Sparks Fly {the flash}

eight

I slowly walked into the lab, feeling sluggish at the lack of sleep I had gotten last night. Once the realization hit me, I was up the entire night trying to make sense of it. It was obvious to me now that what I thought was true, and I spent the majority of the night battling with the decision of whether or not to tell Barry I knew or not. I didn't know how he was going to react because he was keeping this information from me for a reason, whatever that reason may be. I wanted more than anything to be able to respect that he didn't want to tell me, but I knew that it was going to come out eventually. I was never one who could hold onto a secret for very long, and I knew that wasn't going to be able to keep one this big in for a long period of time.

I'd been slow all morning since I had been awake for an extended amount of time. I had to make my coffee twice since I forgot to put the beans in the first time, I almost forgot to put shampoo in my hair when I took a shower, and I fell over a few times when I was getting dressed. I had chosen a simple long-sleeved shirt with leggings that didn't look like leggings so that I didn't get in trouble with Singh. I didn't think I would, but I honestly didn't want to run the risk of getting reprimanded while being half awake. I had to triple check all of my bags before leaving just to make extra sure I hadn't left anything behind in my fatigued state. I could tell today was going to be one big struggle, and I wasn't looking forward to any aspect of what had been to come.

Barry was sat at his desk when I walked into the lab, clad in a royal blue sweater and khaki pants. I never understood why he felt the need to dress so nice when we were going to be spending our days either touching dead bodies or sitting in a lab where no one other than a few select detectives would see us. I guessed that it was because he did it for his own self-confidence or--the hopeful longshot--to impress me. The only reason that I didn't show up every morning in jeans and some random concert shirt was because I didn't want him to think that I didn't take my work seriously or to think that I was a slob. Granted, he was much to nice to call me out on anything like that, but I didn't want him to think that way about me. I took a deep breath at the sight of him to keep my mouth shut, wanting to remain as cool and nonchalant as possible. You have to keep it together, Izzy. I told myself. Just breathe and act natural.

"Good morning, Iz." Barry greeted as I put my coat and purse in the locker next to his. The playful nickname caught my ear yet again, only making me further believe that he was The Flash.

"Morning." I replied, my voice shaking slightly. I closed the metal door and walked over to my desk, logging on and doing my best to act as nonchalant as possible.

"Are you okay?" He asked, and I could tell that he was staring right at me. "You seem a little off today."

I nodded, smiling softly at him. "I'm fine. I didn't get a lot of sleep last night."

"A lot on the mind?"

"You could say that."

"Maybe it would help to talk about it." He suggested in a caring tone.

I shook my head, giving him a small smile. "I'll be fine, Barry. It's okay."

He looked like he was about to protest when Singh came in, informing both of us about a body that had been found just outside of town. I told Barry that he could hang back and finish up any paperwork that he hadn't done yesterday on his day off. He obviously didn't like the idea of staying behind in the lab, but I needed the separation at the moment. It would give me the chance to sort out everything running through my head so that I could work alongside him without completely losing my mind. I grabbed my case before saying goodbye to Barry and heading downstairs to catch a ride with one of the dispatched officers. I didn't want to have to take the train all the way out of the city, and I was thankful that I was able to catch Joe just before he left. He seemed more than happy to give me a lift, and I thanked him multiple times for it.