Summary: It's been a few months since breaking things off with Cynthia and Cisco's well meaning friends are trying to get him back on the horse, as it were. He would rather take things at his own pace and it seems like the only one willing to do that is Harry.
Which is probably why Cisco comes up with a truly terrible plan... after all, the others would leave him alone if he was already dating someone, right?
Notes: Flufftober Oct.7 - Meddling Friends
Moving On (All Along)
"Linda's back in town," Iris said into the comms.
Cisco snickered when Barry audibly stumbled and nearly tripped. "That's great... but, uh, also awkward," was the speedster's eventual response.
"Yeah, well, she's still my friend and I'm glad she's back. I was thinking maybe we could meet up with her for dinner. Cisco could come along maybe, make it a little less weird for you." Iris grinned at Cisco. "What do you say?"
"I am not going to let you set me up with my best friend's ex, Iris." He gave her a knowing look. "This is the third time you've tried to stealth me into a double date and I'm not falling for it again. Linda was very nice and you'll have to tell her hi for me, but..." Cisco shook his head. "Iris, please stop."
She sighed. "Alright. But you've just seemed so lonely since breaking up with Cynthia. You spend all your free time holed up in your lab. When was the last time you went out clubbing with us or had a Star Trek night with Barry or watched old Hitchcock films with Caitlin or dragged Harry out to see an Indie film? There was some fan convention two weeks ago and you didn't even consider going." Iris patted Cisco's arm gently. "We're all worried for you, Cisco. It's been months and you said it was a mutual break up... but you aren't really moving on."
Laid out like that, it did sound like he was wallowing over much. It was just... Cisco had thought he had a future with Cynthia only to for it to all go up in smoke as they realized how different and, ultimately, incompatible what they wanted in life really was. It had left Cisco wondering if that wedding he'd once vibed himself having was ever really going to happen or if his best chance at happiness had already passed him by.
Sometimes he regretted not watching just a little more of that vibe, not seeing who'd be waiting for him at the alter. But Cisco hadn't wanted to question down the road if he was only married to that person because he'd seen them get hitched. He'd wanted everything to be real, without question and beyond reproach. Somewhere along the way, though, he had convinced himself that someone waiting for him must be Cynthia. And... she wasn't waiting for him anymore.
Maybe she never was.
Cisco sighed. "You're right. But I don't think jumping back into dating is going to help. But thanks, Iris. You're a good friend."
She smiled at him fondly. "Though maybe a little too pushy. How about we start small, then. This weekend, Team Flash hits the club scene. And if Linda joins us I promise it'll be because she's a friend and not because I'm trying to set you up with her, okay?"
"Okay."
Unfortunately, where one friend stopped, another started.
"Dude, according to the Book of Ralph," said the man himself, "if you've gone this long without a date, you're in a rut. You need to break out, get back in the saddle, flirt with the ladies." Ralph waved coyly at two such ladies at the bar.
One of them looked disdainfully amused, but the other waved back with a grin.
"Or the gentlemen," Ralph added, grinning brightly at Miss Smiles.
If Cisco was lucky, Ralph would distract himself by going over to flirt with the cute woman and leave Cisco to his own devices. "You wrote the Book of Ralph."
"Which is how I know it contains great wisdom," Ralph teased, elbowing Cisco lightly.
"I'll get back in the saddle when I'm ready to, Ralph." Cisco waved him off. "She's interested in you, man. Go for it. I'm gonna go dance with Caitlin... or Frost, actually, looks like they swapped places out there."
"I'm just worried about you. You sure you don't want to try your luck?"
"I appreciate the concern, but I just need some more time to figure stuff out before I start putting myself back out there." Cisco made a shooing motion even as he abandoned his empty beer glass to head for the dance floor. "Go, flirt, have fun."
Ralph sighed and nodded, heading for the bar.
"Not taking Stretch's advice?" Frost asked as Cisco joined her.
"Ugh, not you too. No one's gone after Caitlin to get her to start dating again," Cisco grumbled.
"Yeah, but she hasn't been completely retreating from everything fun in her life either. Everyone is worried and since the last time you had fun was when you were dating Cynthia... they're trying to help you find your lost spark." Frost frowned and whirled around, grabbing some guy's hand by the wrist. "Touch my ass again and the fingers that do it get frostbite."
"Cold bitch," the offender grumbled, yelping as Frost's hand went icy.
"Damn straight. Now beat it." She let him go and the guy did, indeed, beat a fast retreat.
"I think I'm in love," said a woman who'd been dancing near them but had stopped to stare as Frost took care of the creep.
"She's single," Cisco told her, grinning when Frost blushed. "But her roommate situation is a little odd."
"Hey," Frost shoved his shoulder.
"What? Turnabout isn't fair play?"
"I haven't been trying to set you up, not that I, uh... hi?" Frost gave a little wave and then covered her face with her hands. "Oh, now I'm embarrassing myself. Caity should take over again."
"Hi, I'm Rin," the woman who seemed very taken with Frost introduced herself.
"Uh, Frost," she said, peering through her fingers.
"Want to dance with me, Frost?"
And, yeah, time for Cisco to make himself scarce.
Cisco collapsed into his chair and gave a long, drawn out, exasperated sigh. Grabbed his keyboard as he leaned back and covered his face with it. He loved his friends but, oh, he was getting so tired of their shenanigans.
"Something tells me you're in a bad mood," Harry said, rolling over on his own chair. Since Cisco had restored most of Harry's intelligence, the older man had been visiting Earth-2 more regularly and slowly recouping some of what he'd lost. Though he couldn't be one of the team's genius scientists anymore, he still provided plenty of insights, wisdom, and friendship. Cisco knew Harry was struggling to feel like he was still valuable to the team, but as far as Cisco was concerned Harry had proved his value in spades already. He'd helped them identify the identity of a meta serial killer within a few weeks of Cicada's emergence on the scene, recognizing the man had to be a father or father figure. Someone whose daughter had been hurt the night of the satellite crash.
Though Cicada's dark energy infused dagger had been a problem in that it temporarily knocked out metas whose powers were granted by dark energy - rendering Barry, Cisco, and Ralph powerless in his presence. But Harry to the rescue again as he reminded everyone that Frost's powers weren't dark energy based. They still didn't know how Frost had come to be part of Caitlin, but she still didn't trigger Harry's meta identifying watch which meant... not a drop of dark energy in Caitlin's system. Or Frosts. And since the mental block DeVoe had used on Caitlin had degraded within a few weeks of being inflicted, Frost was well able to be their heavy hitter.
One shattered dagger later and Cicada was nothing more than a stronger than average man with a wound that wouldn't heal but, strangely, wasn't killing him either. And, as Harry had predicted, he was a father figure to his niece, who was comatose in the hospital.
All taken care of before the end of September instead of dragging out until May like problems of that size usually did. Cisco credited Harry and Frost.
But Cisco could have done with a longer term enemy right about now. "If it isn't Iris playing matchmaker, it's Ralph brandishing that stupid book at me, or Caitlin telling me I should give the cute barista my number. And I don't know which barista she was referring to because I wasn't really paying attention when I gave my order, so even if I was interested in a repeat of what happened with Kendra, I don't know if she meant the pretty blonde woman or the brunet guy."
Harry snickered. "You're own fault. You kept skipping out on their invites to do friends stuff and now they're all grasping at straws trying to get you to have fun again."
"'They're all grasping at straws' implies you aren't." Cisco moved the keyboard off his face and peered over at Harry. "Why is that?"
"Last weekend we built the Lego Death Star and then you made me play co-op on the Lego Star Wars collection with you. Two weeks ago we marathoned the Jurassic Park movies because you felt like dinosaurs. Before that you skipped that convention because I asked you to evaluate my recovery progress with Ryan on Earth-2. Which I appreciate you not mentioning to everyone, but..." Harry shrugged. "You are a lot more reserved than you used to be. But to be honest, that's as much from trauma as it is because of Cynthia. Well... maybe a little more on the side of trauma. That you're taking longer to come back from a number of traumatic events clustered closely together... it's not a bad thing. But it is concerning for everyone you aren't forcing to endure stupid Lego video game humor and CGI dinosaurs with."
"Think if we told them I've just been spending all my time with you, they'd accuse us of dating?" Cisco asked, mostly joking. He never quite knew with Ralph, though.
Harry was silent.
Cisco peered at him. "What?"
"Nothing." Harry blushed which sent Cisco's eyebrows upwards.
Except now the little gears in Cisco's head were turning. "If they thought we were dating, then they'd get off my back about not having fun anymore. And they'd feel better about giving me space to crawl out of my shell at my own pace."
"I'm not sure lying to our friends is quite the brilliant idea you think it is, Ramon," Harry said dryly. "But... they probably would back off if they thought you'd started dating of your own volition. There's just a couple of obvious flaws with your fake date-mate of choice."
"You, my friend, are flawless. Trust me, wear those t-shirts that show off your arms and no one is gonna question why I'm dating a man with a gun show like yours." Cisco grinned impishly as Harry blushed.
"Thanks," Harry muttered dryly. "Your arms are... buff too."
"Though I admit your flirting game needs much work," Cisco conceded.
"I'm twice your age, Cisco," Harry pointed out dryly.
"Eh, fifty-five to my twenty-nine. It's not the worst age gap ever. I'm sure Hugh Heffner Wells -"
"Pretty sure it was H. Lothario," Harry interrupted with amusement.
"- has had way bigger dating gaps with people young enough that it was genuinely sketchy. I know my own mind and I've been through enough that we're equals in the ways that matter."
"Okay, fine," Harry was avoiding Cisco's gaze now and Cisco wondered if he should drop the idea as a bad one if it made Harry this uncomfortable. "But I do also share the face of someone who murdered you in another timeline. Would you be able to be believably... vulnerable and intimate with... someone who looks like him."
"He isn't who I think of anymore when I see your face. Hasn't been since... not that long after we met, to be honest. Besides, I'm platonically vulnerable and intimate with you all the time. It's not like there's anything but an emotional difference when the actions are romantic instead." And now Cisco sounds like he's arguing for a real romantic relationship with Harry. Which he isn't.
Obviously he isn't.
Though Harry is a total snack and Cisco isn't joking about the gun show. And if he had idly daydreamed here and there about what kissing Harry might be like... no one needed to know.
"I'd need some time to think about it," Harry cautioned.
"Sure thing, but if you want to swoop in and save me the next time someone tries to set me up on a date, I'd appreciate it. Even if you don't go the offended and jealous fake boyfriend route about it." Cisco sighed. It was a silly idea anyway. Of course Harry wouldn't go for it.
"Caitlin?" Cisco gave her the judgy-est look he could manage. "Did I try to force you into a new relationship after things fizzled with Julian?"
Caitlin grimaced. "Well, no, but things fizzling with Julian made me realize I've been looking for another Ronnie and that I might not actually be interested in a romantic relationship anymore. I was sort of unfair to Julian about the whole thing, to be honest." She gave Cisco a judgy look of her own. "You, however, still want a romantic relationship. Don't you?"
"And me wanting a romantic relationship gives you permission to set me up on a blind date without my blessing... how?" They both turned and looked towards the amused man sitting off at the table some ways. Roderick Smith seemed nice enough, but the moment Cisco had realized Caitlin was playing matchmaker with him...
"Technically it's just coffee with friends, not a blind date," but Caitlin was doing her guilty downward stare now.
"Hartley's single. Set him up with Roderick," Cisco said. "I'm leaving. And, Caitlin, this is a good way to get me to stop going places with you. So don't do it again."
He headed over to the table and made a polite excuse to leave, booking it out the door before he could hear whatever Caitlin had to say about the snafu.
Then he headed back to STAR Labs to bitch to Harry about the whole thing.
It all comes to a head when Jesse, who has been visiting Earth-1 more since she and her dad reconciled, tells Cisco that she knows this PhD student on her Earth who'd love to go on a date with someone like him.
"She's smart, funny, has whatever the second highest belt in Judo is, brunette... totally your type," Jesse wheedled. "She's studying multiverse theory so learning you're from a parallel Earth wouldn't freak her out..."
"Cisco doesn't need a girlfriend, Jesse," Harry grumbled, hands settling onto Cisco's shoulders and absolutely not sending a thrill through Cisco's body.
(He was so ridiculously hyper aware of Harry's touch, Cisco thought he might melt just from the warmth of those hands alone...)
"Dad, you can't just speak over Cisco like that..." Jesse started to say.
"We're dating. I'm... Cisco and I..." Harry stammered and Cisco looked up at Harry, feeling a fond warmth in his chest that bubbled up into a smile on his face.
"It's new and we've been trying to keep it to ourselves for a little bit, which makes it, like, a hundred times more awkward that everyone has decided now is the time to try to hook me up with every Tom, Jane, or Sally who looks reasonably attractive and intelligent," Cisco told Jesse. Who was gold-fishing hilariously. "This is not how we were planning on telling you."
"Oh..." Jesse closed her mouth and blinked a few times before smiling. "Sorry for being pushy, Cisco. Though knowing I was winding dad up with jealousy there is pretty funny." She grinned impishly. "I'm glad. You two are good for each other."
Once Jesse left the room, Cisco noted, "you realize she's gonna go tell everyone else now, right?"
Harry made a grumbly noise and slid his arms down so he was no longer resting his hands on Cisco's shoulders, but wrapping Cisco up in a hug from behind instead. Face pressed against Cisco's hair.
"I appreciate the save, though. And from your own daughter too. We should go on a date. Really sell it." Cisco grinned and told himself that Harry's whine didn't send heat rushing to his belly.
"So, you and Harry?" Barry asked and shook his head. "How am I always the last to notice these things? Is it because I'm demi-romantic?"
"Probably," Cisco said with a grin, looking over to admire Harry's arms, ever so nicely showcased by the short sleeves of a slightly tighter than usual black shirt. "How you missed me ogling his arms, though..."
"Shut up." Barry snickered.
He was pretty much the only one other than Jesse who believed their fake dating story without question, though. Iris, Caitlin, and Ralph were all giving them curious but not-quite-sold expressions. Cisco wanted to go over and plant a big kiss on the man, purely for selling the story of course. But he'd already pushed Harry out of his comfort zone and Cisco was loathe to push further.
So Cisco was more than a little surprised when, a few minutes later, Harry was the one who came over to him and dragged Cisco into a kiss. An intense, wonderful kiss that he pretty much immediately opened his mouth up to in order to let Harry do whatever he pleased, moaning as Harry slid his tongue into Cisco's mouth and pressed the younger man against the desk.
Oh that was a good kiss. A toe-curling, spine tingling, brain fuzzing kiss. Cisco tries to follow after Harry's lips when it ends, but, alas, the kiss is over.
Harry turned towards the rest of Team Flash. "Satisfied?"
"Uh, yes, that's... sorry we doubted you," Caitlin squeaked.
Iris was smirking and fanning herself with her hand. Ralph was flushed, but sending Cisco and Harry a thumbs up.
"They might be satisfied," Cisco declared, "but I'm not." And he grabbed the front of Harry's tauntingly tight shirt to drag him into another kiss.
The room had cleared by the time that kiss came to an end. Not that they cared as they kissed again and again...