Chapter 1: Fly in the Corner of Your Eye

It started a little ways into August; the first few days before Wally would be starting school again. He lay on his stomach, skin becoming one with sand, and the sweat and sunscreen became so thick that he could feel the layers as they melted across his face. Being a natural redhead, Wally normally sunburned before he could ever get a good tan (a loophole Red Arrow somehow managed to dodge), so there he sat in a goofy pair of glasses while Robin continued scooping sand and dumping it on the small of his back.

"Who do you think would win in a race?" Wally asked. He pushed his sunglasses up the bridge of his nose and tilted his head to the side. "Quicksilver or the Flash?"

Robin paused from scooping sand and hummed thoughtfully. Wally took that time and looked through the rosy tint toward the volleyball court Megan and the rest of the guys had set up. Boys versus Girls. The thought was appealing, but being incredibly outnumbered, neither Boy Wonder nor he wanted to get into an argument over who would e the third 'girl.'

Bored out of his mind, Wally's eyes casually landed on Kaldur. They trailed the elongated tattoo that extended across bronze-colored skin and shined under the rays of sunlight.

"Flash, hands down," Rob said finally. He leaned over to fiddle with his high-tech laptop and brushes sand away from his skin, a light curse falling from his lips. "What about this? Batman, the illustrious you-know-who, or Tony Stark, aka Iron Man?"

"Iron Man. Duh." There was a vibrato in the way Kaldur gazed, with his eyes full, chuckle escaping his lips that was far inaudible on their side of the beach. His abs were firm, tight, stunning, and dark, and the muscles across his stomach were meshed—taut and yet so flexible, as he turned his head to flash a hidden smile in Artemis's direction. "You're gonna be a sophomore this year, right?"

"Yup. What classes are you taking?" Rob typed something across his keyboard that sounded suspiciously like the backspace key jabbed repeatedly over-and-over. "And what do you mean, Iron Man? Batman's got twice as manygadgets as Tony Stark does."

"Iron Man doesn't parade around with his underwear hanging out," Wally pointed out. The fins between Kaldur's fingers wrinkled as they curled around the ball, and he raised a hand fluidly, the other domed against plastic as he planned to strike. "And sucks. I gotta take another year of English for the credit, otherwise they're not gonna let me graduate."

"Iron Man doesn't have a sidekick. He doesn't act like a stupid playboy, he is stupid, and should hurry up and bang his secretary," Rob insisted. And Wally's eyes went lower as Kaldur turned, locking onto the arch of his back. "You do the summer reading yet?"

"Nah. Taking on-level. I want to be a forensic scientist by the time I get out of high school and already have a guaranteed internship at CCPD. All I need is some basic reading and—well, Batman's partner is my best friend." Wally pulled the sunglasses from his face and felt his cheekbones tingle from the heat. "Cheat codes."

The muscles in Kaldur's let out a burst of energy as he skidded across the sand with one quick murmur in Conner's way.

Rob had the decency to snicker at his little joke. "Cheat codes can only get you so far in life, Kid Dork."

"Yeah, like all the freaking way."

Kaldur's butt was utterly delectable.

Wait, what?

Unceremoniously Wally stood up from the ground, feeling a familiar pool of heat pull his stomach. Sand fell off his shoulder blades like rain, and ignoring the, 'Dude!' from an irate little birdie, Wally ran through wet beach sand into pinching water before diving head first into the beginnings of a deep end.

That was weird.

Wally dove under as deep as he could get himself, eyes burning from sea salts as he got low enough for his lungs to tingle. His hair was getting pretty long (well, for his standards. The last thing he needed was for Artie to notice it curling and whip out the ginger jokes), and he could feel the water beat against it, yanking him back.

Swimming was Kaldur's thing as running was Wally's.

Generally a quick swim was all he needed to revitalize followed by the occasional barbecues the team and he would have over the summer. He'd get into races with everyone on the team, and more than one occasion Kaldur and he questioned what was faster: running over water or swimming.

It wasn't like he had a big opinion on swimming. Right now with the current trying to pull him ashore and make it feel like he was swimming through baby food, it was plenty for him. Molecules bounced back and forth through his body, ricocheting and tingling with impact against something else.

That was really weird.

The familiar bubble pulsed in his throat, signaling his need for air. Wally waved a hearty goodbye to the oceanic fishes and swam up to the surface, a good five meters away from the coast. The mountain cast a long shadow next to him once his lungs met air, and Wally puffed air.

Ten minutes later he was still idling in his small area amidst the water, poking stray fish with a stick he found. From the corner of his eye, Wally caught glimpse of Conner swimming toward him.

"I'm going to name you Artie, and you Kal, and you Megster, and—Megster, stop trying to eat little-plankton Robbie—oh. Hey, Supey."

Conner looked back, visibly unsettled while Wally took roll call of five fish plus the two peachy-blobs that he was pretty sure were his own two feet. "Megan told me to come get you. Why are you giving Kaldur's fish-friends new names?"

"You mean they already have names?" Wally didn't look up. If the way his heart was beating four times its normal rate was any given indication, then he didn't want to think of what would happen…if they were actually looking at each other. "Sorry. I'm more familiar with the ones they sale in the food aisle at the supermarket."

"Those are yummy," Conner agreed assertively. He kept his arms widespread, occasionally and awkwardly sending water in Wally's direction.

The speedster shivered, hot, sun-bathed skin getting splashed with cool water.

Finally, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, totally. Why?"

"You left in a hurry," Conner pointed out. His eyebrows knit together and gaze narrowed until Wally could feel his heart skip a beat. Maybe four. "Megan was upset that you were leaving before you tried out her barbecue and Robin's upset because you got dirt in his keyboard when you kicked it into high gear."

"Yeah, yeah, totally fine. Really." Wally forced himself to look up to the taller teen's gaze and forced a grin. Relief fluttered through him as his heart finally slowed and Conner's gaze was nothing but earnest. "Tell her I'll be there in another five minutes."

"Okay." Conner didn't look convinced. But seeing as he finally got an answer, he kicked in the other direction and went back to shore where awkwardly enough, all of his teammates were staring at him with concern. Artemis snorted, rolled her eyes, and Wally could imagine the, 'Typical,' roll off her tongue when she went to their little bonfire. Satisfied, everyone else followed after, ripping up weenie packages and checking on patties.

Wally's eyes stared still, watching as Conner's long body swam through ocean water, the sharpness of his shoulder blades rippling against currents. A familiar flush bloomed across his cheeks and the poor speedster fidgeted.

He jerked again, hunching shoulders and wished for every deity up there to make him drown. Wally Jr. sang happily, despite how unnerved Wally Sr. felt.

Way to kick off senior year, West.

xxxxx

The feeling didn't leave Wally later that night when he had to run Rob all the way to Gotham. Artie stayed behind, insistent on helping the rest of the team clean up the beach before going inside to play some games and watch a movie or something. Wally'd been the one insistent on going home for the night because staying any longer meant getting into body heat and more staring. He caught himself twice watching both his teammates work.

And it was a bit…freaky.

"Okay." Rob pulled the sunglasses away from his line of vision, and they immediately halted in the small alleyway near the library. Vibrant blue eyes gazed back, serious as ever while Wally finally set him on his own two feet.

The speedster stepped back, conscious of the way his best friend—not to mention leader—was staring him down. He crossed arms over his chest, head raised and tilted to the side. "Yeah?"

Rob's lips contorted into a frown and he placed his hands on hips, like casually waltzing to a little kid and saying—"What's up?"

"Um. Not gravity."

"Wally."

Four years of knowing his best friend and Wally doubted he would ever get used to it when Robin asserted his authority. It was a low blow, they both knew, and Wally couldn't be bothered to look his best friend in the eye. Not here, not right now.

"I think," he said finally, and he stuffed his hands in his khakis, "I may be going through something."

"You were perfectly fine at the beach today," Dick pointed out. "Until you leaped up in the middle of our conversation and ran into the water. You wouldn't look anyone in the eye for the rest of the night."

"Y…yeah, pretty much." Wally looked away and forced himself to look at the pretty hypnotizing colors of a 70's-looking diner across the street. Pink and bright blue; some…very manly colors, right there, he guessed.

The sounds of crickets, upchucking factory smoke, and car horns filled the air, and clearly Wally's voice was the only thing missing. As Robin shifted between his feet (stiff knee cracking, from the way it made a sound evidently), Wally realized he'd been lost in his thoughts longer than intended.

More concern glimmered in Dick's gaze and this time he slackened, taking the time to step forward and place a hand on Wally's shoulder comfortingly. In instinct the speedster jerked away and cringed, and Boy Wonder simply got a little more concerned.

"Do you…want to talk about it?"

Sure, tell my best friend I've been checking out our guy friends all afternoon and don't know why? Kaldur's tattoos are amazing, and if you look close enough, tufts of hair are sticking out of Conner's—

"No. N-Not yet," Wally stammered. He felt chills run up his arms despite the summer night and shivered, clammy under his t-shirt and flushed for no reason. What should be no reason, anyway.

"Wally—"

"I," Wally started, and he ran his hand through his hair consciously for what felt like the thirteenth time that night, "want to get all the facts straight. Before anything happens and stuff."

Maybe today was a fluke. Maybe too much sun; maybe Rob managed to throw enough sand at him that it seeped through his hair and into his brain, causing it to malfunction. Maybe he was just losing it—and that was an acceptable answer. Totally.

"Y'know?" he finished lamely. There was a squirm in his voice like the octave had suddenly dropped, and Wally fervently wiped the sweat off his face. Finally he found his 'out' when the glimpse of a familiar cape and red hair caught his attention, and a relieved smile graced his lips. "Besides, you got a visitor."

When Robin looked over the library rooftop, genuinely surprised, Wally admitted to himself that his lack of nerves must have given off a horrible impression if Boy Wonder couldn't even notice when his own not-girlfriend had fluttered above them.

Wally prepped for his trip back to Central City, and Robin quickly grabbed his wrist.

"Wait—"

"Practice safe sex, Boy Wonder."

"Wally—"

"Bye." Wally sprinted out the alley, quickly looking over his shoulder to pass a mock-salute in the smiling Batgirl's direction before running due west. His heart rate spiked and the teen bit the inside of his mouth once he made it to the outskirts of Gotham City, still running.

Now, without anyone around him and just himself to focus on, Wally could feel the blood pumping in his flesh and lungs swell with anticipation.

Rob could deny it all he wanted, but the chemistry was unquestionable between him and the new chick parading around as Batgirl. Wally'd seen it once on a mission, and the way red fluttered across his best friend-slash-leader's cheeks made him cry a big-brother's tears of joy. Conner and Megan were the power couple—practically married, and did all but put a ring on one another's fingers. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that Artemis and Kaldur would get together soon. The sexual tension, the way Kaldur would devotedly follow her lead during missions, and the flirty looks she passed to make him turn red as his wetsuit.

They dated once, Artie and him. If it counted for anything, she was a fan-freaking-tastic kisser, and they tended to argue a lot. The arguing usually led to make-up make-outs, but after eight months of either arguing or kissing every time they were in the same room, they mutually broke up. (Only to get into an argument about it less than two weeks later, when they both coincidentally moved on already, but still.)

Wally sucked in a breath once he made it down the Dakotas and continued his trip back to Kansas.

But...with today, with his reaction with the guys from the point of view of a scientist, Wally couldn't help but worry his change of behavior had happened over a period of time. Darwin's Theory of Evolution.

Lingering glances? Holding onto body warmth longer than he needed to? Was today just the first day he was…conscious of it?

Maybe he'd been too exposed to estrogen as of recently, and other feminine hormones.

Maybe…maybe he was ga—

No.

Wally caught himself before he could trip over his own two feet and stopped, coming to a freezing halt right outside Aunt I and Uncle B's house. He stood on the porch with his hands balled into fists, head hanging despondently in confusion.

No, he stretched again. That had to be the stupidest, most preposterous scientific conclusion ever and—no.

Fresh on his claim, he could feel his heart drill rapidly against his ribcage until it hurt and rummaged for the house key to finally come inside.

"Kid?" Uncle Barry met eyes with him from the couch, hand set on the remote while Wally reached for the sea salts in his hair. It caught him off guard when his mentor gave a look of confusion before concern flashed over his eyes. "Something wrong with your parents?"

"What? I—no, I just got back." Right, he didn't live here anymore. Mom wanted him to move back 'home' for his senior year before he went off to college. But he'd been living with his aunt and uncle for the past four or five years, so granted, it was…instinct. "Sorry, old habits die hard."

"It's fine. You can be back in a flash before curfew, anyway." A fond grin split across Uncle Barry's lips and he patted the empty spot next to him. "Iris is out in Keystone covering a debate over who would win in a race: Superman or the Flash."

Ironic. Sure enough, the TV screen was littered with flashing cameras, and amongst the people, Aunt Iris had her microphone held up close to the stage. Wally sat down with a loud, harsh thud and leaned forward, cheek resting numbly on his hand.

"Something wrong?" Uncle Barry scooted forward and matched his body language, eyes gleaming with concern.

"No." Lie.

But Uncle Barry had always been passive, allowing Wally to figure out the problem on his own before he ever needed to confront someone. From the corner of his eye, Wally could see Uncle Barry clear as day with the hidden frown in his reassuring smile, and swallowed hard when a hand was placed on his knee. "Alright, Kid. But you know where to find me—"

"Uncle Barry," Wally gulped, and he casually looked the other way. "Have you ever…looked at guys?"

Uncle Barry looked encouraged, whereas Wally was nervous out of his mind. "What do you mean?"

Maybe this was a bad idea. "I mean…sexually? Sort of?"

Maybe this was a really bad idea.

"Wait, uh—" Obviously taken off guard, Uncle Barry blinked and all sorts of colors and emotions mixed across his face. "Kid—Wally, what are you trying to—?"

"Forget I mentioned anything—" Wally stood abruptly and ignored the, 'Wally, wait—' that slipped out of his uncle's mouth. He sprinted out the door, careful to shut it behind him before Aunt I could upset with him later, and ran down the street to the neighborhood up the road. A mild jog, long enough so that he could get his thoughts in order.

It was probably just too much sun. Yeah, too much sun and countless days at the beach right before school would start—that was it. He was just hallucinating. Wally bit his lip once he made it to his parents' neighborhood and stopped in the driveway.

He made it to the door, regarding his dad's beat up station wagon, dragged the key from under the welcome mat and headed directly for the stairs once inside.

"You're late," his father called up.

Wally clutched the banister, long sigh drawing from his lips. "You said that my curfew wasn't until twelve."

"It's probably twelve over at Happy Harbor." The frown could be heard in his father's tone, despite his strictness.

Clutter echoed through the kitchen, followed by his mother's shrill-yet-soothing tone before Wally could hear her place a plate on the table. "Hush, Rudy. Are you hungry, honey?"

"I already ate," Wally called back, patting his stomach half-heartedly. One of the upsides to living with Aunt I was that she made the best meatloaf in the world. His mother—not so much. "I'll just go to bed, Mom. School tomorrow."

Dad was relentless. "Don't make me ground you before school even starts, boy."

Wally rolled his eyes and snorted. "I…was late because I was saving people. I mean, Kid Flash doesn't have a curfew, right?"

The loud grumble from his father's lips reached the stairs, along with a rustle of paper, which probably meant Dad was reading the newspaper.

Who reads the newspaper at the dinner table? He mused, and grinned to himself.

"I'll look it up," Dad warned.

"Yeah," Wally murmured under his breath. "Once you figure out how to use the internet and stop using dial-up, old man." A little louder, Wally grinned and dragged himself upstairs. "G'night, Mom, g'night, Dad."

"G'night, sweetheart!" his mother's sugary-sweet voice reached his ears.

Wally shivered, throwing his dirty shirt into the laundry hamper. One quick shower later, he stepped back into the room, reminded of boxes he still needed to unpack and clothes he needed to hang up. The speedster looked over to his bed and the disturbingly too-neat bed and the litter of pictures his mother had on his nightstand.

Eyes narrowing, his fingers laced around the tiny cross necklace his mother had gotten him when he was five and a frown spilled across his face.

This better blow over by tomorrow.

He jumped into brand-new sheets, grimacing at the discomfort and plentiful amount of starch his mother had applied and dug his head into the pillow, eyes shut tightly and begging for sleep.

Preferably in the morning.

xxxxxx

Author's Note:

I'm excited for this one! See you in two weeks? :D