Barry admitted that Hal was very relentless and determined in his futile pursuit of courting Barry. In truth Barry couldn't say that he wasn't impressed or flattered by Hal's continuous advances but his answer remained no.

Lately however, Barry's been stressed out more so than usual due to the unexpected arrival of another superhero who was known as the Green Lantern. Which was also nothing short of a coincidence that when Hal showed up, Green Lantern suddenly appeared in Central City. Although Barry had his suspicions, he didn't have any proof and he hadn't mentioned them to anyone.

Not to mention that the crime rate had risen and more villains have come out of the shadows to face the Flash. With the amount of murders and crimes happening in the city, Barry had more work to do as the CSI and as the city's hero, the Flash.

Sighing in frustration, Barry spun in his chair, staring up at the skylight as if it held the answer to solving the case that he was working on right now.

"Allen, being frustrated is not going to solve the case any sooner." Julian spoke, looking up at him from his desk.

"I know but I'm stressed out. All the CSI work and the work that I do as the Flash is beginning to overwhelm me." Barry sighed sitting up straight in his chair. "I'm barely getting any sleep and I'm tired man. I'm up half the night fighting crime and then spend the whole day solving cases. It's the same routine every day!"

Julian studied Barry for a few moments before he set whatever he was doing to the side. "You need a break."

Barry glanced at him. "What?"

"You need a break." Julian repeated, standing up and walking over to him. "I'll ask if we can get off early and we'll go somewhere to let off some steam."

Barry began to protest. "What? I don't think that'll be a good idea. I mean we still have to-"

Julian placed a hand on Barry's shoulder, the gesture causing Barry to stop talking and look up at him through his long lashes and hazel/green eyes.

"You need this Barry." Julian said, giving him a small nod.

Barry pondered it for a couple minutes, thinking about how stressed he was. He wouldn't be able to solve any case in the position and state of mind he was in at the moment. Not to mention he did need to let a couple loads off his shoulders. Julian was right. He did need this.

Barry smiled at Julian and said, "Okay fine."

☇☇☇

Their night out was going extremely well with no problems at all and Barry was actually happy for once. The only compli-cation was that he couldn't get drunk off of any of the alcohol around the bar but that's where Cisco and Caitlin came in.

They had finally managed to create a concoction that could get him inebriated and the effects would last so much longer, just like before he had gotten his speed. It was pretty amazing to be able to just let loose and get drunk.

Julian and Barry had been at the bar for the better half of four hours straight and he was beyond being buzzed. He was so drunk that he honestly couldn't even walk straight. In the back of his mind, he knew that using his speed was out of the question. He would most definitely get himself hurt in the process.

"How d'you feel now?" Julian asked, his eyes sliding over to Barry to observe him. His words came out slightly slurred which meant Julian was buzzed but not drunk off his add much like Barry was.

Barry smiled widely, spinning in his bar stool and laughing drunkenly. "I feel gr-gr-great! I feel so m-m-much lighter--this stuff Cisco and Caitlin made r-r-rr-really works!" He held out the bottle he had began to drink. "You s-s-should tr-r-ry it."

Julian shook his head, holding up his own drink. "Nah, I'm good. Too strong for me."

Barry grinned and drank the rest of the bottle. When it was all gone, he turned to face the bar and tipped backwards on the stool. Julian barely had enough time to catch him before he could hit the floor.

"Woah there, Allen." Julian spoke. "Careful. I think it's time to get you home, 'kay?"

Barry nodded slowly, his head hurting. He could feel the alcohol sloshing around inside his stomach. The room began to spin and he knew that he probably drank too much of that stuff. Julian helped him out of the bar and down the dark side street.

Barry mind was sluggish and he was having a hard time thinking and focusing. He was definitely going to have a massive hangover in the morning. Julian pulled his arm around his shoulders and wrapped one arm around his waist, trying to help Barry balance.

With his inebriated mind and his slow movements and eye coordination, Barry didn't see the street thugs until it was too late. There were about five of them total and they surrounded them, blocking any form of escape. Julian stared at them as one of them stalked forward.

"What do we have here?" The street thug drawled, his eyes studying Julian and Barry. When his gaze moved to Barry, he licked his lips and reached out to touch his face. "He's drunk isn't he?"

Julian stared at the thug defiantly, not answering his question. Barry knew that he was going to get hurt if he didn't act quickly but his mind was moving slow and he couldn't expose himself by using his speed. And he was drunk, there was no way he could get them out of this situation in his condition. They were trapped.

The thug stepped in Julian's face and jabbed a finger into his chest. "I asked you a question. Now answer!"

Julian sneered at him. "What do you bloody think?!"

Barry barely had enough time to block the hit that was aimed at Julian's face, without using his speed. All the training with Oliver was paying off nicely; he could fight without using his speed. Barry took a stumbling step back when the thug turned on him, backhanding him across the face.

Barry's hand flew to his face, shock and hurt registering on his face as his cheek began to turn red. He blinked back tears, the stinging in his cheek raw and he stood his ground as the thug stepped forward. It took everything he had not to flinch away from him when he reached out to pull his hand away.

"Look what you made me do." The thug murmured.

Barry was shaking, eyes wide and staring at the man in front of him. "Please leave me alone." His voice was barely a whisper and he blamed it on the concoction his friends made. He was never scared of criminals and thugs like this, at least not this afraid.

"I can't do that. You see, around these parts people like you end up with me unwilling or not." The thug caressed his cheek with the back of his hand. "And people like your friend .  .  . end up dead."

Barry was trembling with fear now, fear of whatever the thug had planned for him. His heart began to hammer against his chest and he heard roaring in his ear, like a waterfall. His heart continued to pound against his ribcage and he couldn't breathe. Barry was having a panic attack.

"You're not touching him!" Julian yelled, trying to get to Barry but he was being restrained.

The thug glared at Julian but otherwise ignored him. His attention was focused on Barry and he started whispering something to him. Barry squeezed his eyes shut, shaking his head rapidly and tried to block out everything he was saying. The thug swore loudly and he opened his eyes.

The thug was sent flying backwards by a green burst of light. Barry spun around in what felt like slow motion and looked up. He was surprised but relieved to see the Green Lantern floating down to the street.

"Hal." Barry whispered, because he knew. He knew who was behind the mask. The Green Lantern stared at him in surprise and his face twisted into one of horror as he began running toward him.

"Barry!" Julian's voice was frantic and had a warning in it.

Barry turned around to see the thug with a bat. The thug swung it hard and Barry couldn't move out of the way in time. It connected with the side of his head and the last thing he saw or heard was Hal yelling his name and Julian running toward him.

Barry closed his eyes and everything went black.

A/N: Hey guys!! So how was it?!

Let me know!!