Running Over Water

[37 - Hero]

Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. . . .

I looked at the wormhole, and sucked in my breath. When it came down to the last second, nothing happened. But it was only milliseconds after that the wormhole began to shrink and shrink until it dissipated into nothing. There was no evidence that a wormhole was even in the room. I let go a breath that I didn't realized I was holding, and I turned to my friends.

"They did it," Joe whispered softly. "They really did it." He grinned and I couldn't help but smile too. I was too distracted by our achievement that I wasn't paying attention to Thawne who had Barry in his clutches. Barry's mask had fallen down to reveal his bloody nose and busted lip. He was pushed against the fall with Thawne's hand gripping Barry's throat. His arm was raised over Barry, and that's when I realized that he was going to kill him.

I quickly extended my arms, already summoning water to aid in the fight, but a gunshot caught me off guard. My control over the water was waning. The water splashed on the floor harmlessly when I dropped my arm. The echoing sound of the gunshot rang in my ears. I covered my ears to stop the ringing, but it wasn't working.

After that moment, everything seemed to slow down.

I looked around, trying to locate the source of the gun. But every sound around me was muffled. But when I was finally able to locate the source of the sound, I choked out a sob.

Eddie stood there, smoke flying into the air from his gun. A wide red stain appeared on his white collared shirt. The contrast between the blood and the stark white made me gag. I've seen blood before, I don't even know why I was struggling so much to look at Eddie. He just shot himself. I kept blinking, unsure whether my eyes were betraying me or not, but what I was seeing was one hundred percent real. Eddie stumbled, grabbing ahold of the wall for support. He too seemed shocked at what he just did.

As soon as Joe figured out what his partner just did, he ran to him. "Eddie! Oh, god, what did you do? What did you do?" He kept on repeating those words even as he set Eddie on the floor. Cisco's hand flew to his mouth to keep himself from crying aloud. "I guess I finally found my purpose," Eddie stammered out.

I was questioning as to why Eddie shot himself in the first place when I noticed Thawne tumble away from Barry. He shook violently in his spot and even though his entire body was moving so fast, I could tell something was wrong with him. Barry, who was on the floor, looked at his enemy. "What's happening to him?"

Cisco made a realization. "Eddie's his ancestor." He points to Eddie's dying body. "If he dies, then the Reverse Flash is never born. He'll be erased from existence. . ."

"No! No! Eddie!" Iris cried out, running into the room. She immediately goes to Eddie and she falls by his side. She rocks him in her hands, tears streaming down her face. She sunk her head into his chest, cradling him in her arms. "Eddie, please," she croaked. "Stay with me, okay?"

"He was wrong, you know." Eddie mumbled, his breath staggered after each word. "He said I wasn't a hero. But I'm a hero, after all." He manages to smile, and at that, Iris sobs even more. It broke my heart to even see this play out. It took every ounce of my body to not turn away like a coward.

"You're my hero, Eddie. You are."

"That's all I ever wanted to be." He pauses before saying, "Your hero."

I heard him take his last, jagged breath. His skin had turned a pale color, his hair sticking to his forehead as sweat dripped from his forehead. His body turned stiff.

Iris breaks down into a sobbing fit. Her cries were the only sound that occupied the room. None of us dared to speak.

Joe rubbed his forehead, looking down at his younger partner in shock, as if he still hasn't processed his death.

Barry sat where he was, his eyes were widened and his mouth was opened just a bit. He too seemed to be surprised at what just happened.

I compartmentalized my emotions, not allowing myself to cry. I've seen death before. Too much. This death shouldn't be too different from the others, right?

A voice from my right interrupted the quietness in the room. I saw the Reverse Flash was talking to Barry. I was so focused on their conversation that I didn't even realize that the person in the familiar yellow suit was no longer there, instead, it was someone I've never seen before. This must've been the true person behind the face of Harrison Wells all along: Eobard Thawne. But what surprised me the most was that he was disappearing. Parts of his body were going up into dust. Soon, his left arm disappeared entirely. He screamed, whether it was screams of pain or not, he deserved what was happening to him. Soon enough, his right arm disappeared as well. And then his legs. Then the rest of his body until he was gone.

Cisco, Barry, Joe, and I all watched the entire thing play out, and I don't even think I even understood what just happened to him. All I care about is that the Reverse Flash is gone forever. He can't hurt anyone else ever again. Right?

---

would you rather be an only child or have five siblings?