Chapter 5: Home Invasion

A week went by and to the Professor's delight, fusing with Jax was a success. They spent many days training their newly-found powers in one of our closed off rooms. I usually stood by to keep watch with a fire extinguisher in hand, but at the same time, I tried my best to stay out of the way.

Once, one of the lights went out in the cortex and Caitlin asked me to fix it, but I declined. And when Cisco's speakers went out on his laptop, I avoided him until he went and fixed it himself. But the worst one was when Barry asked me to go on a mission with him.

"It'll be like old times!" He had told me, but I shook my head.

This is not like old times.

I felt like a stranger in this familiar building. The buzzing of electricity that filtered through the lights and every piece of technology in every single room rang loud and clear in my ears. My hands tingled with an odd sensation like I had kept them frozen for too long and then I ran them under some really hot water. I couldn't walk the halls without taking an exaggerated, deep breath, trying to focus on anything but the flickering lights.

One day, when watching Martin and Jax fuse and aim at targets that Cisco had made for them, I found myself getting lost in my head. I cringed every time I watched Jax take a step forward- his foot was all wrong. If he leaned any further to the left or if someone swung at him, he'd surely fall over. His aim was off, too, but only by inches which made it even frustrating. I could tell Martin was lecturing him every time he stopped to grunt or mumble something incoherent under his breath.

Reminded me of Ronnie.

"Don't you ever shut up, old man?"

His voice rang clear in my ears as if he was there. As if he was wearing the red and yellow that Cisco had made. As if he had been the one to complain that it was a little too tight around his chest. As if he was silently arguing with Martin, using that psychic connection of theirs. But every time my eyes focused in on the man shooting fire out of the center of his palms, I was overwhelmed with how disappointing it was to see someone else taking his place.

"Leah?" A voice snapped me out of my trance.

I looked away from the men who fought on the other side of the fire proof window to see Cisco standing there. I blinked a few times to find that my eyes were wet and my hands were gripping the table in front of me so tightly my knuckles had gone white. A second went by and I noticed that the lights above us were flickering as if in panic.

I sighed and the lights stopped completely, leaving us in a dimly lit room. "Sorry…"

"What's going on?" He asked, stepping forward to peer inside the room. "Are they alright?"

I nodded. "Yeah, they're okay." I told him, feeling my chest tighten with every word.

There was a silence afterwards and I could almost feel his hesitation as he opened and closed his mouth a few times. I turned back to Firestorm, pretending I didn't notice as he tried to form his words.

"Are we okay?"
Taken by surprise, I turned my head to face him. "What?"

"I mean, because…" His face flushed immediately, and mine quickly followed suit.

I could feel myself panic and I tried my best to say something that came in a jumbled stutter, "O-oh, th-that, you mean… I see… W-well…"

"I just…" My mood deflated when he sighed. "We work together and… I don't want things to be…."

"Awkward." I finished for him, avoiding his eyes at all cost.

"Exactly."

"It won't be."

He sighed again, this time in relief and his shoulders moved with the action. He gave me a small smile to show that he felt better. "Oh, thank God–."

"Because we don't work together."

His smile fell off his face so quick that gravity wouldn't have been ready for it if it had weighed something as small as a pound. He blinked a few times as if he was surprised, although I couldn't imagine why. "Wait, what?"

"I'm not staying, Cisco…" I stated what I thought was the obvious.

"But…."

I shook my head. "It's not up for discussion. I have another job that I've already taken off too much time for to be here and make sure Stein is okay. And now he is. So, I must get back to my real job." I picked up my purse off the nearby office chair.

"But, Leah!"

"I've got to go!"

And I practically ran out of that room with my shoes clicking in the process because I knew, if I didn't leave fast enough, he might actually convince me to stay.

My apartment was dark when I made it back. I quickly turned the lights on without even touching the light switch and dropped my things at the front door, immediately kicking off my shoes and heading for the kitchen. I now owned my own stash of ice cream in nine different flavors, all used when I was feeling upset and didn't have counseling that day. As I opened the fridge, I realized I hadn't been to counseling in two weeks… I guess Team Flash had been distracting enough to keep my mind preoccupied.

That's right. Distraction. You need counseling.

"You also need friends." His voice spoke up in the silence, making me jump.

I sighed, taking a tub of ice cream out and shutting the door forcibly and fetching a spoon out of the silverware drawer. "Oh, shut up."

"You know I'm right, Leah." He taunted, leaning forward on the counter, resting his elbows on the edge and his head on the palm of his hands. "Everyone needs friends."

"I have friends."

His blue eyes narrowed. "An old man and his "fusing buddy" doesn't count." I threw back my head and groaned in annoyance, it sounded almost inhuman. "Oh? Am I getting on your nerves now?" His smile was open, showing his bright white teeth, his pale skin almost matching in color.

"Why can't you just leave me alone?" I asked, not looking him in the eye as I struggled to pop the lid off the tub of ice cream.

"I don't know. Why can't I?"

I laughed, almost hysterically, feeling what little bit of sanity I have trying to leave. "I have no idea. But it pisses me off. You know why? Because while I'm over here STRUGGLING to open a damn box of ice cream to eat away my feeling about my EX boyfriend, YOU'RE NOT ACTUALLY HERE TO HELP ME!"

The last part came out in an angered screech, sounding animalistic. I looked up to meet his blue eyes for the first time in six months just as all the kitchen lights exploded in one go. I didn't even jump as the sparks flew past my head and the light disappeared, leaving me in pitch darkness. I sighed, feeling sudden exhaustion taking over and filling my veins. Without moving from my spot next to the counter, I turned on the living room lights and it shone through the door to light up the kitchen as much as I could.

And a figure stood across the counter from me. But it was no longer Ronnie.

"Hello," his voice was sharp and I felt the stab of panic reach my heart.

I jumped back, confused and scared. "What…. You're Henry Hewitt…"

"Please," he gave me a smile that formed a lump in my throat, "Call me Doctor Hewitt."

"W-what…?"

"I'm pretty new at this bad guy thing, but…." He lifted his hands up and my eyes widen when some form of red energy built around the palm of his hands. "I need a hostage."

Whatever it was, he threw it at me and the color red hit me square in the chest, causing me to fly back and hit the kitchen counter. The air left my lungs as I hit the tiled and I tried my best to remember to move as I struggled to pull myself across the floor.

"Oh, don't make this harder than it needs to be. I just need to keep your Flash friend off my back, okay?"