Hartley humphed, pouting a bit but brightened up when he revealed the earpieces. Hartley eagerly reached out grabbing the earpieces and examining them desperately before anxiously applying them, the pain subsiding almost immediately. Hartley allowed himself to completely relax, a euphoric smile melting onto his face and his head lolling back against the couch. He sighed happily. “Thank you, Cisco,” he murmured, still looking quite dreamy before suddenly he sat up again, the pout back. “Wait, How come I didn’t know about a half sister? Which half is she. Also how are we supposed to have raucous sexual intercourse with a kid hanging around?”
“It’s just a temporary fix, but a good one for now. I assume it’s better?” He said, smiling at Hartley’s happy sigh. “You have kind of been AWOL for a while, and she kind of just showed up one day. Plus, with the relationship you and I had, I doubt I would have told you.” Cisco paused, turning his head and looking about the apartment. “I should tidy up. Again, make yourself at home. There’s food and drinks in the fridge.” He smiled as he turned and began picking Vi’s things up from around the room, intending on tossing them on her bed. “I promise it’s normally not this bad.”
“Cait, I’m fine, really. It just passed out. It’s happened before. I think I hit my head, and I just wanted to make sure I didn’t have a concussion.“ He lied. Sure, he’d passed out before, but this bump on the head was a result of him testing his powers in his apartment. His dresser had come tumbling down after he was sending vibes out as he danced around his room earlier that morning. “Really, though. I’m fine.”
“Wait, Cisco, you don’t look fine, you have a concussion” She says now worried, looking at him “What you were doing?”
“Caitlin. I’m fine.” He said, standing up and holding tightly to the bed, as a wave of vertigo hit him and the room began to spin. He squeezed his eyes shut as the dizzy spell passed. “I just worked myself too hard. It’s happened before. This time I just hit my head. I’m fine.”
Cisco smiled as he led the man up to his apartment, unlocking the door and pushing it open to reveal an absolute mess. There were hoodies draped over almost every chair, and empty take out containers were stacked amongst a leaning tower of pizza boxes against the wall. “Wow, I almost forgot how messy it was. I’m really sorry. I have a prototype of a earpiece that I was working on a while back. Waiting on patents and whatnot. Make yourself at home, I’ll be right back.”
Hartley nodded, quite out of breath from the walk. He made his way to the couch, wrinkling his nose as he stepped over mounds of clothes and trash and daintily sat down at the edge of the couch, looking quite out of place. Hartley couldn’t help but notice that among the carnage there was a few female articles of clothing and a bra was hanging from the arm of a chair. Hartley felt a pang of righteous jealousy that Cisco had a woman that he was sexually active with considering that Hartley had assumed and hoped that Cisco was still the virginal nerd that he had known. When Cisco returned, Hartley had a different more hardened expression, looking quite indignant. “So, little Cisco grew up, huh?”
“What? Oh.” He said, the bra catching his eye. “No! My half sister. She stays here sometimes, and just as messy as me. Guess it runs in the family.” He smiled as he stood before Hartley. Cisco held out hs hands to reveal a set of jet black ear pieces. “They are very similar to your old earpieces. Just a temporary fix until I can make you some new ones that are permanent.”
His words brought an ever knowing smirk to her lips. If there had been one thing she learned from the development of her abilities, it was that the ability was simply not enough. Instincts were what protect her, skill is what helped her survive, and the smart mouth was what seemed to put her in danger. “Because you caused an Earthquake?”, the words slipped off her tongue like venom.
As soon as the words left her mouth, Cisco stuck out a hand and sent vibrations her way, knocking her off her feet. He rushed over and stood above her. “How do you know that?” His voice deepened, and the somewhat spanish accent was gone. “Tell me. NOW.”
Cisco smiled as he led the man up to his apartment, unlocking the door and pushing it open to reveal an absolute mess. There were hoodies draped over almost every chair, and empty take out containers were stacked amongst a leaning tower of pizza boxes against the wall. “Wow, I almost forgot how messy it was. I’m really sorry. I have a prototype of a earpiece that I was working on a while back. Waiting on patents and whatnot. Make yourself at home, I’ll be right back.”
“Are you really feeling okay? I mean if you are here is for something but everything seems normal”
“Cait, I’m fine, really. It just passed out. It’s happened before. I think I hit my head, and I just wanted to make sure I didn’t have a concussion.“ He lied. Sure, he’d passed out before, but this bump on the head was a result of him testing his powers in his apartment. His dresser had come tumbling down after he was sending vibes out as he danced around his room earlier that morning. “Really, though. I’m fine.”
Hartley shook his head. “Honestly the only reason why I hated you was because you were better than me and you didn’t even try. You could walk in wearing some dumb tshirt and take over everything I had built for myself with Harrison. You related to him differently than I did. Hindsight is 20-20, Cisquito. I actually want to be friends with you now.”
“Really?” Cisco paused, watching the man. “I would have never guessed. You were just so bitter and rude, trying to push me out before I could really feel comfortable in the space. But I understand. New guy, nerdy, not the most professional looking, Makes sense.” He took his hands out of his pockets and signed “walk” and pointed toward the city limits. He watched Hartley’s face with a smirk as he finally knew he had a sign right.
“He doesn’t show it well, but it’s there.” Barry studied the other with concern, still looking for signs of distress. He made an amused sound, shaking his head. “We both know that term is false. But I’m..fine.” Barry shrugged, keeping his eyes on Cisco. “How’s work?”
“Fine.” Cisco said, bringing the cup to his lips once more as he leaned against the wall. “It’s going about as good as it can. Don’t really have anything to work for anymore, so.”
“Len? Concerned? That doesn’t sound like him. I’m fine, really.” Cisco said, holding the cup in his hands and sending tiny vibrations to slosh the liquid around a bit. “How’s being the saviour of central city?”
How the tables have turned! The poker tables, that is. Barry had been in a straight-up funk since this whole Patty thing went down, so it was my turn to cheer him up. He refused to change out of his sweatpants and old Diamond’s jersey, so hitting the Central City nightlife was definitely out. My solution? Boys’ night in! I figured a low-key night of gambling, booze, and bro time would be just what Barry needed. I sent up the flare to Joe and was just getting ready to leave S.T.A.R. Labs to pick up some provisions when Harry meandered into my workshop – something about those puppy dog eyes made me extend an invite to join us. I mean, what else would a misanthropic super-genius from a parallel universe wanted for murder have planned on a Friday night? Who knows, maybe with a few beers in him, he’s actually a tolerable guy…
There is an intricate science to hosting a successful poker night. The cohesive chemistry of a group is vital –personalities need to mesh, not antagonize. Due to ferocity and thumb sweat that pick up after the first few hands, there’s a two-deck minimum (no one wants grungy cards!). The table must be circular and devoid of any floral patterns and real poker chips are a fundamental imperative – no Legos, Splenda packets, or leftover Halloween candy. But it’s the food you serve that is the real make-it-or-break-it: nuts say you’re a traditional guy; chips are for the conformist; prosciutto-wrapped asparagus screams “poker night virgin.” I decided to play it safe and stocked up on Chex Mix, pigs-in-a-blanket, pepperoni bagel bites, and beer.
We capped the pot at $100 (no fancy high rollers here). Harry claimed they didn’t have poker on Earth-2, but I’m pretty sure that was a total bluff. He was on a winning streak and with every hand he won, he got even more unbearable. “Beginner’s luck,” he said. Yeah, right. He cleaned us all out by the seventh hand – and the food wasn’t even cold yet! Barry had suffered the biggest loss – his head just wasn’t in the game – and I didn’t want him to go home feeling even more like a loser. So, I proposed a way for us to win some of our money back – a rousing game of Charades.
Barry and I teamed up against Harry and Joe. Those poor guys never stood a chance! With my extensive mental stockpile of pop culture phenomena, and Barry’s fast acting, we left those guys in the dust. We had a few slips (my Casablanca reenactment was completely lost on Barry until he Flashed his way through AFI’s top 100 flicks), but after that, we were golden. I think Joe purposefully threw a few rounds – I mean, how hard could it be to guess “Up?” Being the prima donna that he is, Harry grew frustrated and quit. But whatevs – his tantrum was our victory! Barry and I won our money back and the game seemed to have lifted his spirits, enough for him to even crack a smile!
Overall, I think poker night was a success. It’ll take a lot more to get Barry back on his feet, but maybe with his pile of winnings he can buy himself something nice – like that set of Swarovski Erlenmeyer flasks he’s been eyeing. #nerd.
Cisco backup 