They were the only two left on the roof top, everyone had said their goodbyes and dispersed once Roy had left. Except for the two of them. Wally watched as Dick stepped toward the edge of the building, ready to leave, but then turned around.

"You know there are still spots for you two on the team."

Wally's face hardened, "Dick, you know why we can't go back." He nodded in response and had Wally not been his best friend for years he would not see the look on the face that implied he had so much more to say that he was holding back. Wally wondered if he could even consider Dick his best friend anymore. The last time he saw Dick was months ago, for a few brief moments, to discuss a plan he and Kaldur had come up with. Tonight was the first time in a long time since he ever spoke to the grown boy.

It almost saddened Wally how much Dick had grown. He wasn't the same small, cackling, trolling brat he used to be. He was taller, stronger, and much more serious. It never occurred to Wally that at some point Dick had to grow up; he thought they both would be young forever. Evidently that was not the case. They both grew up and, consequently, grew apart somehow.

And that was the last thing Wally had ever wanted to happen, but it was too late to fix it now.

"I know why you don't want to come back, but will you think about it? We could use you." Dick's voice was soft, almost pleading, but Wally was sure that was just his imagination.

"I can't."

"You love running. You said that you felt naked outside the suit, and now you—"

"I can't come back," Wally yelled, cutting Dick off. The masked man closed his mouth, face stern.

"Fine, I won't ask again." For a moment Wally wants to give in, to promise Dick he'll come back but then he shakes his head. He can't do it. He has a new life now. He has Artemis and his dog, Brucely, and he had college to worry about and Vietnamese Language paper to work on. He had a new, busy life that he chose to live. It was easy to ignore the small ache he'd get in his chest, longing to put on the suit and run, by diving deep into his essays and homework and thesis papers. His hero gig was a part of an old life. He had a new one now, he had to forget the past and move on.

But looking at Dick in his uniform made the ache come back and there was nothing he could focus his mind on to get rid of it. For a moment Wally was reminded of the boy he used to be best friends with and how they'd run off into battle together, sometimes with Dick on his back. He remembered how in sync they used to be, finishing each other sentences and using the other to help take the bad guy down. And then he remembered more, like movie nights with the team in the cave, or going to the beach after a long day of school. The man standing before him reminded him of all that and more and in that moment he wanted it all again, despite how he knew he could never go back to it.

So when Wally crossed the rooftop and took Dick's face in his hands he blamed it all on that stupid ache inside his chest that he needed to shut up.

Dick's lips were chapped and remained closed. Wally took the bottom lip into his mouth and sucked on it, finally gaining a response from the hero.

"But Artemis—" Wally sharply nipped Dick's lower lip, shutting him up. Strong hands pushed Wally away, causing the red head to stumble backwards.

"It's Valentine's Day, and Artemis—" Dick cut himself off but Wally knew exactly what he was trying to say. Wally shouldn't have done it, shouldn't have kissed Dick like that. Not when he was in a relationship with Artemis. Not on Valentine's Day. But it had silenced the aching in his chest and made Wally's blood hot. It calmed him. He needed calm.

Whoever initiated the next kiss, they don't know, but it's happening and it's slow and it's needy and it made the blood in Wally's veins burn with want. Their lips move against each other until Wally's lungs are screaming for air, and even then he keeps kissing Dick until his mind goes fuzzy. They broke apart, panting, refusing to look anywhere but at the other. After a short moment Dick mumbled his good bye and grappling hooked from one roof top to the next.

On his way home Wally bought roses for Artemis.

Wally didn't see Dick until two weeks later. He had meant to come over and discuss the plan in further detail with the couple but Artemis was at the library, working on her thesis paper that was due in four days. Wally let Dick inside and offered him a drink. After a bit of small talk and Dick telling Wally the gist of the plan (he'd go into further detail when Artemis got home) they sat in silence for a moment.

Wally had felt guilty for not feeling guilty about kissing Dick. He knew it was wrong and that it was cheating and he shouldn't have done it but it soothed an itch and ache that had been building up inside him. Ever since the night on the rooftop he'd catch his mind wandering off, thinking about it. Thinking about Dick. Which helped him get a B minus on his lit paper.

Since then the ache grew faster, needier. It dug a hole in chest that got deeper and deeper every day. Just having Dick there, sitting next to him on the couch as Brucely napped at their feet, made the ache grow more.

Wally's phone buzzed in his pocket, interrupting the silence that had fallen between the two. He managed to pull it out and looked at the caller ID. It was Artemis.

"Hello?" He answered. On the other end he could hear two female voices speaking in the back ground.

"Wally, I'm going to be late coming home, couple of classmates are dragging me out for drinks."

"Don't stay out too long, okay?"

"I can handle myself."

"I know you can."

"I'll see you later tonight." And then she hung up. Wally didn't bother to tell her that Dick was there, or that they had plans to discuss. He didn't know why he didn't tell her.

"Artemis went out with some friends, she'll be home later," Wally told Dick, who was leaning down to scratch Brucely behind his ears. Wally could hear the faint thump of the bulldog's tail hitting the couch as it wagged.

Minutes later Wally found himself in a whirlwind of Dick's lips on his skin and clothes quickly being shed. At some point they had managed to make it to the bedroom, but not before both of their clothes had been entirely removed, their naked chests pressed against each other as they fumbled towards the bed.

It didn't take long before Dick was moaning and panting beneath him. His cheeks were flushed, legs spread wide as Wally rubbed their cocks against each other. Dick was the first to come, Wally following shortly after. He rolled off Dick and laid next to him. For a moment they caught their breath, letting it even out until it was normal again. They didn't say anything to each other as they both redressed, the quiet only causing the ache in Wally's chest to pang with a small sense of guilt.

Dick left through the bedroom window that night as Artemis came through the front door. The aching hole in his chest deepened, if only a little. He ignored it as he greeted Artemis with a smile and chaste kiss to the cheek.

From then on whenever Artemis wasn't home and Dick was over the night would end in drying sweat and unsaid guilt on both parts. For Wally, the aching hole in chest would get just a little bit wider, and a little bit deeper.

As the months dragged on the pang of guilt he'd occasionally get soon turned into a pang of want and regret. Most days Wally would ignore it and continue on with washing dishes or writing papers or just playing fetch with Brucely.

Sometimes Wally would stare off into space and wonder just why the hell he kept doing this, whatever it was, with Dick when he had Artemis. The girl he had been dating for five years. They lived together for Christ's sake! And then there he was, fucking their friend in their bed. He hated himself for it—Artemis didn't deserve that, she deserved better. Someone who wouldn't stab her in the back while she was risking her life, fraternizing with the enemy. He wanted to stop, to call it off with Dick, but every time he saw his best friend he smiled and felt the ache in his chest disappear. He felt bitter and hated himself more when he thought that Artemis could never make that ache go away. She could have, if he let her. But he let Dick do it instead, because being with Dick was like being back out on the field. It was dangerous and risky and it reminded him of the good days with the old team, before things started going further and further downhill. Dick was his anchor.

Artemis had been gone for three months. Three months by himself with just Brucely and the sound of the television to keep him company. He had been having the fling with Dick for five months by now and that night as the first night Wally had ever actually penetrated Dick.

It was slow. A lot slower than what they were used to. Wally made sure Dick was ready before he entered him, and even then he moved slowly inside his lover. If you could call him that.

Dick's fingers dug into the skin on Wally's shoulders. The red head kissed Dick's cheeks, but found them wet as his lips brushed against them.

"Are you okay?" He asked, his voice tender. Dick nodded and took a moment to breathe before he responded, "Just hurts is all."

Wally slowed down to a stop, "Tell me when it stops hurting," he murmured.

He continued to kiss Dick's cheeks, to comfort and distract him. Eventually Dick let out a shaky breathe, "Move."

That night Dick slept over for the first time. Wally found himself staring up at the dark ceiling as Dick's head rested on Wally's bicep, Dick's chest pressed against his side. Wally could feel Dick's pulse, feel the faint pat-pat of his heart beating slowly. He swore he could hear it, too. He wanted to hear it. He wanted to stay like that, with Dick asleep next to him, but he knew it was wrong. He knew he shouldn't want that.

He had a different life, one with Artemis and Brucely and going to Stanford. He couldn't continue doing this with Dick, sooner or later he would have to call it off so he could go back to his normal life. His life before late nights with Dick and the pang of guilt he'd always feel the morning after.

But Dick had always been there for him, even when he didn't want him to be. Dick helped calm the aching in his chest, he filled the hole in Wally's chest, if only momentarily, whenever he was around. Wally knew Dick was what he needed and wanted, but not something that he could have. Wally knew he couldn't give Dick what he needed, even if he wanted it too. He couldn't love Dick like this, even if he already did.

At first Wally just wanted Dick to fuck him, but then he got greedy. He wanted Dick to love him.