Within Seconds: Flashpoint Edition

With or Without You

Iris and Barry didn't speak in everyone's absence for a number of reasons. They aimed to stay quiet to allow Melody her nap.

The lesser one was simply because there was nothing to say, on either end. Things just were how they were with Cisco and Barry. Fixing the issue wasn't applicable. Feelings were hurt, hearts were shattered, and the only thing keeping them together was knowing they couldn't lose someone else, too. 

"She's so beautiful," whispered Iris, in awe of the child in her arms. She hadn't stopped staring at Melody since she was given her. "You and Park did well, Bar. You make a cute kid."

"She has her everything. Give credit to her," he muttered.

"She's got your eyes. And possibly your speed," suggested Iris. 

"God, I hope not," groaned Barry, sliding his hands through his hair. "The last thing I want is for her to have any touch of the Speed Force in her. I don't want her to have this life." 

Iris didn't say anything in return. She offered a smile to him.

Luckily, the conversation didn't proceed, due to an alarm softly ringing from the computer desk. Barry limped to shut it off before it woke Melody.

"What is it?" asked Iris. 

"The satellite. It's programmed to detect rapid temperature degenerations," said Barry. He found the address from where it had generated. "That's the house Cisco's watching."

"Barry, no," said Iris. 

He shook his head helplessly, shuffling for his suit. "I have to help."

"When are you going to realize that you aren't solo anymore?" snapped Iris. "You have a baby. You can't be leaving to fight crime when you're injured. Rethink this. Please. If you don't come back from this, she'll have lost both of her parents."

He lowered his eyes. "She'll have Cisco. He'll be better than I am."

Then, he sped away to help bring his friend home safely. 

xxxx

Watching Caitlin sleep soundly in her cell, Barry pondered the thought of needing to be there anymore. Cisco had saved the day; he knocked out Caitlin and brought her back to H.Q. Barry had done nothing except be injured and get an extremely frosty kiss. Perhaps it was time to lay low, he thought; maybe it was time to step back and let someone else take the reigns of Team Flash. 

Voicing his opinion didn't happen, although the whole team was already gathered in the Meta Prison. He didn't get the chance to before Caitlin woke up. 

"Whew!" she said. She faked every word; they could tell by her icy colored eyes and the slight wisp in her voice. "Guess I just needed a little sleep. Thanks, guys. I'm feeling much better now. You can let me out. I promise I'm not gonna hurt anybody."

Barry and Team Flash continued to watch her, varying degrees of sadness present in the way their faces scrunched. 

"Hm. Guess you're all smarter than I thought," said Caitlin. She smirked at Cisco. "That was some blast there, Vibe-Boy. Kinda hurt."

"I didn't want to hurt you," muttered Cisco. 

"You're pathetic."

"Alchemy can't help you," interrupted Barry. "But we can. I promise."

"Oh, like you promised Eddie? And like you promised Ronnie? Or Par--"

"Caitlin," he said firmly. 

She raised her eyebrow, content with the minor backlash. "For a hero, Flash, you sure let a lot of people around you die." 

"This isn't you talking. It's the powers, they're messing with your mind. You're sick," he diagnosed softly. 

"I'm broken, Barry," she snarled. "But what do you care? 'Cause you've got Iris. You've got Melody. You got your happy ending. Everyone else be damned. So, I'll tell you what: you let me go, and I will leave you to your sad and miserable lives."

"No, we're not abandoning you," decided Barry. 

"You did this to me!"

It was then Barry placed his fingers on the touch screen, rotating the circle, allowing the Meta-Human Jail to return to it's standard lockdown procedure. The circular door fell shut. 

Joe was the first to leave, eager to return to Wally. 

H.R., after a sip of his coffee, left, too, humming a soft tune under his breath. 

Cisco stayed. It wasn't for Barry. It was discomfort in the idea of his best friend spending the night alone in the cells she helped put bad Meta's in. It was shock, grief, complete pity, because the girl he would do anything for was pleading for help, and he was helpless. 

Barry turned to face him, hope and utter determination lighting up his voice. "Do you have any idea how we can reverse this? Any idea how we can get her back?"

"It's like Caitlin said: sometimes when things get broken, they can't be fixed," said Cisco softly through his wavering voice. He blinked hard, pushing his tears back, then fled from the Prison. 

Barry dug his knuckles over and around his eyes. He felt a hand on his back, Iris, and he turned. He grabbed Melody from her arms, holding her tight against his chest. He ran his finger along her black curls, down her cheek, admiring, and wondering if Caitlin was right. 

He had his dream: his daughter. He had his wife within her, despite her absence. He had his speed, a family... But was it truly a happy ending?

"Barry?" asked Iris cautiously. 

"We should all be working to find Alchemy and Savitar, figure out how to stop them. Instead, we're fighting each other."

"Yeah. Team Flash is not at its finest," Iris agreed. 

Barry didn't know if his next words were directed more towards himself or Iris, but, frustrated, he asked, "Why didn't I just follow you inside the house?"

"Because you were hurting," she reminded him. "You'd do anything to make the pain go away. That's why Caitlin is so lost, Cisco, too. We will do anything to make the pain stop. That doesn't make you a bad person. That makes you human."

"Tell that to my friends," scoffed Barry, raising his head. "My best friends. One of them's locked up like a villain; the other one hates me."

"You cannot take this all on yourself."

"Why not?" he challenged. 

"How do you know that Caitlin wasn't already affected by the Particle Accelerator Explosion, or that Dante would have died in a car accident anyway, or that Parker..." Iris stopped, unable to go any farther with the girl. She had been a fixed point in time before he changed the timeline, as had Melody. "You are not, God, Barry."

"That's what Jay said."

"Jay's a smart man," she agreed. 

Barry offered a short smile. His gaze returned to Melody. 

Iris didn't have to think to know what he was doing. Sighing, she said, "You cannot keep doing this to yourself, constantly going over the what-ifs. You'll go nuts."

"I just..." he mumbled. 

She interrupted, pushing him to avoid it. "Everyone in this building needs the Flash right now: my Dad, Wally, even Cisco and Caitlin. So, be strong like I know you are. I know you don't want to be the leader right now, but you have to be."

Barry only had a few words: "I just wish she was here."

"She is," said Iris. 

Barry looked up at her, confused. 

Iris pointed to her own heart, Barry's, then she placed her finger in Melody's tiny, little hand. She smiled at her best friend's daughter. "She is here, Barry. You just have to find her."