The song for this chapter is Andrew Belle - In My Veins

IRIS' POV:

I kept walking around the hospital, unable to stay in one place for long. My mind was a jumble of thoughts. There was so much about this that I didn't understand. What was obvious was that this was methodical, the person in black meant to blow up the truck. If they wanted to cause pain, then why wait until I had gotten both Wally and Linda out of the car to blow it up? If the purpose was to hurt Spencer, then why not just aim for all of us? Even after two hours I still couldn't come up with an explanation.

Everyone seemed to understand to give me some room. I hadn't meant to alienate myself, but I couldn't help but feel responsible. This all happened because they came to see me. If Toby hadn't come to Starling City he might still be alive.

I paused in the hall, my heart faltered.

Was I the target? Had I done something to be a target? More importantly, what had Toby wanted to tell me? He sounded pretty urgent on the phone.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. A message from an unknown number read: Be careful, Iris. Fire isn't the only thing I like to play with – A.

My forehead creased. What the hell? I typed back: who is this.

I scoped the crowd, but there were many people on their phones.

I typed: If you killed Toby I will find you and I will kill you, bitch!

"Iris,"

I turned to see my dad walking briskly towards me. "Dad," I grinned as I closed the distance between us. My arms wrapped around his back, not sure if he'd fully healed from his injury.

"Are you okay?" He rested his mouth on top of my head.

I nodded, tears fogged up my eyes. "I'm fine." I blinked away the wetness. "Wally and Linda are going to be okay."

He tried to pull away, but I held on. He rubbed my back and it felt so nice to be in my dad's arms for the first time in months. "I'm sorry to hear about your friend."

I looked up at him, my arms still around him. "He was really nice, dad. He helped me out at the Park's gym. I know you don't like my being involved, but he was integral to shaping who I became."

He nodded. "That's a conversation for another time." He kissed my forehead.

I pulled away, a little defeated that my dad still disapproved of my progress, what little I made.

"Do you want to go to the room?"

"I actually stopped by to see Wally first, I thought you'd be in there. He's sleeping." He gestured around us. "Where can we get some food around here? I'm buying."

A grin fell on my face. "No way. Didn't you hear? I'm a working girl now."

He laughed. "Yeah, thanks for telling me about it by the way."

I shrugged. "Sorry. I just didn't know if it was going to stick and I didn't want to get your hopes up if I didn't like it." I grinned. "But I do. I'm certainly finding it entertaining trying to keep my facts in check of what I know as part of team Arrow," I whispered. "Versus what I know as a reporter. It keeps me on my toes."

"Oh, now you know how it feels writing police reports when I work a case with team Flash." He whispered.

We chuckled together.

We ate breakfast in the cafeteria, catching up on things. He was considering taking more time off from the police force, he'd gotten used to doing what he wanted all day. Apparently, he'd taken up pottery as a form of physical therapy. Picturing my dad doing pottery was hysterical. When I asked him about Eddie's new partner he said they got along well. Too well. I was glad Eddie might have found someone else to have feelings for, but upset that I didn't know about this until now. I needed to keep in contact with him. A wave of sadness washed over me as I realized how out of touch I'd become with my home and my family, but so much was constantly keeping me occupied here.

I moved to put our trash away, but he told me to hold up. I sat back down.

"You're my daughter, I know when you feel guilty or sad or happy. Listen to me, Iris." He gestured around us. "This isn't your fault." He stared into my eyes the only way dads could. "Your friend didn't die because of you, okay. I don't want you walking around with that on your shoulders. You've got enough to deal with."

I nodded. His words sunk in, but it was hard not to feel responsible for your friend's murder when you could've been the only reason they were killed.

We made our way back to the room. My dad went in while I stayed outside with Barry.

"We spend way too much time in hospitals. Nothing good ever happens at a hospital." I sank down in the chair beside him.

He shrugged. "Not entirely true. Babies are born here. I think that's pretty special." He stared at me, his green eyes deep in thought as if he were remembering something.

A thought popped into my head, most definitely ludicrous. "Barry," I leaned closer so only he'd hear. "In the other timeline, when we were together, were we safe?"

His face became flushed as he looked away. "No."

My brow rose. That didn't sound very responsible of us.

"Hypothetically, how long would it have taken me to get pregnant if we were still there?"

He shook his head. "We don't have to talk about it, Iris. It doesn't matter anymore." He wouldn't meet my eyes, obviously flustered.

I inhaled a breath. "Did we think that I was…" I suddenly couldn't say the word.

After a few moments his eyes met mine reluctantly. He shrugged. "There was no way to know for sure."

Embarrassed, my hand covered my face. "Oh, no." I groaned. "I'm sorry I put you through that."

His hand pulled mine away from my face, his fingers laced with mine. "We were so not ready to be parents." He gave the tiniest of grins. "But if you had been…We would've taken care of it."

My heart melted in my chest.

"Do you think that about that?"

He sighed. "More than I should."

A shockwave of electricity ran up my arm, but he didn't pull away.

He grinned at me. "I kept thinking that Joe would kill me."

I nodded with a laugh.

My head told me not to ask, but I couldn't help it. Even talking about this was bad.

Our eyes met. "Have you ever thought about…" I couldn't ask this, it was too much.

"Don." He finished. His eyes searched mine. "I don't know why, but Don kept coming to mind."

A little piece of my heart broke for him, for the life that Barry and I could've had, but were robbed of. Knowing it was all my fault made me sad.

He shook his head. "It's not your fault, Iris. Like I said, we didn't know for sure. You probably weren't."

"But what if I was?" The thought haunted me.

I didn't think I could feel any guiltier until the sight of Spencer walking towards us like a zombie. A few girls were behind her, worry in their eyes.

I rose to my feet. "Spencer." I froze, there were no words that were good enough right now. My chin wobbled as I tried to compose myself, shame filled me.

Her hand covered her mouth, silent sobs took over her body as she knelt to the floor. Her friends scrambled to get her. She was making a scene, but I doubt anyone could care because she so obviously just experienced the loss of a love. I never wanted to experience that with Barry or with any of my friends.

Barry laid a hand on shoulder. I turned to him, my face in his chest. He held me tight while I cried into him. "You can do this." He whispered into my hair. "Be strong for Spencer." He pulled away, his strong hands wiped under my eyes.

I nodded.

He was right. This wasn't about me. This was about Spencer.

On shaky legs I made my way to her. Her friends untangled from her. She turned to me, her eyes red and wet. She clutched onto me.

"I'm sorry."

She cried harder.

My heart broke ten times over for her.

I wasn't sure how long we were like that, but it still wasn't enough time for Spencer to grieve properly. She didn't deserve this, she was a good person. Toby was a good person. So why did that freak have to kill him? I felt so powerless not being able to do anything about it to get rid of her pain. Of my pain.

When I pulled away from her with a small grin I told her I'd be back. "I just have to check on my cousin." I turned to Barry. "Will you stay with them?"

He nodded and went to introduce himself.

I walked to the room with my family, but stood in the hall. They were catching up, laughing.

Cisco glanced up, he froze when he saw me.

I gave a wave and a small grin.

He just stared at me, his eyes unforgiving before he turned back to Wally.

With that rejection, I made my way to the stairs. It didn't take much force to get the locked door open that led to the roof. The sky was still dark, the air held a little chill with a slight drizzle. The gravel crunched under my feet. My guilt drove me forward. This was right.

I took another step closer to the edge, but stayed where I was. I could do this for Spencer. For Toby.

A voice cut through me. "What are you doing?"

I snapped around to see Cisco with scared eyes. "Why are you here?"

He walked towards me. "I asked you what are you doing?" He yanked me back.

I shoved him back. "Now you care? After months of my trying to make things right between us now you care?"

"You left, Iris!" He threw in my face. "You left. You were ready to leave, but I wasn't ready for you to leave. Maybe I still needed you in my life."

My head shook. "You choose now to tell me?" That didn't work. I wouldn't remember it. Neither would he.

"Iris, I'm sorry. Now tell me what you're doing up here."

I took a step backward. "I'm doing what I can to help."

"What are you talking about?"

"Spencer!" My eyes stung. "I need to help Spencer. And Toby." I turned towards the edge, ready to do this.

"What the hell are you talking about? Get away from there." He pulled me back.

I yanked myself free. "They don't have to hurt anymore." My eyes pleaded with his. "If I do this then Barry will go back to save me, to save all of us." I stayed by the edge.

He shook his head, his gaze focused. "This dream keeps playing in my head." He looked at me with strange eyes as he touched my forehead. "You can't do this to him again."

What was he talking about?

"In my dream, you died, Iris. It wasn't pretty." His eyes pleaded with mine. "Don't make Barry hold your dead body again." He grabbed my arm. "It's not fair of you to use him like this. You won't remember, but he will, and it'll haunt him." He shook his head. "Please, I'm begging you. If our friendship means anything at all to you, don't do this."

I looked between him and the edge, torn.

I nodded. "Fine."

I started toward the door when my shoe slipped on the slippery rocks. I let out a scream as I held onto the ledge of the roof. My heart hammered in my chest. No, I didn't want to die. Not after that. I couldn't do this to Barry again. He wouldn't be able to get over it. Cisco was right, it wasn't fair to him.

Cisco grabbed my hands, but was slipping himself. His eyes widened as he neared the edge himself.

Suddenly, Laurel appeared. Her hands grabbed his waist. "Don't you let her go." She demanded of him.

Once he wasn't any longer in danger of falling off the roof she grabbed under my arms and pulled me the rest of the way up. We fell back on the gravel with a thud, the breath knocked out of me as I laid on top of her. Her hand rested on the my back.

"Thanks."

"What happened?"

"I…" I didn't want to admit that I was ready to kill myself to save Toby.

People rushed through the door. Well, Barry and Oliver. They surveyed the scene with worried eyes.

"What just happened?" Oliver asked.

All eyes were on me, Barry's burned a hold through me as I stood.

"Uh, I…"

"She slipped on the wet rocks." Cisco intervened.

I nodded. "Yeah, I was too close to the edge." I let out a relieved huff. "Thank God Cisco was here to pull me back." I gave him a grateful look, one that I hoped truly conveyed how appreciative I was.

He nodded, then headed inside.

Barry looked at me with hard eyes too long for my liking. "Would you guys mind giving us a minute." He dismissed.

They left. Now it was just me and Barry.

He stepped towards me. I stepped towards him.

"Why?"

My eyes fell to the gravel. "You already know why."

He let out a huff. "Iris, you can't keep doing this. Putting your life in danger to save your friends. It's not noble, it's risky."

My head snapped up to glare at him. "I'm not trying to be noble, I'm trying to do the right thing."

"And how is killing yourself going to accomplish that? We don't know that you'll wake up the next time. What happens if I can't go back in time and save you?" He fumed. "Huh?"

I shook my head. "I just wanted to fix things. Cisco talked me out of it and it was an accident. I didn't think that it would hurt you."

He took a step back, he shoved his hands in his pockets. "That's the problem, you only think about yourself. What can I do to not feel so guilty? It's selfish."

I stared at him with hard eyes. "How could you say that? I'm busting my ass out here trying to help people, people that I don't even know, people that might not even deserve saving. I'm not selfish!"

"Well, you're not as grown up as you think you are, Iris! Doing things like this puts you right back at square one. What was I supposed to tell Joe if you jumped? How was I supposed to feel when I had to scoop up your dead body?"

My hands ran down my face as I shook my head. "I'm sorry, okay?" I met his eyes. "I went about it the wrong way, I admit that. But what if that was me?"

He shook his head. "You already know what I'd do."

"No, not me." I stepped forward. "What if Joe died and you couldn't bear to see me hysterical? Would you go back and change it?"

He blinked a few times, his face scrunched up. "That's not the same thing. You were trying to kill yourself. You wanted to trick me."

"I wasn't trying to trick you." I protested.

His brow rose. "Really? Then why didn't you just ask me to go back and change it?"

I didn't have an answer for that.

This was getting really shitty really fast.

"Look, I'm sorry. I didn't know what to do. I thought this was the only way to help."

His eyes narrowed. "Did you want to forget about the pregnancy?"

"What?" My eyes widened. "That's ridiculous. That's not why…I fucked up. Again. I made a shitty mistake and I'm sorry that I didn't think it through or take in account your feelings." My hands hugged around me. "I just hate feeling this way, Bear. I'm completely helpless. Someone killed my friend. They tried to kill me. This wasn't any accident." I didn't care that I wasn't supposed to tell him, I had to. "Someone's been messing with Spencer and Toby and they finally won. My friend just lost her boyfriend. He died coming to see me. This whole thing isn't right. So I'm sorry for trying to right a wrong and to give my friend more time with her boyfriend. I was counting on you to change it, to save us all." I shook my head. "I shouldn't have assumed anything. It won't happen again."

He stared at me for a moment then he pulled me into a hug. "I'm just glad that you're okay."

ANNIE'S POV:

When we were sure the police had made it to the abandoned factory we put as much distance between us and them as possible on bikes. We chucked our phones, the idea courtesy of Jessie. The closest motel was five miles away and it was creepy at best.

"We'll leave you two alone for a bit. We'll be outside." I told them as I shoved Jessie out the door of our motel room.

Now it was just the two of us. Alone. Sitting on the steps. Awkwardly.

"What just happened?" I asked him. "How are we able to do that? Did you know you could do that?"

His eyes slid to mine. "I thought it was a fluke or that I dreamt it. Obviously not." His arm draped over my shoulder. "Do you think those guys are still stuck to the wall?" He let out a small laugh.

My eyes rolled. "I hope not. So what are we? You're like The Flash. So what does that make me?"

"It makes you Annie." He stared at me with conflicted eyes.

I decided to make this easy for him. He didn't have to choose between us staying friends or hurting my feelings. Maybe this was for the best. I was way too young to get involved with anyone anyway. Besides, Jessie's my only friend. Besides Cait.

"About earlier," He started.

I pulled away to face him. "There's something I need to tell you. It's pretty big." My heart thumped heavily in my chest.

He nodded for me to continue.

My hand grabbed his, I noticed the small smile on his lips. "I know we've only been friends for a few short months, but you've come to mean a lot to me."

His smiled widened.

"Which is why this is hard for me to tell you." I exhaled. "A few cancer cells popped up at my check up today."

His smile vanished, he pulled his hand away from mine. His long hair fell into his face as he looked forward.

"I'm sorry."

Silence sat between us.

"Okay, I know I should've told you sooner-"

"We're moving." He muttered. "In a few days, we're moving across the country."

I felt like all the air left me, all I could do was stare ahead of me.

So we sat there in silence, both of us having to get used to the news that would forever change our lives.

CAITLIN'S POV:

Annie and Jessie left to give us some room to talk. I didn't much blame them what with Ronnie's pleasant attitude the whole way here. He was pissed at Annie for putting not only hers but Jessie's life in danger. But he was also scared. We all were.

He stood by the door. "Look, I know I've been an ass to you, but I never wanted this to happen." He turned those heavy blue eyes on me.

I sat on one of the two beds. "I know."

He walked over to me. "Can you forgive me?"

"Only if you stop being a dick." With a huff, I said, "I'm sorry."

His forehead crinkled. "For what?"

"For dragging you along." My head hung.

He scooted down on the space between the two beds. "I need to know," His eyes sought mine. "Are you with Sam again?"

I sat on the floor in front of him. I took his hands in mine. "We are back together." I lied.

He tried to pull his hands away, but I wouldn't let him.

"Listen to me," I pleaded. "Just because I'm with Sam doesn't mean I don't love you, too."

He gave a wry smirk. "That makes it worse."

My hand went to his face, I caressed his stubble. "This wasn't because of you. If I were straight, I'd be a fool not to be with you, but I can't ignore how I still feel about her, about girls." Which wasn't entirely a lie, I still very much found girls attractive, but so far Ronnie had been the only man I'd even look at twice. Besides, Sam was back in my life, just as a friend. I needed the closure.

His hand went to my face, his eyes focused on my mouth. "You can be both, Cait. You don't have to pick one or the other."

I nodded, leaning into his touch. "I know, but it's not just about that. You're one of my best friends. I can't just jeopardize having you in my life, even if I wanted to date you."

Lies.

He nodded. "Just so we're clear, you don't want to date me? You want me to stop waiting for you?"

"Yes." Lie. "You deserve to be happy. I want that for you." Truth. My hand left his face, placed now on his knee. "Now the question is; do you want to be friends with me still?"

He stayed quiet for a moment, a long moment that made my heart throb.

"Cait, I don't know."

I visibly sagged. "Ronnie-"

"Wait," He grabbed my hands. "I would do anything for you. I'm not trying to be a dick, but nothing's changed for me. I don't want to see you with Sam every day."

A tear fell from eye, I wiped it away with a nod. I tried to hold it together, but everything slipped out.

"Hey, please don't cry."

Ugly crying was the only accurate description I saw fit for what he was seeing. But I couldn't stop it.

"Cait, please."

I punched at him as I covered my face with my hands, clearly embarrassed.

He pulled me to his lap, his strong arms wrapped around me. "I'm not trying to give you an ultimatum or hurt you."

"But you are." I sobbed.

He sighed, his hand rubbed my hair back. "This isn't punishment, baby." His heat warmed me up rather quickly.

"Then why am I losing you?"

He pulled my face up to look at him, he never looked more handsome. Of course I said that about him every time I saw him. "This isn't goodbye, Cait. I just need a little time to get over you. If you give me that, I'll come back to you."

That started a fresh batch of tears because I didn't want him to be over me because I wasn't over him. It's completely not fair to him and so selfish of me, but I just wanted him to myself. Seeing him with another girl…that would be different, if not painful. Maybe this would be good for us. Maybe it would help me get over him, too.

"Well, how long is that going to take?" I looked up at him with blurry eyes.

He shrugged. "Honestly, I'm not sure. I didn't chose this, Cait. It just happened."

I wasn't sure why, but that made me love him more.

"So this isn't goodbye. But be forewarned, I may exhibit some slutty behavior, which I won't be proud of."

I gave him a look. "Don't bring any sluts in Jitters." I threatened.

He laughed. "What if they like coffee?"

"Too bad for them."

He grinned, his eyes on my lips. "Can I…" He breathed out a shaky breath. "Can I give you a goodbye kiss?" His eyes slid back up to mine in question.

No. No. No. That would be without a doubt so bad for me. But nevertheless, I nodded. Why did I do these things to myself?

He looked a little shocked before he placed his hand on my neck.

Oh, boy. This was going to be a deep one I could already tell.

He stared at me for a bit, making my nerves triple. Finally, he leaned down. His mouth overtook mine with possessive tugs and passionate groans. I fell further into him. My arms wrapped around his neck, letting him explore my mouth. His hands tightened on my waist as I pulled him toward me. My back hit the floor with him on top of me. My legs wrapped around his waist, wanting him to give me pleasure, wanting him to take it. He ground his hips against mine, our lips never leaving each other's.

There wasn't one second of hesitation when I unbuttoned his jeans. He slid into me and I knew that this was a mistake from that moment on. He knew it, too. But we didn't stop. I couldn't because I needed him. For a long time now I needed him. His lips moved to my neck.

He consumed me. I consumed him. It was dangerous. Especially because Annie and Jessie could walk in at any second.

Our eyes locked. I reached up to place my hand on his face. He placed his forehead on mine.

"I love you, Cait." He whispered.

With that, I lost all control. So did he.

As we caught our breath the weight of what we just did filled our minds. He shuffled off of me, pulling his pants back up.

I stood awkwardly. "Uh…"

"Cait, I-"

The door opened, Annie and Jessie entered the room with sad eyes.

I flitted to the bathroom for a shower without a word.

When I came out everyone was in bed with the lights off. Jessie was sleeping with Ronnie, which meant I was sleeping with Annie. A tiny grin came to my face. Of course Ronnie wouldn't want Jessie sleeping in the same bed with Annie.

I slid into bed, careful not to wake Annie from her slumber. I laid on my side, facing Ronnie. I couldn't look away from his sleeping form.

What had I done to him? He didn't deserve this treatment. He was a good guy. Smart. Kind hearted. Protective. Funny. I saw everything he wanted me to see and I knew he thought he wasn't good enough. He was so much more.

His eyes opened a fraction and met mine. He didn't look away immediately, but eventually he turned over on his other side, his back to me. I couldn't blame him for being angry. I would be angry at me. I played mind games with him, not on purpose. Every time I tell him something I end up doing something different, but I couldn't help it. He got under my skin, into my mind, and inside me. Which was why he scared me. I didn't think I could ever feel like this about anybody. No one, not even Sam, made me feel so much pleasure. It wasn't just a sex thing, but it was very good when Ronnie and I did have it, but I was sure it was mental and emotional because I had never been so close to someone and felt so far away from them.

IRIS' POV:

I swiveled in my chair at my desk when my phone rang. "Hello?" I answered the unknown number.

"Iris, it's me."

I perked up. "Caitlin," I grinned. "Where have you been? We've been trying to get into contact with you and Ronnie all weekend. Are yall okay?"

"Sorry about that. We went out of town for the weekend. We needed to straighten a few things out."

My brow rose. "And did you?" My voice suggestive.

"I'm trusting you not to judge me, Iris."

I whirled around my chair with a grin on my face. "Would I do that? Vent away."

"I can't talk about it, it's just going to make me angry. So talk about yourself, tell me anything juicy."

I tapped my pen on my desk as I crossed my legs. "Well, one of my friends was murdered." I whispered. "I'm kind of in the process of finding out why. Barry and I had another fight, what else is new? Wally's just getting out of the hospital. I can't really talk about it all right now, I'm at work."

"That's awful, I'm sorry I couldn't be there. We had to get new phones. This is my new number. But I'll come see you this week when I'm off. By the way, if Ronnie asks I'm back with Sam. So how's your love life?"

My eyes widened. "Woah, wait a minute. Back up a second. You're back with Sam?"

"See, that's the thing. I'm not. I just told Ronnie I was so he'd move on."

I groaned. "Caitlin, I swear I'm going to slap you when I see you. You're an idiot. Why would you do that?"

She groaned. "I know! I don't know what I'm doing over here. He's a great guy, I know that, but we're not meant to be together. We work as friends. That's it."

I rolled my eyes. "You don't know that for sure. You could be great together. It's not like you both don't love each other." I looked around before saying, "You said the sex was great. So what's the problem?"

"I'm scared."

I could one hundred percent understand that. The only difference between her relationship with Ronnie and mine with Barry was that Barry and I knew that we had to work on our friendship, that we would be together if we could, but we weren't ready. Caitlin and Ronnie were ready without a doubt. She just needed to get over the fear of her life changing because she liked men in addition to women now.

"Ask yourself in five years do you see yourself getting married?"

"Well, yeah. Now that gay marriage is legal."

My head shook. "Do you see yourself married to Ronnie or Sam?"

She huffed. "I don't love Sam anymore."

"I know; you get what I mean. Now who do you see yourself with?" I demanded.

"Oh boy, I'm in trouble."

I grinned. My work here is done.

"Enough about me. What's your situation?"

My lips pursed. "I'm lonely." I laughed. "Maybe a little bi-curious." Okay, maybe a lot.

"Oh my God, do tell!" She perked up.

"Who?" A voice came from behind me.

I jumped in my seat when I saw Thea behind me. She heard me say I was bi-curious. Dammit. I didn't want Laurel to know.

"Um, Caitlin I have to call you back."

"Wait, don't you dare-"

I hung up. My face turned red as I faced Thea. "Hey, girl."

She folded her arms across her chest, her head tilted to the side with a mischievous grin. "Who's the girl?" She looked around the room trying to figure out which work hottie got me curious.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I said evenly.

She pointed a finger at me. "I'll find out." She propped her hand on her hip. "Nice office."

I think she was being nice. "Thanks." I surveyed her. "What are you doing here?"

She scooted closer to me, her butt on my desk. "I need you to train me. Laurel already said she wouldn't. She's in a grumpy mood lately."

My eyes widened as I looked around us. I dragged her to a semi remote corner. "You thought the best place was to ask me here? At my newspaper job where we're all expected to report any shifty behavior?" I angrily whispered.

She waved it off. "No one knows what we're talking about. Lighten up. Now is that a yes?" She grinned hopefully.

"No. I can't right now. My plate's really full."

"With what? Maybe I can help."

How could I voluntarily get Thea involved in this life when I knew firsthand that it was dangerous.

"Don't you do that." She pointed at me. "Everyone told you no. Everyone tried to dissuade you. You didn't take no for an answer. You inspired me, Iris."

That was the nicest thing she ever said to me.

"Please, help me."

My eyes rolled. "Fine, but only because I know how it feels. I don't want you to be a part of this, Thea. You have so much going for you."

"Like what? A club? Money?"

I shrugged. "Yeah. You can do anything you want. You have to money to."

"The only time I've ever felt like I wasn't sleepwalking through life was when I helped you guys. Now I want to really be a part of that."

"Okay." I nodded. "Just promise me that you won't flirt with Barry in front of me."

She laughed a hearty laugh. "Trust me, no need to worry on that front."

"Everything okay?"

Thea and I turned to see Daryl looking at us with concerned eyes.

I gave a reassuring smile. "Yeah, we were just talking."

Daryl extended his hand towards Thea. "Daryl Evans." He offered a grin.

Thea grinned cheekily at him. "We've met." She looked between us. "You two were on a date." She shook his hand.

"It wasn't a date. It was an interview."

"Well, in that case I'm Thea Queen."

My eyes couldn't roll hard enough as I walked away from them with a shake of my head.

After Thea left Daryl came to my desk. "Your friend is nice."

"She's seventeen, too."

His lightheartedness disappeared. "Somebody wants me to go to jail."

I chuckled. "She's turning eighteen in two weeks."

"Nice to know." He leaned against my desk. "Hey, have you heard about the new vigilante in town?"

My face scrunched up. "No." I met his eyes. "I haven't had a chance to watch the news this weekend. I was pretty busy." Which wasn't a lie, but I knew he was talking about me. Well, my vigilante counterpart.

"Tell me about her? Is she a solo artist?"

He shook his head. "There have been reports of her seen with the Arrow and Black Canary, and The Flash." He leaned in closer. "Do you think you could contact your red masked friend for some info? Just a little dirt that'll give us an edge?"

"Uh…" I tapped my mouth absentmindedly. "I haven't really reached out to him in long time. I don't know if he'd be willing to even meet with me."

He looked a little disappointed.

"But I could try."

"Really? Thanks, Iris."

I grinned. "No problem."

When I got to the gym later on Laurel was already practicing with a bo staff, the long wooden stick dipped and dodged through the air. A few sweaty tendrils fell from her bun. All she wore was a black sports bra and leggings.

"Hey," I announced.

She didn't stop to acknowledge me.

I dropped my bag and walked over to her. "You okay?"

She continued without a glance my way.

"Laurel!"

She snapped around to face me, panting. "What?" Anger in her voice.

"What happened?" I stopped a few feet in front of her.

With a shake of her head she walked past me. What the hell?

I grabbed her arm. "What is wrong with you?"

Her leg flashed out and kicked my stomach. I stumbled back, shocked. Frustration written all over her face.

"You wanted to train. Sometimes you have to deal with a few surprises." She came at me.

Where the hell did this come from?

She jab-crossed me, but I dodged them. Her leg kicked my side. I quickly grabbed her foot, only she managed to flip us over onto the floor. Anger burned in me. I didn't do anything to deserve whatever she was pissed about.

"I thought we were friends." I rose.

She sneered. "So did I." She swept her leg out and swiped my feet from under me.

I used my body weight to jump up and land on my feet. I ducked in time enough to miss her kick. She punched out, hitting me in the shoulder. I grabbed her hands and shoved her back.

"Why are you mad at me?" I demanded.

She hit me in the face. "You lied to me about everything."

I blocked her next blow. "You're seriously mad at me for not telling you what I could do?" I ducked.

"I wasted time training you, Iris, because you didn't tell me the whole truth." She backed away from me. "We're done. No more training sessions. You don't need me anymore."

"But…"

She stormed past Oliver, who I didn't know was here. How much had he seen?

I let out a frustrated breath as he walked towards me. "I don't understand why she's so upset with me. So I didn't tell her that I could heal myself. I didn't tell anybody, not even Barry. He already knew."

He wore his stoic passive aggressive look like always. "Laurel has the right to be upset."

"What?" I gestured to the door. "You're taking her side?"

"You did lie to all of us. I'm not mad, but Laurel spent months helping you learn how to fight, how to protect yourself. And you didn't tell her about this. She feels responsible for your safety, to her if you get hurt it's because she didn't train you well enough. Now that we know you can heal yourself and come back to life she must feel useless. Trust me, I know the feeling."

Well, when you put it like that.

"Still, she attacked me. I don't understand why she's angry with me." I gaped. "She acts like I betrayed her or something."

He looked at me pointedly. "You and Laurel have a special relationship. She feels protective of you. She watches you to make sure you're okay. With Barry being around more, maybe she feels a little threatened."

My eyes rolled. "Why would she-" I paused.

He didn't give anything anyway as he said, "Apart from the fact that you died a few days ago and Barry was the one that was there for you after you woke up, I'm not really sure why she'd feel threatened." He gave me another pointed look.

Was this actually happening? Was he saying that Laurel was jealous of Barry? I mean, when I first got here and thought he was an asshat she supported me on that, but that was girl code. She always seemed okay around him, they weren't best buddies or anything, but I never thought she was jealous. Did that mean she had feelings for me?

I nodded. "Why are you here, Oliver?"

His eyes slide to the ceiling as he looked around the room before meeting my eyes. "I know Thea came to you for help."

I made a face. "It's not-"

He held up a hand. "You have my blessing."

I gaped. "I'm sorry, what?"

He gave a pained face. "You have my blessing to train Thea. I can't do it. She looks up to you and Laurel. I can't say that I'm thrilled about all of this, but if she follows in the footsteps of you two then I'll be really proud of her."

My emotions reached a peak. I hugged him tightly. "Thank you for believing in me when no one else would."

He hugged me back. "You made me proud. You made Barry proud, too."

I pulled away. "He's not so thrilled with me at the moment."

He made a face. "Yeah."

I froze. "You know?"

Barry told him about the rooftop? Everything?

He nodded. "Laurel knows. We didn't tell Felicity. She'd be very upset with you right now, too."

My hands ran down my face. "Why did he tell you guys?"

"He's worried about you. He can't always be here to make sure you're not doing something stupid."

I gave him a look. "Hey,"

He grinned. "Despite the gesture, what you did was really stupid, Iris."

I nodded. "I know. It won't happen again."

He squeezed my shoulder. "I hope so." He headed towards the door. "Maybe give Laurel and Barry some slack. You're not really making this easy for them."

"Thanks."

He waved on his way out the door.

For the next hour or so I worked out my frustrations and issues in the gym. The time alone let me clear my head and come up with a few solutions. Once I headed home to shower, I picked up Indian food from a place close to Laurel's apartment, then I made my way over there with the address Oliver gave me.

I knocked on her door. A minute passed and no one answered. I could see the light from under the door. She was in there alright. I knocked again.

"Laurel, open up."

After a few seconds she opened up with a scowl on her pretty face. "What do you want?"

I handed her the bag. "To talk." I entered without an invitation.

"Woah." I muttered.

Her place was nice. White and red walls. A red sofa. Mahogany furniture. A fireplace lit with several white candles. Definitely cozy.

"I like your place." I turned to her.

She walked to the kitchen and set the bag on the table. She looked at me with expectant eyes. "You said you wanted to talk so talk."

I went to her, a bundle of nerves. "You were right." I let out a shaky huff. "I lied to you." I ran my sweaty hands down my pants. "I just-I wasn't ready to tell anybody. I found out the day after you found me in that alley."

That seemed like forever ago now.

"I woke up and I was healed and my dad was still in the hospital. I couldn't even think about it, there was so much going on. Especially with Barry."

She made a face at his name.

Was she really jealous of him?

"I'm sorry I wasted your time. For what it's worth, I learned a lot from you." I took her in. Her blonde hair fell in curls past her shoulders. Even dressed casually in sweats and a tshirt she was beautiful. "I'm glad that we got to spend time together. I learned a lot about myself." I gave a wry laugh. I took a step closer. "And I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. Oliver says you feel protective of me and that's why you got mad. Is that true?"

She seemed a little caught off guard as she bit her lip. "Maybe I did."

A bead of confidence filled me, I took another step closer to her. "You don't like Barry, do you?"

She made a cute face. "I wouldn't go as far as to say I hate him. I just think he keeps putting you through the wringer. Maybe you could do better."

I tried to hide my grin, but failed. "Yeah? Like who?"

Her eyes narrowed. "I don't know. Maybe someone a little more like you."

I nodded. "Duly noted."

"I'm sorry about earlier." She looked away. "I didn't mean what I said. Forgive me?"

"Only if you eat this food with me." I grinned.

She laughed. "Deal."

We laughed, ate, and talked to the wee hours of the morning.

When it was time for me to go I stopped outside of her apartment. She leaned against the doorway, a foot taller than me.

"You know, you don't have to go home. You can crash here if you want." She offered.

I wish I could. "I have an early morning interview." I gave a sheepish grin.

She pulled me in for a hug. "I'm really sorry again."

She smelled like honeysuckles and cinnamon.

I hugged her tight. "It's okay." I pulled away. "I should've told you." I looked into her eyes. Then at her lips.

When I finally tore my gaze away she was staring at my mouth. My confidence from earlier made me stand my ground. All I had to do was lean up and we'd be kissing. Our breaths mingled.

One of her neighbors stumbled down the hall and into their apartment, ruining our moment.

I took a step back, afraid to meet her eyes. "Uh, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah."

I heard her door shut behind me. When I got to the steps my phone buzzed. Afraid that it was Laurel telling me to come back inside I reluctantly checked it.

Instead it read: Did you get a goodnight kiss? Here's one from me. XO – A.

I immediately called the one person I needed to hear from.

She answered on the fifth ring. "Iris? Are you okay?"

"Spencer, who's A?"

She went silent on the other end.