62

His Race Was Over

Joe slowly lowered himself into an empty chair on the outskirts of the dance floor. Iris laughed quietly as she lowered herself next to him. "You're wearing me out, baby girl," he said, letting out a groan as soon as he was off his feet. "And you were saying those dance classes I put you in were a waste of time and money."

"They were a waste of time and money," Iris reminded him. "Remember?" She ran a hand through her hair. "I froze up at the recital before Barry got on stage and saved me. And after that, I didn't want to go anywhere near another dance class. Not even when my cousin would drag me to hers." She smiled as Joe chuckled. "Thankfully, I've paid attention to enough season so Dancing With the Stars to have learned a thing or two."

"Is that why you were leading dad across the floor?" Wally teased, sitting with them as well. He tightly clutched a glass of wine in his hand. Joe looked at him funny and grabbed the glass from him. Wally's eyes widened in surprise. "Dad, it's a party."

"I don't care."

"You know I'm over twenty-one."

"And we're not going to get into the conversation about addiction running through the family," Joe pointed out. He noticed Iris's odd look, her eyes shifting aside and let out a low groan. "What? You can't think that your Grandma Esther's eggnog wasn't that strong on accident?"

Iris looked to Wally and folded her arms. "What else haven't you told us about Grandma Esther?"

"Or our family, if we want to be more specific," Wally added. The two leaned toward their father.

Joe lifted an eyebrow, his eyes shifting back and forth between them. "I hope you're not forgetting that I'm a cop," he reminded them. "And that I have ways of making you talk, some that may or may not be considered legal in a few states, so if you want to keep pushing me, go ahead. I'll just have to ask you things that have been going on at STAR Labs,"—he looked to Wally, then at Iris—"and some things I have questions about from high school that I'm sure you still think I don't know about."

Iris and Wally glanced at each other.

"Do you want to try it?" Joe pressed.

"No," the two said in unison, lowering their gaze at the same time they lowered their tones to a mumble.

"That's what I thought." Joe grinned as he looked over the dance hall. A dance hall filled to the brim with numerous residents of Central City; police officers, firemen and women, doctors and nurses from the hospital, friends, and family, and people that Joe had never met that were in connection to both Barry and Cadence. Honestly, he'd never seen so many people surrounding Barry with so much love.

He'd watched the young man since he was a young boy, isolated with little to no friends around him. With his own family that thought his father was a murderer. Even with Iris by his side, he kept to himself, kept his nose in his comic books and his science experiments and projects so he didn't pay attention to what was being said around him.

And he'd watched that young boy grow up into a young man, continuing to keep himself focused on his studies and how he was going to prove his father wasn't, in fact, a murder. And a part of Joe still felt the guilt he felt when it was proven that Henry truly hadn't done anything. Felt guilt because for a long time he thought that man had in fact murdered his wife. It was an open and shut case as far as he was concerned. Barry had seen the murder, had been so traumatized that he made up the Man-In-Yellow and everything went on from there.

"You know, one day this is going to be you," Joe said to Iris. "Or you," he added to Wally.

Wally held up his hands, shaking them. "Oh, no, that's not something I'm going to think about for a long time."

"Aww." Iris reached out and poked her brother on the shoulder. "You don't think you're going to get married? I mean, I think I might've heard Jesse saying something."

"She hasn't said much to me all night, so I doubt it," Wally said. He glanced across the room where Jesse stood with Maya, Tess, and Cadence, smiling and nodding to whatever they were talking about. Joe followed his son's gaze, even noticing from there that the smile didn't reach her eyes and hadn't been for a long time.

"Trouble in paradise?" Iris asked gently.

Wally waved it off. Instead, he turned a cheeky smile to her. "You haven't said anything about the whole marriage thing. Have you thought of it at all?" He grasped the glass of wine and took a surreptitious sip, glancing at their father out of the corner of his eye as he did so.

Silence stretched between the table for a long moment. Joe's eyebrows came together as he looked at his daughter, seeing the sudden sadness that came to her face. She took in a deep breath and ran a hand through her hair. "I used to," she said.

Joe grimaced, exchanging a look with Wally. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up Eddie," he said. "I know it was something you two were talking about."

"Oh. No…it's not Eddie. It's…wow…I mean, yeah, we were talking about getting married. But I haven't thought about marriage in a long while." She leaned back in her seat, looking her father in the eye. "Not until recently, anyway," she added under her breath.

Joe wasn't someone who enjoyed prying into people's business. He only did it with the criminals he knew had been the masterminds behind the crimes they committed. And, of course, used it the few times that he needed to catch Iris and Barry in a lie. But there were other times he knew it wouldn't help things. That was one of those moments. Where he knew there was something she wasn't saying but couldn't quite put his finger on it let alone ask her about it.

"Hey! Why aren't you all dancing?" Barry asked, walking over to the table. He sat down, wiping sweat away from his forehead. "Man, I knew kids had a lot of energy, I didn't know they had that much energy." He motioned over his shoulder where Brady and some of his friends were pogo-ing to the music that thumped through the speakers.

"You can't tell me you've run out of steam," Joe joked, tossing a napkin towards Barry. He made a motion to wipe his face, making Barry quickly blot himself. "Not only are you a speedster, but you can dance your ass off."

"Which is exactly why I'm sitting down," Barry said. He prodded at his cheeks. "Plus, all this smiling and pictures and…" he waved a hand.

"Not quite what you would have wanted, is it?" Joe asked gently. Barry shook his head. "You're right, it's not quite what I would've thought you'd have for a party either. Maya can be a bit…overexuberant, but you have to admit she pulls out all the stops."

"So, about that wedding, dad—" Iris broke in.

Joe gave her a warning look. "Don't start."

"Wait." Barry frowned "What?"

Iris rolled her eyes. "Don't freak out, Barry. I'm not getting married. And even if I was, it's not like dad could afford it anyway."

"I've been saving—"

"—and you've got the DA to help you out, too," Wally interrupted. He grinned when all eyes turned to him. "I know you invited her to come to the party with you." His smile widened when Barry and Iris whipped back around to Joe, eyes wide in surprise. "Hey, if you're going to interrogate us about this sort of thing, then we should be able to ask you about the DA."

"How is that going, anyway?" Barry asked. His smile turned impish. "You hardly talk about her."

"Yeah, and why did you keep her from us for so long?" Iris added.

Joe made a low humming sound, nodding quietly. He motioned to the three young adults in front of him and said. "This is exactly why." Then he lowered his voice and said, honestly. "Because of the whole Flash thing. I couldn't…I still don't know how to explain that to her. And then…you know, everything that surrounds it. I don't know what to do with that…that information. She's going to find out at some point, she's as smart as a tack."

"Then..dad…maybe you should tell her," Iris suggested.

"It's not my secret to tell, baby," Joe replied, looking Barry in the eye. Barry parted his lips and let out a shaky breath, unsure of what to say. "And, even then, there's more important things to worry about." He nodded to Barry. "All this time we were trying to save Iris, we should've been trying to save you, too?"

Barry shook his head, a warm smile coming to his face. "You did save me, Joe. You took an eleven-year-old boy with a broken heart and gave him a home and so much love. No son ever felt more love from his father."

"And no father ever felt more proud of his son." Joe's smirk widened when Wally cleared his throat, pointedly sitting up in his chair. Joe let out a wheezing laugh. "And your sentiments, while appreciated, aren't needed. I wasn't talking about this Flash stuff."

Barry's, Iris's, and Wally's faces all screwed up. "Huh?" they asked in unison.

Joe pointed behind him. Barry looked over his shoulder and groaned when he saw Maya almost at their table. But he still plastered a smile on his face when she reached them and placed a hand on his shoulder saying, "You don't mind if I steal him, do you?" She asked, then addressed Barry. "There's some more people I want you to meet."

"You know how I said my face is starting to hurt?" Barry murmured before he allowed himself to be pulled to his feet and dragged across the room.

"Oh no," Iris murmured before laughing along with Wally. Barry and Maya made it halfway across the floor before Jesse intercepted them and said something to Maya, which caught her attention, allowing Cadence to sweep by and grab her fiancé's arm and steer him towards Bruce Wayne instead. "Saved by the bell."

"More like 'Saved by the Speedster," Wally said. He watched as Jesse tucked her hair behind her ear and clasped her hands together in front of her.

"Why don't you go ask her to dance?" Iris suggested.

"Yeah, show em' some of those moves you've got," Joe agreed.

"Or else you're afraid we're going to school you," Iris said with a laugh. She grabbed her father's hand and pulled him from his seat once more. "If the DA couldn't be your date tonight, then I'm going to force you into all those dances you didn't want to do," she said.

Joe sighed and allowed himself to get pulled to the dance floor despite his throbbing feet and aching back. There was a lot of things to celebrate and he may as well enjoy the night as everyone else was.

They defeated Breathtaker, defeated Savitar, the city was safe.

That was that.

"Do you really have to go?" Wally squeezed Jesse's hand tighter as they strolled along the water front. "There's still the party, and I know you weren't having a good time, and that we haven't been spending a lot of time together, considering what happened with Savitar and…"

"I'm sorry, Wally, but I have to," Jesse broke in. She squeezed Wally's hand back but didn't look at him. "I wanted to tell you for a little while now and I'm sorry I waited until Barry's and Cade's engagement party to do it. But there's really nothing that's keeping me here."

"What about me?"

"Wally…." Jesse slowed to a stop.

She turned and, finally, looked him in the eye. Wally couldn't help but notice how long it took. There'd been many days since Breathtaker and Savitar's end that they'd spend together, and Wally had noted a definite change in Jesse's demeanor.

She rarely smiled, was quiet for long lapses of time. Had a shorter patience for things, even for running. He knew what it was, what it truly was. Knew that she was grieving over Mindboggler's death. Bering the cause of it. It was hard to be a hero and see that danger and evil were completely eradicated, when it meant there was a chance of having to kill.

Barry had put into their heads from the very beginning that they would be different. Different from Oliver, who killed daily to keep his city safe. Or, as far as Oliver told it. Barry operated in his faith, that there was always something within the evil person that could be swayed to the side of good.

Wally wasn't quite sure he believed it, but he knew something to be true—it was hard to kill someone. It was hard to look deep into someone's eyes and watch the light dim, their soul leaving their body. And for Jesse, someone who had an adventurous streak as long as the streak she left behind when she ran, it was hard to see her so broken. Even if Mindboggler deserved it.

Jesse had only spoke about it once, about what she'd seen when Mindboggler had gotten into her head. Wally could understand why she did what she did, but all the same, he had no idea if he'd have been able to do the same thing. To kill as a last-ditch effort to escape from the danger around him.

"I can't stay here," Jesse finally said. She shook her head. "And it's not just because of what happened to Mindboggler—"

"—You did what you had to do, Jess," Wally reminded her. He gently grasped her shoulders. "And it's hard to come to terms with that but…I understand how you feel."

"No, you don't," Jesse whispered incredulously.

"My mom—"

"-Your mom died because of a drug addiction," Jesse interrupted. She wiggled herself out of Wally's grasp. "You didn't have anything to do with that!"

Wally sucked in a sharp breath through his nose. "If I hadn't been so selfish, if Ii hadn't had tried running away so much, if I hadn't ignored her, she may still be here. So, yes, Jesse, my mother's death is my fault. I wish it weren't the case, but it is. So, I do know what you're going through." Jesse looked away. "You killed Mindboggler." She squeezed her eyes shut. "But you really had no choice."

"I had a choice," Jesse murmured. She looked back to him, eyes brimming with tears unshed. "I had a choice to let her go but I didn't. The sort of things she showed me, I couldn't have that happen…but they wouldn't leave my mind. I was scared, Wally. I had to keep going, I had to make them stop." Jesse shook her head. "I guess I'm more like my sister than I thought," she added sarcastically. Wally started to comfort her once more, but Jesse's sarcastic laugh cut him off. "I don't even know which one it is anymore, am I like Cade or Burnout?"

Wally grabbed her face, forced her to look at him. He held her so tightly he started to quake. Letting out all the pent-up emotion he'd been feeling since…since his duty as a hero started. Since there was nothing more for him than to save as many people as he could. If that meant saving her, too. He could do that.

"You're not like anyone, Jesse, you're you. You're your own person who makes her own decisions, and believe me, I've tried to get you to listen to me and to Barry but you're going to do what you want because your hearts leads you where you want to go, to what you want to do. Just like they each decided for themselves, to live out their lives the way they wanted." He gently rubbed her cheeks with his thumbs. "You're making that choice for yourself."

Jesse lowered her head and nodded.

"I can't believe you're making me go back to this engagement party without a date," Wally murmured, making the two laugh.

"You'll have to tell me all about it. When I come back from Earth-2. Jay said…Jay said that Earth needs a flash, and my dad's there…he can help. But I'll be back." Wally looked at her hopefully. "I already promised Maya I'd help her plan the wedding." She laughed to herself. "I'm already regretting it. She can be really intense about this sort of thing."

"Yeah, I noticed," Wally agreed. "I've never seen someone plan an engagement party so fast." The two laughed again, watery laughs that evolved into hiccups before the tears finally came. "I'm going to miss you, Jesse."

"I'm going to miss you, too," Jesse replied. "I'll think about every day."

"Just…don't fall for my doppelganger," Wally said, making Jesse laugh again. "I know we're all the same but…"

"…There's no other Wally West," Jesse said. She kissed Wally, tears continuing to fall down her cheeks. Finally, she backed away, gently brushing her fingertips over his cheeks. "There's no other Kid Flash. There's no one else I love."

Wally beamed. "I love you, too."

Jesse nodded, continued to step back. His hands dropped from her face and hung limply at his sides. She stepped back far enough so that she had space to not knock him over by the blowback of her running. She lifted a hand and waved. "See you later, Kid Flash."

She turned on her heel and ran, leaving a lightning trail behind. The wind pulled at Wally's clothes as she disappeared. "See you, Jesse Quick," he murmured.

"Did I really have to wear a suit?" Brady groused as he yanked at the tie around his neck the second he stepped through the front door of the apartment, engagement party long over. He balled it up and tossed it to the ground, seconds before a warning look from his mother made him pick it up again and smooth it out. "I hate suits."

"Blame your Mamaw," Cadence replied. She leaned against Barry's shoulder, taking her heels off. "I knew I should've thought longer about having her do our engagement party." She sighed, reaching up to take her hair down from its tight bun, shaking it out. "She can't even plan people coming over for breakfast without spending thousands of dollars."

"It wasn't that bad," Barry reassured her. He pressed a kiss to the side of her head. Then he noticed the stares Brady and Cadence shot his way and took a step back. "Yeah, okay. The ice sculpture and the photographer for our engagement photos were a bit much." They continued to stare. "And the food was kind of…weird." He scratched the back of his head.

"It was snails!" Brady cried, eyes growing wide. "Who eats snails?"

"I saw you and Alicia and Leah inhale those things," Cadence pointed out.

Brady paused. "Well, yeah…it actually tasted really good. But who thinks about that sort of thing?" He indignantly took off his jacket and handed it to his mother.

"Mom," Cadence pointed out. "My mom would. See, if dad were still around, it would've been a bit more sane but…" she shrugged. "You know my mom."

"Have to celebrate your achievements," Barry teased.

"Yeah, but this was more than a cake," Brady pointed out. He scratched the back of his neck. "Though that cake was really good," he added, making Barry and Cadence laugh. He slid his hands into his pockets and sighed. "Wish Conner could have come, though. And Aunt Caitlin."

Silence stretched between the three. Brady certainly wasn't the only one who wished Caitlin had been at the party, Cisco had said enough with his somewhat sour expression. They'd always gone to parties together, and being able to celebrate something that big was nothing short of different if the four of them weren't together. Cadence had planned on asking Caitlin to be her Maid of Honor, and now…?

Cadence pursed her lips and looked at Barry, who mimicked Brady's stance, and shrugged, looking just as concerned as she did. "I didn't hear anything back from Oliver or Thea either," she said. "If there's anything I know about Oliver Queen, it's that he doesn't like to miss a party."

"He wouldn't have missed it if it weren't for something big," Barry agreed.

Brady frowned. "Do you think something might have happened?"

"No," Cadence said quickly, shooting Barry a look. "I think they're just busy. Besides," she motioned towards the TV. "If something had happened, don't you think we would've heard about it by now?"

Brady shrugged. It was a good point. He ran a hand through his hair once more then frowned, pulling his fingers back. He was silent for a moment then muttered, "I have to dye my hair again."

"Why?" Cadence teased. "So all those little girls at the party can notice you?" Brady stuck his tongue out at her but didn't otherwise respond. Instead, he moved toward the bathroom, continuously running his fingers through his hair. Barry looked at her funny. Cadence tilted her head. "You can't tell me you didn't notice."

"Didn't notice…?" Barry repeated. Then his eyes widened, and he looked toward the bathroom then back to his fiancée. "Well, no, it's just, I didn't, I mean…wow." He ran a hand through his hair. "Don't you think he's a little, young?"

"I don't know." Cadence folded her arms then pointed at him. "Isn't he the same age you were when you were in love with Iris?"

Barry looked taken aback for a second. Then he smiled and looped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. "That doesn't matter," he said. "Because I'm in love with you." He gave her a kiss. "And Brady." He kissed her again, silencing the laugh that erupted from her. "And the life we're about to start."

"I love you, too." Cadence gave him a long kiss. Then she pushed him back, grabbed him by the tie to pull him in for one more peck and said, "Now go help Brady dye his hair, I don't want my bathroom to turn into a disaster area." She patted him on the shoulder as he went.

"Fine." Barry held up his hands as he turned to do as he was told. "But if his hair turns green, it's your fault."

"I think he'd like it, anyway."

Barry laughed and followed Brady to the bathroom where he stood in front in front of the mirror, frowning over the box of hair dye. "Let me see." Barry took the instructions from him and looked it over. "It doesn't look that hard."

"I know, I just don't want my hair to turn green," Brady said. Barry laughed before snapping on a pair of gloves. "You're not going to use your powers to do this?"

"Uh, no, I think it's better if I take my time," Barry said.

He picked up the bucket that was to hold the dye and a brush. Then squirted the inky blue color inside. He paused, staring at the dye. It was real close to the shade that Brady's eyes had turned before he stared to attack Breathtaker. Honestly, Barry didn't know what to think about it. Didn't know if it was part of Brady's powers manifesting into something more.

Didn't know if it was normal or something to be concerned about. Brady was eight when Barry first met him, and had grown into his powers since then. Powers that he wasn't alone in trying to figure out, but still had to figure out on his own, with no other phasing metahuman to help him. Wally and Jesse were lucky in that aspect; they could to Barry to figure things out. Just as Barry had Harrison-Eobard—to look to.

It really struck Barry then, how similar Brady and Cadence had to come into their own powers. Starting out at a very young age to know they, in fact, had powers. Working to figure out how to stay normal around their friends. What would their parents think if they found out? Would they have to keep it a secret? Would they be ostracized?

"Whatever," Brady replied. Whatever. Just like a kid burgeoning on being a teen would say. It made Barry smile. "What?" Brady eyed him suspiciously as he started to mix the dye around in the cup. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," Barry replied. "Just realizing how long it's been since we met. If I remember correctly, you were practically bouncing off the walls when your mom first introduced us."

"I didn't have any friends," Brady said, a defensive edge coming to his tone. "I wanted someone to talk you. And you talked to me like a person, not like a little brother or something." He rolled his eyes. "I can't believe my mom actually made you think I was her brother."

"It wasn't too hard to believe," Barry said. "She never corrected me. Come here." He grabbed Brady's arm and moved him in front of him. "How do you want it?"

"Right here." Brady motioned to the front of his hair, moving it into a point at the front. "Just cover up all the old spots."

"You don't want it all over?" Barry teased. "Look like Toucan Sam?"

"You're the only one who thinks that's funny, Barry. And, I have to say, your sense of humor is really, really bad."

"It's not that bad!"

"You think MC Hammer jokes are funny…at a trivia night."

"You heard about that?"

"Well, you were interested in Felicity then, weren't you?" Barry paused, unsure of how to respond. Brady started to tick off his fingers. "It was Iris, Felicity, Linda, Patty, Aunt Caitlin, my mom—"

"—Well, what about those girls from your school?" Barry broke in, feeling his face start to heat up. He didn't need any of that attention brought to him, especially after their engagement party. It was a fun party, though he did spend most of the night trying to keep Maya from showing him off. Cade did warn you, he thought with a wry smile. "They all seemed to be watching you tonight."

"So?" Brady replied.

"So, I don't know. You might have your first girlfriend soon. I mean, unless you think girls still have cooties or something." Brady made a snorting sound, eyebrows rising in disbelief. "Yeah, your mom told me about that. And about how if you had any powers, you wanted to fly."

"And now I can!" Brady grinned.

Barry laughed. "And now you can," he agreed. "But don't change the subject. I'm just saying that you're getting older and you're going to start being interested in girls and—"

"—Are you really trying to give me 'the talk' right now? You know mom's already got that covered."

"Sure, but I mean that things are going to be more confusing with your first girlfriend and first kiss and stuff—" Brady suddenly ducked his head, making Barry cry out when he dropped a blob of blue dye on the counter. "Woops." Quick as a flash, he wiped it up, grimacing as a blue streak smeared over the counter. "I can fix that." Then he noticed Brady still looking away from him, appearing that he wanted to be anywhere but there at the moment. Something kicked in Barry's head. "You've had your first kiss? Already?"

Brady wrinkled his nose.

"Does your mom know?"

"Probably. She knows everything."

"Who was it?"

"It doesn't matter," Brady mumbled. He caught Barry's eye once more and said, "It's not like I'm going to marry her or anything. I'm only eleven. It's not 'true love' or whatever." He used air quotes that were so mocking, Barry knew Brady was making fun of him. "Why are we talking about this, again?"

"Because it's going to be things we need to talk about," Barry said. He took a deep breath, letting out the stress that had been holding onto him since he first thought about proposing. "When I marry your mom and actually become your step-dad. I know I've told you that I don't want you to feel like I'm replacing Ryder and I don't. We actually get along. He's helped us out even if he didn't want anything to do with metas. In many ways I owe him my life, but with the party and everything tonight, I just wanted to make sure we were cool."

"We're cool, Barry," Brady replied. "And…you know I want you to marry mom."

"Yeah." Barry tapped him atop the head. "You were trying to set us up from the beginning."

A cheek grin. "It worked, didn't it?"

"Yeah, you're right."

Brady's smile faded and for the first time that night, Barry saw a serious expression come to his face. "I want you and my mom to be happy," he murmured. "I do. Just…" Brady shrugged and locked eyes with Barry in the mirror. "Don't hurt us, Barry."

Barry looked back at him. "I won't," he said.

"Promise!" Brady insisted.

"Promise." Barry nodded. "I promise."

Brady nodded back.

Silence stretched between them.

Brady reached out and tapped the counter. "You missed a spot."

"Whatever." Barry shoved Brady's head forward, making the younger boy laugh. Then he backed away and looked at the instructions once more. "Keep that in for a few minutes and wait for me before you wash it out, okay? I'm going to get some bleach to clean that up."

"Okay." Brady sat on the lid to the toilet and pulled out his phone, scrolling through the pictures he'd taken that night. "I just hope mom doesn't see."

"Yeah, yeah…" Barry left the bathroom and went to the kitchen, looking through the cupboards for the bleach they kept when they went on a deep clean of the kitchen. He'd just grabbed it from beneath the sink when the room started to rattle.

Within seconds, he saw Cadence standing in front of him—probably having teleported from their room—looking as concerned as he did. She didn't have to ask, he saw the question flicker across her face.

An Earthquake?

"That wasn't an earthquake," Barry replied with a shake of his head. He was already moving toward the floor to ceiling windows to see what had happened. "Earthquakes come from below, the vibrations coming from deep within the Earth, shaking the foundation of the place. This one came from above, like a large thunderclap would."

Cadence moved by his side, both watching in stunned surprise as lightning rained down over Central City. Red an yellow lightning that lit up the sky each time it rained down. Along with a swirling something behind it.

"What is that?" Cadence asked.

The only thing that could ever emit that sort of energy, Barry thought, feeling his heart sink to his stomach. He licked his lips before saying, "The Speed Force."

"But Savitar's dead," Cadence murmured.

I know. Barry shook his head. He should've seen this coming. Should've known something was going to happen once he escaped, once Jay removed himself from the prison. He got so caught up in everything good happening for once, he forgot to wait for the shoe to drop. "That's the problem, it needs an occupant. When we released Jay from the Speed Force, we emptied the prison. It's unstable." He jumped as a particularly bright bolt of lightning flashed nearby. "Now it's bleeding energy onto your Earth."

"So, what do we do?" Cadence asked. She looked to him. He could already see flames flickering ine rhe eyes. "How do we stop it?"

Barry grimaced, knowing the words were coming but hoped she wouldn't say it out loud, knowing he had to answer her truthfully. She'd be able to tell he was lying otherwise. "By giving it what it needs," he licked his lips and looked at her. Watched as the flames slowly lowered from her eyes, realization hitting her. "The speed force is unbalanced. I have to stabilize it. I have to run into it."

Cadence lowered her head, backing away from him. Barry reached out and grabbed onto her, pulling her to his side. She wasn't crying, not yet. It hit her all at once, he could tell from the way she trembled, trying to hold back her tears. Their celebration had come to an end. They had to face reality once more.

The perks of being a hero.

"There's no other way," he insisted, speaking more for himself than for her. "I have to go. I have…" a lump appeared in his throat. "I have to. The whole city, maybe even the whole planet, could be destroyed if I don't."

Cadence nodded, pressed her forehead against his chest, held tightly to him. Then she removed her hands, slowly dropping them down to his, curled her fingers over them. Barry held her tightly, felt the sparks that moved through their fingers. Then it abruptly ended when she dropped her hand from his.

"Hey," Barry nudged her chin up. "Hey, listen to me. Don't wait for me, okay?" He sniffed hard as tears started to come to his eyes, threatening to spill over his lashes. "Don't wait for me, you still have to lieve your life. Okay? I need you to keep moving forward. To keep running. Alright?"

Cadence nodded.

"Promise me you'll run."

"Promise," Cadence murmured.

Barry nodded. He lifted her chin and pressed a long kiss to her lips. Then backed away and kissed her forehead. He backed away and was gone in a flash, out of the apartment and down to the street below. Cadence watched through the window, jumping when she heard Brady's voice from behind her.

"Barry? Can I take this stuff out of my hair now?" He came around the corner and stopped short, looking at his mom. Then he followed her gaze and walked to the window. Watched as, down in the streets below, Barry walked towards the breach. Brady frowned, made a low, humorless chuckling sound. Shook his head. "Some promise," he murmured under his breath.

Barry skidded to a stop in the middle of the street. His chest heaved as he watched the lightning strike down around him. Watched as the swirling breach slowly opened, letting out the projection of his mother. His heart leapt to his throat, despite know it wasn't her. He'd seen the projection before, when he went into the Speed Force to stop Zoom.

It wasn't his mother.

But it was still nice to see her.

Speed Force-Nora walked up the street before she stood in front of him. "Like all runners must eventually, you've reached your finish line," She said. Her eyes roved over Barry's face, as if daring him to say anything different. "Your race is over."

Barry nodded. He motioned to the lightning that continued to flash. "It's my fault," he said. "All of this was my fault. My mistake. Because I made Flashpoint. It's my redemption."

"My beautiful boy." Speed Force-Nora reached out and cupped Barry's face in her hands. It wasn't her. It was the Speed Force. But the gesture was still very comforting. "it's time to rest."

She removed her hands from his face, lowering them until they grasped his. Squeezed them tightly. She removed one hand and smoothed Barry's hair back from his forehead before turning him toward the Speed Force breach.

Hand-in-hand, they walked into the Speed Force without a backwards glance. The portal closed, the lightning stopped, and all was still over the sign that let the citizens know where to call home.

Welcome to Central City: Home of The Flash and Flare.

THE END

A/N: Well, this is a bit of a surprise, I'm sure. I had actually planned on there being tow more chapters of this story, but it ended up working out better that I pushed them together for one good chapter for the end. There were a lot of things going on, hope it wasn't too much of an emotional roller coaster for you all.

So, I know the question is going to be asked, what's going to happen with Brady since he saw his mother's death? You're going to see it early in the next story. Which, the prologue of, is now up. So, everyone go read Burn!

Anyway, as per usual, thank you all for reading and reviewing this story as I went along with it. Thank you for being so patient with the times that I couldn't update, thank you for encouraging me when I lost motivation or got writer's block. Thank you for asking questions and helping me figure out what I wanted to do with the future of this series. Thank you all for being there!

Cheers,

-Riley

Review Replies

Ethan: You could see the chapter that way, but I don't, not so much. I'm not a huge fan of Cisco and Gypsy but I kept it for a reason. Brady and Leah are just really good friends. And, of course, BarryCade are my otp. Lol