At home, the only thing he liked about his powers, was the fact that he could heal quickly. It meant that the bruises that his father gave were mostly gone by the time he went to the Cave. Though his father knew about how fast he could heal, he kept the beatings to places that Wally could easily conceal. Wally sighed and rubbed his green eyes. Of all the parents, he got an abusive dad and a mother who didn't care.

Wally opened his bedroom door and peered out. He eyed the kitchen, which was next to the bottom of the stairs. Its door was open and he could see the food that had been set out. His own stomach grumbled loudly, rudely reminding him that all he had today was a sandwich for breakfast. It was now five. He retracted his head back into his bedroom and sat down on his bed. Laying down on the red and yellow cover, he looked vacantly at the ceiling. The sounds from the TV downstairs lazily floated up and occasionally he could hear what the characters were saying. He didn't have to try very hard to picture his mother sitting in front on the screen, her red hair probably unbrushed.

The front door banged open and in stomped his dad. The fifteen year old groaned silently, not wanting his dad to hear him. His body still remembered the beating his father had given him from sighing at his return. His green eyes darted nervously at his school bag. Wally eyed the white slip of paper that was poking out of it slightly. On it was his grades for all of his subjects. He pleaded with every deity he had learnt in Religious Education that his father wouldn't ask for the paper.

"Wally, get your ungrateful ass down here," his father shouted up to him. "And bring that damn piece of paper."

Wally's heart fell to his stomach. He felt sick with dread. Rolling off the bed, he got his piece of paper and began to walk down the stairs. His eyes kept reading his music grade. The black B stared back at him. He had gotten 89%. He wondered if he could somehow persuade his dad that he was only one percent off getting an A. Highly unlikely. The rule was that he got all As and he wouldn't be beaten. His father broke the rule, beating him up for other, stupider reasons.

He finally walked into the living room, much too quickly for his liking. He handed the piece of paper to his dad, who snatched it of the Wally's hand. Wally glanced at his mother, pleading with his eyes for her to help him. As usual, she kept looking at the TV.

"You got a B in music," his father stated. Wally winced and looked down at the carpet.

"I got 89% and to get an A you need 90%. I was one off. I'll try harder after the holidays," Wally began his argument. As his father's hand came up to his face, he realised his mistake. Even though he had seen it coming and knew he could easily dodge it, he could actually run to the nearest city and do the shopping, he remained still. The force of the blow sent him to the floor. Stars burst across his vision as his head hit the wooded floor.

"How dare you back chat me! And to have the nerve to talk to me like that. Like I'm an idiot!" His father roared at him, kicking Wally as hard as he could in the stomach. Wally groaned and curled up, trying to protect himself. Rudolf stamped down on Wally's ankle, feeling the bone shift.

A foot to his right forearm took him by surprise and he unfurled himself slightly. His father bent down and grabbed his collar. He hefted Wally up on his feet and punched him again in the stomach. He directed one of his fists to Wally's left eye before dropping him to the floor again.

"God damn it. Why are you so pathetic? All I wanted was an intelligent boy. I wish I had Robin for a son, he would never disappoint me!" Rudolf sneered at Wally, walking off to the kitchen. Wally looked at his mother, begging her to help him. She sighed and finally looked at him.

"This is your own fault Wallace. You know he gets angry when you don't have good grades. He's trying his hardest to give you a good life, he wants you to have the best education. But if you don't try then it'll all be for nothing! I wish you would try harder," his mother told him. "But you're too busy with your stupid superhero friends, you don't bother with your school work."

Wally watched, from his position on the floor, as she left the room, taking away more of his hope. The smell of food wafted over him and his stomach grumbled loudly. He winced, wishing for something to eat. He turned his head slightly and just about managed to see his mother and father at the table eating food. They seemed happy, smiling and talking to each other. Wally felt his heart stop for a second. Maybe they would be happier with him out of the picture. Forever.

The stars crept across his vision again making him feel more disorientated. The blow to his head must have been worse than he had thought. He brought a shaking hand to the side of his head, feeling the lump that had already formed. His hand felt weak and he kept feeling dizzy. His hand fell to the floor with a thump as the world began to spin even more. Wally closed his eyes, trying to will away the spinning. Even with his eyes closed, the world kept spinning. Unable to keep a grip on consciousness, Wally slipped into darkness.

When he awoke, Wally noticed the world outside the window was dark. The TV was off for once and he couldn't see his parent's car in the drive way. He held his breath, listening for any sign of his parents. When nothing came back to him, he let out the breath he was holding and slumped back down on the floor. A dull vibrating noise caught his attention. Wally lifted his head up again and listened intently. It was coming from his room. It wasn't his phone, he didn't have one. Eyes widening, Wally realised it was his comm. He pushed himself up, his right arm bending at the elbow, unable to support his weight. He tried again, putting more weight on his less injured arm and managed to stand up. His whole body swapped from dizziness, and for a split second he thought he was about to fall down again. Once the dizziness had faded, he limped out of the room and up the stairs.

By the time he was upstairs, he was panting and the dizziness had yet to fade. He stumbled to his room, supporting himself by the wall. He managed to get to his desk and pick up his comm.

"Hey," Wally said, trying to speak in the upbeat way Kid Flash spoke.

"Dude where have you been? We've been trying to contact you for the last ten minutes!" Robin's voice filled his ear.

"Fastest kid my ass." Wally over heard Artemis' snide comment about him.

"Not helping Artemis," Aqualad told her. "Where have you been Wally? You did not turn up to training today."

"Yeah KF, why weren't you here?" Robin asked. "We have a mission now, are you coming?

"Yeah, I'll be there. Just give me a sec to put my costume on." Wally responded, walking over to his wardrobe and picking out a bright yellow costume. He quickly changed into it and walked over to the foot of his bed, going to grab to his shoes. As he passed the mirror, he got his first look at himself. His left eye was badly bruised, a black ring engulfing it. He had a bruised cheek from where his father had slapped him, fortunately his speed healing had managed to heal the hand mark. Wally pulled up his top and saw the bruises littered across his whole front, some older than others.

"So, you gonna tell us why you didn't respond?" Robin pried. Wally jumped, forgetting that he still had his comm in his ear.

"Yeah, I was having dinner with my parents. Mum doesn't like me having any superhero stuff at the table, so I take it out, sorry." Wally replied, happy that he had thought of a new excuse. He could probably use that quite a few more times, with his faster metabolism the team believed he had several meals a day. The whole team would accept it. Well except for Robin maybe.

"Hurry up Baywatch, we want to get the mission done," Artemis told him. Wally could hear the frustration in her voice. Wally realised with horror, he wouldn't be able to put anything on the conceal the black eye. It always took him several minutes to apply the make up and he didn't have the time. Sighing to himself, he put his goggles over his eyes, hoping they would cover it.

Walking downstairs, he managed to grab a sandwich from the fridge, eating it quickly. Wally walked out of the front door and locked it behind him. He turned and faced the direction Happy Harbor was and began to run. A smile overtook his face, finally being able to do something he liked.

Wally ran into the Cave, sliding to a halt in front of the team.

"Finally where have you been?" Artemis growled.

"Wally, what happened to your eye?" M'gann gasped upon seeing his eye.

"Aww, babe you're worried over me," Wally said, not really having the heart to keep up with the façade.

"Tch, please. I'm pretty sure anyone would ask that when a guy comes in with a black eye and bruised face!" Artemis retorted. Wally winced internally, he didn't think she would have picked up on the bruised face.

"Yes, Wally, what happened?" Aqualad asked, looking at Wally.

"It's really embarrassing," Wally began, wracking his brains to think of something.

"Tell us anyways," Kaldur gently commanded. Wally let of a dramatic sigh.

"I... I sortofaccidentallyranintoapole!" He said in a rush. The team looked at him puzzled, trying to understand what he had said. Robin burst out laughing, being the first to understand Wally.

"He ran into a pole!" Robin explained to everyone.

"Only he could do something like that!" Artemis said.

"Alright everyone. Lets get going on the mission." Kaldur said, leading them to M'gann's ship. Robin stayed behind as the rest followed him.

"Kid Flash," Robin used his full name, causing Wally to stop and look at him. "You okay?"

"Of course dude!" Wally answered, trying to convince his best friend he was okay.

"Well, just remember, you can talk to me about anything." Robin said. Wally smiled at him and turned on his heel, running to catch up with the rest of the team. 'Rob, if only I could tell you.' He thought sadly to himself, his father's words ringing in his ears. Wally didn't blame his father for saying that. Anyone would rather have Robin, a genius, as a son, than him, an irritating boy who couldn't keep his mouth shut. 'If only I could.'