"Remind me why I agreed to come along with you?"
Caitlin's voice replied jokingly as she searched through the racks in front of her. "Because you adore me and can't say no to my pouty face."
Cisco closed his eyes and blew out a puff of air. Well, she wasn't wrong. Caitlin was one of his best friends and it wasn't abnormal for them to spend a lot of time together outside of work. Although he hadn't expected her to ask him to come with her while she tried on swimsuits.
Wasn't that a boyfriend/girlfriend thing? He had no clue. None of Cisco's previous relationships had ever gotten this far. Not that he and Caitlin were in one because they were just friends. Anyway, a friendship wasn't a "relationship" relationship. Right?
Maybe he was thinking too much.
"Oh, Cisco, you know that's not what I mean. You're my best friend and there's no one else who I'm comfortable enough to do this with."
"You do have Iris, though." Immediately after he said that, his brain screamed at him for being an idiot. If she wanted to model swimsuits for him who was he to argue?
"Hmm. It's true that she and I have been growing closer, but we still haven't reached that point where we critique each other on clothes."
He chewed on a strawberry Twizzler. "You could've asked Barry then."
"No, he's like a brother to me," she said, wrinkling her nose.
"And I'm not?"
"You're just...different." Caitlin avoided eye contact as she continued to search for swimsuits.
Cisco hummed lightly, but he didn't bother responding. He also thought of Barry as a brother, but he could never think of Caitlin as a sister. His feelings for her ran much deeper than that. Not that she knew.
"Alright, alright, but if you show off some crazy swimsuit with feathers, I'm not gonna be able to hold back my opinion."
"Then it's a good thing I don't wear crazy clothes. Now go away so I can shop. I want your opinion on these suits firsthand when I come out of the dressing room. You'll have a fresher outlook that way." She playfully nudged him with her elbow to stop him from looking at one of the suits she had picked up.
"Will do. I'm sure I can find something to occupy myself with."
He drifted towards the men's section of the store. Although he didn't plan on getting anything from this place, he browsed through their large selection of sunglasses. There were some nice styles here. He tried on his fiftieth pair when Caitlin appeared next to him.
"Okay, I'm ready." She held up the handful of swimsuits in her arms.
"How many did you get?" They walked to the dressing room area and he sat on the little couch that was several feet away from the doors.
"I could only found six that I liked." She took them into one of the dressing rooms and hung them on the little knobs in the wall.
"Wait, we've been in this store for half and hour and you only found six swimsuits to try on?" He looked at her incredulously.
"I can't help that I'm picky about what I wear and some of the styles are too loud for my taste." Caitlin put her hands on her hips and gave him a look.
"Okay, okay. I've never been shopping with a woman who wasn't my mom and younger than forty before so this is all new to me. Most of my clothes are casual and the only thing I try on are pants."
She gaped at him. "You don't try on the shirts you buy?"
"Nah, I usually know how they'll fit by holding them against my chest. Shopping doesn't take long for me."
Caitlin clucked her tongue disapprovingly. "The next time you go shopping, I am coming with you. There's no reason you shouldn't try on everything you buy."
"But that takes too long and I hate shopping."
"Cisco, you are incorrigible," she laughed as she closed the door. "Shopping is supposed to be a process. It's annoying at times, sure, but nothing feels as good as trying new clothes on and knowing how attractive you look in them."
He leaned back against the couch. "You really know how to make shopping sound romantic."
"I don't know about that, but it can be fun if you let it." There was a rustling behind the door for a few moments and Caitlin sighed loudly.
"Something wrong?"
"This suit is a lot smaller on me than it looked on the rack. It's almost pornographic."
Cisco choked on his Twizzler mid-swallow and coughed hard.
"Are you okay?"
He slapped at his chest, wheezing. "Yeah, I'm good. I just didn't expect you to say that."
"Oh. Well, this suit is a big no, so I'm going to try on the next one instead."
There was a little pang of disappointment in Cisco's chest that he felt at not being able to get a glimpse of Caitlin in the so-called pornographic swimsuit, but he gave himself a mental slap.
Stop it. You respect Caitlin. She's your best friend and you shouldn't ogle her. Don't be that guy.
He'd been so caught up in his thoughts that he hadn't heard his name being called until a hand reached out and touched his shoulder.
"Cisco!"
"Huh?" He looked up and his eyes widened as Caitlin backed up. The swimsuit she wore was a light pink off shoulder one piece with a ruffle that lined the front of her chest.
"What do you think?" She turned in a slow circle so he could see the entire thing.
He resisted the urge to lick his lips since she looked pretty hot. "You've always looked good in pink, but this is kinda off-putting because of the extra little wrinkles in the fabric."
"What wrinkles? I didn't see any-oh." Just as he said, there were wrinkles on the stomach of the swimsuit which didn't go away when she gently tugged the bottom down. "That's unappealing. Oh, well. On to the next one." She went back into the dressing room and shut the door.
The following three swimsuits were okay, but Cisco and Caitlin both agreed that they didn't look right. The sixth swimsuit was the last one Caitlin had to try on and she hoped that it would fit. She hadn't found any other swimsuits in the store that she liked.
Not only that, but Cisco would likely fall asleep on the couch while she went to look for more swimsuits to try on. He hadn't teased her about that today. It had been a surprise, but a welcome one. She knew her best friend loved to make little quips and tease her sometimes, but he abstained from that regarding her swimsuits.
What was more interesting was how his face got a little red every time she came out of the dressing room. It was odd. She never wore two piece swimsuits, meaning that none of her choices today had been too revealing or risqué. Of course, she'd ask him what he thought and he always gave her an answer, but he'd stammer in his reply and fiddle with his shirt.
Perhaps he was uncomfortable seeing so much of her skin. Caitlin felt a rush of guilt as she considered that she may have placed her friend in an uncomfortable situation. And yet...she wondered if this could be an opportunity.
Cisco had been her best friend for several years and he'd seen her at her highs and lows: dolled up in her most expensive dress, dressed down in jeans and a sweatshirt, fresh faced with no make up, face tear-stained with eyeliner running down her cheeks. He'd seen it all.
When Caitlin left the team, he stayed in contact with her via text and was always the first person to believe in her even when everyone else doubted her. He was there for her and his friendship kept her going through Ronnie's death, Jay's betrayal and Julian's moving away.
Once a week, he'd invite her to his apartment and cook for her, he watched her favorite movies with her, listened to her when she had to vent. He knew how to cheer her up and make her smile when she felt like staying in bed for a millennia.
Cisco was the one constant in Caitlin's life that she could never give up. The thought of having a life without him in it scared her to death. She felt warmth when she saw him and those feelings seemed to grow stronger every day. There was no other word for it. She loved him.
Caitlin swallowed hard and rubbed her palms on her knees. Her heartbeat pounded against her chest as she looked at herself in the dressing room mirror. Killer Frost told her that she should tell Cisco how she felt as soon as possible. Her icy alter ago was quite fond of her best friend and had remarked on his attractiveness in the past.
You know he has a head that's perfect for aggressive hair-pulling , Frost had cackled once a few weeks ago.
That observation had begun to pop up in Caitlin's mind from time to time while they worked. If her eyes were fixed on Cisco, she'd start having naughty thoughts about him and Frost would cheer her on, delighted by her awakened desire for her best friend.
Steeling herself, Caitlin stood, gave herself a once over and stepped out to show her last swimsuit to Cisco. His eyes had been closed, but they opened the moment he heard the door creak. He stared at her in shock and everything seemed to slow down for her.
She stepped towards him and turned in a spiral to let him see the whole thing. After she faced him again, she held her hands out in a ta-da motion and asked, "Well, what do you think?"
Cisco had seen Caitlin's long legs in the many mid-length dresses and pencil skirts she owned, but she looked absolutely amazing in this. Bright colors always looked good on her ivory skin and this was no exception. The lime green crochet high-neck swimsuit flattered her shape and was sexy in a way that fitted Caitlin's taste.
The suit teased a bit of her skin underneath the crocheted part. The sides of her breasts winked from behind the fabric, as did her belly button. The high neck of the suit made her collarbone look inviting and Cisco found himself wanting to nibble at her neck.
Shaking those thoughts away, he replied, "You look beautiful, Caitlin. Stunning. I think this is the one." He grinned and gave her two thumbs up.
"Really? I thought so too! Thank you, Cisco!" She went over to give him a hug which he returned.
"You're welcome." He rubbed her back awkwardly, no doubt feeling strange that he was touching her bare back. They stayed like that for a brief period, then he pulled away from her. "So I guess you're good to go, huh?"
She reached out to grab his hands. "Not quite."
He furrowed his brow and opened his mouth to speak, but she beat him to it by placing her mouth on his. A small groan left his throat, but he didn't pull away again. This time, he responded in kind, pressing his lips to hers gently and slowly.
It felt like an eternity until they separated and Caitlin's eyes locked on to Cisco's. They still held hands and neither one of them spoke for a moment. Emotions swirled around in their heads and they needed to breathe before they talked. He went first.
"Why did you do that?" His voice was breathy and halted.
"Because I've wanted to for a long time. I...I love you, Cisco. And as more than just a friend." It was nerve-wracking, exposing her feelings like that, but she needed him to know.
Yeah, things might be a little weird between them for a while, but they'd get past it. They had experienced all kinds of craziness in their everyday lives so a kiss couldn't be too big of a wrench to throw into the fray.
Cisco looked down at their fingers and entwined them. The gesture made Caitlin's heart soar and she watched him closely, anticipating his answer.
"I love you, Caitlin. I have for the past few years and maybe longer than that. I trust you more than anyone else alive and I love being around you. I should've said something sooner, but I was scared you might not feel the same way and I'd feel stupid for telling you how I feel."
The brunette let out a happy sigh and she pulled their hands up, pressing her lips to his knuckles. "Then aren't you lucky I return the sentiment?" She sent him a smile and held his hands to her chest as she let her forehead rest against his. Her free hand reached out to touch his cheek and stroke the skin with her fingertips.
Cisco shuddered and covered her hand with his. "So now that we know how we feel about each other, where do we go from here?"
"Well, I'm going to change, buy this swimsuit and then, I'm taking you out to lunch."
His eyes lit up. "A date?"
"Yes, and we're not going to Big Belly Burger. I'm treating you to Luigi's, so I'll need you to breach me home after we leave here." She pecked his lips softly before speeding back to her dressing room.
He sat back down on the couch and ran a hand through his hair. Okay, so he and Caitlin admitted that they love each other out loud and they're going to go out to eat at a classier joint than typical fast food.
I feel like I could leap all the way to Mars, he thought. Cisco sat on the couch in a happy daze until Caitlin joined him, slipped her arm in his and they walked through the store with a pep in their step. After she bought the swimsuit, he noticed how at ease he felt with her body being so close to his. He'd never grow tired of it and from the tender look in her eyes as she smiled at him, neither would she.