After Caitlin had pulled herself together for a second time, she stood up and made her way to the kitchen, where she began preparing dinner for her mom. Barry followed her in wordlessly and began helping her. She liked the fact that they worked well as a team together and could see them making dinner together during happier times. It wasn't long before the sandwiches were ready and Caitlin was taking the bread out of the toaster She made her mom's the way she liked it and headed upstairs to give it to her. She wasn't going to force her to sit in the kitchen to eat when it was clear she wanted to be alone for a while.
She knocked on her mother's door and heard a soft voice telling her to come in. She opened the door quietly and brought the sandwich to her.
"Made you something to eat, mom," Caitlin murmured and crouched down next to her bed.
Jane took the sandwich from her with a soft thanks. "I'm not hungry but I know I have to eat."
Caitlin nodded her head. "Yes, you do."
Jane sighed as she took the first bite and Caitlin knew her mother well enough to know that she still wasn't ready for company so just told her she'd be downstairs if she needed hear and left the room quietly.
Once back downstairs and in the kitchen, Caitlin spotted Barry putting the finishing touches on two sandwiches.
"Hungry?" Caitlin asked and Barry shook his head.
"One's for you, of course," he replied and Caitlin furrowed her brow.
"I'm…" she trailed off, wondering if she could possibly get away with saying she wasn't hungry.
"Sweetheart, all you've had today is five pieces of fruit and a water bottle. It's seven in the evening. You need something more than that," he murmured and Caitlin hesitated, torn, before sighing and sitting down at the table.
"Bring the stupid thing here," she mumbled and Barry smiled softly at her as he brought her the sandwich.
She picked it up with shaking hands and looked at it before slowly shaking her head.
"I can't," Caitlin whispered but Barry nodded his head.
"Yes, you can, baby," he encouraged softly and Caitlin swallowed around the nerves that had fluttered up inside her throat and took a small bite. She chewed it for a long moment before taking a drink of the water Barry had placed beside her plate on the table.
She looked at the sandwich sadly and then at Barry.
"Please, don't make me eat this," she whispered as tears filled her eyes. Barry crouched down by her and ran his hand along her arm soothingly.
"Just try, baby. If you can only eat half of it, that's fine too. But I want you to eat at least half of that sandwich. I don't care how long it takes you," he said softly. She stared at him for a moment before exhaling shakily and nodding her head. She took another small bite, followed by a sip of water. She refused to look at the clock while she chewed, knowing she was taking longer than normal to eat. Once she had eaten half the sandwich, she pushed the remainder of it away from her and stood up.
"Bathroom," she blurted out but Barry wound his arm around her waist and held her in place.
"No, sweetheart, no," he whispered in her ear and oh how she fought him.
"Please, B-Barry," she gasped but he held her in place.
"You're not doing that yourself, baby. I won't allow it," he promised softly and she was left to wonder why he was once again being so gentle with her. He eased her back into her chair and crouched down on the floor beside her, waiting for her to give him her attention. Once she did, he started speaking.
"I know you're talking to Drew and I know that he might have been mentioning treatment plans to you," he began and she nodded her head wordlessly; they had talked about it briefly before she found out her father had died.
"I want you to know I will stand by you if that's something you have to do, I'll look after you," Barry promised and Caitlin stared at him. No one had ever been this gentle with her, had ever wanted to. They had always expected her to be the perfect Caitlin she knew she could be, had never wanted anything less from her. Then there was Barry, who had accepted her just the way she was, flaws and all. It left her overwhelmed. She took a deep breath before speaking softly.
"Yes, I told you Drew and I had discussed that; he seems to think I've reached that point," she murmured and Barry rubbed her arm. She drew strength from that.
"However, he said if I could put on at least ten pounds over the next month, he'll consider dropping the subject," she added.
"Do you think you can do that, sweetheart?" Barry asked her softly and she thought about it. Could she?
Sighing, she shook her head.
"No," she whispered and closed her eyes, wondering how in the hell her life had gotten so out of control.
"I don't want to go to a treatment center, Barry," she exclaimed and he cradled her cheek in his hand.
"We'll consider that a last resort. If you're willing to try and get better on your own, I'll be here every step of the way," he promised. She knew it was going to require a lot of effort to eat, knew she'd want to give up some days, probably every day, but she wanted to get better. If not for herself, then for Barry at least.
"Alright, she whispered as she leaned into his touch. Barry stroked his thumb across her cheek bone before leaning in for a sweet kiss.
"So, we'll call dinner done, and then try again with breakfast tomorrow," he murmured and she hummed in agreement, knowing it was the best option she was going to get if she wanted to stay out of a treatment center.
Author's note: I was listening to "Look After You" by The Fray while writing this chapter and it provided me with all the feels. Enjoy!
