Sorry if this seems like a mess, i've been writing it one piece at a time for months. ill go through and edit it later! I just wanted to get it posted. Hope you enjoy!
"Guys...I can't keep running..." The exhaustion was evident in the usually hyperactive speedster's voice. It had been hours - seven hours to be more precise - since the bomb had been attached to - or rather, through - his left wrist. The bleeding had stopped and the pain had faded since then, every ounce of energy left focused on staying above the speed of sound. Which, usually, wouldn't have been a problem. But seven hours is an insane amount of time to run at any speed, especially for a speedster who needs to eat so often.
Bruce frowned and ran a hand through his hair. The cowl had long since been abandoned- thrown across the cave in a fit of frustration hours ago. It was his fault that Wally was in danger. His contingency plan that had been stolen. How? He'll worry about that later, right now the only priority was to get the speedster out of his current situation. The bomb had been impaled through the speedster's wrist and once it was activated, would blow if it sensed that it was moving at any speed less than the mach 1. Without much other choice, Wally had taken off and immediately contacted the league. Bruce's heart had dropped when he heard Wally describing the device. He'd immediately gone through his files, only to find that particular one had been accessed recently. He'd almost forgot it was there, after all this time. He'd devised these plans years ago, before the League had even formed, just in case any of the members were to go rogue. It had seemed like a good idea at the time- they were all powerful and would be hard to stop, so it was good- smart, to have a plan in place..just in case. But that was when The Flash was just a big mouth speedster from central city. Not Wally, the redhead with the brightest eyes he'd ever seen. The man who waited for him in his bed after rough nights on patrol and knew just how to make him forget about it for a while. The man who had become just as much a part of his family as Dick or Alfred. The man who would be dead any minute if Bruce didn't do something soon.
"I think I almost have it.." Bruce said, tinkering with the device in his hands. The goal was to disrupt the sensors in the bomb, to trick it into believing that it was still traveling at the speed of sound.
"You said that hours ago." John's stern voice replied, clearly stressed and upset. Bruce didn't reply to that. He knew the other man was right. That time, the situation hadn't been so dire. This time, with Wally running on empty, he prayed to whoever would listen that this would work.
"..not his fault.. tryin' his best.." There was Wally, quick to defend him even when he was too exhausted to even form sentences. If only Wally knew how wrong he was. Just how much of this was Bruce's fault. Finally, with one more twist of the micro screwdriver, he was finished.
"Clark." He grunted, though the urgency in his voice wasn't missed by anyone. Within a second the Man of Steel was standing in front of him.
"Just get close and press and hold this button," Bruce instructed, indicating the only button on the small black device, "you need to be within 5 meters of the bomb for it to work." He handed the device to his friend, who squeezed his shoulder in an attempt to reassure him.
"He'll be alright, Bruce." Clark offered, but Bruce just stood still, ignoring the hand resting on his shoulder and refusing to make eye contact.
"Go."
Clark did. The cave was silent once again, save for the sound of rustling bats above him. The only other noises came from the comm link in Bruce's ear, where Superman was reassuring Wally that he was almost there.
"How d' I.. get...far fr'm..people?" The redhead's inability to speak between harsh gasps for breath was hard to listen to.
"Wally, you don't need-"
"-Just in case..it doesn't-
"It will." God he hoped he was right.
ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo
Superman spotted the red blur in the middle of the pacific ocean and flew towards it as fast as he could. Though mach 1 was only a fraction of Flash's potential speed, it was pushing it for Clark. He put all his focus into flying as fast as he could so he could match his teammate long enough to deactivate the bomb. When he was within a few feet, he pressed the button and held it. He noticed Wally skipped a step, almost like he tripped briefly before regaining his footing (which isn't an easy feat considering he is running on water). He wondered if perhaps the device had reacted at all, like maybe a vibration or something that may have startled him.
"Did it work?" Clark wondered aloud. Before he could get any sort of answer, he noticed Wally begin to stumble again, his speed rapidly declining. He raced forward, getting in front of the speedster before turning around, now flying backwards. He allowed Wally to keep decelerating on his own, slowing himself down as well. The moment the yellow boots broke the surface tension of the water and he began to go down, he was right there to catch him.
"Woah there, I've gotcha." Wally was completely limp in his arms, left without enough energy to even lift his head off of Clark's shoulder. As they stopped moving, Clark placed a hand on his back, supporting his youngest teammate completely. Wally's breath was still ragged and uneven as he gasped, trying valiantly to get more oxygen into his body.
"Hey, it's okay, you did great..you did it, you can rest now. Let's get you back to the Watchtower." Superman said, trying to offer some comfort to the overly exhausted redhead. He didn't get more than an unintelligible mumble from the speedster. Just as he began to ascend, his super hearing picked up on what sounded like a metallic click, so quiet a normal human wouldn't dream of hearing it. Fortunately, from experience, Clark immediately knew what it was. With a brief look of dismay, he reached for the device that was impaled through Wally's wrist. Without a moment's hesitation, he tore the device out and chucked it as far as her could. He didn't miss his friend's pained shout as the flesh that had healed around the device was torn back open, but the deafening sound of the explosion was more than enough to drown it out. The bomb had only traveled a few meters away from them when it detonated, so all Clark had time to do was spin around to shield his much more vulnerable teammate from the blast. He held on tight to Wally, who groaned slightly because of the pain, blissfully unaware of what was going on directly behind him. The force of the blow sent the duo flying, and they became separated when they collided harshly with the water.
"Superman! Flash!"
"Wally!"
The line was quiet for a moment as the rest of the team waited for any response, but none came.
"Lantern, Hawkgirl, head for their coordinates. J'onn, try to reach them telepathically." Bruce commanded, leaving no room for argument. Seconds later, a loud gasp was heard over the comms as Superman surfaced. Ignoring all questions and/or orders, he took a deep breath and dove back down, narrowly missing a large wave - a result of the explosion that just took place. The seconds went by slowly for the team above water. John was approaching the coordinates, but he couldn't spot either of his teammates in the choppy water below.
"I don't see them!"
"Keep looking!" Batman commanded. Another fifteen, thirty, forty five seconds went by before what moved like a bullet shot up from the water. Clark came to a stop and hovered over the ocean, his teammate's pale, unmoving body in his arms. John raced over to them.
"Is he breathing?!" He asked, worried for his best friend. To his relief, the redhead began weaking coughing, liters of water spilling out of his mouth and back into the ocean. Thoughts of how the hell they would have done CPR in the middle of the ocean pushed to the back of his mind now that it thankfully wouldn't be needed.
"Take it easy now Hotshot, you're gonna be okay." He tried to reassure him. Normally, even an injured Flash would give them a smile or at the very least, ask for something to eat. Right now, Wally didn't even have the energy to open his eyes. John threw Clark a concerned glance, from whom he received a similar look in return. They both snapped out of it when a voice growled in their ear.
"Lantern, Superman, report."
"Everything's okay over here. Wally's down, but he's alive. His wrist looks pretty bad, and I don't think he's even been ran this ragged before...He's pretty out of it. Bringing him up to the watchtower for medical now." Clark relayed over the comm. Bruce didn't reply, and he had a feeling it was out of worry for the redhead rather than just to be rude. He carried Wally as high as he could until the oxygen started to get too thin. That's when they were both encapsed in a green bubble and towed the rest of the way to the Watchtower by Green Lantern.
Once given clearance to enter by J'onn, they headed to the medbay where Diana was waiting with countless bags of glucose. Clark set him gently on the bed and John pulled the 26 year old's uniform top off as Diana prepared the IV. Wally didn't even flinch when the needle went in, causing Diana to frown. Wally was never a big fan of needles.
"He's completely unresponsive." She pointed out, and the other two nodded. Clark put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"He's just worn out, Diana. Let's just let him rest for a while." She nodded in understanding, running a hand through the redhead's hair before cupping his cheek. She allowed her thumb to stroke cheekbone as the sugar concoction began to run through his veins. Clark began to process of cleaning the wound on Wally's wrist, where he had to rip the bomb out of his body. At the other end of the bed, John worked on pulling Flash's iconic yellow boots off. He winced when he saw the bloody and blistered feet underneath.
"Oh, man."
He got a bowl of water and antiseptic and began to clean them up before any infections could set in. This got a reaction from Wally, who whined and tried to pull his feet away. He was still so weak that John didn't really have to hold too tightly to keep them in place, and Wally didn't fight too long before he ran out of energy again. Once he was done, John bandaged his feet before dumping the now red-tinted water down the drain. Now that the situation was under control and their youngest teammate wasn't a misstep away from being blown up, he noticed the Superman's singed cape. He had put himself between Wally and the bomb, probably not expecting it to be strong enough to knock him out of the sky like it had.
"Clark, you alright?" He asked, gesturing toward the decimated fabric still hanging from his shoulders. Though the alien was invulnerable, they all liked to make sure he was A-okay. Usually Wally was the one all over them, making sure they were okay, but obviously he was in no state to do that at the moment. Clark didn't mind; it reminded him how close they had all become over the years since they formed this team and how much they genuinely cared for one another. Even Batman! Clark nodded, grimacing as he noticed the state of his cape for the first time. He sighed.
"If only they made capes as durable as me.." He joked, mostly to himself. John huffed out a laugh while Diana sent him a small smile before replacing the now empty bag in the IV with a full one.
ooOOooOOooOOoo
For the first two days, Wally couldn't manage to stay away for more than twenty minutes at a time. The incident had really taken a toll on his young body, and it was hard for the others to watch. In the time that he was awake, he wasn't himself. It was difficult to get him to talk or eat, which were usually two of his favorite activities. Another thing the team found odd was Bruce's absence. Bruce had only been to the medbay once in the past two days, where during Flash's previous visits he would often spend hours, even days at the redhead's bedside. This time, he hovered for a few minutes before running a hand down his lover's cheek. The five o'clock shadow he was sporting couldn't hide the tension in his jaw when Wally began to stir. He was out of the room before the green eyes opened.
He spent the next few days in Gotham, while Wally recovered. And just to make things clear: He does care about Wally, He does want to be there while he recovers, support him, help him. But how can he? Afterall, it is his fault that Wally is in the medbay in the first place. It was his stupid plans that he allowed to get stolen that were used against them, against Wally. He's effectively loaded the gun, though someone else pulled the trigger. He didn't deserve to be near him.
Up on the Watchtower, on the fifth day since the speedster had been brought to the medbay more dead than alive, said speedster was finally up and walking. His wrist was healing nicely and seemingly every muscle in his body was sore, as his body was still catching up from being so depleted. The team had never seen the speedster's metabolism take a hit like that before, so they weren't sure what to expect, but things were coming along nicely. Wally had tried contacting Bruce several times over the past few days, but the vigilante never picked up or responded. He was tempted to send Clark to the Manor to check on him (since the others refused to let him leave the Watchtower until they were sure he was 100% again), but decided against it. One thing he has learned from his time dating the other man, is that although his persona as Bruce Wayne required his life to be very public, Bruce was very private. He obviously wanted space for whatever reason right now, and Wally respected that, no matter how much he wanted to see him, talk to him, touch him.
Finally, Bruce returned to the tower for a briefing. The briefing. They had elected to wait until Wally could join them in the conference room, seeing as he had been handling the situation alone before he had been forced to call up backup. Bruce was already seated when Wally walked in, John and Shayera walking on either side of him. His eyes were glued to the cowl, but Bruce didn't look or even acknowledge him. Okay, they were going to have a talk soon because this was getting a little ridiculous. They were grown men for Christ's sake. He felt a tug on his arm as Shayera pulled him over towards his chair, Flash insignia proudly painted on the back. They chatted while waiting for Superman to arrive, all the while Wally kept sneaking secret glances at The Bat, trying to figure out what was bothering him without straight up asking him right here and now. A few minutes later, everyone had arrived and they began the discussion. Flash started at the beginning, when J'onn contacted him from the Watchtower to tell him Mirror Master was attempting a robbery on a moving train is Russia. He'd responded quickly, only to find that the rogue had set a trap for him. It was so obviously a trap, the villain had even gone so far as to say so, yet with a hostage at stake (a 5 year old girl, no less), he had no choice but the play whatever game Mirror Master had set. She was in a glass box, and would suffocate if he couldn't get her out soon. He went to work trying every possible combination. 23 seconds and 489 incorrect attempts later, he finally entered the right code. As soon as the door opened for the girl to escape, the bomb was unexpectedly shoved through his wrist. After a shocked and pained scream, he tried yanking it off, but to no avail. His wrist was bleeding heavily and throbbing as it tried to begin healing only to find this object in the way. He remembered Mirror Master explaining how the bomb worked, that it had a speedometer built inside it and once he started running, it would blow up if he ever went below the speed of sound. If he chose not to run, it would blow after 60 seconds anyway. Wally hadn't been sure if he should believe it or not. But, again, in the end, what choice did he have? If he does nothing and it turns out to be the real deal, he just signed the death certificate for everyone on this train. As soon as Mirror Master disappeared (hologram, figures..) Wally made sure the little girl was safely returned to her mother and before taking making his decision and taking off on what turned out to be the longest run of his life thus far.
"There's one thing that still bothering me about this whole thing." Wally said absentmindedly rubbing the nearly healed wound on his wrist. There were actually a few things that were still bothering him, one of which was Bruce's odd behavior.
"What's that?" Clark asked as the rest of the team, minus Batman, waited for his answer. Wally ran a hand through him messy red hair and leaned back in his chair, trying to keep the mood in the room light.
"It's just, I've been fighting this guy for years, and he's never been one to have a plan so...well thought out, ya know? I mean, he had it down to the details. There was no way for me to get around it without letting someone on that train die, and believe me, I spent almost an entire second going over the options in my head before I made any decision. He's never been this careful before..I just don't see how he could've come up with something like this."
Bruce internally cringed, because he knew, Wally was smarter than he was given credit for. He knew Wally would've picked up on that. Well he wasn't going let Wally find it out for himself. He had to tell him.
"He didn't."
Six sets of wide, curious eyes were on Batman. Bruce reached up and removed his cowl, placing it on the table before finally making eye contact with Wally for the first time in a week.
"I did. It was my plan."
ooOOooOOooOOooOOoo
Wally felt a lot of things all at once. Confusion, first of all. What does Bruce mean? Why would Bruce have a plan specifically designed to potentially kill him? What was going on? He also felt denial, because he obviously had just misunderstood what Bruce was trying to say, right? There was no way his own boyfriend, had meticulously created something like this. Just no way. And of course, there was no way someone like Mirror Master managed to steal something from the Batcave, especially not from the Batcomputer. I mean, Wally knows the passwords and still has trouble getting into the files. He vaguely heard the voices of his teammates, clouded with disbelief as he is sure his would he as well if he could manage to form words. His eyes never left Bruce's, but he finally found his feet and stoof from the chair. The voices stopped, all eyes on him. Bruce moved to stand as well.
"Wally, just wait. Please"
He didn't wait. He couldn't stay here. He had to get out of here, away from Bruce, away from everyone. And in the blink of an eye, he was.
ooOOooOOooOOooOOoo
He didn't end up making it too far, only a few laps around the globe before he collapsed on a white sandy beach somewhere in the Philippines. As soon as he'd stepped foot on earth, he was off. He overestimated how much his body could handle so soon after quite literally running himself into the ground, and that is how he ended up here. On his hands and knees in the sand, gasping for breathe, all the while trying his best to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall. This wasn't the first time this had happened. He tended to run whenever he and Bruce had a fight that got particularly bad. Not too many times, but enough to need both hands to count them on. They were two very different people. They shouldn't work together, but they do.
While his legs rested, Wally's mind began to race. Maybe he shouldn't have run away this time, maybe he should've stayed and talked this out. In the moment, he had been mortified that the founders, their friends had been there to basically hear Bruce say that he didn't trust him. Sure, maybe he trusts him in battle, but he doesn't trust him to not go rogue. The idea was so crazy it would've made him laugh if he wasn't so overwhelmed by all the other emotions he was dealing with. Slowly he rights himself, taking deep breaths as he sits back on his ankles. He reaches up and pulls his cowl off, just wanting to feel free from the constricting fabric for a while.
He squints his eyes against the setting sun, runs a hand through his hair before letting it rest on the back of his neck. His pulse was steadily decreasing as he caught his breath, his inhales and exhales timed and controlled in an effort to clear his mind and relax. Something Bruce had taught him to do. He let out a humorless laugh, dropping his hands to his lap.
Why did all of this have to happen now? Things were going so well. He was happy, Bruce was happy; hell, even Dick was happy. He hadn't been thrilled about the arrangement at first, but had come around after speaking with Alfred. Wally still isn't exactly sure what the butler had told his friend, but he was grateful nonetheless. But all of that was in vain now.
ooOOooOOooOOooOOoo
For the next few days, the only way to describe the atmosphere on the Watchtower would be tense. After Wally had left the briefing, all hell had broken loose. Most of the damage was the fault of Shayera, whom had shouted a wide variety of Thanagarian curse words while contemplating going to get her mace. She, along with Diana and a few others, were not pleased to find out that the attack on Flash had been masterminded by one of their own, and were only angered further when it was revealed that Bats had plans to take each of them down as well, should it even come to it. Others agreed with Bruce, felt much more safe and confident knowing there were plans in place and they were prepared for the worst. Removing or suspending Batman from the league was briefly mentioned, but was discarded just as quickly. The man was pretty much essential to the league's existence, not just financially, but strategically as well. Bruce had tried to seek out Wally on multiple occasions since he'd left the Watchtower, but the speedster had managed to slip away each time. He wouldn't go so far as to say he was avoiding Bruce, buuuuuut he would say that he was actively trying to stay far away from the man. Wally knew he couldn't avoid him forever. It was inevitable; Bruce was going to catch him. And if he couldn't, Wally would probably let him. Because although he was angry and hurt, he still couldn't help but feel like there was a huge bat-shaped hole in his heart.
Wally closed the door to his apartment quietly behind him. Someone was here. He could tell. Sighing, he flipped the switch on the wall. Instantly, the room was illuminated in yellow light. A brief pause and another deep breathe later, he turned and lifted his head, only to come face to face with the face behind the bat, the love of his life.
ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo
"Wally. Please say something." Bruce pleaded. He had finally convinced the speedster not to run away. They were seated at the dining table in the tiny kitchen. Bruce was in a silk navy blue button up shirt, top two buttons open. Normally, Wally couldn't resist him when he looked like this; but, things were different now. Wally was in his Flash uniform, but had pulled the cowl off. He'd known Bruce was there before he had even turned the lights on; the scent of his expensive cologne gave him away, and Bruce knew that it would. When he flipped the lights on and their eyes met for the first time in days, it was tense. Bruce was waiting; waiting to be yelled at, waiting to be kicked out, waiting to be left. Wally let out a shaky breath.
"I don't have anything to say." That was especially concerning, seeing as usually Wally never shut up. He broke eye contact, pulling gaze away from the baby blue eyes and giving all his attention to his boots.
"That's not true. Tell me what you're thinking." Wally's head snapped up, his jaw tight. Bruce could see the muscles tensing up under the red spandex and he would give anything to be able to comfort him like he used to be able to. He knew just how to calm the other, but anything he could offer was obviously unwelcome now.
"We were together for over a year, Bruce. And the whole time you had a plan to kill me in your back pocket."
Bruce felt the sting in his chest when Wally said "were". They were together. Meaning they weren't anymore.
"I told you, it was a con-"
"I DON'T CARE," he cut him off loudly, before calming as he finished, "if it was 'a contingency plan,' Bruce." He paused to take a breathe, attempting to calm himself once more.. "I really don't. That doesn't make it any better." Did it?
In all honesty, Wally wasn't sure how to feel about this whole situation. It wasn't as if Cosmopolitan printed articles about what to do when your billionaire superhero boyfriend secretly concocts a plan to take you down should you ever go rogue. Nothing really precedents this, so he had nothing to go off of except for his gut feelings. And his gut felt angry, betrayed...maybe some sorrow...longing... mostly just frustrated. Why did this have to happen? Things were going so well and then in one day everything turned to shit. All Wally really wanted was for it to all go back to normal, but he can't just bring himself to just forgive and forget this yet.
"...You said you loved me." His voice was almost a whisper now.
"I do love you." Bruce responded immediately. He did. If there was anything in this world that he was completely sure about, it was that he was in love with Wally West. The speedster let out a breathe, shaking his head before looking up and meeting Bruce's eyes.
"That isn't love, Bruce. You don't lie to the people that you love." His voice sounded defeated and unsure,
"Wally...I'm sorry." That's all Bruce could think of to say at this point. "It was never my intention to hurt you. This can't be the end, please, just tell me what you want. Tell me how to fix this and I'll do it. Whatever you want." Bruce didn't even care that he was practically begging for forgiveness. All he wanted was for things to be the way they were before. He wasn't sorry for making the plan, because he does believe that they needed back up plans in the event of mind control or something along those lines. He was sorry that he didn't tell the others about them. Well, Clark knew about the one for him, actually gave Bruce the kryptonite, but that doesn't really help him with Wally right now. The redhead paused, seemingly thinking.
"I want...I need some time...time to think." He finally replied. A tense moment of silence passed. Bruce stood from the table and slowly walked over to behind where the speedster was sitting and put a hand on his shoulder.. Wally looked down at the table, avoiding eye contact with the billionaire. Bruce's large hand gave a gentle squeeze.
"..Okay." The weight on his shoulder disappeared, and when Wally looked over his shoulder, Bruce was nowhere to be seen. He briefly wondered which window Bruce had left out of before slumping in his chair, running a hand through his hair, and letting out a long, stressed breathe.
ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo
It was another few weeks before the tension in the tower dissipated. With their profession, they couldn't afford to hold grudges. They had to be able to trust one another, after getting some advice from Alfred, brought a flash drive to the Watchtower, where he let the others search through every file, every note, every photo he had ever made and kept over them. It was a start.
He was still giving Wally the space he'd asked for, not trying to talk to him anymore than was really necessary. Without Wally, the manor was a lot less cheerful, his bed a lot colder.
He'd entered the cave one night to find every camera, microphone, chip and bug he had hidden throughout Wally's apartment sitting on a workbench. Figures. He'd known that Wally knew about them, but let them stay simply because he knew it made the other man more comfortable. Some may have called it stalking, or creepy, or overbearing, but Wally understood what it was like the be Bruce. He knew he was protective and full disclosure, he didn't really mind it at all. Something about it made Bruce's heart sink though. This felt like the equivalent of returning clothes and CD's after a breakout. He just wanted to talk to him, work things out, but he knew he needed to give him his space. Luckily, he was a patient man.
Things remained this way for another week. They saw each other on the Watchtower, they avoided eye contact and conversation, but in battle, they were just as in sync as ever. The whole team was.
That was, until a fight in Metropolis with Weather Wizard and Toyman. It was dark, though it was only lunchtime, and a mix of rain and hail was falling heavily from the sky. Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, and Batman had all responded to the call for help. It had been going relatively smoothly. Wally and Diana working together to take down the giant robot Toyman had brought. They used the classic lasso around the legs followed by a punch to the face trick. Meanwhile, Superman and Batman were dealing with Weather Wizard. Their capes were blowing in the strong winds that Mark produced, but neither one lost their footing. A scream behind them got Superman's attention, and he quickly moved to save a petite women who was holding on tightly to a street lamp pole with one hand, her infant child with the other. Bat's reached into his utility belt, but before he could even begin to think about throwing it, he felt a heavy weight slam into his side. He went airborne before hitting the ground with a grunt and thud. The sky around him lit up in a beautiful display of color. The sound was deafening. Just as quick as it came, the light and sound left. In the very spot Bruce had been standing moments before, was Wally. His suit, maybe even his body, his skin, was smoking. Bruce couldn't speak. For a moment, he thought the younger man was dead. Before he could even react, the speedster slowly began to move. Palms to the ground so he could push himself up off and back up to his feet. He nearly stumbled, but quickly righted himself. The next thing he noticed was that his body was literally crackling with electricity. For a moment, he thought he was going back into the Speed Force.
"Flash?" That was Diana, who was hovering a few yards away, about two stories off the ground. The redhead didn't respond. Just turned his head around, seeing Bruce, proving to himself that the other man was okay, before turned back towards Weather Wizard. The look Diana saw on his face was one she'd never seen on his face, one she would've never even associated with Flash. It was one of pure rage. Before anyone could move, think, or even blink, Flash had Mark held against a building by the throat. The lightning still cracked around him, the expression on his face so menacing that it could give the batglare a run for its money. He quickly spun and threw the villain against another wall, before crossing the space himself and slamming a fist into his face at superspeed. He ignored the pleas and promises of surrender, instead pulling his fist back and punching him, again and again and again. The "Big Three", so to speak, were in shock. They had never seen Flash so...violent. Superman recovered first, worried he was going to kill the man.
"Flash! Stop! This isn't you!" He shouted, flying up to him and landing right behind him. Wally hesitated for a moment with his fist pulled back. His breathing was heavy and uneven and his mind was conflicted. He wanted this man to pay for what he had attempted to do. Just as his arm began to lurch forward again, his anger goggles lifted and he was able to see clearly instead of just red. The man on the ground was beaten. He was bloody and barely recognizable. Wally's eyes widened in shock, or maybe horror, at what he'd done. His arm was still suspended in the arm, unsure what it wanted to do. Finally he felt a weight on his arm, and looked to see Clark gently pushing his arm down. He gave in, letting it happen, and sat back on his heels as everything caught up with him. The lightning around his body began to dissipate, and just as soon as he was able to make out the shapes of Bruce and Diana coming towards him, everything went dark.
ooOOooOOooOOooOOoo
It actually took a lot longer than he would admit for Bruce to piece together what just happened. Wally had saved him. From lightning, something Wally is terrified of. Something not many people know. Most think he loves it, considering it's in his logo. Not only is it the one thing faster than him, the fastest man alive, but being struck by lightning hurts. A lot. Not something Wally ever wanted to experience again. Yet he had, willingly, to save Bruce.
It was almost like he's been given a supercharge by it. He was glowing, he was bright, he was faster, but also he was livid. Nobody had ever seen Wally that angry before. For the first time, they were actually worried that happy, go lucky Flash was going to kill somebody. Something they never thought they would have to worry about. Before he could react, Superman was there, diffusing the situation, calming the speedster down. Next thing he knew, Wally was down, falling into Superman's arms once again. Finally he snapped out of it, rushing over to them, his hand immediately going to his neck and feeling for a pulse. It was much faster than he had ever felt it before, but slowing now that he had passed out.
"Take him to the medbay. I'll contact J'onn." He sent a passing glance to the bleeding man on the street, "Diana, deal with him..He needs medical attention as well." With a quick nod, the Amazon picked up the man and left in the direction of an emergency room. When Bruce turned back around, Clark was already heading towards the javelin with Flash.
ooOOooOOooOOooOOoo
The speedster was only out for eight hours. Burns had healed up nicely. The only sign of what had happened was a new addition of Lichtenberg figures. He'd already had some from the first lightning strike all those year ago. They stretched over his right shoulder and partially down his back. The new ones started on his chest, almost directly over his heart. They expanded up, stopping just short of his neck, and down around his ribs. He'd never been a fan of them, but Bruce loved them. They were unique, purely Wally, and proof that he had survived something that should've killed him. They were the only marks on his body, with the exception of his freckles, seeing as the initial accident had erased all the scars from his childhood.
When he woke, Bruce wasn't there. That was intentional. He didn't want to upset him. Instead, J'onn, GL, and Shayera were the first faces he saw. After ensuring he was recovering nicely, they left to let him rest, turning the lights off as they left. Two hours later, he woke to the sound of the door opening.
He peeked a eye open, both opening when he was that it was Batman. Bruce.
"How do you feel?" He asked cautiously, carefully approaching the bed. When he noticed that Wally remained relaxed, he sat in the chair previously occupied by John.
"Fine...tired." Wally replied, watching Bruce carefully. He reached up and pulled his cowl down, revealing a man who looked like he hadn't slept in days. Maybe weeks. Wally frowned. Bruce reached for his hand. The Dark Knight moved slowly, looking for any indication from Wally that his touch was still unwelcome. He never got one.
"Wally...you idiot...why would you do that?"
"I'm a superhero, Bruce. Saving people is kinda what I do. You weren't the first person and you won't be the last."
"You could've found another way."
"There wasn't a whole lot of time to look for Plan B's, Bruce. Lightning is the one thing that moves just a little bit quicker than me." Wally said, complete with the eye roll. Bruce stood so he was looking down the redhead.
"You hate lightning. You're afraid of it. You think I forget how you used to speed over to Gotham at the first sign of a storm? Yet, without hesitation, you willingly threw yourself at it to save me. Why?"
"Because...because you know why! It would've killed you. Your heart would've stopped and that would've been it..." Wally pulled his hand away successfully this time so he could his both hands to push himself up off the bed so he was sitting up. His voice rose and became more hysterical with each word. "You would've been dead and I would've been alone and the thought of living in a world without you in it...God it just hurts.. the past month has been filled with the coldest, loneliest nights of my life.." (and that bar is set pretty high after his mother's dead and fathers abuse, neglect, and eventual abandonment.) "..and even the idea of spending the rest of my life like that is reason enough to take a little shock."
"That little shock was nearly 900,000,000 volts of electricity."
"I handled it." Wally looked down to his flinched when he felt Bruce's finger trace one of lines of the new scar on his chest.
"You did. You saved my life." He moved in closer, standing close enough to the bed that Wally leaned up against him. Wally's head rested closely enough to hear the steady heartbeat coming from the billionaire's chest. Bruce ran a hand over his hair and held him firmly against himself. Eyes closed, he took a deep breathe and tried to engrave every detail of this moment to his memory. Wally used Bruce's large frame to pull himself up off the bed on unsteady feet. Bruce held him firmly to avoid any slips and/or possible collapses. The speedster's hands slid up his body until he reached the neck, where he finally pulled the larger man forward and planted his lips on Bruce's. He tried to pour everything into that kiss. Every emotion he'd felt for the past few weeks. Bruce eagerly returned the kiss, happy to be given the chance to do this again. After several moments, they finally broke apart, but their lips were still only an inch or two apart. They were both breathing heavily, eyes opening to view that was once very common.
"...You love me again..." Bruce mumbled. Wally looked up at him, brushing a thumb over his cheekbone. After a beat, he leaned back in and whispered against the dark man's lips.
"I never stopped." He kissed the older man again, pulling him closer. Bruce maneuvered him back to the bed, their lips never leaving each others. He wasn't sure exactly when a tongue slipped between his lips, but he was in no way complaining. Once they got situated on the bed, he heard the click of his cape being unlatched, and felt the weight of it slip of him and to the floor.
Later, they would talk things out, work on rebuilding trust, and deal with the fact that Flash had nearly killed a villain in a blind rage. Now though, they were together again. And in this moment, that's all that mattered.
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