I do not own any characters, plots, or anything else pertaining to "The Flash", "Arrow", "Supergirl", or "DC Comics". I'm thrilled that there's such a big following for this story. I had no idea that there were so many Snowbarry fans out there that want them to be together. This chapter will shift back to Iris's POV and will certainly showcase the newfound tension between the three. As always, thanks for following/favoriting and commenting.
Chapter 5
The Charade
Iris walks into Star Labs and spots Barry standing in front of the glass case that contains his suit. He's staring at the suit, like he's in some sort of daze and she knows something's not right. "Barry." He doesn't turn, and Iris takes a few steps closer. "Are you okay?" She hears him sigh to himself before he reluctantly turns towards her. Iris immediately notices the pain and sadness within his eyes and her heart clenches. He puts his hand to his chin, which he does, whenever he's deep in thought. "I'm fine." Iris stares at him for a few more moments, before shaking her head. "No, you're not. Tell me what's going on, Barry?" Barry shakes his head and starts pacing the room. Whatever's bothering him, she knows it's something serious, by the way he's acting. "I don't want to talk about this right now, Iris. I'm going to CCPD to work for a while." With that, he disappears in a flash, and she's left with an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach.
Later that night, Iris gets ready for her engagement party. She puts on the beautiful black dress that she had decided on weeks ago and applies her make-up. Excitement comes over her, at the thought of being one step closer to becoming Mrs. Barry Allen. She just hopes, that Barry's snapped out of whatever was bothering him earlier. There's a knock on the door. "Come in." As she applies her lipstick, the door opens, and she can see Caitlin's reflection in the mirror. Iris takes a breath and puts the lipstick back in her make-up bag, before turning around and giving Caitlin a smile. "Caitlin, what are you doing here?" She returns a smile. "I'm here to pick you up for the engagement party because Felicity got held up in Star City. Something to do with Black Siren." Iris nods and she grabs her clutch off the couch, before following Caitlin out of her apartment. She hopes that she'll be able to bury all those gnawing thoughts about Barry and Caitlin tonight, for her own sanity.
They make their way towards the rehearsal dinner, both making small talk the whole ride, discussing everything except him. Iris hopes that all their conversations won't be so tense and that they'll find a way to get along for the sake of themselves, and for Barry. When they finally arrive, Iris breathes a sigh of relief, and walks into the country club. She makes her way into the elevator and Caitlin follows her inside. The doors close and everything is silent. Neither one of them seem to know what to say to the other. The silence is so uncomfortable, Iris relegates herself to look up at the meter, showing the ascending floors. Thankfully, it only takes a few more moments, before the meter dings, and they finally stop on the right floor.
The doors open, and she quickly walks into the party. She spots Barry standing by the bar and she quickly makes her way over to him. His eyes meet hers and he gives her a smile. Iris feels relief wash over her and she returns the smile. "You look handsome tonight, Barry." He gives her a nod. "Thanks, you look beautiful." Her smile widens at his words and she's glad that he's let go of whatever was bothering him. "Thank you, so, have you seen my dad yet?" Barry shakes his head. "Yeah, I saw him practicing a little earlier, by the head table." Iris smiles at how seriously her father is taking his upcoming speech and she's grateful, that he's put so much of his time into it. She decides to order a glass of red wine, before turning back to Barry. Her heart stops, when she sees, his eyes staring across the room at something, someone. Iris follows his gaze and a pain shoots through her heart, when she sees who he's looking at. Caitlin. She's talking to Kara and her sister, smiling at something one of them said. Iris can't believe that he's looking at her, while she's standing right next to him, at their engagement party.
She recognizes the intense stare on his face because he usually gives her the same look. Iris can sense that something's shifted between him and Caitlin, she just doesn't know what. The thought makes her stomach churn, but she knows, that she's got to get his attention back on her. So, she gently touches his arm, and his eyes dart towards her. The guilt in his eyes reminds her of the look he used to have, when he lied to her dad about sneaking a cookie out of the jar before dinner. "Is everything okay, Barry?" He nods and gives her a smile. "Everything's fine, we're at our rehearsal dinner. Now, let's go see if I can get some of that special alcohol, that Cisco gave me at my Bachelor Party." Iris feels an uneasy feeling at the pit of her stomach, but she ignores it, and gives Barry a smile.
They make their way through the crowd and she spots Cisco walking over to Caitlin, who's now sitting at the table. Iris's heart clenches, as they reach the table moments later. "Hey Cisco, I've been looking for you." Cisco turns and gives Barry a smirk. "What can I do for the groom?" Barry gives him a smile back. "I'd like whatever you gave me at the Bachelor Party." Cisco shakes his head. "No can do, Barry. You didn't fair well on that stuff the last time you drank it and I don't want you to be hungover on your wedding day. The bride would probably kill me." Iris gives him a smile and nods. "I'd definitely kill you." She turns to Barry and his eyes have now shifted over to Caitlin. Iris grabs onto his arm, to try and get his attention, but his eyes are now locked with Caitlin's.
There hasn't been a time in their entire relationship, that she's felt more like a third wheel. "Hi, Cait." Caitlin hesitantly gives him a nod. "Hi, Barry." Iris suddenly feels like she's in High School again, witnessing two people that have a crush on each other, not able to form sentences. Anger rises up inside of her, as she grips Barry's arm. "Let's go greet everyone before dinner." Barry manages to tear his eyes away from Caitlin, long enough to look at her and nod. Iris drags him away and they spend the next half hour greeting everyone. During this time, she tries to figure out, what happened between Caitlin and Barry to draw them so close together. Make Barry look at her in that special way he does, when he's interested in someone, has feelings for someone.
When the deserts are served, Iris notices Caitlin slip away from the table. As soon as her dad appears with a microphone in his hand, she knows exactly why Caitlin left. "I'm going to go to the bathroom before your dad starts." Her heart clenches, as he places a kiss on top of her head, and walks in the direction Caitlin just went. Iris turns to Felicity, who's sitting next to her. "When is he supposed to make his speech?" She turns to her and looks at her curiously. "In about fifteen minutes, why?" Iris is glad that there's enough time for her to sneak away. "I just need to go to the bathroom and it may take me a few minutes." Felicity nods with uncertainty in her eyes and Iris quickly starts her walk across the room.
It's only a few moments later, when she hears voices whispering in the hallway, right outside the bathrooms. They come into view and she hides behind the wall, out of sight. "Why are you doing this, Cait?" She waits to hear the answer, afraid to watch the scene playing out in front of her. "I'm not doing anything, Barry. You're the one that followed me to the bathroom." Her heart is pounding in nervous anticipation. "I followed you because I knew why you left and I wanted to make sure you were okay after what happened earlier." What happened earlier. That one simple phrase has the power to change the course of her relationship with Barry and it scares her. "Nothing happened earlier. I know you love Iris and that you're marrying her tomorrow. I'm fine, Barry." Iris hears Caitlin's heels clomping down the hallway and is about to move, when there's a whoosh sound. She finds herself holding her breath because she recognizes the noise. "You're not fine, Cait. I know you and I know that I hurt you. You told me you had feelings for me and I should have stopped you from leaving." With those words, Iris waits for his inevitable confession, her nightmare come true.