Within Seconds // Barry Allen

Start of Something New

Barry and Joe had arrived a couple minutes before herself. Barry had been rambling about the Man in the Yellow Suit to Dr.Wells and Cisco when she arrived. 

"Okay!" Cisco shouted over him.

Barry fell silent.

"Why don't we let Joe explain? So we can actually understand.."

In defeat, Barry slumped in the chair beside Joe. His left hand was holding his chin, his eyes unfocused;distant.

"The witness described seeing a yellow blur.. Just like the one that killed Barry's mother."

So that's why he's freaking out..

"We need to get cracking and stop this Speed Psycho!" Cisco demanded. He stopped himself. "Wait, I didn't mean to name him."

Barry ignored Cisco. "Look, the crime scene at Mercury Labs was on a high security floor, and the witness said he was looking for something."

"Whatever it was, he wanted it bad enough to kill for it.." Dr.Wells said.

He stretched an arm out to type on the computer attached to his keyboard. He typed in Mercury Labs to a Google search.

"Doc," Parker softly chimed. "What do you know about them?"

"Mercury was one of S.T.A.R. Labs' highest competitors until our little setback. Then, it catapulted to the forefront," he paused, wiping his finger across the screen and sending the page to one of the televisions. "Dr.Christina McGee. Brilliant, but eccentric physicist."

Meanwhile, Cisco had used his tablet to find his own information.

"Says here that she's spend half a billion dollars in private funding working on --and I quote-- 'prototypes for the technology of the future.'"

Dr.Wells huffed, slowly shaking his head in disbelief. "I'll be..Tina is messing with tachyons. Superluminal particles." 

"What could someone do with one of those.." Joe stopped, his hand twirling, trying to remember the word.

"Tachyons," Parker filled in. She received a thumbs up from Joe.

"Become invincible.. I mean, if you could devise a matrix to harness that power, you could create the power to travel faster than light.."

"Opposite Speedster is going to go for it again," Parker predicted. She scrunched her face up after the words left her mouth, realizing she had nicknamed the Man in the Yellow Suit on accident.

Cisco made a heart with his hands and tapped his chest, teasing her. She stuck her tongue out.

"We need to get whatever Mercury has and use it as a lure," Barry finished.

"Perfect. Cisco, Caitlin-- start engineering a trap," Dr.Wells ordered.

Parker spun her chair around as Cisco walked by. "Hey, do you need me to draw? Or something?"

"No, it's mostly science stuff. You probably wouldn't understand." Cisco declined.

Parker frowned. The crowd dispersed, leaving her alone. She snatched her coat and raced out the door, running to catch up with her boss.

"Doc, can I take my break?"

Although the current workers at S.T.A.R. Labs hadn't actually receive breaks, Dr.Wells still nodded.

"You can go for the day, if you remain available in case we need your aid."

Parker slipped on her coat and shuffled out the door, a small, "That's unlikely," coming from her lips.

>>>>

Parker went straight home. She tossed water into a boiling pan and poured a whole box of noodles into it.

There was not a variety in her cooking skills. Barry would have to choose between a menu of about ten things most days. Simple things like Mac & Cheese or hot dogs. (Still delicious.)

She grabbed a bowl full of noodles once they were done and trudged into her room, curling under the warm blankets. The noodles were devoured, Parker warm and cozy in her bed. Insanely bored, she fell asleep.

>>>

"Parker!" A faint shout. "Park! Park!" Door slammed shut. Feet tapping along the wooden floors. "Parker!" A shout from her doorway and then, her bed shook as Barry sat.

She wiggled her head out from under her blanket, squinting her eyes due to the darkness of her bedroom.

"I saw him!" Barry whisper-yelled.

Thankful that he was respecting her waking up, she gave a tired smile. "Johnny Depp? You get an autograph?"

"The man who killed my mother."

Parker pushed herself onto her elbows. "Dude!"

"I know, and i-it was weird, Park. He acted like we had fought before and-"

"--and he beat you," she added, running her hand over his bruised lip.

"I'm not the fastest man alive, Parker. He is."

The poor boy was gutted upon that fact. She knew it was his first time admitting that, based on the defeated look in his eyes. But all she was taking out of the scenario was the chance to be training harder.

"Well then, we train!" she exclaimed. "We will work you harder, faster, we'll make you stronger!"

"I think that's a song.." Barry thoughtfully said.

Parker took a moment to roll her eyes, then continued her motivational speech. "You will claim the title of the Fastest Man Alive again, Barry Allen. I promise you that. We'll start right now!"

She hopped out of her bed and at the exact moment her feet hit the floor, she froze, a headache taking over her brain.

"On second thought.. Maybe later.."

Barry had no objections. He pulled her hips, making her fall onto the bed with him. Curled up beside each other, the two fell fast asleep, thoughts of what they could do to make Barry the Fastest Man Alive racing through their heads.