Sparks Fly {the flash}

nine

Barry

"She knows." I stated as I walked into the Cortex, immediately grabbing Cisco and Caitlin's attention. "Izzy knows."

"How does she know?" Cisco asked, sitting back in his chair.

I shrugged, my hands hitting my legs with such force that it actually echoed through the room. "I don't know. All I know is that she figured it out somehow, and now she knows."

"Is she going to tell anyone about it?" Caitlin questioned.

"I don't think Izzy would do that." Cisco said, sharing his opinion.

I nodded in agreement. "I don't think she would either, but she put herself in danger by figuring it out."

"She was in danger anyway, Barry." Caitlin stated. "Hartley already knows who you are, so if he was going to do anything to her, he would have done it regardless of her knowledge of you being The Flash."

"Hartley isn't our only concern, though. There are still meta-humans out there who know who I am, and if they get anywhere near her..." I took a deep breath, having to turn away to calm myself down.

"She'll be fine, Barry." Cisco comforted, walking over to where I was and putting a hand on my shoulder. "She's a big girl, and she can handle whatever anyone throws at her. It's like you said last night: she's prepared for the improbable."

Caitlin nodded in agreement. "She's the only girl I've heard of who carries a taser in their purse to fend off sexual assault."

"But what is she going to do if she's attacked by a meta-human?" I questioned. "A taser can't exactly hurt someone who thrives off of electricity or who can turn into a poisonous gas."

"That's what you're for." She replied. "You're there to save the damsel in distress."

"I don't want her to be in that position, Caitlin. I know I can save her, but I don't ever want to see her put there because of me."

"Then we will do everything in our power to keep her safe." Cisco said. "Now that she's in the inner circle, it should be easier to protect her."

"Inner circle?" Caitlin questioned. "You think she's in the inner circle just because she knows?"

"There can't be any harm in adding another scientist into the mix."

"Forensics don't usually apply to anything Barry finds himself mixed into."

"We're trained to see what others don't." I defended. "There are things that she would be able to see that you or Cisco wouldn't even think about looking for."

"Do you really want that kind of distraction, though?"

"It's better than constantly worrying about whether or not she's alive or dead in a ditch somewhere."

She inhaled deeply. "Barry, I know how you feel about Izzy. I like her too. Not in the way that you do, of course, but I would be distraught if anything happened to her, but that isn't a reason that you should induct her into this." She gestured around the room. "I want you to think something like this through thoroughly before making a set decision."

I nodded. "I will."

She nodded shortly before walking back to her "section" of the lab. Cisco smiled slightly at me before sitting down at the desk, starting to type something in. I decided to go back to the lab so that Izzy could take a lunch break. In hindsight, I probably should have let her get some food first since she had been out at a crime scene all morning, but the thought hadn't even crossed my mind. I had been so caught up in the idea of her figuring out that I was the masked vigilante running around the city that I had completely forgotten that she must have been hungry and exhausted from her lack of sleep last night. My guilt continued to grow, so I raced back to the police station as fast as I could to relieve her of her duties as quickly as possible.