#14 days of westallen fanfiction
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Tagged by the always lovely @annnesbonny, thank you
How many works do you have on AO3?
172
What’s your total AO3 word count?
866,426 words which is quite a few. I'm currently trying to see if I can hit a million by the end of next year but it's not so much a set goal as it is a game I'm playing with myself
How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?
There's mostly DCTV ones (mostly Flash but they can all be grouped as one thing), MCU and Agents of SHIELD, Doctor Who, a couple of The Adventure Zone ones, there's one Justice League 2017 film one and a few Flash Comics ones which are both more DC, a Good Omens one, Sherlock, one Librarians which is actually in a fic collection not tagged with Librarians because it was only the one fic out of all of them, I did write Harry Potter and Merlin and one Percy Jackson once way back when on FFN but they didn't make it over to AO3, so I think 13 unless you put all the DC and Marvel things together?
What are your top 5 fics by kudos?
Crossed Wires (DCTV, Barry/Eddie, I wrote this one in an hour after getting stuck for days trying to come up with something to fit the prompt)
Mis-sent (DCTV, Barry/Cisco, also a prompt fill for a ship week, it's a wrong number/college AU texting fic, figuring out the format was interesting)
"Just sleep in my damn shirt" (DCTV, Barry/Eddie, this was a prompt fill that didn't even get a proper title?)
Milk and Sugar (DCTV, Iris/Caitlin, this turned into a very long series, it was an accident but is also my little baby)
Flash Red; Vibe Blue (DCTV, Barry/Cisco, this remains the only fic I have stopped writing halfway through so I could run to Tesco, buy yeast, and bake bread because I was writing about baking bread and couldn't think of anything else until I had a bowl sitting in the airing cupboard. I made bread multiple times because of this fic.)
Do you respond to comments, why or why not?
I do, I don't always know what to say, I often feel like I'm bad with words and knowing what to say to people, but I very much appreciate the comments so I do want to thank people at least
What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?
Ashes to Ashes, it's the end of Inifinty War/very beginning of Endgame fic for the Marvellous Ladies of DC AU so there's a lot of character death (but it'll get better later)
Do you write crossovers? If so what is the craziest one you’ve written?
I haven't for a while but I have, the Percy Jackson fic was a crossover with Doctor Who where Rory Williams ends up helping various Roman demigods during his two thousand years hanging around as a plastic Roman but that was just on FFN and I don't think I still have it saved. I forgot the Star Wars/MCU one (that makes 14 fandoms total, and was also only on FFN) which was Mace Windu's lightsaber poked him in the eye as he fell out the window after being zapped by Palpatine and he fell into a portal and became Nick Fury which was inspired by a conversation with my brother
Have you ever received hate on a fic?
I had a few "constructive critisim" comments that were just critisisms which is why I don't think I have anything on the FFN account anymore. I panicked.
Do you write smut? If so what kind?
I do not, smut is not my thing.
Have you ever had a fic stolen?
Not to my knowledge
Have you ever had a fic translated?
Someone asked once but I didn't hear anything after that so I don't know if they finished it or not
Have you ever co-written a fic before?
The Marvellous Ladies of DC mentioned above is a collaborative AU with @agentmarymargaretskitz
What’s your all time favourite ship?
I guess Westallen? That's the one that most commonly tends to slip in in other fics, and I do enjoy other ships featuring Iris and Barry seperately but also sometimes that just turns into poly with Iris and Barry together again
What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?
I have had a Cynco role reversal featuring comic stuff too in the to write folder for so long that could be a long fic but keeps being put behind other things and not written so I might just stick what I have up in the AU Snippets collection
What are your writing strengths?
I have had some compliments on bits of dialogue recently which was nice
What are your writing weaknesses?
Spelling. I think I might need to work on descriptions more, I often feel like I mostly write dialogue and need more of the inbetween bits.
What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?
I think it depends? Suddenly switching languages can be quite jarring when you're reading, especially when it's to a languge you don't know and there are no translations so for something like that when the POV character is speaking in another language they're fluent in I would probably write in English and use the descriptor tag to note it's in another language, but if it's someone else speaking another language and the POV character isn't fluent I might use the jarring switch intentionally? If they understand some then you can incorporate translations into the text because they're going to be trying to translate what's being said either aloud or in their head and they probably will miss out bits of the conversation and misunderstand so having the character (and the reader) missing part of the information is kind of the point? And little bits, nicknames, the odd word, swearing in French so the pardon my French is used literally and using it to drop this other character actually speaks French too, that's fine, it's just the big paragraphs switching.
What was the first fandom you wrote for?
It was a Doctor Who/Sherlock crossover (because I got into fanfiction because my friend sent me several to read) and I panicked about publishing it for months. I did not tell that friend I had published any fics.
What’s your favourite fic you’ve written?
I feel bad picking favourites, but I did enjoy writing Ghosting which is a DCTV Cisco/Hartley fic, that was for the Hartmon Halloween event and was different to what I usually write so was fun to play around with and see what works and what doesn't (and considering I started by saying "I'll do no research for this because they also don't know what's going on" I ended up reading a lot about plastering), and I had some really lovely comments on Ghosting which did all make me cry a lot.
The Milk and Sugar 'verse is possibly cheating because it's a series but I was working on that for a long time so I think I'll always have a bit of a soft spot for that one (and it gave me an excuse to read so much science, that series has sources). The Superhero in the Bath, The Night Shift, and Flash Red; Vibe Blue (all DCTV Barry/Cisco) were fun to write too, The Superhero in the Bath has one of my favourite openings, The Night Shift's literal kiss of life is probably my favourite kiss I've written (and my favourite "can I count this as a pun or not" bit), and the bread I made while writing Flash Red; Vibe Blue tasted good too, the recipe was on the yeast pot, it's my go to bread recipe now, it lives in my head. Outfits (DC, Hal/Barry/Iris) was for the DC Poly Week and was my favourite out of those prompts because it was just a little bit of fluff (fun fact about the DC Poly week, 4 out of 7 are Hal/Barry/Iris fics, if you read it as one 'verse it's snippets of their relationship in reverse order), Museum Visits (DC, gen featuring Barry, Iris, and a tiny Wally) was just short and sweet, Double Back (DCTV, gen from the Flash & Hawkgirl series which is Iris/Kendra with a side Barry/Cisco) was really fun to write (the whole series is but that fic is based on Flashback which is one of my favourite episodes) and Vibe and the Flash (DCTV, gen from the Tess Lives AU which features Barry/Iris) had a bit that wasn't planned but showed up while I was writing and I'm so glad it did (the thing those two have in common is I guess I enjoy writing Eobard Thawne being a dick), I really don't think I can pick one favourite, I think, even if there are hard points and some are from a while ago and I would probably do differently now, I've enjoyed writing everything I've written, it's why I wrote them.
Tagging @agentmarymargaretskitz, @starstruckpurpledragon, @incendiaglacies, and @squireofgeekdom if you would like?
#thank you so much!#will i ever name just one fic when someone asks what my favourite one i've written is the answer is no#i feel too bad what if the others feel left out because i picked just one#replies#look i wrote a thing#it probably fits in there#*
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WestAllen At The Movies: Romance Edition.....Reprise!
I realized I haven’t given the date for the reprise other than the vague ‘in a month’ 😄. The reprise date is exactly a month after Feb 14th....March 14th!
Everyone that decided to postpone their entry, can post it then.
For those that released their first chapter, please remember to keep posting your fic. Don’t leave the people hanging 😁.
If you’ve already participated and want to participate again, feel free to do so!
If you’re just seeing this now and still want to participate that’s possible. Check out the information below:
Have you always wanted to draw a WestAllen version of the famous Spiderman upside down kiss, but kept forgetting? Have you always wanted to write a Pride an Prejudice WestAllen AU, but kept putting it on the backburner? This might be the challenge for you :)
How does it work?
The idea is the take a specific (romantic) movie or “famous” movie romance and use it as inspiration for your WestAllen Fics/Edits/Drawings/gifsets/Playlists/etc. Check out the list with movie titles and claims here.
If you see a movie you want to use, send me a message to claim it. 2 claims per movie allowed.
On March 14 post your work and tag it #WestAllenAtTheMovies and #WestAllen so I’ll be able to find it.
However
If you have an idea, but the movie is not on the list? Go for it anyway :) You can either send me a message and I’ll add your movie with your claim, or you can work on it in secret and surprise us all on March 14!
You have an idea for a cute movie poster for Barry and Iris, but it’s not an existing movie? Go for it! Have a great Idea for a Westallen gifset set in the world of a particular movie, but the movie itself has little romance? Go for it! At the end of the day this is about having fun together.
Don’t know what to do?
If you want to participate, but can’t choose, or if you want an extra challenge, send me a message and I’ll assign you a movie…
A few words about fanfiction in particular: If you decide to make a longer fic, you only have to post the first chapter on March 14th. But please do not leave the fic unfinished.
Anything else?
There are some more details on how to post your work + some minor rules here.
Remember the movie title is just the jump off point. Be as creative as you want :) If there is any confusion about this: you don’t have to keep a secret what movie you’re using as inspiration.
If you have questions, send them my way and I’ll do my best to answer them.
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14 Days of Westallen Fanfiction: Day 13 - Take Me to Paris [1/3]
A/N: I haven't watched the ep yet, but I saw the scene where they all leave for Paris and so accepted the request fic that it's just WA that goes. Hope you all enjoy this opening chap.
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Synopsis: 8x06 - Canon Divergent - Barry and Iris go to Paris for New Year's.
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Chapter 1 -
Barry waited in the living room against the top of the couch for his wife to join him, so they could leave for their romantic overnight trip to Paris. Thinking back, he remembered how he’d first asked her to join, while they were taking a bath together Christmas Eve night. Candles all around them and the scent of lilac and vanilla in the air, he’d murmured into her ear his proposition, and she’d gasped then moaned appreciatively as she relaxed against his chest.
“Bear, that sounds perfect,” she’d sighed happily, pulling his arms around her waist and losing them in the water and bubbles.
A few days later, they both simultaneously wondered if they should invite anyone else to go with them. After all, they went on romantic trips around the world whenever the mood struck, which was often, but no one else they knew really went anywhere but maybe a drive up to Coast City for the weekend. Wouldn’t it be nice to offer it to them too? Make it a big friends and family event?
The more the merrier, right?
In the end they decided that they’d spent well and enough time with everyone having a delightful Christmas, and that they deserved to have it be just the two of them for New Year’s. They’d slink away without telling a soul, and the trip would be so fantastic – as they always were – that they wouldn’t feel even the tiniest bit guilty when Cecile, in particular, wouldn’t be able to hide her jealousy and not being able to experience the same things.
They were young and in love and still trying to bring baby Nora into existence. The least they could do was take advantage of Barry’s super speed to whisk them off to a romantic location for New Year’s.
“I’m ready!” Iris declared, pulling Barry from his thoughts, as she floated down the stairs in a particularly stunning gray number.
Barry’s jaw dropped, and his eyes went wide as saucers. He hadn’t seen the dress in their closet, so it must have been a recent purchase, one just for their Paris excursion. It was gorgeous on her. Well, everythingwas gorgeous on her, but this one was really gorgeous.
The gray dress hugged all her curves in just the right places ending mid-thigh with a frilly design that spelled flirtatious and innocent seduction at the same time. The neckline was cut somewhat low between her breasts, and the whole ensemble made her look light and fresh and the perfect romantic heroine. Her long red hair and dangly silver earrings made her all the more enticing.
Barry had to fight with himself not to try to seduce her before they made it to the door.
“Damn, Iris,” he let out, his eyes roving over her body as soon as she was fully into view.
She beamed and looked him up and down, though his attire hardly had the same effect, as far as he was concerned.
“Thank you, Mr. Allen.” Her eyes sparkled. “Coat?”
It was in his hands before she got the word out. It was just such a damn shame it had to cover up her exquisite physique, and he knew she could read those exact thoughts from her next commentary directed at him.
“It’s cold in Paris, remember?”
He blushed and cleared his throat.
“Right. Yes.”
She smiled smugly as she let him slip her arms into the coat, then swayed deliberately as she made her way near the door to slip on matching heels.
“You’re doing that on purpose,” he complained.
She laughed, the sound a drug on his senses, then looked over her shoulder.
“Now, why on earth would you think that?”
He shook his head at her, then lifted their overnight bag up and extended his arm for her hand.
“Ready when you are, Mrs. West-Allen.”
She smiled smugly and returned to him, pressing a kiss to his cheek that he leaned down slightly for.
“I love when you call me that,” she whispered, and he wondered if he was going to last the over-oceans two-second trip to the street outside their hotel.
He wrapped his arm around the inside of her coat, so she could feel the warmth of his hand.
“One…two…”
“Paris!” she cheered.
And they were gone, the only evidence of their presence being the brush on the couch Iris had been running through her hair on the way down the stairs.
Until, quite suddenly, in a sprinkle of green dust, that was gone too.
#14 days of westallen fanfiction#westallen#westallen fanfiction#backtothestart02 fanfiction#take me to paris#chapter 1
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14 Days of Westallen Fanfiction: Day 12 - He Kisses Me When... (Pregnancy Edition) [1/?]
A/N: Finally getting started on this. Prompts/suggestions/requests for chaps are welcome, since that's what the original HKMW fic was based off of. If not, I shall just have to do some research &/or ask my mother friends what all the different things to happen during pregnancy were that I can possibly write a fluff fic about! lol. Enjoy!
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Synopsis: Drabbles in Iris' POV based off different scenarios when Barry kisses her while she's pregnant.
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Chapter 1 - I'm (Officially) Pregnant
I can hear him rummaging in the kitchen downstairs, probably searching for where his special pancake pan went. I rearranged the cupboards again and forgot to tell him. He thinks I’m still sleeping, so he’s not bothering to ask. Super speed and all though, I think he’ll find it soon enough.
None of that really matters though, because the pretty white and pink stick shaking between my fingertips is proclaiming from the heavens that what we’ve been hoping and praying and trying for nearly a year for has finally come to pass.
I’m pregnant.
“Aha!” I hear him proclaim, followed by a “Gotcha.” And my heart nearly bursts, imagining those words as he’s chasing baby Nora around the living room in an intense game of hide and seek.
Or maybe she’s still a baby and he’s playing peek-a-boo with her.
Both scenarios dissolve me to tears, and I’m grateful sniffling is the worst of what I’m doing and that he’s making more noise than usual getting to work on breakfast.
I can hardly contain myself. Do I tell him now or later? Announce it spontaneously or save it for an intimate dinner or the post-coital glow of our next love-making?
It becomes obvious to me as I hear him start to sing – no doubt into a spatula – and move around downstairs that he’s started to dance, and that I will not be able to keep this information to myself any longer.
I can hardly wait for every step of this journey, but I want him to experience it with me, every minute, every moment.
I stop in our bedroom to grab my sheer robe and tie it around myself. Then I scurry down the stairs and nearly run into him as he slides across the floor in his socks.
“I-Iris!” he gasps, flustered. “I didn’t know you were awake! Did I wake you up? I didn’t mean to. It’s just that I couldn’t find- Wait, did you come down here to tell me that you’d rearranged the kitchen again? Because I know for a fact my pancake pan was not-”
“Stop! Stop!” I demand, though I’m laughing through it.
He purses his lips and pretends to zip them shut and throw away the key with his fingers before waiting patiently with wide eyes. He’s such a dork, I could scream. I can’t wait to be a parent with him.
“I’m pregnant.”
His jaw drops.
“What?”
Joy colors his voice, and I feel like I’m floating.
“I’m pregnant. We’re pregnant.”
I take his hands and squeeze them in my own, bouncing up on my toes in excitement. A smile as brilliant as the sun spreads across his face and then promptly falls, causing my brows to furrow in hesitant concern.
“What?”
“It’s just- You know what happened last time. Are you sureyou’re pregnant?”
I bubble up with laughter and nod enthusiastically.
“Yes, Barry, I took three tests. They’re all positive.”
“Maybe I should take a urine sample to the lab again just to be sure,” he says sternly, and I can’t help but grin at this ridiculous man.
“If you want to, babe. But after breakfast. I’m eating for two now.”
He can’t help but smile, and I can tell I’ve won him over, even though he will no doubt still follow through on his plan to check it out at his lab as soon as he’s finished eating.
“Pancakes will be done soon,” he declares, returning to the stove.
And it’s true. In record time, breakfast is before me, and we’re enjoying it through about three bites until I’ve realized he can’t stop thinking about making things certain at the lab.
“Give me some orange juice, so I can give you a sample,” I drawl, and he excitedly retrieves a glass and the jug of OJ.
Within minutes I’ve drank half a glass and immediately gotten in the car with him on our way to CCPD – which is unexpected, and I’m embarrassed as well because frankly my clothes are clashing and my hair’s a mess from the way he dressed me as we flashed out the front door. He insists it’ll be easier than having to walk a sample across town alone though, even after driving a majority of the way, so I don’t complain…much. It’s nice he wants up to do it together.
Time ticks away as he mixes the liquid and waits for it to change colors. I stand across the table from him as he stares down into the glass. I’m certain the color will shift even before it does, but it’s exciting to watch anyway.
He gasps at the new, brilliant shade and looks up at me with tears in his eyes.
“We’re pregnant,” he whispers, and I find moisture welling up in my eyes as well.
“Kiss me,” I say.
He lurches up and grabs my face before kissing me soundly.
“I can’t believe we’re pregnant.”
I laugh through the tears and hold him equally tightly.
“Me either, but we are!”
“Baby Nora…”
He lays his hand on my stomach and rounds the table so he can lower himself and press a kiss over the mismatched clothes he’s dressed me in.
“I can’t wait to meet her.”
My heart flutters, and I slide my fingers through his hair as he nuzzles my stomach.
“Me too.”
#14 days of westallen fanfiction#westallen#westallen fanfiction#backtothestart02 fanfiction#he kisses me when (pregnancy edition)#chapter 1
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14 Days of Westallen Fanfiction: Day 11 - My Vow to You [1/1]
A/N: Inspired from a tweet about a guy loving when his girlfriend washed him in the shower, especially when she massaged his scalp. Nothing sexual, so this isn't. I hope you enjoy.
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Synopsis: Iris takes care of Barry after a difficult day as the Flash.
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It was a hard one.
There had been a disaster downtown, a meta with incredible power, and he hadn’t been stopped before there were casualties, mass casualties. The media came at Barry hard, demanding answers for why everyone hadn’t been saved, why he had been late, despite all his super speed. He was supposed to be their hero, not their villain.
Her heart ached for him, as he struggled to come up with an explanation on live TV for why this particular incident had been out of his control. The meta had held he and his entire team hostage, and it had been by pure luck – and Iris’ quick thinking from afar – that Barry had managed to get himself and the rest of the gang out and save the limited amount of civilians he had before all hell broke loose.
But no one – especially this particular reporter, who Iris wanted to throw into a den of lions at the moment – cared about those difficulties. Those on the outside only focused on what they wanted to focus on, the Flash failing their city.
Angrily, Iris turned off the television, and just in time too, because a literal second later, Barry whooshed through the door, looking ragged in regular clothes again, and like he was about to collapse. Iris quickly got up and met him in their little entryway.
“Barry…hey,” she said softly, wanting to reach him but unsure if he would push her away. “Are…are you…” She tried twice, then stopped herself. “How can I help?”
He sighed and shook his head, shrugging out of his jacket and missing the coat stand, snickering at himself as a result at failing at even that.
“Hey, no, it’s fine. That stand’s too far away anyway.”
Iris moved quick enough to snatch his jacket and place it on the stand a literal inch farther back. Then she returned to her husband and put her hands on his shoulders, then his smudged face, dirty from his attempts to save humanity once again.
He wouldn’t look at her, couldn’t face her looking at him like a fallen hero when he didn’t feel he deserved even that title. This one had been so bad he didn’t feel he deserved anything, maybe not even her.
“You want to shower?” she asked, running her thumb down his cheek. “It might make you feel better. I could-”
“I’ll go alone, Iris,” he said, in the deepest, most controlled voice she’d ever heard from him.
At least he wasn’t lashing out. Though maybe that would’ve been better to happen now rather than later.
“I’ll make you some hot tea,” she said, as he moved past her. “It’ll be ready when you get out.”
He nodded, noncommittally and moved silently up the stairs at normal feet, dragging his feet as if the chore of moving from one level to another was insurmountably difficult, and the task of taking a shower even more impossible.
Iris ached to help him, and the idea of only helping him by making him tea made her feel actual pain and incredible disgust.
No, there had to be something more she could do.
She waited until after she heard the water running upstairs before stepping into action. As quickly and silently as she could, she made it up the stairs too, slowly opened the bathroom door and stepped inside before closing the door behind her.
She undressed, unable to see a thing in the steamy mirror, but it hardly mattered. The shower was just a few feet away, and the room was so quiet if she hadn’t known Barry was in the shower or seen his silhouette on the grainy glass, she would’ve guessed he was somewhere else.
Prying open the glass door gently, she stepped into the shower. Barry turned his head slightly, then sighed and bowed his head again, letting the water wash over his face.
“I thought I was going to do this alone,” he mumbled.
She stepped forward and closed the glass door behind her.
“You’re never alone, Barry,” she whispered, before kissing one shoulder. “Not when you’re with me.”
He let his head fall onto the wall and pressed his hands on either side of it.
“Please, Iris…I don’t deserve it.”
I don’t deserve you went unsaid.
“You deserve every bit of it, Barry.”
She wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her whole body flush against his backside, so he could feel her warmth, know she was there.
She didn’t try to illicit a sexual response with him. This wasn’t about distracting him with sex. This was about helping him face his emotions and letting him know he wasn’t alone, and that it was okay to have her, always.
He was tense for a few moments, every fiber of his being wanting to push her away, to untangle for him, to prevent her love from pouring over him, from feeling her pity. He wanted that least of all. But even deeper than all of that was this desperate need to be loved and reassured, despite everything he’d been unable to do. Despite failing his city and his wife, everybody.
So, after those few moments of tension, he folded, loosened up, and murmured the one word that would give him peace.
“Iris.”
The vulnerability in his voice told Iris she’d made a breakthrough. She breathed a sigh of relief, quietly so as not to make him aware of the sudden shift and have him backpedal on the triumphant leap he’d made.
“Let me wash you,” she said, running her thumbs over his abs and pressing a kiss to the middle of his back, her long locks sticking to his skin as the water poured over both of them.
He nodded numbly.
“Okay.”
Still touching, she reached for his shampoo and poured some of it in her hand. After closing the lid and setting it back down, she instructed her husband to turn towards her and keep his head bowed and eyes shut, so she could reach and so his eyes wouldn’t get irritated.
He did as he instructed, and in no time at all, her gentle massaging of his scalp had him moaning softly and leaning his head against her outstretched arm. Her heart doubled over in compassion for this beautiful, heroic man she called her husband, but she wouldn’t let her bursting love pouring from her distract her from her task.
She continued to massage his head until every inch of brown hair had been covered and drenched in shampoo. It needed to sit for a bit, so she grabbed the bar of soap next and moved it between her hands until they were fully lathered with it. Then she set the bar down and touched him everywhere. Everywhere she touched him with her soapy hands, cleansing him from the day. From his head to his toes and everywhere in between.
Then, she urged him to the water and sifted her fingers through his hair again as the shampoo rinsed out and drained into the opening in the floor. She grabbed the conditioner after that and repeated the process, victory soaring through her for every little moan he uttered, every deep relaxing sigh he released.
She lathered up his backside with soap this time while the conditioner sat, and by the time she’d finished, he was ready to step back into under the hot water completely and rinse himself off.
“Did I get it all?” he asked, turning his head to her and bowing it so she could inspect.
“Almost,” she said, even though he had gotten it all.
She knew he wanted to be massaged just a little bit more, so they approached the water together again, and she ran her nails lightly over his scalp until delicious shivers erupted all over his body.
“What about you?” he asked, when she looked about to turn off the water.
She stilled. She’d showered that morning and hadn’t done anything to particularly call for a second shower, but in that moment, to take the opportunity away from him seemed a heinous and cruel crime.
“Did you want to?” she offered, handing him a soapy washcloth to bathe her with.
He nodded and took it, rubbing it all over her body, making her smell and feel insatiably wonderful. And when it came to the hair part, he was surprisingly amazing at mimicking her massaging techniques. And no doubt it came easier to him with him towering over her.
They kissed a few times before shifting so she could rinse, but nothing more than that.
When they finally exited the shower to dry off and dress in some comfy clothes for the rest of the night, no words were spoken between them, but the welling up of love and gratitude was evident.
She leaned over to kiss his cheek after dressing and smiled against his skin.
“I’ll go get that hot tea ready for you,” she said.
“Iris,” he called out when she reached the doorway.
“Yeah?” she asked, locking eyes with him, eyes that didn’t look quite so heavy and dark anymore.
“Thank you.”
She nodded her head, smile reaching her eyes.
“Any time, Barry. Always.”
He finished dressing, and she continued down the stairs. By the time he made it to the living room, the tea was ready. He sipped at it for a while, and she sat beside him on the couch in silence.
After a while, he stretched out and lay his head in her lap.
She smiled and stroked his hair softly, massaging his scalp a little the way she had in the shower. In no time at all, he was asleep, and she was pulling a blanket over his slightly shivering form.
She stayed with him like that until he woke up again and was ready to engage, but they kept things light for the evening. They ordered from his favorite restaurant, and Iris contented herself with watching him eat and breathe and function amidst his heartache.
He was going to be okay. They were going to be okay.
Because they’d made a vow, and every difficult day as much as on the easy ones, they were going to keep it.
#14 days of westallen fanfiction#westallen#westallen fanfiction#backtothestart02 fanfiction#i vow to you#hurt/comfort#showering together
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14 Days of Westallen Fanfiction: Day 14 - All's Fair in Sex and War [2/?]
A/N: I FINALLY MADE IT TO THE END OF MY CHALLENGE! Just...halfway through March just about. XD Oh well. I hope you enjoy this. Some sizzle and some mystery. Future chaps will include many flashbacks to fill in the blanks.
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Synopsis: College!AU - What starts as a wild night of lust turns into chaos as Barry and Iris find just where they stand on the competitive playground at CCU.
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Chapter 2 -
One year later…
Iris crawled out of the unfamiliar bed, every move she made seemingly causing a noise as she inched across the bedroom in search of the clothes she’d abandoned in a hurry the night before.
Thankfully, unlike the other presence in her life, this one didn’t have any roommates. He lived on his own in an upstairs apartment in a pleasant neighborhood, not a suite dorm room with thin walls and a hall of snickering to walk down the next morning from other inhabitants.
If she was smart, she might pursue this one-night stand into more of a relationship. She’d gotten to know him all summer long. He was a good guy, an attractive guy, and he cared about her.
But, as she’d also made clear before they’d lunged into each other’s arms hours earlier, she was hung up on someone else. Someone she couldn’t stand but for some reason raced into every thought she had in every moment of the day no matter how hard she tried to shut him out.
She closed her eyes for a moment after managing to put her ruffly skirt and low-cut shirt back on. She was in the bathroom now, just trying to recollect how everything in the past year had come to this. She washed her face and swept her hair into a messy bun. Then she swiped some of her one-night stand’s toothpaste onto her finger and brushed her teeth in a hurry.
She tiptoed back into the hall and stretched her neck to see if the man who’d been asleep in his bed moments earlier was still there. To her horror, she couldn’t see even a lump under the sheets.
“Looking for me?” a voice boomed behind her.
She jumped and spun around, nearly knocking the poor guy’s coffee out of his hand. Her hand flung over her chest.
“Eddie! You scared me.”
His eyebrows shot up, amused.
“Were you sneaking out?”
“I…uh…”
“Don’t let me stop you.” He gestured to the door. When she didn’t move, his arm fell, and hope rose in his eyes. “Unless, something’s changed for you?”
Her face fell, chagrined.
“Good sex doesn’t change how I feel, Eddie,” she reminded him, as she had before they’d gotten drunk at the bar before bursting into his apartment.
“Great sex,” he amended, and she held her tongue. “But I understand. Your heart lies somewhere else.”
“My heart is…complicated.”
He nodded.
“You sure you won’t stay for breakfast? I can make some mean waffles.”
“I’m sure. I have to get my stuff over to campus. Today’s move-in day.”
“Can I help?”
She shook her head.
“I already have my brother and dad helping. That should be more than enough to get settled in.”
“Okay.” He shoved one hand into his pocket and sipped his coffee. “It was good seeing you again, Iris.”
She formed a smile and nodded before slipping into her shoes, snagging her purse and heading for the door. She turned around once, intending to say something reassuring to the man who was so into her and so deserving of her she could scream. At the last minute though, she changed her mind and settled for a half-hearted wave before closing the door behind her and racing outside as fast as her legs could carry her.
Once on the corner, she called her newest friend to give her a lift to her dad’s. They didn’t know each other super well, but they seemed to resonate in a way that she and Stacy didn’t. At least when it came to a certain somebody that should not be named.
“Hey,” she said, on entering the vehicle. “Thanks for the ride.”
“Dare I ask what you’re doing on this side of town?” her new friend asked.
“I’d rather you didn’t, if you don’t mind.”
“Of course.” She didn’t push, but she gave her a sly grin. “I’m sure it’ll come out eventually.”
Iris snorted and leaned back in the seat, looking out the window as trees and buildings came into view.
“We could go out tonight,” she suggested. “A celebratory drink for getting all our stuff into our new dorms?”
Iris sighed.
“Thanks. But I think I did enough drinking last night,” she said before stopping to think.
“Ah.”
Her friend smirked, and Iris rolled her eyes, aware of how bad she was to keeping things a secret when around her.
“One night stand then? Or…perhaps something more?”
Iris was silent for a while, but her friend was patient.
“The former,” she finally said.
“You’re sure? He doesn’t have to be.”
“I know, but he is. I’m too…”
“Involved.”
“Yeah.”
A while later, they turned onto her dad’s block and came to a stop in front of the house.
“Thanks again, for the ride.”
Iris unbuckled her belt and opened the door. She was about to stop out when her voice called out.
“Have you seen him? Talked to him? Done anything else…with him? Over the summer?”
Iris froze and turned halfway back to address her.
“No. And that’s how it’s going to stay,” she said bitterly.
“Uh-huh,” her friend said unconvincingly.
“I’ll see you later, Linda. We can meet up after I get settled in.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Linda smiled. “Happy moving in.”
Iris got out of the car and shut the door before heading up the walkway and half-heartedly turning to wave back at Linda just as she was starting to drive away.
“Baby girl,” her dad said, opening the door just as she was about to try the knob. “Where have you been? I thought you’d come home last night sometime.”
Iris forced an apologetic smile.
“Sorry, dad, I ended up spending the night at Linda’s.”
He looked over her head to see Linda’s car turn the corner. Relief colored his face.
“Call next time, yeah?”
He stepped back to let her in the house.
“I promise,” she assured, wondering if she would.
The smell of syrup, pancakes and fruit floated heavenly all the way to the door.
“Something smells good.”
“You better eat some before I finish it,” a ravenous Wally said from the kitchen table. Her little brother was known to inhale his meals, especially breakfast. And their dad always made a delicious meal.
“There’s plenty to go around,” their dad said. “Go ahead, Iris. Better eat up before we make the trek over to campus.”
“I don’t mind if I do.”
She slipped out of her shoes and headed for the table, snagging a pancake right off her brother’s plate.
“Hey!” Wally complained, but Iris only laughed.
It was then their father noticed that her shirt was inside out. His smile vanished to form a frown, but when his daughter to look at him it was gone. A mental note to be discussed at a later date. Maybe.
…
Hours later, all moved in, and her favorite guys already departed, Iris was sitting on her bed about to text Linda. Stacy hadn’t arrived yet, and supposedly wasn’t going to until the next day. Iris wondered if she was still mad at her. They’d hardly spoken all summer, and she worried she was still mad at her for what happened three months ago. Still, she told herself not to overthink it. She and Stacy had been best friends for years. They never held grudges, and they were great at communication. Surely everything would be fine, and she’d just had an eventful summer with her family, as often happened.
But a quiet voice in her head told her there was cause to be concerned. A lot had happened in the past year, a lot had changed between them. And the latest thing that had happened might just have been the final straw for Stacy. Iris hoped not, but she’d know for sure come tomorrow.
A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts, and she frowned. She’d already met with the RA for the dorm, and since she was a sophomore now there weren’t endless activities to partake in like the year before. Stacy would have a key if she had planned to come today anyway. And Linda…she’d said she wouldn’t come over until Iris told her she was ready.
So then, who could…
“Open up, Princess,” a voice said, just as she was about to open the door. “I know you’re in there.”
Iris’ heart leapt into her throat. She hadn’t heard that voice for three months, and she was already trembling at the thought of seeing him again. And here he was now, just on the other side of her dorm room door.
They hadn’t left things in a great place, but then, they rarely had. In fact, they never did. It was part of the reason she always felt so infuriated when they parted ways. And why she always was making a mental note to avoid him at all costs.
“Come on, I just saw your dad and brother leaving. We chatted for a bit. They like me.”
Iris frowned, annoyed at that. She wondered what the ‘chat’ had been about, since she’d never so much as mentioned him to either of the men in question, but she didn’t dare respond.
“Fine,” he said, irritated, and she thought he might finally go away, but she watched horrified, as the lock on the door started to move and eventually the door started to open.
She pushed it closed hurriedly, before he could get in, and her insides melted when she heard his low, raspy laugh.
“I knew you were in there.” He chuckled. “Let me in, Baby.”
She growled at that.
“Don’t call me that.”
“Do you prefer Princess? I thought you hated that too.” He smirked.
“I do. Don’t call me that either. And please, just, go.”
With a firm grip he turned the knob and pushed the door in. There was some resistance, but her strength was nothing compared to his with his height and build. It was clear he’d been lifting weights or doing some sort of body building over the summer becomes his short-sleeved shirt and shorts revealed toned muscles and definition. His tan implied it might have been an outdoor endurance activity though.
“Go ahead, take it all in.” He grinned, and she scowled.
“You’re disgusting.”
“And you’re wet,” he said, making her jaw drop, even more so when she felt her panties start to dampen seconds later. It always happened when he called her out on her arousal before she even realized she was aroused.
He pulled his shirt up and over her head and watched, smug as hell, as her eyes roved over his rippling abs and biceps.
“The ladies must’ve been all over this this summer,” she snarked, and he tsked.
“Oh, they were. But don’t be jealous. I saved some of my endurance for you too.”
She scoffed but stepped back as he approached her.
“You can’t do this anymore, Allen. What happened between us was a mistake, and it can never happen again.”
He snorted. “That line may have worked for a second after the first time but not the hundredth time.”
Her eyes narrowed.
“We have not slept together a hundred times.”
Her back hit the wall, and he caged her in.
“Close enough.”
And then his lips descended. His proximity was too much, and she gave in to a scorchingly hot kiss, one that surpassed any she had felt last night when she’d given in to Eddie Thawne and his not so subtle advances.
Barry tugged at her bottom lip, making her eyes roll back and an uninhibited moan soar past her lips before his tongue tangled with hers. It was his hands circling ‘round her and fisting in her skirt that put it to a screeching halt however. She ducked under his arm and flung the door open again.
“No, you have to leave.”
He groaned.
“Are we really doing this?”
“Yes,” she spat. “We are.”
“Why?”
“I…I have a boyfriend.”
That made him freeze, but it was only momentary.
“Okay, one, doubtful.” Her head reeled back, offended at the implication. “And two, so what? I have a girlfriend.”
She shook her head at him, disgusted.
“Leave. Now.”
Obviously getting the hint that they would not be progressing as he’d hoped, Barry picked up his shirt and slipped back into it.
“Fine. But this isn’t over.”
She shut the door in his face, just as he was about to say some famous last remark probably.
She pressed herself against the door until she heard his footsteps receding and let out a sigh of relief.
Her heart was still racing, and her panties were still damp. She put her fingers to her lips, chagrined to realize she could still feel the buzz of the pressure he’d placed there. And his hands so close to her pressure point almost made her want to chase after him and call him back into her room. Let him ruin her, if only for one last time.
But it was never just one more time. She had to be strong. This year had to be different.
She was totally and completely over Barry Allen, or she would be very soon.
She had to be.
#14 days of westallen fanfiction#westallen#westallen fanfiction#backtothestart02 fanfiction#all's fair in sex and war#chapter 2
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14 Days of Westallen Fanfiction: Day 6 - At First Glance [2/?]
A/N: Here we go with chapter 2! Barry shall appear soon. Worry not!
...
Chapter 2 -
Despite all the champagne she’d downed at the restaurant, Iris was only slightly tipsy when Eddie dropped her off at her apartment an hour later. Her phone buzzed mere seconds after she’d stepped in the door, and because she was certain it was Linda, who’d promised to check in on her as soon as she got home conveniently around this time, she didn’t bother to even look at it and stripped down on her way to the shower instead.
By the time she got out, she had three more texts and a missed call, so she figured she better answer one of them. Groaning, she opened the first of the texts.
So, how’d it go?
The next one:
Please tell me you broke up with him.
The next one:
Wait, you’re ENGAGED?!?
Iris blinked. She didn’t know who’d informed her about that one, but all her notifications on Instagram informed her moments later that Eddie must’ve posted a picture of the two of them with the engagement ring on her finger. Her smile was fake as hell, but apparently all the people congratulating them in the comments didn’t give a damn.
No wonder Linda had called.
“Finally,” Linda barked when Iris finally mustered the strength to return her call. “What were you even doing? Wait, don’t tell me. You finally sealed the deal and had sex with the man.”
Iris wrinkled up her nose in disgust.
“Ew. No.”
“She says of her future husband,” Linda drawled.
Iris sighed.
“Look, it was very unexpected, and there was a full restaurant of people staring at us. What was I supposed to say?”
“That you’ll think about it? Thanks but no thanks? That you’re gonna be sick? Any of those options would do.”
Iris restrained from responding, and thankfully the silence allowed Linda time to take it down a few notches.
“Sorry, I just- I mean, you don’t even love him. You barely like him. How could you say yes to marrying him? You’re going to be miserable.”
“He’s a good guy, Lin.”
“He’s a terrible guy. A terrible boyfriend, at least. And it’s only going to get worse when the two of you live together. He’s going to become so controlling, more than he is already. He needs a woman to put him in his place, and I hate to break it to you, honey, but that woman isn’t you.”
Iris frowned but moved past the insult to become defiant.
“Well, people break off engagements all the time. Maybe one of these days I will put him in his place and do exactly that!”
Linda scoffed.
“In my dreams.”
“Until then, I’d really love to get some beauty sleep, so maybe we can pick this up tomorrow?”
“You bet your ass we will. We’ll play hooky if we have to. This is some serious business we need to discuss. A real problem.”
“Yes, of course. But I might head out of town before we discuss our ‘real problem’,” she informed her.
“Oh, yeah? You running away? Rather than face the fact that you’ve just made the worst mistake of your life?”
“Not exactly…”
“Then what?”
“I’ll tell you about it when I get back.”
Linda rolled her eyes on the other end.
“Goodnight, Iris Ann West.”
“Goodnight, Linda Elizabeth Park.”
Click.
Iris exhaled and tossed her phone on the bed. She picked out some cute pjs, put them on and crawled into bed before turning out the light.
She lay, deep in thought, staring at the ceiling, wondering if her best friend was right to be so concerned and if she had made a seriously big mistake by saying yes to Eddie Thawne’s proposal. After all, he wasn’t the most sensitive type, and he was rather demanding over what she should or shouldn’t wear when they were together. Now that she thought about it, she couldn’t figure out why he wanted to marry her in the first place. He didn’t like her reckless tendencies when it came to investigative reporting either.
She turned on her side and nibbled on her bottom lip. And what did she like about him, really? He was cute, sure. Definitely in her ballpark with that. But his whole personality was a turn-off to her, and she really did not like being controlled. She took pride in her sexy, colorful wardrobe and didn’t appreciate that he wasn’t a fan of it. Most guys would kill to be seen out in public in some of the numbers she had in her closet. But he wasn’t. She didn’t understand it.
Maybe it was something she could draw out of him after they were married. Or maybe his whole personality would only get worse. He hadn’t been vulnerable with her once. Even tonight, he hadn’t shed a single happy tear. It seemed more like he was putting on a show and seeking the approval of strangers. She didn’t even know if he’d asked her dad for her hand, and he certainly hadn’t waited until she’d told her own family about it before posting it on social media. She wouldn’t be surprised if he’d made an announcement on facebook and twitter as well.
She couldn’t scold him about it either. She always felt inferior when she was around him, like she couldn’t argue his point of view for fear of getting him angry. Though he’d never actually gotten angry around her, just mildly irritated when he saw her in her work attire that was too scandalous for his taste on the rare occasion he came to see her at work or swung by her place before she’d changed.
She turned again to face the other side, saw the moon streaming in through the hazy drapes and sighed.
Maybe Linda was right, and she’d made the worst mistake of her life.
But surely people married when they weren’t in love all the time. That definitely had to be a thing. And her biological clock was ticking. She wanted to be married and start a family, even if it meant having sex with Eddie Thawne at least once.
She groaned at the thought of that and closed her eyes.
She needed sleep and advice from someone who wouldn’t chew her head off. And unfortunately that wasn’t either of her parents, or her brother for that matter, who shared Linda’s same instincts.
It wasn’t someone far off though, and it put her at ease knowing she’d be talking to her soon.
Grandma Esther.
…
The next morning, about an hour after she’d called into work due to supposed food poisoning, Iris found her way up to her grandma’s cottage in the woods and knocked on the door.
“Come in, dear.”
Iris turned the knob and pushed open the door. An aroma of deliciously cooked dishes filled the open living room/kitchen, included a fresh batch of mint-chip-filled brownies, her absolute favorite – fudge included.
“Oh, my God, Grandma Esther. You shouldn’t have.”
The grinning elderly woman came out from behind the counter with the main dish and set it on the table, then came to Iris to hug her.
“Please, for my favorite grandchild, I go all out!” She chuckled heartily, pulling back from the warm embrace. “So, come, child, eat.”
“It’s 10 o’clock,” Iris pointed out.
“So, we’ll call it a brunch,” Grandma Esther insisted, and Iris laughed, seating herself and dishing out some food for the both of them.
Time passed, and eventually Iris leaned back in her chair, totally stuffed.
“I don’t think I could eat another bite. That was delicious, Grandma Esther.”
But there was a twinkle in her grandmother’s eyes.
“You could eat one brownie though, couldn’t you?”
Iris laughed.
“I couldn’t. I’ll lose my figure if I eat anymore.”
“Nonsense! You have excellent metabolism. You get that from your mother’s side.” She scooted her chair out to stand up. “I’ll get you a big slice.”
Iris gave up.
“All right. You win.”
The ‘slice’ was big indeed, almost the size of her hand, so Iris ate it slowly, but she did eat it. It was too delicious not to.
“So,” the older woman interrupted when Iris was halfway through the brownie. “Tell me what you came to talk to me about. It must be urgent if you’re willing to drive all this way.”
Iris hesitated, then decided out with it she’d go.
She retrieved her purse and dug around a bit in one of the pockets until she pulled out the shiny engagement ring.
“You’re engaged!” Esther said, covering her mouth with her hands.
“Guilty.” Iris winced.
“But you’re not wearing your ring,” she pointed out, frowning.
“Because I’m not sure I’m going to go through with it.”
“Hmm.”
Iris avoided eye contact until her grandmother reached for here hand and covered her own with it, easing some of her tension.
“Why don’t you explain, dear?” she asked gently.
Iris relaxed completely and nodded.
“Eddie is great. He is. He’s handsome and charming and a perfect gentleman.”
“Sounds like the perfect package. What’s wrong with him?”
“I feel kind of…small around him. Like if I try speaking my mind about anything at all, I’ll be shut down. And he doesn’t like the way I dress.”
Esther’s jaw dropped.
“I love your sassy dresses!” she proclaimed, which made Iris laugh. She then sized up her granddaughter. “Why aren’t you wearing one today?”
“I’m playing hooky and wanted to be comfortable.” She propped her chin in her hand.
“Hmm,” Esther hummed disapprovingly.
“I’ll wear one to work tomorrow, I promise. And I’ll send you a picture.” She winked.
“Will you send me it in the mail? I still don’t understand this whole texting nonsense.”
Iris laughed.
“Next time I visit I’ll wear a particularly spicy one.”
“Ooo,” Esther cheered. “I like spice.”
“I know. It’s what makes your dishes so tasty.”
They laughed together.
“But back to the issue at hand,” Esther said. “Do you love this man? This…Eddie? This is the first I’m hearing about him. How long have you two been going steady?”
Iris winced again.
“Almost a year.”
Esther’s hand flew over her heart.
“Child! I could have prevented this union ages ago!”
Iris groaned and pressed two fingers to her forehead, feeling a headache coming on.
“Ugh, you sound like Linda.”
Esther paused.
“I’m sorry, dear. But if you’re going to spend the rest of your life with this man… You didn’t say if you love him or not.” Iris opened her mouth to respond, but her grandmother kept going. “I suppose that doesn’t necessarily matter. Back in my day not everybody married for love. Some it was for financial stability, some compatibility, some because both sets of parents liked you two together, and so it just made sense.”
“An arranged marriage, you mean?” Iris queried.
Esther nodded.
“Something like that.” She sighed, then waved it off. “Besides, love makes you crazy.”
Iris started to smile.
“What do you mean?”
“You know how they say weird things happen when there’s a full moon?”
“Yeah…”
“Well, it’s that way all the time when you’re in love! Especially when it’s fresh. You’re probably better off marrying this Eddie man and never falling in love with him at all.”
Iris laughed and nodded.
“Maybe.” She paused. “Thank you, Grandma Esther. You’ve given me some things to think about.”
“Well, don’t leave just yet! You��ve only had one brownie, and I have a whole day planned out for us!”
“You do?”
Iris hadn’t expected that at all. She was only going to stay an hour tops before someone started to worry about her whereabouts when she wasn’t found sick at home – should anyone go looking.
But then, she hadn’t seen her grandmother in some time. Catching up didn’t seem like such a bad idea after all.
“If you don’t have any other plans, that is.”
She smiled warmly.
“None at all. In fact-”
Her phone started to vibrate in her purse, and both women looked down at it immediately.
“Reality comes knocking,” Esther tsk’d. “I’ll let you take that,” she said, and cleared the table of the dirty dishes.
Iris fished out her phone, saw who was calling, and did her best not to groan. She swiped the green symbol on her phone screen and walked over to the couch in the living room before preparing for the worst.
“Hi…honey.”
#14 days of westallen fanfiction#westallen#westallen fanfiction#backtothestart02 fanfiction#at first glance#chapter 2
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14 Days of Westallen Fanfiction: Day 8 - Home is Where You Are Next to Me [1/?]
A/N: Another request...welp, here we go! This one should be juicy. It's also filled with loads of made-up stuff...like how drafts (for war) work...which after researching, I'm still confused about. lol. So, in this fic you can register to be in the army IF there is a draft/need for it, but you're not automatically in it just b/c you signed up. If that makes sense. Hopefully it does, because that's how it has to work for what I want to happen in my story. Lmao. Anyway, enjoy! There'll be a time-jump in a few chaps!
...
Synopsis: AU - A harmless bet and a precious secret will change the course of their lives forever.
...
Chapter 1 -
It was late spring, the warm breeze filtering over the four of them as they lay on the grass in the middle of Barry’s backyard, staring up at the stars. It was silent for a while, their beers disguised as sodas now off to the side, their vision going hazy, when Ralph, annoyingly, perked up.
“Hey, anyone wanna place a bet?”
Cisco, Barry, and Chester all groaned.
“No!”
Ralph frowned.
“Harsh.”
They rolled their eyes and continued to stare at the sky.
“It’s not even a hard bet,” Ralph muttered, and Barry sighed.
“What is it?”
“Don’t,” Cisco warned. “You’ll regret it.”
“If it’s not hard… I could use the extra cash. Everything I make right now is going straight into the college fund. I’d like to give Iris something pretty every once in a while.”
“So pick her some wildflowers from your field! You got plenty of those, and I know she likes them.”
“Lather, rinse, repeat. Tell me your bet, Ralph.”
“Well-”
“I’m out of here.” Chester got up suddenly. They all objected, but he kept walking. He’d never been a fan of Ralph’s bets, the least out of all of them.
Cisco peeled himself off the ground.
“Chester, man, wait! You can’t go home…you’re drunk.”
“I’m tipsy!” he shouted back, to which Cisco shushed him loudly.
“No one is supposed to know that!” he whispered harshly.
Barry turned back towards Ralph as the sound of Cisco and Chester talking receded into the distance and finally ended with them going into Barry’s house.
“So, you were saying,” Barry prompted.
Ralph sighed. “It’s not as fun with no one here to hear it.”
Barry rolled his eyes.
“So, we’ll tell them about it later. Do you want to give me your money or don’t you?”
Ralph snorted. “You’re that confident.”
Barry shrugged. “I’ve won most of your bets in the past, haven’t I?”
Ralph’s eyes narrowed. He hesitated.
“…yes.”
“So, give it to me. And raise the amount to 20 bucks, so I can get something decently sparkly for Iris.”
“Twenty bucks?! I was gonna give you five!”
“Not worth it.”
“What’s the bet? I’ll determine what it’s worth.”
Ralph sighed dramatically.
“Okay, so you and Iris have been sexting a lot recently, right?”
Barry’s eyes widened, but he couldn’t bare to give Ralph the satisfaction of seeing how many shades of red his cheeks had turned, even in the dark.
“I’ll take that silence as a yes,” Ralph concluded.
“I-It’s almost graduation. We might not be going to the same school. We only have so much time until-”
“Hey, buddy, no explanation needed. I’m jealous and in awe you even have a girlfriend, especially one as smoking as Iris West.”
Barry didn’t know why, but he was mildly offended by that.
“What’s the bet?” he asked on a sigh.
“Okay, so finals are tomorrow, right?”
“Yeah, duh.”
“I bet that you’ll be the last in class to finish them because you’ll get so distracted by Iris’ sexting that you won’t be able to focus on the test.”
Barry snorted.
“Well, that’ll be easy money.”
“Oh, you think so, huh?”
“Oh, yeah.”
“Why’s that?”
“Well, for starters I don’t have my phone on during class, especially not during a test. It’s against the rules.”
“You’ve been a rule breaker ever since you and your pretty girlfriend took each other’s virginity a month ago.”
Barry gaped.
“How do you even know that?”
“A man knows…” Ralph said, all-knowingly.
“You’re sixteen.”
“And a half! And I’m still in your grade. That’s how smart I am.”
Barry rolled his eyes.
“Fine. I’ll take your bet. I have more control than you think.”
“If you say so.”
“I’m guessing you want the five dollars if I am the last one to finish the exam after all?”
“Not exactly.”
Barry frowned.
“No? You don’t want free money?”
“I want you to risk something a little more,” he teased.
“Uh…like what?”
“You know how those army guys have had a table set up for the last few months outside the gym at school?”
“Ralph…”
“I want you to sign up.”
“No way. No. Way. I’m not risking my whole future. Especially one possibly away from Iris.”
Ralph rolled his eyes.
“If you guys go to separate schools, you might be apart for that long anyway. Besides, it’s only if you lose! Which you said yourself is apparently impossible for you.” He snickered. “Plus, you could just register for if there’s a draft. Which there hasn’t been in decades. I don’t see what you have to lose.”
Barry sighed and groaned, feeling for some bizarre reason like he had no choice.
“I need to be more drunk for this.”
He reached for his beer and downed the rest of it before letting out a belch he hadn’t shut his mouth in time to conceal. Ralph laughed and lifted his own can.
“I’ll drink to that.”
Despite the tension of what he’d presumably just agreed to, Barry laughed with him, and they spent the rest of the night laughing and talking together. Eventually Cisco and Chester came back outside and hung out with them again. By the time 10 o’clock rolled around, Barry’s dad popped his head out and offered to drive everyone but Barry home. He gave his son a meaningful look just before leaving that told him loud and clear he knew all of them had been drinking alcohol and a talk would be had later, but thankfully – and he could tell this as well – his mother would probably not be informed.
Barry smiled weakly and said goodbye to his friends. Ralph stilled mid-hug and turned to whisper into his friend’s ear before pulling away.
“A bet then?”
Barry gulped and nodded, not saying a word.
“See you tomorrow at school!” He winked and smacked his shoulder, which Barry promptly rubbed.
The car drove off into the distance and went back into the house. He went upstairs to take a shower and brush his teeth to get the scent of alcohol off him in case he ran into his mom. Then he tucked himself into bed and shut off the light.
His phone started vibrating on his bedside table, and he reached over to grab it.
It was a text message from Iris, and there was a photo attached. Probably a naked or barely-wearing-anything one, if Iris’ recent history was anything to go by.
He gulped before even opening it but knew it was inevitable.
Maybe he did have a problem.
#14 days of westallen fanfiction#westallen#westallen fanfiction#backtothestart02 fanfiction#home is where you are next to me#chapter 1
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14 Days of Westallen Fanfiction: Day 5 - At First Glance [1/?]
A/N: Inspired by Grant's performance at tonight's charity event (and the Moonstruck movie trailer). Enjoy!
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Synopsis: AU - Marrying a man she doesn't love has many downsides. Finding the man she loves in her fiance's brother proves to be the biggest one.
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Chapter 1 -
Iris gazed at her figure in the tall mirror and tried to decipher it was too much. She’d called Linda, who would be over any minute, to help her decide. The form-fitting black dress had a conservative scoop neckline and a hem that hit just below her knee. It cut mid-back and was thick enough that there was no possible way you could see through the material. Her heels were low, and her earrings were the pearls he’d gifted her on their second date. Her hair was down – straight, how he liked it, and her make-up wasn’t dramatic but simple. It was everything he wanted out of her, and he would surely be impressed, but still she wondered if it was too much.
Maybe she should’ve picked the dress with sleeves, instead of the tank straps this dress had.
“I am here!” Linda announced, strolling into the room. “To prevent you from…looking like a nun?”
Iris tossed a look over her shoulder, close to a glare but too knowing to be one.
“To be a nun, the dress would have sleeves and be down to my ankles,” she informed her best friend.
Linda rolled her eyes and stood beside her.
“Well, you don’t have a habit at least, but you should really throw him off by wearing your hair natural, just this once.”
“Oh, I could never. You don’t know who I’m dating.”
Linda snorted.
“Believe me, I know who you’re dating. You’ve been dating the man for nearly a year and haven’t gone to bed with him. Frankly, I don’t know why. He looks delicious.”
Iris wrinkled her nose.
“He doesn’t? I thought he was your type.”
“Okay, physically, maybe, but he’s kind of full of himself.”
“So, why are you dating him then?”
Iris sighed.
“I’m bad at saying no. And now he expects me to say yes every time, so I can’t go back on it now. Just like Joanie had a recital tonight, but he told me about his plans before I knew about hers, and so I had to tell her no when I’d rather have told him that.”
“Iris West.”
“I know, I know!” She threw up her hands, then stalked across the room, retrieved the pearl necklace that matched her earrings and presented it to Linda. “But what do you think? It works with the neckline, right?”
Linda sighed but nodded and gestured for her to hold her hair up, which Iris did. Then she pulled the necklace around and clasped it behind her neck.
“You’re his dream,” she said, stepping away. “But he’s not yours.”
“Yeah, well, neither was the last guy, and I survived that okay.”
“Because he ended it. By dying.”
“That bus came out of nowhere…” Iris murmured to herself.
“You need to end it this time. By walking away. Find the right guy for you. Don’t settle.”
Iris focused her attention on herself in the mirror again.
“It’s not as simple as you make it out to be, Lin.”
“Who said love was simple? It’s messy and hard but so, so worth it.” She paused. “You remember how I met your brother?”
Iris snorted.
“In his auto shop with your banged up car that you refused to pay for. Yeah, I remember. You hated his guts.”
“And look how we turned out. We’re getting married next month. You’re my maid of honor and my best friend.”
“A fact I’m well aware of.” She smiled serenely.
“End it. Tonight. While you’re looking spectacular, and he feels like a fool for forcing his expectations of what you should be on you. Make him wish he’d treated you better.”
She frowned.
“He treats me fine.”
“He treats you like a porcelain doll he can design to be how he pleases. That’s not how any woman should be treated, or any person for that matter, and it’s time he knows it.”
Iris almost nibbled on her lip until she recalled how that would mess with her barely-there lipstick.
“I’ll think about it.”
Linda hummed in disapproval.
“I said I’ll think about it, alright?” She did a slow spin. “So, you think I look good? He’ll approve.”
She sighed. “He’d be a fool not to.”
…
The diamond ring shone brilliantly against velvet presented to her in the now shaky hand of her supposed beloved. He’d proposed to her exactly thirty seconds ago, and she’d been so shocked she hadn’t known what to say. A million rejections screamed at her, but she couldn’t find her tongue to say a single one of them.
“Iris?” he repeated. “Did you…did you hear me?”
A few chuckles surrounded them at the restaurant, and the dread of saying no coupled with so many people watching with rapt attention made it impossible.
“Sorry, honey, I’m just…in shock.”
“Well, get out of shock,” he chuckled, causing a ripple of laughter around them again, which she didn’t think was very funny.
She swallowed and forced herself to say the following words that she knew she’d end up hating for the rest of her life.
“Okay, Eddie Thawne, I will marry you.”
He slid the ring onto her finger, then rose up off an unstable knee and hugged her. Everyone around them clapped and cheered, and when Eddie pulled back to look at her, she did her damndest to show him the happiest smile.
When it had died down, and they were seated again, a waiter came by to pour them some more champagne. He was about to leave with a half-empty bottle when Iris reached for his sleeve and tugged on it to stop him.
“We’ll keep the bottle,” she said through grated teeth, and he obliged her, congratulating them again before leaving.
She quickly finished her flute before pouring herself more till it reached the top.
“Ohh, be careful there, honey,” Eddie said from across the table. “You don’t want to spill on that pretty dress. It must’ve cost you a fortune.”
It hadn’t, but she obliged him.
“I’ll be careful.”
She took a dainty sip, then looked around the room as everyone resumed their meals and conversation, oblivious to their existence now. She stifled the loudest sigh she would’ve mustered.
Linda was going to kill her.
#14 days of westallen fanfiction#westallen#westallen fanfiction#backtothestart02 fanfiction#at first glance#chapter 1
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14 Days of Westallen Fanfiction: Day 4 - Holding on to a Breath of Hope [2/2]
A/N: I hope you enjoy the conclusion. A tiny bit of smut and some Linda & Iris friendship. What more could a girl ask for?
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Synopsis: Post 5x01 - Canon Divergent - Barry and Nora tell Iris about the future headline.
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Chapter 2 -
Iris was across the street from CCPN before she realized she didn’t work there anymore. It hit her like a ton of bricks that distracting herself with work was moot because she didn’t technically have a job. Sure, she worked at bringing news to her little blog, but that was the extent of it at this point. And usually, she did her writing at home where her husband currently sat, probably wounded by her snapping at him and fleeing the scene.
Guilt flooded through her. That had been unfair. She’d been hurt and in shock, both of which she still was, but neither were her husband’s fault. She’d always been a firm believer in not punishing the messenger, and yet here she’d been doing exactly that.
Still, she couldn’t just return home and apologize. She needed to work through her feelings a little more, come back a little calmer, and call, as she’d said she would, when she could approach the situation from a practical perspective with a little bit of a softer demeanor.
So, she still strode forth across the street in pursuit of her previous workplace. She might not work there any longer – though they were still begging her to return – but there was a familiar face there that she knew could be a great listening ear and give her some solid advice.
“Hey, Iris,” the familiar voice called to her when she’d barely passed through the glass door.
Iris could feel the warmth in her friend’s voice and softened immediately as she sought to bring a smile to her own voice.
“Linda, hi.”
“Don’t tell me you’re here to reapply.” She winked.
“Not if my life depended on it,” Iris assured her.
“Now, now, Mrs. West-Allen, what does that say about me? Surely your experience here wasn’t all bad.”
Iris rolled her eyes. It hadn’t been, that was for sure. It was a good first job as a reporter. But she was looking to go forward, not back. And while a meager blog reporting any scrap of news she could find might look more like a few steps back, she firmly believed it was the start of something great.
“What is it?” she asked, when Iris hesitated a bit too long. “Is something wrong?”
Iris swallowed, unable to meet her eyes.
“It’s Barry,” she finally admitted.
Something about the way she said it must’ve got Linda’s attention as to the gravity of it all, because she snatched up her jacket and shrugged into it as she guided Iris back out toward the door.
“Ms. Park!” Scott called behind him, but Linda waved him off.
“It’s an emergency! Be back later!”
He gave a disapproving scowl, no doubt, but the women paid him no attention. Within minutes they were on their way to Jitters, and as soon as they were seated in a quiet booth near the back of the shop, hot steaming drinks in front of them, Linda reached out with both hands and squeezed her friend’s.
“Talk to me.”
Iris hesitated once more.
“Did you two fight?” She tilted her head, seeking an answer for Iris’ vague movements.
Iris sighed, knowing she had to spit it out. She’d sought out her friend for this exact reason. She couldn’t stay mum about it now.
“Yes and no…”
Linda’s brows furrowed.
“Explain.”
Iris licked her lips.
“He’s going to die.”
Linda’s eyes widened.
“Uh…what? How? I mean, doesn’t he have speed-healing or something?”
Iris nibbled on her bottom lip.
“It’s not now. It’s in 2024.”
Linda frowned and sank in her seat.
“Who told you that?”
Iris took a breath and decided to just go for the plunge.
“Our daughter-”
“Wha-”
“From the future.”
Linda’s jaw dropped.
“O…kay. We definitely have not caught up in a while.”
Iris squeezed her eyes shut.
“It’s a recent development. We’ve only known a few days.”
“Uh-huh.”
“I’m sorry, Lin. I mean to tell you. It’s just-”
“It’s okay, I get it. Flash business must’ve come up.”
“Something like that.” She winced.
Linda brushed it aside.
“Okay, so back to Barry. Does this daughter-from-the-future have any proof?”
“Well, there is a newspaper…from 2049 that she has on her watch…thingy.”
“A watch thingy.”
“I don’t know what it’s called!” she burst.
“Okay, okay,” Linda tried to calm her. “Sorry. Just…reporter instincts, I guess. Maybe as her mother you’re…biased?”
“Maybe.” Iris shrugged. “But why would she lie? I mean, this is why she came back, because she has no memories of her father, and she wants to spend time with him before going back to a future with no Barry in it.”
Linda sank in on herself.
“I see what you mean.”
Iris sighed and leaned her head back against the booth.
“They both told me a little while ago and then showed me the newspaper. I cried and then snapped at Barry for not believing we could avoid that fate. I regret it, but I’m still…in shock. And I’m sad, so sad, Linda. I feel like I’m gonna break in two.”
Linda squeezed her hand again.
“Hey, I’m here for you, okay?”
She nodded.
“Did Barry specifically say he didn’t think it could be avoided?”
She shook her head.
“No. But it was the way he said it could, I guess. There was some doubt in his voice that I couldn’t ignore.” She caught Linda’s hesitant stare. “I’ve known this man for what? 20 years? I just…I know what I heard, Linda. And I…I don’t want to prepare for a life without him in it. I don’t want to be a single mother. I’ve almost lost him so many times, and I mean…the rest of my life after a few years from now? I just…I can’t even imagine. I can’t-” She broke down and tears streamed down her cheeks.
Linda immediately got up and moved to Iris’ side of the booth, urging her to lay her head on her shoulder, which she did. She was too weak and distraught to resist.
She brushed the falling hair out of her friend’s face and rocked her gently.
“It’s gonna be okay, Iris,” she said, not sure if she believed it, but knowing Iris needed to. “Whatever you heard in Barry’s voice, that’s just him being human. I mean, the whole thing with Savitar? I remember you telling me that you agreed with everyone that you would be saved, but in your gut you felt doubt creeping up every time you thought about it.”
Iris sighed shakily.
“Yeah. I know,” she said quietly.
“That’s probably what Barry’s going through, and I’m sure he’s trying to help you process the best he can. I mean, right? He didn’t snap at you, did he?”
She shook her head.
“No.” She lifted her head. “No, of course not. He was very gentle and delicate and understanding. He just…” Linda wiped away her tears as she continued. “He didn’t want me to go.”
“Then maybe you should go home.”
She sighed again.
“I was hoping to be more…put together when I got there. And ready to apologize.”
“I’m sure he’s not expecting an apology from you, Iris. You’re both human. You’re allowed to think and feel and act in certain ways when the circumstances are overwhelming.”
Iris fixed her gaze on her friend’s.
“When did you get so wise?”
Linda snorted and leaned back in the seat.
“When I realized my boyfriend and colleague were into each other and both firmly denying it. That’s when.”
Iris winced.
“Sorry about that.”
“Water under the bridge.” She waved it off, then tucked a curl behind Iris’ ear. “Now go home, Iris. Cuddle with your husband. Maybe have some angsty reunion sex to get over this hurdle.”
Iris laughed.
“That doesn’t sound too bad.”
“You’ve got a human vibrator on your hands, girl. Don’t let that go to waste.”
Iris broke out into a grin and then shared in a hug with her friend.
“Thank you, Lin. I couldn’t do this without you.”
“It’ll be okay.” She stroked her hair.
“Promise?”
Linda pulled back.
“I don’t control the future…” Iris swallowed. “But yeah, I promise you’ll be okay.”
Iris’ smile was shaky this time, but she managed to keep it on her face long enough to nod and scoot out of the booth with her drink in hand. The two walked arm in arm towards the door and only parted ways on the sidewalk when they absolutely had to in separate directions.
“Call me when it’s over,” Linda said. “Tell me how it went.”
“I will,” she assured her.
“Especially the sexy bits,” she teased, and Iris blanched. “Kidding,” she sang, then kicked up her heel and headed back to CCPN.
…
Joe sat, stock-still on the opposite side of the couch and tried to process what Barry had just told him. It had been a few minutes, but the information was pretty overwhelming. He wanted to be supportive of Barry, but even he could understand why his daughter had needed some time to come to grips with the information.
“Joe?”
He blinked and looked up at the man before him.
“Sorry. I just…it’s a lot, Bear.”
He nodded.
“I know. I hope you don’t mind…me taking off for the day? I just don’t feel good about leaving until I’ve sorted things through with Iris.”
“No, of course not. I was just checking in, and…yeah, this is definitely a good reason. I’ll be sure to put in your sick notice. Take off a few days if you need to.”
Barry forced a smile and nod.
“Thanks.”
“Have you told anyone else?”
He shook his head.
“Iris was the most important person to tell. After she was okay, I figured it’d be safe to tell everyone else together. You just stopped by soon after she left, so it was still raw, fresh. I think I needed to tell someone else in order to explain why…”
“Yeah, no, I get it.”
The sound of a key in the lock made both men turn their heads. Barry held his breath, and his heart broke in two all over again once Iris came into view, and he saw her tear-stained cheeks again. She’d been crying, wherever she’d run off to. And whatever solace she’d hoped to get, she clearly hadn’t found it.
“Dad.”
She dabbed at her damp cheeks.
“I-I didn’t expect-”
“It was a surprise visit, and I’m already on my way out.”
He got up and rounded the couch, stopping before her and pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
“You call me if you need anything, okay?”
She nodded.
“Thanks, Dad.”
He shot a look at Barry, who shared it and confirmed what he needed to see.
Take care of my baby girl.
I will.
Then he continued to the door and closed it behind him on his way out.
Iris shrugged out of her jacket and shoes, leaving them in a trail on her way to the couch. Barry watched her cautiously and immediately wrapped her in his arms when she snuggled up against him, pressing a kiss to where Joe had left his.
“I’m sorry I ran off,” she mumbled.
“No need to apologize, Iris,” he said, stroking her hair. “It was a lot to take in.”
“I didn’t have to snap at you though.”
“You’re human, Iris. And this is…this is big. I would’ve snapped at me too.”
She sniffled into his shirt.
“That’s what Linda said too.”
“Is that where you went? To see Linda?”
She nodded against him.
“I broke down again right in the middle of Jitters.”
He squeezed her tighter, affectionately, comfortingly.
“Eventually she told me to go home to you, and I realized there’s no place I’d rather be than by your side. Especially if-”
“No, if, Iris.”
She lifted her head.
“I’m sorry I didn’t sound more sure earlier. We’re going to prevent this. We prevented Savitar from killing you.”
“Only because HR sacrificed himself.” She dabbed at her own tears. “Doesn’t that mean someone will have to take your place?”
Barry didn’t know how to answer that. As a hero, there wasn’t any reason he’d let anyone take his place. But as Iris’ husband, he might be weak enough to let them, so he could be with her and live.
“I don’t know, Iris.”
She swallowed and lay her head back down on his chest.
“We’ll figure something out.”
He smiled faintly and soothingly rubbed her arm.
“I know we will.”
Several moments passed, and Iris was near falling asleep when she remembered Linda’s other piece of advice, and decided that was something she really needed. An excellent distraction. And she bet anything that Barry needed it too.
“Hey, Bear?”
“Hmm?”
She dragged her finger down his chest to his waistband.
“I have an idea that might distract us from this whole dying-in-the-future thing.”
Barry was faintly tempted to correcting the last bit of her statement, but her hand just being in the vicinity of his genitals shifted his frame of mind completely.
“Yeah?” he rasped.
Iris lifted her head and met his eyes.
“Uh-huh.”
Barry cupped her face and descended on her parted lips with his own. It wasn’t long before their muffled moans escalated to include stripping of clothes and hastily reaching for a condom. In the back of Iris’ mind, she wondered if it wouldn’t be so bad if she got pregnant now, so Nora would have a few concrete memories of her father, just in case. But Barry had already fitted himself to the rubber before she had a chance to object, and he was thrusting into her seconds after their eyes locked once she was flat on her back.
“I love you, Iris,” he said, solidifying it with a kiss.
“I love you, too.”
He pressed his face into her neck as he moved faster, and she clutched at him, wrapping her limbs around him and inhaling his scent, her fingers slipping on his back as he grew slick with sweat.
And when he started to vibrate his cock, she bit into his shoulder to stifle the screams.
“I love when you scream for me,” he whispered into her ear, and that made her cum. Twice.
He groaned and emptied himself before unwinding her from him and disposing of the rubber.
“That was one hell of a ride.” He chuckled before coming back on top of her. “And I did all the work.” He pouted.
She swatted at him.
“You enjoyed every second of it, and you know it.”
He chuckled and pressed a kiss to the corner of her lips.
“Always.”
Then he nuzzled her neck.
“We’ll be okay, Iris. I promise.”
“I know,” she said softly, tangling her fingers in his hair.
And in that moment, she believed it.
#14 days of westallen fanfiction#westallen#westallen fanfiction#holding on to a breath of hope#chapter 2#some smut
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14 Days of Westallen Fanfiction: Day 2 - Holding on to a Breath of Hope [1/2]
A/N: A request. Hope to have part 2 up in the next 24 hours.
...
Synopsis: Post 5x01 - Canon Divergent - Barry and Nora tell Iris about the future headline.
...
Chapter 1 -
The next morning, Barry crept out of bed and down the stairs at six a.m., as he tended to, so he could make breakfast for Iris. When he’d finished with the pancakes, the thought that had been weighing him down since Nora revealed it to him the day before hit him like a ton of bricks again, like it had the first time. He thought of Iris upstairs sleeping, how she’d come down the stairs likely soon, be greeted by him and his freshly cooked meal, and how after he disappeared a few years from now, she might not ever see him again. At least not for most of their daughter’s youth.
That laid heavy on him. He’d disappeared many a time already, and had counted on it happening more in the future, but he always came back to Iris and all of his loved ones. Not within years even, within hours, if that. There was never a time where he just didn’t return, where his life with Iris and their children just stopped. No matter how many times he’d seen that newspaper heading and Iris’ name on the byline – which they’d tried so hard and eventually succeeded at cementing back when her life was at stake – he’d never thought his disappearance would be forever. He’d never really worried.
But now, now he worried.
Not for himself, though he was sure it was only a matter of time before it hit him again that his life would just be over when Nora was only a couple years old. He worried for Iris. Day after day, he put his life on the line, but he always survived, always came back to each other. They’d been there for each other since they were kids, and it had never once been the end.
But this…
He needed to tell her. He hated it, but he needed to. He couldn’t lie to her about this. After lying about so many important things in past years, he couldn’t hide this from her. He couldn’t fake a smile about their happily ever after when there might not be one.
He walked back up the stairs reluctantly, only to find her still sleeping. He sat down on his side of the bed and ran his hand over his face. It occurred to him that if he wanted Nora to partake in this revelation to her mother, he’d actually need to speed to STAR Labs to get her.
He should get her a phone. He should definitely get her a phone.
Iris moaned a little beside him, so he turned and reached for her, pressed a kiss to her cheek as she mumbled.
“Is breakfast ready yet?”
He smiled softly, pushing past the pain.
“Sitting on the counter just waiting for you to eat it.”
Iris’ eyes fluttered open, though she squinted a little, her gaze hazy and drowsy with sleep.
“That sounds nice.”
“Sleep a little longer,” he said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “I’m going to go get Nora.”
Her brows furrowed.
“Nora? Right now?”
He shrugged, completely winging the conversation now that he’d accidentally dropped their daughter’s name.
“I thought we could all eat breakfast together.”
“I’d like that.”
He kissed the tip of her nose.
“Sleep a little longer. We’ll take our time.”
“Okay,” she said, and nestled deeper into her pillow. “If you insist.”
He smiled and slowly peeled himself away from her when she started to softly snore again.
“I love you, Iris,” he whispered, not thinking she would hear, but she did.
“Love you, too,” she murmured, and it broke his heart.
He flashed away to STAR Labs, their daughter, and the terrible revelation that would await them.
…
Iris could tell right away something was off when she came downstairs half an hour later and her husband and daughter still weren’t there. Something had been off about Nora right from the beginning, but to have Barry not be there so long – for a speedster – after he’d left? Uh-uh.
As if by magic, however, Barry and Nora appeared mere seconds later, with a suspicious-looking Iris staring directly at them with folded arms.
“What’s going on?” she demanded, when it became obvious to her that they didn’t know how to cover up whatever secret they weren’t telling her.
“Oh, it was just…Flash business, you know.”
“And XS business,” Nora piped in. “We worked as a team.” She looked at her father admiringly.
Iris squinted her eyes and fixed them on her husband.
“Barry.”
He sighed.
“Okay, look, there’s something I need to tell you,” he said, closing the distance between them. “And I needed Nora to do it.”
She looked over to Nora who nodded subtly. It didn’t explain the half-hour lapse of them not returning, but she decided to think about that later. The secrecy was killing her.
“So, what is it?” she asked, her voice softening despite herself. Something told her it was really bad, something she didn’t want know but knew she had to or it would eat her alive.
“Okay, before we show you,” he began, caressing her arms gently, “I want you to know that this is not set in stone. We’ve changed the future before, and we can change it again.”
“You’re scaring me.”
Barry’s eyes started to water, but he turned to Nora and nodded. Extending her arm, Nora pushed a button on the gadget on her wrist, and before them all displayed the newspaper Iris could only assume Barry had already seen.
A memorial to the Flash, 25 years after he had disappeared during a Crisis.
Iris’ heart nearly stopped. She could only stare at the headline, and then at the byline where her name – Iris West-Allen – was printed. She’d never changed her name, never met someone else or moved on. It made all the sense in the world. She could never imagine a life after Barry. All that must exist for future her must be her daughter.
Her knees buckled suddenly, and Barry with his speedy reflexes caught her before she hit the ground. Nora bit her lip and stepped forward slightly, concerned despite her own reservations, but when it became obvious the moment had become an intimate one between her parents, she backed away slowly and let herself out the front door.
“Hey, I’m here, I’m here,” Barry whispered, holding his wife in his arms. “I’m right here.”
“But for how long?” She started to cry.
She was torn between yelling at him and clutching at him for dear life.
“How long?” she asked again, and she couldn’t help but feel the dejavu of when her own life was on the line. It was scary and completely unfair how they kept being ripped apart from each other. “How long until it happens?”
Barry swallowed hard and fought to slow his racing mind to answer her question.
“April 2024, same as it’s always been.”
“And Nora? How-”
“She’s a couple years old,” Barry said. “She…doesn’t remember anything about me.”
“Oh, my God, it makes so much sense now.” She tucked herself against his warm chest and let him hold her, rocking her gently.
“What does?” He pressed his lips to the top of her head.
“Why Nora is so…attached to you, and so…unattached to me. She knows me her whole life. She doesn’t even remember you.” She started to cry again. “We don’t get the happy ending.”
She started to fall again, and Barry lifted her up entirely, this time carrying her over to the couch and swaying with her as she sobbed. He rubbed his hands down her back, and Iris wanted to scream. This was not something that could just be wished away with some comfort and some…she didn’t know calming words?
How could they just drop this on her and expect her to be okay? It wasn’t fair. None of this was.
“It’s not gonna happen, Iris,” he finally said a while later.
She scoffed, and he pulled back, tucking her straying curls behind her ears.
“It won’t, Iris. I promise it won’t. We’ll find a loophole. We always do.”
“If you really believed that, you wouldn’t have given the news to me the way you did. I can see all over your face that you think it’ll happen. And don’t you dare say otherwise. I know you’ll be lying.”
He was quiet for a while then, “I don’t know what you want me to say, Iris. I believe it could happen, and part of me thinks it will, just because it’s so damn scary to think about. I just don’t want you to give up hope that we can avoid it.”
Iris pulled away from him, glad she’d been fully dressed for the day when she came down the stairs, so she could properly storm out now.
“Where are you going?”
“I need some time.”
“Iris-”
“I need some time, Barry,” she snapped, then forced herself to cool down. “I’ll call you when I’m ready to talk.”
He slumped over on the couch but let her go.
“Okay.”
She nearly tripped over herself on the way to the door, but she slipped her shoes on and a jacket and got out of the loft as quick as her feet could carry her. She needed a place to breathe.
#14 days of westallen fanfiction#westallen#fanfiction#holding on to a breath of hope#chapter 1#for gabi
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14 Days of Westallen Fanfiction: Day 1 - A Million Stars Falling [2/?]
A/N: Day 1! Let's gooooo! Enjoy! :P
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Synopsis: Post 3x23 - 10 years following the events of Barry going into the speed force, Iris is happily settled down with Scott Evans and their two children. So what happens when out of the blue, Barry returns and wants to pick up where they left off? Will she choose the family she loves or the love of her life she thought she'd never see again?
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Chapter 2 -
The steady beeping of a monitor overwhelmed Iris as she walked slowly in the med bay at STAR Labs. Cisco was there, as was Harry and Caitlin.
Iris ignored all of them though, focused only entirely on the shell of a man who had been the love of her life for as long as she’d known him. The last time she’d seen him he’d been walking into a portal hand-in-hand with the speed force in the visage of his dead mother, a vision of comfort for him no doubt, but for Iris, it had been haunting. Seeing him choose her over the life that had been laid out before them, the life they’d just gotten back after saving her own life and defeating Savitar.
But then, the city had also been under attack, due to that cursed speed force as well.
She brushed past the memories, focusing entirely on the man in front of her, lying, fully bearded, with his eyes staring up at the ceiling, unmoving.
She stopped a few feet from the bed.
“Is he…comatose?” She looked at Cisco, but the answer came from the patient himself when he shifted his head to look directly at her.
The intensity of that stare stole her breath. He didn’t try to get off the bed and go to her, but he may as well have stripped her naked. She knew those eyes. She knew that soul. He might not be wholly himself right then, but he was still her Barry.
“A million stars falling,” he whispered, and a chill raced down Iris’ spine. She swallowed.
“He’s been saying that a lot,” Cisco interrupted.
With tear-filled eyes and furrowed brows, Iris turned to him.
“Saying what?”
Barry started to sit up.
“A million stars falling. A million stars falling.” He started looking around the room. “Stars falling, stars falling, falling…falling…”
Iris frowned.
“What does it mean?”
“We think it’s referring to the night he went into the speed force,” Caitlin said.
Iris nibbled on her bottom lip, not really sure what to do with the information. She wished she’d gotten to Barry first, but then again, she hadn’t wanted to deal with the possibility of what was before her when she’d first gotten the call.
“Cecile found him,” Harry said, breaking the silence
Iris fixed her gaze on him, her brows furrowed again.
“Cecile? Why wouldn’t she have called me then?”
“Because you’re married with kids now, Mrs. West-Evans.”
There was a slight snark to his words, but Iris ignored that for the time-being. Not everyone could wallow in the lost love of their lives while their kids grew up without another parent. Besides, Barry would’ve wanted her to find love again.
Right?
Iris swallowed, then lowered her voice to a whisper.
“Barry was my best friend too, not just my fiancé.”
In the next heartbeat, Barry had flashed across the room and was writing in some sort of gibberish on the white board. Everyone looked at each other, mystified.
“I guess that answers whether he still has his super speed,” Harry drawled.
“He could be the Flash again!” Cisco said again.
“Wally is the Flash now,” Iris snapped. “He’s been the Flash for five years. The city chose him to be the Flash. We’re not going to take that away from him.”
Silence greeted that statement.
“Where is Wally anyway?”
“There was a fire on 5th and Lincoln on the news this morning. I’m sure he went straight to the office after that. I…haven’t told him yet about-”
“Good,” Iris interrupted. “He has enough to deal with right now.” The curious gazes around her made her fess up. “Linda is expecting.” Their jaws dropped. “But you didn’t hear it from me. They want it to be a surprise.”
“That’s great new-”
“Irisss.”
A zip shot down Iris’ spine as they all turned to see Barry writing her name over and over now on the wall.
“Iris, Iris, Iris, Iris…”
“Everyone out,” she whispered. “I need the room.”
Without a word, the other three individuals filed out.
“And call my dad, Cisco,” she said before he was out of sight. “He’ll want to know too.”
Cisco nodded and then he was gone with the others.
When it was utterly quiet, Iris turned to Barry again and hesitantly took a step toward him as he continued to write on the wall, crossing over into a small whiteboard that had been placed there. The cap for the marker lay on the floor, which it had no doubt flown to as soon as it had departed from the marker.
“Barry?”
He stilled briefly and then continued to write.
Iris didn’t know what she had expected. From his odd behavior to his disheveled appearance, it was clear Barry wasn’t himself. Who knew when he would be again? This wasn’t anything they had encountered before, and they hadn’t been ‘Team Flash’ for five years really. None of them really knew how to go about this version of the man they’d once known.
Iris walked closer until she was inches away and placed her hand on his arm. He ceased writing and turned to her.
“Barry?” she tried again, tears evident in her voice.
He stared deeply into her eyes, far enough to reach the depth of her soul, and her knees grew weak. But he didn’t speak.
“Flash?” she offered, and lightning began to crackle in his eyes. His whole body started to vibrate.
He gripped her wrist, as his body became a blur. A portal opened, and before she could object, he had raced them both into it, leaving STAR Labs and Central City behind.
…
Swirling blue winds engulfed her – she thought engulfed them, but when she looked down to her wrist, she saw that there was no hand gripping it tightly. In fact Barry or Flash or whoever he was right now was gone. She was alone in the blue winds, the speed force.
Memories from a lifetime ago surfaced as she recalled the last time she’d been in the speed force. Barry had evaporated trying to get his speed back, and then they had discovered he wasn’t dead. He was just someplace else.
Maybe the same thing was true now.
She frowned and moved through the blue winds, lightning crackling around her, and called for Barry.
There was no answer at first, but in the distance she caught a glimpse of a figure, and as soon as she recognized it as a confused-looking Barry, she heard the whispers of her name over and over again, just like before she’d been sped into this unknown void.
“Barry! Barry!” she cried, running now, as the figure got farther and farther away. She kept calling, kept running, but it felt all in vain. Tears streamed down her cheeks until finally she fell to her knees and hit hard earth.
She blinked, looked up and saw she was surrounded by a vast countryside. Just ahead, Barry stood, standing in front of his childhood home. Beside it was their childhood home. He looked torn.
Swallowing, Iris stood up and approached him. He didn’t recede into the distance this time. In fact, it took less time then she would have guessed to reach him. When she did, she could see exactly as he had when she’d said goodbye to him. Shaven face, tousled hair, dressed in a suit, the same suit he’d worn to HR’s funeral. It was like he was frozen in time.
Hesitantly, her breath caught in her throat, she reached for and touched his sleeve, both desperate to get his attention and afraid of what it would mean.
“Barry?”
He turned to face her, then his brows furrowed and then smoothed. It was as if some great realization had occurred to him, and Iris felt her heart race.
“Iris?” he rasped.
“Yeah,” she said softly. “It’s me.”
“Not the speed force,” he sought to clarify.
“No.” She shook her head. “It’s your Iris.”
Somewhere in the back of her head a voice scolded that she wasn’t his anymore, and he wasn’t hers. But she knew that was rubbish and so completely ignored it. Only a moment passed before the voice was silenced entirely. She knew that was largely due to how Barry’s eyes cleared to show all the love she’d seen in his eyes from the moment she met him, and especially when they were together.
In the next instant, he wrapped his arms around her and inhaled her neck and the scent of her hair. Iris’ eyes fluttered shut, and she held tightly to him in response. Tears trickled through her eyelashes and landed on the fabric of his suit. It’d been so long. She’d dreamed of this moment for over 10 years.
“It’s really you.”
She nodded against him.
“It’s me.”
He pulled back and cupped her face in his hands, then kissed her without warning, and to not break him, and because she needed this right now, needed this closure and to give him a reason to come back, she returned the kiss. His lips moved on hers, drugging her, making her clutch at him and fight for breath.
The image of Scott slammed into her mid-make-out, and finally she pulled away.
“What?” he asked, dragging his finger across her smudged lipstick at the corner of her lips. “Why did you stop?”
She laughed a little nervously. She wouldn’t tell him. She couldn’t. Not now at any rate. Now was all about bringing him home.
“We need to bring you home.”
He frowned.
“I can’t.”
“Well, part of you is – or was. Your body came back to Central City, and you said my name. Over and over.”
“That’s not possible, Iris. I’ve been here…stuck, for-”
“Ten years,” she finished.
His eyes widened.
“Has it really been that long?”
She nodded slowly.
“Are- Are you okay?”
She smiled weakly.
“Yeah, Barry, I’m okay. I kept running, like you said. It was hard for a really long time, but…” She sighed.
“You’re okay.”
He ran his hands down her arms.
“I’m okay.”
He pursed his lips, thinking.
“What?” She tilted her head, curious.
“It’s just…if I’m out there. Then, there must be a way for me to get back, a way to connect me to the Flash me.”
“Like before when you were stuck.”
“I didn’t think the speed force would let me leave, but…do you think it’s possible?”
Tears filled her eyes again.
“I’m not leaving till we get you home.”
He reached for her hands and brought them to his lips to kiss.
“It’s felt like an eternity in here without you.” He lay his cheek against the back of her hand. “I’ve missed you so much, Iris. You have no idea.”
She swallowed.
“I’ve missed you, too, Barry.”
Suddenly, a vision of Nora, Barry’s mother – the speed force, no doubt – interrupted them, forming together before them.
“Iris.”
She turned to face the haunting vision, one of her hands intertwined with Barry’s.
“I’m not leaving unless I can take him with me. You can’t keep him any longer. It’s been long enough.”
The speed force looked at her curiously.
“Your loyalty is admirable. Considering.”
Barry stiffened beside her and turned in her direction. She didn’t want to tell him about Scott and their children. Not now. There had to be another way to get him out.
“What’s she talking about?”
“Iris has moved on with her life, as have all of your family and friends. They don’t need you or miss you.”
“That’s a lie,” Iris spat. “I miss him every fucking day,” she swore, surprising even herself with the ferocity in which she spoke.
Barry squeezed her hand.
“Perhaps,” the speed force said. “Barry has not found the rest here we had intended for him. He is torn and tormented, which is not what we wanted for him.”
“Then let him go!” Iris cried.
“Will he be any less so back on earth?”
Iris’ bottom lip trembled. As much as she hated to admit it, the speed force had a valid point. Barry wouldn’t have her anymore. He might not even be accepted by the city as a hero again. Julian had taken over as sole CSI. Would CCPD really take Barry back after all these years? She and her father had made a statement about Barry dying in a freak accident, and Captain Singh, surprisingly, had not dug further into the supposed claim. They’d had a funeral. Barry’s picture was up amongst other cops that had fallen while in the line of duty.
What kind of life would he be coming back to?
But then, what kind of life was this for him here? At least he could be back with those he loved him if he came back. He could live a life again. Find someone to grow old with. He deserved that, she thought, even as her stomach twisted at the thought of him with anyone but her, a long ago forgotten future.
“Yes,” she finally said.
The speed force looked at her with suspicion and curiosity gleaming in her green-eyed gaze.
“We’ll see.”
She snapped her fingers and the world around them slipped away, blue winds and lightning crackled, but Iris held tightly to Barry this time.
“I don’t know what’s happening, but I love you, Iris.” He held to her just as tightly.
“I love you, too. Never forget that.”
“I won’t.”
And then, just as suddenly as the winds had started, they dissipated. They were back in STAR Labs, and before her Barry was dressed now in what he’d been in before the whole ordeal. STAR Labs gear, t-shirt and sweats. But he was himself again, his eyes soft, and his arms comforting as they wrapped around her once more.
“I’m back. It’s me. The real me.”
Iris sighed in relief.
Footsteps approached, and Barry separated from her to see who was coming. He grinned widely as the crew came in to embrace him.
“It’s me, guys. It’s really me.”
Cheers rose up, but Iris found herself fading into the background. She let them celebrate and eventually slunk away before any of them could stop her, even Barry.
She had a job to get back to, and kids.
And a husband.
Dread filled her as she pressed her fingers to her lips, reliving the passionate kiss with Barry in the speed force that had stolen her breath.
How in the world would she explain that?
#14 days of westallen fanfiction#westallen#fanfiction#backtothestart02 fanfiction#a million stars falling#chapter 2#day 1
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Soooo…it looks like my 14 Days of Westallen Fanfiction that turned into 14 Westallen Fics in February…will be dipping a bit into March as well. I work two jobs tomorrow so writing four more stories in the next 24 hours just isn’t going to happen. But I’m hopeful that within the next week they’ll be posted. Thank you, everyone, for being patient with me. 😊
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The Football Star and the New Girl - 1/? | westallen fanfiction
A/N: I suck at titles lately...oh well. Enjoy this first chap! The story itself is based loosely on a dream I had. :)
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Synopsis: HS!AU - They were like ships passing in the night. Would they ever meet on the same page?
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Chapter 1 -
Francine West walked down the hall and peeked into the open doorway of her daughter’s bedroom. She found her sitting on her bed, her things packed in multiple suitcases at her feet, but she herself – Iris West, 14 ¾ years old – did not look very excited to be leaving her home without her family. She was looking at a photo album. Tears were staining her cheeks.
Francine rested her head against the door frame as she watched her, her heart aching to heal the wounds she knew would only grow more with time.
“It’s not too late to change your mind, you know.”
Iris’ head whipped toward the sound, and she hastily shut the photo album and tossed it onto her bed, wiping her cheeks quickly after.
“Mom!”
“I’m sorry. I wasn’t interrupting, was I?”
She walked into the room, and Iris scooted over a little so she could sit next to her on the bed.
“No, not at all. I’m glad you’re here.”
They shared a sweet look, then Iris leaned her head on her mother’s shoulder. Francine held out her hand, and Iris intertwined her fingers in her mother’s grip.
“I still want to go,” she assured her.
“Yeah?”
She nodded against her shoulder.
“I need stability, mom. I can’t be moving around going from school to school every six months. I’m proud of dad, of course, and I love being with you all. I’ll miss you a lot, but…I want friends and the same school and a life.”
“A boyfriend?” Francine nudged her gently.
Iris rolled her eyes and smiled.
“Maybe…eventually. I’m only 14, Mom.”
Francine nudged her again.
“14 ¾.”
Iris laughed.
“Yeah, yeah, okay. A boyfriend would be nice, once I get to know the guy for more than a couple months. But first, friends.”
“Friends are important too.”
Iris nestled into her mother’s embrace and sat in silence for a while.
“What about Wally? Is he going to be going to new schools every-”
“I’ve decided to attempt homeschooling.”
Iris lifted her head.
“You have?”
She nodded.
“He’s only 10, so the curriculum is simpler, and he’s pretty introverted, even around us, so Ruffly can suffice for his friend. At least for now.”
Francine pursed her lips. She did want real, live human friends for her son, as well as for her daughter. But for now their golden retriever seemed to be what got the most laughs out of young Wally West. She would hope that lasted at least through another school year.
“I’d take him with me if I could,” Iris said.
“You’d take both my children from me?” Francine asked, only half joking. “What am I supposed to do all day long without your brother to drive me crazy?”
Iris looked into her mother’s eyes and saw that they were watering.
“Oh, Mom, I didn’t mean-”
“It’s okay, honey.”
She sighed and pressed a kiss to her daughter’s temple.
“I know it hasn’t been easy for you, losing your friends so often because we have to move. It’s the life of a military family, I’m afraid. I signed up for it when I agreed to marry the man, but you, my baby, were just born into it.”
She pulled back to look into her eyes.
“I want you to know though that if at any time the school isn’t working out for you, we’ll come get you in a heartbeat.”
Iris winced. She knew it wasn’t that simple. They were moving overseas to a new post. Iris would be staying here in the U.S. Even if the school was a bit of a move for her too. It wasn’t anything she wasn’t used to.
Still, she obliged her.
“Yeah, okay, mom.”
She smiled, but Francine knew better.
Footsteps sounded down the hallway, and interrupting their little moment came Joe West with little Wally West on his back. Joe was dressed in all camouflage wear, and Wally was giggling from bouncing up and down on his “horsie”. Ruffly was close at Joe’s heels.
“What is this here?” Joe asked, witnessing the tear streaks on his two ladies’ faces.
“Dad!” Iris sprung up.
She ran to him, and he slowly released Wally off his back, who promptly complained when his shoeless feet hit the floor.
Joe hugged his daughter tight, lifting her off her feet briefly and kissing the side of her face.
“Oh, baby girl, are you sure you want to go?”
Iris laughed when she was back on her feet again. She wiped away fresh tears.
“Yeah, I’m sure. I’m just gonna miss you guys, but I need this. For me. Okay?”
He sighed and nodded, then looked across the room at his wife.
“She’s so grown-up.”
“I know.” Francine sniffled.
“Why is everyone crying in here?” Wally asked. “Aren’t we gonna see her for Christmas?”
Everyone laughed.
“Aren’t you gonna miss me at all, you little punk?” Iris asked, ruffling his curly hair.
“Eh, maybe a little.” He shrugged, uncaringly.
Iris rolled her eyes.
“Well, it’s time to get going then, yeah?” She looked at her parents who nodded.
“Yeah,” Joe said. “That seven-hour drive is no joke.”
“Seven hours! That’s a lifetime!” Wally whined.
Ruffly barked.
“Just wait till your plane ride,” Iris egged him on. “That might be even longer.”
Wally groaned. “I hate traveling!”
“Better make sure you have something to keep you occupied with then, Walls,” Joe said, and with that Wally zipped out of Iris’ room to make sure his many bags included plenty of toys to play with on his very long journey.
“I’ll go help him,” Francine said. “We’ll meet you at the door with his things.”
“Sounds good.”
Joe smiled, but it was pained. Once Francine had left, all the toughness had melted away again, as it often did with his baby girl.
“Boy, am I gonna miss you,” he said.
“I’m gonna miss you too, Dad.” Another tear streamed down her cheek, and he was quick to wipe it away. “You look so handsome in your uniform, Dad.”
He chuckled.
“Alright, enough sadness for now. We can do this again in seven hours.”
She laughed. “Okay.”
“You wanna help me get all a million and one suitcases out to the car?”
She took a step back and looked around her room.
“Yeah, sorry about that.”
“You can apologize by helping me.”
“Deal.”
She smiled, and slowly they made their way to the front door and then the driveway with all seven of her suitcases. It took a few trips, but then she knew she would need every bit of her belongings for the long school years that lay ahead.
Her family would visit as often as they could, of course, but it would be difficult with them living overseas. She probably wouldn’t see them again until her dad was forced to move again like they were doing now.
But she’d thought long and hard this. She longed for friendships that lasted, for a life beyond what was available to a military family. She needed to connect and to be free for a while, even at the sacrifice of not seeing her family every day, especially her mom and baby brother. This new school – Huntington Farm and Boarding School – would be just the ticket.
Out in the middle of nowhere somewhere down south, the school was on a huge stretch of lush land that also served as a farm – no animals, just crops, which was a shame, Iris thought. She’d miss having even just her dog around too.
But the place was renowned for its academics and social scene there in the middle of the wilderness. A boarding school for those who needed it, traveling families mostly; and if the colorful flyer they’d sent in the mail was any indication, Iris would absolutely love it.
“Everybody ready?” Joe asked, when everyone had piled into the car sometime later.
“Ready!” the family cheered.
Joe chuckled and started the car.
“Huntington Farm and Boarding School, here we come. Watch out for your most dazzling student yet.”
He met Iris’ eyes in the rearview mirror, and they sparkled.
“You know it!” Iris said.
Joe grinned and backed out of the driveway.
They were all on their way to bigger adventures now.
…
One year later…
Iris sat on top of the fence on the edge of the football field, waiting for who she hoped she hadn’t misinterpreted wrong. After nearly a year of first claiming he didn’t like her and then months of mixed signals, Iris was convinced he actually did like her, as much as she liked him.
Sitting on the fence post waiting for the guy to come kiss her seemed like an odd tradition, but it was built into the social aspect of the school, and she figured it was the only guaranteed way she’d know if he was really crushing or not.
She’d dressed as cute as she could for a game, and soon she’d know if it would pay off or not.
Biting her bottom lip, she gasped quietly when she saw him coming around the corner heading right towards where she had herself perched.
Barry Allen was the star football player – star of every sport he could get himself into really – and they’d been making genuine eyes at each other for weeks. Now, as he approached her, it felt as if their whole future was hanging in the balance.
He stopped about 20 feet away. Bracing himself maybe for the decision he’d have to make? Presumably have gained the courage, he continued his walk, headed straight for her and stopped directly in front of her.
Iris waited, her heart hammering a mile a minute in her chest. He was tall enough to reach her – so tall, but she bent her head anyway, and sure enough their lips met in a soft, tender kiss.
She opened her eyes as he took a step back, but the smile on his face was undeniable. So was hers.
Just as he was about to say something truly romantic – she’d decided – one of his teammates burst behind them.
“Did you just kiss Iris West?”
Barry spun around, panic on his features.
“I-”
Another teammate appeared.
“Wait, what?”
“Barry just kissed Iris!”
“But I thought he hated her. He swore he did.”
Iris tensed on the top of the fence, waiting for Barry to smooth the whole thing over. It couldn’t be that big of a deal that he’d pretended to hate her all while flirting with her on the downlow for nearly a year…could it? It was annoying to her for sure, but his teammates couldn’t be that annoyed, could they?
Barry never smoothed it over.
His teammates left, looking disgusted, and Barry looked back at Iris for one more moment, not knowing what to do. Then he left, calling after them.
“Wait, guys, it’s not what it looks like!”
And Iris sat alone on top of the fence, the magical memory of her first kiss completely shattered.
How would they come back from this?
#westallen#fanfiction#westallen fanfiction#backtothestart02 fanfiction#the football star and the new girl#chapter 1
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The Forgotten - 1/? | westallen fanfiction
A/N: Based off the horror, psychological thriller movie of the same name that came out in 2004 that I recently watched. This fic is really for me, b/c I loved the movie so much and there’s no fanfiction category for it anywhere, so I thought I’d turn it into a WA fic with a sequel eventually. The movie itself is more parent-child driven than romance, but it was created w/ a subtle romance that I intend to expand more upon. Read it if you like. I will be incorporating much of the dialogue from the movie, since I’m adapting it pretty closely. Enjoy.
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Synopsis: AU - 14 months after losing her son to a plane crash, Iris Thawne is startled to find everyone she knows has forgotten him. Everyone but herself.
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Chapter 1 - A Grieving Mother
It was eerie at the playground at this time of day.
The wind whipped around her as she sat on the swing, hardly aware of the creaking sound, even with no children playing around her to block it out.
She was cold, freezing even, but she didn’t close her sweater up to warm herself better. She hadn’t brought a jacket or a coat, just a couple layered shirts and a sweater with her faded blue jeans and sneakers. A common outfit when she went out these days, common at home too.
Only one thing blocked out the need to keep warm, to hear what was around her, to be aware of reality in that moment. And that was Teddy, her Teddy Bear.
A warm, enthusiastic, vibrant boy of nine with the most luscious curls atop his head and freckles dotting his cheeks. He wore glasses, round ones, ever since he was six and couldn’t see the words quite right on the classroom chalkboard. He’d come home that day, scared to death that he couldn’t see anymore. One trip to the eye doctor had fixed that, and he’d been so excited to get his glasses. She couldn’t remember a child being that excited over having to wear glasses.
Barry’s girl, Becca, certainly hadn’t been. She’d had a meltdown in the front of the school when her dad picked her up. It was temporary though, as most things are with children. Once the more ‘chic’ kind, as she called it, came in stock in pink, she loved her glasses more than anything. Well, not more than playing with Teddy on the playground. Those two were inseparable, had been since kindergarten.
Iris wondered how Barry was doing…14 months after the accident.
She licked her lips and found them chapped, then decided she’d spent enough time at the park today. Or at least for one morning. She had to get ready anyways. Her appointment with Dr. Singh was in an hour, and her walk home was 15 minutes, 20 with the way she moved. She needed time with Teddy, her morning time with him. She couldn’t cope without that time. A mother needed time with her son.
He was her life, her everything.
“Mom!”
She heard it clearly, so clearly. Not spoken out of a dream or the recesses of her mind, but really, truly with her. Real.
She spun around so quickly, she wasn’t prepared for the oncoming wind attacking her face with its chill. She shut her eyes for a moment – just a moment – and when she opened them again, there was no sound. There was no child.
“Teddy?” she called out, just in case. Just in case.
But it was obvious no one was there. She looked all around her, but nothing. Even the streets were bare of cars, the park was bare of squirrels, of birds. It was a cloudy, chilly day, as dark as her thoughts, as her heart sank every moment.
Taking one step in front of the other, she looked both ways at the street corner and then crossed on her way home. She felt stuck in a daze as she always did, cars passing, people chatting, lights turning colors at the intersection. She couldn’t snap out of where her head was at, of how intensely her heart was hurting. She could die of frostbite out here in the cold, and she wouldn’t notice it was happening. Her mind would be so absorbed, so focused, so distant on what wasn’t in her control. Teddy.
The warmth of her home spread through to the tips of her fingers and toes once she stepped inside and closed the door. She didn’t think she’d bother changing. She’d taken a shower early that morning, a hot one, a long one. That was enough. But what she needed before she left, what she needed more than anything, was to visit her boy in his bedroom.
Taking the steps two at a time, she raced upstairs. First, she stopped in the bedroom she shared with Eddie, her husband. She didn’t want to think about how things were between them. They could be better. They could always be better, and that was an understatement. When they weren’t ‘having a discussion’, he walked around her as if he were on eggshells, not wanting to alarm her or cause her to have a breakdown. He wanted to be there for her, to help her with her healing process. But he had gotten frustrated that she was taking so long with it. He didn’t say it outright, but she knew that’s what he thought. She knew him.
Still, when she stopped in their bedroom, she spotted instantly the picture of the three of them sitting on the bedside table. The Thawne family – Iris, Eddie, and Teddy. Theodore Thawne.
Eddie had loved that name, and she had warmed to it once she came upon the most adorable nickname for him – Teddy Bear. She smiled just thinking about it and brushed her finger over the glass, over Teddy’s curls.
Her smile fell slowly, as her heart resurged with pain, and she walked out of the room to head to Teddy’s bedroom.
There wasn’t much in the room anymore, but the dresser straight ahead between the windows was a siren song for her, a lit beacon of everything that made her able to cope, to deal with the worst loss any mother can imagine.
Atop the dresser were two pictures of Teddy, a recent one and one when he was a toddler, his face smiling up at her, the photographer of the pictures. She always took pictures of him. He was so photogenic. His curly hair and dimples always made her smile. And his eyes lit up when he saw her.
They had, anyway.
She opened the first drawer of the dresser and found his baseball mitt, his cap… The next drawer held photo albums of him over the years. Seeing those pictures always made her relax, made her remember, kept her grounded, prevented her from falling apart. Then finally the bottom drawer was filled with video tapes and dvds, all encapsulating Teddy’s life. She’d take them out and watch them if she had more time.
If she had more time…
“How much time did you spend at the dresser compared to last week?”
She could already hear Dr. Singh saying it, asking it, as if he knew she hadn’t made much progress at all. Still, she’d probably say, “Less.”
And he’d press her, “How much less?”
She sighed, her fingers drumming against one of the tapes as she fought the urge to form a fist. She knew it was for the best, that her sessions would help her in the long run. She certainly didn’t want to be this sad forever. She just…wanted her son back.
Maybe there was time to watch one tape.
...
*will post on AO3 and FFnet when beta’d.
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Mixed Drink - 14/? | westallen fanfiction
A/N: I hope the wait was worth it.
*Many thanks to @valeriemperez for beta’ing.
For my girls - @westallen94 @travelattwilight @andromidagalaxie @jennlee44 @smileyscorner04 @mspurple23
...
Chapter 14 -
So. Barry Allen loved her.
It had been three days since he heartachingly declared it right before the static hit, and for the last three days she’d been pretending not to have heard it.
She didn’t know why she did. After the miserable day she’d had, those words said so sweetly and sincerely had made her heart flutter. And, okay, maybe part of her wanted to hear them again. So, when he changed his tune to ‘miss’ instead of ‘love’ immediately after, she started to get worried.
Did he regret saying it? Did he just wish he had said it in person, and that’s why he didn’t repeat himself? Maybe he didn’t love her after all, and the excuse of static gave him exactly what he needed to take it back.
If he wanted to. Did he want to?
All signs pointed to a yes.
But after two days of moping around, Stacy decided to set Iris straight.
“Maybe he’s just as scared as you are,” she suggested, taking a bite out of an apple.
“Scared?” Iris scoffed. “I’m not scared.”
Stacy gave her a look.
“I’m not.”
“Oh, no, of course not. Just your brother came in a few days ago, and, you know, you thought he was at least kind of on your side. Turns out he’s not, and he may be even more anti-Iris than your parents. Why in the world would that make you afraid to love someone?”
“I love you, Stace,” she said defiantly.
“And I appreciate that, darling.” She patted her shoulder. “True besties are hard to come by.”
“Mhmm. See!”
“But we’ve never really had any problems with each other.”
Iris sighed. “That’s true.”
“Meanwhile, you and your brother are having problems, and you guys were thick as thieves once upon a time. He defended you to your parents in the beginning, remember?”
She nodded forlornly. “I remember.”
“And Barry? He is a mystery. You two just met a week and a half ago. He won’t tell you exactly where he is or what he does for a living, and he goes and gets beat up in the middle of the night? I’d be hesitant to tell him I love him back too.”
Iris’ eyes widened, and she turned to face her friend.
“Wha-? But I…I don’t-”
Stacy gave her a sympathetic look.
“Honey, please. It’s written all over your face.”
Iris’ shoulders slumped.
“I’m that obvious?”
“It’s not a bad thing,” she hurried to say, and Iris raised her brows. “I mean, only if you don’t want him to know. You still have two and a half weeks to work on hiding it if you’re really sure you’re not ready for that yet.”
Iris sighed. “I don’t know what I want.”
Stacy looped her arm through hers.
“I think you do, Hun.” She paused. “And I think he wants it too.”
“Then why did he take it back?” she exploded, throwing her arms around.
“Maybe the same reason you pretended you didn’t hear it?”
“What does he have to be scared of?” she demanded.
“Well, that’s just it, isn’t it? You don’t know, because you hardly know him. Maybe you should talk about it, have a conversation the next time you actually see him. Do something other than have sex.”
Heat flooded her face.
“That’s not all we do.”
Stacy chuckled. “I’m just saying.”
Iris thought about it for a minute.
“Won’t that ruin our first I love you, though? If we have a long conversation, decide we’re both scared and we’re not going to say it yet, isn’t it going to be awkward until we do? And when we do?”
“Only if you let it be.”
She grumbled. “Ugh. I hate this. I shouldn’t have pretended I didn’t hear it. Now everything’s ruined.”
Stacy rolled her eyes. “Everything is not ruined. Why don’t you have phone sex tonight? That’ll help you blow off some of your steam. If the chemistry’s still there, you have nothing to worry about.”
“And if it isn’t?”
Stacy smirked and wrapped an arm around her best friend.
“Trust me, it will be.”
…
Due to the time difference, it was almost morning when his call to Iris turned into phone sex.
Things had felt a little awkward over the last few days, so when Iris jumped in wanting phone sex as soon as he said his hello, he decided not to question it.
“Where are you?” he asked huskily, pulling his tie free from his neck in his room as he talked to her.
“In my bedroom,” she said, twirling a lock of her hair around her finger like a schoolgirl, though he couldn’t see it. It was all about getting into character.
“Are you alone?”
“Patty’s in the kitchen reading a book. I’ll have to be quiet.”
He grinned mischievously. “Is that so?”
Patty wasn’t in the kitchen. She’d been called in for a late shift at the last minute and still hadn’t come home. But Barry didn’t need to know that.
“Mhmm.” She bit her bottom lip. “Any other questions?”
He chuckled, and it was the sexiest sound she’d ever heard.
“What are you wearing?”
“What do you think?”
“Some lacy lingerie? Either white, black, or red?”
She laughed. “Only if you give it to me.”
“Oh, I’ll give it to you.” His voice turned dark. “Tell me what you’re wearing.”
“Nothing.”
That much was true. It felt a little scandalous, even if she was alone in the apartment, but Iris was stripped down to her bare bottom and lying across her bed with the door to her bedroom locked and the drapes hanging over her windows down.
“With Patty just down the hall?” he asked, his voice a little strangled.
He had definitely bought into her little white lie, and she smiled. There was no way she’d ruin the fantasy at this point and tell him she wasn’t as brave as she’d portrayed herself to be.
“I wish you were here, Barry,” she whimpered, trailing her fingers down her belly to play with herself.
He groaned and did the same thing. “Me too.”
“I wish you were touching me, kissing me, making love to me…”
She gasped, and loudly too, but he was apparently too lost in the moment to notice the reaction she’d had to her own turn of phrase. Maybe he thought the gasp had been caused from something else. Her touching herself maybe, which was valid.
She decided to be grateful he hadn’t noticed the significance and put it out of her mind, which was difficult given part of her wished he had noticed it. Maybe then he could’ve prompted the conversation and told her he loved her again. If he still did, of course. He loved her body, at least. Maybe he didn’t know her well enough to know if he loved her. Maybe that’s what he’d realized over the last few days. God, what if he never said it again?
“Iris?” he asked, sounded concerned and confused, and she realized he’d been saying something to her – probably something dirty – and she’d been so lost in her insecurities and paranoia that she hadn’t registered it at all.
“Oh, I’m sorry, Barry, what did you say?”
She could practically feel the frown on the other end of the line and knew the mood had been killed.
“Oh, nothing much…just that I also touching you, kissing you, and making love to you,” he said dryly.
There was that word again. Love.
“But somehow I don’t think it would feel quite as potent if I said it again.”
She sighed. “I’m sorry, Barry. I guess I’m just-”
“Tired? It is pretty late by you.”
That was as good a reason as any.
“Yeah, talk to you tomorrow?”
And there was a very long pause after that. She wondered if he hadn’t expected her to cut the phone call short so suddenly. To be honest, she hadn’t expected it either until it happened.
“Sure,” he finally said, what felt like a millennia later. “Sweet dreams, Iris.”
“Sweet dreams,” she said, and hung up the phone.
Annoyed with herself and her failings, she got out of bed to put her pjs back on and tried with all that was in her to fall back asleep.
At 2 a.m. she called Stacy and confessed her sins.
“You did what?”
…
Later that day – Barry’s time – he sat practically twiddling his thumbs in the main quarters of the agency. He’d been trying to figure out for the last several hours what had gone wrong in his conversation with Iris, but nothing was dawning on him.
It bothered him a lot that things were already started to go wrong, communication-wise, when they were apart. If things got any worse, Iris wouldn’t even want to be in a relationship with him by the time they saw each other again.
He needed to fix this, and fast. He couldn’t afford to sit around for two more weeks waiting for her to get over whatever was holding her back that she was only too eager not to tell him about.
“Assignments!”
Ah, yes, new assignments. There had been a couple days break, but now it was time to get back to work. Which meant he’d have less time to talk to Iris and even more space between them. He hated it, but he didn’t exactly have a choice, so with one barely attentive ear he listened for whatever case sounded the most interesting.
Number one through three were duds, number four through six required too much physical activity and were on the other side of the world. But number seven, that struck his attention as soon as he found out where it was located.
Barry’s eyes widened, and he was across the room in a matter of seconds, sending papers flying around the circle of people eager to take their assignments.
“Central City, Sir? Did you say Central City?”
The Captain’s eyes narrowed, but he nodded.
“Yes, Allen. Central City.”
“I’ll take that one.” He paused to take a breath. “Sir. Please.”
The Captain raised his eyebrows.
“Why so eager, Bartholomew?”
Barry opened his mouth to explain, but there was no need.
“That’s where his girlfriend lives,” snickered Hartley. Barry glared.
“That wouldn’t be the same ‘girlfriend’ who was the source of all your inappropriate behavior last time, would it? The initial target?”
Barry paled.
“I think that’s a yes, Cap,” Hunter gleamed.
“I learn from my mistakes,” Barry said, pushing his way past the pests trying to pull him down. “Just give me 24 hours to spend however I want, and I will get the job done without involving any civilians.”
“Including Iris West?”
Barry nodded, determined. “I swear.”
He gave him a once-over then nodded his approval.
“Hope she’s worth it,” another not so friendly agent jeered as Barry pushed past the lot of them.
It wouldn’t do any good to respond, but he knew his response with all his heart.
She is.
…
At Jitters, exactly two weeks from when Barry left, Iris found herself sighing for the umpteenth time.
Stacy immediately sidled up next to her and took the broom from her hands.
“What are you sighing about this time?”
Iris shrugged, walking across to an empty table to wipe it down. Stacy followed her without hesitation.
“We have exactly two customers right now, and they’re both occupied in the far corners of the room. You have twenty minutes until you get off. You should be ecstatic.”
“Ecstatic about what?” she asked, halfheartedly washing down the next table. “About another failed conversation with Barry?”
“It wasn’t that bad,” Stacy tried delicately.
“It was a disaster!” Iris proclaimed. “I zoned out while he was talking dirty to me. How much worse can it get?”
“I’ll admit it’s not your best moment, but-”
“But what? We’re never going to last another two weeks if I can’t get a hold of myself and function. I love him, Stace. I know it’s been only two weeks, but I just…I feel a connection with him that goes beyond the physical, and I-” She stopped when she noticed Stacy staring off into the distance. “What?”
She turned to look in said direction and found herself dumbfounded, only able to say one thing.
“We’ve got to get those bells fixed.”
Stacy smiled to herself and took the wet rag and the broom with her as she backed out of sight.
“Barry?” Iris whispered, her eyes filling with tears.
He stood there just inside the opening with a beautiful bouquet of multicolored roses.
“I really hope you were talking about me,” he said, grinning as he walked towards her.
“Oh, my God! Barry!”
She ran towards him, jumped into his arms and gloried in the feel of him as she buried her face in his neck. Then she pulled back a little, smiling brilliantly, and kissed him.
She gloried in the feel of his arms around her and his lips against her, his breath on her skin when they parted and the beautiful glint of gold in his glorious green eyes.
“I missed you,” she said when he finally set her down and let her take the flowers, inhaling them instantly and practically purring at the pretty scent of them. “I missed you a lot.”
“Me or the roses?” he joked, and she opened her eyes to look at him.
“Barry.”
He sobered up. “Iris…there’s something I need to tell you, and I need you to let me, and I need there to be no interruptions.”
She tensed. “Okay.”
“Can we go somewhere…?”
“Uh…”
“The rooftop!” Stacy whisper-yelled from behind the counter.
Barry and Iris caught each other’s gaze and laughed.
“The rooftop it is,” Barry said and took her hand in his own.
Iris’ shook her head at Stacy as they passed her, but Stacy pretended to be fascinated with the cash register and didn’t catch the embarrassed look on Iris’ face. She probably thought she was doing it for her own good, so she let it go. Especially when Barry stopped them halfway up the stairwell to kiss her.
“Your lips taste delicious,” he said, and she melted into goo.
“God, I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you more,” he said, then kissed her cheek and pulled her the rest of the way up the stairs.
He pushed the door open and gasped almost the same time she did at the sight of the city before them.
“Well, it’s no hotel view, but it is pretty spectacular.”
Iris nodded her agreement and only very reluctantly looked away from him when he tugged at her hand.
“What…uh did you want to tell me?” she asked when he simply just stared at her for a while, eyes soft and yearning, smile gentle and concerning.
“Promise you won’t run away from me? There’s no phone you can hang up this time, and I bet I can beat you to the door if you try to make a mad dash for it. My legs are long, you see.”
“Barry.”
“Okay, okay…” He tightened his grip on her hands and swallowed hard. “I uh…actually have you told you this already, but you didn’t hear me. There was static. Or maybe you didn’t want to hear it. And I’ve been scared, and been wondering if you are too, and what that means for us. I’ve never said this to any other woman. I’ve never felt this deeply this quickly, and I just-”
“Barry?” she interjected, and he took a deep breath, exhaling with a smile.
“I love you, Iris.”
Her eyes went wide, her heart beating a mile a minute.
“I’m in love with you,” he emphasized. “And it’s okay if you don’t feel the same way. I just wanted you to kno-”
“I love you, too!”
His eyes went wide as saucers at her urgency.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. Yes. Of course, yes! I was talking about you downstairs. Who else could I be talking about?”
Amidst tears, she leapt into his arms again and kissed him madly.
“I love you. I love you. I love you.”
He shivered in her arms, feeling more at peace and jubilant than he had in his entire life. Like he’d finally come home.
“I love you.”
...
*Also posted on AO3 and FFnet.
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