The young speedster found himself cooped up in his room on a rainy Saturday afternoon. The team had a mission the previous day that lasted through to the morning. It was a simple mission really, try to find the exact location of an underground venom exchange. Batman knew roughly that it was on the northern part of Cuba but the specific coordinates eluded him. That was where the team came in. As an undercover mission it went fairly well. There were a few bumps where Superboy got frustrated and decided to punch a window but Miss Martian using her telekinesis made it look as though a very powerful wind was the cause. Artemis and Aqualad eventually found the location and the team made a quiet retreat.

They arrived at the cave at two in the morning, exhausted Robin imported the information to the Bat cave and everyone decided to crash in the mountain's spare bedrooms. The next morning Robin had already left for Gotham getting an urgent message from Daddy Bats. He left a note in the kitchen. Wally was bummed his best friend couldn't have stuck around longer. He had been looking forward to breaking in his new Call of Duty game with his genius hacker friend. Aqualad had returned to Atlantis for a little rest and rehydration. Megan had convinced Conner to go see a manatee showing of this new girlie flick that came out. Normally Wally would have tried to tag along, get a good seat next to Megan but he really couldn't stand chick flicks. So that left him alone in the Cave with Artemis. Wally had considered going back to Central City but the teleporter dropped him off on the opposite side of the city from his house and he really didn't want to run in the rain. At speedforce that can really hurt.

Wally then with the limited options around him forced himself back into his room. He knew that Artemis was wondering the Cave, not hearing the loud teleporter tell him otherwise, and he really wasn't in the mood to bump into her and have a row about useless topics like his personality or the fact that his costume hurt her eyes. He couldn't start arguing with her because frankly Wally didn't know if he could control himself. Ever since the team had returned from Bialya Artemis had been making Wally feel different.

Now whenever Wally saw Artemis around a wave of nausea would rush over him. Like that time he had eaten that bad calamari at a cheap Japanese restaurant. He couldn't look at her face without his stomach spasming and his heart sputtering out of control. At first Wally had convinced himself that it was because the sight of her ugly face made him want to vomit but being the "intelligent" boy that he was that excuse quickly lost merit. Looking for the real answer Wally turned to the only thing he trusted...science. He quickly broke down his symptoms, data, scenario, occurrences and variables and plugged it in with the scientific method. Finally the conclusion was shoved in his face: He had a crush on Artemis.

" Ugh" Wally groaned into his pillow. Just thinking it made him sick. Well that and he hadn't eaten in, he checks the clock, two hours. A mental debate came before him. Should he 'a' suffer in his room from increased hunger pains yet be completely safe from seeing...her, or should he 'b' run quickly to the kitchen, ravage the fridge, then bolt back to his room, yet run the risk of running into Artemis. Option 'b' was looking better and better as each passing second went by. Finally Wally sighed, got out of bed and made a dash out of his room.

Wally made it to the kitchen in less than two seconds and begins to attack the poor defenseless refrigerator. He stops abruptly when he hears little clicks coming from the living room. He looks up with half a bagel in his mouth and scans the area.

There he spotted Artemis facing away from him on the couch. He shifted slightly to get a good look of her. Artemis was sitting cross-legged, in civilian garb, holding an arrow in one hand and a small metal tool in the other. He eyebrows were furrowed in concentration as she was slowly screwing in a tiny appendage on to the side of the trick arrow. On the coffee table under her was her whole arsenal of arrows spread out with various tools and chips sprinkled on top of them. She was obviously very focused otherwise Wally was sure she would have made some snappy comment on his rather loud eating habits.

Wally finished the bagel in his mouth. Another dilemma sprang in front of him. Wally was pretty full now and had completed his mission on refilling his 'hp' bar yet he didn't feel like going back to his room. Being the speedster that Wally is, just lying on his bed wasn't an activity that would hold his attention. He needed a distraction from all these Artemis thoughts. Then Wally noticed it, the TV remote that was "conveniently" right next to Artemis' arrows on the coffee table. Would TV really distract him from the person that was in the same room? Not coming up with an answer or another possible activity, Wally conceded and walked casually to the couch, picked up the remote and turned it to 'The Flaming C ' his favorite cartoon.

Wally sat as far away from Artemis as possible and waited for her to comment about the noise from the TV and how it's distracting her from the adjustments she is making on her arrows. When no such comment came Wally frowned. Was she really that concentrated on her work or was she not bugging him to bug him? Wally studied her face to see if she was trying to hide a smirk. He leaned instinctively, eyes squinted looking for any sign of masked emotions. He saw none but then abruptly Artemis turned, obviously feeling Wally's eyes on her.

"What?" She said curiously, granted abrasive but Artemis hadn't snapped at him.

Wally blinked as he pulled out of his concentration. "Uh Nothing" he muttered, darting his eyes back at the TV where the Flaming C was performing an impressive acrobatic feat. Artemis studied him for a few seconds, shrugged, then went back to her work.

Wally frowned again as he stared at the TV not really paying attention to the dashing hero. Why was she being so...so … polite with him? Normally Artemis would have said something along the lines of 'What the hell are you looking at Baywatch?' to which Wally probably would have retorted 'Just wondering why your bothering to fix your arrows if you can't even shoot straight'. Which would have lead to an all out bitch contest ending when Artemis got fed up with Wally's antics and stormed out of the room. Why hadn't that happened? Had Bialya really affected Artemis as much as it had affected him? Was Artemis being nicer to him? Wally sank lower into the couch as these thoughts swirled around his scientific brain with only one conclusion forming: No TV had not distracted him at all.

"What's got you all deflated Baywatch? You're usually more...energetic than this" Artemis inquired as she noticed Wally slump lower into the couch, his face covered in confusion.

She did it again! She had paused, visibly paused and called him energetic. Artemis could have probably come up with a million more insulting adjectives than 'energetic'. This just wasn't making any sense! Wally turned his head towards Artemis and noted how much closer he had gotten to her in the last few minutes, only half a seat cushion away to be precise. Had he been unconsciously moving closer to her? Like in those lame TV sitcoms like 'Hello Megan'. Wally could punch himself for pulling such a move on Artemis.

"Wally?" Artemis repeated again after he didn't answer her, slight concern spilling through her voice.

She touched his shoulder when he again stayed silent. Like a jolt of electricity Wally was pulled from his thoughts.

"No! Uh Nothing, I'm just thinking about ...stuff" Wally finished lamely. As if the world was snapped back into focus Wally heard everything again. The clicking of Artemis' tools as she continued her work, satisfied with his answer. The dishwasher running behind him. The slight buzz from a light bulb that was having difficulty working and especially the obnoxious commercial about brightly colored ice cream that could give children all the powers of the Flaming C which frankly was just poor marketing strategy.

Annoyed, Wally grabbed the remote and hit the mute button to silence the flying children and shifted slightly to get a better view of Artemis. She looked up from her arrow, noticing the lack of noise coming from the TV and turned to Wally.

"Commercial" He muttered. "So..." Wally started, wanting for some reason to talk with Artemis. But about what? His mind went blank.

"So?" Artemis repeated back, a quizzical look on her face, half amused, half questioning. Wally froze he had no idea what to say. Desperately he scanned the area around him, once again noticing how he was closer to Artemis. When in the hell was he doing this? He spotted the arrow in her hand. It had a sharp tip but with a cone over it with four prongs coming out at angles that turned in. Wally wondered why Artemis would need an arrow for that. So as a curious man of science Wally stated his inquires out loud.

"What's with the tip of your arrow?" Crap! He hadn't meant for it to sound so rude. Wally sounded like he was talking down to her...again. But he swore he wasn't trying to this time. Artemis blinked a couple of times, surprised he would take an interest in this kind of stuff.

" Green Arrow showed me how to make it" She plucked the tip off the arrow and handed it to Wally so he could have a better look at it. He stiffened when their hands touched but got over it quickly. On closer examination he saw each prong was angled the same way with a screw, and as he tested it, could adjust the angle slightly. He also saw four little pads on the end of each prong. Wally's, now genuine, curiosity grew.

" Remember when the league had to face off against Bizarro, you know? That idiot who has the same powers as Superman. Green Arrow invented this on the sly to hold the kryptonite that Batman kept on him. These prongs allowed him to securely hold the kryptonite without it falling off when he shot it at Bizarro's chest" Artemis explained, leaning forward with him, her fingers pointing at the traction marks on the little pads. Her forehead now mere centimeters from Wally's. He noticed and felt a blush creep over his face.

" See these groves?" She stated a warm smile shining on her face that Wally couldn't help but mirror. God she was beautiful.

"Yeah" Wally said slowly almost slurred. He stiffened. Did his voice really sound like that? He sounded like a lovesick puppy or a drunk girl watching 'Twilight' or both! He wanted to cover his face in shame but Artemis' fingers was still on the tip that he was holding. She didn't seem to notice his tone and continued her explanation.

"I had to use a laser to get them that way. The machine was really tricky I messed up five pads before I got it right"

"Well they look great" Wally complimented. Genuinely proud of her. Artemis blushed her eyes turning from the tip to lock onto Wally's. Once she noticed the proximity between them, her blush increased, turning deep scarlet in the process but she didn't pull away.

Suddenly Wally felt it. This gravitational pull that seemed to push himself millimeter by millimeter closer to Artemis and her full now parted lips. He felt the wave of nausea overcome him again and the panic race in his heart. What was he doing? This was Artemis, Artemis! Sure he had a crush on her but it didn't mean anything. It wasn't one of those crushes you acted on. It's just those feelings you get for a couple of weeks and then move on. He had felt it hundreds of times. Besides Artemis wasn't into him like that! She was digging Superboy, he heard her checking Superboy out himself. She didn't like him. He thought in protest. Then the words sunk in. She didn't like him, he told himself more firmly the hurt of that statement making his stomach wrench.

Wally paused for a split-second. He should pull back. Pull away and leave the room rather than face the humiliation of being rejected. Then he noticed that Artemis was leaning. Ever so slightly, millimeter by millimeter Artemis was leaning in. Her eyes half shut and barely focused. She...she wanted to do this! With new found gusto Wally began to lean in again until they were as close as they could be without touching. Their lips brushing, he could feel her hot breath on his face. It felt amazing. Wally mentally readied himself. He closed his eyes completely, lips parted. All he had to do was lean and-

"Your show is back on" Artemis said in a hollow voice. Her face pulled away as she quickly fumbled for her arrow, ripping the tip out of his hand and avoiding eye contact she continued her work.

Wally's eyes opened immediately. The sting of her rejection washed over him like waves. He pulled back and scooted three couch cushions away from her. How could he have bee so stupid? Of course she wouldn't have kissed him, what was he thinking? Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! He wanted to cry, something that hadn't happened since his bike got smashed by that garbage truck five years ago. He looked at the TV. She wasn't lying, the Flaming C was onscreen again but Wally didn't care.

He clicked the power button on the remote and zoomed out of the room not bothering to give Artemis an explanation. He found himself at his door and ripped it open. Slamming the door shut Wally paced around for two seconds then out of nowhere punched the wall viciously, not feeling the pain. He then collapsed onto his bed and let the silent tears run down his face. Stupid he thought. Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!