With every passing second that she spent in the empty parking lot of STAR Labs Caitlin Snow was getting surer and surer that she was nothing but an idiot that somehow achieved a doctor's degree. It wasn't that she didn't want to walk it was the fact that it was past 11 P.M. (She had got caught up in trying an interesting method to get anesthetics to work on Barry) and the streets were probably full of drunken teenage idiots or men that were high on drugs she could probably identify if she came face to face with them. Sure the crime rate shot down since Barry became the Flash and she could probably just call him if something went amiss but she still didn't want to risk it.
Barry also had been pestering her all day about the real reason and coming up with crazy theories when she didn't answer him, which was most of the time. It was easier to ignore him but sometimes she couldn't hold back a laugh when he came up with something particularly funny. Her spectacular lie also basically rendered her car useless. She didn't have any other choice but to face the consequences of her earlier idiocy.
Everything will be okay. Caitlin assured herself as she started to walk home. The city was still very much alive but it was breathing in a more serene way. The deafening noise of traffic was gone replaced by the occasional sound of a car passing by. The usual swarm of people trying to get into places was gone too. She always thought that cities were even more beautiful during the night. Central City was definitely not an exception. It made her smile. Memories of her childhood and adulthood were scattered all over the city. She took comfort in that and her worries were soon blown away by the night wind that was whispering in her ears.
Little did she know that she won't even have time to take her phone out if she ever comes across danger. Her shout wouldn't even be finished and Barry would already have disarmed and have the person threatening her in a headlock because nobody would dare take away the smile lighting up her face, the smile that was lighting up the whole city while he was watching over her.
"Sorry," Caitlin said after she bumped into an elderly lady and almost dropped her coffee. It was packed in Jitters and Caitlin was still sleepy and uncoordinated so she had bumped into a number of people.
"Sorry," Caitlin repeated. This time she had ran into a man wearing a suit. She realized that she didn't just bump into the man but also spilled some coffee on him.
"I am so sorry!" said Caitlin. "I'll pay for the damage." Already struggling to open her bag.
"Hey," said the man in the suit. "Not so fast. I don't mind. It's a small stain."
"Oh. Are you sure?" she asked.
"Absolutely. At least it was my suit that got the coffee. Wouldn't want to ruin that dress of yours," said the man. "You look amazing in it by the way." he added with a wink. Caitlin flushed. She wasn't the kind of woman that random men complimented so she's not used to the situation and didn't know what to do so she just mumbled a "thank you" and proceeded to look for a table.
She had come to Jitters earlier than normal because she wanted to avoid the long line but it was still as usual full of people wanting to get their caffeine fix. She couldn't believe how used she got to Barry always getting her coffee. Another reason why she had to do her best to get her feelings right. She finally found a table that a couple just recently vacated.
"Mind if I sit here?" asked somebody. Caitlin looked up from reading a new paper written by one of her favorite scientists. It was the man that she spilled coffee on. She felt her cheeks redden from embarrassment.
"Sure, it's the least I can do considering…" she nodded towards the stain on his suit. "I'm really sorry again."
"And again I don't really mind. It's not like captain will fire me because of a coffee spill," he said while smiling which revealed dimples. "I'm Paul." He offered his hand.
"Dr. Snow," she said in return and reached out to shake his hand. "Nice to meet you."
"I would say the same but is 'Dr. Snow' all I'm getting?" Paul asked with a small smirk.
"Sorry. I just get used to using that at work. It's Caitlin Snow." She added with a smile. This man was all charm. She was guessing she should at least smile even if he was disturbing her reading.
"Barry," Cisco said. "Do not take off the earplugs unless you want to be the star of the newest viral video of YouTube where you're proclaiming your love me." Their newest metahuman had the ability to hypnotize and make people who hear her sing see illusions so Cisco whipped up special earplugs that blocked her voice.
"Yes," Barry said. "Where's her current location?"
"She just entered a bar in the south side," Cisco replied. "Hey, it's the bar that you and Caitlin went to and 'brought the place down'."
"Let's not talk about that, Cisco," Caitlin said, already feeling her face start to turn into a vibrant shade of red.
"Yeah, let's not talk about anything at all," Barry said looking Caitlin dead in the eye. "That's what friendship is."
Caitlin was surprised by the sudden coldness in Barry's voice that seemed to be directed at her. Cisco was also looking at her with questioning eyes. What did she do?
"Remember, you'll only be hearing me and Cisco so you should just knock her out and then bring her here," Caitlin reminded him. "Also, be extra careful."
"You already told me that," he said dismissively. He was gone without saying another word.
"Okay, what is up with that?" Cisco asked. "Did you two have a fight or something?"
"We didn't," Caitlin answered while making sure her mic was off so Barry couldn't hear her. "Maybe he's just in a bad mood?"
"If you want answers you should ask Dr. Snow," Barry said through the comm.
Cisco was mouthing "What?" while looking at Caitlin with a confused expression. She just shrugged.
"As much as I would like to know what's going on with you, Barry," Caitlin sighed. "We need you to focus on the situation." She received no answer. Well, she wasn't definitely going to complain if Barry decided to ignore her. Good for her.
"You can sing your heart out little lady," Cisco said as he closed off the Pipeline. "But you're not getting out of there."
"I'm going to head to CCPD," Barry said, already walking away. "Cisco, call me if there's any trouble."
"What?" Cisco asked, confusion once again written on his face. "You said today was your day off and that you were going to try out my newest tweaks on the treadmill."
"Well," said Barry. "I just don't feel like being here." Caitlin was getting seriously annoyed. She didn't even do anything. She was pretty sure that what Barry said was meant for her. Fine. Two can play this game.
"But dude-," Cisco started.
"Let him go, Cisco," Caitlin said, cutting him off. "In fact, he shouldn't even come back here until he has sorted out his issues." Hurt flashed – no pun intended – across Barry's eyes or maybe she was imagining it. She didn't care right now which doesn't mean that she won't regret it later. He continued walking towards the Cortex probably to change into his normal clothes.
"I know that you two always argue like an old married couple," Cisco said. "But that was weird even for the two of you. Seriously, what is up?"
"If I knew what his problem is," Caitlin answered. "I would have already told you."
"This is ridiculous," Harry said. "I might not have said anything earlier but it's affecting the way we operate. Dr. Snow, I need you to talk to Mr. Allen."
"No, it's not," said Caitlin. "We're working together perfectly fine."
"Really?" Harry said. His tone suggested that he was about to have the last word. "Mr. Ramon and I have worked hard on the improvements in the treadmill that might just finally let Mr. Allen push his limits. Mr. Allen was more than enthusiastic about it. Would you care to explain how this change of heart is 'perfectly fine'?"
"Fine," Caitlin exasperatedly said. She really hated not having the last word. "I'll talk to him. If he's still there." She really hoped he wasn't.
Unfortunately, Barry was still there and also very unfortunate for Caitlin in the process of taking off his suit. Look at the back of his head, not anywhere else. She reminded herself. She wouldn't let herself admire the lean muscles in his back and how they would stretch when he bended down… Caitlin, you need to focus. Talk before he notices you checking him out. She told herself.
"I'm surprised you didn't just speed things up," Caitlin said. "You know, so that you'll be away from me already." It was meant to come out as friendly and teasing. He ignored her.
"Barry," she said. "I'm sorry." She tried to sound sincere but it came out confused because she didn't have a clue on what she should be apologizing for. He kept on ignoring her. He was now putting on his shirt. That's it. It was time to put a stop on this childish game of his.
"Barry, this is stupid!" Caitlin said, voice getting louder. She reached out and grabbed his arm to turn him around to face her, trying to ignore the tingle she felt when she touched his bare skin. It's just hormones. She reminded herself. She was surprised when he let her. She was more surprised with the anger in his eyes. God, what did she do to get him so pissed?
"You know what's also stupid, Caitlin?" Barry said. "Hiding from your friend that you're dating his co-worker."
"Dating? Co-worker? What?" Caitlin was getting more confused by the second.
"You think I wouldn't find out?" Barry asked. "You could have just told me. I'm your friend. Why didn't you just tell me instead of feeding me a lie?" Caitlin could tell that he was trying his best to calm down.
"But Barry," she said slowly. "I'm not dating anyone."
"What?" It was now his turn to get confused. "You're not dating Paul?"
"Paul?" she asked. She didn't know anybody – "Oh, Paul. You work with him? I just met him this morning."
"Yes," Barry replied, all signs of anger gone. "He's a new CSI at CCPD."
"And he told you we were dating?" Caitlin asked, wearing an incredulous expression.
"No," Barry said. "Not exactly." Caitlin noticed that his ears were turning red. Signs of him getting embarrassed. Time for revenge.
"Then, would you mind telling me, Mr. Allen," she said while wearing a smirk. "How you came up with this incredible assumption?"
"It doesn't matter now, Cait," Barry said. Cait. There goes her nickname again. The way that he said it made her question if it really was just a four-letter word. "I'm sorry. Oh God, I've been such a jerk toward you. I'm sorry." Oh, he was definitely embarrassed. Caitlin held back her laugh. She needed to know more.
"I'm going to repeat my question Barry," she replied, wearing a serious expression. Let him regret his actions. "Why did you come up with this assumption? Did somebody tell you we were dating?"
"No," he said.
"Tell me, Barry." She was wondering how she could still keep a straight face. He looked so uncomfortable and at the same time adorable.
"I was grabbing coffee this morning and then I saw you two talking on a table. It looked like you were having a good time so I assumed that was the reason you didn't want me to buy coffee for you because you didn't want me to know and I got offended," He was rushing his words now. "Crap. I'm so stupid, Cait. I'm sorry."
Caitlin couldn't contain it anymore. She laughed. Hard.
"You're not angry at me?" He was smiling now, probably from relief. You didn't want Caitlin Snow to be angry at you. Especially if she was your personal physician.
"No," she said after she finished laughing which took a while. "It's just – don't get offended – how could you be so stupid?"
"It was just," he started, trying to find the right words. "I didn't really completely believe what you said to me about the coffee thing and then I saw you two together and I really don't like Paul that's why I also got really annoyed and jumped to conclusions. Cait, let's just let this go. I'm sorry I didn't believe you."
"Fine," Caitlin said. "Just one last question." She couldn't resist torturing him more.
"Alright," said Barry, dread clear in his tone. "I deserve it."
"Are you sure that you only got angry at me because you didn't believe me and you don't like Paul?" Caitlin asked.
"Yes," Barry answered.
"Or was it also because you were jealous?" Caitlin continued. She was just teasing him but what if he thought he was flirting with him? What made her say that? Of course he wasn't jealous. She was panicking now. She should end this conversation already. Remember, no unnecessary interactions with subject.
"What? N-no." Barry stuttered, that definitely caught him off guard. "No, why would I be?"
"I'm just messing with you, Barry," she said. "Like you said, you deserve it. Now get back there and use that treadmill so that Cisco and Harry will stop giving me a hard time."
"I'm sorry again, Caitlin. I mean it."
Barry was looking directly at her when he said those words and she could tell that he did mean them.
What he felt when he saw Caitlin laughing to what Paul said, was that jealousy? Surely it wasn't. It was the same feeling he felt when Jay kept on complimenting Caitlin. He was being protective. That was innate to him, protecting anybody he cared for was second nature to him. He just cared for Caitlin. A lot. She was his friend. But subconsciously he was wondering how much you can care for a person until you can call it love.
Author's Note: Yay! The third chapter is up and it didn't take that long (at least from my point of view) I think I deservea pat in the back. This is pretty long for me. Overprotective and jealous Barry is one of my favorite things and that's what I mostly explored in this chapter. Finally things are moving, maybe slowly but patience pays in the long run guys. Once again, your feedback is welcome and encouraged. Who's watched the latest episode? Season 2 Episode 18 spoilers here. My Snowbarry heart was bleeding when Iris said that she felt like she was meant to be with Barry, I felt like the Snowbarry ship was truly sinking but at the end it sailed again. Caitlin's face when Zoom was strangling Barry was heart-wrenching and Barry's reaction when Zoom took her was just as sad.
xx
-bookishanonymous