Just a quick reminder, chapters will be short for this story. Most of them will just consist of one humorous badass Barry scene. It won't be a serious, full-length story like my others.

A Little Incentive

Barry walked into the precinct with a smile on his face, a smile that didn't so much as waver when he was approached by a disapproving Joe West.

"Bar," he said seriously, "Where have you been?"

"Dealing with a metahuman," Barry replied calmly, "And a pretty lame one at that. Did I miss anything?"

"No," Joe assured him, "You're good. Singh didn't even notice you were gone."

He looked down at Barry's hands then, and Barry let out a light laugh.

"I may have stopped for a bite," he said, holding up the box in his hands, "Cannoli? I got enough for everyone."

"Where'd you get cannoli's?" Joe asked, staring at the box in confusion.

"That Italian restaurant in Midway," Barry answered, "Excellent food. The service could use some work, though."

"You went all the way to Midway to sit down for a full-course meal?" Joe asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Hey, a speedster's gotta eat," Barry laughed, "And the captain didn't notice I was gone, so no harm done. Actually, I was going to go talk to him now. Hold this for me."

He shoved the box into Joe's hands. Joe watched in confusion as Barry sauntered over to the captain's office, opening the door without knocking.

There was something about Barry that didn't seem quite right. Something strange was going on here.

Singh looked up when he heard his office door open. Usually, people knocked before entering, but there were always those few people on the force who didn't bother with the courtesy. Singh had been expecting one of those officers to walk in through the door, but he was surprised when Barry Allen—the poster child for politeness—walked through the door without so much as a knock.

"Allen," he sighed, "You're interrupting my very limited lunch break."

Barry glanced at the food on Singh's desk and smiled.

"You know," he said in all seriousness, "You should really just put your foot down with your husband. Tell him you're a grown man and can eat whatever you want. You shouldn't have to limit your fast food meals to your lunch breaks at work."

Singh blinked at him.

"My problems with my husband are my business, Allen," he said gruffly, "Now, can I help you with something?"

"I just came to tell you I finished all my cases this morning," Barry said simply.

Singh furrowed his eyebrows at him in annoyance.

"So, you came and interrupted my lunch just to tell me that?" he asked, shaking his head in irritation, "What are you looking for, Allen? A gold star?"

"Not quite," Barry shrugged, "I'm just saying I've done everything assigned to me, and now I have nothing to do. Frankly, I don't know why I'm still here."

Singh blinked at him.

"You're here," he said seriously, "Because this is your job. I don't care if you've finished your cases. You're still on the clock, Allen."

To his surprise, Barry laughed and shook his head.

"You misunderstand me," Barry said pleasantly, "I mean I don't know why I'm still working here. I do everything I'm told and don't get anything for it. Whether I get my cases done in the nick of time or a week early, it makes no difference. The outcome is the same. It makes a man question the point of it all after a while. Maybe it wouldn't bother me so much if I had a little…incentive."

Singh stared at him in shock.

"Allen," he said slowly, "Are you asking me for a raise?"

Barry raised his eyebrows at him.

"And if I am?" he asked with a slight tilt of his head.

Singh blinked at him.

"And if you are, I'd say you've never asked me for a raise before," he said, still in shock by Barry's straightforwardness, "What exactly makes you think you deserve a raise, Allen?"

"Hey, you can pay me whatever you want," Barry said simply, keeping his voice pleasant as he continued, "I'm just saying I get my work done. I do everything I'm told, like a good little CSI, no questions asked. After a while, I can't help but think my talents are being underappreciated here. Let me remind you, I have a double major in chemistry and physics. I finished top of my class at Central University, and when I left school, I had my pick of jobs. I still get a lot of…compelling job offers today."

Singh's eyes widened.

"Allen," he said seriously, "Are you threatening to quit?"

Barry raised his hands up innocently.

"Did I say that?" he asked in mock innocence, "I just said there are a lot of other options available to me. If I wanted to, I could get a job tomorrow that would pay twice as much…unless I had some incentive to stay."

"Okay, hang on," Singh said quickly, "Don't go running off doing anything rash, Barry. We can work this out."

A small smile formed on the kid's face. The little shit. Singh had never seen this side of Barry Allen before. Granted, Singh did tend to take the kid for granted. It was easy to forget just how overqualified Barry was for his position. He should have known it'd only be a matter of time before he and Barry would be having this conversation.

"How's a ten percent raise sound?" Singh suggested hopefully.

Barry sighed.

"Mercury Labs just offered me a position that pays…well, let's just say I'd be making six figures."

"Allen, you know I can't pay you that much," Singh said seriously, his heartrate picking up.

He was going to lose his best CSI.

"Of course not," Barry said reasonably, a small smile on his face, "I was thinking more like…a fifteen percent pay bump?"

Singh let out a breath of relief.

"Yeah," he said quickly, "Yeah, I could make that work, Barry."

A satisfied smile formed on Barry Allen's face.

"Thank you, sir," he said smugly, "I appreciate the courtesy. I'll be getting back to work now. You should come grab a cannoli. I brought a whole box in from that restaurant in Midway."

He moved to leave then but paused in the doorway.

"Don't worry," he said with a wink, "Rob doesn't have to know."

Barry opened the door and exited the room then. Singh stared at the closed door after the CSI left.

What the hell just happened?