She frowned a little as they both sat back up. She could see discomfort and perhaps, she thought, even a hint of dread in his eyes.

"Is, uh, this, um, something… bad?" Patty said nervously, stuttering as she spoke. She mentally kicked herself when she saw him frown anxiously, knowing that she had probably just made it worse.

Barry looked away from her, eyes wandering back and forth contemplatively, before he muttered back, "Kind of, I guess, but, ah, not really, not exactly."

She decided not to ask any more questions and simply wait for him to gather his thoughts and speak. She silently bit her lip, trying to keep her expression neutral as his head turned back towards her.

His eyes sparkled with recognition as his cheek gave the corner of his mouth a quick upward tug. Her eyes widened, questioning him, and he quickly answered, "My friend Caitlin does that too. She bites her lip when she's feeling nervous or otherwise bothered."

"How observant of you. I was trying not to make it too obvious," she smiled back awkwardly, her expression and tittering only making her emotional state that much more easy to read.

He couldn't help but let his eyes drift towards the floor as he began, this time with more volume and emphasis in his voice, "I don't want to make this any more painful than it has to be, so I'm just going to come out and say it, okay?"

Patty let silence be her response, and her eyes were waiting worriedly when he finally had the courage to let his meet hers once again. "I know that you want to know why I just had sex for the first time at 26. You're curious, and maybe a little confused?" he voiced.

A brief moment of silence between them passed as she worked out the least awkward-sounding way to express what she was thinking. "Well, um, yeah. You're smart, you're funny, you have a good job, and you're pretty easy on the eyes," she cooed, smiling at him warmly.

"I wasn't asking for flattery but I'll take what I can get," he laughed softly, hoping to lighten the mood a little. She let out a little laugh too, before another silence cued him to explain himself further. His hands were shaking, almost unnoticeably, and this was one of the few times that they had done so without vibrating since he'd awoken from his coma.

He decided to commence by stating what he was sure was, by now, obvious to her; "There is a reason."

"Honey, I told you that I don't have to know why. It doesn't matter to me. All that matters is that we're together now and we're happy, right?" she cried, trying to sound reassuring.

"I feel like you should know. I want you to know," he replied monotonously.

The room was once again quiet as he squeezed his eyelids shut and sighed before his big admission.

"It was because of Iris," he started, and he quickly proceeded before Patty could interrupt. Right now, he simply felt the need to get everything off his chest before he could answer any of her questions, or deal with whatever way she decided to respond. "My crush on her began before I moved in with her and Joe, and for years I just couldn't let that go. She was my best friend, practically my only good friend for such a long time, and I honestly felt like no one else could stand to be around a nerdy kid like I was, let alone love me. It took quite a while, and several short-lived attractions and relationships to get out of that mindset."

He paused to take a deep breath, and was mildly surprised when Patty declined to interject at all. He'd just ripped off the sticking plaster; the hardest part of his speech was now over. With a feeling of mild relief and strong determination, he continued, "I swear to you though, I haven't had those kind of feelings for her for quite some time now; since before I met you, actually. Iris and I always have been, and we always will be just friends. And honestly, I'm glad that that's all her and I will ever be. I did realise at some stage, long before I was truly over her, that things probably would never had ended well if Iris and I had been together, and being with you has only, um, how do I say this? Solidified that belief, I guess."

She was still listening attentively, not saying anything, so he finished off with, "I really, really hope that I haven't scared you off or anything, because that really isn't what I was trying to do by telling you. I don't want to scare you off, I just want to be honest with you, like you were with me after Christmas when you told me all about your father's death, and how much that affected you. I just want us to be able to trust each other, equally, and trust requires honesty, I think. And that is all I have to say. Thanks for your attention, you seem like a very good listener."

He cringed a little to himself regarding his last line.

Trust dorky Barry to have a surprise guest appearance at the most inappropriate time, he thought.

Patty stared down at her hands in deafening silence for what felt to Barry like centuries. Looking closely at her face, he noticed her jaw jerk open a few times, as though she was about to speak, but then quickly herself. He couldn't blame her for needing time, and a few attempts at talking to verbalise all the thoughts that he was sure were currently bolting through her head. She wasn't crying however, not even tearing up, and that gave him some hope. Finally, her voice, like sweet music, once again entered his ears; "Can you please just tell me… can you assure me that I'm not just a palette cleanser, and that you're not… for lack of a better word, using me for sex or to make Iris jealous, and that I'm not the second-best you've settled for just because you can't have her? And when you do, don't just tell me what I want to hear. I want you to mean it. I'm sorry, I know that you just poured your heart out to me, and what I just asked you to do probably sounded really bad, and I probably seem like a jealous bitch right now, but I need to know for sure, okay? I'm sorry, please don't get mad, I just need to be certain."

Her words did sting quite a bit, but he understood. Her father's death, as much as she'd refuse to admit it in front of most people, had left her with a fragile heart. Barry's own experience with his mother's death and father's wrongful imprisonment had put and for years kept him in a similar emotional state. His eyes started watering as he whispered back to her, "I am using you Patty. I'm using you for the happiness you bring me, but that's all, I promise. I'm not settling for you because it would be impossible to merely settle for someone as amazing as you are. You're too special to be anyone's palette cleanser. You shouldn't feel threatened by Iris, or anyone else. Iris is the only other person I have ever loved in that way, and right now I realise, more than anything else, that I might have loved Iris, yes, but I am head over heels in love with you, Patricia Leigh Spivot. And I really mean it."

She looked down, her mouth fixed in a wide, gleaming smile as a small tear slipped from her eye. "My full name. You know things are serious when somebody uses your full name, Bartholomew Henry Allen."

They giggled as he responded, "Well at least your full name sounds nice! What even is Bartholomew?"

"Um, there's a reason that I go by Patty and not Patricia!" she retorted.

"Well, I love your name, honestly."

Holding his hands in hers, she happily chimed, "And I love you, honestly. I am head over heels for you too, Barry. And just to be clear, I don't just love you, but I am in love with you also."

Affectionately repeating what Patty had said earlier, Barry whispered contentedly, "So we're one of those couples now."

She lifted an eyebrow cheekily as he laughed back, "The ones that say I love you way too soon and don't just use each other's full names when they're arguing."

At that, she snaked a hand around the back of his neck to kiss him deeply until they both needed to stop for a breath. Afterwards, her face briefly turned serious again as she stated certainly, "I'm glad you told me. It really makes me happy that I can trust you, and that you trusted me enough to share that. Thank you."

They kissed a few more times as her hand crept down to stroke him slowly but firmly a few times through his boxers. Her other hand reached around his back and slid between the elastic and his skin to grab his ass as she muttered lowly in his ear, "Um, if I recall correctly, you said something earlier about making the most of the time we have, didn't you?"

Before she knew it, he'd scooped her up and was kissing her passionately all the way back to her bed. They fell clumsily on top of the blankets and she eagerly ripped off his underwear. Patty began slowly licking up and down his length with her hot tongue, encouraged by the sounds of his pleasured moans and the way his dick was stiffening. Gradually, she also started kissing and sucking a few places, and he couldn't resist the urge to shudder when she finally took him into her mouth.

He didn't let her stay down there for long, however. Shortly after she began bobbing her head and rolling her lips and tongue around his cock, he groaned, "Stop, please."

She withdrew immediately, and would've asked him what was wrong had he not immediately met her lips with his, kissing her tenderly before quickly laying her on her back and positioning himself over her.

"I want us to make love, but I wanna take the lead this time. Is that okay with you?"

She would've been perfectly content just to blow him, but she also didn't mind at all if this is what he wanted to do. With a smirk, she conceded, "Show me what you've got."

Before she could get it herself, he'd already taken a condom out of her drawer. They were both, however, reminded of Barry's inexperience as he struggled to rip open the foil, and eventually, her impatience led her to open it herself.

He sighed loudly whilst she rolled the condom down, her needy, lust-filled eyes staring straight into his as she did so. Before she could speak, however, he voiced what was currently on both of their minds; "Yes, we're always either kissing or keeping eye contact, I remember."

"You are a fast learner, aren't you?" she asked rhetorically while she folded her legs behind his lower back.

"I promise that I don't do everything fast," he whispered seductively, his darkened eyes locked on hers as he slowly entered her.

She whimpered as the heat in their bodies moved downwards while he took his first few gentle strokes out and back in. He was being especially careful not to rush things; he needed to make this as good for her as he possibly could. He rolled his hips as he moved in such a way that each thrust had him rubbing against her clitoris, his efforts aided further when she began moving her own hips in unison with his. Meanwhile, he alternated between resting his forehead on hers, their eyes so close that their eyelashes were nearly touching, and giving her deep, loving French kisses. As if the intimacy wasn't already enough, he also linked one of his hands with one of hers, his fingers locking themselves in the gaps between hers.

"You're really trying hard, aren't you?" she remarked breathlessly.

His words were staggered and broken a bit by his heavy breathing as he replied, "I really want you to know how much I love you."

"And I, you," she breathed, while she began to pick up the pace of her movements, beckoning him to follow suit.

The groans and grunts that supplemented their movements became louder and less sporadic as they made love. "Faster, please," she pleaded, and worry dashed across his face. He knew he'd have to be particularly cautious to neither reveal his powers nor hurt her. Unfortunately, she noticed the look on his face and had to enquire, "Are you okay?"

Barry quickly uttered, "Yeah, of course. Totally. I mean, it's not like I'm inexperienced or anything," ending his sentence with a short laugh as he blushed a little. In reassurance, she deeply kissed him, and it was during that kiss that Barry gradually began to pick up the speed and force of his movements.

He climaxed only a few seconds before she too was whimpering his name and shuddering in release. He grinned at the heavenly way she sounded as she recovered, "Barry" seemingly the only word she could remember how to say.

He pulled out and quickly got up to throw away the condom, and as he returned to her bed afterwards, he groaned, "I liked the way you sounded then. Last time you were a bit too quiet for my liking."

In mock indignation, Patty snapped back, "Oh Barry Allen, were you always this smug?"

He smirked at her, "Only since you… how did you say it? Umm… Deflowered me, that's it. Never would have picked you for a poet, Patty Spivot."

"Well, I just think it sounds nicer than 'swiping your V-card', that's what my sister and her friends call it. And 'taking your virginity' sounds a tad too possessive to me. What would call it, hmm?" she said, emphasising her question.

"Making love to the woman I love for the first time," he smiled before kissing her. "So, you obviously know who my first was, now you've gotta tell me who yours was," he added cheekily.

"His name was Hal. Hal Jordan. He was my boyfriend in high school, but not for very long. We were only together a couple of months before he turned 18 and decided to join the Air Force like his dad."

"Did you love him?"

"No. I think I would've if he'd stayed around a bit longer, but he didn't. And now I have you."

"So you got the better end of the bargain?"

"It appears as though I did. Now I hate to further stroke your ego, but you're not too bad in the sack for a virgin, I must say," she spoke questioningly.

"Well, you know that I'm a nerd. And nerds, you know, research things."

"So, porn?"

"Not just porn, I swear! There were also biology textbooks, word-of-mouth that I received in college, and a rather educational lecture that Iris gave me when we both thought I was gonna get lucky with my high school girlfriend Becky Cooper."

"Oh wow!" That was all Patty could manage to say before she burst out laughing.