“Cisco…” Barry looked at him with concern, knowing something must be seriously wrong. “You’ve not left Cisco. You were here. I spoke with you just before Vi’s attempt, and others have definitely seen you. And all who’ve spoken to you said you were acting strange. I…Alright, you’re hurt. So I’m gonna get some bandages and junk, but…do you feel okay?”
“No, Barry, I wasn’t in town! Why are you trying to tell me otherwise! I went camping in the middle of God knows where so I couldn’t hurt anyone.” Cisco closed his eyes and brought his good arm up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “Oh-okay. I- I don’t know.” Cisco kept his eyes shut, trying to retrace the last few weeks. His head started to hurt as well.
“Hey Barry, did I happen to leave thise wristbands around? I think it would be wise for you to bring them. I can’t remember how much control I have over my powers.”
Caitlin bit down on her bottom lip contemplating the validity of his claims. She’d seen the conditions Oliver brought him back in, hardly brutal much like the rest of Mr. Queen’s lot. Although, it was enough to raise red flags for her. “Sure, I’ll be down in a moment.” She sighed muting the com system. Her white lab coat felt stiffer than usual, the warning that sounded in her mind were drown out by her genuine love for the dorky companion she’d come to depend on. She grabbed gloves off the table and her medical bag.
“Can you take off your shirt,” she motioned on the other side of the glass.
“Uh, yeah. I can try. I can’t promise it will be fast.” Cisco groaned, using his good hand to force his other arm out of the sleeve. He pushed the shirt over his head and flung it to the ground from his good arm. “You know, I don’t think I will ever understand why Oliver finds so much joy in shooting people. This time I don’t even remember doing anything. So, what was the point?” He strained, taking sharp gasps between the pain.
“I’ve got Len saying you broke Lisa’s heart, Vi acting like you’ve completely rejected her as a sister, and Oliver’s the one who put you in there. I didn’t know you were hurt, so I’ll get some stuff to patch you up in a minute, but I’m not letting you out till we talk. You’ve been acting weird ever since I shut you out, and I’ve got a feeling it’s connected.”
“Dude. What are you talking about? I left town to gain better control. I haven’t been in Central City for at least a week, if not two. I kind of lost track of time with my phone being off. I would never do that to Lisa or Violet. Wait, Violet knew I was leaving town. I got her note she left in my apartment and I vibed. I was too out of control to go check on her myself, and I knew Len cared for her so I called him. I made sure she was safe.” Cisco bit the skin around his nails between sentences, realizing he didn’t remember much from the past weeks.
Hartley followed Cisco, reaching out and gently putting a hand on Cisco’s shoulder, turning him around and gently placing a kiss against his lips. “I’m sorry,” he murmured. “I’m not good at being supportive. You terrify me.”
Cisco returned the kiss, leaning into the other man. As Hartley finished, Cisco replied, “Why do I terrify you? I don’t want you to be scared of me. That’s not how this should work.” He wrapped his free hand around the small of Hartley’s back and pulled him closer. “Nobody should be afraid of anybody.” He murmered before leaning in for another kiss.
His speed would have come in handy right now. He would have easily been able to dodge the vibrations, but with them hitting him, Jay was knocked back, hitting the wall with a nasty thud. He couldn’t remember the last time he had been in this much pain. He’s slow to stand up, stretching his back in the process. God, he feels old for once. Like his body couldn’t take another one of those hits. “I have no reason to lie to you.” His words are pained, a small groan leaving him as he finally brings himself to stand straight. “My name is Jay Garrick. If you’ve had visions of Zoom, you know who I am. I’m the Flash of my world.”
Cisco let a smirk spread across his face. “There’s no reason for me to trust you either, so you’re in a predicament, aren’t ya, Jay?” He crossed his arms as he dug his heel into the ground, sending vibrations out toward the other man whom Cisco felt so threatened by. Wait, if he’s a speedster, why didn’t he dodge my attack? He thought to himself as he watched the man. Who is this Zoom person? Why should I know who he is? He thought as he send out another round of vibrations.
Hartley still looked wary. “Because now you can destroy me just like Wells,” he said softly but darkly. “Because I don’t understand how someone so pure could be so good at hiding darkness within himself. Who did this to you, Cisquito?”
Cisco stood up and crossed the room. “You want the truth? Wells. Wells did this to me. He killed me in an alternate timeline. A timeline that I didn’t forget. One I can never forget. I relive my death almost every night in my dreams, waking in a cold sweat. I’ve repressed the feelings toward him for far too long, and I couldn’t take it any longer.”
Barry stayed where he was, looking at his friend then at his feet. “Well. There’s some mixed opinion on that.” He bit his lip, knowing this mess was his fault too and he didn’t exactly know how to deal with it. “You’ve been trying really hard to join the Rogues from what I’ve heard. And have been acting rather..violent.”
Cisco laughed. “Barry, do you hear yourself? Me, violent, trying to join the rogues? You sound crazy. I have to call someone if there’s a spider in my apartment. Do you really think I’m capable of violence? Let’s be real, Barry.” He continued to hold his throbbing shoulder, noticing the pain increasing. Did they even patch me up? Cisco thought to himself as he watched Barry’s movements.
Hartley looked incredibly confused. “Okay but… Why? Why are you a villain now. Why aren’t you still on Team Flash?” Hartley looked down at the intwined hands and cocked his head.
“Because I can, okay? Why are you asking questions? What does it even matter? Just stop asking questions and accept me as I am.” Cisco said, putting his other hand on top of Hartley’s as he leaned in closer. “Please?”
Cisco backup 