Chapter 1: … Barry Allen.
Chapter Text
“… You should know that, that guy, he’ll be on time” Barry tells her over the phone. It makes her smile, knowing that maybe, just maybe, there’s someone for her. Someone who isn’t running around saving the city at night. Someone, who’s a nerd, just like her. Who cares for her. Who see’s her. Someone, who knew about her feeling for Oliver Queen, just seconds after meeting her.
She isn’t sure what to say. Jump on it and hope for the best? Or let him down slowly, with a desperate hope that Oliver will realize what she’s feeling? “Good to know” she ends up replying. It’s not a promise, but it’s not a no either.
“Bye Felicity” Barry says. A smile can be heard on his lips. That happiness, that pureness, that only Barry can create with his voice.
Felicity allows her own voice melt into emotions as well, “Bye Barry”.
She finds the small box Barry told her about. The gift. The mask. She carefully picks it up and places it over Oliver, handsome face. “How do I look?” he asks.
Felicity can’t help by smile, “Like a hero”.
***
“You have reached the voicemail of…” A female robotic voice says before it’s replaced with a shitty recording of Barry’s voice “… Barry Allen…” before switching back to the robot voice “… leave your message of the Tone”
Bib.
The particle accelerator exploded. Blew up in a lightshow of fire and chemicals, thrown over central city, leaving the city on emergency power for hours. No internet, no TV, not even radio was working.
When Felicity caught wind of it, when the information came to Starling city, 48 hours later. With a death count of 17 people, and even more injured, Felicity pulled out her phone and made the call.
“You have reached the voicemail of…” where words she had heard 30 times over the following 24 hours. No response from Barry, not a call, SMS and not even a mail. So of course, Felicity feared the worst. That would make sense. Barry had promised that he’d be one time. He wouldn’t regret that, would he? Had Felicity said some wrong, something to make him back off? Or was it Oliver-
NO! It couldn’t be. Barry had stood up to Oliver, said Mr. Queen in that ‘I’m better than you’ way that no one used against Oliver, and had even defended Felicity.
So something had to have happened, whether that was in connection with the accident in Central City or something else.
“Nothing new on Barry?” Oliver asks as he and Diggle enters the arrow cave, like Barry would call it, startling Felicity out of her thoughts. It’s so sudden that the phone in her hand slips between her fingers, and drops to the concrete, basement floor, of the foundry, like Oliver calls it. As the phone collides with the floor, the screen is destroyed into a million pieces. Looking like a cobweb, filling out the screen.
“Crap” Felicity mumbles, leaning over to pick up the phone but Oliver is already at her side his own hand reaching towards the phone.
Oliver sighs, “Why don’t you go to central city and check up on Barry? See for yourself if he’s okay, and return the news to us?”. Oliver recommends, which, is honestly surprising to Felicity. She knows Oliver wasn’t a fan of Barry (everyone loves pudding) Allen.
“But what if-“ Felicity starts but Oliver cuts her off.
A hand is the air, stopping her from speak. “We won’t. Me and Diggle started out just us two, we can do a few days without you. And we want to make sure his okay, just as much as you do”.
“Yeah” Felicity whispers, “Yeah, Okay”. Her usually ramble is missing from her voice. The usual happiness and lightness, the optimism, is gone. Left together with the missing sound of her new friends voice.
***
“You have reached the voice mail off…” Felicity slams her newly bought phone down on the table. She’s sitting in a train on her way to Central City. She had left the Foundry just hours earlier. Oliver having almost pushed her out the door, a train ticket in hand, and Diggle by her side to make sure she’d pack.
Diggle had waited with her on Starling City train station. The same station that Barry had been on, just day’s earlier. And Felicity realized that maybe she shouldn’t have let him go home.
Of course she couldn’t have known about the particle accelerator back then, but she had pointed out to Barry, some interesting information about a different accelerator. So maybe if she had info bombed him, he would have stayed. And he would be okay. And he would be smiling, and maybe he would kiss her on the lips and…
“Bye Felicity” Barry’s voice echo’s in her head.
Sigh, “Bye Barry”.
Bye Barry, not a call you later, or see you soon. Not a text me back, tell me about your day. Just three letter’s. B, Y, E. Bye. Bye Barry.
Not even a goodbye.
Maybe he had misunderstood it. Maybe he though she meant it as a ‘I don’t really care about you’ even though, that wasn’t at all what Felicity meant by it. Maybe, maybe this was her fault. Maybe she would never see him again, because of her last words to him. “Bye Barry”. And Maybe, maybe she’d never get to chance to say another word to Barry, just like pudding, Allen.
Sweat, kind, just like pudding, Barry Allen. Who can’t do anything wrong, who can’t take the smile of his lips, who stood up to Oliver when he should have hidden in a corner. Run away from him the vigilant.
She chuckles at that though, “I’m not that good on my feet”, maybe that meant running too. Maybe that meant Barry had, had to learn to defend himself. Maybe, maybe Barry was tired of running.
But if he was tired of running, he would answer his phone. Right?
Or maybe, nothing had happened to him. Maybe he wasn’t running or hiding, and maybe it had nothing to do with Facility’s “Bye Barry”.
Maybe it was work? Looking over crime scene, because in the chaos of the Particle accelerator explosion, there where good chance’s that, people took their chances. That people used the chaos to commit murder, or rob a bank while the security system was offline. That was likely, not every city had a vigilant, running on rooftops and shooting arrow’s with green feathers. They could have, in theory, there where rummers of Batman. But Central city differently didn’t.
Central city would be depending on the police, and of course on Barry too. Maybe even to a point, where something as simple as picking up the phone, just wasn’t an option. There simply wasn’t any time to spare, because of all the crime.
If that was the case, maybe Barry was a little bit like Oliver. A hero as well, but instead of running around out there and stopping it, he put people behind bars with his knowledge.
And maybe, because of the fact that he’s smart, genius level smart, he could help figure out why the particle accelerator explode. Maybe they wanted to rule out a bomb, or terror. Or maybe someone though, that Dr. Well’s, made the particle accelerator explode on purpose. Not that Felicity could see any reason to do so, or for anyone to think he had. But maybe, someone knew something they didn’t. Someone, in the police, or someone, from inside of STAR Labs.
She let’s her fingers slide of the phone screen once more, finds Barry’s name in her contacts.
A tone can be heard over the phone.
***
“You have reached the voice mail off…” the trains roles onto Central city train station. Felicity has lost count of the number of the attempted calls she has made. Barry’s phone number is burned into her brain, stuck there forever. “… Barry Allen…”.
“Hey Barry, it’s Felicity. I’m in Central, call me back”. Felicity can feel the shakiness of her voice. Feel the vibration of her vocal cords, being more pronounced than ever.
She knows what she wants to do, what she has to do.
Step 1, is clear. Visit Central City Police Department, CCPD for short. She knows he works there, Oliver had even called his boss about Barry’s little, adventure. Felicity had been mad when she heard about it, the fact Barry risked losing his job, because of Oliver. And that was after, Barry had saved Oliver’s life.
Step 2, in case step 1 didn’t give her any luck, would be to try and figure out something about Barry’s family. Contact them, somehow.
That would be easier said than done, because Felicity didn’t actually know anything about who Barry lived with after his mother’s murder, and his father’s imprisonment. He would likely be living with some uncle or aunt. Or maybe Barry had been put into the foster care system?
She didn’t know, but she could likely figure it out with a quick hack. Barry wouldn’t mind that, would he?
Step 3, the one she was the least likely to use would be going to his apartment. That was going to be easier than to find than his family history. It was likely already public information.
But she didn’t put it as step 2, since, she didn’t actually know if Barry wanted to see her.
She picks her bag up from the floor of the train, swings it over her shoulders and with quick steps leaves the train. And as soon as she’s out, she can smell and feel that something, isn’t quite right.
The city smell’s weird, odd. Like a combination of fire and chemicals. Which, is likely right, due to the fact that… well, something did explode. But she hadn’t expected the smell to still be around. It had been a few days after all.
The station is mostly empty, only a few other people are leaving the same train as Felicity. Likely people, who like herself, is hoping to see their friends and family alive and well. Maybe some have been called by hospitals, and some might have been in the same boat as Felicity. The lack of contact, the lack of information, driving them crazy. Making them anxious.
Felicity heads towards the Central City Police Department.
***
“You have reached the…” Step one CCPD. As Felicity once again reached the voicemail of Barry’s phone, she enters the CCPD building. It’s bigger, cleaner than the SCPD building back in Starling City. It’s more impressive in ways, and if the number of officers inside is anything to go by, they got control over their city. In the good kind of way. Not the, corrupted cop, kind of way.
Her best guess would be that they’re usually only half the number but needs a little extra power in the middle of the chaos.
What she had expected to do when she actually reached the Station, is unclear to her. Now she’s there, without a real plan. Is she just going to walk through the station like she own’s the place, and beg to god that she can find his lab on her own.
Should she ask one of the officers if they can help her? If they have seen him lately, or knows why he isn’t answering his phone.
Most of the officers look tired, destroyed. There’s bags under their eyes, and some of them look worried and weirdly scared. Felicity has seen similar things on Oliver, back just a few days ago when he told them about Mirakuru. The magical drug that their new criminal in Starling was trying to create more of. And the evidence Barry had found, confirmed it.
Only these people don’t look quiet like that. And it doesn’t quiet look like someone who’s just tired because of chaotic work for a few days.
The best way to describe it, is… well, funeral. Death.
Felicity can’t help but guess, that they lost one of their own that horrible night. The night that killed and destroyed. Not that is was anything compared to what Happened in Starling the year prior, but still… so, so big.
It was supposed to change to world, and it did, but not the way it was intended.
It was supposed to save lives, instead it took them away.
“Can I help you Mrs.?” A friendly man who isn’t wearing uniform, but is clear
ly working at the CCPD as well, steps up to Felicity, a friendly by strained smile on his lips. Blond hair, blue eyes. And wearing a gray suit.
“Mrs. Smoak” Felicity adds. “And, you might be able to help me. You see, I’m looking for one of your CSI’s, I worked with him on a case not too long ago”.
The blond man seems to freeze for a moment for turning back to his normal (or what Felicity think is his normal) way of acting. “If that’s the case, you might want to talk to Captain Singh. I can show you his office if you’d like?”.
“Oh thanks” Felicity says, following the officer to a door a little future into the building. One of the walls is created fully of glass windows but is covered up from the inside. The officer knocks on the door, tells the Captain that someone would love to talk to him, and leave Felicity standing in the door to the office.
The Captain nods to a chair in front of the desk, indicating that Felicity should take a seat. She does so, closing the door carefully behind her, before doing so.
“Captain David Singh?” Felicity asks, the police Captain gives a slight nod. “I’m Felicity Smoak, primary assistant to Oliver Queen, one of the owners of Queen Consolidated”.
“A pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Smoak. I assume this is about that case in Starling city? I’ll apologies for our assistant CSI behavior-“ David Singh starts to speak, but Felicity stops him. She isn’t here to complain about Barry, not at all. She wants to know where he is, if he’s okay. And David Singh apologizing isn’t getting her future into figuring out where Barry is.
Felicity shakes her head, “don’t apologies. We wouldn’t have been able to solve the case without him. Smart young man”. David seems slightly, taken aback by this information. Felicity doesn’t care. “You see, the thing is that during his time in Starling city, me and him worked closely. We like to keep investigation in house. And we, developed a close friendship rather quickly. But ever since the particle accelerator exploded, he hasn’t been picking up his phone”.
She doesn’t ask anything. It’s a trick she has learned from Oliver, sometimes information is better than questions.
Telling the Captain that she created a friendship with his young CSI, with Barry, might not have been the best ide. Might get Barry into trouble. But what where she supposed to tell him? ‘He saved my friends life with rat poison’? Yeah, no.
Something similar to the tired, sad, worried expression on the officers faces flashes over David’s as well. For just a moment. Before he regains his composure with a deep steady breath.
“I…” the Captain hesitates, “I need to confirm with Mr. Allen’s family that I can give you any information. If you’d give me a moment”. David pulls out his smartphone, and almost runs out the office, smartphone to his ear. Leaving Felicity on her own.
Chapter 2: Leave a message after the tone.
Notes:
That... took longer than I though it would?
Chapter Text
“Hey Barry, Felicity here. I heard about what happened with the particle accelerator. You haven’t picked up your phone ever since, so it would mean a lot if you texted me of Oliver. Just, let us know if your okay?”.
Felicity is sitting in the office for a long time. It isn’t hours, even if the awkwardness makes it feel like it. But it’s more than half an hour, that much she knows.
By the time David Singh returns it’s with a black man and a younger black woman. Who turns out to be Barry’s foster father Joe, and foster sister Iris. Iris, being the one to confirm Felicity’s story. Seemingly the only one, who had a chance to hear about his time in Starling, before the accident happened. Because, of course it’s an accident. Felicity could have probably guessed that already.
Joe shows Felicity the lab. The lab that’s soaked with chemicals, water. It’s a mess. A shelf turned on it’s side, paper’s and glass everywhere. And below the sky window, is placed a large container to collect the water. Because they haven’t yet had a chance to get things fixed.
Which, makes sense to Felicity. Things have been a mess the last few days.
In the mess of the lab, they find Barry’s phone. It’s on the table with the small TV. The only area of the lab, that seems slightly okay. And it’s likely where Barry placed it after saying bye to Felicity.
Right before, getting struck by lightning. Thrown into a chemical reck. And placed in a coma.
The phone isn’t turning on at first glance, likely due to some sort of water or electrical damage. It had been raining that night. It wasn’t impossible, that when the lightning had stricken, that the electricity in the air had been carried by the rain, to the phone. Killing one of more vitals parts of it.
Both Joe and Iris goes back to the hospital shortly after. Felicity doesn’t join them, though she’s sure they wouldn’t mind. They had told her to stop by and say hello anytime.
But Felicity didn’t want to intrude so late in the afternoon. The fact she had shown up in the first place had resulted in her making them leave Barry in the first place. And by the sound of things, he wasn’t at all stable. With Iris crying as she repeated “his heart keeps stopping”. Felicity aren’t ready to be a part of that.
So she finds herself in a hotel room that Oliver had booked for her. With a set of tools, and spare parts of Barry’s phone placed on the floor, where she’s sitting too. Confirming her theory. And, hopefully fixing it so he won’t have to get a new one when he wakes up.
Which, Felicity knows it isn’t a when, it’s an if. Because, lightning… that is a lot to take in.
By the time the phone is up and running again, it’s midnight. So Felicity finds herself listing to all of the voicemail’s she has left Barry.
“Hey Barry, you still haven’t called back. Oliver though it would be a good idea, if we go check up on you. I’m jumping on the train soon, it’s just me. No Oliver, no Diggle. I hope that’s okay”.
But she can’t use all her afternoon, or more accurate, night listening to that. It makes her want to cry. She doesn’t quiet know why.
***
“Hey Felicity, it’s kinda late for a call isn’t it” Diggle replies, quickly. Swiping the call in. He’s sitting in his living room unable to sleep anyways, so it doesn’t matter that it’s late. It really doesn’t matter. He’s worried about Barry too. “Found Barry yet?”.
The sob he hears over the phone makes him freeze. Felicity isn’t much of a crier. Diggle would know. He’s seen her, carry her boss into his secret bunker, no questions asked, when he’d been shot. The day she found out who he was behind the mask. The day, all the weird questions had been explained. She’d seen him die. Helped save him. And only a few days earlier, seen him die again. Only being able to save him through her new friend. Barry Allen, CSI assistant.
Yet, through it all, Felicity hadn’t cried. Sure, she had been scared. Diggle had too. But there where
no tears. Her cheeks stayed dry.
Diggle isn’t sure he’s ever heard Felicity cry before.
“What’s going on?” Diggle asks. “What happened?”. Diggle knows he can’t actually do anything, even if wanted to. He doesn’t know what the problem is. And he doesn’t think Felicity is actually in danger. But by reflex he grabs for the gun held in his belt, despite not even having it on him, when he’s at home. That’s just simply a rule he has. “Talk to me, Felicity”.
“It’s… it’s” Felicity’s voices breaks between sobs, and quick breaths. “It’s… B-Barry” she forces out in a breath. “He’s… omg… Diggle. He’s…”. The desperate cries slowly grows louder and more panicked for each words she says. And Diggle, almost fears that Barry Allen, is dead. Would that explain Felicity’s cry for help? Had they caused this, pulling him into the life of team arrow? Somehow put him in danger, by knowing him. By him knowing their secret. Because, Oliver, Diggle, Felicity, they all had dangerous enemies. A lot of them. Sure, Barry worked for the police, but that wouldn’t put him in danger, even as close to what team arrow could.
“Felicity take a deep breath. What is going on?” Diggle asks again. He can hear Felicity take a deep breath on the other end of the phone. It’s shaky and almost scary to hear. But her sobs die down a little, and she seems more like herself as she starts to speak again.
“I meet Barry’s foster family” Felicity starts, taking deep breaths between each word. “Great people. I’m sure Barry loves them a lot” she states.
Diggle takes a deep breath too, “That sound nice Felicity. I’m sure their great people. Taking in a kid who’s parents has just been killed, must be a hard task”. He tries to make calm conversation. Hoping that will make things a little easier.
He can hear movement on the other side of the call, probably a nod. “They are but…” Felicity’s voice breaks again. “Remember when we placed the mask on Oliver’s face? Right after I hung up on Barry after our last goodbye?”.
“Yes, I do” Diggle confirms. “What about it?”.
That’s a sharp intake of breath from Felicity’s side of the phone. “Right in that moment…” there’s a sob, “Barry was struck by lightning. He… he isn’t stable… he’s comatose” Felicity starts to cry heavily again. “They aren’t sure he’ll make it. And, Iris… his f-foster sister says that… his heart keeps stopping. He keeps dying and…” Felicity voice breaks.
Diggle aren’t sure what to think.
Of course, he knows a thing or two about being struck by lightning. He read up on it, when he’s cousin was struck a few years back. But, he didn’t go into a coma. Didn’t die. His heart didn’t stop. He just, developed a stutter.
Diggle knows that a coma is bad. It means there’s some sort of nerve or brain damage the body is trying to repair. And while some people come out of it, being mostly fine, it’s unlikely that there wont be any long time side effects of it. If Barry even wakes up.
“I-I… Felicity. I don’t… even know what to say. Can we see him, does his family allow that? Is he stable enough for that?” Diggle talks a little too fast, the panic growing in him.
Felicity takes a deep breath, “We can see him. Their okay with that. Says it might even help to hear the voices of people he knows. And like, we don’t know him well, but we’re like, the last people he really talked to before the lightning” Felicity talks fast herself this time. A little more back to normal. Diggle shots up to his feet, already looking for a bag. He’s going to Central City.
***
“Hey Barry. I’m on the train now. Diggle just dropped me off at the station in Starling, so I’ll be in Central in a couple of hours’ time. I really, really hope your okay. When you hear this, call me back, or write a text. Okay?”
***
Diggle storms into the bunker, a bag over his shoulder. Oliver is sitting in front of the computer, looking over some date, still wearing his suit. Maybe having used some of his anger to stop some robbery or something. At least so he hopes. He doesn’t care, really. Not now.
“You have to switch and pack. We’re going to Central city” Diggle says, dropping his back on the floor next to the staircase, joining Oliver at the computer.
Oliver looks confused. “What? Why?” some flashes in his eyes, “Is Felicity okay? Did something happen? What happened?”.
“Not Felicity” Diggle says, he knows secretly, that Oliver got feelings for her. Even if he won’t admit it. He’s sure Barry had seen that too, in his protective manner. “Barry” he says, “Is comatose. Stuck by lightning the night of the particle accelerator explosion”.
“He, WHAT?!” Oliver looks almost scared for just a second. Diggle knows, Oliver will never let people know he cares. He’s supposed to be cold, and dark. That’s whole the idea behind arrow, and Oliver is good at it. But this is enough to make him falter. It would be almost funny to see, if it weren’t for the fact someone’s life was on the line.
Diggle nods. “Lightning. Crazy. We’re going now”.
Oliver get’s to his feet, starting to change into a thick hoodie. “What do we know? Is he stable? Please tell me he’s stable?”.
“He’s not” Diggle says, “There’s no telling if he’ll wake up. Or even if he’ll be alive when we get to Central City. Felicity is waiting for us in her hotel room. His foster family has already confirmed with the hospital, that we have access to see him”.
“Okay” Oliver breaths out. Breath shaky. “Okay”.
***
“Hey Barry. Felicity again. I’m outside the CCPD. If your at work right now, I’ll come surprise you I guess. Or maybe, you’ll surprise me, by, not being dead? Who knows. Please let me know your okay. I beg you”.
Sognante on Chapter 1 Tue 29 Sep 2020 03:14PM UTC
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Dorthea on Chapter 1 Tue 29 Sep 2020 03:25PM UTC
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Dorthea on Chapter 1 Tue 29 Sep 2020 05:44PM UTC
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Sognante on Chapter 1 Wed 30 Sep 2020 12:43AM UTC
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Dorthea on Chapter 1 Wed 14 Oct 2020 02:10PM UTC
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Sognante on Chapter 2 Thu 15 Oct 2020 12:37AM UTC
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Dorthea on Chapter 2 Thu 15 Oct 2020 06:56AM UTC
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