Barry stares out his office window. The sun had fallen and city had become alive, with street lights radiating off of the asphalt and the skyline reflecting across the clouds. Cars were lined at stop lights and people treaded on the sidewalks.
He looked at his phone, hoping a call or at least a text had come through. Nothing.
He had been waiting hours after he finished his work for the night. He dreaded returning home to Iris, in the fact that he had no update on Oliver's attendance status. She was in full panic mode about every small thing about Saturday, so telling her that he had not talked to Oliver could possibly send her into a frenzy.
A simple yes or no would suffice. Barry types, staring at the message for a second before deleting the characters and shutting his phone off. He tosses it on his desk in frustration.
Fucking hell, Ollie. Barry mumbles to himself. Just tell me yes or no.
His anger was not aimed at Oliver's incompetence as much as it was his lack of caring. When Barry first asked him to be in the wedding, he seemed as if he was apathetic to the idea.
"So Ollie," Barry asks, watching Oliver take a sip of a milkshake. "I've been meaning to ask you something."
Oliver sets the glass down, a soft smile comes across his lips. "Yeah?"
"Mine and Iris' wedding is coming up," Barry begins. "And I was hoping you'd stand beside me on the big day."
Oliver's smile fades into a questioning glare. "You mean as in your best man?"
"Well, yeah," Barry replies awkwardly. "You and Cisco were really the only two to come to mind."
Oliver looks down at the food in front of him. He picks up a French fry and twirls it with his fingers. He begins to speak with a solemn tone, his eyes looking towards the floor. "I'll do it."
"Great." Barry says with his eyes still set on Oliver, who hadn't looked up from the tray in front of him. He stares at him with concern.
"Is something wrong?"
"No, no," Oliver replies, his eyes moving towards Barry. They had fallen from the smile that existed only a moment ago. "It was just a long night."
Barry makes sure he had Oliver's full attention before speaking. "You can always come to me. You know that right?"
"Of course." Oliver says, his voice still filled with somber. "Being a vigilante can take a toll on you, you know?"
"I understand." Barry tells him empathetically.
"Nice to have people that do." Oliver tells Barry with a subtle smile, the sullen look still present. The two look at each other with soft smiles. Barry can't explain it but there is something in his eyes that makes him feel every emotion possible. Like he connected with him in every way imaginable. Almost as if their souls were connected.
Barry shakes off the feeling as the two finish their Big Belly Burger in silence.
Barry is awoken from the memory as he hears a vibration from his desk. He frantically picks up the phone, his heart feeling as if it has stopped. He reads the name on the screen. The world around him froze.
I'll be there. See you Friday.
A sense of relief came over Barry, yet another feeling of confusion and frustration followed. The lack of concern and consideration Oliver showed towards Barry about Saturday irked him. After days of calling and texting, checking on him and making sure he was still coming, the only response he had was a simple text message.
Can you give me call? Barry types. He feels the nerves rise inside of him as he sees the indication on screen that he is replying.
"Busy."
Are you alright?
"Long day at office. I'll call you tomorrow."
Barry shoves his phone into his pocket before speeding out of his office. He sticks to a quicker pace than he did this morning, in hopes to reach his destination quicker. His heart starts to race as he passes the sign that reads "Star City."
He runs to the mansion he's stepped foot in thousands of times. He searches for the light that signifies when one man is home. When he sees the light on, he walks to the door and knocks on it as hard as he can. No answer. He even rings the doorbell. No answer. He moves his body as quick as he can, vibrating through to wood door.
"Ollie," Barry yells. "Are you home?" He gets no response. He walks up the stairs as quietly as he can. As he has a clear vision of the floor, he notices a light on towards the back of the hallway. He speeds to it, only to see a sight that makes his heart drop.
"Oliver," Barry begins worriedly. He runs over to the unconscious man, tapping his cheek lightly. "Ollie."
Oliver awakes startled, the bottle that rested in his hand flying to the other side of the room. He immediately jumps up, pinning Barry to the ground.
"It's me, Ollie!" Barry yells, trying to breath. "It's Barry."
"Barry?" Oliver softens, taking his knee off his back. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"I needed to talk to you," Barry tells him, quickly rising from the ground. "Wanted to make sure everything was okay. . ."
Oliver scoffs. "I told you I was busy."
Barry stares at the glasses and bottles that were dispersed throughout Oliver's disastrous bedroom. He took a whiff of Oliver's odor, immediately sensing the smell of alcohol. "Busy doing what? Killing your liver?"
"Now isn't the fucking time," Oliver says, angrily pointing at Barry. "I don't need another lecture from anyone today."
"Oliver," Barry begins frustrated. "Look what you're doing to yourself! You look like hell. Your room looks like someone threw a rave in here and never cleaned up.
And you reek!"
Oliver gets his face close to Barry's. Their noses nearly touched as his eyes intently stared into Barry's. Fear was slowly instilled into him as Oliver's expressions became more angry.
"You come into my home, uninvited, and you think you can shame me for how I'm living?" Oliver says, his finger pressed against Barry's chest. "You're more selfish than I thought."
Barry couldn't help but recoil at the stench of Oliver's breath. He backed away slowly. "This isn't living, Ollie."
"I died ten years ago, Barry." Oliver yells. "I hadn't felt alive since the Gambit went down. Until you-" He stops himself, turning his back to Barry. He clears his throat, the words coming out shakily. "Leave."
"Until I what?"
"Leave!" Oliver's voice rose and was stronger than it was before, causing Barry to jump back in shock. He walks to the door, stopping in the doorway.
He doesn't turn around to speak. He keeps his focus on the hallway in front of him. He swallows the lump caught in his throat. He feels his voice tremble. "I hope to still see you, Friday."
"I told you," Oliver begins monotoned. "I'll be there."
"This isn't the answer, Ollie." Barry says, turning his head to face him. Oliver was still facing the other direction. "Whatever you're dealing with, there's a better way to cope."
Oliver turns and pours another glass of tequila. He brings his attention back to Barry. Barry watches as Oliver downs an entire glass of the substance. "If you only knew."
Barry shakes his head as he runs out of the mansion back to Central City. Seeing his friend, the man who had inspired him to be who he was, drowning himself in alcohol weighed heavy on his heart. He had not once seen Oliver so downtrodden. So defeated.
There was no shine in his eyes. No lift to his posture. His eyes looked as if he was staring into the abyss. His shoulders sulked enough to almost make his body appear to be deformed. The sleeves on his shirt were rolled up, the buttons half way undone.
He looked as if he had no care in the world, he spoke like it too. His eyes showed nothing but pain and disdain.
His words penetrated through Barry like an arrow, first breaking the skin and eventually tearing away at the fibers until it reaches the heart. Nothing inside of Barry felt alive after his conversation with Oliver.
Barry returned to his office. He looked out into the city once more. Nothing had changed. People still walked the sidewalks. The lights still illuminated the sky. It meant nothing to Barry this time. Even though the colors reflected different colors of various business signs and stop lights, it looked black and white to Barry.
As he continued to observe the view, he felt his phone vibrate once more. The caller disappointed him.
"You coming home anytime soon?" The voice asks.
Barry pulls himself together, trying to hide the pain from his voice. "Yeah. Just got caught up in the lab."
"Just checking," she continues. "Did you talk to Oliver?"
Barry feels his heart sink once again. He clears his throat to avoid it closing up. "Yeah. He-uh, he said he was coming."
"Great."
"You alright, babe?" She asks.
Barry perks himself up. "Yeah I- I'm fine.
Just ready to be home."