Barry Allen Imagines

43;

"What about a dog?" You asked, your head hanging off the couch, legs sprawled out over the back of the couch, while you watched Barry type away on his laptop.
"A dog?" He glanced over from his seat at the counter, an eyebrow raised questioningly.
"Yeah! I mean, I've always wanted a huge dog, like a Saint Bernard or a Shar Pei but I don't think that'd work in this apartment; might have to stick with a small dog. Something like a Charles Spaniel or even a Dachshund! Those are too cute."
Barry jokingly rolled his eyes as you had basically begun rambling to yourself about what type of dog would be best, completely disregarding the time and care that went into having a dog.
You, however, caught that eye roll and were quick to call him out. "What? Are you more of a cat person because I will honestly be so shocked because I cannot at all picture you with a cat. As soon as one of them accidentally scratched you, you'd be ready to return him–I can picture it perfectly."
Barry abandoned his work (hopefully he wouldn't get sidetracked and forget about it again, unlike last time), and came to sit beside you, motioning you to flip over correctly and face him. "First, you're definitely correct, cats are my natural born nemesis and all of them despise me. And second, how would we even care for a dog, doll? We're barely home and if we are it's usually just to sleep or eat."
You pouted, realizing that he was right. But that didn't mean you liked that conclusion. You spent more time in this apartment than he did and you knew for a fact that it was lonely wandering the hallways in an empty house. And having a dog would definitely solve that problem.
"Oh c'mon, doll, put that pout away," he smiled, leaning forward to suck on your pursed bottom lip. "You gotta understand that it'd be unfair to get a dog if we can't give it our full attention, right?"
You nodded in defeat, slightly brushing your lips against Barry's while doing so, causing him to seal his lips to your for one final kiss before pulling away. "Maybe one day, when things settle down we can get a dog but I don't think it's best right now..."
-
That was nearly three months ago and you hadn't given that conversation a second thought. Why would you? All Barry's points made complete sense and at least he agreed that maybe the decision would change in the future when thing calmed down a bit.
However, returning home for work, you fumbled with the key before you managed to unlock the door and push it open.
Nothing seemed out of the ordinary; all the lights were off so you had assumed that Barry had yet to get home and you quickly headed to the bedroom to begin your nightly routine.
While brushing your wet hair after your shower, you heard the front door click shut and quickly finished your hair and left to greet Barry.
What you didn't expect to see was him struggling with a small English bulldog puppy who had managed to wrap it's leash around his ankles. "Cmon, pumpkin, gotta unhook you first so you don't get tangled like this," he huffed in a hushed tone, crouching down to untangle the poor thing. "There ya go, now you can go find mommy."
Barry was slightly surprised when he stood back up and saw you staring at him with wide, questioning eyes. A puppy? The man who was adamantly against getting a puppy had now just set one free into your apartment. "Uhhh," He shrugs, smiling as if he had gotten caught doing something wrong. "Surprise?"
"Surprise?" You sputter out, glancing down to the puppy who was now pulling on your pajama pants leg, demanding attention. "Weren't you the one who argued against a dog yet you're the one who caved and brought one home?"
He cracked a smile as his arm lifted up to awkwardly rub the back of his neck as if he was caught red handed. "Was against it at first for all the reasons I argued but you did get some good points in there and I guess I kinda saw the light and thought I'd surprise you for your birthday or Christmas. You see, long story short, I was on the way home when the pet store had all their puppies outside and this little girl was so nervous she was in the corner shaking. All the other puppies were barking and vying for attention so no one really noticed the little runt in the back, but I set my eyes on her and knew that she'd be so loved with us and would never have to feel anxious or left out with us."
During his whole spiel, you had snatched the puppy up into your arms, wiggling your fingers as she gently gnawed on them. Barry spoke as if he waited to be reprimanded by you but that apprehension faded as he watched you happily play with the puppy–knowing that he had made the right decision to adopt the small puppy into your family.