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"Stay still," I warned Cisco as I prepared to spray disinfectant on his forearm. "This might hurt a bit."
"I think I can handle it, Caity," He smiled and raised his eyebrows at me.
"If you say so," I gave him a smirk and pressed down on the pump, causing the clear liquid to spray all over his wound. His eyes widened as soon as it hit his flayed skin.
"See? Not so bad," He winced through gritted teeth. I giggled as I dabbed his arm clean with a cloth. A lot of blood was still coming off with each cleaning, and I looked up at him as his eyes squeezed shut with pain. A single tear was welling up at the corner of his right eye, and he wiped it away with his thumb.
"How do you always manage to get yourself in these situations, Cisco?" I jokingly questioned.
"In the words of our favorite scarlet speedster, it's part of my civic duty to protect Central City." He quoted, his voice mocking Barry's surprisingly well. I laughed before continuing.
"But, you didn't need to go ahead of Frost like that. We all know she had the situation handled." I turned back to my station in order to grab some fresh bandages.
You got that right.
"It doesn't matter if she could have done it on her own," He looked down at his feet and kicked them like a little kid. "Elemental was bad news. Friends stick up for friends, right?"
"Of course," I started to wrap gauze around his arm. "It's just, you shouldn't be putting yourself in immediate danger like that if you don't have to. We don't- I don't want you getting hurt."
"I know," He turned and looked at me with big, brown eyes. "I just get nervous sometimes when Frost is in the driver's seat. I know that she can protect you, but it always feels like I could be doing more to defend you two."
"Cisco, Frost and I aren't your responsibility." I finished securing his gauze with a knot. "Just like you did, the two of us signed up for both the good and bad parts of being Central City's protector. I know that sometimes your hero complex takes over, but I need you to work on just keeping yourself safe."
Cisco didn't respond. Instead, he took a deep breath and looked around my lab. He smiled as his eyes fell on a photo of the team on my desk. It was a candid from Iris' birthday before Crisis, back when we all thought we were going to have to sacrifice Barry in order to save the world. Cisco and I were standing in the back of the group shot, arms around each other's shoulders.
"Do you remember when Daydream was our meta of the day and she sent me to Kamilla's apartment?" His eyes traveled back to me as he started to speak. "I was so worried that I would never be able to feel happy again, and that no one would ever be there for me in the way that I needed them to be. But, you were there." His eyes crinkled at the edges. "You picked me up and told me that everything would be okay. I just want to be able to pay back all of the times that you've saved me, just like I told you in that hallway. I can't tell myself to stop trying to be there for you because, deep down, I know that it's the right thing to do."
I couldn't speak. There was nothing I could say that could even come close to what he had just told me. Instead, I placed my hand on his and looked at his arm, the one that was peppered with scratches because of me.
You always have something to say, Caity. Just speak from the heart.
"I understand how you feel, Cisco. I really do, because that's the way I feel about you." I took a nervous breath before continuing. "I never want you to get hurt, especially not because you feel like you owe something to me or have something to prove. The best way that you can show me how much you appreciate the way I'm there for you is to stay alive long enough that you'll be there for me. Can you do that?"
"Yeah," He spoke shakily before swallowing. "I think I can manage that."
"Great," I smiled gently before standing up and walking towards the door. "I think it's time we get back to the team. I bet you they're anxiously waiting for you to get back safe and sound."
"I'll be there in a minute," He gave me a halfhearted smile. "I just need to sit for a minute or two longer."
"Take as much time as you need," I gave him a corny thumbs-up and a wink, which made him chuckle slightly. "A hero needs his rest." He gave me a salute and I turned out into the hallway.
Someone's quite the inspiration to Central City's finest breacher.
"Quit it. It's not a big deal," I giggled, turning in the direction of the cortex. But, something inside me told me that it was, and I had no idea why. All I knew for sure was I cared about Cisco, and he cared about me too. Maybe that was all that really mattered when you took out the grand heroics and deadly metahumans.
