Hartley Rathaway stood at the doors of the front of the school. He tapped his fingers against his pants nervously. Waiting for them to unlock it. Finally, the lock clicked, and he pulled open the door. He had been soldering his latest invention when his mother came into his room. Her cold voice had snapped him out of his focus.
"Hartley. Phone." She had said.
He had gotten up and grabbed it from her, some kids from his school said that they "needed his help immediately." That "it was 100% urgent, and that they needed his technical help, and again it was an emergency." Hartley, who couldn't help but come to show off his big brain, and too also, help them. He couldn't imagine having to ask a complete stranger for help. Even if it was a so-called "emergency". It must be a prank. If it wasn't for him leaving his extra solder in his locker, he wouldn't have come at all.
They were waiting for him in the commons. He glanced at them and saw their looks of worry and exhaustion. Before he could open his mouth, they put their fingers to their lips and motioned for him to follow them. They went straight to Mr. Wells' science lab, and finally, after they had sat down, he asked them.
"Okay, what is going on? Why are we here? And why the hell are you barricading the door?" He asked. Pointing at Barry, pilling desks and chairs up against the door.
"Okay, calm down," said Felicity. "Let us show you." She grabbed a computer and pulled up a video file from the surveillance cameras. They showed a girl's hair turning as white as snow, her skin getting frosty, and then a mist rolled down the hallway, freezing over the camera. The next showed a cube of ice, then finally, the last video showed the people that stood in front of him melting the cube of ice and the girl ran away, almost killing one of them.
Hartley sat down.
"So she is some sort of a, a, a, metahuman?" asked Hartley scoffing. "Is that what I am supposed to believe?" He stood up.
"Wait-" said Barry
"No, if he doesn't want to help us, let him go," said Cisco.
Hartley maneuvered through the barracked and finally found his way to the door. He slammed it. Why the hell did he come here? He justified coming by saying he was coming to grab his stuff from his locker, but in reality, he believed them. That they weren't just another group of kids making fun of him for being different. If didn't matter that nobody at school knew that he was gay, they still made fun of him for other things.
He stopped. He heard the distinct echo of feet. He had learned to be extra vigilant as the punching bag of the school. Hartley spun around. There in the hallway, stood the girl in the video. Ice trailed behind her. Her hair was white. Her skin, pale. And her eyes, her eyes were frozen. They showed his reflection. It was almost as pale as her own skin. He ran, and as he looked back, she followed. As he turned a corner, icicles flew at him, missing him by inches, smashing into the wall behind him. As he ran to the exit, ice grew out of her hands, finally, they reached the ground and she walked slowly towards him threateningly. He slammed into the doors trying to open them, but they wouldn't open. He forgot that they were locked! Trapped, he looked into his murderers' eyes, about to see his own reflection's death.
"Hey Frosty!" yelled Cisco.
Killer Frost spun around, glaring at Cisco.
"What are you doing here?" she said.
"Oh, nothing," said Cisco, "just about to kick your frozen ass!"
Killer Frost snarled and hurled her frozen swords at Cisco. Cisco yelped and jumped aside.
"Now, Felicity!" he yelled.
Felicity pulled out "Hot Rod" and pointed it at Killer Frost. She pulled the trigger and fire burst out of the tip. It engulfed Killer Frost.
"No!" Screamed Barry.
Steam exploded in a cloud of vapor where Killer Frost stood. Neither Barry, Hartley, Cisco, or Felicity could see anything. Finally, when the mist cleared, Killer Frost was nowhere to be seen.
"Why did you do that?" asked Barry angerly. "You could have killed her."
"It wouldn't have killed her," said Felicity. "The gun's temperature of absolute heat just balanced out her temperature of absolute zero. Hence the steam."
Hartley, who had remained silent this entire time, spoke up.
"So, you guys weren't lying?"
"No, we weren't," said Cisco, "and had you just believed us in the first place, we wouldn't have to risk all of our necks to come and save you. Now, let's go back to the lab before she comes back.
"Fine," said Hartley. "What can I do to help?"
