This is the last installment of this series. I promise!

.

.

.

Blind Kiss

After three weeks of smiles, hugs, awkwardness, and a whole lot of misunderstandings along the way (which was how they got together in the first place), Barry and Caitlin, were ready for the next step in their relationship.

A kiss. A real one this time. Not a kiss on the cheek, or a 2-second peck. Nu-uh, not anymore.

"Caitlin, what are you doing?" Asked Cisco, who came in to her apartment with pizza and drinks.

Caitlin let out a frustrating sigh and threw her black dress at the cold floor, "Cisco, I'm doing something wrong,"

"And that would be…?"

She dropped herself at the couch, "This is like my seventh date with Barry and we haven't, well, you know…"

Cisco raised a suspicious eyebrow, "You haven't, what?"

"You know, the thing?"

Cisco let out a high-pitched gasp, and clutched his chest, "Caitlin! I would've never thought –"

"We haven't kissed, Cisco." She cut him off dryly.

"Ah," he let out a relieved sigh.

The doctor just rolled her eyes at her friend. "You think I should take the first step?"

"Caitlin, Caitlin," he said sympathetically, "as your all-knowing and super handsome friend, I will tell you exactly what you need to do for that first kiss to happen," he's only ever had one girlfriend, but Cisco was a self-proclaimed romance expert.

She nodded to herself, " Okay," Caitlin went to her room and came back with a journal and a pen, "I'm ready," her eyes focused on the blank page staring back at her, but her mind briefly rehashed her last few dates with Barry where everything had gone so well, but in the end he would just drop her off with a kind smile and a pseudo-friendly hug.

"This is exactly what you need to do," in his mind, he was imparting rare wisdom onto the young muggle.

{-}

Barry was lightly hitting his head on the door frame.

"Last time I saw you, you were normal, what's going on Bar?" Iris had just dropped off lunch for her dad and Eddie.

The CSI dragged himself to his desk and slumped on his chair, "Caitlin and I might not work out after all," he said defeatedly.

The ebony beauty came to pat his back reassuringly, "Come on Bar, you're both head over heels for each other. I mean, the girl couldn't stop gushing about your brains last dinner, and between you and I, she said something about your 'gorgeous green eyes,'"

"She said that?" he asked hopeful.

Iris nodded. There was a whole lot that Caitlin said about Barry, but she would let him discover that on his own. "Caitlin really likes you, and it's pretty obvious,"

"Is it?" He said as if the knowledge was foreign to him. He always felt he was making a fool of himself in front of the charming doctor. "I don't know Iris, I just feel like we need to take our relationship to the next level,"

The journalist took a step back, "Should I call Eddie or my dad for this conversation?"

Barry scrunched his face, "What? No!"

"Bar, we are great friends and all, but maybe those discussions are best done with...well...you know...other guys,"

The man just chuckled, "That is so not what I meant,"

"What did you mean?"

"Well I may or may not have chickened out of kissing Caitlin," Barry said with a crimson blush. He was an adult man and acted like a middle schooler with a crush.

To her credit Iris tried really, really, hard not to laugh but she couldn't help it. She burst out laughing. After three minutes of Iris just laughing at Barry's demise, the man stood up and was getting ready to leave.

"Okay, okay, I'll stop," she said in between laughs.

"Thank you," He grumbled.

"I just can't believe it. I mean, it's not like you've never kissed anyone before."

"I know! But I feel like this has to be super special," He said exasperated. He really cared about Caitlin and wanted everything to be perfect. Should it be a traditional candlelit dinner? Or was it best to just have a day at an amusement park and kiss on a Ferris-wheel? No, no, none of that worked!

"You should just do it, a kiss should be spontaneous Bar,"

"What if I'm going too fast?

"What if you're not fast enough?"

{-}

Alright, she was going to put into action all the tips Cisco gave her. She would have to show Barry that she wanted them to kiss, without being too obvious. Today they opted for having a movie night at his place, so that should provide the perfect setting for a kiss.

Today was the day.

She knocked on his door and waited patiently for him to answer, it didn't take him too long to open the door and greet her with a dazzling smile.

"Cait, glad you came," he said as he moved aside for her to come in.

They both shared a hug and she headed towards the living room placing some goodies on the table, "I brought a little bit of everything," she took out chips of all flavors and some sweets, wondering is Barry liked spicy or sweet things.

"Thanks, I enjoy all things junk food so this is perfect," he said from the kitchen as he prepared them drinks. Although on the outside he looked calm and collected (at least he hoped he did) he was far from it in reality. He had everything planned out, he would choose a romantic movie, get the mood just right, and then when they got lost in each other's eyes he would lean in and…

"Do you need help?" Caitlin approached him from behind with a polite smile.

"Yeah, sure," he handed her the tray with the drinks while he left to get a bowl for the chips. As he turned his back to her he released a small sigh of relief. He was getting too carried away with his fantasies.

Caitlin went back to the living room. She eyed Barry briefly before settling in her spot. The plan was simple, they would see a scary movie and she would have a reason to hang to him for dear life under the pretense that she was scared and just as the movie was ending, while still holding on to him, they would get lost in each other's eyes she would lean in and...

"Okay, we have the drinks, the chips, the candy, now we just need the movie," Barry sat next to her and turned on the TV, casually logging into his Netflix account pleased by the romantic selection ahead of them. All according to pl—

"How about we watch a scary movie?" Suggested Caitlin innocently, or so she hoped.

"Scary movie…" May-day, may-day, he had not anticipated this, the plan was at risk. "What about a romantic movie?" he tried to suggest, hoping he didn't sound as paranoid as he sounded in his head.

"Well…" Oh no, this was not going as expected. She chewed her lower lip and tried to think of an alternative.

Barry found it cute when she did that to her lip, but worrisome at the same time. After three weeks he realized that was a thing she did when something was bothering her.

"Why don't we let Netflix suggest something?" Perfect. Now he sounded like he could compromise, and he was fairly certain that Netflix would suggest a romantic movie (he didn't spend the last 3 days playing romantic movies on his TV for nothing).

It was up to luck now, "That seems fair," she said nodding to herself. Internally praying that it would suggest a scary movie.

1…

2…

3…

And the movie was…

Hachi: A dog's tale

Neither one had seen it, but it didn't look like a romantic movie and it certainly didn't look scary either. They both held a defeated sigh.

"Hachi it is," Barry said with fake enthusiasm.

As the movie started Barry attempted to casually get closer to Caitlin, hoping to limit the minimal distance.

Caitlin casually moved closer to Barry effectively eliminating the distance between them.

Their arms and legs were touching and both were pleased, hiding a mischievous smile after their success.

Step number 2. Now Barry would just yawn and extend his arms, casually placing one on her shoulder and hugging her close. He was midway there when he heard Caitlin talk to him.

"Aww, isn't he cute? Akita dogs are adorable," Abort, abort, she is on to us, his subconscious told him and he put his arm down to his side once again. Great move Allen. "Do you like dogs Barry?" she said softly as she rested her head on his shoulder. Success! She told herself. This wasn't so hard.

"I love them!" He said a little too excited. Excellent, she got closer on her own, this was awesome.

Now the next step would be to unintentionally brush hands as they were both getting chips. Both Caitlin and Barry extended their hands slowly towards the bowl of chips, now they just needed to accidentally touch, look at each other sheepishly and then lose themselves in the eyes of the other lean in and…

Ring!

Barry nearly had a heart attack and glared at his phone resting on the table. He had forgotten to turn off the volume, "Hello?" he answered, trying to keep the annoyance from his voice.

"Hey Barry, this is Wally,"

Barry stood up from the couch and headed to his room, "I'll be right back," he told Caitlin softly, before closing the door behind him.

"Wally, you better have a great reason for calling me at this time," Barry said through gritted teeth.

"Was now not a good time?" Wally asked unaware of his inner turmoil, "Sorry man, I can call back tomorrow," and with that he hung up.

"Gah!" Barry shut off his phone and threw it angrily at his bed. Wally would pay for this. He took a calming breath (or three) and then stepped out finding his annoyance at Wally vanished as he saw Cait engrossed in the movie with the bowl of chips on her lap. She was just too cute.

"Come quick! It's almost about to end," she said as she patted his side of the couch motioning for him to come.

He didn't hesitate and sat next to her. Sadly, this time she didn't rest her head on his shoulder.

After a few minutes sniffles were heard in the room. "That was so sad," Caitlin said in between tears, "he waited all those years…" she turned to look at Barry and blinked in surprise. The poor man was biting his cheek in an attempt to not sob loudly, but his tears betrayed him. Caitlin smiled at him fondly... he was adorable.

"Way to go Allen, tears are so manly," He wouldn't be able to face her after this.

"Here," she said kindly handing him the box of Kleenex.

"Thanks," he said taking them gratefully, knowing that his runny nose was dying to make an appearance. "I must look like a complete mess right now, don't I?"

She giggled, "I'm not any better," she said as she wiped some tears away.

And then that inexplicable moment came.

There was this electricity in the air. Green and hazel eyes collided and both were leaning in unconsciously. This was perfect. Both of them were doing a victory dance in their heads and just as their lips were an inch away… everything turned dark.

"Barry," Caitlin said in the darkness. Apparently the electricity had gone out in the apartment.

"I'm right here," he said reassuringly, trying to find her hand in the darkness. He patted the couch and then touched something soft.

"That's my thigh,"

Barry pulled his hand back as if it burned, "Oh! That was totally not what I meant to do, I was looking for your hand, I swear!"

"It's okay,"

He tried to get away quickly, she probably thought he was a pervert or something. Ugh, why couldn't things be like their first date. Everything had been perfect that one time. In his attempt to jump away he tripped with the table and landed with a loud thud on the floor.

"Barry are you okay!?" Caitlin panicked after the sound and moved her hands crazily in the dark hoping to touch him. After some futile attempts, she decided to get up and walk to where he was to ensure that he was fine. Sadly, she didn't make it too far and instead tripped with his foot, ungracefully falling on top of him. "Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry!" she said frantically as she tried to prop herself up but was stopped by two strong arms enveloping her in a hug.

"It's okay," he said softly, feeling her hair caress his skin and her warm body pressed against him. This moment had been the best one of the evening.

Caitlin immediately froze. This was probably the most intimate moment they shared since they met and the longest they had been this close to each other. She started to relax her body enjoying the warmth and comfort of Barry's body. "Okay," she whispered in the dark and decided to enjoy the moment by snuggling in his arms.

Barry was so thankful that it was pitch dark right now because he felt a heatwave on his face and was certain he was blushing.

After a moment of comfortable silence he heard her say, "I hope I'm not too heavy,"

"You're perfect," he answered unconsciously but sincerely.

Now it was Caitlin's turn to blush. This man was so sweet, he would be the death of her. She slowly raised her head in the darkness and felt his hands move to her waist not ready to let her go.

"Cait?" he wondered why was she moving when they were sharing such a special moment together.

And then she felt it. She felt his minty breath reach her, his face was right in front of her. "Barry," she said softly and he noticed too. They were close, very close.

Barry closed his eyes despite the darkness and slowly raised his left hand to her neck while raising his head slightly. Caitlin didn't need the prodding as her eyes fluttered shut and she willingly leaned in. How they found each other's lips in the darkness will forever be a mystery. What wasn't a mystery were the emotions that overflowed them both as they moved their lips in tandem, softly, certain, and appreciatively. Caitlin felt happy in a way she hadn't been in a long time. She felt loved and protected. She felt overjoyed and ecstatic, as if she had been born for this moment. Barry wasn't far behind, this was probably the happiest moment of his life. This instant alone reminded him of all the wonderful things of the world. While Caitlin hadn't been his first love, with just one kiss he knew she would be his last. He could already envision a future with her full of happiness, dreams, and an Akita dog in memory of this moment. This wasn't how either of them envisioned their first kiss, but it didn't matter, sometimes the reality was better than the dream.

As their lips danced together in the night none of them noticed when the lights turned back on.

There was a lot to make up for anyway.

{x}

And that is it my friends!

Warm thanks to: stars90, AReiss215, Guest, torish4, Maya, shyesplease, and ShanouNash who totally anticipated this last theme.

Thank you lovelies for your kind words!

Until next time.

-Kim