And Arthur arrives...

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Barry got the job. His father was very impressed.

And then his life went back to normal. He went to see his grandmother every Saturday afternoon and went to see his father every Sunday morning. He worked. He studied. He saved people, though he had a new outlook on that ever since Steppenwolf and now looked at crime fighting from a different perspective. He went to have dinner with Iris and Joe for Joe's birthday. He thought about getting a cat. It was almost like the Justice League stuff had never happened.

Except for his job, and his home, and everything else that was intrinsically different.

Except for coming home one Thursday night after a morning of work at the crime lab and an afternoon exam, to find a body on his favourite chair, light snoring filling the air and the scent of the ocean in his lungs.

Barry crept over to the chair and looked down at Arthur's face, mottled with bruises and a long gash from forehead to ear. He didn't stir when Barry was peering at him which seemed like a bad sign so Barry slipped away as quietly as he could, had a shower, ordered pizza, and then settled into his second favourite chair to read and watch over Arthur.

The pizza arrived, and the guy who delivered it didn't even blink at the fact it seemed to be one guy ordering five pizzas. When he turned around, Arthur's strange grey-blue eyes were staring at him.

"Hey," Barry said, awkwardly waving while trying to balance the boxes.

"I needed somewhere safe," Arthur offered.

"Mi casa es su casa," Barry said. "Pizza?"

"Shower?"

"In there," Barry said, pointing to the bathroom. "There are towels under the sink."

Arthur leveraged himself up with a deep groan and stumbled to the bathroom. Barry was halfway through the first pizza when the water turned on and he heard the first of a series of muffled grunts throughout Arthur's shower until the water turned off. Arthur came out in nothing but a towel.

"I have nothing that will fit you," Barry said, eying the massive muscles encased in tattoos. "So big."

"Yeah," Arthur nodded. "Do you have any first-aid stuff?"

"Yes."

"My back…can you?"

"Sure," Barry agreed, shoving the last of his pizza slice into his mouth and going into the bathroom. He came back and swore when he saw the gashed lines running down Arthur's back. "This is gonna hurt."

"Just do it fast."

"I can do that," Barry said and sped up until he was blur of antiseptic and bandages. He stopped and stepped back. "Anywhere else?"

Arthur shook his head. "I'll heal but infections are still a bitch."

"Yeah, I know."

Arthur settled back onto the couch, throwing the plastic packing sheet that Barry kept around for injuries over the back and then reaching for a box. Barry sat down and turned the TV on, finding something that didn't make Arthur grunt his disapproval. Apparently, Aquaman liked renovation shows. Four hours later, Barry knew more about house renovation than he ever expected to know and Arthur had fallen asleep on the couch. Barry turned off the TV, throwing a blanket over the hulking Atlantean, and going to bed.

He woke up the next morning to the smell of bacon wafting through his bedroom. He stumbled out, rubbing at his eyes and yanking at the waistband of his sleeping pants – the elastic just a little too gone to stay where it was supposed to.

Arthur was breaking eggs into a bowl and Barry crashing into the wall in his surprise.

"Bacon?" Barry asked, rubbing at his now red shoulder.

"Yeah, thought I'd cook breakfast. Thanks for last night."

"Anytime," Barry offered grabbing orange juice from the fridge and climbing up onto the bench. "Want some?"

Arthur nodded. Barry reached up into the cupboard and grabbed two glasses, his eyes glued to the play of muscle under flesh as Arthur scrambled the eggs and poured them over the sizzling bits of ham, tomato, onion, and capsicum in the pan. The smell of garlic hit Barry and his mouth watered.

"You cook?"

"I like cooking," Arthur shrugged. "It's relaxing."

"Smells amazing."

Arthur grinned at him; that broad, cocky grin that Barry didn't want to admit made his stomach a little fluttery. Barry acknowledged his crush and then brushed it off – it would go away and amount to nothing like they all did.

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