Author's note: I was too tired to proof-read this chapter so ignore mistakes.

That weekend, the weekend they moved into their own apartment, Caitlin's dad offered to watch Maddy while Cisco and Barry helped her. As long as an adult she was comfortable with was watching her, Maddy was fine with being away from her mother. And, it really helped Caitlin out. She was able to direct the moving with Cisco and Barry's help. Caitlin gave her daughter – who was busy looking at a picture book with her grandfather – one last hug before Barry and her hopped into the movers van and Cisco hopped into his car. Then they were on their way to her and Maddy's new apartment.

Barry turned the radio onto their favorite classic rock station and Caitlin sang along – off key and out of tune – to Journey. Barry teased her gently about not knowing the actual words and she continued to shriek as she sang. Barry laughed, holding his hands up in defeat. "Okay, okay! Point made."

Caitlin laughed. "Bet you didn't miss my singing."

Barry looked at her for a moment, eyes flickering back to the road the next. "I missed everything about you, Cait."

Her breath hitched in her throat and she looked at him. "I'm sorry it took me so long to come back."

"Why did it?" Barry asked quietly.

Caitlin sighed. "A lot happened. That's all I can really say."

"You're okay, though?" Barry asked, ever the concerned one about his best friend's safety.

Caitlin chose her words with care. "I will be."

"That's all I need to hear," he smiled sweetly and they went back to singing. He still had the voice of a singer and she still sounded terrible. There were a couple of nights, back when she first started college, that she went and sang karaoke with her roommate. That's how she met Jay. At the karaoke bar. Then he drugged her at the party and she cut off all ties with him. Should she have called the cops? Most definitely but she was ashamed. Ashamed to be that girl. The girl who got drugged and then raped at a party. Even worse, she got pregnant.

She knew she was being too hard on herself and she loved Maddy with everything she had so Caitlin tried not to dwell too much on the negative. Maddy was a blessing in her life because she resembled so little of Jay. Caitlin shied away from thinking about him; from entertaining thoughts about him because he didn't deserve an iota of space in her mind. She had no room for toxicity. "Thanks again for helping me today. You and Cisco both probably had other things to do and I just really appreciate your help."

"Anytime, Cait," Barry replied. "You know that."

She smiled at him, blush kissing her cheeks and she quietly cursed her ability for blushing at anything he said. She cleared her throat. "So, have you been dating anyone?"

"Really? We're going to talk about relationships?" Barry laughed.

"Well, why not?" Caitlin laughed back. "I'm sure there's someone who caught your eyes. Barry Allen doesn't stay single for long."

Barry huffed out a laugh. "Not true. I was single until Iris finally dated me in high school.

I know. I wanted you to wake up and realize I was in love with you. "Oh, I remember."

"But, to answer your question," he continued, smiling at her fondly and it warmed her heart. "I'm not really dating anyone. I want on a couple of dates in my senior year of college – that was when Iris got her dream job and moved but nothing ever panned out. Now I'm content being on my own."

"And, Cisco?" Caitlin asked as she mused over that answer.

"Believe it or not," Barry replied with a smirk, "but Cisco is dating Hartley."

"Rathaway?" Caitlin asked in incredulous tones. "His arch-nemesis from high school?"

"Hartley, surprisingly, isn't a bad guy," Barry defended.

"Why do I feel like there's a story involved?"

"Because there is," Barry smirked. "Cisco got sick with a bad case of the flu in our sophomore year. I tried to help as much as I could but it was during finals and we were all cramming for it. Hartley, somehow, caught wind of him being sick and, I don't know, felt weird or bad about it so he nursed him back to health so he could take his finals."

"What?" Caitlin was scandalized.

"Yeah," Barry laughed. "The guy claimed it was because he wanted to beat out Cisco in finals fair and square but he still saw him the following weeks after his flu bout ended. They spent many days together that summer and one thing led to another and now…"

"Now they're dating," Caitlin finished and Barry nodded. "Did not see that one coming."

"Yeah, you miss a lot when you're off living life in another city," Barry said. It was said in a teasing tone but she caught the admonishment buried beneath his words and was appropriately abashed.

"Barry," she began, trailing off because she didn't know what to say to make the sting less.

"It's okay," he said quietly. "I'm good. I'm just really, really glad you're back."

She offered up a smile. "Me too."

They drove the rest of the way to her apartment in companionable silence.

XXX

Once at the apartment and when Cisco showed up, the three friends began unpacking boxes, with Barry and Cisco pausing here and there to ask where Caitlin wanted something. She had to admit that this was a lot easier without Maddy present because Maddy would undoubtedly want to direct everything and be in charge. Caitlin knew the way the game worked. The three of them worked tirelessly and Caitlin got all the big furniture moved in with the movers help, who showed up around ten that morning. By three o'clock in the afternoon, she was entirely moved in. Cisco smiled at her. "It looks great."

"Welcome home, Cait," Barry said quietly, and she nodded her head appreciatively.

"It feels good to be back," she murmured.

"Feels good to have you back," Cisco piped up, then glanced at his watch.

"I have to meet Hartley for dinner but anytime you need us to babysit Maddy, we will. I call godfathers for us," he said.

Caitlin laughed. "I know it'll be easy enough for you."

"Hartley, too, trust me," Cisco replied.

"We'll see," she said, and Cisco hugged her goodbye before nodding at Barry and walking out to his car. Barry turned to look at her.

"Dinner with you and Maddy?" Barry asked hopefully. "On me?"

Who was she to deny such an offer? "That sounds great, Barry, thanks."

XXX

At the restaurant, Maddy wanted to sit by Barry and he offered that she sit in the middle of them in the booth. It was a tight fit but Maddy was appeased and that was all that matter to Caitlin. "What do you want, baby?"

"Chicken fingers, mommy!" Maddy chirped and Cailin smiled.

"With mac and cheese?" Caitlin asked, eyes scanning the menu.

"Mhm!"

"As long as you eat some vegetables with it," Caitlin requested.

"Vegetables are so gross!" Maddy harrumphed.

"No vegetables, no dessert," Caitlin warned.

"But mommy, I want ice cream!"

"Hey Maddy," Barry spoke up suddenly. "I'm getting some vegetables too and I hate vegetables. What if we race to see who finishes theirs' first and whoever does, gets an extra cherry on their ice cream? Does that sound fair?"

"Yes!" Maddy exclaimed, before turning to her mother. "Is that okay, mommy? If me and Barry race each other and the winner gets an extra cherry?"

Caitlin smiled, rubbing her daughter's back. "That's fine with me. I don't like vegetables either so maybe I'll have to enter the race."

"Yeah, yeah, mommy enters the race too!" Maddy proclaimed and Caitlin laughed, catching Barry's eye, and mouthing a quick and grateful, 'thank you', over the top of her daughter's head. He winked at her with a smile.

The waiter came and took their order, with all three of them ordering green beans and carrots as one of their sides, and then he walked away, bringing a basket of bread the next minute. "So, Maddy."

Maddy looked up at Barry.

"Are you excited to move into your new apartment?" Barry asked.

"Yeah!" Maddy grinned. "Mommy says I get a big-girl bed with big-girl sheets!"

"What kind of sheets are you going to get?" Barry asked kindly and Caitlin marveled at how well he had taken to his daughter.

"I'm going to get Beauty and the Beast! Belle is my favorite Disney princess."

"She's pretty smart if I remember correctly," Barry commented. "Likes to read?"

"Yes!" Maddy nodded exuberantly. "Mommy is going to teach me how to read this year!"

"That sounds fantastic," Barry replied with his own grin. "Your mommy is very smart."

"How do you two know each other?" Maddy asked innocently.

"Your mommy was my best friend in school," Barry said, looking up at Caitlin with soft eyes. "She's still my best friend today."

"Mommy, I want a best friend like Barry!" Maddy proclaimed.

"You'll meet someone, baby," Caitlin assured her, buttering herself a piece of bread. "It just takes time."

"Did you two ever kiss?" Maddy demanded and Caitlin promptly choked on her piece of bread she had been chewing. Glancing at Barry out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that he had gone red in the face and she decided to spare him.

"No, sweetheart," she replied gently. "We're just friends." That's all we've ever been.

Maddy studied them carefully, scrutinizing them in thought for a moment before dropping the topic and the rest of the meal was spent eating and laughing. Barry and Caitlin let Maddy win the extra cherry on her ice cream and they had leftovers to take back to Caitlin's apartment. Caitlin was relieved to know that her day went well with her friends. Too bad that relief would be short-lived.