The Tinker Bell Effect ||Snowbarry AU [COMPLETED]

Chapter Thirteen: Nothing New with a Dash of Secrets

Monday came around sooner that Caitlin would have wanted, the weekend was now a memory of the past. Kids once again flooded the school building like they did every morning of the school week. Their faces were stones, cut with a straight line as a mouth and unfocused holes as eyes.
Caitlin was exhausted, and did not want to be there. Her bruise still stung every time the back of her sweatshirt rubbed it. She just wanted the school day to be over, already dreading the two periods, one with Iris and the other sitting right next to Barry, of the day. She just wanted to crawl in a hole and stay there forever with a couple of snacks and maybe a soda.

"Hey Caitlin." A voice said. She halted in her steps down the hallway and turned towards the voice. Instead of sharp handsome features with messy brown hair and that infamous smile that could make sweet tart look sour, a head of blonde hair and a nervous but happy smile now stood in front of her.

"Julian." She said breathlessly, expecting it to be some else.

"Are you alright?" His hand went to her shoulder, studying her face.

"I-I'm fine, I just don't really want to be here today." Caitlin muttered glancing around at the teens passing by them.

"I understand. Hey, maybe today will be better than the football game?" He suggested and she hid a groan. That's right, he's an optimist, she thought.

"I doubt it." She muttered.

"What's that?" He asked. Her eyes widened as they met his, realizing that he heard her.

"Oh- I bet- I bet." She fumbled over her words. She mentally banged her head against a wall at the awkwardness.

"Caitlin! Julian!" Felicity yelled running down the hall in her knee length skirt, tucked in flannel, and heeled ankle boots. "Caitlin, have you been on Instagram today?"

Caitlin shook her head as a reply, pulling out her phone out of her jean pocket and going to her least used app. "What do you want me to see?" She scrolled through the random pictures of people that showed up on her feed.

"The school's gossip page. Look at the most recent picture." Felicity handed her phone to Julian to see what she was talking about.

The picture was of two people, a dark skinned girl in a cheerleading outfit and a guy in football attire, kissing on the football field. Caitlin felt a lump in her throat as she read the caption.

The notoriously good-looking running back, Barry Allen and the seemingly flawless cheerleader, Iris West were seen sharing a kiss on Friday's winning game after Allen got the winning touchdown following the interception of the opposite team's ball. Will this be the start of a new relationship in the hallways of Central? Or were the two already a couple before, only making it public after the Warriors succeeded in getting the chance to go to playoffs? Will they last? Are they official? We will have to see.

"I- I need to go, I have to go to my locker." Caitlin stumbled over her words, pocketing her phone and walking off. She ignored Felicity and Julian's shouts, trying to hold in her tears.

**

Caitlin drifted through the day, not paying attention to any of her classes. She ignored her friends, teahcers, Iris's smug looks, and most importantly Barry (to the best of her ability that is). He had tried talking to her once again, but she couldn't look at him. She couldn't talk to him. She couldn't even be around him. It was getting to be too much. Iris had ruined her life in more ways than one and Caitlin was tired. She began to wonder if her and Barry would ever become friends again. Maybe in college? Later on? Caitlin could only hope that it would happen eventually, and after all this shit was over and done with.