Beep! Beep!" Mick's alarm clock screeched as bright sunlight shone into his small bedroom. He swore the moment he realized he didn't have a headache. No headache meant he wasn't hungover, which meant he hadn't had any alcohol the night before. No alcohol made for a grumpy Mick.
Last night, after dinner, he and Lisa had headed out to get some booze. On the way, they passed by a frozen yogurt shop. Mick had been dragged in and forced to pay for two large bowls before he could let out a protest. Though he had enjoyed his cake batter-chocolate mix (topped heavily with toppings of course), they hadn't been able to get a drink afterwards. Lisa had been about to fall asleep, and one thing Mick refused to do was carry a sleeping Lisa back to the apartment.
He was about to slam his finger down on the snooze button when his nose suddenly picked up a heavenly scent. The smell could only be one thing; pancakes, his greatest weakness.
He heaved himself out of bed and quickly hopped in the shower. The moment he was done he hopped across the cold tile to his closet and threw on a semi-clean shirt and some blue jeans.
His nose lead him around the corner to the kitchen. Sure enough, Lisa was sitting next to a giant stack of blueberry and chocolate chip pancakes. Before Lisa could say "good morning", Mick had thrown six pancakes on his plate and covered them in half a bottle of high fructose maple syrup.
"What, no thank you?"
"Sthmnapx" Heat Wave mumbled unintelligibly through bites of berries and chips. He continued to inhale his breakfast while Lisa picked at hers, droning on about her plans for the day.
"I'm planning on getting my hair done today. I also need to stop by the bank to pick up some cash. A contact of mine has information about the guard schedule at Iron Heights that will be useful in breaking out Lenny. He'll need a small bribe though. There's a new antique store across town that I saw the prettiest curtains at, and I'm thinking about buying them for the windows. The ones we have now are a little bland, don't you think?"
Mick, halfway listening, grunted in acknowledgment. He continued eating, stopping only to get more syrup and a second helping.
"I'd love to go shopping too, you and Len could use some more Christmas sweaters. There's been large shipments of fireworks at some of the party stores in the area for New Year's preparation. I figured that I should go check them out and see if there's any that we could use."
Mick's ears pricked up. "Fireworks?" he repeated with his mouth full. "Count me in!"
Lisa seemed a little hesitant. "I was hoping you could swing by the hardware store and pick up some light bulbs. The one in the closet went out yesterday."
Heat Wave knew she was lying. "No way Lis," he said shaking his head and downing a glass of orange juice. "You are not ditching me from that job. I know more about explosives than anyone in this city."
Still, Snart seemed a bit hesitant. "It's just... Last time you went with me and Len to get weapons, you set off one of the bombs when playing with your heat gun. I'm not sure you'd be able to resist testing one out and causing a commotion."
He was ticked, slightly hurt, at her comments. But he was firm. "Your puppy dog face might work on some things, but not this. I may set something off. I may not. This is my expertise, and I'm not sending you to buy some tiny firecrackers or duds."
Lisa finally bended. "I'll approve of you coming, but we need to stop by the antique store first. It's on the way."
Mick grinned. He stood up, stuffed the last pancake in his mouth, and threw his plate in the sink. Grabbing the motorcycle keys, he tossed Lis hers.
"I better wait outside though, wouldn't want to break anything fragile," he said sarcastically.
Lisa rolled her eyes and punched Heat in the arm. "You big baby, I thought you liked being known as someone who broke stuff and set off explosions."
"You better believe it!" He roared.
The two hurried downstairs, Lisa taking the elevator while Mick jumped out the window and climbed down the fire escape. Mick was already on his motorbike by the time Lisa met him in the parking lot.
"Come on, we're burning day light!" he yelled over the engine while he did a donut around her.
Golden Glider gracefully slipped on her golden cycle and remarked, "Patience Mickey, who's babysitting who."
Together, the two sped through the city, keeping an eye out for cops. Within ten minutes, Lisa signaled for Mick to slow down. She yelled to him, "It's just around the corner!"
Sure enough, a quaint little antique store came into view. It was smashed between a coffee shop and a business office. It stood out due to the fact that two giant flower pots filled with bright carnations stood on either side of the door. A white banner hung above, reading "Grand Re-Opening". Mick could see a pair of curtains being displayed in the window sill. Mick nearly barfed.
"Yah, I think I'll sit this one out," he told her when she pulled up to the curb.
Lisa replied," Just watch the bikes, and I'll be out in a moment." At a last thought, even though Heat Wave had left his heat gun at home, she added, "Try not to start any fires."
He flashed his teeth. "Wouldn't dream of it."
As Lisa walked inside the shop, Mick pulled out his lighter. He flipped it on and off uncontrollably, staring at its irresistible flame. Already bored, he glanced around the street, looking for something to burn. His eyes locked onto the bright flowers, but he saw Lisa shopping through the window. Too risky. He was about to go looking for some trash, when he saw something that made him laugh. Just up the street, walking straight toward the shop, was a young Mexican boy who went by the name Cisco Ramon. He'd recognize that face anywhere. He always remembered the faces of those he had kidnapped. This was going to be fun.
He got off his bike and leaned against the back of a nearby tree, waiting for him to get closer. Mick could tell Cisco was walking and talking with another man, slightly taller with brown hair. It shouldn't be a problem though. Even if Heat didn't have his gun with him, it didn't mean he couldn't rile up Cisco a bit.
Cisco and the kid stopped in front of the antique pointed at Lisa's and his motorcycles and said something to his friend. That was Mick's cue.
"Checking out my wheels?"
Cisco jumped back and the other man tensed. Mick snickered.
"W..what do you want Heat Wave?" Cisco stuttered.
Heat Wave got closer. "I don't know. My heat gun hasn't had an upgrade in a while. Maybe you should come with me, give it a few tweaks." He flipped his lighter on. "Maybe do some target practice?"
Cisco stood up a little taller. "So you don't have your gun, huh? What are you going to do with a little lighter? I can call Flash up right now, and he'll put you in prison same as he did with Captain Cold."
Now Heat Wave was furious. He grabbed Cisco's shirt and lifted him in the air. He spat as he said, "Don't you dare talk about him. I can kill you without my gun, trust me. The only reason you aren't bleeding on the pavement right now is because you're Cold's sister's pet." He looked Cisco in the eyes. "You and the speedster may have saved Lisa's life, but you put her heart in jail. You locked up Len just when she needed him the most. I've heard you got your own powers Vibe, so leave the Flash out of this and fight your own fights, like a man."
"Hey!" someone called behind him. Mick, frustrated, whipped his head around. To his surprise, the Flash stood before him. The guy that was with Cisco must have ran off and got help! Without thinking, he dropped Cisco to the ground and charged blindly at the man in red. Before he was a foot from him, he felt himself being slammed on the ground. The Flash had his foot on his back. Pain roared down his spine.
"Stand down Heat Wave!" the Flash yelled. Mick went limp, complying.
Just as Flash loosened his hold, he swiped at the hero's foot. The Flash tumbled to the floor. Mick threw his hand and punched the Flash right in the face. He knew that would leave a mark. Just as quickly, the Flash was back on top of him. Mick struggled to get his arms free.
"STOP!" He glanced out of the corner of his eye. He saw Lisa running out of the building, curtain fallen on the ground.
"Stay out of this Lisa!" Mick yelled, still struggling. Lisa ignored him.
"Please, don't do this," she cried, not quite sure if she were talking to Mick or the Flash. She ran up to Mick and the Flash backed away from the two. Golden Glider helped Mick up. He wanted to tackle the Flash again, but she stood in the way.
"Come on Mick, it's not worth it. I don't want you getting locked away too. Please, Mickey, listen!" she begged.
Mick spit on the ground. "Don't you get it Lisa? Didn't you read the papers?" He turned his attention to the Flash. "Len didn't want to rob no one. When Lisa was safe, he just, he just gave up. Let his gun be taken." He felt tears in his eyes, but he convinced himself they were tears of anger. "Then you took him away. He didn't even fight back. You gonna take me in without my gun Flash? You want me to surrender, when I'm not doing anything wrong?"
The Flash remained expressionless. "Snart broke our contract. He killed someone. And both of you have done plenty of crimes in the past that deserve jail time."
Mick spit on the ground, again "I don't know why Snart didn't shoot you when he had the chance."
Flash was about to attack, when Lisa stepped in between the two men once more. "Please Flash, don't arrest him. I promise we weren't stealing. We were just Christmas shopping." She turned to Cisco. "Cisco, please tell him."
Cisco and Flash looked at each other. "Lisa," Cisco began. "We didn't want to put anyone in jail. It's only that, we're not sure we can trust Heat Wave not to hurt anyone."
Lisa looked to Mick, was red with anger. "Mick, you need to calm down. This isn't want Len would want. He had a reason for not shooting the Flash. I don't think I can stand going back home without you. It's hard enough with Lenny gone." Tears formed in her eyes. Mick was torn. He looked from Lisa to the Flash.
He finally dropped his hands. "Let's get out of here."
He walked over, picked up the shopping bag Lisa had dropped, and handed it to her. He silently hopped on his cycle. To Lisa's relief, the Flash let him. She mouthed a silent thank you to the boys. Mick zoomed off down the road, heading back to the apartment. Lisa followed worriedly.
"If only you were here, Lenny," she whispered as she raced to catch up with her partner. "Looks like your Christmas present is going to be harder to get than I thought.