the sandpit, excitement shining on your face. You've dragged your aunt by hand, chatting excitedly until you got here. She smiles, telling you to have fun and she'll be watching from the bench. You almost dive into the sand; this is the best day of your life. Obviously you start making the biggest sand castle ever. You're working away when you hear the yelling. You turn and see a blonde girl in the distance. Her father is the source of the yelling. You want to go back to your sandcastle but you can't tear your eyes away. When her father leaves you feel compelled to her. Can you be blamed though, really? She's just standing there, probably crying. The sandpit is definitely big enough for two. So you go over…

Neither of them spoke in the morning. Wally woke first, watching her until she cracked her eyes open. Smiling, he pressed a quick kiss on her forward, letting emotions lead his fact driven body for once before slipping out of the bed. He grabbed his bag before glancing back at her once. She was smiling at him until he making his way out of the room.

He felt warm, like he had been lying in sun-warmed sand.

---

Wally sipped his coffee, staring over at the dark haired girl working at the counter of the coffee shop. Artemis smirked next to him, trying to keep her gaze down. Across from them was a very annoyed looking Dick.

"Okay, so you've seen her now. Yes, Dick Grayson has a crush on a barista, so now can we focus on your 'not girlfriend', Wally?" the dark haired boy asked, crossing his arms.

"Why, what's there to know about me? My first crush was on a boy in a park when I was four, I got into fights as a kid, and people think I dye my hair. Nothing interesting here." Artemis asked. "The girl is cute, let's focus on her."

"I agree with Miss Difficult here," the ginger said, patting her knee. She swatted his hand away and followed his gaze. "She's totally up your alley, dude. Go talk to her."

"If I were it would be to order, and surprise, I have a drink already. So no, I won't go talk to her," Dick said, defiantly taking a drink of his own coffee.

"Fine," the blonde said, standing up. Her hand brushed Wally's shoulder before she made her way to the counter.

"Dude, I hate your girlfriend," the younger boy grumbled, hiding his face in his hands.

"Not my girlfriend, but she is awesome, isn't she?" Wally said, laughing. He watched the blonde talking and, grinning, turned back to his friend. "Hey, they're coming back."

"They?" Dick groaned.

Soon the two girls were back and Artemis slipping back into her seat smiling sweetly. "This is Zatanna Zatara. Zatanna, this is Wally, and that is Dick."

"Well… Hi. I hear I was a topic of discussion. Well, I'm on break now, so I would love to hear more," the newcomer said. She sat down in the seat next to the dark haired boy, shooting a glance at him. "I'm intrigued."

"Well, if you must know," the ginger said, smirking now as well, "My friend over here happens to frequent this café to try and work up the nerves to talk to you cause he thinks you're cute."

"Dude!"

"Okay, well I knew that already. I'm not blind," Zatanna said, waving the words away.

"Knew what, that he totally digs you or that you're cute?" Artemis asked, sipping her drink.

"Both."

"Oh, I like her," the blonde said, grinning at Wally. "She needs to stay."

"So," the new girl said, turning to the blushing teen next to her. "What does Bruce Wayne's ward want with a girl like me?"

"No, no, I'm not answering that. I don't want to sound like him off that bat," Dick replied, pointing to his friend. The ginger scoffed, met by laughter from Artemis. "So no, not answering."

"I don't mind if you sound like him, whatever that is," she offered, grinning. "But if that's still a no go, come back tomorrow at three, and we can go get dinner. You're buying, obviously."

She smiled and picked up a napkin. Taking a pen out of the pocket of her apron, she quickly wrote down her number and left. Dick stared at the napkin, wide eyed and probably not breathing.

"Wait, did he actually just get her number? That's not fair!" Wally exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. "I haven't gotten a single girl's number this year!"

"Oh, that's because we know better," Artemis said, patting the boy's knee. He ignored that her hand stayed a moment to long before turning her attention away. "But seriously, Dick, you are extremely lucky."

"Yeah, well if you guys are going to be jerks about this I get to have the last laugh once you two get over yourselves and get together finally," the dark haired boy said, pointing at them.

"We have no idea what you're talking about," the girl said, glancing at the boy next to her.

"None at all," he said, running his hand through his hair.

"Okay, whatever. Just know I'm definitely going to hold all of this against you," Dick said, leaning back in his chair.

---

"At your uncle's?" Artemis asked, looking up from her textbook.

Wally nodded, trying to keep his lips from betraying him with a smile. They were in the library, waiting for the rest of their group to arrive, trying to concentrate for the few moments of solitary that they had. They chose the same side of the table; keep him on his toes for some reason. Even just sitting next to each other lately set him off balance. He wondered if she had any idea of this.

Except the ginger had just asked her if she wanted to spend Thanksgiving with him.

"Yeah, I thought it would be nice. I heard you telling Megan that you weren't going home for Thanksgiving, so I thought since you'd be alone… I don't know. I thought maybe a little West-Allen Thanksgiving cheer would be nice. And my uncle and aunt love when I bring people by," the boy said shrugging. She offered him a look that would make even the toughest person blush. "But you know, it could be the stupidest request ever."

Biting her lip, Artemis looked back down at her book. She tapped her pencil to an unwritten rhythm, leaving him hanging off every beat, dangling as he waited for any kind of answer.

Just as he was about to fall into the silent world without her music to consume him, she looks up to meet his gaze, pulling up right back from to the edge to her.

"Okay," she said, smiling softly at him. "Thanksgiving with your family sounds… Nice. So yeah, let's do it."

"Do what?" Megan's voice rang from behind them.

They both looked behind them, a blush creeping across both their faces. "Nothing," the said together before turning their gazes back to their individual textbooks.

"Okay…" the ginger girl said, taking the seat on the other side of the blonde. Conner, Kaldur, and Tula sat on the other side.

Wally kept sparing glances at the girl next to him, only a few caught by her. They shared brief smiles and tried to focus, but it was hard with the mood they were sharing. The energy that passed between them, even without contact, was exhilarating.

It was perfect.

---

"So Artemis, how long have you and Wally been dating now?" an auburn hair woman asked. Wally barely caught himself in time to keep from spewing his drink all over the table.

"Aunt Iris!" he chocked through trying to swallow. After a bit of coughing he was able to continue. "I already told you, Artemis and I are very strictly friends."

"And I chose to ignore you. Wally, you've seen this girl, right?" Iris said, smirking. She winked quickly at the blonde girl across from her before slowly standing up. A pair of steady hands guided her. "I'll go get dessert than."

"I'm blaming you're hormones!" the boy called after as she left the room.

"She has a point though, you're very pretty, Artemis," the man at the table said. Wally's uncle chuckled after speaking, his nephew groaning and hiding his face.

"Um… thank you?" the girl said, trying to her nervous laugh in.

"You've both gone crazy because of this pregnancy," Wally said. Rubbing his hand through his hair, he turned to Artemis. "I'm sorry I brought you here. I didn't realize they had gone crazy."

"It's okay, better than spending it in my dorm room alone," she said, finally letting the laughing out. It warmed him completely and he would have been lost in it easily if she hadn't continued talking. "More fun then ordering in with my mom again."

"If you don't mind me asking," Barry said, turning to the girl, "but why aren't you with your family for Thanksgiving?"

Wally swallowed. His uncle had guts, asking that. Most of the time when Artemis was asked about her family, she would change the subject. Around anything that resembled an important day though, she would be snippy and mean. She didn't speak about her family. It was the taboo question they all learned quickly at school.

"Well… My mom was okay with letting me have one not crappy Thanksgiving this year. The rest of my family… Well let's say holidays aren't their thing. Last holiday we all had, my sister and I snuck out to a movie because…" she answered slowly and deliberately. Each word was obviously chosen carefully, though new information was learned. She had a sister. "And besides, who can deny a weekend in Kansa? I'm never been here before."

"Well, we're more than happy to have you," the man said, smiling. "Wally especially, he couldn't stop calling to make sure everything was ready for you. Making a pregnant woman work, he's a terrible nephew."

"Thanks, Uncle Barry," the boy answered, rolling his eyes. "No, but it is great having you here. Now you'll visit me truly losing at Monopoly."

"Oh, I can't wait. You losing at things is my favourite thing," Artemis replied, grinning. "You know, we've played that game maybe five times this year and you still haven't won."

"Yes, do tell my uncle that I continue to be terrible at this game, he'll just love it," he groaned, pushing the girl's shoulder. His uncle laughed, bringing a blush to his cheeks. "I'm taking you down today, old man."

"You can trying, but you'll never keep up."

Iris returned with a pie, changing the topic to the boys' favourite one: food. They ate and talked; Wally couldn't count the number of embarrassing stories that were shared. He tried to ignore that Artemis had at some point edged her sit closer to his, though his aunt's grin showed it was noticed. He tried to act like it wasn't even a big deal but even that wasn't possible.

So maybe he was definitely crushing on her. And it was probably getting to be a bit more than a crush now. Which would probably only going to lead to terribly embarrassing things on his part. But it was also getting to the point he wasn't sure he cared if he got embarrassed. Watching her smile and laugh, arguing with her about stupid things, falling asleep while watching movies together, it was all he wanted. He was willing to risk embarrassment for that.

"I think it's time for dishes, and the someone needs to get an ass-whooping in Monopoly, I think," Barry said, standing up. "Wally, if you wouldn't mind helping."

"Actually, Artemis would you be a dear and help Barry? I want to have a chat with my nephew," Iris asked, smiling sweetly.

Artemis nodded, smirking at the ginger boy. He mouthed 'help me' as she collected some of the dishes, making her way to the kitchen. Once the table had been, Iris inched her chair closer to the table.

Taking a hint to what the conversation going to be about, Wally spoke first, "So how many months now? When do I get cousins?"

"You know the due date is in January, don't try and change the subject," Iris said, folding her hands.

"I'm changing the subject, you never said anything," the boy said. He caught his aunt's eye and side. The look she was given him was one he was far too familiar with. "Okay fine, what about Artemis do you want to know?"

"She seems really nice," she said, glancing into the kitchen. "I think she likes you."

"Yeah, in some weird alternate universe maybe. We're just friends, okay?" he said, frowning. "What's the big deal anyway?"

"Do you remember that time when we went to Gotham for a weekend when you were five? Because I was there for work and thought it would fun for us to spend a weekend together?" the woman asked.

"Yeah, kind of. Why?" Wally asked.

"Well, what about that park we went to?"

"Not really… I mean a bit lately but why, what does this have to do with Artemis?" he asked.

"You'll figure it out. Now go help your uncle," she said, smiling and shaking her head. He gave his aunt a look but she sighed and waved for him to go into the kitchen.

He made his was into there, ignoring Artemis' questioning look. He helped put away the dishes barely talking the whole time. When his uncle excused himself, Wally sighed.

"What's up Wall-man?" the blonde asked, moving to stand next to him. They leaned back against the counter together and he shrugged. "Did your aunt tease you more than you can handle? That woman is amazing, you were only in there a couple minutes."

"It's nothing," he muttered, trying to smile.

He looked at the blonde and had to agree with his aunt and uncle. Artemis was gorgeous. Her hair was back in a braid, her make up was minimal, and she shone like there was no tomorrow (though that may just be how he saw, but he would gladly argue it). There was a strain sticking out that he quickly reached to tuck behind her ear. She muttered her thanks before looking away.

It was weird seeing her this way. Sort of shy, though that didn't change the fact he knew she would speak her mind in a heartbeat.

"Hey… Artemis?" the ginger asked, lowering his voice. She brought her eyes back to him quickly and nodded. Was it just him or was it getting very warm all of the sudden? "Uh… When we're back in Gotham and before exams kick off… Do you… Do you think youmaywanttogoonadate? With me?"

"Do you maybe what to repeat that, loser?" she said, laughing.

"Do you… want to go on a date?" he said, make sure each word came out clearly. He sucked his breath in once finishing, terrified for her answer.

She frowned and began to chew her lip and the dread swept over him. What if she says no? They have a flight back to Gotham together, what was he thinking? Even worse, what if she says yes. They have an entire plane ride together, what would they do? Shit, this was a terrible idea. He gulped, trying to bring air back to his suffering lungs.

"Sure."

"What?"

"Yes, I would like to go on a date with you," she answered, looking away from him. Her cheeks were dusted lightly with pink now and he grinned. "But nothing fancy, okay? And no park dates, those never work out for me."

"Okay, yeah. Wait, you are serious right?" he asked, beaming at her. She rolled her eyes and took a step closer and patted his cheek.

"And keep it on the down low. I know you'll tell Dick, but don't spread it around," she said. The boy nodded, smiling. She patted his shoulder before turning to look across the kitchen.

"Hey… I have another question," Wally asked, following her gaze.

"Shoot."

"You don't really talk about your family. Like, just your mom. I didn't even know you had a sister till tonight. You know now that I think about it, every time family was brought you'd just close off or leave. Why? Why don't you talk about them?" he asked, continuing to look across. He could feel her body tense next to him so he slipped his hand into hers. Her grip immediately tightened around his.

Silence filled the room. They stared across the room together as Wally began to feel the feeling in his hand disappear because of her grip. He waited for her, taking in the small nervous movements from her, having never seen this side of her. She chewed her lip, her hand was getting sweaty, and he could feel she was beginning g to hunch her back. He took it all in, learning this new side to her.

After awhile, she began to talk, "My family's messed up, I guess. My dad was into some pretty nasty things… He's in jail now. I honestly have no idea where my sister is. She sort of followed after my dad in some aspects. I have heard from her in months. I just… it isn't a happy thing for me so I'd rather just keep it to myself."

"Oh."

"It's fine," the girl said, loosing her grip on his hand. She looked up at him, a smile barely visible on her face. "I've gotten used to it. My mom and I are fine so I guess it could be worse. But just… don't talk about it that much, okay? I'm okay but it just isn't something I like talking about."

He squeezed her hand once, meeting her eyes. Smiling, he said, "It's okay, I understand. Thanks for sharing."

"Hey, you showed probably know about the crazy in the life of the girl you asked out. You know, in case my family were all murderers or something," Artemis said, laughing a bit.

"As long as you're okay with me being a farm boy, I think we'll be fine," Wally said, joining her laughing.

"That could be the deal breaker," she said, trying to sound stern, but it only caused them to laugh more.

Finally she calmed and said she was going to head to the washroom. He nodded, watching her leave before looking down at his feet. Iris' words were swimming around his head, but too quickly for him to grab hold of to let him think. All he could see was a half remembered park and sand. Sand, again with the sand. Closing his eyes, he tried to fill the picture in with memories he needed to grasp again.

You gently tap her shoulder and after a few beats she turns to look at you. All you can focus on is blond hair and pink coveralls. You smile and ask if she wants to play in the sand with you. Your aunt is watching so it's completely okay, you'll be watched over. She nods and lets you lead her back to the sandpit. You show her your what you've done so far of your sandcastle and she asks if she can help. So the two of you work away for what feels like hours, though you're young so your idea of time needs so work. But together, the castle grows and because more than what you ever could have done on your own. You're surrounded by the warms of the sun above and the light breeze blowing through, but all you see is her now. Blond hair and pick coveralls. And then there's sand.

---

The only sounds were the ones from around the coffee shop: coffee grinders, conversations, and dishes clanging together. Their table, on the other hand, was completely silent other than the occasional shuffle in a chair or page from a textbook turning. Wally was sitting by the window and watching the people outside walk by. He was next to Conner, ignoring the people at the table. Or rather, a particular person at the table. It was tense and it was awful.

"Okay… well I'm glad I'm choosing to spend my break with you guys," Zatanna finally said. She was sitting next to Artemis and Dick on the other side of the tabled. "Can I ask why everyone's so tense?"

"It's nothing," the blonde next to her said, turning the page of her textbook. "Exams are next week and it's just stress. Don't worry about it."

"Yeah, exam stress is a dangerous thing," Wally sneered, looking across the table. Artemis met his gaze and glared. "Brings the worst out of all of us."

"Yes, we all turn into a prick around this time. It's really annoying," Artemis snapped, closing her book.

"Oh, right, cause no one ever turns into a complete bitch around this time. That would be ridiculous," he snapped back. Wally's eyes widened the moment the words fell from his lips. Everyone stilled after his words. Dick became very interested in Zatanna's sleeve as Conner started putting sugar into his coffee. "Fuck, Artemis wait I didn't-"

"I'm going to get a coffee. Megan," she said, cutting him off as if he wasn't even there. Her voice was strained and was staring away from the table completely. She stood up after and looked at the girl across from her, "come with me?"

"Yeah," the ginger girl answered, glaring at Wally before following her roommate. Everyone but the red head watched them head to the counter before turning all their eyes to the remaining person in question.

"Dude, what the hell?" Dick said, reaching across the table to whack his friend's arm. "That was super uncalled for, I don't care what she did."

"I know… Can we drop it? Please? I know I just majorly fucked up," the ginger muttered, sinking into his chair slightly. He started chewing the inside of his cheek, hating himself more and more as the seconds dragged by. He turned his gaze back outside.

"Yeah, no I want an answer," Zatanna said. She leaned across the table, poking Wally. "And since it's my best friend you just called a bitch, I want them from you. Got it? I'll make these fine boys here help me get the answer out of you if I have to. Spit it out, West."

"Well if Artemis hasn't told you yet, maybe she just doesn't want you to know?" he asked. He looked over to the dark haired girl only to be decently punched by Conner. "Fine! Okay, I'll tell you."

"Good, now spill. This one here has been tight lipped as well," the girl said, poking Dick.

"So for Thanksgiving, Artemis came with me to my aunt's and uncle's house because I knew she'd just be bumming around here otherwise. Everything went really well and I ended up asking her out," Wally said, rubbing his arm where the bruise was most likely coming in. He took a deep breath in, finding talking about this wasn't the most pleasant thing. The initial anger from the event was coming back and he was finding it already hard to continue. "She said yes and when we got back to Gotham we planned it in more detail."

"Wait, you actually asked her out?" Zatanna asked, mouth gaping. "I thought that was never going to happen. Did these two know?"

"Of course my best friend and roommate know," he answered, frowning. "Really, Zee?"

"Well excuse me. Just continue," she answered, raising her hands in defence.

"The date was just going to be dinner at this burger place we discovered a few weeks ago. It wasn't going to be anything fancy, it was just going to be fun. I got there early and waited for her. After about forty minutes of waiting I got a text from her saying she wouldn't be showing up and that was that. I tried talking to her the next day and she completely ignored me. Today was the most we've spoken to each other since before the failed date. Happy now?" he said, turning back to the window.

"No, I'm not happy," Zatanna replied. She leaned back into her chair, glancing over at the counter. "I was with her when she was supposed to go. That explains things."

"Well, it's in the past now. Artemis and I are not going to be even friends now, so let's just drop it," Wally said. He looked over to where the blonde was and sighed. "Look, I'm going to leave. I'm only going to make things worst and she doesn't deserve any of this."

Grabbing his jacket from the back of his chair, Wally headed for the doors of the coffee shop. On his way out, his eyes caught Artemis' for a moment. He stood, almost walking over to her to apologize, but ended up turning and walking out.

He was halfway down the block from the coffee shop when he heard his name being called. He took a couple breaths in before turning and immediately regretted it. A fist collided with his face before he could even register who was there. He stumbled a few steps back before finding his footing and looked for who it was.

Artemis was standing in front of him, shaking her hand out. She looked like fire and he took another step back.

"There, that's all I needed," she said, turning to leave. Quickly, Wally reached out, grabbing hold of her wrist. "What?"

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I said that. I… Excuses don't matter at this point, but I am sorry," he said, watching her face. "It was shitty of me and I totally deserved getting punched. But Artemis, seriously, you need to understand why I'm angry."

"I do know why you're angry," she whispered, taking her wrist out of his grasp. "I get that I'm a shitty person and a shitty friend. You don't need to remind me."

"But that's just it, you aren't!" Wally said, his voice starting to rise. "You don't have anything to prove to anyone by closed off. We want to know you. This isn't even about the date anymore. Artemis, I've lived across a hall from you for three months and I barely know you. I know you're closed off, that it's probably because of your family, and that you like zombie movies. Yeah, I guess I know more but you make it so hard. You don't have to hide behind your feelings. I know I can't really talk like this-"

"No, you really can't," the blonde said, cutting him off. "You really don't have that right after calling me a bitch."

"I know. And I'm sorry. I don't mean it, I will never mean it. It was a mistake and it won't even happen again," he said. He shoved his hands into his pockets. "But Artemis, you can open up to us. We're you're friends, okay? You'll never have to prove anything to anything of us."

She looked him over for a while obviously trying to find the words to say. Finally, she sighed, "I'm sorry I stood you up."

And with that, she was heading back to the coffee shop, not paying him another glance.

---

He stood behind the bookshelf a good few minutes before making his way to their group's table. He bit back a sigh when he saw only she was there. Once he was behind, he coughed. She jumped slightly, looking behind her quickly.

"Hey," Wally said, running his head through his hair to the back of his head. "You got a sec?"

"Depends, are we still mad at each other?" Artemis asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

He frowned before talking the seat next to her. She shifted to continue looking at him and he had to pretend that there was no jolt of electricity that jumped through him when her knee brushed his.

"So, exams are almost done meaning our group wouldn't be seeing each other for a few weeks," the ginger said, avoiding her gaze. "So I was planning throwing a New Year's Eve party, but you know, it would be in Kansas so it's a bit trip. Anyway, almost everyone has said yes, so if you decided you'd like to come, I'm sure you'd be able to get out there. If you wanted to, you know, come."

"Are you sure you want me there?" she asked, looking down at her work in front of her.

"Yes," he answered immediately. Artemis looked back up at him, confusion on her face. Reaching out, Wally took one of her hands in his. "Of course I want you there. I'm sorry I've been such a jerk lately, but that doesn't change anything, not about how I feel."

"Wally…" she said quietly.

"Think about it, okay? It's not just me who wants you there. Everyone does, if that's a more convincing argument," the ginger said, smiling at her. She nodded and he let go of her hand. "Awesome. I'm going to head out now, leave you to study. Right…"

He stood up slowly, trying not to take his eyes off her as long as possible. He made it three steps before he felt something grab his hand. He turned to look back at her and immediately her lips found his. He kissed back almost immediately, but within seconds she had pulled away.

"I'll think about it."

---

"I doubt she's even going to show," Wally said, grabbing a stack of cups from on top of the fridge. He handed it to his friend and he reached for another. "I mean, driving out to Kansas is ridiculous. It's about a day's drive, and that's without stopping. She's not coming."

"Give her a chance," Dick said, tossing the cups into the air and catching them. "Zatanna said they were going to be here, so please stop worrying. Zee promises that they had in fact left Gotham, so unless Artemis jumped out of the moving vehicle, she'll be here. Besides, I thought you and Artemis were still angry at each other. You know, still completely avoiding each other."

"Yeah… something like that," the ginger muttered, heading out of the kitchen. He and his friend make their way down to the basement. A chorus of cheers greeted them, and Wally couldn't help but smile a bit, though it definitely wasn't the most convincing one.

They're whole group from Gotham were all together in Jay and Joan's very large basement, celebrating the coming of the New Year. The Garricks had kindly offered up their house so Wally could invite his friends to Kansas for New Year's Eve (their house was much bigger than his, and Barry and Iris were definitely not going to have a group of college students in theirs, what with Iris being pregnant and all). So they all gathered here, promising that nothing would be damaged and that their presences would never be detectable. So tonight was going to be a night of partying and cheer.

Of course, Wally couldn't help but feel weird about the whole night. It wasn't late, only about nine at night, but he was convinced Artemis wasn't going to arrive in time. He still felt like crap about what he had done and it didn't help that they were ignoring they're kiss from a couple weeks ago. He hated everything about how he felt but he knew no part of him wanted to change it. He just wished he could do something about it.

The night continued, and nothing anyone could do would calm him down. They knew not to bother trying to get Wally drunk, that was a lost cause (he hated his metabolism when it came to parties). They tried getting him to play games, but he couldn't concentrate long enough. They tried playing his favourite music, even the 80s music no one else really wanted to listen to, to get him to dance. Nothing would work. The ginger felt bad, of course, but he was just not feeling the party. Some host he was.

Eventually the ginger moved to a corner, watching his friends get drunker by the drink as he slowly sipped on one himself. He sighed, wondering if he would be able to slip away at midnight. Watching a bunch of couples kiss was not something he was up for that night, and he definitely wasn't going to resort to kissing his best friend, not this time. (A story that Dick and he had sworn to take to the grave.)

He was lost enough in his thoughts that he didn't notice another ginger seat down next to him. "Wally…" the newcomer said. He jumped, looking over to find Megan sitting there. "You okay? Is it about Artemis?"

"Can't a guy just be bumming on New Year's Eve without it being about a girl?" he asked, glancing away from his friend. She raised an eyebrow and he sighed again. "Fine, maybe it is Artemis. But it doesn't mean anything. I'm bummed Zee isn't here yet either. It doesn't feel right with them missing."

"You know, if you just asked her out again, she'll say yes. I know she will," Megan said, resting a hand on the boy's arm. "She likes you."

"Yeah, I know…" he muttered, looking away from his friend. "That's not the problem. Megs, I know you're trying to help, but…"

"Wally, she likes you. You just have to go for it again. She isn't going to make it easy because it isn't for her, but that doesn't mean she doesn't want it, okay?" the girl said, standing slowly, a slightly wobble in her movement. "Just giving yourself the chance. You're the only reason you're not having fun tonight, make your decision and enjoy the night, okay?"

He watched his friend walk back over to Conner and sighed. He hated being proved wrong, especially when he was the only sober person to be annoyed by it. He went to take another sip of his drink and groaned when he discovered it was empty. Slowly, he makes his way over to the cooler.

It was when Wally was grabbing a beer that he heard his name being called from the voice he was waiting to hear. His stomach flipped as he turned to the speaker. In the doorway was Artemis, smiling as Zatanna passed by her heading towards Dick. Wally grinned and made his was over. Only once he was in front of her did he realize there was something different.

"You cut your hair," he said, reaching out to touch the blonde locks landing just at her shoulders now. "It looks amazing."

"You think?" the girl asked, running a hand through the hair in question. Her cheeks were touched with a bit of pink as she looked up at him. "I just did it before Zatanna and I left. I figured since a new year was coming…"

"It looks great," he whispered, still letting his fingers slide through it. Artemis grinned, reaching up to take his hand in hers. Wally was sure that his cheeks were turning a similar colour to hers. "Look, I know I've already apologized, but I am really sorry about the coffee shop."

"I know," she said. "And I'm not sorry at all about punching you."

"Good, I deserved it," he said. Stepping forward, he brought her into a hug, whispering another quiet apology. When he pulled away, she was smiling at him. "So, you guys took your time getting here."

"We had to keep it interesting," Artemis shrugged, grabbing the beer from his hand. "I think you were about to offer this to me?"

"Obviously," he said and they begin to make their way into the room and to their friends.

He hated how quickly his mood shot up now that she was here. He hated that he was always going to feel guilt about what he called her. He was laughing and actually dancing and he hated the look on Dick's face. Freaking know-it-all. But he was willing to let it go this even just for a moment because he couldn't remember the last time he had this much fun. He had amazing friends, went to an amazing school (he finally accepted that), and maybe he even was going to work things out with Artemis finally.

As midnight during near, Wally plopped down on the couch next to Artemis, who was taking a break from the festivities. Neither of them acknowledged his arm draping around her shoulders. She grinned over to him before taking a sip from her cup.

"What's your poison?" he asked after a few moments of them just watching their friends, absentmindedly playing with her hair.

"H2O," she said, shaking the cup a bit. "I'm really going all out tonight."

"Not getting wasted like our amazing friends?" Wally asked, sinking into the couch a bit more. He was becoming very aware of how close he and the blonde were sitting. She was leaning into him, he guessed she did that the moment he sat down, and he could feel every tiny movement coming from her.

"No, I promised I'd take the first driving shift tomorrow morning so Zatanna could have some fun. Sadly, we both have jobs waiting for us to get back to," the blonde explained.

"Lame," Wally replied, drawing out the first syllable. "What time are you guys heading out?

"Wait too early, if you ask me. Somewhere around 8 a.m.," she complained, he groaned in sympathy. She took a sip of her water and the boy watched the way her neck moved. He hated that all he wanted to do in that moment was press his lips against it. He swallowed and took a long drink from his beer. Her free hand started to trace a lazy figure eight on the ginger's thigh as he finished his drink. He breathed in deeply, eyes dancing over the girl's body. "Besides, I figured you'd want a sober friend for the night, am I right?"

"Unfortunately, yes," he sighed, putting on his best 'defeated' face and placing the empty bottle down. The girl laughed beside him, spilling her water on both of them. "You sure that's just water? You aren't lying, are you?"

The girl started laughing harder as Wally reached to grab the cup from her hand. She jerked her arm out of the way as he was reaching which led to the boy landing on top of her. They both were roaring with laughter when they noticed the TV was turned on.

"The ball drop is happening!" Megan's voice squealed from near by. As if on cue, everyone broke off into their couples, leaving Wally and Artemis in their precarious position on the couch. The cup was now lying on the ground, unnoticed.

As the countdown from their friends began, the two of them slowly made eye contact. The seconds seemed like minutes to them. Artemis' breath was becoming shallow and she gulped as the boy on top of her brushed the hair out of her face, his hand lingering on the side of her face. Both of them held their breath as a loud 'Happy New Year!" rang through the room. Slowly, letting each second engulf him completely, Wally lowered his head to gently place his lips against the blonde's.

Her hands snaked up out from under him to around his neck, pulling him in closer. This kiss was completely different from their first one. That one was confused. They were still angry at each other, still hurt from the other's actions. This one however… Wally could feel his veins ignite as their lips moved together. Artemis was pressing up with her entire body as he pushed down, and he knew this could become very dangerous very quickly.

Just as her hands were starting the wander, the ginger pulled his lips from hers, but barely moved his head away. He met her eyes that opened almost at once when her lips lost contact. There was a fire in them and he regrettably knew he had made the right decision.

"Happy New Year, Artemis," Wally whispered, making the girl below him shiver. He brushed his lips over hers once more before moving from on top of her. He helps her back to sitting and can't help but smirk a bit because of her appearance; her dark green shirt had begun to twist and her hair was far messier now.

"Happy New Year, Wally," she finally answered. She licked her lips once before straightening her shirt. Her eyes darted at him once before she stood up from the couch. "We're telling everyone we were drunk, okay?"

The words were only audible to the ginger and they hit him hard, but the girl was across the room before he could say anything. He sighed, running his hand through his hair before getting up himself. He headed towards Dick, ignoring the elbow in his side from the young boy. He tried to laugh, but he couldn't keep from glancing at the blonde the rest of the night. There was always a reason they would never work out it seemed.

An hour or so later, Wally was really starting to regret that he had hosted this party. He had to find sleeping arrangements for nine people and it was definitely a task considering he had only two rooms to work with. With the Garricks not wanting his friends on the top floor, it was hard to find the space. After a good twenty minutes running around making sure everyone and everything was set, he was finally able to make his way to his room. He was so focused on walking up the stairs slowly, trying not the disturb anyone in the house, he didn't notice the blonde figure moving quietly to the stairs.

He had walked into his room, stripping himself of his shirt when he heard a cough at his doorway. He turned, shirt in hand, to Artemis leaning against the doorframe, a large t-shirt almost completely covering a pair of shorts. His cheeks went pink instantly and he was grateful he hadn't turned the light on yet.

"So, you have your own room here?" she asked. She took a small step forward, though her hand remained on the frame. Her eyes skim across the room, stopping briefly at the shirt boy in the middle of it. "That's… really sweet actually."

"Well, I spent a lot of time here growing up. The Garricks are very close with my uncle, and when my aunt married him… well Jay and Joan are basically my grandparents," Wally explained with a shrug. He tossed his shirt across the room and looked Artemis over.

"They seem really lovely from just letting me in, so that's always good in my books," Artemis said, smiling.

"They're good people," he replied, smiling. "So, am I allowed to ask why you're up here? I did tell you there was a bathroom downstairs, right?"

She nodded, walking into the room completely. She stood a few steps away from him, biting her bottom lip. His eyes danced over her body, taking in how she looked in the dark. Shadows fell in patterns across her, only enough light from his window allowing him to see her face as the blonde blinked. But here he was, standing with the girl who was the main reason he hadn't had a calm moment all year.

His heart was starting to pound loudly in his ear and he wondered just how red his face was getting now. It had to be their current outfits, because normally the proximity that was between them currently wouldn't bother him. That or it was the fact it was really late at night and there was a girl in his bedroom at his basically grandparent's house. Most likely a mix of the two situations.

She looked him over carefully, as if trying to feel what his chest felt like without reaching out. He sucked his breath in and could see a small smirk forming on her face. She took a tiny step forward and Wally was sure that if this continued that he would stop breathing all together, which would be the biggest mood killer.

After a moment, Artemis sighed as she finally made eye contact with him, "Are you actually asking?"

"Artemis, I'm a scientist at heart, or you know at brain, ow," he said as she punched his arm, "I have to ask questions."

"Wally…" she said, rolling her eyes. She turned away from him and headed over to his door. For a second, he thought she was going to leave and panic jumped up through him. He took a step forward to stop her when he realized the door closed and she was still on the same side as him. "Does this answer your question?"

Before she could completely finish saying the last word, almost as though he had superpowers, the ginger was standing in front of her, pressing his lips down on to hers. She gasped as her hands flew to the back of his head, bringing him even closer to her. She stepped backwards slowly, forcing the ginger to follow her. Soon, her back was against the door but she continued to pull the boy in front of her closer. It was his turn to gasp when their bodies were pressed together.

His veins felt like they were on fire as his tongue gently slid across her bottom lip. She nodded slightly, parting her lips for him. He began to explore her mouth, the fire in him transferring between the two of them. Artemis began to fight back, her tongue demanding the same opportunity. He could stay like this forever, breathing this girl in. No part of him wanted this to end. He would have to be crazy for that.

And yet, Wally found himself pulling away from her mouth, looking the girl in the eyes. They were filled with desire and he could already feel his pants becoming a bit tighter. He leaned forward, gently kissing her lips before taking a small step back. Confusion joined the desire in her gaze. He smiled to try and reassure but he needed to start talking, "Are we supposed to be drunk right now?"

"What?"

"Tomorrow morning," he explained, avoiding her gaze now, "when I inevitably tell my best friend about all this, do I tell him we were drunk or… Cause Artemis, I'll do what you ask but I'd rather not be drunk right now. I just… I have to ask."

She watched him, her burrows furrowing together. She took a breath in and let it out and Wally was starting to worry. Did he say too much? Was it the wrong thing? Maybe he should have waited until afterward… Yeah, that definitely would have been the smart move. Stupid, Wall-man, very stupid.

"I… Can I tell you in the morning?" she asked. The boy looked up at her and could see the confliction on her face. "I'll be able to say then."

"Going to judge it based on how sore you are in the morning?" he said, waggling his eyebrows at her.

"Nevermind, I'm definitely drunk right now," she laughed, pulling him back to her.

Quickly, their lips found each other again. Wally started to kiss his way to her ear as her hands began to explore. This wasn't his first time, but this was already a new experience. Every place that her fingers traced and glided over left him on fire.

He pushed her further against the door as his mouth latched onto her neck. A sharp breath from Artemis made the boy smirk as he continued to lick, kiss, and nip away. She tried to press into him more, but it only made him push her more against the door. He was sure she could feel his excitement through his pants.

He moved his lips across her neck as his hands began exploring as well. They slowly made their way from her shoulders and down her arms, sending shivers through her body, the softest moan escaping her parted lips. Her eyes were open, watching the muscles in his shoulders and back move as he worked away at her.

His hands found the hem of shirt and he looked up at her questioningly. She nodded and lifted her arms up. Slowly, the ginger began to drag her shirt up her body, taking in every second of newly exposed skin. Only once he was discarding the shirt next to them did her realize her chest had no other barriers on it. She smirked.

"You good?"

"Good doesn't even come close to describing this moment, babe," he said, his voice huskier than it was normally. Artemis swallowed before taking his hand and leading it to one of her breast. The boy stopped breathing once his hand made contact and he looking into the girl's eyes. "Nowhere near."

She rolled her eyes and pulled his lips back hers. He palmed both of her breasts. Her skin was smooth and he chuckled at the shudder that took over her body for a second as his thumb brushed against a nipple. Her hands found his forearms and squeezed, as she bite down gently on his bottom lip. They're tongues met briefly before Wally started moving down her neck again. He moved one hand from her chest to her hip as his mouth slowly took its place.

Artemis hummed her enjoyment as he worked away. He slowly kissed around the mound, avoiding her nipple. His other hand continued to play with her as his lips moved closer and closer to where the blonde wanted them. Just as she thought he would finally give her what she wanted, he switched to the other side. She groaned in frustration.

After a few moments of the same torture on the other side, Wally finally latched his lips to one of her nipples and she let out a sigh of pleasure, causing the boy to chuckle against her skin. The girl moved a hand to his hair, her fingers clutching to find support for herself, while the other slid slowly down his chest. She took her time exploring the well-toned muscle, feeling each one twitch under her fingers.

Her fingers trace the top of his jeans as his mouth moves back to the original side. Soon, the girl pulled Wally back to her mouth as she brought him close to her again. The door rattled slightly and they both stopped moving.

Trying not to laugh at the interruption, the ginger looked behind him at his bed and back the girl, "Want to move this somewhere a little more comfortable?"

"Do you not want to sound like a dork?" she asked, pressing her lips against his. His hands slide down behind her, lifting her up against him. She biting her lip to get from laughing as the boy stumbled to towards the bed, cursing and almost dropping her when kicked the bedframe, hard.

"Fuck," he muttered, turning to sit on the bed. Artemis straddled him, placing kisses across his face. "As you can see, I'm super romantic and have mastered the art of carrying hot girls across dark bedrooms."

"Super romantic, superhero sheets and all," she laughed against his lips. The boy under her laughed as his hand moved up her back to get lost her hair. She moved her hips causing him to moan at the friction. She reached between them and unbuttoned his jeans and his lips parted against hers, a sharp breath being taken in. Once they were undone, she moved off him to allow the boy to pull them off quickly. Artemis grinned when she saw his Avengers boxers.

"Hey, you knew I was a totally geek coming into this," he muttered, pulling her in for another kiss. They slowly maneuvered themselves so that they were lying down on their sides, foreheads pressed together. "Besides, you totally think it's hot on me."

"Sure," she whispered. Her hand moved between them, cupping him gently. The boy moaned at the touch, his hips moving into the touch. "That's definitely what it is."

They continued to kiss as she rubbed him through his boxers. She moved her hand up and under the waistband. Her name escaped his lips as she made contact. His hands began to move along her body as he was starting to fall completely into the feeling of her strokes. He could feel a warmth building inside of him and he pressed his mouth against the girl's skin to stay quiet.

A few strokes later and Wally had to groan her name to stop her. Artemis' eyes were shining through the dark as her hand retreated and she shifted to be lying on her back. The boy moved to be kneeling between her legs and grabbed hold of her shorts' waistband. The girl lifted her hips so he could pull them off, her underwear going with her shorts to the floor. His eyes drank in her body, his heart racing in his chest.

"Babe… You're beautiful," he muttered, eyes meeting hers. He could see even through the dark that a blush was growing more on her cheeks and she smiled up at him.

Reaching behind him, the ginger's hands slid up her legs. She shivered below him as his hands moved higher and higher. She sucked in when his fingers found her inner thighs and inched closer and closer to where she needed release. His fingers finally grazed her folds and a small moan slipped out of the blonde's mouth. Wally began to gently massage the nub between her folds, smirking as he watched her back arch off the bed slightly. The ginger worked away at the girl below him, building her orgasm more and more. His fingers began to move quickly against her and she began to writher on the bed, her hands clutching onto the sheets, as if to keep her body from floating away.

"Wally…" she gasped, her eyes shutting tightly. She was unsure of what she was asking for from him. His movements stopped, causing Artemis to whine from the lack of his warmth. He chuckled and shifted on the bed. Wally lowered his head to her core and gently blew; cause her hand to fly to hear mouth to keep from crying out.

Tentatively, his tongue skimmed across her once and he glanced up at the girl. Her chest was heaving and her eyes completely closed. Her hand was still on her mouth. Every part of him wanted to take her hand away, to let her cry out, but he knew better. Instead, he turned his attention back to her core and began licking. His tongue moved slowly and deliberately. Gradually, his movements quickened and he could feel her tensing up. Artemis muttered his name but he kept working away at her orgasm, determined. He began to hold her hips down with one hand, drawing circles in them with his thumb, cause her to squirm under his touch even more.

His free hand joined his mouth, a finger dipping inside of her. She was warm and he was sure this was something he could do for an eternity; make this amazing girl feel wonderful and enjoy her body. It was the perfect situation. As a second finger joined the first one the blonde let out a choked noise and her walls were soon contracting around his fingers. Pulling them out slowly, he licked her a few more times through her orgasm and then moved away. He wiped his mouth with his hand and made his way back up to her.

Her breathing was coming back down as she pulled the boy in for a kiss. When their lips parted, she was grinning, "Well then. I'm glad to see you know what to do."

"Hey, I've done this before," he huffed, playing with her hair. "I took notes."

"God, you really are a geek," Artemis said. She began to move her toes up his legs until she had her big toes hooked under the waistband of his boxer. "You do have a condom, right? I swear, I will kill you if you don't."

"Of course I have one," he mumbled against the skin he was currently kissing. He slid off the bed and quickly walked over to his desk. He opened a draw, and after fishing around a bit, he held up a condom triumphantly. He glanced at it quickly before nodding in reassurance and making his way back to her. There was a smirk on her face. "What?"

"You have condoms at basically your grandparents' house?" she answered, a laugh leaving with her words.

"Shut up," he muttered, ripping the wrapping open carefully. The blonde sat up and began to pull his boxers down. Soon they were on the floor with the rest of the discarded clothes and she was taking the condom and carefully putting it on him. She moved back to lying down as he crawled over her. "Be happy I do."

"Oh, I definitely am," she chuckled, reaching down to him.

Guiding him into position, she made eye contact and nodded. He started to slide into her slowly, a small bit at a time. A moan left her lips as he would pull out before pushing back in a bit more. Finally, after growing impatient, Wally pulled out almost all the way before thrusting into her completely. He had to press his lips against her to ensure he didn't cry out from the pleasure that was engulfing him. It was all consuming and all he could think of was how amazing and perfect the girl below him was. He was definitely and completely in trouble now.

There's sand everywhere now but all you can do is laugh. You can't help it, and her laughing is only making it worse. There is sand everywhere and your castle is ruined. There's sand in your hair, your shoes, even a bit in your mouth. But you don't care because she's laughing. There is now sign at all that she had been crying that day. No sign that she had been hurting. She's seating next you as you push yourself up from the ruined sandcastle and she's just laughing. You try and brush the sand out of your hair but you're laughing to hard to make any difference. You hear your name called and look behind you. Your aunt is calling you and you frown. You don't want to go yet; she's only just started to be happy. You want to spend all day in the sandpit trying to rebuild the castle, maybe try digging a tunnel to China, just sitting and laughing. You don't want to say goodbye.

Wally turned over, his hand reaching out and meeting the bed sheets. He slowly opened his eyes, blinking a few times from the morning light seeping into his room. He finally saw that he was the only one in the bed and panic flew through him before he remembered that she had probably left to get her and Zatanna home. It's okay Wall-man, Artemis isn't that cruel. She'll call you later and you'll talk this out and things will finally move forward.

He sat up and stretched his arms up before glancing down at his side table. He was expecting to see the times but a piece of folded paper met his eyes instead. His stomach dropped immediately as he reached for it. Taking a deep breath in, he opened it and read:

Hopefully your hangover today isn't terrible, we really went all out last night. Some heavyweight you are, right?

The paper was crumpled and across the room before he could even blink. He hated the feeling in his stomach. He wasn't sure what hurt worse: that Artemis didn't have the guts to give them a chance or that she didn't have the guts to tell him this to his face. He hunched over, bringing his knees up to his face. He used all his willpower to keep from crying.

---

"You can't ignore her for forever, Wally," Megan said, sitting down next to him. He was in the lounge, trying to study with Kaldur when she found him. "She feels bad."

It was mid-January now and Wally hadn't spoke to Artemis since the party. The girl had tried to talk to him once but has since given up. They gone to avoiding each other like the other of diseased. While a part of him wanted to talk to her, he was still too hurt to try.

"Are you always going to be the messenger, Megs?" the ginger boy asked, sparing her a look. "Cause that's very high school of all of us."

"So go talk to her! I mean, really, what's the harm? Third time's the charm, right?" she asked.

"My luck with Artemis hasn't been great and I've said some pretty awful things, okay? Maybe we just aren't supposed to be more than friends," Wally said, finally giving the girl his full attention. "Please, just let it go."

"She is right," Kaldur said, glancing up from his own homework. "You are only losing a good chance if you do not talk to Artemis. We can all see she likes you."

"I know she likes me, that's isn't the problem. And when did you start paying attention to gossip, Kaldur? You're supposed to be the smart and reasonable person on the floor," the boy said, glaring at his friend. The response he got was merely a raised eyebrow and smirk. "Fine, be that way."

"Wally, seriously, please just talk to her," Megan said.

"Sorry Megs, but no. I'm not risking everything again. For a girl who is apparently trying to open up, she really knows how to slam the door in my face," he said.

The girl opened her mouth to speak the moment Wally's phone began to ring. He glanced at his friends before walking out into the hall. When he was sure no one was around, he answered the call.

"Hello?" he asked, glancing into the lounge. His friends looked away quickly from the door and he rolled his eyes.

"Wally? It's Iris," a woman's voice said over the phone.

"Hi, how are… Wait! Why are you calling? Did you have the babies?" the ginger asked excitedly.

"That's why I'm calling. Your uncle tried to say I should be sleep but I wanted to hear your voice when you were told," Iris said and he could hear a chuckle in the background from his uncle. "Yes, I had the babies. Dawn and Don, and they're as beautiful as ever. They're excited to meet their cousin."

"Well, when I can find a weekend to visit you know I'll be there," the boy said. He was grinning from ear to ear.

"Good. Now, before I let you go, anything I should know? We haven't spoken much since Thanksgiving. How are you?" the woman said.

Wally sighed, running his hand through his hair, "Not much really. Artemis and I… well it's complicated. We're in a very complicated moment right now."

"Anything I can do to help?"

"Yeah, probably not. Wait," he said, scuffing his feet on the floor below him. He looked around himself to ensure he was still alone. "The park… Why were you asking me about that?"

"God, how are you not actually related to your uncle? I swear you two are just as thick as they come," Iris said, sighing. "It amazes me everyday."

"Hey!" Wally said and could hear the same word shouted over the phone.

"What do you remember from the park?" his aunt asked.

"I don't know, I was playing in the sandpit and there was a girl there. That's all I remember," he said, shrugging to himself.

"Right, so there was a girl… She was blond right, kind of looked like a younger Artemis, don't you think?" she said. He could hear her enjoyment through the phone.

"I guess but… Wait. You don't… I have to go," the boy said. He didn't wait for and an answer before hanging up the phone.

He went back into the lounge and quickly grabbed his things, completely ignoring his friends. He made his way to his room, throwing a glance at the door across from him before leaving the hallway. Inside his room, he picked a path through the mess to his bed and sat down.

The park… It was starting to make to finally fit together. He remembered a girl… blonde and in pink coveralls. It could have been her considering Artemis was from Gotham. But how would that even work? It was so beyond clichéd, even Megan would find it terrible. But then again…

He lay down on his bed, closing his eyes. It was crazy, stuff like this just didn't happen. It just didn't. And at this point, would it even make a difference? They both had screwed up so many times now would it even be possible to try, clichés aside? And that's without the constant arguing.

He turned on his side, trying to move his thoughts from her. He still wasn't sure if that girl was even Artemis. Sure, there could be a resemblance, but that isn't confirmation. And his aunt could just be remembering it wrong. He wasn't going to put his heart on the line again unless it was completely guaranteed that it would work, no matter how tempting it was. He couldn't handle either of them being hurt again, he just didn't want to see that happen.

You look at the girl and frown. You can hear your aunt calling you again but you don't move. You need to tell her she'll be all right in the end, at least. She smiles at you and nods. So you quickly tell her and you tell her your name (ignore that she's probably heard it by now from your aunt). You stand up, helping her up as well, and smile. You give her a quick hug and turn to leave. You aren't saying goodbye though you know you won't even see her again. Before you make it out of the sandpit she runs up to you.

"My name is Artemis," she says, grinning. "See ya later."

Wally's eyes flew open. It was dark in his room now and he felt warm… extremely warm. He took a deep breath in and checked the time, half past one. He glanced across the room and saw Conner and Megan asleep. He brushed his hair back before slipping off the bed. He walked quietly to the door and left.

He was standing in front of 417, trying to figure out what to say. Does he even bother knocking? What if she doesn't answer him? What if she does? Just as he was about to head back to his room, he heard the door open.

"Wally?" the girl asked standing in her doorway. She was in her pyjamas and her hair was a mess. He tried to suppress his grin but failed. She raised an eyebrow at him. "What do you want, it's like the middle of the night?"

"I remember," the ginger said, catching her gaze. "The park when we were kids. Your dad yelling at you, the sandcastle, your pink coveralls. I remember. God, and you knew this whole time! That's how you knew my name in September and you've been dropping hints this whole time. I'm an idiot."

"Yeah, you really are," she said, a grin spreading across her face. "How long has this taken now?"

"Almost five months," he whispered, taking a step forward. "Sorry I took so long."

"I can maybe forgive you," she whispered back. She reached out and took his hand. She tugged his hand, making him step even closer. "Are… Are we going to make this work?"

"We can try," his voice was low. "Trying is fun."

"Mhmm," she said. She reached up, placing her hand behind his head and pulling him down into a kiss. When they pulled apart, they both had to keep from laughing. "I think we've both been pretty stupid lately, haven't we?"

"I think I take to trophy for that one, but yeah," he said, pressing his forehead to hers. "Some trip, huh?"

"Yeah, it's been something," she said, stepping back into her room more. He followed her in, closing the door behind him.

---

"You knew each other as kids?" Zatanna yelled. They were in the lounge and Dick and Zatanna were visiting for the evening. It was board game night and it looked like Wally was finally going to win a game of monopoly. Of course, that's when Artemis joined and immediately gave the ginger a kiss… Which then led to them explaining everything. "You knew each other as kids, I can't believe it. You two are fucking unbelievable!"

"Sorry?" Artemis said, sitting on the back of the couch behind Wally. She was playing with the hair at the nape of his neck. "This one only remembered a few nights ago."

"Sorry Zee, I know, we're terribly clichéd," the ginger said, grinning. He accepted the dice from Kaldur and began to shake them. He lifted his hands to the blonde behind him. "Blow on them for good luck, babe?"

"Please, you need more than luck to win," she answered, patting his hand.

"You're terrible," he muttered before dropping the dice on the table. He moved his piece and groaned. "Jail? See, this is why you were supposed to give me luck."

"Except you're terrible at Monopoly, so you would have lost anyway."

"Can I have a new girlfriend?"

"Ew, are we already there?"

"Gross, I'm going to go throw up," Zatanna said, miming throwing up. Dick began laughing next to her, but he winked at his friend.

The night ended with Zatanna winning the game (claiming it was pay back for how gross Wally and Artemis were being) and everyone made their ways to where they needed to be. The new couple walked their friends to their taxi and watched them leave before slipping their hands into each other's. The blonde led the way back to their floor, both of them silent.

They stood between each other's respected doors still silent. Wally grinned down at here; he was doing that a lot now. He could easily say that he was the happiest he had been in awhile. Before now, they just had never found the common ground of yes. There were sures, and why nots, but neither one could ever agree on yes. He knew that the future was going to be tough, considering how arguing was basically their hobby, but he knew they had yes to always come back to.

Leaning down, he gently kissed her. Her lips were soft and molded to his perfectly. They both smiled into the kiss before pulling away.

"I'll see you tomorrow, babe," he whispered, brushing her hair out of her face.

"Of course, you can't get enough of me," she said, winking at him. She gave him a quick kiss before heading into her room.

Smiling, Wally headed into his own room. Yeah, this university was definitely the right choice.