Believe In The Impossible

First, Barry woke up from nine months in a coma after being struck by lightning. Then he’d realized that he could mysteriously run faster than the best track and field stars Central City had to offer, and ending up in the back of a linens truck was suddenly the least of his worries. Add in all off Dr. Wells’ talk of metahumans, and the weirdness with Clyde Mardon – it really hadn’t been Barry’s week so far.

On the bright side, he’d made himself useful, at least. Cisco’s suit probably needed a few upgrades, since it had been designed for firefighters and not super-speedy crime fighters, but he had to admit the communication unit had come in handy. It was a little more difficult to wrap his head around the fact that he could run fast enough to unravel a potential F5 tornado – but that’s what S.T.A.R. Labs was for, and Caitlin and Cisco and Dr. Wells. If anyone could help Barry make sense of what was happening to him – well, it was probably those three.

Either way, seeing Detective West standing over him in shock last night had been a stark reminder that he was going to have to actually check in with Captain Singh at some point. Whether or not Barry still had a job, he needed to find out where he stood. If nothing else, maybe he could leverage the whole ‘struck by lightning’ angle for a good reference, at least. He wasn’t looking forward to the conversation, though, or the looks on people’s faces when he walked back into the police department after being dramatically struck down in his own lab months earlier. That was the sort of thing people tended to remember, and it was going to be a strain anyway.

He was going to need coffee.

Jitters hadn’t changed in nine months, at least. Barry almost didn’t walk through the door – he’d only been there a couple of times before the accident, and it wasn’t like he was a regular or anything. The best thing it had going for it had been Iris’ smile, and what were the chances that she was still working there, anyway?

Still, she had been promoted to assistant manager at the coffee shop, and was earning above minimum wage, so that was a plus. She had more responsibilities, could open and close the store, stay after hours if she wanted - not that she ever would. She made her own work schedule. It wasn’t her dream job, but it was better. And, well... Her personal life was looking up, too. 

Her dad had been injured on the day of the particle accelerator explosion, his arm broken as he jumped to avoid gunshots fired by the Mardons. Eddie Thawne, a newly promoted detective, had visited often when he was recovering on Captain Singh’s orders, keeping Joe up to date on what was happening, especially as he was to be Joe’s new partner once he was back to work. 

And, well... Iris wasn’t blind. Eddie was attractive, and she’d been able to tell from day one that he was interested in her. So when he came into Jitters one day, she treated him to a complimentary coffee, and they’d gotten to talking. From there, things had just... Happened. She’d never meant to get involved with her father’s partner. But Eddie had kissed her one day after one of their long talks and... She hadn’t stopped him. 

She was tired of being alone. Of waiting for some fictional prince charming. Eddie was here now, and he was attractive, and funny, and sweet. He might not be everything she’d ever dreamed of, but he was more than enough. The fact that she had to sneak around behind her dad’s back was hardly ideal, but they would get there. Things were looking up. They really were.

Iris let out a little breath as she went around, refilling customers’ coffees. It was nice to get out from behind the counter for a little while, stretch her legs. She looked up when the bell above the door jingled, signaling the entrance of a new customer, and immediately did a double take. No... It couldn’t be. 

The mental image of Detective Joe West learning how to fix his daughter’s hair and take her dress shopping startled a laugh out of Barry, even as it charmed him. He may not be on close terms with the man – the fact that West had worked his mother’s murder probably had something to do with that – but he could appreciate his dedication to his kid, at least. “He sounds like a great dad, as well as a great detective,” Barry agreed, and ducked his head shyly at her compliment. “I think we both probably lucked out, in that case.”

“He is. And I’m proud of him. We’re all each other has, we kinda have to be. If we’re not supportive of each other, who else is gonna to be, you know?” She said with a little shrug. “I’m sure you get that, growing up with a single parent as well. It’s kinda you two against the world for a long time.” 

She smiled when Barry laughed at her mention of her father fixing her hair. God, he had a great smile, and an amazing laugh. It just made her feel warm and happy, his wide grin lighting up the whole room. She’d met people with infectious smiles and laughs before, but none so much as Barry. He was special, she thought. “Yeah. We really did. We hit the jackpot.” She agreed. 

Iris cocked her head, frowning a little, when he made some sort of reference that she didn’t quite get. She didn’t want to bring it up, though, figuring it would only make him even more adorably awkward if he realized she had no clue what he was quoting. At least, she assumed it was a quote... Surely he didn’t go around just saying things like that? He seemed nerdy, but not that nerdy. “Let’s hope so. Have a nice day, Barry.” Iris smiled. She leant against the counter, watching him go until he was out of sight, and then finally turning and going to get the mop to clean up the water he’d left in his wake. 

Barry’s grin faded a little at the news that Iris’ mom – Joe’s wife – wasn’t around anymore. “Oh, wow. Yeah, I lost my mom when I was a kid, too, that’s just – it sucks,” he sympathized. “But hey, your dad’s done a pretty great job on his own, right? It takes a hell of a dad to raise a kid alone and hold down a high stress job like law enforcement,” Barry insisted. His own father was a doctor, but had lost his practice years ago, after – well, things had been rough after his mom’s death, to say the least.

He held out his hand reflexively to take his change, and absently tipped it straight into the tip jar without stopping to think about it. “Yeah, well, there’s a good reason Captain Singh is on my case a lot lately,” Barry sighed. “I need another lab tech, really, but there’s just no room in the budget, I guess.” He flushed slightly; of course it would be busier at the lunch rush, especially if the rain let up. “Hey, as long as you have sandwiches – and more coffee – I can be a familiar face,” he agreed with a self-deprecating little smile.

When Barry mentioned that he, too, had lost his mom, Iris suddenly had a vivid memory of a newspaper headline from when she was a kid. ‘Nora Allen Murdered’. Allen. Was that Barry’s mom? She remembered the tension in the house at that time, her father being one of the main detectives on the case, and how frustrated he’d been at the lack of evidence. He’d been sure the father - Barry’s father - was guilty, but there just wasn’t the proof. Iris remembered her father’s frustration when it was announced on the news that Barry’s father - Henry, or Harry, or something, she thought his name was - was leaving custody and would be reunited with his son. Still, she wasn’t about to bring that up now. It was hardly the kind of thing you spoke about when you barely knew someone. 

“It really does.” She agreed. She and Barry had more in common than she would have first thought. “He did. He never made me feel like I was less loved, or had less attention, because I didn’t have a mom. He made so much effort to learn how to do my hair and go dress shopping with me, even though I know for a fact he hates shopping...” She smiled. “And I’m sure your dad did a great job raising you on his own, too. Looks like you turned into a pretty decent guy.” 

She watched with a smile playing about her lips when Barry tipped all of his change into the tip jar. “Thank you.” She murmured. “Well, I wish you the best of luck. I’ve heard from my dad what a hard ass Captain Singh can be, so that can’t be easy for you.” She gave him a sympathetic look. She bit back a smile when his cheeks turned a little pink at the realization that the lunchtime rush would make the coffee shop busier. He was so cute. “I’d be glad to see you.” She told him sincerely. 

He cracked a sympathetic smile at her. “I’m sure he’s just being protective. I bet you’d have been a great cop, though, especially if Joe West is your dad,” Barry insisted. He’d followed his own father into the hard sciences, after all – although he definitely had his own reasons for pursuing forensics instead of traditional medicine, all things considered. 

“Oh, he’s super protective. I’m his baby girl, and I’m sure he’d punch any guy who so much as laid a finger on me. It comes with being an only child I guess. And especially because my mom isn’t around anymore. We’re all each other has. He’s overprotective because of that.” Iris explained, not sure why exactly she was spilling her guts to a random stranger. Chalk it up to boredom, she thought. That was a good excuse. “I’m sure I would’ve made a great cop. He made sure I knew how to punch from a young age, and when I got older he taught me how to shoot... I’d make a killer cop, if only he’d let me do it.”

Iris opened up the cash register when he handed her a ten dollar bill, slipping it into the drawer and getting him his change. There’s your four dollars and ninety cents change.” She said, handing it to him along with his receipt. “Oh, you are? That can’t be fun.” She frowned a little when he said he was backed up on work. She smiled when he seemed to realize how empty it was, and said he was tempted to come back on his lunch break. “I’m sure we’ll be busier around that time, the lunch rush should be in by then. Not that I wouldn’t appreciate having a familiar face in the crowd.” She told him as she moved to make his drink. 

Hopefully her dad had been nice to this guy and the knowledge that they were related didn’t scare him off. “I always wanted to become a cop, but there was no way my dad was ever going to let his baby girl do a job as dangerous as that.” Iris said, shaking her head a little. 

Strike that – he was most definitely running late, but if he didn’t take five minutes to duck into the nearest coffee shop and grab something with caffeine in it, he was going to be late and cranky, and that was never a good combination. It was rainy and grey and disgusting, rather like his mood at the moment, and if he was going to be able to do his job properly, he needed coffee first.

Besides, maybe he could grab a medium dark roast for Captain Singh and head off some of the yelling.

Barry barely registered the name on the door as he ducked into the first coffee shop he saw – ‘CC Jitters’, it announced in a bronzed, modern san-serif – and kept his head down as he tried to shake the worst of the rain out of his hair. He was going to need a haircut soon, and he was probably dripping all over the floor for some poor hapless employee to have to clean up later, but at least he was out of the rain for a few minutes.

The heavy satchel of his crime scene kit bounced across his shoulders as he shuffled over to the counter, pulling his wallet free as he tried to decide what he wanted. It wasn’t until he reached the registers that he bothered to look up, blinking apologetically – and froze as he met a pair of warm brown eyes.

Oh god, he was so screwed.

She stood up straight, brushing imaginary lint and crumbs off her blue henley and straightening her apron a little, fixing a friendly smile on her lips as she prepared for her first solo customer encounter. She was going to nail this. 

She watched as he walked in, the little bell above the door jingling merrily, observing him as he shook rainwater out of his hair, keeping his head down. He was clearly having a bad day. She wanted to be a little irritated that he was spreading water everywhere, but hey, it would give her something to do once he was gone, and she was alone again with nothing to do. His hair was probably a light brown when dry, but the rain had turned it darker, and made it flop into his forehead in a way that made him look even younger than he already did. 

She watched him move across the floor, her eyes moving down his body to his satchel, which looked to be quite heavy. She wondered what was in it. A laptop, maybe. Something to do with his work, definitely. She stared at it for a moment, trying to figure out what could be inside, before looking up again as he got close. 

Up close, he was actually... Kind of cute. Green eyes, skin dotted with freckles in places, a strong jawline. He had thick eyebrows and pink lips that Iris forced herself not to imagine as kissable. He was a customer. She was going to be professional. 

“Good morning. Welcome to Jitters.” She said brightly when he greeted her, fixing him with her most dazzling smile. She laughed a little when he apologized for the water. “It’s totally fine. Mopping up’ll give me something to do once you’re gone. Turns out not a lot of people are rushing out to buy coffee on a rainy Monday.” She told him conversationally. God, he was cute. Like a little puppy, almost.