/

AN:

Here is today's actual one. Hope you like!

/

The One That Had to be Done

Jitters was a mad crush but Caitlin had managed to fight her way through the crowded shop to secure a high table in the corner. She cupped her drink in her hands and just watched the people around her. Some were sitting calmly and enjoying their morning caffeine, like she was. Most though were rushing around with hectic panicked faces as if it was the end of the world.

Having actual experience with end-of-the-world (or city at least) events gave her a different perspective she supposed. That, and this morning she didn't mind who she was waiting for. It's not like it was unusual for Barry to be late.

The benefit of him being late today was it gave her more time to think.

She's spent a long time last night deciding where to put her flower, carrying it around and trying it out in different places around her apartment. She'd thought hazily at the time that it was her tiredness that was making her procrastinate and be indecisive. But on reflection, it was more likely she had just reached her emotional and thinking capacity and focused all her remaining energy on the plant.

When she'd finally decided it looked lovely on a stand in her hallway and made her way back into bed, her thoughts had returned with a vengeance. She'd gone over her every moment since she'd been woken up, every word and look that had been exchanged between her and Barry, every feeling she had experienced. Wondered at what he could have been thinking and feeling. Pondering where they went from here.

And then she doubted herself, questioning whether what had happened had really happened, or whether she'd just read too much into it; seeing what she wanted to be there and not what was actually there.

It was a vicious thought cycle and had left her feeling mentally drained. After three hours of this she had finally fallen back asleep. Her alarm had woken her in plenty of time to physically get ready for this drink with Barry but everything else was still unsure.

The best thing was to take it back to facts, she told herself. Today she was meeting Barry for a morning drink. Nothing more or less needed to be thought of right now.

She glanced at her phone, wondering where he was. Even for Barry standards this was late.

A sudden buzz of chatter erupted over Jitters and Caitlin looked up to see everyone standing in place, staring and pointing at the TV screen in the corner. A news report was showing a man whose arms had turned into something metallic-looking holding a woman hostage in the middle or a runnel-strewn street. And the Flash was standing a few feet away from him, hands up in a calming manner obviously engaged in talking to him.

Caitlin grabbed her phone in one hand, purse in the other and hurried out of Jitters. Barry was fine, he'd been standing and looked to be talking to the meta, but if he got hit by whatever the metas arms were made of he could be seriously hurt and she needed to get to Star Labs as soon as possible.

But she also needed to know what was going on and quickly selected number 2 on her call list.

"Cisco, what's happening?" She asked.

"Barry's downtown, engaging a guy whose arms have turned to some sort of metal."

"I saw that much on the news report."

"Well Barry's talking to him, seems he was trying to protect someone and they're now in danger and he's a lost it a bit trying to help them," Cisco said. "He busted up the street a bit with some serious strength but he hasn't hurt anyone. Barry's doing a good job of talking him down."

"Ok, well I'm on my way in," Caitlin sighed, relieved that it seemed this meta could be talked to and Barry wasn't in immediate danger of an attack or fight. "If anything changes and he needs medical attention before I get there, ring me. I'll talk it through with you guys. Do not, and I mean this, do not google it together and then diagnose him and implement a stupid supposed treatment."

"Jeez Caitlin, that happened one time."

"I mean it. I'll see you soon."

"Yeah, bye."

Caitlin hurried to Star Labs as quick as she could, not relaxing until she walked into the Cortex and stood in front of her screen where she could monitor all of Barry's vitals.

"We're going to help you," Barry was saying earnestly to the new meta. "But you've got to let me help you. Let her go and we can go someplace else to keep talking."

"I can trust you?" The man said, a note of disbelief in his voice. "The cops, they wouldn't listen…"

"I'm not the police," Barry answered. "I'm the Flash. If you say there's another meta out there who is planning on hurting people then I'm going to stop him. And you can help me."

"Alright." The man lowered his arms and the woman he had been holding scrambled away from him, backing towards Barry.

"It's ok, you're ok now," Barry reassured her. "Are you feeling alright?"

The woman nodded but didn't take her scared eyes off the meta, who was looking down at the ground, shame written all over his face.

"If you walk over to that policeman there, see him?" Barry said, gently turning the woman in the direction he wanted and pointing out Joe. "He's going to make sure you're fine."

The woman started walking over to Joe and Barry turned back to the meta.

"Guys," he said under his breath. "I'm going to bring him back to Star Labs. I'll take him to the Speed Lab so he doesn't see you in the Cortex."

"Ok, Barry. If you're sure," Cisco said.

"If you can take him to the treadmill and get him to sit on it, I can do some preliminary scans," Caitlin said. "Just weight, height, body mass information really but it might help us figure out his powers if he doesn't tell us or doesn't know himself."

"Ok."

"Guess we're having company over today," Cisco muttered.

Caitlin quickly began pulling up programmes and adjusting the treadmill's readouts. "Guess so."

On the screen they saw Barry walk over to the meta. "I want to take you somewhere," he said. "A safe place of mine. We can talk some more and figure out what to do next."

He held out his hand and the meta took it, the two of them disappearing in a flash of lightning.

The rest of the day was a mad rush to find the other meta. Cisco dubbed him Siphon when they discovered he could leech energy away from things. It turned out their original meta – called Transfix by Cisco for his ability to transform his hands and arms into any metal after he touched it and gain abilities associated with the properties of that metal (for example if it was steel he got extra strength) – had known Siphon and they had discovered their abilities together and learnt how to control them together. But Siphon had been fired from his job last month and then lost his girlfriend and he wasn't dealing with it well, leading to him and Transfix having a shouted argument this morning.

Transfix said that during the fight Siphon had promised others would pay for his grievances.

Once they found Siphon Barry and Transfix had tried to talk to him, but the man was too far gone in his rage. It had all culminated in a fight that left a hole in 6th street, Siphon in meta-cuffs with the police, Transfix turning himself in because of the part he'd played and Barry in the med bay as Siphon's ability had counter-acted the healing part of his gifts. Though luckily not his speed as then it would have been a totally different ending.

Caitlin was moving around the room, putting things back in their rightful places. When Barry had first come in she'd dropped everything and moved like a speedster herself to get him diagnosed, treated and comfortable. He'd been awake at the beginning of her exam out had passed out pretty quickly. Now all there was left to do was wait for him to come round and assess him whilst conscious.

This was the bit Caitlin hated the most. The waiting with nothing to do. If she was actively working on how to save him she couldn't spare the thoughts to process what she was feeling and all the 'what ifs'. And when he was in the middle of a fight, as much as she disliked the risks he took and when he got hurt, she was constantly thinking of how to help him, ready with a suggestion or there with information if he needed it. But the waiting afterwards, when everything was over but it wasn't back to normal; when he should wake up but she didn't know when he actually would. That always got to her.

A groan sounded from the bed behind her.

Caitlin turned and smiled with relief as Barry fidgeted on the bed, obviously waking up. "Hey there, take it easy."

"Cait?"

"It's me. Can you remember what happened today?"

"There were some new metas. I talked one guy down, then we had to find another guy, the friend, his friend?" Barry squinted, his eyes unfocused as he remembered. "I ended up in a fight with the friend, who made me feel like I was running through quicksand. I think… Did I hit a building at one point…?"

"Yes you did. And the quicksand feeling? That would be the energy drain. His powers against yours," she said. "Your speed wasn't affected much, as in your ability to run fast, but your healing ability is being a bit well, slow. It'll actually take you some time to recover from this one. I think once your body is past the fight mode it'll probably hit you hard. You should get home whilst you can and then settle in for a good long sleep."

"But I forgot something from today," Barry said suddenly, looking up at her with clear eyes. "Our drink. I'm sorry Cait."

"It's ok, you were needed," she answered gently. "We'll have another morning drink another day. Not tomorrow," she cut him off seeing him about to speak. "You are going home and you are resting for as long as your body needs. No alarms, no reasons to have to get up. Resting."

"But I have something I have to do tonight," he protested, staring at her deeply. "Its day eigh-"

"It's a rest day," Caitlin said gently and reached over to take his hand and give it a squeeze. "Whatever you have to do," and here she paused to stare at him, making sure he knew she meant what she said, as she was fairly certain she knew what was about to say "is going to wait. Doctor's orders."

Barry intertwined their fingers and squeezed back, the pressure light and showing her just how beat he really was.

"Cisco will get you home," she said. "And we'll deal with everything tomorrow, when you're feeling better. Back to your usual self."

"I really wanted that drink with you this morning," Barry mumbled, his eyes closing and then jerking himself up only for his eyes to start to close again.

"Me too," Caitlin whispered as he lost his fight against sleep. "But I'll wait Barry."

She organised Cisco, with the help of Joe into getting Barry home and into a bed. Then gave everyone strict instructions to let him rest, saying if there was an emergency in the next twenty-four hours it would have to be dealt with by Vibe or the police themselves. Both agreed and Caitlin did one last check on Barry before leaving to get home to her own bed.

It was about an hour later, when she'd just finished tidying up after dinner and was considering whether to take a quick bath to help her de-stress or just go straight to bed, when her phone rang. She looked to see who was calling her this late, a little jolt of panic running through her when she saw it was Barry.

"What's wrong? Are you okay? Are any of your injuries worse?" she answered, making herself breathless with the need to ask the questions.

"Ok, so don't get mad," he started.

"Not a great way of starting a conversation with me Barry," she answered. "Especially when you haven't answered my questions. And when you're supposed to be asleep."

"I'm fine," he chuckled. "Well sort of. As in, fine my injuries are not worse; they're actually starting to heal. And I was sleeping but then I woke up and felt a bit better and I thought-"

"Barry…"

"When you said I should just go home and rest because the energy sapping would probably catch up with me and I would need to sleep it off…" He took a breath.

"You mean when I as your doctor ordered you to do bed rest," Caitlin corrected.

"Yeah, well. Turns out you were right. It has caught up with me and I don't think I can walk, not really, definitely not far."

Caitlin rolled her eyes to herself and suppressed her need to shout at him. "Where are you? I'll get Joe to you or Cisco to vibe over. And then get you back in bed."

"For that to happen I'd have to be at home."

"Barry," Caitlin said. "What were you thin- No, I don't want to know, it will only make me shout at you." She took a breath. A deep one. "Tell me where you are please, so I can get someone to take you home."

"…Or you could just come open your door?"

Caitlin stood dumbly in shock. He hadn't. She thought she'd told him not to-

"Cait?"

Caitlin didn't reply, just quickly moved towards her door and flung it open. Sure enough Barry Allen was slumped in the hallway, his cell phone held in one hand and a small box clasped in the other. He was pretty much the same colour as the building's light beige walls.

"Ok, can I just give you this and we skip the part where you were right, I didn't listen and you get mad?" He asked with a strained smile.

"You idiot," she replied and quickly walked over to him. "Do you want the list of things, of harm, that you could be doing to your body right now?"

"I did sleep," he protested as he tried to help her get his body up. "And then I woke up and felt better. I thought I could be over here in a quick flash and then get straight back to bed and finish sleeping it off."

Caitlin shook her head as she managed to get her arm around him and pull him upright. Together they stumbled into her apartment and towards her couch. She got him down onto it and then started arranging cushions around him, making him as comfortable as possible.

"You are staying right here, where I can keep an eye on you," she said. "And you are doing nothing but sleeping. Getting the rest your body needs. Understood?"

Barry nodded slowly, his eyes already starting to fall closed. "Can you-"

"Yes Barry?"

"Here," he mumbled and through what must have been a Herculean effort, lifted his arm to hold out the box in front of her.

"You shouldn't have," she replied but took the box from him.

"Yes I did," he answered. "I had too."

His arm slumped and his whole body went lax and Caitlin knew he'd passed out. His body must be truly taxed and trying to heal itself. She got a blanket, covering him up so he'd been warm, then went to the kitchen and poured a jug of water, grabbed a glass and retrieved some protein snacks. He'd need to replenish his energy as soon as he woke up and this would have to do to quell the hunger if she wasn't nearby.

After making sure he was as settled as she could make him Caitlin looked down at the box with a number 8 on it. It was small, fitting just inside her hand and felt very light. Feeling guilty at herself for wanting to open it, she rationalised that if he didn't see her opening it then she could still maintain being mad at him for taking the risk to get it to her. Because she did not approve of that; she would have waited for him to be better and then have it. And it wasn't that she needed a present every day too.

But with the box in her hands, her fingers skipped the thinking part and went straight to the opening part.

Inside were eight small silver earrings, all with a nature theme. There was a cloud pair, raindrop pair, sun pair, moon pair, leaf pair and flower pair. But most importantly to her, there was a pair of lightning bolts and a pair of snowflakes.

/