A/N: The second ending I had in mind when I was working on The Darkest Hour. Seeing your reactions, I'm glad I chose to write another one as the ''official'' ending, but I just couldn't leave the second ending unpublished after the initial work I've done in it.

You don't have to read the whole story, The Darkest Hour, to read that one-shot, but I strongly recommend it. It's basically the story of Barry getting poisonned by a new Meta, about a week after the event of the Killer Frost episode (3x07) and with almost no chances of survival, the team took a decision about wheter giving him a fighting chance...or ending his suffering.

Picture this one shot taking place after Oliver came back with the bad guy, but before Barry woke up

WARNING: MAJOR CHARACTER'S DEATH

''Caitlin, stop.'' Said Cisco with shaking lips as the doctor once again placed herself in position next to the speedster, ready to resume pounding on the young man's chest.

Reaching for her, he firmly grabbed her arm.

Stop? No, no, they couldn't stop, they couldn't give up on Barry. Not when he was just about to wake up. At any second now. He stopped getting worse hours ago, he was going to make it, for sure. What was Cisco doing? Why was he tightly holding her arm and pulling her away while Barry was still flat lining? With one sharp movement, Caitlin yanked her arm out of engineer's grip and returned to her position.

''Just a couple more compressions, give me one more minute…I can bring him back, I can. '' Sobbed Caitlin between short breaths, desperately continuing to press down on Barry's inert and cold body. Cold corpse.

He wasn't dead, not yet, there was still time. Her muscles were aching, sweat was cascading down her forehead and she was struggling to breath, but it didn't mean she could stop. Not when there was still chances…Barry wasn't gone. Barry was always fine and always rebound.

''It's been over 20 minutes.'' Said Cisco, weeping, as he weakly grabbed her arm again. ''He's…go…n…'' Closing his eyes, a spasm ran over the young man's spine when he almost pronounced the last word.

The shrill alarm of the monitor was barely covering the cry of despair that left Iris' and Felicity's lips as they witnessed Caitlin finally letting go and breaking down, crying. The doctor badly fell on her knees, weeping, burying her face in her hands. It was really over. Barry was dead. Barely able to stay on his legs, Joe was bawling next to his daughter. His knees were going weaker by the second as he felt his world ending. Just outside the medical room, Wally and Oliver just stood there in shock, unable to move a muscle.

''No…no…no…'' Caitlin kept on saying over and over again. It was a nightmare and she was going to wake up in a moment.

It wasn't supposed to happen. Barry was stable and he had been for hours now. Sure he had been at Death's door all night, but he stopped getting worse in the morning. Hell, his vitals had been going slightly up during the day. Everything was going to be ok, Barry was out of the wood. Or, that's what everyone thought, especially when Oliver came back with the poisoner, allowing Caitlin to create an antidote….And, that's when everything went to Hell.

Cisco just wanted to fall on the ground next to his friend and hold her tight. He just wanted to break down with Caitlin and tell her that Barry going into shock wasn't her fault. It wasn't her fault that Barry's weakened body was too sick to handle the trauma caused by the antidote clashing with the poison in his system. The only thing keeping the engineer from going all the way down to the floor was the fear he wouldn't find the strength to get back on his feet again if he was to let himself crash.

The Star City's vigilante just stood there with a completely blank expression on his almost emotionless face. Oliver could've sworn he was having an out of body experience right now as he couldn't feel anything. Every part of his body was completely numb and all the distress surrounded him had no influence on his emotional state. The hero looked with complete detachment as Iris extirpated herself from her father's grip and ran to Barry's side, breaking down, hysterically screaming the hero's name while shaking his side, desperately trying to arouse him.

''Ple..aa..ss….Ba…wak..e…u…pl…''

Of course, it did nothing to disturb the dead hero.

Oliver felt like Barry was going to get up at any moment now. He was bloody Barry Allen, the Flash. He was indestructible.

''Oliver…'' Said Cisco's broken voice, barely holding it together. ''Please.'' He simply said, pointing at the girls. They shouldn't stay in there.

Coming back to reality and regaining all of his senses, Barry's friend inhaled sharply as he finally registered all the drama around him. The first thing he instantly noticed was the fact that someone had turned off the monitor's alarm. And the second thing was that... Oh my god, it was real. Barry was dead. Oliver had to catch himself on the wall to stop his sudden stumbling. The realization of what was happening suddenly hit him like a runaway train. Why? Of all people, why had Barry to be the one to die? Oliver couldn't break down, not yet, not while people needed him. Being a hero didn't stop at beating criminals up, it was about helping everyone in needs, wherever they were, whenever they needed help. In this very moment, it was about clearing the room and taking everyone away from the body. Barry's body.

Moving his shaking legs and swallowing his sorrow, Oliver advanced into the room and gently, but firmly helped both Iris and Caitlin get back on their legs.

''Come on.'' He said in the most comforting tone he could find at the moment.

''He needs me.'' Whimpered Iris before howling in emotional pain as the vigilante was trying to drag her away from the man who was both her best friend and her lover.

In desperation, her fists started banging on the Green Arrow's chest who just stood there and took everything without saying a word, feeling like every hit was going straight to his soul. All he'd ever done in life was failing everyone he ever cared about, starting with his parents, Shadow, Laurel…and now, Barry.

'I failed you, my friend.' He sadly thought.

One slow step at the time, he was able to get Iris, Caitlin and even Felicity away from the room. Feeling like he was about to pass out, Joe also walked away, helped by his son, giving the room to Cisco.

In this moment, time froze and Cisco's eyes couldn't detach themselves from his friend's dead corpse. There's nothing in the world he wouldn't have given right now to bring him back, to apologize for everything he said last week. He would've given his life just to say to Barry how he forgave him for what happened to Dante. Barry died thinking his best friend hated him. He died pushing himself at work and thinking he had nobody to turn to.

Looking down at his hands, the engineer thought he was going to be sick. From the point of view of any observer, Cisco's hands were looking all nice and clean, but inside, Vibe knew how tainted they were. They were stained with his best friend's blood and it was never going to come off. He just killed Barry, simple as that. He took him down with his words last week, hurting him badly, pushing his best friend away 'til the speedster was out of his face. And that was the reason why Barry decided to go solo in that bank, why he got poisoned and why he died. All because of his actions. Barry was gone now and soon enough everyone will connect the dots. Soon enough everyone would all be pointing fingers at him and rightfully so.

''I'm so…so sorry. '' He sobbed, barely holding it together.

If only it was just the things he said...just yesterday Cisco kept on hurting, torturing, his friend for his own selfishness. By deciding to keep Barry's last wish a secret, by keeping him out of the vote, he condemned his friend to endure the most horrible suffering for endless hours 'til he finally passed away.

''Please…forgive me'' He asked again to the corpse like he was waiting for an answer.

Shaking all over, he reached for the medical equipments, disconnecting them from Barry's body, barely noticing the falling tears that went splashing on the cold shirtless chest on the bed.

How was he ever supposed to move on? If he could turn back time, if he could go back in the past like Barry could, he would. He would bring his brother back. But he wasn't thinking about Dante, he was thinking about the best friend he ever had.

***FLASHFLASHFLASH***

The moderate rainfall set the perfect mood for the funerals, Barry's funerals. The day before, the police department presented a great memorial ceremony, thanks to Singh, but it didn't feel right to anyone who knew, really knew, Barry. For most of the department, they just lost an enthusiastic young man and an excellent CSI…but they didn't even realized half, not even one-tenth, of the goods the hero really did for the city. Maybe one day everyone will know, but not today.

Barry's friends and family held their own private ceremony to finally lay Central City's hero to rest. It was attended by the whole West family, everyone working at Star Labs, Captain Singh, Oliver and his original Team Arrow and even Harry and Jesse. Each and every one of them took the time to make a moving speech. During the whole ceremony, Cisco just couldn't help but look at all the different faces and think about how meeting Barry changed each of their lives. Barry transformed everyone's destiny for the better. And now, everything was over, because he pushed the speedster away.

Finally, the last but not the least, Oliver took one step forward to the coffin.

''The first time I've met Barry, before the lightning struck him, he just was the most energetic and hopeful person I've ever met. He just was the kindest and most caring soul to ever live. ''

Oliver took a pause, closing his eyes for a brief second and kneeling next to the coffin. ''I never understood how he was able to keep his hope burning after all the darkness he's had seen in his life and as the Flash. But, somehow, by some miracle, he always found the strength to rebound stronger, no matter how hard life knocked him down. I just wish I had the chance to tell him how much I admired his ability to always see the light and see the best in people, no matter the situation. I just wish I had the chance to tell him how much I cared. ''

The vigilante delicately put a hand on the coffin, fighting off tears ''You were like a brother to me, Barry, and I'll always remember you. ''

It was in complete silence that Oliver put down a flower on his friend's casket, before backing up. Caitlin's voice broke the silence moments later, tears cascading down her face. Overwhelmed with emotions, her voice was shaking with every word:

''I killed him…if I hadn't given him the antidote…..he was improving on his own, but I just had to try and pus…push the process. I…I…''

''Cait…you can't possibly know that, he was barely making progress. No one knows how long that was going to last. '' Said Wally, trying in vain to comfort her.

''But he was…was….doing pro…progress, while I wasn't doing a thing. '' She replied, loudly sniffing.

''Caitlin, stop. '' Said Joe, sadly shaking his head, every word coming out with a tremendous effort as he was struggling to keep control of his own voice and not break down crying. ''Blaming ourselves and going over the what if isn't going to bring him back. ''

''Joe's right. It wasn't your fault. You tried your best.'' Approved Cisco, keeping the last part of his sentence in his head: 'It's not your fault, it's mine. I killed him.'

He could physically feel the guilt in his body, twisting his guts around and clenching his heart. The rest of the ceremony was lost in a blur of remorse and pain. The day after the funerals, Cisco just disappeared off the face of the Earth, without leaving a single note behind. He just left to wherever he could hide and live without hurting and killing the people he cared about the way he murdered Barry. For many weeks, everyone feared about his safety. Where was he? Was he ok? Well, of course he wasn't ok, but was he still alive?

Nobody heard from the engineer for months. Not even Felicity was able to track him down, 'til they started hearing stories of this new crime fighter in Keystone. It wasn't that hard to connect the dots and figure out it was him, even if all the attempts to reach or contact him came up empty.

Without Barry or Cisco anymore, the team barely held it together. Wally became Kid Flash and tried his best to walk in Barry's footsteps, but it was a thought legacy to keep up with. But, one thing you can't take away from the kid is that he always showed up and never gave up, with Caitlin and Joe's help. Barry would've been proud. Everyone tried their best to move on and to stick together, but eventually, Iris left town, promising she would never set foot again in Central City, a promise she was hell-bent on keeping. There was too much of Barry in that town.

It took years for the remaining members of Team Flash still in Central City to finally reunite with Cisco, but the man they got back wasn't the smiling, dorky and hopeful engineer they once knew. His eyes weren't shining with joy and enthusiasm anymore. The darkness that took control in November 2016 never let go and they all knew it never would for the rest of his life.

A/N: Leave me your thoughts in the comments. Let's play a game, who loved that ending more than the other one?

And...Oh my gosh I'm evil...I can't believe I just wrote that. Sorry for the depression I probably just gave half of you. But hey, I think you're all happy this is the alternate ending and not the 'official' one. You guys seriously need to consider kidnapping Barry from him. I was tearing up making the last checkup. Hopefully I didn't miss too many mistakes because of it.

I swear, one day I'll write a vilain called Katie who'll just be the most evil character to ever live.