Thank you for joining for the final chapter of this story! I have to apologize for not updating in a few months. Life got busy and I was very limited on time. That being said, I would like to thank all the readers who have stuck around through the inconsistent updates! I hope you've enjoyed this story!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Flash.

"Barry's gone!" Joe's voice is heard just before he rushes into the cortex, panic written all over his face. His daughter runs in not far behind.

There is only a beat of complete silence before realization hits Cisco like a truck. "The pipeline!" he breathes and turns toward the computer. As quickly as his fingers can type, he pulls up the security camera feed.

It confirms, to Cisco's horror, that the speedster is indeed in the pipeline, in front of Erik Taylor's cell.

"Wally," Cisco calls, "monitor the security camera. If anything goes wrong, I want you to put the pipeline on lockdown. We can't risk either of them getting out."

"No problem." The young man responds.

The superhero then grabs the tranquilizer gun from where it is stashed. "Let's go, Joe." He calls as he marches toward the elevator.

"I'm coming too," Iris announces, then follows the men.

Caitlin speaks up on her way to the med bay, "I'll meet you down there."

The angry speedster pounds his fists on the glass of his abuser's cell. "I'm going to make you pay for what you did to me," he growls.

Suddenly Joe's deep voice from behind him shouts, "Barry!"

The broken man turns to find Joe and Iris standing behind Cisco, who has the tranquilizer gun aimed and ready to fire.

"Is that supposed to scare me?" The speedster smirks.

Cisco tenses. "We just want to help you, Barry."

He begins to slowly saunter toward the three of them until the barrel touches his chest. "And that's why you have a gun pointed at me."

"Barry, you're sick." The detective adds.

Before the young man can respond, a booming voice speaks up from the pipeline cell, "It's true, kid. You weren't meant to leave so early."

The speedster whirls around, suddenly standing so close to the glass that his breath fogs it. "You don't get a say in any of this!" he screams.

Then he turns back toward the three members of the team. "If you really care about me, he wouldn't still be alive."

"You don't mean that, Barry." Iris whispers, appalled.

"You don't know anything about me!"

"I do, Barry. I know you." The young reporter slowly begins walking forward, stepping around Cisco. She continues, "You're the boy I grew up with and the man who has saved countless lives."

The speedster's body visibly tenses, and his head lowers. "Shut up." He whispers.

But Iris keeps going, taking more steps toward him, "Me, Dad, Cisco, Caitlin, Wally, all of us love you. I know deep down, you know you love us too."

"Shut up!" Barry screams more forcefully.

Yet, she continues, "Think about why you're angry at Taylor-"

"I said shut up!" he roars. The speedster grabs the young woman by her shoulder and spins her around. He uses his forearms to pin her back into his chest.

"Woah!" Joe bellows, his hand automatically reaching for his belt. Meanwhile, Cisco raises the tranquilizer gun slightly higher.

However, Barry does not react to this. Instead, he growls in Iris's ear, almost mockingly, "I'm angry because he tortured me. He starved me. He locked me up for months. So I would say those are pretty good reasons to be angry."

"Of course they are, Barry," Iris can't hide the terror in her voice, "but I think you're also angry that he made you distrust your family and friends, everything you know. And I think you hate him for that." She can feel Barry flinch slightly.

The others must have seen it as well because Joe adds softly, "Barr, just let Iris go, and Cisco will put down the gun. We can go up to the med bay, and Caitlin will help you."

To reinforce this, Cisco takes one hand off the gun, though still holding it in his right hand, and raises his arms to show he means no harm toward his friend. "See, Barry." He mumbles.

The speedster looks back and forth between the two men as if weighing his options. "Here's what's going to happen, you're going to let me kill him" Barry motions to the cell behind him with a movement of his head, "then you're going to let me leave."

He tightens his hold on the woman in his arms. "If you cooperate, I'll drop her off somewhere safe and sound."

"Barry, you don't have to do this." Iris pleads, "Just take a minute to remember… Like when we were thirteen and we snuck out in the middle of the night without dad knowing. We went stargazing and you showed me constellations."

The speedster jostles her slightly. "Stop. Talking."

"Or when we stayed up all night to edit the essay for your college applications to make sure it was perfect."

In response, Barry squeezes his eyelids shut and lets out a pained groan.

Iris takes this as a cue to keep going, "Call me crazy, but I would say that those are the kind of things that people who love each other do."

During this, Cisco whispers to Joe out of the corner of his mouth, "Joe, take the gun. Block the exit."

Detective West pulls it from the viber's hands. "Why? What are you going to do?" he whispers back.

Cisco makes eye contact with the villain on the other side of the glass. Both give tiny nods.

"This." Cisco mummers. Then he reaches out and swiftly unlocks the cell.

Before the speedster even understands what is going on behind him, Erik Taylor's hands shoot out and grip the young man's head.

Barry cries out at the familiar pain. His arms automatically let Iris go, and his knees hit the ground.

One last bit of betrayal is the last emotion to go through Barry's mind before memories flood in.

The feeling of being sucked into his own mind was, sadly, still all too familiar.

Barry recognized the setting immediately as Jitter's. He was walking toward Iris, Caitlin, and Cisco, who were sitting at a table, all smiling. Barry was carrying four mugs.

For some reason, this memory didn't have the heavy feeling that usually came with them. Instead, it felt... warm and light.

"Alright, four Flashes," Barry announced, setting the mugs on the table. "Be careful, apparently they're super caffeinated." He continued, "First I have a day named after me. Now, I have a drink."

"Well, all the things you do, rebuilding this place, protecting people. Everyone's appreciative, right?" Iris responded with a smile.

"Mmhm, I'll drink to that." Cisco threw in.

"Yeah," Caitlin responded.

The four of them toasted before tasting the hot liquid.

The memory faded, and a new one quickly took its place.

He was young, although he couldn't remember exactly what age. But both his parents were there. They were sitting on the couch, Barry on his father's knee. His mother was beside them with a book in her hands, held out for the three of them to see.

Barry recognized it immediately. It was his favorite childhood book: The Little Dinosaur.

"There once was a little dinosaur who lived with his mother," his father read aloud, "One day he told his mother, 'I wish I were special like the other dinosaurs. If I were a T. Rex, I could chomp with my ferocious teeth!'"

"'But if you were a T. Rex' said his mother," Barry's mom continued, "'how would you hug me with your tiny, little arms?'"

"'I wish I were an Apatosaurus' said the little dinosaur'," continued Henry, "'So with my long neck, I could see high above the treetops.'"

"'But if you were an Apatosaurus' said his mother, 'how would you hear me in the treetops when I told you I love you? What makes you so special, little Maiasaur?' said his mother, 'Is it your ferocious teeth, or long neck, or pointy beak? What makes you special is out of all of the different dinosaurs in the big, wide world, you have the mother-"

"And father" Henry threw in.

Nora continued, "who is just right for you, and who will always…"

"Love you." Both his parents said at the same time.

And the memory dwindled into black.

The next one came suddenly.

Barry was standing in the middle of Joe's dining room and the room was full of people, including Iris, Caitlin, Cisco, Joe, Wally, his dad, and even some women he doesn't recognize, although their names are on the tip of his tongue.

The table was filled with food, yet Caitlin placed down another dish. "Soup's on!" She announced.

"Hey!" Cisco responded, "Taking out a city full of monsters makes a man hungry."

"First," Joe said, passing out glasses of wine, "a toast. To family"

Everyone held their glasses up and responded "To family" before drinking from them.

"That's my kind of toast, short and sweet. Let's eat." Cisco exclaimed.

This was followed by laughter.

With each memory, Barry noticed the same warm feeling… it was unfamiliar and strange.

Then after what felt like an eternity, reality came crashing back into focus.

Taylor drops his hands, and Barry comes out of the memory-filled trance with a shuddering gasp. He falls on his palms and knees, shaking although he doesn't feel cold.

"Barry?" Iris asks, her hand reaching for his shoulder.

As soon as she makes contact, Barry flinches away. "Don't touch me!" He shouts.

Barry's hands claw at his head. "I don't understand! I don't understand…"

No one knows what to do. It seems like the hero finally snapped.

Lightning begins sparking off his skin. His eyes look up, searching. Joe understands the expression in his son's eyes immediately: he needs to get out, escape, run.

"Wally?" the detective exclaims, hoping the boy understands. And it seems Wally does understand because the door to the pipeline begins to shut with the screeching of metal.

Before the door comes close to sealing, the clicking of heels can be heard followed by Caitlin's voice from the hallway, "Wait!" The door halts and the doctor scampers in.

"Barry," Caitlin breathes. She kneels in front of him. "The chemicals in your brain aren't balanced. But we can help you."

He responds with a mangled, "I don't… know what to believe anymore."

Caitlin pulls a capped syringe from her pocket. "If you'll let me, Barry, I can give you an injection. It'll begin balancing the chemicals in your brain. It's not a quick fix, but it'll give you some relief."

Barry raises his head and looks at the faces of each person surrounding him.

"Okay." He murmurs.

Eight months later

Barry Allen has been making a lot of progress mentally, although there's still a long way to go. Even with daily injections, courtesy of Caitlin, and therapy, being comfortable around his friends and family was and still is a daily struggle.

Although it helped significantly when Mind Melter was hauled off to Iron Heights, despite the deal Joe made with him.

Barry looks into the mirror and smooths the shirt covering his lanky frame. Today is going to be overwhelming, but he feels readier than he has in months. Today, he'll be going with Joe to the CCPD. Not to continue his job as a CSI, but to see some of his former coworkers.

Joe pokes his head through the doorway, "You ready to go, Barr?"

The speedster nods, looking into the eyes of his own reflection with confidence, "Yes, I am."

As the two of them heads out the door, Joe mentions, "Iris had the idea for the two of you to meet Cisco and Caitlin at Jitter's if you're up for it."

"That would be nice," Barry responds, "Like old times."

Joe West looks at his oldest son with a smile. "I'm glad to have you back, Barr."

Barry smiles back, although the smile doesn't quite reach his eyes. "I'm glad to have all of you back, too." And he means it with his entire mind.