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55. Ice Queen | requested [B.A.]

"Any time, Joe," I smiled back.

I turned to Barry for a hug, but he pulled away. "Uh, uh, I'm walking you home, Y/N," Barry answered, "It's already dark out."

"Barry, please, I can handle myself." I rubbed my hands together, knowing full well I could definitely handle myself if need be.

"With your car broken down I'd definitely feel a lot better if you let Barry walk you home," Joe chimed in. I sighed in defeat, knowing better than to argue with Joe.

"Let's go," Barry smiled, leading me out of the kitchen. "Off to Y/N's we go."

"Alright, alright," I nodded. "See you all later."

We said our final goodbyes and shut the door behind us. We headed to my apartment, which thankfully, wasn't too far away.

"Y/N? Are you cold?" Barry asked, furrowing his eyebrows at me as we stared down the sidewalk. "It's freezing and you're not wearing a jacket."

I shrugged my shoulders. "I have a sweater on."

"It's not a jacket, though."

"The cold doesn't bother me," I responded flatly. In fact, the cold loved me. My body was so cold itself, the freezing winds felt normal to me. But I couldn't exactly just blab about that to Barry - even if he was the miracle coma patient.

"Okay, Ice Queen," Barry chuckled softly, holding his hands up in surrender.

I went stiff at his words - Ice Queen? "What did you just say?"

"Ice Queen," he said, "You know, like Elsa."

"Oh, right, yeah," I nodded slowly. If possible, I knew my face would be burning red. Why did I seem to be so awkward around Barry Allen?

"Y/N, I know I missed a lot over those nine months, but... I can't help but feel that you're... different." His words were quiet, but truthful. "You don't smile as much as you used to. And the Y/N I know was always cold, and huddled up in a bunch of blankets."

At that, I laughed softly, remembering the movie nights with Barry and Iris, snuggled under a ton of blankets. "I guess I just got used to the cold," I finally sighed, knowing that was somewhat the truth. My body did get used to the cold, it was now a temple of ice.

"But... Y/N, you seem different," Barry remarked. "I know it must've been hard for you - the particle accelerator explosion and everything. But, hey, I just want to make sure you're alright."

I breathed in deeply, nodding my head. "Yeah, Barry, I'm alright. Thanks for looking out for me, though."

"I know for you I've been away for nine months, but I'm still the same Barry, I'm still your best friend," he pressed, not dropping this.

His pestering began to annoy me, as I stopped in my tracks, pointing a finger at him. "You are not the same Barry." I huffed angrily, shoving my bare finger against the fabric of his coat. "Barry Allen is a human that fell into a coma nine months ago! Barry Allen wasn't supposed to wake up perfectly fine. You shouldn't be walking away from this perfectly okay, Barry! Many people didn't get to walk away from that night okay, and you're better than fine."