A/n: Thank you for all of the reviews.
Uma FicWriter: Thank you for the kind words. The chances of them doing that in season 3 are definitely low, but we can certainly hope!
katmerlos: It's not a oneshot, but a short story (:
AReiss215: I wasn't convinced by them at the start, but the more scenes they had, the more I fell in love with the pairing. The turning point for me was when they had to head down to the particle accelerator, but she was uncomfortable with it because of Ronnie's 'death', then for Barry to notice her discomfort and making up an excuse for them to head into the police department instead. Also the little scene afterwards when she sat alone, and he came up to quietly comfort her. I miss those scenes between them.
Lina: I don't know about that, but even he saw the potential between those two on the FIRST episode!
justread14: 10/10 reference.
P.s: No superpowers in this story.
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Chapter: 2
They waited by the lonely bus stop located near the forest's edge; she sat onto one of the benches, he leaned against a sign by the side. Neither of them spoke, an uneasy silence that grew with each passing second. When the bus eventually came by, the two found themselves a cramped little corner by the back, seats that had their legs touching.
It was a long ride back to Central City.
Barry took the window seat, quietly watching as the pine trees passed them by. She sat silently beside him, her knees pressed together, her eyes downcast, her lips hidden by the scarf that circled warmly around her neck.
"How long?"
She softly asked as the settling twilight ebbed into the bus, the coming nightfall starting to paint the skies a looming black.
He turned towards her, "what?"
"How long… have you been in lov- I mean, how long have you had those feelings?"
The two conversed quietly, uninterrupted by the rowdiness of the other passengers around them; they were in a tiny world of their own.
"I definitely wasn't in love with you on day one, you were so mad at then," his eyes drifted upwards for a moment, as memories long passed emerged like insistent stars upon a darkening sky.
They met almost five years ago, when he was a junior forensic consultant at Central City's Police Department, and her, a biochemist from S.T.A.R. labs.
"On the subway," she smiled at the memory, "you took my briefcase by accident, the one containing all of my research notes. Then you dropped them all over the floor and spilt coffee on the cover, my entire year's worth of work. I was so mad."
"You hit me with the briefcase afterwards," he chuckled, "you were furious."
"Fuming."
"I did help you pick up all of the scattered pages."
"Only because you dropped them in the first place."
She certainly wasn't wrong, it was entirely his fault then, but had he not wrongly picked up her briefcase five years ago, he might not have met Caitlin Snow. They would have just been two unknowing souls, sitting across the other on a crowded subway, their meeting a fleeting moment in their lives, soon passed and quickly forgotten.
"I might not have met you otherwise." He looked towards the night sky, the stars were much clearer outside of the city. "We lived such separate lives, have you wondered about those unfortunate enough to miss a chance encounter with someone that could one day become so much more than just 'strangers'? Soulmates that might have just passed the other because they simply weren't paying attention."
"You picked up my briefcase. You certainly weren't paying attention.
They laughed, and then was quiet for a long while.
"I hate this bus." she muttered afterwards, fidgeting in her seat, seemingly unable to find a comfortable spot.
Slightly tilting to his other side, he allowed her a little bit more space to lean against him as his arm looped around her shoulder; she accepted the offer, readjusting herself to lie back against him, her head softly resting against the side of his chest. She snuggled into her little spot, eyes closed, exhausted from their day's trek.
"Hey Barry?" she whispered, "can we stay like this forever?"
The arm around her shoulders curled slowly towards her front, his palm lightly pressing onto her hair, a soft patting motion that he knew she liked. She sighed contently, her shoulders sliding forward, her head moving closer to his, coming to a stop just below his chin; he could smell her, intoxicatingly so.
As the night went on, the woman leaning against him soon fell into a tired rest; Barry Allen however, remained still for the remainder of their journey, unwilling to rouse her from her needed rest even when his shoulders started to become numb.
Another hour went by, and the stars above were soon replaced by the endless city lights, as skyscrapers took the place of towering pine trees. A loud grumble came from the below engines as the bus came to an eventual stop near the station opposite of her apartment.
"We're here."
She rubbed her eyes as he softly shook her awake, "I must have fallen asleep."
"Was I out long?" she asked.
He stretched with a tired yawn, "not really."
She got up from her seat, the two of them quickly grabbing their bags from the above luggage compartments before alighting from the leaving bus.
"Do you… want to come up for a bit?" she asked.
It was late, and with all of the unsaid emotions that hung between the two, he definitely shouldn't.
"Okay."
They entered her unlit apartment, putting their bags aside as she headed for a shower. Before long, she was in a pair of matching pajamas, her brown locks tied in a bun. He sat onto the edge of her bed as she slipped underneath the covers.
He dimmed the lights as he pulled the blankets up to her shoulders, as well as making fully sure her legs weren't peeking out from its bottom.
"Thank you." she said in between yawns, "can you…"
He could tell that she was trying her best to keep her eyes open, an attempt that was quickly failing.
"Don't worry," he moved himself onto the floor, his back leaning against the dresser as she turned towards him, their faces at eye-level, "I will stay with you till you fall asleep."
Just like all of the times they've done so in the past.
The blankets ruffled as her fingers reached for his. He grasped onto hers, a warm entwine.
It wasn't long before she fell asleep, a smile upon her lips.
As her fingers slipped away from his, Barry Allen got up onto his feet, a gentle kiss placed upon her forehead.
"Goodnight Caitlin Snow," he whispered, "I do truly love you more than you know."
As he fully turned off the lights and started to exit the room, he heard the faintest of a mumble.
"I… love you… too."
He turned, and she was still asleep, her calm breathing the only indication of her remaining presence, her mind somewhere only she knew.
An instinctive reply, or perhaps, something more.
It brought an undeniable smile to his lips.
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