Sometimes Iris feels like a spectator in her own life. Surrounded as she is by these heroes, these men who take law and order and the very laws of physics into their own hands, Iris sometimes feels as if the most important role in her own life is watching. Advising, sometimes. But mostly observing.

She knows she shouldn't feel this way, and every time she finds some information for Barry about a case, or writes an article painting the Flash in a more positive light she feels like she's doing something to take her life into her own hands. Make her own impact on the world.

But still. Much of what Iris sees stays locked inside her sharp mind, and her keen eyes miss nothing.

She watches her fiery young nephew grow up. Watches her gentle boyfriend (and hopefully soon more) pour his heart and soul into helping people in every area of his life, and she watches the space-cop brunette who consistently crashes on Barry's couch.

Iris has mixed feelings about Hal Jordan.

On the one hand, she is unspeakably glad that Barry has another 'superhero' friend that he can relate to - one that isn't dark and brooding all the time. Hal has a good heart, and brings boundless energy into the house every time he steps inside.

On the other hand. Hal Jordan is… not the kind of person Iris would spend time around by her own volition. There is no ill will associated with the statement, but the fact remains that Hal's boisterous nature and at times overbearing presence is a bit… much. And while Iris can wrangle the best of them, this is usually the kind of person she either fights or outsmarts in her profession, not the kind she relaxes around.

Also, Hal Jordan is reckless. He is proud of his moniker 'The Man Without Fear', as though that wasn't some kind of mental disorder, and lets it lead him headlong into all sorts of trouble that Barry unceasingly follows him into.

And he is a bad influence on Wally.

At the same time, though, Iris can see the vulnerability in Hal that he is constantly putting fronts around. He'll face down an assassin with the same cool confidence as one might exude while making breakfast, but if Barry cancels plans for a guys night out, his eyes take a near frantic tinge. Hal follows Barry like a lost puppy, or, Iris muses, a kicked one.

It's a strange thought, that someone with so much power should be so vulnerable.

And unsurprising that that someone would latch on to somebody like Barry Allen. Barry is a rock, someone you can count on to be the same today and tomorrow and the day after that. And that person is always the same goodhearted man who only wants what's best for others.

The forensic analyst who spends hours running meticulous tests is the same boyfriend who helps Iris comb a thrift store for the perfect outfit. The uncle who patiently taught Wally how to ride a bike is the same hero who listens to the stories of the people he puts away, and tries to help them find legitimate work in the city.

Sometimes Iris can't believe how crazy in love she is with that man. Who would've thought that after all the celebrities she's dated, all the actors and movie stars and princes, that she would've fallen for a man as plain-and-simple as Barry Allen.

It isn't even the Flash she's in love with, and her younger self would never have believed that. Always chasing the newest, shiniest, most exotic thing, Iris of 10 years ago would have been convinced that ir was the mysterious vigilante that would have caught her eye.

But it hadn't. Or rather, some salt-of-the-earth scientist with a desk job had captured her heart. And on the date when he had fiddled with his ring before telling her the most shocking secret in his life, Iris had gone home and laughed herself silly that her hum-drum boyfriend ended up being the most exciting man she'd ever known.

So Iris understands how it feels to be pulled into Barry Allen's orbit. And she can't begrudge Hal Barry's company, not when the pilot is so well meaning; not when the both of them need another hero to connect with in a world that hasn't learned to accept them.

So Iris has another hero to watch, this one more broken and needing than her Barry Allen, but still with a heart of gold. And Iris will watch and advise and listen and wait and hope all her boys come home at the end of every day.