Chapter 14:
Running in Place
Iris rubbed her palm over her eyes, taking a break from the blinking cursor on the screen. She wasn't sure if it was the bright screen that was making her eyes hurt or the slowly drying tears that was irritating them. It wasn't every day she and Barry got into a serious fight. Of course there were times they disagreed but they always fixed things in the end. But now…he didn't want to be friends. He wanted space? But what did that mean? How could they have space from one another when they were at each other's sides since they were mere children? How could Barry just…give up on them like that? It didn't make sense. Why didn't he understand?
Giving her head a shake, Iris minimized the Microsoft Word screen and maximized the internet window for her blog. Maybe reading some of their comments would help. Seeing them talk about The Streak or whoever he was would make her feel better.
She still buzzed in excitement from her meeting with The Streak. Her heart still leapt at the thought that she was that close to him, she could touch him if she wanted. He was real. He was there. He was hope for the city that it was protected. Not that the CCPD wasn't helping but, well, they couldn't move as fast as him. In the time it took them to respond to a call The Streak could have everything diffused in a span of three seconds. As they continued to pick up the pieces and plod on after the particle accelerator exploded, a little bit of hope and an extra hand couldn't hurt. Especially with the new developments plaguing the city.
Iris squinted at the screen as she read another post spotting a man on fire. This time he was lurking in an alleyway. This was new, he was usually found under overpasses or in the rundown part of the city; nowhere within the city. Nowhere so close to civilians. She hummed, tapping her chin with her fingers and went onto the next new post. This one was about the blast in the river earlier that day.
So she wasn't the only one who thought it odd. Of course, General Eiling appeared on the news to quell the barrage of inquiries but Iris wasn't so sure she bought his explanation. Why would they conduct tests out in the river out of the blue? They usually warned the residents of any testing that was going to happen to keep fear from spreading throughout the city and distress calls coming in all over the place.
She reached for her phone and began to bring up Barry's number but when it came to pressing the green phone button her thumb hovered over it. She stared at the picture on the screen for his ID—her and Barry making ducklips at the camera—and sighed heavily. When someone became such a fixture in your life, how are you supposed to deal with the gaping hole when they were gone? There was Eddie but…well, he was as easy to convince about The Streak as he was to believe that the stars in the sky was glitter thrown around by aliens. And her father? He ducked and dodged every conversation about The Streak like a pro boxer.
Mom would have believed me. Iris shook her head, ridding herself of the unwelcomed thought. Shoving her computer away, she walked into the kitchen and began rummaging around for bowls and spoons and ingredients. Nothing cheered her up quite like a fresh batch of sugar cookies.
She had all of the ingredients set out and lined on the counter when she heard the front door open and slam shut in quick succession. She glanced up and saw a pair of feet rush up the stairs and before she could even call out to her cousin she could hear the bedroom door slam shut. Nothing new there.
"Uh oh," Joe commented as he sauntered into the kitchen. "The only time you make cookies is when you're upset. What happened? Did you have a fight with Eddie?"
Iris made a face at him. "Don't sound so happy about that prospect," she said, pointing a spoon in his direction.
"Not happy. Just hopeful." At the expression on Iris's face Joe laughed, walked over to her, and kissed her on the forehead. "I'm kidding. What's wrong, baby?"
"It's Barry," Iris replied. "We kind of…took a break."
Joe's eyebrows crinkled. "What do you mean?"
"He's been…acting funny lately," she replied. "Not himself. He's…hopeless. I mean, he doesn't believe in The Streak. It's like…he doesn't believe in anything anymore. Not like he did before. Not like the old Barry did." She shook her head. "I don't know what happened to him but we got into a fight."
Joe rubbed his thumb and forefinger around his mouth. In the silence that stretched between them, she gathered the ingredients she needed and began to pour them into separate bowls. She paused in her pouring of flower when he cleared his throat. "I'm sure it's nothing to worry about," he said. "Maybe he's just…stressed about something."
"Yeah, but why wouldn't he tell me about it?" Iris asked. "We tell each other everything."
"Well, baby, maybe he just needs some time," Joe said. "You two haven't been separated practically since you were born. Maybe some space would be good. He'll come to you eventually. Especially if he senses you're making cookies."
Iris smiled. "He always loved our sugar cookies."
"That's because your grandmother put her foot in them," Joe said, making Iris chuckle. "She could make a mean dessert.
"And now I'm giving her a run for her money. Just wait until the family reunion, we'll see who wears the baking crown this year." The smile on iris's face slowly faded as she continued to mix ingredients together. "Do you remember when Mom used to make sugar cookies?"
"Yeah," Joe said, a wistful look coming to his eye. "It would be an all day affair. I'd be eating cookies for days." He chuckled and added, "And I'd hit the gym not long after. Everyone in the precinct would know when she was in a baking mood." He looked at Iris. "Why?"
"Oh, I was just thinking of the time she helped Barry and I make a huge batch of cookies for school." She sighed. "Mom and I would spend more time trying to stop Barry from eating the dough than making them. And then she would teach us a new game to play or help us build a fort to explore while she went to take a nap—what?" Iris's head tilted at the odd expression on her father's face. "What's that look for?"
"Ah, nothing," Joe replied. "Nothing. I'm sure things between you two will work out. If not I can say something? Help smooth things over?"
"Dad, I'm not ten anymore. Barry and I can fight our own battles," Iris said. "Things will…it'll be fine."
Joe kissed her forehead again. "Alright baby. I think I'm going to turn in early. Bring up some cookies when they're done?"
"Don't want to sneak down in the middle of the night?" Iris asked, sending him a knowing look. "I'm going to count them all, I'll know if one's taken."
"You're way too perceptive for your own good," Joe muttered, walking out of the kitchen.
Iris smiled at his back and went through the rest of the recipe, combining the ingredients together until she had a bowl full of cookie dough. She brushed her flour covered hands off on a dishrag and moved the dirty bowls into the sink. She washed them out and set them on a rack to dry, moving onto put the ingredients back up where they belonged. Once that was done she walked out of the kitchen and jogged up the stairs.
She rounded the corner and came across the first door. Hand lifted, ready to knock on the door; she paused and peered through the crack. The door must've bounced back open after her cousin slammed it shut. She saw Sage curled up on the floor, her arms wrapped around her knees and her head resting on her arms. Every now and then her shoulders would shake. Iris started to push the door open but stopped when she saw…snow? A light dusting of something was on Sage's shoulders, shifting with every shake of them. But when she blinked it was gone.
She pressed her lips together, knocked on the door, and pushed it open. Sage looked up and brushed her hands across her eyes. "Hey, everything alright?"
"Yeah, just—I'm fine. It's nothing," Sage replied, sniffing. "What's up?"
"I'm making cookies. I wanted to see if you wanted to help."
"Yeah, yeah. I'll be down in a sec."
"Okay." Iris closed the door and rested her weight against the wood. She knew what she saw…but how was that possible? It couldn't be. It was… Iris mouthed the word impossible, her eyebrows furrowing. Turning away from the door she rushed back downstairs and grabbed at her computer. Minimizing the internet browser, she pulled up her folder file and clicked through some of them until she opened the one she wanted.
It was filled with a series of documents; all detailing her visits to the hospital and S.T.A.R. Labs to see Barry. She wasn't one to keep a diary, finding typing out her thoughts on a computer better. There was less pressure to keep up and it was easily disposable. She checked the date on the first file, the date of the explosion nine months ago. She took in a shaky breath, images of Barry seizing in the hospital bed flashing before her eyes.
She pushed it aside and went to check the first sighting of something strange around the city: someone with inhuman strength lifting a car off a child. Adrenaline. Reports of a people seeing things that weren't there. Hallucination. Reports of creatures taking on different shapes in the night. Light playing tricks. Everything noted had an explanation. But what if they were all connected? Iris's heart beat hard against her chest.
What if they were all connected to the particle accelerator exploding?
# # #
Barry rocked from side to side in the swivel chair behind the desk, his hands folded atop of his stomach. He stared straight up at the ceiling but that wasn't what was holding his interest. The ceiling may as well not even been there with how his stare seemed to bore a hole into it. But it was better to do that than to potentially get himself thrown in jail for hunting down Eiling and getting him to pay for what he did to Bette.
He laced his fingers behind his head and blew out a breath. There had to be something more they could have done for her. Found her a safe place to live, found her a new identity, something. But that didn't matter now. They failed her. He failed her. What was the point of his powers if he couldn't do anything to stop her from detonating? What was the point of his powers if he couldn't save someone like him? Provide them a better life? Wasn't that what he was supposed to be? A sign of hope. How much hope did he give Bette? Too much? Not enough?
Slapping his palms on his knees, he got to his feet and went to the treadmill. He stepped atop of it and pressed the on button, taking his time to stretch out his legs at a slow walk. But soon he picked up speed and he was running so fast his arms and legs were at a blur. The treadmill below his feet sped by, keeping up its continuous loop as he powered through.
"Barry…Barry!"
Barry turned his head, spotting Caitlin on the other side of the glass, knocking on it. Her face was twisted into an expression of concern, eyes shimmering. He slowed down his jogging all at once, jabbing the stop button on it. He stepped off the treadmill, tugging at the front of his shirt to peel it away from his sweaty body. He stumbled the first few steps; his legs always felt like jelly after a good, hard run.
"Hey, what's up?" he asked, walking back out to the main floor.
"That's what I wanted to ask you," Caitlin replied, rubbing her palms together. "You seem a bit…off. Everything okay?"
"Yeah, I was just thinking about Bette," he replied, leaning against the operating table in the room. "I wish there was something else I could have done for her."
"You did everything you could, Barry," Caitlin said gently. "Eiling wasn't going to stop until he got what he wanted. No matter what you did."
"I know but…maybe I could have protected her better. Hid her."
"He would have found her anyway. He has before," she pointed out. "It would have only slowed him down. Would you want to run and hide her? Forever?" A noncommittal humming sound came from between Barry's lips. "I don't think Bette would've wanted to live the rest of her life on the run either."
"If we could have found a way to remove the shrapnel—"
"There was no way," Caitlin reminded him. "There was nothing we could do about Bette, Barry."
The words fell heavy on his shoulders. He was The Streak, The Streak could do anything. The Streak brought hope into the city in the aftermath. At least, that's what Iris was saying about him. Iris… He ran his hands down the back of his head. Man, he wished they could just…sit down and talk everything out. He wished he could explain everything that was going on but then he'd be breaking his promise to Joe. And if she knew that he had been visiting her the entire time and didn't tell her who he was…what if he lost her too? First his mom and then his dad, he's been able to adapt to those but to lose Iris and Joe on top of it? He couldn't bear that.
It almost felt like he was running in place sometimes; no matter how hard he tried he wasn't making progress one way or another. His Barry self, the one the world saw wasn't faring any better than his Streak self. It may have been his decision to take a break from Iris but he needed to hold her at arm's length, so the two of them, two of him wouldn't cross. He had to keep Iris safe. But what did that matter if people still died under his watch?
"What's the point?" he mumbled.
"I…I don't follow."
"Of this? What's the point of this?" Barry waved his arms around S.T.A.R. Labs. "What's the point of me helping if I'm not helping? Yeah, Eiling was stopped but at the cost of Bette's life. Is that what I have to look forward to every time a new metahuman comes around? For someone else to die for us to get them?"
Caitlin put a hand on his shoulder. "We all knew this was a risk we were going to take getting into this. You're only human, Barry, you can't save everyone." Barry flinched at her words. "Maybe this is for the better. Now Bette doesn't have to worry about Eiling…doesn't have to worry about hurting anyone…. You were able to help her see herself as something other than a weapon. That has to count for something."
Barry shrugged. Maybe it did, but it wasn't enough. "Thanks," he said, turning to smile at her. "I appreciate it."
Caitlin nodded her head, a small smile appearing on her face as well. "Don't forget, we want to help as much as you do. You don't have to go through this alone. We're here."
"Yeah, yeah, I know. Thanks. Again."
"You're welcome." Caitlin gave his shoulder a squeeze and dropped her hands into her lap.
"Guys! We have a problem!" Cisco's panicked voice called out from the hall. Caitlin and Barry whirled around to see him have stumbling, having dragging himself into the room. Draped across his shoulders was Sage, but her body was jerking and shaking.
Barry rushed over, grabbed her, and set her down on the operating table as Caitlin ran off only to come back with a bag. "What's going on? Is it a seizure?" he asked.
"No, she's fully conscious," Cisco replied. "She keeps muttering something. I can't make it out."
Barry looked over at her. Her lips were indeed moving, forming words amongst her body tremors. He lowered his ear to her mouth and could hear a few words in her breaths, "I'm sorry…won't do it again…sorry…don't hate me…sorry, Dad…"
Caitlin dug into her bag and pulled out a thermometer, sticking it in her ear. A few tense seconds later and it beeped. She pulled it out and checked the screen, her eyes widening. "Her body temperature is too low. We have to bring it up." She put the thermometer down and started to pull back her hair. "Cisco, go get me the IV pole," she ordered. "Barry, get me as many blankets as you can find, the thicker the better. And three hot water bottles."
Barry barely nodded his head before running straight out of S.T.A.R. Labs. The streets and cityscape blurred around him as he ran in and out of stores, grabbing blankets, paying for them on the way out. He then grabbed insulated water bottles from a sports store, filled them with the hottest water her could find, and rushed back to S.T.A.R Labs to see Caitlin sticking an IV into Sage's arm as Harrison wheeled into the room.
"Hypothermia," he noted after taking one look at her. "Moderate state if I had to hazard a guess. Where did you find her, Cisco?"
"In the hall. I-I was going to the kitchen and I just…found her on the floor," he replied, running a hand through his hair.
Leaving one arm out, Barry used his speed to wrap her up in the blankets, like swaddling a child. He placed the water bottles beneath her arms and in her groin area. Her shivering had minimized but she was still pale.
"Will she be okay?"
"I'm sure she'll be fine. You did well, Cisco," Harrison said, patting him on the back. He wheeled over to the thermostat, jabbing the button on it to raise the temperature in the room.
"What was she saying?" Caitlin prodded.
"I don't know," Barry said, shaking his head, "she just kept saying that she was sorry and that she wouldn't do it again."
"Wouldn't do what again?"
Barry lifted and dropped his shoulders. It was vague but, deep down, he had an idea. He brought his thumb up to his mouth, biting down on the nail as he waited. The boys backed away and gave Caitlin room to survey the vitals and check her temperature. Barry couldn't stop pacing; the sound of his shoes scuffing against the floor was a welcomed change to the silence in the room. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Sage groaned and began moving beneath the blankets. But a second later she was thrashing, trying to fight through the tight hold the blankets had on her.
"Hey, hey, you're okay," Caitlin reassured her, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"Gotta get out…gotta get out," Sage muttered, kicking her legs.
"Sage, stop! It's us, it's Barry. You're okay," Barry said, rushing to her side. She froze beneath his touch and looked up at him.
"Hospital?" she rasped, her eyebrows lowering.
"No, you're at S.T.A.R. Labs."
Her eyes slowly moved around the room, recognition slowly creeping back in. Then she sighed and lay back against the table. Harrison rolled over to her side and stared at her until she met his gaze. "I venture this isn't the first time this has happened?" he prompted. She slowly shook her head from side to side. "How often?"
She licked her lips. The color popped against her pale lips. "Every few days," she rasped.
"Every few days!?" Barry repeated, aghast.
"Can usually catch it," she added.
"Your body temperature was at 31°C, that's about 88°F," Caitlin relayed, "you're lucky Cisco got to you. You're going to be just fine."
"This was because of your powers, right?" Barry asked. She nodded her head. "Why didn't you say anything if this has happened before?"
"Didn't want you to worry," Sage replied.
"But we need to know everything you can do. Everything that can happen to you."
"Sorry."
Barry sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Can you bring up the information we have on her? Just to make sure we have everything we need."
Cisco nodded and rushed over to the computer, bringing up the folder they had on every metahuman they've come across. Barry tore his eyes away from the folder labeled Plastique and put his attention on Sage's folder. It took some time, due to Sage's drowsiness and mild confusion, to fully have an idea of what they knew of her abilities: objects freeze through direct touch (front of hand), creates snowballs, produces brief ice beams, and suffers lower body temperature "spells". And then came the information they didn't know: slow reaction time, "brain freezes", violent shivering, rapid heart rate (though Barry was sure that her constant consumption of caffeine aided to that), periodic snowing, and…
"Wait, run this by me again? You siphon heat?" Barry asked, rubbing his eyes.
Sage nodded. "It's how I've managed so far," she said. "I can take heat from objects. With bare hands. Warms me up."
"Does that freeze the object in turn?" Cisco asked, his fingers poised above his keyboard keys.
"No," Sage replied. "I don't take the heat. Not really. I don't know. The temperature doesn't lower. I don't know."
"Well, how about from people?" Caitlin asked. "Can you take heat from people?"
"No," Sage replied. Her face scrunched up. "I don't know. I don't want to know. I can't hurt anyone else."
Barry's ears perked up. Anyone else? Those words seemed to make everyone else stop as well. They all exchanged a look and then looked over at her. "What do you mean?" Barry prodded gently.
But it was enough for a round of tears to collect in Sage's eyes and slid down her cheeks. "It was an accident," she managed. "I didn't mean to do it. I was just trying to help. I only wanted to help…" Her lip began to quiver but she pressed her lips together to stop it. "There was this old man. Months ago. Months…? No…yeah. Months. I was coming home from school and I saw him. He was just…lying there. Not breathing. I just wanted to help…" She took in a shaky breath and let it out slowly. "I tried CPR, like Uncle Joe taught me, but…something happened. He…he froze. I felt his ribs shatter beneath my hands. Like glass. I made him worse. I…I killed him. It was an accident. I just wanted to…" She brought the back of her hand up to block her nose and mouth. She squeezed her eyes shut but tears spilled down her cheeks. "I'm so sorry!" she sobbed, her words muffled by her hand.
"It's okay, you didn't know what you were doing," Caitlin whispered, rubbing her shoulder. "It wasn't your fault." She gave it a squeeze. "I'll go get you some tea."
Sage reached out and grasped Caitlin's wrist, stopping her from moving. Caitlin turned back around, her eyebrows lifting. "I came to give you guys some lunch," she managed to utter between her body shaking sobs. "You live off Big Belly Burger, that's-that's not good. I-I wanted to say sorry. For not taking this seriously. For being in the way. F-for…" a small smile appeared on her face. "For being annoying—no, it's okay. I know I am," she said to Caitlin's stalled denial. "I'm not…part of this world. The science stuff. I don't g-get it. I don't…fit. And I was trying to force it. I'm-I'm sorry." She gave Caitlin's wrist a squeeze in lieu of taking her hand. "I made you some soup. Low s-sodium, I know you're watching your salt intake."
Caitlin whispered a quiet 'thank you' and walked off. Sage dropped her arm back onto the table. Barry sighed and rubbed at his eyes. "Could you leave us alone for a minute?" he asked Cisco and Harrison. They nodded and walked out of the room. Once out of earshot, Barry approached. "This could have killed you if Cisco wasn't around."
She shrugged, her sobs dying down. "It's going to kill me anyway," she replied. "I know it is," she plodded on, stopping Barry from speaking. "I've been dealing with this since…since the accident. It hasn't been this bad before. Sooner or later, it's going to get me. I hope later rather than sooner but…futures aren't guaranteed."
"Yeah," Barry agreed. He knew that all too well. His life was shaped by it. And now Bette…. He swallowed the lump that formed in his throat. "You kept saying you were sorry. And…you mentioned your dad."
She didn't reply right away, choosing to stare up at the ceiling for a few moments. "It was weird. When I collapsed…I wasn't here. I was at home. And I had…broken something. A plate or a mug. And I saw Dad. And he was yelling at me." She scoffed. "What else is new? Can't seem to say anything to me without adding volume. But it was so…vivid. Like I was standing right in front of him. Like I was a kid again." She turned to look at him. "Barry, I'm sorry."
"What are you apologizing for?"
"This. All of this. I know I should have told you but I didn't want you to worry about me. You have enough on your plate without me throwing my weight onto it." She sniffed and brushed her hand across her nose. "And Bette…I tried. I tried talking to her. But it still didn't make a difference."
"That wasn't your fault either," Barry told her. It's mine. "Nothing was your fault. Just…get some rest. Okay? I'll tell Joe what happened and that you're okay."
She nodded and relaxed against the pillows, her eyelids already fluttering. He stepped away, turned, and ran and in the next instant he found himself among rows and rows of headstones. Bright flowers dotted each one, adding a pop to the wall of gray. A few of them, he noted, had dead flowers but he took care of that, replacing them in the blink of an eye. Once finished, he took a familiar path amongst the headstones until he reached the one he was looking for.
He sat down in front of the grave, crossing his legs so as not to disturb the grass that lay in front of Nora Allen's marker. In front of it lay a few stalks of sunflowers. Her favorite. Barry smiled. She always used to say she liked sunflowers because it brought extra sunshine into the room. He would pick an entire field of sunflowers for her if it could bring her back.
"Hey Mom," he said aloud, staring straight at her name etched into the weather beaten stone. "It's me again. I need…I need some help." He pulled a blade of grass. "I don't know what to do. Iris and I…we're not seeing eye to eye right now. She's really into the Streak. The Streak is me, of course. I just…don't know how to keep my promise to Joe and keep her as a friend at the same time. It's so hard, keeping them separated. And now, we met this new metahuman. Her name was Bette. We could have helped her; we could have given her a better life. But I couldn't save her.
"I wasn't fast enough." He scoffed and shook his head. "I could run on water to get away from the blast but I wasn't fast enough to stop her from being shot. I should be able to…to save everyone. But I can't. I'm fast but…I'm still too slow." He rubbed at his head and blew out a frustrated breath. "I want to find who did this to you, but I don't want to sacrifice anyone else in the process. Just…tell me what to do, Mom. Help me. Please."
He held his breath, waiting. For what, he wasn't so sure but he needed something to know that she heard him. That she was there. Time ticked by and everything sat as still as it was before. He only released his breath when his chest burned and his lungs screamed for air. He waited a little longer but when his phone started beeping with a text from Cisco he finally told himself it was time to go.
He got to his feet, slowly stretching out his legs to ease the tension in his knees. He stepped forward and placed his hand atop of her grave, leaning over to press a kiss against the cool stone. It felt the same as when he kissed her cold cheek for the last time fourteen-years-ago. Tears burned his eyes, running along the rim of his eyelids. "I miss you so much," he whispered.
A breeze brushed against the back of his neck. The blades of grass on the rolling hills swayed, like waves in the ocean. It rustled the leaves on the trees surrounding the cemetery, caressing the petals on the flowers around them. And then he smelled it, the sweet scent of lilacs wafting past his nose. Goosebumps popped up on his skin as the breeze blew again, caressing against his skin on his neck. Like his mother used to do.
"Don't give up…" the wind whispered in the trees. His heart thumped hard against his chest. He swore it sounded exactly like his mother's voice. "You can do it. Keep going." He rolled his shoulders back, they felt lighter. Much lighter than they had before. Backing away, he smiled a watery smile at his mothers grave and then took off running.
Thanks, Mom.
# # #
"No, Dad…it wasn't my fault, I—yes. Yes. Okay, that part was mine but…Dad. Dad!" Sage removed her phone from her ear, gaping at the blinking time duration in the corner before the screen turned off. "Well, fuck you too," she grumbled at the blank screen before shoving her phone back into her pocket. She heaved a sigh and pushed a hand through her hair. Just what she needed to end her long day, her father screaming at her over her damaged bike. He couldn't even be happy that she was still alive, but that didn't surprise her.
She rubbed her arm where the IV had sat before as she strode towards the parking lot to wait for Lennox to pick her up. Sure, she probably should have skipped dance classes that night but he would rather be doing something than sitting around doing nothing all night. And besides, she felt fine.
She paced on the sidewalk while waiting for her ride to come pick her up. Lennox wasn't that far away, what could be taking her so long? She just had to miss class today; Sage hoped that random guy was worth it. She reached into her pocket again to check the time when the sound of rapid footsteps sounded behind her. She turned, half expecting it to be Barry, but then gasped as the figure loomed over her. Before she could react, the figure lifted its arm and punched her across the face. She was out cold before she hit the rough pavement of the sidewalk.
Harsh laughter rumbled within the figure's chest as he reached down and picked up the limp girl, slinging her over his shoulder. "I got her, Boss," Mick relayed to the ear piece nestled within his ear. "I'm coming back now."
a/n - Whew! Thanks to everyone for being patient with me between updates! I hope this chapter made up for it. Now, the biggest thing that bothers me in the Flash is, if Iris is supposed to be so investigative, why did it take her so long to start to put together the particle accelerator accident and how it affected Central City. So, to fix it, Iris catches on faster. She deserves that, I think. Also I was a bit upset to see that Iris and Barry didn't have scenes where they were more affected by their friendship break. Okay, I get that you don't want too much time dedicated to it for a tv show but, come on, they're supposed to be childhood friends! I figured they'd take it more like a break up than anything else.
On that note, I was also sad that we never saw Barry at his mother's grave in the show. He seems to close to her that I felt, as much time as he spends speaking to his dad, he'd go and talk to his mom too. And after Bette dying despite how hard he tried to help he'd need to have someone to talk to, someone unbiased. And who better than his mom?
Sage's codename has been teased in this chapter so whoever figures it out gets a shot out. Plus we get a look underneath the outlook of her abilities and how she handled them in the past. It can't be easy knowing something you are will kill you in the future.
Again, thanks for all the reviews and favs and alerts! I really appreciate it. Please read and review!
~C.M.
P.S. Those who watch Legends of Tomorrow, are you guys enjoying it? I'm absolutely loving it so far! I like Ray there a lot more than I did in Arrow and Stein is a great part of the show, I enjoy him a lot. Snart and Mick, of course, are great comedic spots in the show. Sara I'm in the middle with, I like her sometimes and sometimes I don't. Right now I'm not really a fan of Carter and Kendra, I feel like there could be more done with them. Jax I think is good to have around as the young, inexperienced member to everything compared to the rest and Rip I'm enjoying a lot.