Lock (Rated T for language)

His door is locked.

I know what I had done was wrong. I know it, and yet… I'm still trying to go see him. I don't know why I'm not waiting a while for him to cool down. I just feel like I have to see him.

I knock on his door.

"Who is it?" He sounds cold, emotionless… nothing like the Wally West I'm used to.

"It's… it's Artemis, Wally. May I come in?" At least to myself, I sound scared, scared of what I had said to him and scared of what he was going to think now that I had come crawling back.

"I don't really have anything to say to you right now."

"Well, I… I have something to say to you, Wally. Would you please let me in?"

I hear a sigh through the door. "Fine."

He opens the door up. "What do you want, Artemis?" He sounds dead inside, like his heart has been ripped out.

"I…" A single tear rolls down my left cheek. I'm not usually this vulnerable, but even though we supposedly hate each other, something about Wally West just makes Artemis Crock a completely different person. "I'm sorry, Wally. You know I didn't mean that. What I said."

He shakes his head. "That's what you're going with? 'You know I didn't mean that?' Well, guess what, Artemis? I didn't and don't know you didn't mean that. Do you even remember what you said?"

I nod sadly, and think back to about an hour ago.

I'm standing in the kitchen making tea, and he's doing his usual thing - tearing apart the fridge for food.

I see M'gann float in behind me, and I see him grin at her and wink. "Hey, Megalicious."

She smiles and rolls her eyes. "Hey, Wally. Hey, Artemis."

He keeps grinning at her. "So, Megs, I've got two tickets to one of those magic shows you love so much later today. Real romantic. Wanna come with?"

I snap. I don't know why, but all my irritation and frustration and repressed feelings about Wally boil to the surface at once. "Oh my god, Wally, are you that fucking oblivious? She's into Conner and he's into her, and the sooner you can wrap your head around that fact, the sooner you'll pull your head out of your ass and start helping us on missions instead of being a useless, lovestruck piece of shit!"

M'gann is silent. Wally is gone before I can even process what I've just said.

'Yeah. I remember."

He's silent for a long, long time before he speaks again. "Do you actually feel that way?"

"Oh, no, not at all. I'm so sorry, Wally, I just… I don't know. I just lost it. I didn't mean any of it."

"Do you… do you need to talk about it with someone?"

I look at him, amazed. I tore his heart out an hour ago, maybe less, and he's offering to help me?

"I… I don't know."

"Artemis… it's okay."

We're both quiet for a long time, staring into each other's eyes, and I don't know if Wally is feeling anything, but I'm having to try really, really hard to not fall in love with him this very instant.

"Yeah. I think talking about it might be good."

He smiles softly. "Come on in."

Five years later, and his door has never been locked once since.

The first of 130. Hopefully you guys enjoyed it, and if you did, don't forget to review!