Face to Face

By Trepverter

One

It felt good to be home again Wally West thought to himself as he unlocked the front door to his third story apartment in Central City.

He carelessly tossed his keys and wallet on the kitchen table as he made his way directly to the refrigerator. "What shall we have for dinner tonight?" Wally said, to himself.

Opening the refrigerator door, he perused his choices. Three eggs, two cans of Pepsi, an empty carton of milk, and a half-eaten turkey sub left over from last night's supper. Hungry, Wally snatched the turkey sub and devoured it in two bites. As he reached for a can of Pepsi, he heard the faint sound of running footsteps coming from the apartment above.

I guess they finally rented Marty O'Malley's old apartment, Wally thought to himself, as he opened the Pepsi and slowly poured the drink into his mouth in one long steady stream. As he greedily shook the last few drops of Pepsi into his mouth, he felt a drop of water land on his forehead.

Immediately his eyes were drawn to a large wet spot on the ceiling above his head where droplets of water had formed.

Splat! Another drop landed squarely between his eyes. "Hey! What's going on up there?" Wally yelled at the ceiling.

He raced to the bathroom for a towel and began sopping up the droplets that had formed on the ceiling. As he firmly pressed the bathroom towel against the leaking ceiling, the towel quickly grew heavy with water. Wally tossed the towel aside and raced back to the bathroom for another towel; in no time, it too became fully saturated.

Wally was beginning to feel like the Dutchman with his fingers in the leaking dyke. As he removed the second towel, he realized that the leak was continuing to spread. Nearly half of the kitchen ceiling had absorbed so much water that it was softening and beginning to buckle. Cracks were forming and several new leaks began to drip.

Frantic, Wally tossed the second towel aside and set several empty pots beneath several leaks. Stunned, he watched helplessly as the empty pots began to fill with water.

"Is anyone up there?" Wally angrily shouted, at the ceiling.

As if in answer to his question, the ceiling directly above his head gave way and Wally was completely drenched by the unexpected downpour of water.

Two

Kali raced down the stairs to the first floor of the apartment building. She did not trust the elevator to get her there fast enough. She skipped three steps at a time and it still seemed like she was moving in slow motion.

At last, she reached the end of the final set of stairs. She jumped from the fourth step onto the main floor and ran past the elevator. Kali ran down the empty hall noting the apartment numbers, heading for the one at the far end of the hall.

Finally she reached the one she was looking for, labeled with the two large tarnished brass letters'1A'. A small metal nameplate hung on the door beneath the apartment number: 'C. Jensen, Superintendent'.

"Mr. Jensen!" Kali yelled, as she pounded on the Superintendent's door. Please be there. Please be there, she pleaded silently to herself.

The door slowly opened and a short portly man stood expectantly in the doorway "Yes?" he asked. "Oh, good evening Miss O'Malley. Is there something I can help you with?" he asked, smiling politely.

"Yes, please hurry," Kali insisted, pulling the man's arm as she turned toward the elevator.

"Wait a minute!" the man protested. "What's wrong?" he asked, calmly.

"The kitchen sink is leaking and flooding the whole place," Kali said breathlessly. "Please!" she begged, "You have to hurry!"

Without another word, the Superintendent disappeared back into his apartment and returned carrying an old rusted tool box in one hand and a large plastic bucket in the other.

Kali followed Mr. Jensen into the elevator. She knew this was a mistake. They shouldn't be taking the elevator; she thought to herself, they should be racing up the stairs! She could only imagine the lake she was going to find in her flooded apartment when they finally arrived.

She glanced at Mr. Jensen. He sure didn't seem concerned. In fact, he was the picture of 'calm'. You'd think he was patiently waiting in a dentist office or something.

"Don't worry, Miss O'Malley. It will be alright," Mr. Jensen said reassuringly.

Kali looked at him in disbelief.

Just when she thought she couldn't take it anymore, the elevators doors opened to her floor. She raced down the hall ahead of him, praying that the water had somehow stopped leaking on its own.

Throwing the door open, Kali knew it was too late the moment she stepped into her living room. She could feel the soggy carpeting squish beneath her feet with each step. Kali turned around in time to see the look of astonishment on Mr. Jensen's face as he entered the apartment door. She was not sure what he was thinking, but she was sure that this was not at all what he expected.

Kali followed Mr. Jensen as he sloshed through the living room and waded through the pool of water in the kitchen. He calmly bent down beneath the sink and turned off the water supply. Without a word, Mr. Jensen began cleaning up the mess.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

Who in the world can that be? Kali thought to herself.

She walked to the door and peered out the peephole. What she saw made her double over in laughter. On the other side of the door stood this tall, dirty-looking young man, soaked to the bone and dripping wet. There were small pieces of wet plaster, dust, and grime on his face and in his hair. Judging from the look on his face, he was not happy. In fact, he looked utterly miserable; so much so, that it was comical and she couldn't help but laugh.

Three

Wally angrily pressed the doorbell button again. Apparently, the fool in the apartment upstairs had left the kitchen water running to the point of overflowing the sink. He was in no mood for this. He was uncomfortably wet, covered in plaster, grimy and dirty. To top it all off, his stomach was beginning to growl and he was getting hungry, which only aggravated the situation.

He pressed his ear up against the door. He knew someone was home, after all he had heard foot steps from his apartment below. Why didn't anyone answer the doorbell? he wondered.

His stomach growled again. "I'm standing here in the hallway, dirty, dripping wet and now starving to death!" he grumbled. His cold, uncomfortably wet clothes clung to him like a second skin, dripping silently onto the hallway carpeting, forming several small puddles where he stood.

Slowly the door opened. An attractive young woman, dressed in blue jeans and a maroon Central City University t-shirt appeared from behind the door. She was laughing so hard that she was doubled-over, holding her stomach.

Wally stared in amazement.

"I'm sorry," she managed to say in between bursts of laughter. "Please come in," she said, managing to get control of herself.

Speechless, he stared at her. This woman was beautiful, stunning, to say the least. Her shoulder-length black, wavy hair accentuated her incredibly captivating blue eyes, which were the deepest shade of blue Wally had ever seen. He doubted he had ever seen another woman with such innocent natural beauty.

Wally followed Kali into the apartment. Clearly, Kali had just moved in that day; there were open cartons, boxes, and bulging bags of clothes everywhere. As Wally moved deeper into the apartment, he could feel the sogginess of the waterlogged carpeting beneath his feet. He turned his attention back to Kali, "What happened?" he asked.

Kali pointed to the kitchen, "I was running the water in the kitchen sink to cook a pot of spaghetti and the next thing I knew, water began pouring out from the pipe underneath the sink."

Curious, Wally headed directly for the kitchen.

"Wally?" Mr. Jensen said, as they entered the room.

"Hey C.J.!" Wally answered. "What's the deal here?" he asked.

"Looks like a busted pipe. What happened to you?" Mr. Jensen asked, looking concerned.

"Huh?" Wally responded, "Oh yeah. It's raining in my kitchen – now I can shower AND cook dinner at the same time."

"Glad to see you still got your sense of humor, Wally!" Mr. Jensen replied. "I'll be down to check it out as soon as I'm through here."

"No problem C.J. Take your time," Wally answered, turning his attention to Kali. "By the way, I'm your neighbor from down under; Wally West."

Kali smiled. "I'm Kali O'Malley," she said, extending her hand. "And I'm truly sorry about your apartment."

Wally shook her hand and then gently kissed it. "Apology accepted, but only if you allow me to treat you to dinner. It doesn't look like your spaghetti will be ready any time soon," he added, his green eyes twinkling.

Kali smiled and nodded shyly.

"Okay then. I think I need to hop in the shower before we go, though. Do you want to hang out in my apartment while I get ready? It will only take a second," he suggested.

Kali glanced in Mr. Jensen's direction.

"It's okay, Kali. You can trust Wally. He'll behave like a perfect gentleman; won't you Wally?" Mr. Jensen said, throwing Wally a stern look.

"Sure, C.J..., Just call me 'Sir Lancelot,'" Wally said, bowing ever so gentlemanly.

Four

Kali followed Wally into his apartment one level below, Apartment 3D. She was not surprised to find that the layout of Wally's apartment was identical to hers, but the décor was distinctly different. Beautiful photographs of breath-taking scenery hung haphazardly along the walls to his apartment. His tastefully decorated apartment reflected Wally's preference for a comfortable and simple lifestyle. Several comic books, assorted sports magazines, and newspapers covered the La-Z-Boy sofa and matching recliner. Although a bit cluttered, the apartment was otherwise clean and neat.

"Sorry for the mess," Wally said, scooping up the comic books, magazines, and newspapers.

Kali nodded and smiled.

"Care for a glass of Pepsi?" Wally offered, arranging the magazines and newspapers into a neat pile on his coffee table.

"Diet or regular?" she asked politely, watching him.

"Sorry, only got regular. Is that okay?" he asked.

"Sure," Kali nodded, "Don't bother though, I can get it myself. Why don't you go ahead and get ready," she said, heading towards the kitchen.

"Okay, Thanks," Wally smiled and disappeared into the bathroom.

Kali heard the sound of the shower running, as she entered the kitchen. The large gaping hole in the ceiling above Wally's sink took her by surprise as did the four overflowing pots of water sitting on the floor in the middle of the room. Forgetting the Pepsi, she opened the kitchen closet door in search of a broom, mop, and dustpan.

First, she emptied the pots of water, washed the pots, and mopped up the kitchen floor. Then she noticed that some debris from the ceiling had also fallen on the counters as well as on top of the refrigerator, so she cleaned that up as well. Now the kitchen looked as good as new, or at least as good as could be under the circumstances, she reasoned.

She opened the refrigerator door to get that drink of Pepsi Wally had offered. To her surprise, the spotless refrigerator was nearly empty except for a can of Pepsi, 3 eggs and an empty milk carton. What is that about? she wondered, taking the Pepsi can.

Five

Wally was so anxious to get back to Kali that he showered and shaved in less than four seconds. Too quick, he realized, as he searched through his dresser for his favorite blue baseball shirt.

Ah! He remembered. It's with the dirty clothes! He rushed to the hamper and hastily yanked out the treasured shirt.

"Ugh! This has to be washed!" he said, with disgust. Quickly he threw it in the sink and doused it with laundry detergent. He scrubbed it at super speed and another second later, it was clean and fresh again. He twisted it above the sink, wringing out all the water.

A bit wet still though, he realized, as he donned his favorite and now clean shirt. He sped around in a circle at super speed to dry the shirt. Once again, in no time, his task was complete.

Surveying his appearance in the mirror, Wally suddenly felt overcome by a strange sense of vertigo; stumbling forward, he lost his balance and fell to the floor. Something was wrong. Instinctively he covered his eyes and leaned back on the floor. The room began to spin.

After a few seconds, Wally grew restless. I can't just lay here on the floor! he told himself. His stomach began growling again, which reminded him that he needed to get to some food, quick.

Remembering that Kali was in the next room, he wondered what she was doing. He carefully rose to his feet and quietly tiptoed over to his bedroom door. Placing his ear against the door, he heard the television in the living room. Slowly, he opened the door and peeked out. Kali was sitting comfortably on the recliner with a full glass of Pepsi in her hand watching a news program on TV. Good, he thought, that gives me plenty of time.

Quickly, he ran back to the bathroom and turned the shower back on. After changing into his Flash costume, he climbed out the bathroom window, slid down the fire escape and raced down the street, at super speed, to Hamburger Haven. Within a matter of moments, he was sitting at a table eating. He ate 5 cheeseburgers, 4 French fries, 3 super sodas and 11 chocolate chip cookies in the time it takes anyone else to unwrap a straw.

Ahhh! Flash sighed. He felt much better now and let out a loud burp!

The woman at the next table shot him an annoyed look.

"Ooops, sorry," Flash said, looking embarrassed.

"Look Mom! There's Flash!" a little five-year-old boy shouted, jumping up and down excitedly, pointing to Flash.

"Flash? Where?" echoed voices throughout the restaurant.

Suddenly, Flash found himself surrounded by a small crowd of admirers. Before he knew it, a news reporter, who had cut his way through the crowd, stood at Flash's side. The pushy man presumptuously wrapped his arm around Flash's shoulder and shoved a large microphone in front of Flash's face.

"Flash!" the reporter shouted excitedly in Flash's ear. "Ron Bevins, from W3DTV, here. Can I have a quick interview?" Not bothering to wait for an answer he began his interview. "Flash, please tell our viewers, what are you doing here?" he asked. The reporter, though addressing Flash, looked directly at the video camera pointed at them by the news station's cameraman.

Flash beamed, smiling from ear to ear. Instead of looking at the camera, Flash focused his complete attention on the reporter. With just inches between their faces, Flash threw his arm around the man and spoke into his face. "Why Ron, I'm enjoying a quick little meal out. How about you? You hungry, Ron?"

The reporter was stunned to silence. Clearly, he had not expected Flash to react this way. The people he interviewed were supposed to focus their attention on the camera, not him. They were supposed to answer the questions, not him. And, this interview was supposed to be about Flash, not him! "Uh, … no, I ate dinner earlier, thanks," he stuttered, looking back and forth between Flash and the camera, flustered.

"Well, I highly recommend the cheeseburgers and fries at this wonderful establishment, Ron. Perhaps next time you can join me?" Flash continued, still staring Ron in the face.

"Uh… yes, that would be nice," Ron answered. "Listen, Flash," he said, taking back control of this interview. "I'd like to ask you a few questions. Very few super-heroes are out and about town, but you have always been available to the public. Would you say that accounts for your popularity with the citizens of Central City?"

"Sure, Ron!" Flash answered with enthusiasm. "I believe super-heroes should go out there and mingle with the citizens. You know, establish a relationship, so to speak. I'm a people person, Ron, how about you?" Flash grabbed the microphone out of Ron's hand and aimed it at the reporter's shocked face.

"Uh, sure, Flash. Of course, I am a people person. I mean I love people," Ron looked uncomfortable.

"Glad to hear that, Ron." Flash turned his attention away from Ron and to a blonde-haired 6 year-old girl, standing nearby. "Say, sweetie, what's your name?" he asked, turning his back on the reporter.

The little girl's face lit up. "Joy," she replied bashfully.

"What a lovely name!" Flash said sincerely. "Would you be my friend?" he asked.

"Okay," Joy giggled and nodded.

"Excuse me, Flash, I need that microphone back," Ron interrupted, snatching the microphone out of Flash's hand."

Flash hugged Joy and then hugged Ron, "No problem, Ron. I gotta run anyway. Bye everyone!"