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The sound of Caitlin's stilettos echoed through the halls of STAR Labs as she walked to the elevator. It had been a long day of work, and Caitlin was relieved to finally be going home. The elevator chimed, and the doors slowly opened. Just as the doors were closing, she felt a rush of air and felt the presence of someone standing next to her.
"Hey, Caitlin," Barry's voice rang through her ears. She turned to face the scarlet speedster, to see him in his day clothes. He reached over to the panel of buttons, and hit the button for the ground floor.
Caitlin turned to face Barry and give him a sad smile. "Hi, Barry."
"How are you doing?" he asked, all too quickly.
"I'm fine, Barry," she stated, more to reassure herself than Barry. The elevator reached a halt and the two got out.
"Are you sure? Remember you can call me if you need anything," he added, and with that, he sped away.
"Goodbye, Barry," Caitlin said to herself, as she welcomed the feeling of loneliness once again.
The problem with being a genius, as she was today, was that she never felt like she belonged. Even in her own family, she was always the odd one out. The ugly duckling. Sometimes she fantasized what it would be like if she had come out looking more like her mother or father. If she shared any traits with them. But instead, she was always different.
Today was the one day she felt even lonelier than usual. Two years ago, Caitlin's small family of three was cut down to only two. Caitlin's father was the one person who made the most effort to embrace her differences. Sadly, he was the first to go, when she was 25. Caitlin's mother had completely distanced herself from Caitlin after the loss of her father. Caitlin still tried to make an effort to stay close to her mother, but all her futile attempts had failed. In the end, Caitlin was left to fend for herself.
She had found happiness once before. She had found love in her life, and it had come in the form of a man named Ronnie Raymond. The two had been in love for 3 years, and they had even gotten engaged. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and this definitely did. The night the particle accelerator had exploded, Ronnie had sacrificed himself so the rest of Central City could survive. They had never gotten married, and they didn't even get a proper goodbye. Hearing his voice through the walkie-talkie was the last she ever heard from her beloved.
After that night, Caitlin Snow was never the same person. She was no longer the person who would laugh, and enjoy herself. Instead, she was the person that everybody pitied. She was the person that had lost everyone she cared for. She was the person that made everyone feel guilty when she walked into a room. She was the person who constantly felt like an outsider.
Completely lost in her train of thought, Caitlin wasn't paying attention to where she was going. She suddenly crashed into something hard, and fell backwards.
"Oh my gosh! Caitlin! I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going." Caitlin listened detachedly as her best friend, Cisco Ramon, rambled on and on as she picked herself up off the ground.
"How are you doing?" he asked sincerely.
"I'm fine," Caitlin lied. She was not only tired of work, but also the fact that everyone wouldn't stop asking her if she was alright. Even her best friend wouldn't stop nagging her.
"Are you sure? You looked rather down today, we're all worried about you-"
"Cisco!" Caitlin interrupted, "I'm fine. Now, please, if you don't mind, I would like to go home." Without waiting for a response, Caitlin turned on her heels, and left through the front entrance.
