Really sorry about this chapter previously I don't know what went wrong it has been happening a lot and it's really annoying. Anyway it should be fixed now. Than you for letting me know about this. Sorry for the long wait. I hope you enjoy the chapter and please let me know what you think.
Barry was the first to wake from his peaceful slumber. He tried to get up but a weight on his chest and legs, he looked down to see Iris and Caitlin's legs over his and Caitlin's head resting on his chest while Iris's forehead was leaning on his shoulder. Looking further down the couch he saw Cisco's head was resting on Caitlin's legs and his legs were thrown over the arm. Cisco's arms were still snaked around Caitlin and Barry's waist. Barry looked around at their position from different angles trying to figure a way out of the cuddle session turned puppy pile but turned up empty. He was not getting out of this any time soon even if he wanted to, which he didn't because secretly it felt nice being this close to his friends especially Caitlin.
He looked to Iris when she started to move, he thought that she might wake up so he could move a little but she just murmured something and shuffled herself closer to the warm body beside her. Barry sighed and leaned his head onto the back of the couch, closing his eyes he tried to get some more sleep. When he woke up again his right side was cool, he reached out his arm and expected to feel Iris still lying there but he felt nothing only the material of the couch beneath his fingertips. He opened his eyes and looked to where Iris previously was and saw she was no longer there. Cisco was also missing from the couch and Barry wondered how long he had been asleep for. He didn't even realise that Caitlin was still tightly attached onto him until she snuggled deeper into his chest sighing contently but looking up at him confused after bringing a hand up to pat his chest.
"Your not my pillow in fact you are more comfortable than my pillow" she said in a sleepy voice not really knowing what she was saying this early after waking up. He just chuckled and brought his hand up to brush her hair out of her face and behind her ear.
"I really need coffee but I am too comfortable to move, I never thought you would be comfortable because you are so skinny but you are. Not that I have ever thought about this because I have not… well maybe a few times or more than a few times I'm not sure" he just raised an eyebrow as she looked up at him again turning bright red obviously not meaning for all of that to come out. Her eyes laced with sleep and haze gazed into his filled with amusement and was that love she saw in his eyes. No it couldn't be, he didn't like her like that did he?
"Nice to know and I guess Felicity is rubbing off on you, Cisco too, he started rambling the other day" he smiled at her and twisted a piece of her hair around his finger before pushing her up into a sitting position so he could move. He got up from the couch and into the kitchen only to re-appear a minute later with two mugs in his hands. He handed one to her and re took his place next to her, turning on the TV and once again curling his legs under him. Iris came and sat on the other side of Barry when she had come downstairs and Caitlin moved away from the arm so Cisco could fit in beside her when he came back. Joe and Cisco emerged a little while later with a pile of plates and food. Each occupant of the room took a plate and started picking off the food that surrounded them.
Barry was having a field day with his food piling his plate high with toast and meat and hash browns and eggs and anything else he could fit on his plate while the others has what was left, which was enough for them as Joe had made a hell of a lot of food. Iris stared at him like he was crazy not knowing how he could eat so much food and still stay the size he is.
"He has a very fast metabolism anyway but he burns off his calories pretty fast when he is running and he needs all the glucose and nutrients to make sure he stays healthy, so he has to eat a lot of food to be able to replace everything he is losing. Iris looked at him like he was crazy and he nodded as confirmation still devouring a sandwich he had made filled until he could barley hold it. After breakfast was over and all the dishes were done thanks to one super speedy man Caitlin and Cisco said goodbye to Iris and Joe and thanked them for inviting them to the movie night, letting them sleep on the couch and for the lovely breakfast. They both got in Caitlin's car and drove towards Cisco's apartment to drop him off before she headed home to change too.
Barry stood at the door and watched the car drive down the street with a silly smile on his face that he didn't even know he was wearing until Iris pointed it out.
"You'r staring Bar" she pointed out as she stepped up beside him and nudged him with her shoulder.
"What? No I wasn't" he disagreed as he tore his eyes away from the retreating car and to his best friend.
"Um yea you were and you had a cute little smile and a faraway look in your eye. Oh my god you have thing for Caitlin" she finally figured it out looking at him with wide eyes and poking him in the chest with her pointer finger with a grin of her own.
"No I haven't where did you get that idea" he said while shutting the door and walking up the stairs to his room.
"Maybe the smiles whenever she is around or whenever you hear her voice, the cuddling and don't say you cant control what you do in your sleep because I could tell you liked it. The way you protect her and watch over her. The way you will only listen to her, DR Wells and Cisco and my dad and me could tell you what to do and you wouldn't listen you would just get stubborn and dig your heels in, but if she asks you you do it with little to no hesitation" Iris lists all the things Barry does when Caitlin is there or when he talks to her. Barry's eyes widen at the list of things not even aware he is doing most of them.
"I really do all that?" he asks spinning round to face Iris with a slight blush covering his cheeks and his eyebrows scrunched together.
"Yes and I think it's cute. You have it bad for her" his face heats up even more and his cheeks flare up bright red. He lowers his head to hide the blush and the smile on his face.
"Is it that obvious?" he asked lifting his head to look at her again the color in his face slightly faded. Iris just shrugs her shoulders.
"Sort of, well to me and my dad anyway but we grew up with you so we know when you are hiding something and can read you pretty well. I may not have known about you being The Flash but I knew something was up. But to other people its not obvious un less they are looking for it" Iris explained as she sat cross legged on his bed like she had done many times before. Barry just nodded and sat down beside her.
"So when are you going to ask her out?" Iris questioned as she nudged him with her elbow with a teasing smile on her lips. He swung his head around to meet her eyes with his wide ones. He did that so many times in the space of half a day people would think his eyes were permanently glued like that.
"I'm not. She doesn't even like me like that. She has Ronnie back now and even thoe they have been apart for so long they are still in love and I am not about to ruin my friendship with her up because I told her how I feel" He put his hands over his face and flopped backwards so he was lying on his bed face up. Iris sighed and laid down next to him and put her head on his shoulder while taking his hands off his face.
"Really you think she doesn't like you like that, she is almost as obvious as you and not very good at hiding it either. The amount of care and protectiveness she has for you is overwhelming then she treated you like you were a feather hanging together by a thread so gentle and so careful. I know friends care and look out for each other but not in the same way she does. Plus her and Ronnie are not together anymore, I doubt they even see each other like that any more, it's all in the body language. They were standing about a foot apart and didn't even reach for each others hand once, they tease each other and torment each other non stop, they laugh but not an I love you laugh more of a your funny laugh. Trust me there is a difference. They kind of remind me of us" she said propping up on one elbow so she could look at him properly and he turned his head so he could look at her. They both stayed silent for a while, Barry thinking over what Iris just said and wondering if it could all be true. He had noticed all those things but never thought about them, just thinking that it was because Ronnie had been away for so long.
She looked at him to see big sad eyes all conflicted and nervous. She reached out and put her arms around him in a big hug placing her head back onto his shoulder, he put his head to the side so his forehead was touching hers and put his hand on hers. To anyone who walked in the room at that second it would look like two lovers in an embrace but really to them it was one person finding comfort of the touch of his best friend/sister. They stayed like that for a while, silent thinking about the things that were floating found in their heads before Barry lifted his head and Iris unlocked her arms from round his waist allowing them both to stand.
"I should probably get home it's mine turn to make dinner. Bye Bar" she laughed kissing his cheek and walking through the door, making her way down the stairs and out of the front door. He changed his outfit and retreated downstairs picking his shoes up on the way. He had gotten a text from Cisco asking if he was going into S.T.A.R Labs today because he had a new gadget for him to try out. Racing over to the lab he did a few more laps of the city before reaching the building. He never felt more alive or more free than when he was running. The wind on his face ice cold but it had never felt so good against his hot skin, an effect of the speed. The electricity running through his body at breakneck speeds, running from his brain all the way down his body into the tips of his toes then down into the ground where it would dissipate and leave no trace. The feeling of running hundreds of miles per hour dodging cars and buildings like a giant assault course that he had done a million time before.
He finally got to S.R.A.R Labs where Cisco and Caitlin were sat at their work stations while DR Wells was in the room he had dubbed as his office and Ronnie was strangely absent which was not like him. He pulled up a chair and sat between his two friends who were watching their monitors closely. Cisco's fingers were flying wildly over the keys his eyes scanning the screen with determination as he tried to decode whatever he needed to.
"What's wrong with him?" he asked Caitlin leaning over to whisper to her so he didn't distract Cisco as this looked important.
"We found another metahuman that can control things with his mind like telekinesis but he can control more than objects, he can control liquids and gasses too but he is really smart he has sent videos of his next target to our computes but they are encrypted. Cisco has been at this for two hours and has gotten no further in fact I think he has just confused himself" Caitlin explain as Barry looked over to Cisco to see him ball his hands up into fists and lean his elbows on the table looking more than a little mad.
"Dude if you need help just ask for it, there is no shame in that. I need help all the time I could do this without you guys, we are a team an we are here to help" Barry explained and Cisco just hung his head putting his hands behind his neck sighing. He looked up to his two friends and nodded.
"Ok I admit it I need help, I thought I could do this on my own but I can't" Barry nodded his head and pulled out his phone dealing a number his was almost too familiar with.
"Hey what are you doing right now?" he asked into the phone and went silent while he waited for a reply. He smiled when n he heard the answer and went speeding off. He came back around 5 minutes later with a windswept Felicity in his arms with her hair across her face and her shirt untucked from her skirt with her heels in her hands. He set her down on the floor and steadied her as she swayed a little when her feet reached the ground. She finally got her bearings and pushed her hair from her face hoping to look somewhat presentable but placing her heels on the floor next to the desk. She took Barry's vacated chair as he stood behind Caitlin's chair. Cisco explained what they were up against and what he was trying to decode.
"Ok give me 5 minutes to update your system and put on one of my programmes, this is the latest version there is and has a better virus scanner and decoder than the models that are on the market as of next week. I may have hacked into a server and borrowed their software then tampered with it to make it better and faster. Nothing is going to be able to escape from this nothing will be able to get through it either" She got to work on the updates and instructed Cisco what to do when it was required. When all the updates were done and everything was online she showed Cisco and Caitlin how to operate the programme.
"It's clever because no hacking is needed on your part, you set it and place it where it needs to go then activate it and it does everything itself, its all automated. The only time you may need to do something is if the programme reaches a crossroads, then just pick and route and watch the magic happen" they all watched in wonder as the programme started up and whizzed around the screen. Numbers and letters were flying and colors were appearing and disappearing and reappearing somewhere else.
"I made it color full and added a game of cat and mouse in there to make it more fun. The mouse is the intruder or thing you are trying to decode and you guys are the cat, the colors are just for fun and the numbers and letters are the actual programme" they all laughed at Felicity's fun side. No matter how bad things got how how much death and destruction she saw, she still managed to keep smiling. At the end of the day she had helped save innocent lives and that is what she focussed on. 2 minutes later they heard a ding coming from the computer and all turned around to see files and documents appearing on the screen.
"The next target is Jason Starr, 31 years old, had a wife and 3 kids, lives at 16 Pascall street (just made that up). This guy had been killing every week on a Monday for the past 4 weeks, lets not make it a 5th" DR. Wells announced and Barry nodded speeding off to get changed into his suit and getting to the house of the next victim before before he was too late. He found Jason just getting out of his car with his wife and the kids. Barry walked over to Jason who looked scared and tried to push his kids and wife behind him before the Flash reached them.
"I wont hurt you I am just here to warn you and get you and your family to the CCPD before something bad happens" Jason just narrowed his eyes and did not move an inch from where he was standing protectively but he did lower his hand from his son's head.
"Please I can explain but can we talk over there where little ears can't listen, I don't want to upset them or worry them" Barry could see that Jason was a little apprehensive about leaving his family and going anywhere alone with the Flash but nodded anyway.
"I know you have heard about the people that have been murdered over the past few weeks well he picks his victims then sends the police a encored folder with all the information on it knowing full well that the PD won't be able to decrypt the file. But my team and I know someone who can and we did. You are the next victim and I know it's shady but you and your family need to come with me to the CCPD they can keep you safe" Jason looked confused for a second then surprised then shocked then disbelieving like he thought this was one big sick joke. Finally after thinking it through he nodded and called Joe.
"Hey Joe, Felicity cracked the file I am with the next victim and his family. I am bringing them to the station for protection 2 adults and 3 kids to be ready" the Flash put the phone back in the pocket that Cisco had put in recently so that he could have contact with the PD as well as S.T.A.R Labs.
"Take my wife and my daughter first then you can come back for Tony then Oscar and I last" he nodded than look Patricia (the wife) and Penny (the daughter) first and dropped them off in Joe's office where he was waiting for them, he didn't stop as he dropped them off just gently placed them down and took off again to collect Tony and left him with his mother and sister then went back to get Jason and his eldest son. Once they were all safely back at the station Barry went back to the house and hid in the shadows to wait for the killer so he could catch him and deposit him at the police station too ready to be put away. It was an hour before the murderer turned up and used pick to silently unlock the door and step inside the building, once he did that Barry raced in and collected him but not before scaring him a little first. He sped around the room stopping in she shadows to whisper things to him, taunting him. Eventually he got bored and took him to the precinct where he was immediately taken into custody.
Finally getting back to S.T.A.R Labs he whooshed in perched on the edge of the computer table sending papers and folders flying everywhere only to look up and see the annoyed face of Caitlin.
"I just finished organising those" she said glaring at him and crossing her arms infant of her chest. He just smiled and used him speed to pick them all back up and sort them out before placing them back next to her. He should have felt tired after the events of that day but instead he felt refreshed and ready to go.
"I wonder how Oliver and everyone else are doing maybe I should go check on them" he said more to himself than anyone else but Felicity answered anyway.
"He was ok when I left but he still wants to thank you for helping get me off the island even thoe he already has once. He said he would buy you coffee to say thanks… well that and actually say it… again" she explained and he stood up with a big smile on his face.
"I have a great idea" once again he sped off and the pile of papers that both he and Caitlin had organised went flying round the room again. Caitlin just sighed and went to pick them all back up again.
One by one everyone from Team Arrow appeared in the main lab looking confused and slightly disorientated. First Oliver then Diggle then Thea then Sara then Nyssa and finally Roy.
"I thought we could all go out to dinner tonight spend time together without metahuman attacks or near deaths" he smiled at everyone and they all agreed except DR Wells who said he was not too keen on crowds but told them to have a good time. Barry sped off once again and came back with 10 coffee's and a pile of doughnuts and buns for everyone. Half an hour later and they were in the middle of a game of Jenga. Oliver, Thea, Felicity and Cisco on one side and Barry, Roy, Sara Nyssa and Caitlin on the other, one of the last bricks were just about to be pulled out by Roy and everyone else was leant as close to the table without touching it and staring at the tower of bricks in front of them so closely that they didn't hear Iris and Joe walk though the door.
"Hey Barry" Iris called from the entrance before she stepped in the room. All she heard in response was a crashing noise and two choruses of NO and YES echoed in the loud room.
"Ok that was not fair, I want a do over" Roy whined from his seat thinking it was not fair that Iris made him jump accidentally knocking the tower.
"Nope sorry no do overs and no take backs" Barry said and everyone else on his team agreed while everyone on the other team did not. Iris and Joe walked round the corner to see the table and the floor covered in Jenga blocks and a group of grown men squabbling over who won and weather or not it was fair. As soon as the newcomers came into view the playful arguing stopped and turned to look at them.
"Hey Iris Hey Joe, what's up?" Barry called getting up and giving them both a hug.
"Not much just wanted to say thanks for helping us catch that murderer and to say that the family is back at home safe and sound because of you" Joe said with a proud fatherly look on his face.
"No problem that's what I am here for, to help save the people of this city. Occasionally other cities too, when they need it" he looks at Oliver when he says the last part and earns a smile and a nod from him.
"Hey we are all going to dinner tonight why don't you come with us" Caitlin said leaning up to look over Diggle's shoulder as he was too tall for her to see over normally.
"Sure where we going?" she asked as she came and sat on Barry's lap. He gave her a weird look but all she did was shrug.
"What, my feet hurt and there was no more chairs" he just shook his head and sat back to allow her to sit sidewards facing everyone else in the room.
"Don't know yet" Felicity said as she looked up from her tablet where she was looking at restaurants. They eventually found one but everyone protested because they could not afford it when Oliver and Thea insisted that they pay for everyone, they all said no but the two Queens would not take that for an answer so they all gave in and accepted the offer.
After everyone went home and changed even the Arrow Team all thanks to Barry they arrived at the restaurant and asked at the front desk for the table they had booked under the name Queen. They sat at the round table and made small talk until their meals arrived.
"So all these guys know about you being the Flash?" Iris said looking at Barry with raised eyebrows.
"Yea Caitlin and Cisco helped me with controlling my speed and everything else. Oliver was the first person I went to for advice on being the Flash. Felicity heard me and Oliver talking about it. Diggle knows from when he came here to help with the metahuman that makes people angry. Roy and Sara know from when I went to Starling city to help catch a guy that was using a boomerang as a weapon to kill people and Nyssa from when I was on the island picking up Felicity" he explained to Iris and Joe who was also not sure on how so many people got to find out his identity.
"What about you how did everyone find out you are the Arrow?" Cisco asked then slapped his hands over his mouth with wide eyes forgetting that Iris was there.
"Wait you are the Arrow? seriously, this is amazing I am having dinner with two real super heroes" Oliver looked surprised at this.
"That's a new one, most people just call me a vigilante or a murderer why do you think of me as a super hero?" he asked genuinely curious to why.
"Because you help your city, you protect it from the real killers and the people who want to hurt it. You risk your life everyday when you go up against criminals with weapons. I know you have your own weapon but still. Thats what heroes do, help everyone else and then worry about themselves later. And you have a team, Team Arrow. Just like we are Team Flash" Iris explained like it was as clear as day and didn't really need explaining. Oliver smiled and nodded his head.
"Thank you I appreciate it. Not many people think that" she smiled back and said her welcomes. A little small talk and a few embarrassing stories of Barry later all the food was on the table so they allude in still lightly talking and laughing between themselves. It felt like a big family meal with everyone there sneakily stealing food off the others please and passing food round to the other end of the table. Too soon they had all finished their meal or Barry finished off what everyone else couldn't manage and a dessert afterwards and were heading out of the restaurant. To let their meal settle before Barry sped them home, they went to S.T.A.R Labs for a coffee and a few more board games.
They were all sat around playing Monopoly in pairs when Oliver excused himself from the room to answer his phone. He came back in the room minutes later looking exited but nervous with a big smile on his face. Team Flash had never seen his smile so big before, at least not a real smile like this.
"I have something to tell you all. I got this girl pregnant before I went on the gambit and she told me she lost the baby. Last week I found out that she had not lost the baby and my mother had been paying Rebeca to leave town and keep the baby a secret from me. Well Rebeca died last week and I got a call from social services. Rebeca put me down as my child's primary carer if anything happened to her. His name is Connor and he is almost 9 years old. I am going to adopt him since my name is not on his birth certificate as his father. Felicity will adopt him when we get married. Since there are no godparent on the birth certificate I can pick those too. So Barry and Caitlin would you like to be godparents to my son? I have already asked Diggle and Sara to be the other pair" he said standing up in front of everyone to get their attention. Barry and Caitlin smiled and agreed to be Connors godparents.
"Have you met him yet?" Barry asked and Oliver shook his head to indicate he had not.
"Not yet the first meeting is next week and we want to get this out of the way as soon as possible I do not want him n the foster care system for too long I have heard way too many bad stories" he explained and everyone agreed that leaving him in the foster system for a long time was not a good idea.
"I am so happy for you guys, well not happy that you missed so much of your son's life or that his mother dies but happy that you have a son and that you are going to get to know him and be involved in his life" Caitlin said and smiled at the thought of Oliver being a dad. With that said everyone carried on with the game and the Sara/Nyssa team won with everyone else complaining that they cheated. It was 11:30 before everyone decided it was time to go home and get a good nights rest before they all went to work and filled out some documents for Connor and get his room ready for when he came bak to Starling City. Barry said goodbye to Iris and Joe as they left first to drop Iris off at her apartment then go home himself. Cisco and Caitlin stayed behind to finish some last minute things around the lab while Barry whooshed everyone to their houses saying hi to Thea as he dropped Felicity, Oliver, Roy, Sara and Nyssa off at the Queen mansion since Felicity's apartment get destroyed when she was away but thankfully all her stuff was saved. Thea did not like Roy living in the Glades by himself and Sara had been living in the foundry since she came back with Nyssa so Thea invited them to stay in the mansion with everyone else.
Barry got back to the lab and found that Cisco had already left and just Caitlin remained picking up her things ready to leave. So he picked her up bridal style and sped them both to her apartment where he placed her back on her feet.
"I have really enjoyed tonight it was so nice to catch up with everyone and you look very nice in a suit" she confessed as she unlocked her door and turned around to face him.
"Yea it was a nice night and thank you for the compliment. You look amazing tonight Caitlin, not that you don't look amazing every day because you do, you have natural beauty but tonight I could barley take my eyes off you" he turned red when he realised that he said the last bit out loud. She turned red too and looked down to her dress. It was a one shoulder floor length dress with a slit up the side stopping mid thigh to show her long creamy legs and black stiletto heels. But it was the color that caught his attention, scarlet red. The exact same color as his flash suit, he didn't know weather it was y coincidence or on purpose but it definitely suited her.
"It caught my eye too" she said looking up at him and smiling.
"Well I should probably let you get inside and I should probably get home too" he said looking away from her eyes, anywhere but her eyes.
"Ok goodnight Barry" she said still looking at him drowned in adorable awkwardness.
"Goodnight Caitlin" he look a big breath and leaned down to kiss her cheek and let his lips linger for few seconds before pulling away and speeding down the path back to his own home. Caitlin brought her hand to her cheek. She could still feel his lips there and a tingle where they had been. She bit her lower lip and smiled before retreating inside. That night all Barry and Caitlin could think about was each other and that cheek kiss.
Chapter over. Thanks for reading and please post a review and tell me what you think. It tells me what I need to change and what direction to go in. I promise I will try and update more often.