Tricks of Fate

Chapter 26

[Barry]

I could see the fear in her purple eyes that glimmered with unshed tears. I reached for her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze and she smiled at me, but it didn't reach her eyes.
"It will all be alright. We're gonna fix this OK?" I tried to reassure her and she gave me a few quick nods. With one last squeeze I let go of her hand and started the car before driving us to S. T. A. R. labs. She carried Nora out of the car and I followed closely behind, my energy seeming to dwindle with every step I took. I stood my ground, Iris and Nora needed me, I couldn't pass out. Fighting through the fatigue I followed closely behind as we made our way to the heart of the structure, or as the Wells brothers liked to call it, 'the cortex'.
"We need help." Iris announced as we walked in and she immediately made her way to the med bay. Harry followed her but quickly returned with a request to get Dr. Snow on the phone.
"Dr. Snow? At this hour?" I asked, feeling breathless and feint.
"Yes. It seems Ms. West would rather have her daughter examined by a 'real' doctor, not scientists," he explained.
"As she put it, she wants someone who will treat Nora like a patient not an experiment."

I gathered what strength I had left and walked over to the med bay. Iris was caressing our baby girls forehead and Nora seemed fast asleep on a hospital bed.
"Iris?" I called out as I approached her and lovingly rubbed her arms. She looked up at me and placed one of her hands on mine.
"Iris, we should really let the Wells brothers do a check up on you. I suspect that your condition isn't something Dr. Snow can fix," I said.
"I'll go once I know Nora is OK," she replied simply.
"She's here, and safe. I'll stay with her till Dr. Snow gets here. I promise. Please, for us both, go see if you're alright," I almost begged. Her head fell forward and she seemed to consider it then she stood up and turned to face me.
"Alright. I'll go," she answered, then leaned in to kiss me. I felt a spark as our lips touched and my fatigue seemed to lesson. When she pulled away, her eyes were less bright and the purple tint seemed to have slightly faded. She seemed baffled but brushed it off and left without another word. I sat down next to Nora and held her hand, using my thumb to draw tiny circles on the back.
"It's gonna be alright Nora. Daddy's here."

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[Iris]

I felt a weird tug inside me when I kissed Barry. It wasn't just desire and longing, it was almost like a survival instinct. Like he needed something and I was the only one who could give it to him. I noticed the confused look on his face when we broke apart and thought that he must have felt it too. I shook it off, blaming it on the stress of the evenings events and made my way back to the cortex to be examined. The Wells brothers were waiting, their work stations prepped and ready to go.
I went through CAT scans, fMRI scans and even blood tests then waited patiently for the results. Caitlin arrived while I was waiting and when she saw me her eyes widened, no doubt courtesy of my new and unusual eye colour, but instead of shying away she came forward and hugged me.
"Thanks for coming, " I said into her hair to which she answered,
"Ofcourse."
We parted and she asked,
"Where is she?"
I led her to the med bay where Barry stared at our little Nora and under different circumstances I would have been content just watching him be her father from afar.
Caitlin gets to work examining Nora and I watch as she handles my baby gently. I'd gotten close to her during those nine months cause she would often do house calls and check on Barry. We'd talk after each session and, before we knew it, we would be going out for lunch on random occasions and talking about life. She was a breath of fresh air, someone who encouraged me to occasionally be happy despite the coma, not to feel guilty about enjoying life while I waited. I'll be honest, it was hard, but having someone there who told you to smile made it easier.
"Well, good news. She's alright. Her pulse does seem a little weaker than normal but nothing you need to worry about she's probably just a little tired," she said once she'd finished the check up.
"Thank heavens," I sighed out, relieved and turned to Barry (who held my hand for the extent of the check up) and hugged him. Again, I felt a strong pull towards him, a craving for connection.
"West, darling, are you alright?" H. R. interrupted. I let go of Barry and turned to H. R. who's reaction to my change in appearance was as noticeable as Caitlin's.
"Wow!" he exclaimed.
"I didn't think they sold contact lenses in that shade,"
"They're not contacts H." I explained. "My eyes changed colour and I have no idea why,"
"We might be able to help with that," Harrison Wells cut in and we all turned our attention to him.
Back in the cortex, we all stood anxiously awaiting my diagnosis.
"Ms. West, I'm not quite sure how to put this but you seem to be experiencing some sort of abnormality in your adrenal glands," Harrison stated.
"You mean my eyes are purple cause of excess adrenaline?" I asked, more confused than I was before.
"Not entirely. You see, it seems that you were exposed to some sort of radiation which resulted in a mutation of some of the components in your genetic make up. One of these mutations affected your adrenal gland resulting in an excess of adrenaline to be distributed into your system every time your sympathetic nervous system is triggered," he further explained.

"OK, but that doesn't explain the glow in my eyes nor the mind control," I said.
Everyone in the room, besides Barry, turned to me with astonished expressions.
"Mind control?" Harrison asks and I nod in response.
"When we were trying to get Nora back, something came over me. I trained my focus on the the kidnapper and opened my mouth and somehow managed to psychically attack him," I explained.
"Interesting," Harry exclaimed as he made his way to the control panel.
"Interesting indeed," he murmured as he stared at the screen. He then pushed a few buttons and projected my fMRI results onto the screens in the walls.
"When we measured your brain wave activity we noticed an unusual spike in your Broca's and Wernicke's areas, both which are..."
"Associated with speech and language." I finished for him granting me another round of surprised looks.
"Psychology is part of my major," I explained with a shrug.
"Well yes. It seems the energy generated by the adrenaline is mostly directed at those two areas of your brain, amongst others which might explain your extraordinary abilities. As for your eyes, we can only hypothesise that it's a result of the reaction happening inside you."

I looked at them with a blank expression on my face as I let the information sink in. Questions popped into my head haphazardly and I decided that, that was my only chance to get answers.
"Where does the radiation come from?" I asked. The scientist exchanged communicative glances and Harrison nodded to Harry who turned to me and replied,
"We belive it comes from Nora."

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Dun Dun Dunnnnn!

😂Sorry, felt appropriate.
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