A/N: Hey peeps! This is my version of how Westallen finally happens in our timeline on our Earth in Season 2B. I hope ya'll enjoy! Also, feel free to rant with me on tumblr about the beauty that is Westallen any time. :)
P.S. Shout out to my friend & twin, Karis ( poetrylivemusic), for being my beta! Love you!
"Hey Iris." Barry quickly answers his phone as he continues packing up for the day.
"Barry. Hi. Are you at the precinct right now?" Iris asks.
"Yeah, just cleaning up. Heading out in a minute. You need something?" Barry strategically organizes his briefcase and starts shutting down his computer.
"Yeah, sort of... Well I just wanna talk actually."
Barry hears the nervous shift in Iris' voice and asks "Is everything okay?"
Iris half-laughs and continues, "Yeah, everything's good. I just need to see you."
"Okay, well I can meet you where you are." Barry places the last of his items in his bag and turns off the light in his lab.
"No need. I'm less than a minute away from you. Also, I have coffee. I was thinking we could take a walk." A faint smirk plays at the corners of her mouth and Barry can almost hear it.
Barry smiles, "That sounds great. I'll meet you outside?"
"Yep. See you soon," Iris responds.
As Barry is walking down the stairs, Joe calls out to him, "Barry! Leaving?"
Barry nears him and responds, "Yeah, I'm done for the day. Did you need me right now?"
"Well not right this moment. There's a case that I need you to look at. It has nothing to do with metahumans. That's for sure. So no worries there."
Barry nods, "Okay, good. Mind if I take a look it at first thing in the morning? I'm meeting up with Iris right now."
Joe suppresses a smirk and responds happily, "No problem. It can wait." Joe keeps waiting for every interaction between Barry and Iris to turn into one where they both finally discuss their obvious feelings for each other. He secretly hopes this will finally be the one as he does each time.
"Thanks Joe. I'll see you at home."
"See you, Bear." Joe pats Barry's shoulder and returns to his desk.
Iris spots Barry exiting the precinct and swallows the lump in her throat while trying to appear unaffected. "Hey," she smiles and holds out a Jitters cup to him.
"Hey Iris," he takes the cup and steps forward to hug her.
After their arms leave each other's frames, they turn and begin their afternoon stroll.
"Where are we walking to?" Barry looks to Iris as he inquires.
She sips her Americano and answers looking straight ahead, "The park."
Barry keeps watch of her face. He can't place it, but something is definitely up with her. Iris, too, tends to hold the world on her shoulders. She tries so hard to keep her emotional weights hidden but Barry can see them.
He sips his coffee and softly hums, "This is perfect by the way." He turns his head and catches her smile. "How's your Americano?"
Iris answers quickly, "Delicious."
They walk in silence for a few moments, taking in the scenery. Central City is still bustling at this time of day. A laughing couple jogs towards them, so both Iris and Barry step aside to let them pass. Across the street, they notice a mom pushing a stroller with twins. Iris jokes to herself internally, One day.
"So. What's going on?" Barry breaks Iris' ponderings about the very uncertain future.
Iris takes a deep breath and avoids eye contact. "Okay I have some things I want to get off my chest."
"Please do. Iris, what's up?"
"I've been seeing someone recently. And by recently, I mean we've been on two dates."
"Wow... Iris that's great." An amused Barry takes another swig.
Iris adds, "Yeah, it all started with an accidental date."
Barry chuckles, "What? How did that happen?"
"Well he's my editor. He wanted me to write a piece denigrating the Flash because of the Trajectory robberies. And I wouldn't do it. I actually wanted to talk him out of his completely wrong ideas of who the Flash was. So I invited him to coffee and he mistook it as a date."
Barry scrunches his face at her and questions, "Ouch. Does that one count?"
Iris quietly laughs while sipping her Americano and says, "No, I don't count it. But it took that interesting non-date experience and some introspection to realize that I may be ready to date again. So I let him know that I was actually willing to give it a shot."
Barry nods and shoots her a pleased look. "That's really great Iris."
Iris finally peers up at him to read his expression. He looks genuinely happy for her. Her heart drops but her voice gives no indication. "Yeah, actually. I feel like this is a huge milestone." She pauses for a moment and when she speaks again, her voice is much softer. "I've grieved Eddie. I've processed my emotions, which mostly consisted of guilt. I've had time to come to terms with what happened and with my choices."
"Iris, why would you feel guilty? All you did was love Eddie." Barry's eyebrows draw together in concern.
"I felt like I didn't love him enough. I loved him but I wasn't in love with him. My heart…" Iris' eyes drop to the floor as she murmurs so Barry can't hear, "was elsewhere." She regains confidence to gaze up at Barry and keep going. "But I've come to the place where I don't regret any of my decisions. I know that I thought I was doing the best thing for me when I chose Eddie in this life. And I loved him while he was still with us. I did. And even now, with this Scott thing," Iris unknowingly pushes wayward strands of hair behind her ear. "I chose to do something I thought was the right decision. I chose to give him a chance and go on a few dates. Yet here I am, figuring out what I really want and have wanted for a long time."
Barry squints his eyes in acknowledgement of what she said but remains silent so she can elaborate. They close in on a bench at Central City Central Park and Barry motions for them to sit. He places his cup next to him and focuses in on Iris' layered expression. When she doesn't continue, he probes, "I'm losing you. You want to date him, right? Like... he's a good guy?"
Iris fidgets with her scarf with one hand while holding her cup in her lap with the other. "I think he is a good guy. He's intelligent, a master at crafting journalistic stories. He's cool to talk to and pretty fun to be around. I mean, obviously besides him not liking the Flash, he's a good guy." Iris jokes.
Barry snickers along, "Obviously. You gotta work with him on that one. But otherwise, he sounds great."
Iris' laughter fades and she peers into Barry's eyes. He's so happy for her. He's not showing any signs of lingering feelings. It's been nearly two years since he confessed his love for her at Christmas. He's since moved on and dated other people. Maybe he doesn't love her anymore. But Iris has to tell him the truth anyway. Holding it in is no better than what Barry did. She always said she wished he would have told her about his feelings sooner. This is her sooner. She finishes her Americano and places the cup down. Releasing the breath she'd been holding, she captures Barry's eyes and says, "You know, I finally got to this place where I've healed and want to date again. And here's this really cool guy who's interested in me. But as I sat across the table from him last night, I understood clearly why I'm not interested in him. My heart belongs to someone else... And I think it always has."
Barry's eyebrows draw together as he sits in confused silence.
Iris rolls her eyes and snorts, "You, Barry."
"Iris..." That's all Barry can get out. His eyes widen and he sits frozen, contemplating her statement.
"Barry, I have feelings for you. I had them before you went into the coma even though I hadn't understood them. I thought I had lost you forever so I grieved you. And I moved on to Eddie. But I still had them." She fixes her scarf again and continues, "When you came out of the coma, they were there but complicated because of my feelings for Eddie. When you were traveling back in time to save your mom, I knew that I could choose Eddie in this life but I'd be with you in another. I was okay with that because I wouldn't hurt Eddie and you and I would still have a chance at happiness. After Eddie's death, I buried all my feelings for you because I felt so damn guilty for having them. And the future newspaper byline and our Earth 2 doppelgängers only made my feelings messier. I didn't want to feel like we had to be together and there was no choice. I'm too strong-willed to let some prediction or declaration of fate determine what choices I make." She clears her throat and forces back the tears that threaten to spill over. Her voice softens a bit as she folds her hands together in her lap as her nerves begin to catch up with her. "But now that I am being given a choice, I realize that I don't want anyone else. I choose you. And in my heart, I always have. So I think it's not up to fate. It's up to us. I'm choosing you."
Barry's posture mirrors Iris' from two Christmases ago. He's as still as a statue with hot tears streaming down his reddened cheeks. His eyes are softly on Iris'.
She waits for him to say something… anything. When he doesn't, she continues, "I know you moved on from me and I respect that. I turned you down and gave you reason to believe there was no chance for us to be anything but best friends. But Barry, if you have any remaining feelings for me, I think it's worth it to give us a-" Iris is cut off by Barry's lips crashing down onto hers. He grabs the back of her head with both hands and holds her steady while she wraps her arms tightly around his back.
Barry pulls back and beams at her, "Are you for real?"
She laughs and relieved tears fall from her eyes. His thumbs absently swipe at them and caress her cheeks.
Barry notes, "Iris, you have always been my choice. There is no version of the universe I wouldn't choose you in. I tried moving on from you multiple times and I failed miserably. There's a reason it never worked out with anyone else for me. It's you, Iris."
Iris places her lips softly on Barry's once again and draws back. "I am in love with you, Barry Allen."
Barry kisses Iris again and smiles against her lips. "You don't know how good it feels to hear you say that."
Iris mirrors his blissful expression and gives him another peck. "Want me to say it again?"
Barry gives a smug grin and nods his head, "For good measure."
Iris giggles and responds, "I am completely in love with you."
Barry sighs happily before he crashes his lips against hers one more time.
Barry gets a text and removes his hands from Iris to take out his phone without letting his lips leave hers. After a moment they take a break so he can read it. "It's from Cisco. Says he just developed some enhancements for his Vibe glasses."
"Nice going, Cisco. He's just becoming cooler every day." Iris beams at Barry.
Barry nods, "Agreed. As long as he's not dancing."
Iris shares a laugh with Barry, but she quickly remembers she has an eye witness coming in to see her today. "Hey, what time is it?"
Barry reads the time on his phone as he's replying to Cisco, "5:03. Do you have somewhere to be?" He gazes up at her.
Because she really wants to, she leans forward and kisses him before she responds, "I have an eye witness coming to see me. Walk me back to work?"
Barry smiles because even though they're still best friends, it's like everything has changed. He's gonna walk the love of his life to work. The best part is he also happens to be love of her life. "Of course. You sure you want to walk? I can run you there."
"I know but I want to savor this moment."
"You're right. Walking it is."
The couple stands and grabs their empty or nearly empty coffee cups in one hand while they interlock fingers with the other. Barry and Iris find that their hands fit together naturally as they stroll to CCPN. All their doubts slip away and they both can see how fate works. It's only destiny because of the love they have for one another.
A/N: Thanks so much for reading! I hope we get something similar or even more amazing for Westallen confessions in 2B! Hit me with comments, fangirl with me, message me. I'm here for it all. Much love! -Rae