Jesse Quick is a hero and is kind of tired of people calling her a bad sidekick.
Pairing: Jesse Quick/Male Reader (You).
Requested: by a beautiful Anon.
She got a bad reputation. She takes the long way home. And all of my friends've seen her naked or so the story goes. Mistakes we all make them but they won't let it go, no. Cause she's got a bad reputation but I know what they don't, hmm.
"Are you kidding me?" Your head snapped up at the sound of Jesse's yell, her angry stomps bringing her into the cortex although she could have simple flashed in. "Who the crap writes this trash?" She tossed it in front of Iris, figuring that she could explain why Picture News would write whatever 'trash' was on the page. But the young girl was too angry to wait for Iris to read it, reciting the title verbatim with an irritated sigh.
"The Flash's new sidekick or sidechick? Pictured to the side, our cities hero has been spotted with a new sidekick; a girl?! Is she the Flash's crime-fighting or bedroom partner?" Noone spoke, although your head was spinning that someone had the gall to write that about a heroine. "Is it because I have boobs?"
"Jesse!" Harry tutted, not wanting to hear about his daughter's assests.
"Don't you Jesse me! Go and," She glanced at the writer's name, "Fred them! Why would they write that I was sleeping with Barry? Why would it matter? We're not because ew – no offense – but still!" When no one said anything, still too befuddled to respond to her outburst, she threw herself into a nearby chair with a huff.
"I'm going to go have a talk with 'Fred'." Pressing a kiss to Barry's forehead, Iris was a woman on a mission as her heels clacked down the hall. Man, you would feel bad for Fred if he weren't a jerk.
"I'm going to go do something." Cisco was quick to grab Caitlin by the arm and escape the awkwardness, Harry not far behind as Barry flashed elsewhere. When it was only you and Jesse still in the room, you decided you hated your friends but they obviously wanted you to talk to her.
"Jesse, you know it's not true right? That isn't how people think of you. He is trying to sell stories." You were not sure how to console her but that seemed like a good attempt. Sighing, she let her head fall back on the chair and her legs stretch out in front of her.
"Yeah, I know. But it, I don't know. It really sucks that Barry gets to run around and save people but I'm a girl and demoted to bed buddy when I can do exactly, okay mostly, what he can do!"
"No, it's not fair but you're a woman." She sat up straight and you held your hands up in a placating manner. "You are a woman who is going to have to do exactly what she did to get her degrees. You are going to work harder than any man. You are going to have to prove yourself consistently. Barry screws up? Oh, it was an accident. If you screw up? You are always going to be known by that one little thing. So you do whatever you have to do to be the best, even though it's completely stupid and senseless. Do what you want but do it perfectly."
Staring at you for a long moment, she looked like she was going to deck you in the face. Instead, she stood in front of you. Grabbing your cheeks, she mushed her lips to yours in a kiss that you didn't even realize was happening 'til she pulled away to grin at you with lightning in her eyes.
"You are absolutely right."
And I don't care what they say about you baby. They don't know what you've been through. Trust me, I could be the one to treat you like a lady. Let me see what's underneath, all I need is you.
"And in other news, The Flash's sidekick has proved that she is little more than for her looks. During a metahuman attack today, she was knocked down repeatedly. Only for the Flash to speed in and save the day."
"He was made of metal! What did they expect me to do? Melt him in the middle of the city?" Despite the scoff, you knew she was hurt by the media's blatantly sexist portrayal of her as little more than a damsel in distress.
"You were only knocked down once and you were there only a few breaths before Barry." You were quick to add. They liked to embellish things. Lifting her head from where she was icing her bloody nose, she gave you a bright smile.
"You're the best boyfriend, you know that right?" Nodding, you gave her a sly look and a wink as you finished up your project.
"Yep, here," Lifting her hand up, you slid the ring on much to her amusement.
"If this is your way of proposing, I'm not very flattered and that's the wrong hand." Rolling your eyes, you pressed the side of the button and a thick metal glove surrounded her hand. At her startled gasp, you gave her a grin. "What is this? What does it do?"
"He's a metal man and the only way you're going to beat him is by punching him with a stronger metal."
"Why are you giving this to me and not Barry?"
"Because, you need a win and you are as capable at beating him as Barry is. Besides, it'd be a little weird if I gave Barry a ring." Winking at her as she blushed a bright red, you left her to finish icing her nose. Rounding the corner, you ran right into Barry and Harrison who both tried to act like they hadn't been listening in.
"Alright, let me have it. I should have given it to Barry. It's not safe for her, blah, blah, what?" You were startled to feel Harry pull you into an oddly intimate hug, sharing a startled look with Barry as you patted him on the back.
"As fun as this is, why are you hugging me?"
"Because I love my daughter and although I hate the thought of her dating, I am glad it's with someone like you." As he walked away, you gawked at him. On a list of things you expected that man to say to you, that was not it. Barry clapped you on the shoulder, giving you a nod as he went around you and you wondered what Barry did to the timeline to make this a thing.
She got a bad reputation, nobody gets too close. A sight of a soul when it's breaking making my heart grow cold. And into the deeper she's sinking, I'm begging her please don't let go. She's got a bad reputation but she's all that… all I want, though.
"Give me your hand!" Jesse's voice echoed through the comm, her scream almost drowned out by the rushing wind around them. She and Barry were dealing with another weather metahuman that decided to attack random citizens of Central City. Throwing a guy off the roof with a gust of wind here, suspending a girl in the air there, smacking them together everywhere. It was a doozy but they had almost gotten all the people to safety expect this man.
"No! I'm not going with the Flash's sidekick. Everything you touch you screw up." They all heard the sharp breath Jesse sucked in, wondering if she'd reached the point when she was going to give up the heroics like she had threatened to do once she'd beaten the metal man and they still found a way to blame her.
"Listen up, okay? I am your only option. Either you grab my hand or you fall, your choice dude but I am not dealing with this sexist she's a woman crap, do you hear me?" Needless to say, the guy grabbed her hand but proceeded to lambast her for what she said in the media.
"I don't care anymore," She sighed, throwing the mask to the side and flopping into your lap. She wasn't big on PDA but she didn't seem to care that everyone was in the cortex as she curled into your arms, letting you hold her together. "Nothing I do is good enough so I am going to do my best and if they don't like it, then too bad. Because I'm a hero whether they like it or not."
Grinning at her, you pressed a kiss to her forehead and continued with your blueprints. She had said all that needed to be said. She was going to be her own kind of hero, the kind that saved people to save them not for the recognition.
Nobody knows the way that I, I know her. Said nobody knows the weight that's on her shoulders. Said nobody knows the way that I, I know her. Said she got a bad, she got a bad.
"Jesse, get out of there!" You yelled, watching as her vitals flickered dangerously and hearing her scream echo in your ears as she attempted to hold the building up until Barry had gotten everyone out.
"I can't! We have to get everyone." Barry's voice suddenly crackled through the comms as he told her the one thing she needed to hear.
"Run Jesse, run!" With a final push of all her strength, she tossed the building long enough to slid out from under and land on her back painfully tumbling 'til she landed in front of the people they'd gotten out with a loud groan.
"Jesse?" You questioned, seeing that her vitals were stabilizing despite her groaning.
"Did we get everyone? Do I need to go in? What's wrong?" The Flash was by her side in a heartbeat, his hand pushing her back to the ground as she tried to get up.
"No, you need to stay down. What were you thinking? You almost got yourself killed." Barry was not making her queasy stomach feel better with his head shaking like that. Blurring her face made his move slower and that helped.
"Did we get everyone?" She tried once more to get up but Barry was holding her down.
"Yes! You have to stop. Stop! If you get up your father and boyfriend are going to have my head, could you stop?" He begged, noticing that her eyes were roving the crowd to make sure everyone was alright.
"Jesse, you have to calm down babe. You have a crazy heartbeat." You noted, trying to calm the adrenaline filled girl.
"Only beats for you babe." Yeah, she was fine. "But do any of these people need medical attention? Did you check Barry? You usually check."
"Yes, I checked. Are you alright? You were going pretty fast." Nodding, she touched her hand to the back of her head only to pull away at the sticky substance. "Jesse!"
Barry was barely able to hold her up as she tipped sideways, passing out from pain and exhaustion. Hearing the startled gasps of onlookers, he easily lifted her into his arms and gave the crowd another once over to make sure he didn't need to get anyone else. Lightning was zapping behind his eyes and then he was off to make sure his speedy counterpart was safe.
And I don't care what they say about you baby. They don't know what you've been through. Trust me, I could be the one to treat you like a lady. Let me see what's underneath, all I need is you.
Twisting in your arms, she ignored the IV Caitlin begged her to stop ripping out and pressed closer to you as the lady started talking about 'the Flash's sidekick'. You pulled her closer, hoping that they would be a little nicer seeing as she was hurt. Plus, she was on pain meds and was about to cry as it was.
"And we bring you live to the site of the metahuman attack in downtown Central City." It switched to another young lady in a pencil skirt as the awkward delay stretched on before she was quick to speak.
"It was another heroic rescue here in Central City as the Flash pulled all these people out of the-"
"Excuse me?" It was a young girl with pigtails and a missing front tooth that grabbed the lady by the skirt for her attention. "You didn't say Jesse!"
Everyone in the cortex stiffened.
"Who?"
"Jesse, that's what the flash called her. It's his sidekick. But I think she was the real hero, or both of them were! Flash was speeding in and out of the building but she was back there running really, really fast to keep the building from falling. Then she was going so fast she could not stop and landed in the grass over there, but she was still asking if she needed to go in and save more people! It was so cool. Then she stood up to check on us but I think that her head was bleeding and she passed out on the Flash. But that's okay, mama says you have to rely on your family to keep you safe. She was really awesome! And a girl like me. I wanna be like her when I grow up!" The little girl skipped away, not even noticing what she had interrupted.
Everyone was silent as the flabbergasted woman tried to act like she wasn't going to insult Jesse by not mentioning her but the little girl had already said all that needed to be. Feeling yourself shake, you glanced down to make sure Jesse was okay. She wasn't. She was crying, staring at the screen with amazement before turning to you with a smile that counteracted her tears.
"Babe?" You questioned, huffing as she fully threw herself into your arms with a gasp of excitement.
"Did you see that? That little girl? She was so excited to have a female to look up to. Babe. Babe!" She hit his shoulder repeatedly as she ignored Caitlin's pleas and ripped out the IV, running to her father.
"Do not hit me." Harry tutted but hugged his daughter as she fell into his arms. She was practically vibrating. She was bursting with ecstatic energy at the little girl who had found her to be a hero.
"Wait, don't – Jesse!" You yelled as you recognized that half-step she did before she was about to run. Turning to the screen, you saw your girlfriend in full suit lift up the little pigtailed girl on her shoulder and offer to give her a ride. With a awed nod from her mother, Jesse was jetting off with the laughing little girl – careful not to go her full speed and scare her.
"She's something, isn't she?" Harry laughed. Although it was odd, you and he had found a commonality with your love for Jesse Quick.
"Something doesn't even begin to cover it."
She got a bad reputation. She takes the long way home.