Happy New Year and I'm back. Thanks to everyone that review/followed/etc and hopefully I won't disappoint anyone with this chapter. I've spent some time on twitter and found #snowbarry. Spent countless hours browsing and twitter-stalking (not even sure if that's a word...) but nevertheless, it was fun.

I've also decided that for some of those plot bunnies running around in my head, I'm going to do a solo story with just one-shots revolving around certain themes. It's going to be mostly fluffy. Who knows? We'll see.

It was an involuntary motion, the familiar action of her hand reaching over to her nightstand to turn off her alarm. It was something that she's done a hundred times, a thousand times even but not today. Caitlin kept her eyes closed, allowing the alarm to continue ringing, knowing that it would eventually shut itself off. After what happened in the past few days, a few extra minutes of sleep was well deserved.

That and she was just too comfortable to care. Her body hasn't been this relaxed in her own bed in a very long time. It was almost like her bed had somehow developed the ability to cater itself to her needs. A peaceful sigh escaped her lips as she nuzzled deeper into her pillow, the warmth of her comforter drawing her back into a state of unconsciousness.

She heard some chuckling in the background but she ignored it. She assumed that it was probably her subconscious trying to tell her to get up and the last thing she wanted to do was to leave her bed right now. The alarm continued to blare, disrupting her sleep. "Spud arm..." She muttered incoherently. "Smore it..."

Her hand hastily inched forward, her intentions clear. She was going to find that phone and disable that stupid alarm but after flailing around for a few seconds, she decided to finally open her eyes and the first thing that she saw was a pair of green eyes staring right back at her. She blinked a few of times, wondering if she was still dreaming because there was no way Barry could be in her bedroom right now. She gave him a lopsided smile, thinking that this was just another one of her dreams.

"Morning Caitlin." Barry cheerfully whispered, smiling coyly at her. "Slept well I hope."

"Hi Barry." She whispered back, a big smile on her face. It felt so surreal that she could feel the warmth radiating off him, his fingers gently running themselves through her hair. "Mmm that feels so nice Barry..."

"You know, you'll have to wake up eventually." He softly said, continuing to massage her scalp.

"Just a few more minutes." She begged, giving him a pouting look. "Please? I just want to spend as much time as I can with you before I have to wake up..."

He laughed and shook his head. "I think you're fully awake Cait." And to prove his point, his fingers stopped and lowered themselves over to her face, just lightly touching each part for a few seconds but it was enough to send goosebumps down her body.

Her eyes then shot open, realizing that this was not another one of her dreams. A blush then appeared on her cheeks as she started to stutter, surprised to find herself lying on top of Barry. "I didn't mean... We didn't..." Her eyes drifted towards Barry, mentally hoping that she didn't do anything embarrassing during her sleep. She pushed herself off his chest to regain her bearings and saw the amusement in his eyes. "You should've woken me up Barry! I can't believe I fell asleep on top of you like that." She said, swatting his chest in protest.

"But you looked so peaceful sleeping. I couldn't bring myself to do it."

Caitlin sighed and then lowered herself back onto the couch, resting her head on his chest once more. She could hear his heartbeat through his dark color t-shirt, a sound that she didn't think she would be able to hear again. She felt his arms wrapping themselves around her waist and she smiled inwardly, secretly enjoying the closeness that they were in. Her hand inched upward, towards his cheek and they gently caressed his jawline, feeling the small stubble that grew overnight.

"Caitlin..." Barry whispered, his tone deepening. He leaned into her touch, a hunger beginning to grow in his stomach.

She felt her own heart fluttering, very aware of what was going on. She pushed herself forward, meeting him halfway as their noses touched and their lips just mere centimeters away from connecting. She could feel his strong arms pulling her closer and she closed her eyes, allowing the anticipation of their first kiss to build.

"Whoops!" Joe exclaimed, "I didn't mean to!"

Her eyes shot open and saw Barry do the same thing, the two of them quickly separating themselves from one another. She stared at the ground, wishing that it would open up and just swallow her up. At least that way, she could avoid the awkward looks coming from Joe.

"Coffee...?" Joe awkwardly asked, standing there holding up a pot of coffee with several cups.

"Bathroom."

"Kitchen."

The two of them shouted out the first words that came to mind, causing Joe to chuckle at their antics. "Do you guys want to try that again?" He teased, smirking at them. His eyes twinkling with amusement. It warmed his heart to see Barry like this, so open and caring with Caitlin, even if he hasn't realized it himself. A part of him wished that he took the time to assess the room before walking in because at least then, he wouldn't have ruined their moment but in his defense, it wasn't intentional and all he wanted to do was to see if they wanted some breakfast. He did make his world famous French Toast after all.

Caitlin saw an opportunity and quickly excused herself, her eyes lingering on Barry before rushing into the bathroom, locking the door behind her. She leaned against the wall, shutting her eyes as she tried to erase that mortifying moment from her memories. After a few seconds, she walked over to the sink and stared into the mirror, her fingers gently brushing across her lips. Even though they didn't kiss, the mental image was more than enough to give her goosebumps.

She sighed and turned on the faucet, her hands started splashing cold water on her face. It was enough to calm herself down but she couldn't help but wonder what Barry was thinking about right now.

While Caitlin was in the bathroom, Barry plopped back down onto the couch, groaning as he buried his face into a nearby pillow. "What was I even thinking Joe?! I almost kissed her!" He said, screaming into the pillow. He closed his eyes, trying to picture anyone, anything else besides Caitlin but it didn't help his case because everything on the couch smelled like Caitlin.

Joe took a seat on his recliner and gave his son a confused look. "Is that such a bad thing Barry? Caitlin obviously likes you and to be honest, you should consider yourself lucky. That girl is a catch."

"You can't know that for sure. What if I just ruined my entire friendship with Caitlin? Oh my god, what if she doesn't want to talk to me again." He dramatically replied, throwing his hands up into the air. "I'm such an idiot. She probably hates me now."

Not a stranger to one of Barry's dramatic outburst, he couldn't help but notice just how much of an effect these two had on each other. It was uncanny, the way that they would look towards each other for confirmation, even if it's just for a split second. Even though each one of them had issues in their lives, they found a way to still remain close.

Barry with Iris and Caitlin with Ronnie...

Even when Barry was gone, Caitlin was the only other person besides himself who would visit his grave on a regular basis. He could tell that she had feelings for his son and from how he was acting right now, he was sure that Barry had feelings for her as well.

"What if she leaves me Joe? What will happen to Team Flash? I don't think Cisco can do what Caitlin does. I'm not sure if he even knows how to stitch up a wound."

Joe resisted the urge to roll his eyes but for the sake of his own sanity, he stepped in before he loses more brain cells to this teenage drama. "Son, you need to stop or else you're going to ruin my hardwood floors."

"I think this is more important than just some hardwood floors Joe."

"Listen to me Barry." Joe said, "I'm going to help you with this but before we do anything, I need you to actually stop pacing and sit down."

Barry stopped his pacing and saw the serious look on Joe's face. He obliged and sat back down, his hands folded on his knee. "So what now?"

"I need you to close your eyes, clear out your thoughts and just answer with the first thing that comes to your mind. Is that okay?"

"Yes."

Joe took a sip of his coffee before continuing. "What do you prefer, peanut butter or egg white omelets?"

"Peanut Butter."

"What kind of car do you want to drive? A jeep or a sedan."

"A Jeep."

"Who do you like more, Felicity or Cisco?"

"Felicity." He then paused, making a face. "Oh, that's going to be awkward."

Joe stifled a laugh and then coughed. "Stop thinking. Do you prefer a tie or bow-tie?"

"Bow-Tie."

"Do you have feelings for Caitlin?"

"Yes." Just as those words left his mouth, his eyes shot open and saw the smirk on Joe's face. "Oh wow..."

"Yup." Joe said, taking another sip of coffee. "Do you need any more help or are you good Barry?"

"I um..." Barry said, his brain functioning about a thousand thoughts a second. "I'm good..."

S.T.A.R Labs

"Okay, what is going on with the two of you?" Cisco asked, narrowing his eyes as he stared at his two best friends. "Yesterday, the two of you were closer than Han Solo and the Carbonite and today, both of you are at the opposite ends of the room. What gives? Does someone have cooties or something?"

"Nothing like that Cisco." Barry answered, speaking up for the both of them. His eyes continued to stare at the monitors, occasionally stealing glances at Caitlin. Ever since his conversation with Joe, he couldn't help but blush whenever he looked at Caitlin. Everything in his body was screaming for him to go for it, to just man up and kiss her but his fears slammed that door shut. Even flashing her back to S.T.A.R labs was kind of awkward. He knew it. She knew it. They both knew it.

Cisco took one more look at them before shrugging his shoulders, shaking his head at their strange behavior. He cleared his throat and knocked on the glass panel, directing their attention to the front of the room. "Ladies and Gentlemen. May I present to you... Flash 2.0" He gleefully announced. "The suit has been redesigned with a new denser but also fireproof material so that if you were to say, get stabbed or shocked, your attacker would need to put a little bit more of an effort into it to kill you Barry. After what happened before T.S or the singularity, we reconciled every metahuman and criminal that you faced and made enhancements to the suit. Caitlin wanted to make sure that you were totally safe." He then paused and studied the suit for another second. "Or as safe as you can be." He added, making a shaking motion with his hand.

"Cisco!" Caitlin chided, interrupting the engineer. That quickly brought everyone's attention towards her and she blushed, coughing awkwardly and strolled up next to him. "Can we please stay on topic?"

He sighed and went over to the emblem, at the forefront of the suit. "Even though the suit was entirely my design, this piece right here." His hands gestured to the Flash symbol. "This bad boy was all Caitlin. She wanted you to have something new, to remind you that whatever happened in the past was the past. This is to remind you, and everyone else, that the Flash is back and he means business!"

Barry walked over to join his friends, his eyes never leaving the new suit. It was totally different from his old suit and he could tell just how much time and effort went into this project of theirs. It touched his heart that they even did this for him. He looked at Cisco and finally Caitlin, smiling at the both of them. "Guys... I don't know what to say..."

"You don't have to say anything man. We just wanted you to come home and now that you're home, we can't have you out there fighting crime in that old raggedly suit. I mean, you're wearing a Cisco original. If you don't look good, how else can I expect other superheroes to come to me for their needs?"

Caitlin tilted her head, shaking in response to his statement. "You might want to rephrase that just a bit Cisco."

"Which part?" Cisco asked. "The Cisco original or the last bit?"

"The latter dude." Barry said, trying to contain his laughter. "I mean Oliver's suit is pretty badass, even without your help."

"Blasphemy. That suit has nothing on this suit. This one is way cooler."

"Way cooler indeed." Caitlin said, agreeing with Cisco. She turned her attention towards Barry and smiled, those pesky butterflies coming back. "Do you want to try it on?"

Not needing to be told twice, he quickly changed into the new suit, feeling the familiar fabric on his skin. He wiggled his body a bit, testing out how the material would react and once he was satisfied, he turned towards Caitlin and Cisco. "So what do you guys think?"

"Perfect." Caitlin whispered, her eyes drinking everything in. "It's perfect."

Cisco clapped his hands together and nodded. "Team Flash baby!" He ran over to the Cortex and started up the suit's monitoring program. His fingers started typing away on the keyboard, nodding his head as the results came back green. "Results look good!" He shouted over to Caitlin. "I just need to make a minor tweak in a few areas but he's good to go."

The two of them watched as Cisco excused himself, muttering out several ideas as he walked out and Barry found himself silently thanking his friend for giving him this opportunity. He turned towards Caitlin and pulled down his mask, his lips tugging upwards to a smile.

"So this morning..." He said, his voice trailing off.

"Some morning right?" Caitlin coolly answered as she took a step back from Barry. Neither of them noticed but every time she took a step backwards, he took a step forward. All the way until she was backed against a wall.

"Caitlin."

"Barry." She coyly answered. Her eyes drank every inch of him in, the fabric doing a very poor job of hiding those lightning induced abs of his. She licked her lips a little, a part of her anticipating all those fantasies that she ever had about him. She knew that there was no Joe or Cisco here to interrupt them...

It was just going to be the two of them and that made her pulse race.

"What do you think you're doing?" She whispered, putting her hands on his chest. A part of her mind was telling her not to do it. Not to ruin their friendship for something that may or may not happen but the more that she stared at him, the more those urges of hers got harder to ignore.

"It took me a while..."

"Almost a marathon I'd say."

"I got lost along the way and it wasn't easy..."

"You came back. That's the only thing that matters."

"I caused you a lot of pain Cait... I don't know how..."

She pressed her finger up against his lips, silencing him. She leaned in, resting her forehead against his. "I lost you once Barry Allen. I'm not going to lose you a second time."

After everything that has happened, all those dreams... all those fears... She threw caution to the wind and pressed her lips against his. Everything in her body was tingling from the initial kiss and she didn't want it to end but she felt him tense up. Her worse fears started coming true and was about to pull back when she felt his arms snake themselves around her waist, stopping her from pulling away.

That kiss... it was unlike any other kiss he had before, even in that other timeline with Iris. The way that electricity went through his body and that hunger in his stomach was barely satisfied. It left him hungry, wanting more than just one kiss so when he sensed her pulling back, he knew he had to stop her. His hands went on auto-pilot, wrapping themselves around her slender waist. His body reacted with hers, shoving her against the wall as her arms roamed around his body, her nails digging into his back. He resisted the urge to moan from the sensation but he continued kissing her with as much fervor as he could.

They soon broke apart, their lips swollen and slightly gasping for air.

"That was unexpected." Barry whispered, smiling as he stared into her eyes. "A good unexpected."

Caitlin blushed. "You caught me off-guard Mr. Allen."

"But I believe it was you who initiated that kiss Doctor Snow." He pointed out. He wanted to say more but he saw the hesitation in her eyes and he frowned. "What's the matter Cait? Was it not good? I can be better, I promise!"

"Of course not Barry! It was good!" She quickly answered. "But I was just wondering... What if this was just a mistake?"

"What if it's not?" He asked, posing a question of his own. "I don't want to worry about the future anymore. I just want to live in the moment, to be with the person who I chose to be with and after all that's happened, I'm tired of having everything predetermined for me." He paused and took the opportunity to interlace their hands together, noticing just how well they fit together. "I want this. I want this more than I've ever wanted anyone before."

She was about to open her mouth but Barry beat her to it. "More than Iris." He answered, putting her doubts to rest. "I want you until you get tired of me Caitlin."

Seeing that her mood picked up a little, he decided to lightly tease her. "Do you know what I was thinking when I jumped into that singularity?"

"Were you thinking about the people that you were leaving behind?"

"You're half right." He answered, surprising her. "I thought about you Caitlin."

"Me?" She squeaked, surprised by the answer. "Why me? I'm no one special in your life."

"Hey hey. That's not true." Barry firmly replied, "There's something very special about you Caitlin Snow and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Not me, not the next meta-human, not anyone. Screw what other people think because to me, you're everything. You're my doctor, my best friend, my partner-in-crime... my home."

If Caitlin wasn't falling for Barry before, she was definitely now. Hearing those words from him... it wiped away any fears she had previously and she let him know by giving his hand a firm squeeze. She leaned forward, on her tippy toes and kissed him on the lips, her arms wrapping themselves around his neck.

"I might have also said that you were going to kill me." He muttered against her lips. "Please don't kill me."

"I can think of several ways that you can make it up to me..." She whispered back, her eyes staring deeply into his. "Are you sure you want this Mr. Allen?"

"Positive."

Let me know what you guys think about this.