Frostbite

Chapter 13

…

"No way"

"Oh come on, you know I'm right"

"No way Caitlin, team Iron Man all the way!" Barry says as we sit on the couch back at his apartment.

"You've got to be kidding, there's no way he has the better team!"

"He has Black Panther! And Vision! Not to mention Black Widow"

"Oh, now I get it, I knew there was a reason you were so excited about her getting a solo movie," I say with a laugh, rolling my eyes

"Well yeah, have you seen her suit?"

I scoff, flinging popcorn at him "You're disgusting! I thought you were supposed to be making me feel better not worse"

He smirks, moving up on the couch beside my propped-up leg, I laugh, swatting his shoulder "Yeah, not happening Bar, I still have two more weeks in this cast"

He groans, turning back to the movie "Maybe a superhero movie isn't the best thing to watch, kind of tacky, isn't it?"

"Yeah well, I've watched everything else at least twice, Ugh I'm so over being cooped up in here. Not that I don't appreciate you taking care of me the last few weeks Barry, it's just you go into work and I'm stuck here" I whine, pouting

"you know what Harry said Cait, you need to be resting. You're starting physical therapy soon"

"I know, I know… please just take me with you one day. Just one day! That's all I'm asking, I'll stay in the wheelchair the whole time just please, get me out of here" I beg, cozying up to him, my hand gently squeezing his thigh as I stare up at him.

"Ugh, how am I supposed to say no to that face?" He groans "Fine, you can come to the lab with me for a couple of hours but no work okay? You're supposed to be resting"

I squeal, wrapping my arms around his neck and peppering his face with kisses "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

"Yeah yeah, now, it's getting late. Let's get you to bed" he says, picking me up like he's been doing every night since I came here.

"Barry?"

"Yeah?"

"We might not be able to do that just yet but… there are other things we can do" I say, brushing my fingertips against his chest.

"I love you," he says as he speeds us off to the bedroom.

…..

"Hey guys, look who's here!" Barry announces as he wheels me into the lab, I'm greeted by Cisco running over and giving me a big hug, being careful not to knock my ribs.

"Caitlin, you're here!" he says happily as he pulls away

"Yeah, I finally persuaded this one to let me out for a bit" I say, lighting slapping Barry's leg. He makes a face of mock pain, dramatically grabbing his leg.

"After all I've done for you! This is how you repay me!" he mockingly weeps. I laugh watching as he fake storms off to his desk.

"Wow, I haven't seen him joke like that in a while. Maybe you should be here every day" Cisco jokes

"Well as soon as this stupid cast comes off I'll be back, don't worry"

"I'm sure he'll love that, I wouldn't be surprised if he tried to handcuff you to your desk" Cisco says with a roll of his eyes.

I laugh, "Don't give him any ideas. Please tell me you have something for me to do"

He smiles, "c'mon I'll show you the new suit I've been working on" he says, wheeling me off towards his station

….

3 hours later and I'm exhausted, I have been helping Cisco with his new suit and then did some paperwork I had lying around before my accident. Wells wanted to see how I was healing so he gave me some crutches to use instead of my wheelchair. The first hour or so was great but now my leg is starting to throb and my forehead is starting to sweat.

I gently ease myself onto one of the couches in the lab, propping my leg on a chair. I'm drifting in and out of sleep when Barry walks by, pausing when he sees me.

"Cait? You alright?" he asks as he comes over

I sit up, rubbing my eyes "Hmm? Yeah, no I'm fine. Just a little tired" I say, stifling a small yawn.

He sighs, sitting down next to me "I told you not to overdo it, you should have told Harry it was too soon for the crutches"

I ignore his comment, settling my head on his shoulder "You know I used to spend whole days on my feet, part of being a doctor but now… now I can't even stand for an hour without getting completely exhausted"

He kisses the top of my head, threading our fingers together "You'll get back to normal Cait, it just takes time. And until then, you can ask for help, let me take care of you instead of the other way around"

"You have been taking care of me, you've been fantastic" I say, pressing my lips to his shoulder "I just hate feeling so helpless, so out of control. I haven't felt this way since my powers surfaced"

"It'll get better Caitlin, and if I'm ever being too much, you can tell me. I just want to help"

"Does this mean you're okay with me coming to work with you more often?" I ask, hopefully

"…That'd be nice, just so long as you don't overdo it"

I say, giving him a quick yet sweet kiss "Thank you"

"Yeah well, I couldn't have my girlfriend going stir crazy at home, I rather like her sane"

I smile, quirking my brow "Girlfriend?"

"Yeah" he says with a look of slight confusion on his face "Well yeah, I mean we love each other and you've been staying at my house for the last month"

"I know I just….. after what happened with Iris. And we never really discussed what this was" I say, looking down and fidgeting with my nails.

"Caitlin, I want to be with you, I love you and we practically live together. You're my girlfriend okay?" he says, and a giant smile breaks across my face. I look up and wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him into a swift kiss.

Moments later we're interrupted by Cisco making screaming noises as he walks by.