archimedes |b. allen|

bleeding hearts

bleeding hearts

"Does everyone else see the beautiful woman with Cisco's arm around her, or am I hallucinating again?" An amused smirk paints itself on my lips as Cisco's cheeks turn a scarlet color.

The stunning, tanned woman next to him gives me a soft smile, then a reassuring look to Cisco, before she turns to the rest of us, "Hi, I'm Kendra."

And then Barry walks in, and the air is stolen from my lungs. His eyes land on me immediately, trailing up my form and seeming to be looking for the chest tube that I'd gotten removed today. His eyes trail themselves up and down my form for far too long before they finally meet mine, a corner of his lips curving up into a smile.

I know I was supposed to be introducing myself to the woman next to Cisco, supposed to be questioning why she was in our secret sanctum. But I just couldn't seem to drag my eyes away from the man in a blazer paired with Converse.

"I can't believe you're the Flash," the new girl, Kendra, says, eyes widened in awe as she surveys the red suit situated right next to my white one at the front of the room.

That's when our stare finally breaks. Barry's eyes dart over to Kendra before flicking back to the suit that had all her attention. A shy smile sits on his lips as his cheeks start to pink, his hand going to rub the back of his neck.

"And that you work with the Flash," Kendra's amazement turns to Cisco as Caitlin and I make eye contact with each other, eyes mirroring the same wary gaze.

But Cisco's all giggles-magee, chuckling and bouncing on his feet. Until he sees the narrowed glare Barry's giving him. Cisco clears his throat before muttering, "Yeah, let's keep that on the DL..."

Barry starts talking about some case he's been working with Joe, Iris even popping in, when I feel the vibrations in the back pocket of my jeans. I take a few steps away from the group, pulling out my phone to see Nicolette's name flashing across the screen.

My brows furrow as I dip into the med bay, avoiding anyone even noticing me disappearing.

"Hey, Nic, is everything okay?" I ask in a hushed voice, eyes watching the group speak animatedly to each through the glass sliding door.

"Of course, Sam. I was just calling to check on you. See how you were doing..."

Her voice is so soft, pastel. She's so gentle with me. It's hard to remember that she doesn't know that this kinda thing is everyday for me. Getting my ass beat and bruised is an everyday adventure for Archimedes. And for every day I'm her, this will be my fate.

I feel guilty that I might've made her feel like a chore, like this was nothing. Being hospitalized was a big deal to her. It should be a big deal to everyone. And she was just worried about me.

"Oh, um," I start, realizing I've been silent for far too long. "I'm good, Nic, I'm really good. The, uh—I got the chest tube out today, and I'm... I'm feeling okay."

She releases an audible sigh over the phone, and I can hear her smiling as she speaks, "That's great! So you'll be discharged soon, right?"

And once again it's guilt that swirls in my stomach, causing the bile to rise as I feel like such a liar and a snake. She thinks I'm still in the hospital. She has no idea that I've been swept away by S.T.A.R. Labs because I'm their responsibility. "Yeah, yeah. Hopefully tomorrow."

"That's fantastic! Benjamin and I are set to move in early next week. Maybe we could get coffee or something soon?"

It's so nice of her to offer. So god damn sweet. God, I hate lying to her. Her above anyone else.