Of course Artemis knew Mondays were the default worst day of the week, but this Monday happened to be particularly horrible.

She snapped her eyes open every few moments, staring bleary eyed at the page of English notes that rested on the desk in front of her, trying to evade the sandman that seemed to be haunting her. Well, that's what she got for falling asleep at HQ. And for not realizing that Red Tornado shut down the zeta beam tubes during the night. Whose idiotic idea was that, anyway? So when she fell off the couch and realized that it was four in the morning and that her mother was actually going to skin her alive, Artemis was forced to hijack Robin's spare bike.

And thus commenced her impromptu three hour road trip.

In the pouring rain.

On a school morning.

Artemis scrunched her eyes closed and rubbed them viciously with the heels of her palms. She would get through this lesson, even if it meant listening to the teacher drone on and on about some guy named Sydney Carton. She probably should've paid more attention the past few days, but that was the past, and this is now. And apparently the now still contained notes overrun by doodles of bows and arrows and red lightning bolts.

Wait, since when did she doodle Flash symbols? She glared down at the notebook, her pen clutched in her hand, and practically slammed the tip onto the page. She scribbled out the distractedly drawn doodles, tearing into the next page in her single-mindedness. Once Artemis was satisfied with the bolt-free page, she set down her pen and looked up at the still droning teacher. Thank god she had a free period after this. The exhaustion was obviously affecting her mind, so a nap was definitely the way to go.

Thankfully, after five more grueling minutes, the bell finally trilled its way through the school. Artemis pulled herself out of the confines of her desk and gathered her things as quickly as she could, which wasn't all that quick that morning. The tottering tower of books now grasped to her chest, Artemis dragged herself to the door, trailing behind a couple mindless yet harmless rich boy jocks.

But remember, this was a Monday. A particularly horrible Monday at that. She should've seen it coming. It was that kind of day. Mindless Jock Number One (who reminded Artemis of Superboy, in all honesty), in a move she was not expecting, held the heavy wooden door open for her. She smiled in thanks, always appreciative of a little bit of chivalry, and made to step into the raging current of students they liked to call a hallway. But she wasn't even halfway through the doorway when that same heavy wooden door came slamming into her back, making her and her books crash to the tiled floor.

"Nobody wants you here, you Suicide Slums Slut."

That was it. Artemis clenched her fists and pushed herself into a feral crouch, her back still to the jocks. That was the last fucking straw. She jumped up and around, her glare turning their snickering into nervous laughter. She stalked forward, fists still clenched and ready at her sides. "Well, boys," she hissed, raising one of her fists. "I think it's time you learned what we Suicide Slum girls can really do."

She pulled her arm back, the consequences streaming through her mind. Grounding, detention, expulsion, even. She narrowed her eyes. Nope, it would still be worth it. Just one punch, that's all she wanted. And that's what they would get.

But just as soon as she pulled her arm back, it was pulled down by a cool, restraining hand. The hand pulled her back as the pair of jocks dashed away, nervous laughter back to unrelenting snickering. Artemis glared at their retreating backs, adrenaline and rage still pulsing through her veins. As soon as they turned the corner, though, she slumped down, the exhaustion kicking back in, reminding her of her lack of sleep.

Artemis jerked away from the hand still loosely hanging to her arm. She hugged her arms around herself dejectedly as she turned to face the owner of the hand that regrettably saved her from herself. He was crouched down, gathering her scattered notes and carefully stacking them into a neat pile. And as if the wind swept orange hair wasn't enough of a giveaway, bright green eyes peeked up at her own downcast grey.

Wally. Of course it would be Wally.

He stood up silently and stretched out his hands, offering Artemis her things. She snatched them from his grasp and pulled them against her chest, avoiding eye contact and even just looking at him, missing the concern so clearly written in his frown.

"What do you want, West?" she growled after another moment of silence, the hallways emptying as time ticked on. The laughter of carefree teenagers faded gradually, leaving only the two heroes and the sparse thumping of running-late feet.

Wally grinned tightly and shrugged. "Can't I visit my favorite archer?"

"In case you hadn't noticed, Kid Oblivious, my name is Artemis. Not Speedy or Red Arrow or whatever the hell he calls himself," she turned sharply, ponytail swinging behind her, and headed towards her locker at the end of the hall, knowing her unexpected companion would follow. "Also, I happen to be female. The more you know."

Wally laughed to himself quietly, grinning as he leaped after Artemis. Back to normal, then. Thank god. Strangely enough, he really sort of hated it when she was genuinely upset. Not the Wally-I'm-going-to-kill-you kind of upset, though. That kind was way too much fun.

"So," Artemis began as Wally skidded next to her. "Pressing question." She spun around suddenly and put a hand to his chest, cherishing his wide eyes as she balled his shirt into her fist, pulling him down to her eye level. "How do you know where I go to school?"

This was exactly the kind of thing Wally hoped wouldn't happen. How the hell was he supposed to answer her? His eyes darted around, avoiding Artemis' gaze and taking in the sight of the shining new lockers, hoping he would find inspiration somewhere. Anywhere. He couldn't just tell her the truth. As much as he wanted to, that would require giving away Dick's ID, and that was a definite no-no. So he took a deep breath and looked straight into Artemis' glinting grey eyes, hoping they wouldn't silence him as they had the day before.

"Uh," he faltered. He could already see that she knew what he was about to say was going to be a big fat lie. Her mouth pulled to the side in disgust as her eyes left his gaze with a disappointed sheen. "It was in the Justice League database? Um, yeah. It wasn't too hard to hack." The lie took hold in his mind as he grinned with false confidence. "Rob helped a bit. Oh, and Red Tornado gave us the password! A little please and thank you can work wonders."

"Whatever," Artemis spat as she pushed him away from her and watched him flail wildly. She turned to the row of lockers behind them and counted down carefully until she was sure she had the right one. She spun her dial around with a vengeance and slammed open her locker before whipping around to face the sheepish speedster. "Don't tell me the truth, then. It's not like I can be trusted or anything."

"Listen, Artemis," Wally winced as she shoved her books into her already dumpster-like locker. It's funny, he always thought she would be a bit of a neat freak. He leaned on the locker next to hers, arms crossed and shoulders shrugged. "I'm not here to fight. It's just that you didn't text me yesterday, and I was wondering if you still wanted to go through with the plan."

Artemis turned to an innocent looking Wally, gaping incredulously, a notebook frozen halfway into the locker. "Wally, it hasn't even been a day. Haven't you ever heard of patience?"

"What is this patience you speak of?" he asked, cocking his with a pondering look. Artemis almost laughed. Almost. She caught herself before the crime against everything she stood for could be committed. Instead, she heaved a large sigh and shut her locker with a quiet click. This boy was going to be the death of her.

"Fine. I've got a free period now and I'm assuming you do too. And if you don't, I will kick your ass for cutting." Wally nodded sagely as he threw an arm around Artemis' shoulders, pointedly ignoring her own pointed eye roll. "The cafeteria's a bit crowded this period, but it's either there or the library, so -"

"No way," interrupted Wally, steering Artemis towards the glowing red exit sign at the end of the hall. She tried to struggle out of his grasp, but he only held on tighter and leaned down to her ear. "The walls have ears," he whispered, freezing Artemis to the spot and sending a strange shiver down her spine. She tried to shake it off, but she couldn't seem to do it. She looked at him, only inches away. They were both completely still, completely silent. They were like magnets, slowly attracting one another. So close, so close …

But all of a sudden, Wally pulled away, looking straight ahead with what Artemis swore was a forced grin. "And anyway," he continued at his normal energetic tone, dragging a still frozen Artemis along. "I've got the perfect place in mind."

Artemis, finally broken out of her strange reverie, raised her eyebrows as he pushed the door open and held it, waving her through. "You know, Wally," she smirked, strolling out into the Gotham sunshine and smog. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were asking me out on a date."

The door slammed shut as Wally stumbled out, green eyes wide with horror. "NO! No, no. No. Oh god, no," he stammered, trailing behind Artemis, who led them out the front gate. She laughed and shook her head fondly as Wally continued to deny her accusation, but she couldn't help but acknowledge the tiny little sinking feeling that seemed to plague her stomach. It couldn't have been disappointment. It just couldn't have been.

"Okay, Kid," she sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose, interrupting Wally mid-rant. "Where're you taking me?" He froze for a moment before straightening, grin again in place. He reached behind him and pulled his signature pair of red goggles from his back pocket, snapping them over his eyes cockily. Oh, she was not going to like this.

"Well, Central City for a start."

Nope, definitely didn't like it.

"Wally, what do you think you're doing? Put me down!" She screeched as Wally swept her into his arms mechanically, as if he was used to the motion. This was obviously happening way too often.

"Hold on tight, Beautiful," he advised, but Artemis was already grasping his neck for dear life. This may happen often, but that didn't mean she had to like it.

Just before the two sped off, Artemis caught a glimpse of that freshman - Dick Grayson, Bette called him -sneaking back onto campus. He seemed unusually happy for a kid who was probably going to get caught for cutting class. She saw him laugh as his bright blue eyes found her gaze, but the sound was lost in the whipping of the wind as Wally took off, already dashing past the Gotham city limits.

Now that they were running, the wind pulling at her hair, the world silent but for the whisper of that wind and the thrum of Wally's heart, it was natural. Natural that her head would find that perfect spot under his chin, natural that her hands would tighten around his neck. Natural that his heartbeat, pounding with each step he took, would soothe her. Soothe her just as her mother's old Vietnamese lullabies would, when she was just a young girl growing up in an assassin's world, the only world she knew.

But she knew a different world now. A world where her friends would protect her. A world where a boy would gather her up in his arms and run to the ends of the world with her. Because Artemis knew Wally would. It was just who he was, even if she would never tell him so.

So instead, she smiled. The first true smile in months, maybe even years. Just knowing that he would be there for her, that the entire team would always be there for her, it was overwhelming. So she closed her eyes and smiled, letting Wally tug her closer, because it was what she had always needed.

Until she realized he was pulling her closer so she wouldn't fall to the ground as he skidded to a stop in a grimy and graffiti colored alley. She coughed viciously as the dust and the dirt flew into her lungs, making it hard to breathe.

"Sorry, sorry!" Wally cried, putting Artemis on her feet gently before raising his hands in surrender. "Gotta stop in alleys when I'm in civvies, it's a rule!"

"Whatever, Wally, it's fine," Artemis hacked a final cough and straightened her ponytail meticulously. "Let's just hurry it up, I've got class in an hour."

"Got it," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her down to the main road. "It's just around the corner anyway. You'll love it."

Artemis looked around her in amazement, her hand still clutched by Wally's. Everything here was so … clean. Open, clear - happy, if a city could be. The bright colored cars whizzed by the parks filled with happily playing children and families. The buildings towered around them, but not like Gotham. In Gotham, you felt like you were suffocating, the skyscrapers collapsing in on you. But here, in Central City, they were guardians, watching over the city peacefully. Now this was a place to live.

"Here we are!" a bright-eyed Wally said, glancing down happily at Artemis. She looked at the little open air cafe and new immediately why Wally would like it so much. It was small, but in a way that everyone knew each other. Customers were leaning over to each others tables, striking up conversations. The employees chit-chatted happily as they passed each other, laughing at little mishaps and snide comments. Artemis smiled back up at Wally. This was definitely his kind of place.

But then she glanced down and realized their hands were still clasped together, fingers interwoven. She tugged hers away with a nervous laugh, looking back up at the speedster. But he had already turned away, slumping towards the hostess. Artemis frowned before trailing behind, trying to ignore the lingering warmth of his hand.

"Hey, Marie," Artemis overheard him say dejectedly. She crept up beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder. An apology, though she didn't particularly know what for. He tried to perk himself up when he felt her presence beside him, but she only rolled her eyes. He really was a horrible liar.

"Hey, Wall-man," replied the hostess behind the teetering old podium, an older woman with fly-away grey hair. Her smile was infectious, so as she turned her grin to Artemis, she couldn't help but give a small smile back. "Table for two, I assume?"

"Yeah, thanks a bunch," Wally returned, the infectiousness of the smile finally getting the better of him. Marie pulled two menus from behind the podium and edged her way out to lead them to their table. "You get a new haircut?"

"I did, yes," she answered, her face glowing with pleasure as she dodged her way around an incoming waiter. She ran her free hand through her wild looking hair. "Do you like it? I'm not so sure -"

"It looks great, actually. Really suits you."

Marie's face flushed with pleasure as she set the menus down at a small table for two. "Aw, shucks, Wally. You're such a little gentleman. You have fun on your date, now!"

"But we're not -" Artemis tried to interject, but Wally hushed her with a small smile as Marie waved a goodbye, only turning back to his companion after Marie was out of sight.

"C'mon, Artie," he said as he plopped down at the table. "Let the lady have her fun."

"Since when are you such a gentleman anyway?" Artemis asked as she pulled out her own chair, sliding in so her stupid school skirt wouldn't ride up.

"Iunno," he mumbled through the bread stick he had already stuffed in his mouth. He swallowed thickly before answering. "Since always, I guess. S'what Aunt Iris always told me to be, and let me tell you, you don't want to be on Aunt Iris' bad side."

Artemis grabbed her menu thoughtfully and slumped down in her chair. Thoughts ran through her head just as quickly as she scanned the pages. She had never seen this side of Wally West before. It was strange. But also strangely nice for a change. She hid her growing smile behind her menu. If she didn't know any better, Artemis would say Wally was starting to grow on her.

With a rumble of her stomach, she finally turned her attention back to the menu in her hands. But her eyes, like always, immediately honed in on the price. And that was when she realized that Wally had pulled her out of school on a whim. And what did that mean?

Her wallet, though woefully empty, was stashed in her coat pocket.

The coat that was hanging in her locker, back at Gotham Academy.

"Wally, we gotta go," she slammed the menu down on the table, making what was left of the bread sticks rattle around in their bowl. She made to stand up, her chair scratching against the floor as she pushed out from the small table. But Wally's hand had reached out instinctively and grabbed her arm before she could make it any further.

"Hey, what's the rush?" he asked calmly, pulling her back down. He leaned back in his chair, tilting it on the back legs as he threw his arms behind his head. Artemis hung her head, shameful, and placed a hand over her eyes. Wally leaned forward again, chair slamming down with a thump, and tried to make out the mumble that passed through her lips. "Sorry, didn't catch that."

"I said, I don't have any money," she hissed, snapping her head up and her hands to the tabletop.
Wally's eyes brightened in realization despite the anger spitting from his companion's. He laughed slightly and shook his head.

"Hey, no problem," he informed her, grabbing yet another bread stick. "I got my allowance yesterday, and I was going to spend it on food anyway, so," he shrugged and stuck the bread stick in his mouth, breaking off a piece and chewing it with gusto.

"There is no way in hell I am taking any charity from you," Artemis insisted, snatching the rest of the bread stick from Wally's unsuspecting hand and slamming it onto her bread plate, breaking it into pieces. "And would you stop eating? It's rude and irritating, just like you."

"Oh, low blow there, Artie," he quipped with a roll of the eyes. "And it's not charity, it's generosity. And you can pay me back later. See? Crisis averted."

All Artemis could do in the face of his logic was slump down and sulk. Wally duly ignored her, turning back to his menu with a small smirk. That jerk.

But without conversation, the atmosphere became tense and, dare she think it, awkward. Wally set his menu back down on the table and darted his eyes around nervously, avoiding any sort of eye contact. Artemis slumped down further and crossed her arms, keeping her eyes trained on the napkin in her lap. The silence was unbearable, but neither dared to break it.

After what felt like hours, but was really only three or four minutes, a young waitress pranced over to their table, smile cheerful and pad of paper and pen in hand. Much to Artemis' unwanted chagrin, Wally perked up immediately, eyes dancing in anticipation.

"Hi, I'm Jenny!" she introduced herself, her brown curls bouncing with each word she spoke. "Can I take your order?"

"Hey, I'm Wally," Artemis groaned loudly, earning a scathing look from the red-head. But he quickly recovered and turned back to the waitress, skeevy smile in place. "And you can take my - OW!"

Artemis pulled her foot back to her side of the table, smirking with satisfaction. Served him right for flirting with other girls while he was out with her.

And no, Artemis was not jealous. She just didn't want to be seen with an immature flirt, that's all.

"I'll have a small Caesar salad with extra croutons, please." Artemis folded the menu and held it up for Jenny to take, smiling innocently. The waitress jotted down the order with a nod and grabbed the menu before turning expectantly to Wally, who was still grumbling to himself. He finally looked up after a few good coughs from Artemis.

"Yeah, I'll have a double bacon cheeseburger with a triple order of fries and a chocolate shake," he rattled off automatically. After a moment of silence, with only the scratch of the waitress' pen reaching their ears, Artemis huffed and sent another kick the speedster's way. "What now?" he cried, pulling his feet up onto his chair indignantly. Artemis shook her head in frustration and nodded pointedly towards Jenny. Wally looked between them blankly for a few moments before realization dawned on his face. "Oh, yeah. Please?"

"So much for being a gentleman," muttered Artemis, earning a laugh from Jenny as she took the other menu from Wally, who smiled up at her apologetically.

"You guys are a such a cute couple," she declared, ignorant of the horrified expressions spreading across said couple's face. "I'll be back with your food in a few."

"She is not my girlfriend!" Wally called out, but it fell upon deaf ears. Artemis leaned forward with a moan, rubbing the bridge of her nose. She might just have to take the rest of the day off for the migraine that was definitely coming on.

"Why did I agree to come with you, again?" she asked flatly.

"Because we need to talk about the plan."

"And why did I agree to that, again?"

"Artemis, come on," Wally pleaded, throwing his hands in the air in exasperation. "We're doing this for Robin, remember?"

"Right, for Robin," she sighed, pulling her hand away from her face to look Wally in the eye. "So. Plan. What is it?"

"Uh," he mumbled, sliding down in his seat. "Actually, I was hoping you'd work on that front. I'm more of an action kind of guy."

She had no words for him. She stared, gaping and shaking her head. "Are you serious?" He only nodded encouragingly with a nervous smile. Artemis heaved a large breath, defeated. "Fine."

Wally straightened himself with excitement, enthusiasm returning in droves. "Great! So, got any ideas?"

Artemis leaned back languidly, arched fingers glued at the tips and tapping her chin thoughtfully. "Well, we could go with the cliche rout. Y'know, I invite Zatanna out while you ask Robin to the same place. Then ditch 'em." She shrugged and flopped her hands back into her lap. "Never seems to work, though. Always goes wrong on TV, in the movies. But y'never know."

"That," began Wally before pausing for his adored dramatic effect. "Is totally genius! Seriously, Artemis. I don't see how that could go wrong. Movies are stupid, anyway."

Artemis just couldn't stop the beaming smile that spread across her face. "You're a moron," she laughed, eyes twinkling. "You know that, right?"

"Of course I do!" he exclaimed, leaning towards her excitedly. She found herself leaning forward just as enthusiastically, unable to wipe the grin off of her face. So what if he was endearing? It was only sometimes, anyway. "There was this one time …"

And that's how the rest of the meal passed. Artemis and Wally, sword enemies, exchanging embarrassing stories just for the fun of it. And the weird thing was that Artemis couldn't remember the last time she had this much fun, this last time her face actually hurt from smiling. Why now? What changed? She didn't know. She watched fondly as he flailed his arms about, illustrating his latest phys ed mishap. Maybe nothing changed. Maybe all they need was a little more time.

"And that," he concluded, slamming his hands down on the table as the waitress placed the check down with a quiet laugh. "Is how I, Wally Rudolph West, got a black eye climbing a rope."

"You're such an idiot," Artemis laughed as Wally pulled his wallet out of his pocket, grinning madly. Her expression hardened as she watched him pull out a few green notes. "How much do I owe you?"

"Zilch," he waved away her concerns, sliding away from the table and stretching out as he stood.

"No," Artemis replied firmly, pushing her chair roughly, the silverware left on the table clattering together. "I told you I'd pay you back. Now how much do I owe you?"

"Can't I just buy my friend some lunch? Jeez, Artemis, what's the big deal?" he asked as he stepped towards her, exasperation layering his voice.

"I'll tell you what the big deal is," Artemis narrowed her eyes menacingly, taking her own step towards the insistent speedster. But she never did get to tell him that big deal.

"Wally, watch out!"

The pair turned towards the cry, reflexes kicking in. But they didn't see anyone. No, their view was unfortunately blocked by the table flying in their direction.

Yep, Mondays were definitely the worst.