I haven't had a chance to watch the new episode yet, but I don't really mind spoilers.
Prompt from Big Fan. Iris turns up at Star Labs during the fight between Flash and the reverse Flash.
Barry ran as fast as he could to where Joe and Eddie were fighting the Reverse Flash. He grabbed the man and forced him away, bringing him to STAR Labs. Together they ran up the building. They forced their way through the glass sending shards everywhere, a few of them hitting Barry himself. The two speedsters continued their trip and down the STAR Labs building.
Flash flew through the air and landed on a car windshield. "Ahhhh!" More glass shards dug into his back. That moment is when he saw Iris and began to pray that no one else would. Especially the man in yellow who had already threatened her life.
Iris watched as the Flash, who had once tried to kill her boyfriend, fought against the man who had just tried to kill her boyfriend and her father and who, she assumed, had probably killed her best friend's mother.
She winced as the Flash was thrown into a car. Iris noticed Caitlyn and Cisco out of the corner of her eye. They were also watching the fight.
Had they been helping the Flash? If so, had Barry known who he was too? Was that why he was dropping hints about the Flash not being the Flash anymore on the day of the power outage? Too many questions swirled inside Iris's head, but one stood out the most in her mind. Was the Flash telling the truth when he denied being in control of his mind when he attacked Eddie? He had been a hero in every other instance. She justified. Now he was going after a criminal who only he was on the same playing field as.
The man in yellow turned toward where Caitlyn and Cisco were standing and ran towards them. The Flash followed, seemingly determined not to let the yellow man hurt them, or even get close to them. Briefly Iris wondered if he would still protect her like that even after her cold unforgiving words the last time they had seen each other, before mentally chastising herself. What in the Flash's character would even hint to him holding a grudge, and especially refraining from saving someone's life because if it? She needed to have more faith.
She watched as the Flash and the man in yellow fought at super speed. Iris could hardly tell what was happening, but she could tell that the Flash wasn't doing so well. He was thrown to the ground, and by the time he got back up the yellow suited man had thrown him a few yard away again. The Flash called out in pain as the Reverse Flash appeared to break his arm. The other man continued to attack the Flash. He tried to fight back, but the other man was proving to be too strong for him to beat.
"Barry!" Caitlyn called out just barely loud enough for Iris to hear.
No, Barry isn't the Flash. He would have told me. He tells me everything. Except for the fact he's been in love with me for most of our lives. She thought.
Then something more impossible than two men moving at the speed of sound happened. The man in yellow pulled off the Flash's mask. Iris could no longer deny it. Barry Allen was the Flash. The Flash was Barry Allen. They were one and the same. Barry was thrown down, and his mother's murderer stood over him, about to strike.
Iris hadn't noticed the man who had come up behind Barry, and it appeared that no one else had either. A stream of fire blew barely a foot above Barry's head and directly into the man in yellow. He was thrown back from the flame.
Barry looked over at the flaming metahuman. He looked like a man who had been living on the streets for a long time, but all Iris could think of was how grateful she was that he had saved her Barry. Then she looked at Caitlyn, who had come to her asking about the flaming meta, and she realized that Caitlyn knew the man. Ronnie, that must be Ronnie. That was the only explanation Iris could think of to explain the way Caitlyn looked at him.
Yellow stood up slowly like he was in pain, but Barry was in too bad of a condition to stand against him. He looked over at Iris worriedly, praying, pleading with any deity that would listen, that he would not notice Iris.
"Our race is not yet done, see you soon, Flash." The vibrating effect used on his voice made it sound dark and twisted, where when Barry vibrated his voice it sounded just as light as Barry was. It was like Barry was joking around when he disguised his voice.
The man in yellow ran away from the group, but Iris knew that he would be back, and soon, just as he promised.
Cisco, Caitlyn, and Iris all ran towards Barry. This was the first time either of them noticed Iris. Cisco and Iris lifted Barry to his feet, while Caitlyn continued on to Ronnie. No one could blame her. This was her dead fiancé.
Iris could barely hear the words that must have broken the other woman's heart. "Don't look for me again." He faced her then lit up and flew away from the woman he had once, and maybe still, loved and off into the night sky as Caitlyn watched with broken eyes.
Barry turned to face her.
"What are you doing here, Iris? You could have been hurt." Barry looked at her with both relief and sadness in his eyes.
"I came to talk to you." She looked him in the eye and willed him to understand what she wanted to say but didn't have the words to do so.
Unfortunately all he understood was that what she needed to say needed to be said in private. He guided her away from the others, leaving Cisco to take care of Caitlyn.
They stood in awkward silence for several minutes, and Barry couldn't help but feel even more heartbroken than he had earlier that day. Before his confession, silence had always been comfortable and companionable, but now the best way to describe it truly was awkward.
Iris shivered. It may not get very cold here, but it was colder than usual. Barry put his hands on her arms and vibrated moving his hands up and down her arms. When he pulled his hands away she was warm and a smile appeared on her face. Barry was thrilled that he could still get her to smile, maybe there was hope for them yet.
Iris inhaled deeply, sooner or later she would have to say something, she desperately wanted it to be sooner, but the words still weren't coming.
"Barry, you misunderstood my silence earlier." She began.
"What do you mean?" He shook his head, refusing to get his hopes up.
"You took my silence as letting you go and not returning your feelings, but that's not what it was. I was just in shock, ok?" Despite his attempts to quell it, his hope was rising. "I love you too, Bear." There it was. His heart swelled in his chest. "I thought that only loved me like a best friend or a sister, so that's how I treated you. I thought it would help. Then I started dating Eddie thinking that would help, and I really did like him. It's just-nothing was the same. I've always loved you. And hearing that you love me too, I was shocked, and if you'd have stayed around for just a few minutes longer, you would have seen how happy I was." Iris was smiling like crazy while Barry just stared at her. Her smile lessened into as she became extremely nervous. "Say something?"
Barry opened his mouth to speak, but apparently it was becoming normal for no words to tumble out of their mouths, so instead he stepped closer to her and pull her in for a kiss.
It was worth the nearly twenty five year wait.