⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ──────── ⊰

𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗘 𝗢𝗙 𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗘

CHAPTER FORTY
buzz buzz bitch

⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ──────── ⊰

JULIET WAS STILL pretty shaken up about what had happened earlier. Well she had seen her new boyfriend and her best friend literally die in front of her, and then she had saved him. And then now she was being thrown into dinner and was supposed to act like nothing had happened for Iris' sake.

Nevertheless, she had gotten ready for dinner. She got changed into a floor-length long-sleeved deep teal dress that had sparkles on it that had a low v-cut neckline, cinched at her right hip, and had a slit right below her right knee. Her hair was straightened and she paired everything with, obviously, the J necklace she always wore and a simple pair of black heels.

The second Barry's eyes set on her, his face flushed as red as Juliet's energy and he was completely speechless for about thirty seconds. Juliet had laughed a little at him, but her heart pounded against her chest and her heart felt all fluttery. Barry only regained his senses when Juliet had leaned up and kissed him, and then the compliments started to spew out.

Juliet had pulled her coat on over her dress and her and Barry met up with Felicity and Ray. Ray was also wearing a suit, and Felicity was wearing a stunning red dress. The four of them walked up to the restaurant. Instantly, Barry and Ray each took a hold of one of the doors and opened it for Juliet and Felicity.

"Oh, thank you," Felicity said to the two.

Juliet smiled between them. "Thanks."

"Hey, guys," Felicity greeted to Iris and Eddie, who were having a drink at the bar. "Wow, Iris, check you out."

Iris stood up, and Juliet nodded in agreement. She was wearing a knee-length cream-colored dress, and, as always, she looked like a million bucks.

"Hi, Felicity," Iris replied, pulling the girl into a hug.

Felicity giggled and hugged her back. "Hello."

"Hi," Eddie stated.

"Hey. Guys. this is Ray Palmer."

Ray stuck his hand out. "Hi. Nice to meet you."

Eddie shook his hand. "Lovely to meet you."

"Hi," Iris said.

Ray shook her hand next. "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you."

Eddie looked at the couple in the back and waved. "Barry, Juliet."

"Bienvenue chez Massimo Restaurant," a waiter began. "Mr. Palmer, your table is ready."

"Great," Ray responded. He offered his arm out to Felicity. "Shall we?"

Felicity linked her arm through his. "Yes."

Barry then cleared his throat. Juliet looked up at him, only to see him extending his arm out to her as well. She smiled softly up at him and linked their arms together, her hand resting in the crook of his elbow. They followed after the others as the waiter led them through the restaurant.

"Hey, how did he get a reservation here?" Iris asked, falling into step with the two. "We've been trying for months. Jules, you look incredible, by the way."

"Thank you," Juliet replied. "And to be honest, I have no idea."

The waiter stopped, gesturing into an empty dining room, which made Juliet's eyes widen in shock. "Here's your table, sir."

"I thought it'd be nice if it was quiet, so I bought out the entire restaurant," Ray revealed, making Juliet shake her head in disbelief. He looked back at all of their shocked gazes. "Too much?"

"Just a tad, sweetie," Felicity answered.

Nevertheless, they sat down around their table. Like they were high-schoolers, Juliet and Barry held hands under the table, and she so desperately tried to control the redness in her cheeks when his thumb ran back and forth against her knuckles.

"So how did you two meet?" Eddie questioned, glancing in between Ray and Felicity.

"Work," Felicity responded.

"Uh, well, actually, I bought the company where Felicity was employed, and, uh, so she was forced to join me at Palmer Tech," Ray added.

"It's not as creepy as it sounds."

"So you two work closely together?" Iris inquired.

"Mmm-hmm," Felicity hummed.

Iris looked right at Eddie. "Interesting. I guess you guys share all of your thoughts and feelings and . . ."

"Yeah, I share everything with Felicity," Ray agreed.

"It's nice that you guys have that level of communication. You know, Juliet and Barry have that level of communication, too."

Juliet winced slightly and reached forwards, taking her glass of wine that had way too little wine in it for this conversation.

Felicity's smile fell. "Oh, well, no, not every-everything. I mean, sometimes it's good to just shut up."

"I get that," Eddie voiced. "Some things are better left unspoken."

Iris stared at him incredulously. "Really? I — I don't find that to be true."

Juliet wanted nothing more than to slam her head against the wall repeatedly. Or let the Earth open up and swallow her whole. Maybe both.

"Oh, thank God, it's the food," Barry announced. "Food's here."

"Our first course on the tasting menu is a quail egg frittata," the waiter explained, and a bowl that had very little food in it was placed in front of each of them. "Bon appetit."

"Barry, Juliet," Ray stated, and Juliet looked over at him. "I got to admit, I envy you two spending so much time at S.T.A.R. Labs. Harrison Wells is, like, a personal hero of mine. I mean, it's amazing just to actually be in the same room with him."

Juliet felt Barry's grip tighten on her hand, and she looked over at him worryingly. Even though she absolutely adored him, Barry was a lot worse than her with hiding his feelings about Dr. Wells being the Reverse Flash. It was completely understandable, considering he murdered his mother, but Juliet could see his mind start to panic.

"Um, I'll be right back," Barry cut in. "Just excuse me. J, would you—"

"Yeah," she said softly, allowing him to pull her up out of her chair.

Together, the two of them left the table, leaving behind their friends and their food. Barry led them over to a door in the restaurant, and he opened it, pulling them inside. They were instantly surrounded by bottles of wine, and Barry let go of her hand, starting to pace back and forth.

"Barry," Juliet called. "Hey—"

The door suddenly opened. Juliet glanced back to see that it was Felicity.

"Okay, you two been acting super strange ever since Ray and I got to Central City," Felicity said. "Barry, you more so than Juliet. Like, on an exponential level more. What is going on with you both? And don't say it's a bad time. Oliver might be joining the League of Assassins, Laurel's the Black Canary, and Thea's training with Malcolm, so I know about bad times."

Juliet's eyes widened in shock. "I'm sorry, did you say Ollie was joining the League of Assassins? What the fuck is the League of Assassins?"

"I thought it was self explanatory."

Barry looked over at her. "J."

"Don't give me that look. We're still close, and—" She then stopped, letting out a deep breath while shutting her eyes. "Okay, that's important, but it's not important right now." Juliet looked at Barry, walking up and rubbing his shoulder comfortingly. "I think we should tell her."

"Joe, Juliet, and I found out that Wells isn't who he says he is," Barry admitted. "He . . . he is the man that killed my mother."

Felicity froze in shock. "Oh my God. But he's been helping you two."

"Get faster, stronger, more powerful in J's case, I know."

"Why?"

"I don't know," Barry continued. "I don't know anything anymore, especially who I can and can't trust."

"So you think Cisco and Caitlin are helping him?" Felicity asked. "That's impossible."

"Is it?"

"Yes, they were trying to save you today, Barry. It might've been Juliet who saved you, but they were trying."

"Wells has also saved me and J," Barry insisted. "Many times. We thought that Wells was a great man, and we were so wrong about him. What if we're wrong about everything else too?"

"Hey, guys," Ray greeted, opening the door. They instantly stopped their conversation and looked at him. "Uh, things are getting a little intense in here."

Juliet closed her eyes for a moment. "Oh, God."

She followed Felicity and Ray outside back into the main restaurant. Sure enough, Iris and Eddie were in the midst of an argument. Juliet instantly frowned. Even though she couldn't see Iris' face, by the tone of her voice, she knew Iris was close to crying.

". . . you know what, when you are ready to act like we are two people who love each other, call me," Iris was saying. "I'll be at Juliet's."

Juliet slowly walked down the steps from the wine room, staring at Iris' retreating figure. Barry placed a comforting hand on the small of her back. She hated seeing Iris upset.

"Thank you for dinner," Eddie said. "I've got to go."

Barry's phone then buzzed, and he pulled it out to look at the text. "Uh, emergency at S.T.A.R. Labs."

"Go," Felicity urged.

Juliet gave them an apologetic smile. "See you in a few."

She then grabbed onto the top of Barry's arm. Juliet focused on the two of them, and they teleported across the restaurant to grab their jackets, and then a second later they teleported into S.T.A.R. Labs. Caitlin was holding a fire extinguisher while Cisco was holding some kind of laser device. Juliet's head then snapped over to Dr. Wells, who had one of the deadly bees flying next to him. Her eyes widened and she held up her hand, her concentration narrowing in on the bee. Instantly, the bee froze, red energy surrounding it as well as around her fingertips.

Barry sped away and got a vial. He scooped up the bee in the vial, and once the top was closed, Juliet let go of her concentration, and the energy dissipated. She let her hand drop back to her side, letting out a breath of relief.

"Thank you," Dr. Wells told the two of them.

Cisco took the vial from Barry. "Let's see what makes this bee so poisonous."

He then literally cringed from being so close to the bee and ran into the medbay, Caitlin trailing after him. Juliet shook her head and pulled her coat on over her dress, pulling out the hair that had been tucked in. She put her hands in the pockets and walked closer to Barry. Like at the restaurant, he placed his hand on her back, keeping her close.

Dr. Wells looked up at the two heroes. "You two saved my life."

Barry placed gentle pressure on Juliet's back, urging her to walk. She led them into the medbay, where Cisco had put the bee under the microscope.

"That is one odd-looking bee," Caitlin commented.

"That's 'cause it isn't a bee at all," Cisco revealed. "It's a robot."

"No way."

Juliet peered over at the bee. Cisco was right — the bee was completely a robot. She shared a look with Barry. This wasn't a Metahuman.

They studied the bee a bit more, and in that time, Felicity and Ray returned from the restaurant. The robot bee was placed inside the treadmill room while a camera was close up on it. They had pulled up the camera footage onto the screen, and another screen had a diagram of the bee. Juliet tilted her head in thought from where she stood, Barry's arm loosely around her hips as he sat next to her on top of a stool.

"Unbelievable," Cisco began. "This bot's got a three-hundred-and-sixty degree vision system. I mean, we're talking multiple micro-cameras all coming from various angles at the same time. Which means . . ."

"It can see all around the room at once," Ray finished. "That is . . ."

"Amazing," Ray and Cisco chorused.

"Disturbing," Caitlin corrected.

"It's also next-gen hardware that's nowhere near the market," Dr. Wells voiced.

"So we're not dealing with a Metahuman?" Felicity questioned.

"It's just a mad scientist," Barry responded.

"Cisco, you said the second victim, Bill Carlisle, was a robotics engineer," Dr. Wells said. "Let's cross-reference his previous employers with those of Lindsay Kang."

Felicity rushed up to the computers as Cisco leaned forwards. "Allow me." She sat down. "Mama's been away from a keyboard for far too long." She typed for a moment. "Okay."

Juliet stared at the pictures on the screen. "Both of them worked at Mercury Labs."

"Let's call Joe," Dr. Wells stated. "I think it's time we paid a visit to an old friend."

Juliet, Barry, Dr. Wells, and Joe all went into Mercury Labs. They waited in Dr. McGee's office for a moment.

"Twice in one year, Harrison," Dr. McGee greeted as she walked into her office. "You really are vying for comeback scientist of the year."

"Always a pleasure, Christina," Dr. Wells replied.

"To what do I owe this visit? Did you finally find my tachyon prototype or are you here to blackmail me for another one?"

"Do you have another one?"

Juliet elbowed Barry's side when she noticed him sneak a look down at Dr. Wells. He looked at her, and she gave him a warning glance. Not right now.

"We came here for information," Joe announced, pulling the pictures out of his pocket. "Bill Carlisle and Lindsay Kang. Former employees who were recently murdered."

Dr. McGee looked up in shock. "My God. I — I wasn't aware."

"Stung to death by robotic bees," Dr. Wells added.

"You're looking for Brie Larvan."

"Brie Larvan?" Barry repeated.

"A quite brilliant roboticist who once developed miniature mechanical bees for agricultural use," Dr. McGee continued. "Kang and Carlisle warned me that Brie was weaponizing the bees for military use, so I terminated her."

"Well, it seems that you would be on her hit list too, Doctor," Joe told her.

"You've got to let us keep you safe," Dr. Wells urged.

Dr. McGee sat down at her desk. "I'm all too familiar with your inability to protect things, Harrison. I can take care of myself. Good day, gentlemen." Her eyes then slid to Juliet. "And lady."

Joe nodded once. "Thank you."

With that, they left Mercury Labs. Felicity had called both Juliet and Barry, saying to meet them at Jitters. They walked in, hand-in-hand, to see Felicity sitting on one of the red comfy chairs with her head resting on her arm.

"Hey," Barry said, and Felicity picked her head up.

He sat down on the chair across from Felicity and tugged Juliet down by her hand, settling her down on his right thigh. Juliet slightly smiled and leaned back against his chest a little.

"Okay, so we found our queen bee. Brie Larvan. She's a roboticist. Joe is running a trace on her current location, but so far nothing."

"Good," Felicity responded.

"Where's Ray?" Juliet inquired.

"Oh, he's working on his suit with Cisco."

She smiled at Felicity. "I really like him. He seems like a good guy."

"He is a good guy," Felicity agreed. "Just like Cisco. And Caitlin. Girl."

Barry gave Felicity a knowing look. "Is that why you called us here?"

"I know that you two are in a tricky situation, but that's when you need your friends to have your back. And how can they if you won't let them?"

"It's not that simple. What if Joe is right, and we tell them, and it backfires? Wells isn't just their boss, Felicity. He is their mentor, their hero." He glanced up at Juliet. "Our hero." His voice then lowered. "My hero. Look, it's . . . I don't know what to do."

"When I first met Oliver, before I knew he was the Arrow, he would — he would ask me to do weird things for him, like decrypt a bullet-ridden computer or hack some company," Felicity explained. "And when I would ask him why, he would come up with these ridiculous excuses. And I always knew he was lying, but I would help him anyway. You know why?"

"Because he's charming?" Juliet suggested, and without looking at Barry, she patted his knee. "No offense, baby."

"No. Well, yes, but no. Because I knew Oliver was a good person with a good heart. And Cisco and Caitlin? They're no different."

They sat with Felicity for a couple more minutes before bidding goodbye. Juliet and Barry walked out of Jitters together into the chilly night air, still holding onto each other's hands. They walked down the sidewalk before Juliet squeezed Barry's hand and stopping, making him stop as well. He turned to face her, and Juliet looked up at him, because he was still taller than her even though she was wearing heels.

"I should probably get back to my apartment," Juliet told him. "Iris did say she was staying with me, and she has a key, so . . ."

"Yeah," Barry softly agreed. "Goodnight."

She gave him a small smile. "Goodnight."

At the same time, Juliet leaned up and Barry dipped his head down. Their lips met in the middle for a sweet kiss, and they both squeezed each other's hands at the same time as they did so. Juliet felt her heart flutter as they pulled away, and Barry gave her that damn smile that made her weak to her knees. He let her hand go and walked down the sidewalk, shoving his hands into his pockets.

Juliet watched him go for a moment before glancing around. No one was milling the streets considering how late it was, so she ducked back into the shadows and teleported away back to her apartment. She appeared in the shadows of the stairway of her apartment building, and she walked up to her apartment. Juliet turned her key in the door and opened it. Sure enough, Iris was sitting on her couch in comfy clothes, typing on her laptop with a packed bag by her feet.

Iris turned around when she heard the door open. "Hey."

"Hey," Juliet replied quietly, shutting the door behind her and locking it. "You sure you want to stay here and not your dad's?"

"No, Barry will just annoy me because he won't shut up about you." She grinned a little at the way Juliet's face turned red. The smile then slipped off of her face as she watched Juliet take off her coat and hang it up by the door. "Jules, do you think that Eddie is cheating on me?"

Juliet stared at Iris for a moment, her heart sinking to her stomach. "Oh, Iris, no. Eddie wouldn't do that."

"Well, then, I don't know what else he could be hiding from me."

If only she knew.

Juliet sighed and walked up to the couch, sitting besides Iris. "I practically lived at your house my whole life. You, me, Barry, and Noelle would spend all day together, and then Joe would come home from work with that blank expression on his face. Do you remember?"

"How could I forget?" Iris responded. "It was the Earth-to-Joe look."

"As a kid, I was always confused about that look. I never understood it until I got a job at the CCPD. These crimes scenes, seeing people murdered . . . it really messes with your head, 'Ris. It's not pretty. Barry and I are lucky because we get to stay in our lab and hide behind the science, but Eddie is out in the darkness every single day." She placed a hand on Iris' knee comfortingly. "I think that Eddie just wants to keep you in the light, and that's why he doesn't want to talk to you about his work."

"You think so?"

"Yeah, I do," Juliet said. "Eddie makes you really happy, and that's all I've ever wanted for you."

She then slung her arms around Iris' shoulders. Iris closed her eyes in content and leaned their heads together.

"Thank you, Jules," Iris told her.

Juliet squeezed her once before letting go. "Any time." She then stood up. "Well, it seems like you've already made yourself at home. You know where the spare bedroom is, so I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight."

"Night."

Juliet left Iris on the couch and walked into her bedroom, shutting the door behind her. She reached down, ready to take off her shoes, when her phone buzzed. Juliet took it out of her purse to see that it was a text from Caitlin, saying that the bee at S.T.A.R. Labs had activated and that Brie was going after Dr. McGee.

She glanced at her bedroom door for a moment, remembering Iris in her living room. Juliet lifted up her hand and focused in on her doorknob. She flicked her finger, and instantly, the knob locked. Iris wouldn't be able to notice if she was missing, and if Juliet didn't answer, she could just play it off as that she was sleeping.

Juliet then teleported back to S.T.A.R. Labs and instantly got in her suit. Barry sped in after a moment and also got in his suit, walking towards the desk of computers where Caitlin, Dr. Wells, and Felicity were sitting. Cisco and Ray walked into the cortex, presumably coming from Cisco's workshop downstairs.

"How do we stop them?" Barry asked.

"She's got to be remotely piloting those bees from somewhere," Dr. Wells answered.

"We need to stop this bug-eyed glasses woman," Cisco voiced.

"And her mini bandits," Ray added.

"Bug-Eyed Bandit," Cisco and Ray stated together, sharing a glance.

"Got her, she's in an abandoned greenhouse," Felicity revealed.

"Barry, Juliet, you have to take out Brie," Dr. Wells instructed. "It's the only way to stop these nanodrones."

"What about Dr. McGee?" Barry questioned.

"I can go," Juliet offered. "If I really focus up, I can create that shield I tried to do earlier."

"We can't risk it," Caitlin insisted. "You need to learn more about how your powers work and what your limits are, and if those bees sting you, you can't save yourself with your energy. Neither you or Barry cannot risk going near Mercury Labs."

"Bees can't penetrate my suit," Ray cut in. "I'll go."

"Woah, we haven't tested out the new power system yet," Cisco protested.

"We'll do it now."

"I'm following you."

"I'm driving," Caitlin announced.

"And I'm kissing you," Felicity said, taking Ray's face in his hands and kissing him.

Barry sighed. "Dr. Wells—"

"Mr. Palmer will protect Tina," Dr. Wells reassured him. "Go."

Juliet looked up at Barry. Their eyes met, and she gave him a small nod. Barry then picked her up in his arms and sped them away. Juliet closed her eyes, the wind flew around her for a moment until it was gone. They were indeed in an abandoned greenhouse. In one of the corners was a hexagonal structure with a bunch of computers. A blonde woman was sitting there on a white chair.

"It's over, Brie," Barry said, and Brie turned to look at them. "We know you're trying to kill Dr. McGee. You think that she betrayed you. We can imagine how that feels."

"You think you understand the sting of betrayal?" Brie demanded. "I'll show you what it means to be stung."

Instantly, a whole new swarm of robotic bees came out. Barry gathered Juliet in his arms again and ran them away, the bees following them. He stopped for a moment, and they were completely surrounded by hundreds of bees.

"Barry, Juliet," Dr. Wells began over the comms.

The bees started to fly at them. Juliet's hands lit up red with energy, but there was no need. The bees stopped right in front of them, flying and buzzing in place.

"Barry, Juliet, I hacked into the bees' frequency, I'm controlling them," Felicity admitted.

Juliet watched as the bees buzzed around. It was evident that both Brie and Felicity were fighting over control of the bees. They kept coming at the two heroes and then stopping.

Barry pressed on his ear. "Felicity, right now would be a good time to do something."

"Wait," Juliet interjected. "Let me try again."

"J, before—"

"I know. But I can do it."

Juliet then raised her hands, concentrating on all of the bees around them. Red energy started to travel up and down her arms and she shut her eyes, and instead of ignoring the throbbing in her head, she embraced it. Juliet imagined an impenetrable sphere, almost like a bubble, around her and Barry. Unlike earlier, when her powers had given out, they responded to her. Red energy flew from her hands and down to the ground, where it built higher and higher until they were completely covered.

She opened her eyes. The bees all flew towards them at once, but they bounced off of the energy. Juliet smiled. It had worked. The bees flew at them again, but Felicity must've won the hacking competition, because all of the bees completely dropped, laying dead on the floor.

Juliet dropped her hands, letting go of all the energy. It flickered away, removing the red glow from the dark greenhouse. She blinked and staggered a step backwards for a moment, black spots entering her vision. Barry placed a hand on her shoulder to stabilize her, and when Juliet regained control, she looked up at him. Barry was smiling proudly down at her.

Barry then sped them over back Brie's computers. He knocked Brie out and handcuffed her to her chair. She sat there, slumped unconscious, as her chair spun around.

"Brie's restrained," Barry reported. "Call CCPD."

"Cisco's been stung, he's going into shock," Ray's voice then said, making Juliet's eyes widen in panic.

"We're on our way," Juliet replied.

She grabbed onto Barry's arm and teleported them to where Cisco, Ray, and Caitlin had stopped. Cisco was laying on the asphalt while Caitlin did chest compressions on him, a welt on his neck from where he had been stung. Juliet let go of Barry and ran up to Cisco, dropping down onto her knees.

"Back away."

Caitlin did as she was told. Juliet summoned more energy to her hands and pressed them up onto Cisco's chest. His body jolted, but he remained unconscious.

"Cisco," Juliet voiced in slight panic, hitting her hand against his face gently. "Hey."

His eyes flew open and he gasped. Cisco reached up and clasped onto Juliet's hand. She helped pull him up so he was sitting.

"Either my fear of bees is over or it just got a lot worse," Cisco admitted, making Juliet let out a small laugh.

"Thank God you're okay," Caitlin said.

"I've never had anybody take a bee for me," Ray interrupted. "Thank you."

Cisco grinned at him. "You're welcome, bro."

"Cisco, you're a hero, man," Barry told him.

He breathed heavily, his grin getting a little wider. Juliet smiled with him, because it was true. Cisco was a real hero.

ϟ ···················· ϟ ···················· ϟ

JULIET AND BARRY sat in their lab the next day at their respective desks. They were currently reading up on some of the cases that had been placed on their desk when a familiar figure appeared in the doorway. Juliet looked up from how her chin was in the palm of her hand, her arm lowering in surprise.

"Dr. McGee," Barry stated.

"May I come in?" Dr. McGee inquired.

"Of course," Juliet answered. "What brings you here?"

Dr. McGee walked further into their lab. "I wanted to apologize. I should have listened to you when you warned me about Brie. Perhaps next time I will take the CCPD's offer of protection."

"After we lost your tachyon prototype, we can understand why you were hesitant to trust us," Barry responded, and Juliet nodded in agreement.

"Thank you."

Barry then stood up from his chair. "Can I ask you something?" He glanced back at Juliet and gestured to her, making her stand up and walk over to him, crossing her arms across her chest. "I couldn't help but notice some tension between you and Dr. Wells."

"That's all in the past," Dr. McGee voiced.

"Do you mind if I ask what happened between you two?"

"I ask myself that same question all the time. Fifteen years ago, Harrison and I were thick as thieves, much like you two. We were promising young scientists in Starling City. He was such a kind man. Then everything changed after Tess died."

"They were going to get married, right?" Juliet asked.

Dr. McGee nodded. "I understand how grief can affect someone, but this was more than that. It was like, after that day, Harrison Wells became a completely different person. Good day."

"Bye," Barry said quietly.

Juliet stared down at the ground, her eyebrows knit in thought. Dr. McGee's voice echoed through her head. Harrison Wells became a completely different person. Juliet and Barry had proved the impossible was the possible ever since they woke up from those comas with insane powers. Who was to say that Harrison Wells . . . could actually not be Harrison Wells?

Joe walked into the lab, passing by Dr. McGee. "Doctor." He then walked up to Juliet and Barry. "How's Cisco?"

"Happy to be alive," Barry revealed. "And sad that Ray is leaving. It was a really brave thing he did, risking his life. Selfless."

"Yeah, it definitely was."

A little bit later, Juliet and Barry left their lab to go to Jitters so they could say goodbye to Felicity and Ray. They stood by the counter, Barry's arm around Juliet's waist, in front of Felicity while Ray ordered them coffee. Juliet leaned against Barry's side comfortably.

"And another end to another exciting adventure in Central City," Felicity began. Ray offered her a coffee cup. "Ah, yes, thank you."

"Ray, thank you for all your help," Barry told him.

Ray smiled. "Oh."

"And I hope you figure out the problem with your suit."

"I already have, actually."

Juliet raised an eyebrow. "Really? What is it?"

"All this time, I've been looking at the power source the wrong way," Ray explained. "I kept thinking we needed to go bigger. But the solution, as always—" he pulled a vial out of his pocket, which had a robotic bee in it "—is simply to go smaller."

"Oh, great," Barry commented.

Felicity's eyes flickered between Juliet and Barry. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Juliet breathed out, glancing up at Barry for a moment. "At least, I think we're going to be. Thank you for all your advice."

"I won't even charge you the five cents."

Juliet smiled at her. "Bye, Felicity. Bye, Ray."

Felicity smiled back at her before her and Ray walked away. Juliet turned and watched them for a moment.

She looked up at her boyfriend. "You ready for this?"

Barry nodded and leaned down, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "As long as I have you with me, I'm ready for anything."

They went back to work, looking through cases and running tests. Juliet walked down the stairs from their lab to the precinct with Barry so they could give the results to one of the officers, but once they reached the bottom, Iris passed by them. She smiled at the two of them, but Juliet noticed it didn't quite meet her eyes. Juliet frowned and turned, looking through the window. Eddie was standing by his desk, looking solemn.

"Uh-oh," Juliet muttered. She glanced at Barry. "That's not good."

Juliet and Barry had told Cisco and Caitlin to meet them at their lab. They had come up with a lie and said they were going to karaoke together, but it was actually so they could tell them about Dr. Wells. Juliet leaned back against Barry's desk, nervously running the J charm back and forth on her necklace. Barry was leaning next to her, his fingers absentmindedly tapping against the side of her thigh. Joe sat on one of the filing cabinets in the back, and the map was up on their bulletin board, showing the crime board of Nora Allen's murder.

"All right, all right, who's ready for some karaoke," Cisco began, singing on karaoke as him and Caitlin walked into their lab.

Caitlin stopped. "We are not going to karaoke, are we?"

"Not tonight, at least," Juliet answered.

Barry gestured to the bulletin board. "Um . . . this is everything we know about my mother's murder and the Reverse Flash. I've been gathering information on him for a long time, with Juliet's help. And this is everything we know about Dr. Wells."

He pulled down one of the rolls on the bulletin board, revealing all the newspaper clippings and pictures of Dr. Wells. Juliet snuck a glance over at her two friends. Caitlin seemed confused, and Cisco had taken a step forwards to look at the board better.

"I don't understand," Caitlin admitted, her head tilting in thought. "What do Dr. Wells and the Reverse Flash have to do with each other?"

Juliet shared a look with Barry for a moment. "Um, Dr. Wells and the Reverse Flash . . . are the same person."

"That's impossible."

Barry stepped towards her. "Look, Caitlin, it took me and Juliet a long time to believe it too, but it's him."

"Dr. Wells is a speedster?" Caitlin questioned incredulously. "He's paralyzed."

"Is he, though?" Joe countered.

"And why would he kill Barry's mother? It doesn't make any sense." She then looked at the boy next to her. "Cisco. Say something."

Juliet's eyebrows knit in concern as she looked at Cisco. Cisco was just standing there, frozen, like he was lost in his thoughts.

"I've been having these dreams," Cisco revealed, making Juliet blink in shock. "Mostly at night, but sometimes during the day. But they don't really feel like dreams. They — they feel real."

"What happens in the dream?" Barry inquired.

"Dr. Wells is the Reverse Flash." He paused for a moment, swallowing nervously. "And . . . he kills me."

〖   ϟ   〗

hello :) I would just like to warn you that there's only ten chapters left :) teehee :)

DO NOT FEAR THERE WILL BE A SEQUEL

did y'all really think I wouldn't write them in season two? did y'all really think I would let go of jules and barry that easily? TRY AGAIN

anyways I GOT TAYLOR SWIFT TICKETS :) I'M SEEING TAYLOR SWIFT PHOEBE BRIDGERS AND GRACIE ABRAMS ALL IN ONE NIGHT AND I CAN'T BREATHE

waiting for four hours in that ticketmaster queue was actually so draining like I'm still exhausted

gif by zcndayas!