Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Once the truth had been wiggled (read: tickled) out of Barry, it wasn't hard to see the small signs that, really, have been there all along. Barry's body was buzzing with electricity (metaphorically, in this sense) whenever he got into a song he particularly liked. With a sway of his hips, and a wooden spoon or hairbrush acting as a microphone, Barry would move in time with the song playing on the radio.

Oliver adored watching him. The first few times Barry had been caught by his boyfriend, the younger had blushed a beautiful shade of red before mumbling some excuse and going back to what he was doing. But, in reality, Oliver loved watching Barry smile and sing to his heart's content. Often in their jobs, they'd face tough challenges, or face things Barry didn't really like reliving, it was sometimes difficult to get the man to loosen up after a difficult job or case.

Now, however, Barry would like to drag Oliver into whatever room he was dancing in and make him move along with him. Oliver wouldn't ever sing along with his beautiful partner, but he'd often indulge in Barry's silliness and dance around. No one but Barry ever saw him in these goofy moments. And while he preferred nobody to see him acting like such a fool, he also felt like there was some underlining intimate feeling concerning the two of them acting domestic.

Oliver already knew for a fact that while Barry was ashamed of the way he had acted back in high school (that confession had been a long tearful conversation that ended with Oliver holding him close and telling him he still loved him), he also knew that Barry didn't regret the clubs he joined while attending Dalton. In fact, he still kept up to date with many of the fellow Warblers he had sang with. Barry almost religiously kept up on what a man named Blaine Anderson was doing. According to Barry, he had helped Blaine propose to his boyfriend, Kurt, in attempts to try righting some of the wrong he had done. While Barry admitted he would never feel like he'd ever express how sorry he was, it appeared that Blaine wasn't even capable of holding a grudge. Oliver had tried actively getting Barry to talk to any of them, especially Blaine, but Barry wouldn't have it. In his eyes, he was undeserving of the contact.

One morning, Barry was singing in the shower, making Oliver smile as he went about making breakfast. As he was mixing some pancake batter, an envelope caught his eye. It was addressed to an 'Sebastian Smythe', and hadn't even been opened yet, but it looked like Barry had been at least turning it over in his hands quite a few times. He wondered, briefly, how long the invitation had been at their place, before he went back to cooking.

When Barry finally emerged from the shower, clean and happy, Oliver couldn't help but bring it up. "Hey, baby, what's the envelope for? The one for Sebastian."

"What– oh, that."

"Barry–"

"No, I already know what you're going to say. We've had this conversation enough times for me to already know," Barry said, leaning on the counter near to where Oliver was cooking on the stove. They both had the day off, so Barry was wearing nothing more than a pair of grey sweats and a maroon t-shirt that Oliver was eighty percent sure used to be his before his boyfriend got ahold of it. "I just...Oliver, I'm so embarrassed about how I acted. You of all people should know that. I'm not entirely sure I'd be able to face all those people. Not again."

"What's it even for? A reunion? If so, I'm sure you won't face anybody from the rival school, anyway. What's there to worry about?" Oliver flipped the pancake he was making, but he kept watching his boyfriend out of the corner of his eye.

"That's the thing, it's not a reunion. Not really. But it also kind of is. Anyway, I saw a thing on Facebook the other day mentioning some sort of charity concert that's gonna be held here in the park. It's being organized by another Warbler, and he thought it'd be a good idea to recruit all the old Warblers, and old New Directions members. And the reason for that was to have a reunion, but to also thank New Directions for letting the Warblers merge in with them after Dalton burned down," Barry explained before taking a shaky breath. "I honestly don't know why they couldn't just use the current choirs. Honestly, why dig up old memories? For a reunion or not."

"Well, like you said, it's a reunion of sorts." Oliver gave him a small smile. "Besides, what harm is there in attending? I'm not saying you have to go sing with them, of course, but it'd still be fun to watch. I'm sure Iris would love to meet all of your old school buddies."

"Do not even go there," Barry warned, narrowing his eyes at Oliver. "The last thing I need is Iris getting on my case because of this. I already have you doing that enough. Although, knowing her, she'll still find out one way or another. Before I'm ready."

"I'm not getting on your case, Barry. I'm just saying it wouldn't be a bad thing to at least see some of your old buddies. Weren't you just complaining the other day that you haven't been able to see them for years now because of your responsibilities? I'm sure CCPD can handle an evening without the Flash, or even Barry Allen for the matter." When Barry didn't reply, Oliver looked up from the stove to stare at the speedster. "Barry, I'm not going to force you to do this, you know that."

"Yeah, I know." Barry rubbed the back of his neck. "I just hate it when you make a point. It's annoying."

Oliver chuckled softly, pressing a kiss to Barry's cheek. "Yeah, but you still love me."

"Jury's still out on that," Barry teased, blushing a little as he smiled at the older man. "If I do this, could you possibly come with? I'm not sure I'll be able to face the firing squad by myself."

"Of course, baby." Oliver pressed a kiss to Barry's lips before pulling away fully. "Now c'mon, these pancakes won't eat themselves."

~*~

"Who's Sebastian Smythe?"

Barry froze in his spot, finding the article he had up on his laptop rather interesting as it quickly became the focus of his attention as he tried to ignore Cisco. "I don't know," he finally forced out after a moment. "Why do you ask?"

"I got a Facebook friend recommendation," Cisco explained, pointing at the computer screen with the piece of beef jerky he was eating. "He's using pictures of you."

"Oh, is he? That's weird," Barry muttered, eyes never leaving the article. He could feel eyes burning into the side of his head, and he absolutely did not peek out the corner of his eyes when the cortex grew suspiciously quiet. "What?" Barry asked, finally risking a glance at the other two in the room. "Do I have something on my face?"

"Well, no. But Barry, this guy is using your face to make a Facebook and you're not even blinking. Are you alright?" Cisco asked, sitting up in his seat.

"I'm fine. I'm sure it's just an old friend making a joke or something. Something utterly harmless."

"There's pictures on here I've never even seen before," a voice spoke up from next to Cisco, making Barry whip his head in the direction it came from. Iris was looking at the screen over Cisco's shoulder, her bag still slung over her shoulder, signaling she had just came from work. "Barry, are you sure this isn't something more than a harmless prank?"

Barry let out a shaky sigh before closing out of the article and turning off his laptop. Not like he'd be able to get anymore reading done anyway. Not after this. "It's because I made it. It's me."

"You? In case you've forgotten, your name is Barry Allen," Cisco said slowly, as if he were explaining something to a child. "Not Sebastian Smythe."

"I know. It's my Facebook from when I was in high school. When I was attending Dalton Academy." Barry stood up, making his way over to the pair. Caitlin was working on something in the med lab, but he was aware of her listening in.

"Dalton? That's a name I haven't heard often, despite my best friend having attended there for nearly three years." Iris stood up straight to look at Barry. "And even so, Sebastian Smythe is not a name I'm familiar with in the slightest. Is there something I'm missing?"

"I changed my name when I went there," Barry explained, not wanting to go into too many details, but knowing he'd have to eventually. Later, preferably, but it didn't look like he'd be able to get out of this. "Look, Iris, you know how the bullying used to be when I was still at Central High. Figured it'd be better if no one knew who I was. The last name of Allen is pretty infamous in this area."

"Okay, but why Sebastian Smythe?" Cisco asked incredulously.

Barry had the decency to blush. "Well...Smythe because it's my mom's maiden name, and Sebastian because...um...I love The Little Mermaid."

"That's adorable."

"Why do I feel like there's more to this story that you're not telling us?" Iris asked, crossing her arms over her chest. "Because I highly doubt the name change is the only reason I haven't heard any high school stories. Or met any of your old friends?"

"Nope. No more to say." Barry gave her an slightly strained smile before turning to pack the rest of his things away. "Look, I need to meet up with some people for dinner. Tell Joe I won't be able to make it to the family dinner tonight, but I think Oliver is still going to stop by. He mentioned talking to him about something, but he wouldn't say what."

"Barry-"

"Later, Iris. I promise you'll find out soon enough. Too soon, in my opinion, but it's going to come out eventually," Barry rambled. He ran a hand through his hair before giving the others a weak smile and running out of the room. It'd be dumb of him to assume they weren't talking about what just happened, but he liked to think they actually dropped the topic of conversation. Knowing Iris, however, they were more than likely brainstorming what possibilities it could be.

After rushing home to change into something nicer and put his things he brought to STAR Labs away, Barry soon found himself outside of a local pizza joint. Inside, he could already hear the loud laughter of his old high school friends, and he didn't want to face any of them. Not that they were bad people, of course not, they were some of the nicest people Barry had ever met. But Barry was so wracked with nerves, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to be Sebastian Smythe. Or even any version of the man they knew.

Taking a deep breath, Barry stepped out of the shadows he was standing in and made his way inside. Instantly, he could hear the sounds of cheers at seeing him. Barry was unable to help the smile that overcame his features as he made his way towards the large group.

"Well if it isn't the infamous Sebastian Smythe," Jeff joked, standing up to pull Barry into a hug.

Barry laughed and hugged him back. Once the hug ended, he found himself pulled in various other forms of affection before he was able to take a breather. "Geez, guys. You act like you've been starved of affection whatsoever after graduation."

"We just haven't seen you in years, man," Nick said, giving Barry a pointed look. "Or, may I add, heard from you that much. Seriously, man, would it kill you to send a message more often?"

"I've been busy," Barry stated honestly. "Work's been...interesting. And, believe it or not, my boyfriend likes to keep me on my toes."

"Sebastian Smythe has a boyfriend? Now that's something I thought I'd never hear." Jeff wiggled his eyebrows playfully.

"Where is he? Did he come with?" Nick piped up.

"No, he had to talk to my foster dad about something. He wouldn't say what it was, but I don't have too many worries. Joe hasn't threatened to shoot him in at least a year. That I know of at the very least."

"Foster dad? What happened to your parents?" Nick asked, the mood around them quickly dying down as the conversation steered in a different direction.

"I, um. Well it's kind of a long story." Barry played with his fingers nervously, looking down at his lap and avoiding eye contact.

"We've got plenty of time, Seb," Thad said from next to Barry, rubbing his back. Barry had always liked Thad. While he was quiet, his presence alone always seemed to calm Barry down. "Or, if you don't want to talk about it here, Nick, Jeff, and I were all going to meet in my hotel room to talk. You're more than welcome to join us."

"I'll bring alcohol and it'll be like old times," Jeff joked, trying to get Barry to smile.

It worked, much to Barry's relief. "Yeah, that sounds nice, actually. I might be there a bit late, though. My boyfriend is leaving to head home later tonight, and I wanted to catch him before he did."

"I hope you can sit after it." Jeff wiggled his eyebrows once more, and Barry's cheeks turned bright red at the implication. "Why, Seb, I didn't even think you were capable of blushing. You've gotten soft in your old age."

"Oh, shut up," Barry said with a laugh.

~*~

"Okay, Seb. So tell us as much or as little as you'd like," Thad stated softly, rubbing Barry's back. Both Jeff and Nick nodded in agreement, and the latter handed Barry an opened beer.

Barry smirked to himself at seeing the beer, knowing it wouldn't effect him, but he took a sip of it anyway. "My mom was murdered when I was eleven," he started, ignoring the gasps and looks of concern from the others. "My dad got blamed for it, so he ended up going to jail." He took a shaky breath, eyes down on his lap. "Joe is the dad of my best friend, Iris, but he's also a cop. When he came to the scene and saw what happened, he decided to take me in. Said he didn't want me going through the whole adoption process. And that's if anybody even wanted an eleven year old." Barry gave the other three a tight smile. "The story isn't really that interesting."

"Then how'd you end up at Dalton? It's two hours away," Nick asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

"I got bullied a lot. And a lot of it had to do with the fact that I firmly believed my dad was—and still is– innocent, so I talked a lot of nonsense, I guess. I'm...also a bit of a...nerd." He scrunched his nose a little after saying that. "I got top mark in all of my classes, and people were jealous."

"There's more, isn't there?" Thad asked. "I can always tell when you're holding things back, Seb."

Barry shifted uncomfortably. "I got outed," he admitted in a quiet voice. "And because of that, the bullying got a lot worse. Kids...kids I went to school with at Central weren't always accepting. Joe was getting worried because I'd come home with more and more bruises, and I became a bit of a recluse. Well more so, anyway. He didn't want me to do anything...permanent."

Thad, Nick, and Jeff all exchanged glances. "Do you still...feel that way?" Nick asked after a moment.

"No, don't worry. My mentality had gotten a lot better while attending Dalton. Which, I suppose, was the reason Joe sent me there in the first place. We argued for awhile about where to go, and he found Dalton. He liked the boarding school option because it meant I was out of Central for most of the year," Barry explained. "But, like you said, it was two hours away. Which I wasn't too fond of, but Joe insisted. I also...Sebastian Smythe isn't my birth name. I was born Bartholomew Allen. I go by Barry, though."

"Why'd you change your name?"

"Because if a Barry Allen was found going to a different school, I could've been followed. I know Dalton has a no bullying policy, another reason Joe wanted me to go, but Central's bullies would know where I was. So...I changed my name. Sebastian because of a movie I love, and Smythe because it was my mother's maiden name." Barry gave them a tight smile, sighing softly afterwards.

"So do you want us to call you Sebastian or Barry?" Thad asked.

"Whatever you want. I went by Sebastian for three straight years, so it's something I respond to still." Barry then furrowed his eyebrows. "So wait. If Dalton is two hours away, then why is the show happening here in Central? I'm sure there's better places closer."

"Change of scenery," Jeff said with a smirk.

"He means we couldn't get anyone else to book us," Nick said with a laugh. "But it's alright. Blaine was here a couple years ago and said the park's gorgeous."

"Blaine...Blaine's been here?" Barry asked, eyes wide. He then furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, trying to remember what he was doing a couple years earlier. "Oh. I was in a coma most of that year."

"You were what?" the three others asked in shock.

"I got struck by lightning and was in a nine month coma," Barry admitted sheepishly, his cheeks coloring a bright red.

"And we're just now hearing about this?" Nick asked.

"To be fair, I have been a bit busy. I got struck after the partical accelarator exploded. Lightning came from it and, as a result, struck me because I was trying to close my lab's skylight. Metal attracts electricity and whatnot."

"I heard about that. I knew people were hurt or killed, but I didn't...I didn't know that you..." Nick's face looked a bit pale, and Barry was starting to get rather worried.

"Hey, hey. It's okay, Nick," Barry was quick to comfort. "Like you said, you didn't know. Besides, I'm okay. I'm not dead, I'm still here with you. The only difference is that my metabolism increased."

"Let's move onto different topics," Jeff was quick to say. "Barry, you mentioned something about a lab?"

~*~

"How'd it go, baby?"

"It went fine." Barry smiled at Oliver before giving him a kiss. "They want me to sing with them, but I told them I couldn't."

"I wish you would, to be honest. I love seeing you singing and dancing in the kitchen, so it would be kind of sexy to see you in uniform doing it on stage," Oliver replied, grinning as Barry just snickered. "You look good in a uniform, if your Flash costume is anything to go by."

"Oliver, c'mon. I'm not good at public speaking. I haven't been since I was Sebastian." Barry cuddled further into Oliver's side, humming softly as they cuddled on the couch while a movie played on TV.

"I won't ever force you to do anything you don't want to, you know, but are you sure this isn't something you want to do? You always tell me how much fun you had being a Warbler." Oliver ran a hand up and down Barry's side, making the latter's eyes start to droop.

"I know. I did have fun," Barry agreed before sighing. "But like I keep telling you, I don't want to face those people."

"You will have to at some point, I imagine. Might as well have fun while doing it." It was then he noticed Barry was practically asleep on his shoulder, making Oliver smile fondly. "C'mon, Bear, let's go to bed. We can have this conversation more when you're not about to pass out."

"M'not about to pass out," Barry mumbled, but his closed eyes betrayed the statement.

~*~

Letting out a sigh, Barry made his way into Jitters. He could see Iris sitting with Eddie at one of the tables, making him smile to himself as she gushed over one of her newer articles to her husband. They didn't seem to see him as he made his way up to the counter, but there was another couple there that spotted him as soon as he paid for his coffee.

"Sebastian? Sebastian Smythe?"

Barry's head whipped to the side the second the familiar voice spoke. His eyes widened as Blaine and Kurt got closer. Opening his mouth before closing it again, Barry stared in shock before he grinned. "Hey, killer. Didn't think I'd see you around here. I see you're still with Lady Hummel. That's cute."

Kurt glared at him, but it softened when Blaine gave him a look. "Yeah, you were kind of there when I proposed to him," Blaine said.

"Ah, right. I seem to have blocked it from my memory. Too bad, too. Seeing Lady Hummel cry should always be remembered, regardless of the reasoning." Barry internally cursed at himself for slipping into the skin of Sebastian too easily for his liking. He wasn't like this. Not since high school, anyway.

"Wow, meerkat, and here I thought you'd get nicer over the years. Look like I was wrong," Kurt said, giving Barry a strained smile. "Which is funny considering we heard through the wire that you blushed from a sexual innuendo just the other night."

"Barry? Who's this?" Iris asked, sliding up next to Barry. Eddie was standing next to her, giving the two strangers a curious once over.

"Oh, uh, this is Blaine Anderson and Kurt Hummel," Barry introduced. "This is, of course, if they haven't gotten married since I knew them. I knew them from school. They were in the rival glee club."

"You sing?" Eddie asked, looking at Barry in shock. "There are still many surprises I'm learning about you, Allen."

"Why are they calling you Barry and Allen?" Blaine asked.

"Oh, um. You see, my name is actually Barry Allen. Sebastian Smythe was just an alias." Barry took a sip of his coffee. "Anyway, I need to get to work yet. Singh called me in to look over some new evidence that just came in, and I need to be there soon." He turned to Blaine and Kurt. "Sorry to cut this conversation short. It's been riveting. I'll see you at the concert."

"Are you singing?" Kurt raised an eyebrow.

"No, I'm just viewing. I'd never miss an opportunity to see the sex on stick sing some more." Barry winked at the two before turning on his heel and walking out of the coffee shop.

"He does remember he has a boyfriend, right?" Eddie whispered to Iris, who snickered in return.

"Considering hi boyfriend is also on my cheat list, I'd say he's allowed to at least look," Iris joked. She gave the two other men a smile before she returned to her table.

Later on, Barry was sighing as he sat in the cortex with Iris, Joe, Caitlin, and Cisco. His Sebastian Facebook was pulled up, and he was answering every question that came his way. In the end, he spilled everything, including how he used to act, and even how he was acting before Iris and Eddie had came up to him when he was talking to Blaine and Kurt.

Even though he was expecting the giggles or chuckles that came his way, they still stung a little. Regardless, Barry used to be an awful person when he had gone by Sebastian, and he figured he deserved all the grilling and the teasing. Even the slaps on the arm he received from Iris because of his behavior, or the disapproving looks from Joe.

"So are we going to witness you singing and dancing on stage?" Cisco asked, sucking on a cherry lollipop. "Because that would be wicked awesome."

"Nah, I'm just going to watch," Barry answered, running a hand through his hair. "Oliver already voiced his opinions on that matter. Although he also said he wouldn't force me to do anything I didn't want to."

"You should. Besides, we're all dying to hear you sing. A little birdy told me that you like dancing and singing in front of Oliver." Iris smirked at the now confused, and slightly hurt, Barry.

"Oliver told you?"

"No, but Felicity did. Oliver mentioned it in passing to her, and Felicity's good at picking up on all things Oliver, so." Iris shrugged, the smirk on her face widening a little as she watched her foster brother. "Okay, how about this. Instead of pressuring you to sing on stage, why don't you put on a private show for us?"

"That's worse," Barry protested. "Besides, the only private shows that will be given are to Oliver and Oliver alone." He wiggled his eyebrows playfully.

"Okay, that's enough," Joe said quickly, causing Barry to laugh. "Bear, you told me you loved being in glee club. Now don't give the excuse of seeing the other glee club members to not get up on the stage. What's the real reason you don't want to get on the stage?"

"I...I don't know," he admitted softly. "I just don't want to, why does everybody keep bothering me about it?"

"We just want you to be happy, Barry," Iris said, walking over to him and putting her hand gently on his shoulder. "I'm sorry if we're being pushy about it."

"I am happy, though," Barry argued. "And I know you guys have good intentions, but I'm more than happy to sit this out. If it makes you feel any better, I'll consider it, alright? But right now, I'm leaning towards not doing. I'll even wear my Dalton uniform to go see it. I still have it hanging up in my closet."

Iris gently squeezed his shoulder before kissing his cheek. "Whatever you want to do, Barry."

He gave her a small smile before standing up. "Thanks."

"What are you going to do about the people from New Directions?" Caitlin asked. "From what I've gathered, not all of them seem so quick to forgive. In fact, Blaine seems to be the only one on your side."

"Yeah, I know. Which blows me away considering the whole slushy incident. I really don't deserve his forgiveness." Barry bit his bottom lip. "The only thing I can think to do is talk to them, at the very least. See what happens from there."

"It wouldn't hurt," Caitlin agreed. "One of us can accompany you, if it would make you feel any better."

"I've already asked Oliver to help me through all of this. I hope you don't mind," Barry said, grinning a little. "I asked him when he first asked me about the invitation I got through the mail."

"We understand," Joe said with a laugh. "Whatever happens, though, Bear, just know that we're going to be on your side no matter what. You don't have to worry about losing us over this."

Barry let out a shaky sigh. "I know. I just...I feel like I don't deserve that. I don't deserve any forgiveness whatsoever for what happened during high school. I'm kind of just...waiting for the other shoe to drop."

"I'm sure nothing will happen," Caitlin assured, giving him a comforting smile. "Barry, believe it or not, you do deserve to be happy. It's not always necessarily black and white for you when it comes to happiness. Despite what Dr. Wells may have said in that video."

"Exactly." Iris smiled at Barry. "At least have fun, alright? Don't mope over the past because of this. Enjoy yourself, and let loose."

"I'm sure Oliver won't let you leave the place until you smile, at least." Joe put his hands into his pockets. "You know, I didn't exactly trust the man when I first met him, but whenever he's around...I've never seen you happier. You practically glow."

"Glow? Well that's a word I'd never thought I'd hear come from your mouth," Cisco piped up with a grin. It quickly faded, and he mimed zipping his lips closed when Joe gave him a look.

"Smartass remarks aside, I'm serious." Joe walked over to Barry and patted his back. "I can't be mad at someone who brings you so much joy to your life. You deserve it, Barry, you really do."

Barry took a deep breath before nodding. "Yeah, alright. I can't promise too much, though. I'll be on edge more than likely if I'm going to be surrounded by people from my past."

Iris suddenly smirked again, making Barry groan. "Well. While you did say you were going to bring Oliver as a date, you seemed to forget this is also a public event. Which means there's nothing stopping us from going to go see it."

"So you'll also be surrounded by people who love you," Cisco pointed out with a grin. "C'mon, dude. Even if we didn't go just to support you, I want to see what kind of things you were up to. We haven't ever seen your Dalton uniform! That's a crime in itself."

"Dude, it's not even that good," Barry protested, but his worries were starting to melt already. If he had that many people around him, it could mean he'd feel more at ease being in close proximity to New Directions. It could also mean disaster if things went south. "Besides, I'm not even going to be singing. There's really no reason for any of you to go."

"Well, for one, this thing is for charity," Iris pointed out. "Secondly, we want to. And third, what kind of friends and family would we be if we didn't go with you? Besides, I want to see if I can get any embarrassing stories out of your old buddies."

"There's always something devious hidden in your eyes," Barry joked, lightly poking Iris in the arm. "Fine, though. Just try not to be too embarrassing, please? I may have been an ass in high school, but I still have somewhat of a name to uphold."

"A fake name, that is," Cisco pointed out, his lips turning the same shade of cherry red as the lollipop. "What? It's true."

Barry glanced at his watch before sighing. "I have to meet Oliver soon. We have a date night planned, and I was told I'm not allowed to miss this one or be late, so. I should get going."

"Have fun, Barry. And thank you for being honest with us," Iris said, kissing his cheek. "And for what it's worth, I still think you're a great guy."

"Thanks, Iris," Barry replied, blushing lightly. He then took off out of the cortex, leaving the rest of the group just standing there.

"So, dad. Is there any particular reason you looked rather smug earlier? Or why Barry has to be punctual tonight?" Iris asked, turning to look at her dad. "I'm sure there's a correlation."

"You'll find out soon enough, Iris. It isn't my secret to tell," Joe said, giving Iris a stern look. It was weak, however, when Iris just smiled.

"But there is something happening tonight, isn't there?" she pressed.

"Again, Iris, it's not my secret to tell. I'm sure once it happens, you'll be the first person Barry will tell." Joe kissed Iris's cheek. "For now, though, you should get back home. Eddie is probably pacing as it is."

Iris rolled her eyes, but she shouldered her bag nonetheless. "I hate not knowing things," she said as they walked out of the cortex.

"It's what makes you a great reporter, baby girl," Joe said with a grin.

Chapter Text

"This is a really nice restaurant, Ollie. What's the occasion?" Barry asked with a laugh, his hand in the crook of Oliver's arm. Oliver had picked him up in his car instead of motorcycle, and taken him to his favorite restaurant in town. Barry was questioning from the get-go what Oliver was intending to do, but he appreciated it all the same. Still, though, Barry was wondering if he forgot an anniversary or a birthday.

"Can't I spoil my baby?" Oliver asked, pressing a kiss to Barry's reddening cheek.

"Well, of course you can, I'm just saying we usually don't go to places this nice on date night." Barry looked around, smiling as they made their way to their table.

"I want to spoil you tonight, Barry. Tonight's all about you," Oliver said, sliding into the booth seat across from Barry.

Blushing, Barry tucked a loose piece of hair behind his ear. "I need to get a haircut. My hair's starting to get too long."

"I like it long. It's actually kind of sexy. More to pull on, especially when I fuck you from behind." Oliver smirked as Barry's blush deepened dramatically.

"You're so crass." Barry laughed. "You're lucky I love you despite your filthy mouth."

"You love me because of my filthy mouth, you mean," the blond said with a grin. "And I love you because you like to act all innocent in public, but once we're alone at home, you have the filthiest mouth that makes me blush on occasion."

Barry bit his bottom lip, grinning at his boyfriend. His green eyes were sparkling with amusement as he looked at Oliver. His eyes soon met Oliver's blue ones, and he couldn't find it in himself to look away. "I'm really in love with you," he breathed out, not wanting to break whatever atmosphere they had just created.

"I'm really in love with you, too," Oliver replied, his voice just as soft. "I was going to wait to ask you this, but–"

"Sebastian!"

Oliver had stopped his movement of pulling something out of his pocket as the two of them turned to face the people that had approached them. "Who are you?"

"I'm Blaine Anderson. This is my fiancé Kurt, and our friends Santana and Brittany," Blaine introduced, shaking Oliver's hand. "Who are you?"

"I'm Oliver Queen, Barry's boyfriend."

"Are you guys on a double date?" Barry asked. "Because you should totally get back to that."

"Calm yourself, twink. We saw you sitting over here and decided to drop by," Santana said. She shooed Oliver to sit next to Barry before sliding into the booth. "Although now I think we should have a triple date. See what the meerkat is up to."

Barry resisted the urge to roll his eyes, instead clenching his jaw and looking everywhere but at the others. "Do you mind? We're kind of in the middle of something."

"I don't mind. Please, continue with what you were doing."

Barry glared at the girl. Brittany shifted uncomfortably next to her, while Blaine and Kurt were still standing awkwardly at the end of the table. "You know, I've never interrupted you when you did your thing, so if you could kindly fuck off, that'd be great."

"I never interrupted you either when you spread your legs for just about anyone," Santana replied. She crossed her arms over her chest and met Barry's glare. "Maybe I should tell your boyfriend here you liked to sleep around during high school."

"Even if he did, that's none of your business," Oliver spoke up, his own glare getting added to the mix. "I don't know you, not as well as Barry here seems to, but I don't care for your attitude. I honestly don't care if Barry's slept around when he was still in high school, I did too, but you need to stop with the insults. Just because someone enjoys sex doesn't mean you need to attack them for it."

Barry gave Oliver a small smile, kissing his cheek after he was finished. "Thank you," he whispered. He then looked at Santana. "Thank you for ruining our date night, Sha-queer-a. Now if you excuse us, we'll be off having sex, so unless you're going to film, then leave us alone." Barry then ushered Oliver to get out of the booth, who quickly complied and stood up.

As they were walking away, Santana spoke up again. "I may have a bad attitude, twink, but at least I didn't try to blind anyone."

Barry stuttered in his steps, tears coming to his eyes from the comment. But he quickly blinked away the tears and tried to shake off the feeling, keeping up a steady pace as he made his way out of the restaurant. Oliver was quick to catch up with him, putting a hand on his arm before the speedster could run off. Barry wiped his eyes dry before giving Oliver a strained smile. Oliver opened his mouth to ask a question, but Barry just shook his head. Instead, Barry was pulled into the comfort of strong arms. He laid his head on Oliver's chest, letting the thrum of the blond's heartbeat help calm him down.

"I don't like her," Oliver said after a moment, running a hand through Barry's brown hair. Barry looked up and from up close, Oliver could clearly count the number of freckles that spanned across the brunet's face. It was one of his favorite features on his boyfriend. Other than his mesmerizing eyes, of course. "Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine. It's not the first time I've heard those comments from her. Probably won't be the last, either." Barry took a shaky breath. "I used to be able to meet her insult for insult, but I haven't actually done that in ages. I did it earlier today with Kurt, and even that felt weird. Letting that part of me loose felt nice, but that...that's not me. Not the Barry Allen part of me."

Oliver kissed Barry's forehead. "Barry, you could turn into a villain that ends up in jail, and I wouldn't love you any less. And I know you did shitty stuff when you were a teenager, but I still love you. And you know why? Because you have regrets, and you feel bad for what you did. That shows me you have grown as a person. I never got to know Sebastian Smythe, but he doesn't seem like the type of person to still feel guilty after all this time. Knowing you, Barry Allen, has been the best thing that's ever happened to me."

Barry gave Oliver a smile before kissing him sweetly. There was a light blush on his cheeks from Oliver's words. "Yeah, I know. Thank you." He took another breath before straightening Oliver's tie, just for something to do with his hands. "Now, what were you going to ask me earlier?"

"It's nothing important." Oliver kissed Barry again, gently squeezing the latter's hips. "What would it take to witness you mouthing off at someone?"

Barry laughed. "I think the others were right. I've gotten soft as I've gotten older. Tonight was such an off moment, it's not even funny. Usually, I'd be able to keep up with her. Or even Kurt. I've said some nasty shit when I was younger. Still kind of think some of them were funny, though."

Oliver chuckled softly, running a hand through Barry's hair. "I love you, Barry. You still manage to surprise me after all this time."

"I love you, too, Oliver," Barry whispered, pulling away to grab Oliver's hand. "I'm sorry our date night got ruined."

"Who said it was ruined?" Oliver smiled, a soft one he reserved only for Barry to see. "C'mon, let's get some Big Belly Burger. There's one just down the road."

~*~

Humming softly to himself, Barry scrolled through his Instagram feed as he sat at a table in Jitters, sipping a coffee that had a shot of Courvoisier in it. It was an add in he hadn't done in high school. Even though alcohol didn't effect him, the taste of it still soothed him like it used to. As he scrolled on his phone, he saw a few pictures of former glee members in Central City, even liking a few of the pictures he saw. It made him feel a slight pang in his stomach at realising how much it made him miss the others.

"Twink."

Barry looked up, quirking an eyebrow when Santana, Kurt, and Rachel stood in front of him. "Meeting of the dweebs? As honored as I am that you came to recruit me, I don't think I fit the requirements."

"Listen, I wanted to apologize for some of the things I said last night," Santana said, sitting down across from Barry.

Eyebrows raised in surprise, Barry looked at each of the others. "I didn't think you were physically capable of doing that."

"Yeah, well, I didn't think you were either, and yet I remember what happened after Karofsky." Santana folded her hands on the table, staring at Barry. "But just the slushy comment. And maybe the sleeping around ones, too. I don't care about the other stuff. I still think you deserve to be slapped around every so often to keep you in line."

"Yeah, well. I don't care anymore." Barry waved a hand in dismissal. "I got laid last night anyway, so it's not like you completely ruined the night. Your face did enough damage that your words bounced right off."

Santana looked at Barry a moment. "I know you're still sorry about the slushy thing. I do still talk to Blaine, you know. He sees your Instagram notifications."

Barry rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, I am, alright? It was a mistake. I really was just aiming for Kurt's chest. None of us were expecting for Blaine to jump in front of him."

"Water under the bridge," Kurt said, giving him a small smile.

"Is that the only reason you came here? No offense, but we aren't exactly friendly enough for you to want to pop in and say hi to me." Barry checked his phone for any texts before locking it and setting it on the table. "I'm not singing at the concert, so you don't have to worry about me outshining you."

Kurt rolled his eyes. "We figured we could end this little feud of ours. We're all adults, we should be done with this."

"What feud? I was happy here in Central, ignoring everybody from my past, and then you guys just showed up." Barry shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest. "Seriously, if anything, you guys brought it back. To me, it died after we all graduated."

"Then why the attitude?" Santana asked.

"Oh, please. You're one to talk." Barry scoffed. "You've got more attitude in your little finger than the entire CCPD. I'd say here at Jitters, but I'm right here." He smirked. "I'm all for forgetting whatever it has happened back in school, but you can't keep bringing this shit up. I may have my regrets, but at least I left things in the past."

"You ran away from your past, meerkat," Santana corrected, rolling her eyes. "The minute you could, you took off. And don't even lie to me, you're more transparent than you think."

"I even did some digging." Kurt sat next to Santana. "The name you told us, Barry Allen, had some interesting results. Your mom was murdered when you were young, and you went to Dalton to run from bullies. Kind of ironic, don't you think?"

Barry stared down at the table. "Do you even know why I went to Dalton?"

"You got teased by some mean kids? Sounds familiar."

"Look, I know I turned into what I was running from," Barry snapped, glaring at the three. "You don't have to tell me twice. I haven't run from anything. I went to Dalton to save myself from getting beat on a daily basis over things I can't control, and I came back home to Central after graduation. I may have been an ass, you know, but I have learned from my mistakes. You guys still seemed to be stuck on them."

He spotted Oliver and Felicity entering Jitters and he let out a sigh, not wanting any more interrogations. Barry then pinched the bridge of his nose, hearing his boyfriend and friend make their way over to the table.

"Barry? Are you alright?" Oliver asked, putting a hand on Barry's shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze.

Barry looked up and sighed. "I'm fine. I can handle myself." He gave him a small smile before looking back at the other three. "Santana, I apologize if I stepped on any toes when going back and forth with you. Kurt, I'm sorry for being an ass, even when you deserved it. Because, to be fair, all I did was flirt with Blaine and you instantly hated me for me, even though most of it was harmless. And Rachel, I'm sorry for the Finn pictures. If you're still hung up on that at all, that is. They really are all destroyed, I wasn't lying about that. If you guys have anything else you want to slaughter me for, then tell me now."

Santana eyed Barry for a moment before sighing softly. "We're all over that," she said after a moment. "Sorry. We really came to apologize for the way we acted during school. Even though you did deserve it at times. And don't worry, you didn't step on any toes with me. It's actually rather fun trying to out-bitch each other with you. And judging by the reactions of the people we have met here in town, you don't do it anymore. It's a good excuse to keep in contact, don't you think? Can't let your skills get rusty."

A smile found its way onto Barry's face. "I guess," he said, snickering a little. "Do you want to just start over, then?"

"I think it sounds like a good idea," Rachel said, speaking up for the first time that night. "I mean, we did come here to make amends. Starting over would be a good stepping stone to that."

"Yeah, okay," Santana agreed. "What should we call you then, twink? Don't worry, I'm still going to use my nicknames for you, but I know Berry's curious."

"Either works, honestly. I was born Barry, but I did go by Sebastian for a few years, so I respond to either name." Barry shrugged. "Honestly, it would be fun to go by Sebastian again."

"Okay because calling you anything but Sebastian would be kind of weird," Rachel admitted with a laugh. Everybody who was standing sat down, a smile lighting up Barry's face as Oliver and Felicity started talking to the three former New Direction members. He shared a smile with Oliver, who was looking at him with pride.

"Hey, I'm proud of you," he murmured low enough for only Barry to hear, confirming what Barry had been thinking.

"I am, too," Barry replied, kissing Oliver's cheek and snuggling as close as he could.

~*~

"Is this honestly even necessary?" Barry asked, staring up at the stage. "I already told you that I'm not going to perform."

"That's fine, but it doesn't mean you can't at least spend time with us," Nick said, walking over to Barry. "C'mon, man. You missed the last Warbler reunion we had, and we're not allowing you to miss this one."

"Alright, alright." Barry smiled as he walked alongside Nick. "You, uh, you didn't tell them anything, right?"

"Seb, that's not my information to share. Why on Earth would I tell anybody?" Nick replied, giving Barry an odd look. "Regardless, you know for a fact that the people here love you, no matter what. We've had the Warblers who didn't care for the group either tell us no, or drop off the face of the planet. In fact, if you hadn't shown up to the pizza parlor, we would've more than likely left you alone. About the reunion, anyway, you know Jeff would've hunted you down and dragged Thad and me along with."

Barry laughed, nodding as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Yeah, I know. But I...I just worry sometimes, you know? How they'll think of me if they know I've been lying to them."

Nick looked Barry in the eye and smirked a little. "Sebastian, these guys are like brothers to you. They learned to love you again after the slushy incident where you almost blinded Blaine. I highly doubt that you telling them you changed your name and moved towns because of bad bullying will hardly change their opinion on you. And if they do, you know you have friends who will back you up." His smile turned genuine for a moment before chuckling. "I would, however, tell them that you're unavailable. A little birdie told me that Wes was going to ask you for drinks tonight and hoping to get a date out of it."

A laugh bubbled out of Barry before he could stop it. "You know, as suave and confident as I acted, I never really fully understood what people saw in me. To be honest with you, I've never found myself attractive looking."

Nick smacked the back of Barry's head, resulting in a pout from the brunet. "I never want to hear those words come out of your mouth again, Seb. Or Barry, really. You know, when you act this meek and mild, I'm going to call you Barry. Because the Sebastian I know would own a room the minute he walked into it."

"But I'm not really that person, Nick."

"It's still a part of who you are. You can't seriously tell me all of who I knew you as was fake, and you acting. There's a part of you that is Sebastian. You're just not used to balancing the two sides of you out quite yet." Nick gently punched Barry in the arm. "I wouldn't worry about it too much, though. You're a smart guy. No matter how much you denied it, you could never hide your nerdiness from the group."

Barry laughed once more. "And here I thought I was able to hide it from everyone. No wonder none of you said anything when I confessed to being a nerd the other night."

Nick laughed along with him as they started walking again towards the group. "It's part of what made me so fond of you," he teased.

Lightly shoving the other male, Barry just grinned. As soon as he got closer to the stage, more people noticed him and he was pulled into hugs once more, similar to what happened at the pizza parlor. Barry wouldn't stop smiling as he was pulled into conversations with his old classmates. His eyes met Nick's and he rolled his eyes at the man's smug grin.

"Sebastian, I know you said you won't perform, but could you at least sing a song for us?" a Warbler asked, pushing a small piano onto the stage where they were all standing.

"I haven't even actually performed since school, you guys. I'm not even sure I'll sound good," Barry said, walking over to the piano anyway.

"Then we'll just do a warm-up together and you can play whatever you want. Have to warm up the vocal chords before you go using them," Jeff said with a wink.

After they all did just that, Barry found himself pushed onto the piano bench. He chuckled softly, letting his fingers brush over the ivory keys, trying to think of what song he wanted to sing for everybody. Barry wasn't joking when he told them he hadn't performed since high school. While he had played the piano every so often, actually singing had been something he didn't really do outside of singing along with the radio, or the one time he did karaoke with Caitlin. Sighing softly, he played a few notes and bit his bottom lip. Suddenly, a small smile filled his face and his fingers suddenly found a purpose to the drumming of keys.

As he played, Barry sang Supermarket Flowers by Ed Sheeran, filling his voice with emotion as he sang. His heart thrummed in the comfortable sense of adrenaline as he sang for his friends. Suddenly, Barry could remember why he liked performing so much, and the thrill that always came with it. The feeling of happiness that came with it, too, as he sang and played the piano. While he didn't play much in Warblers, considering they did just about everything a cappella, Barry would never forget how the keys felt under his fingers. The mornings he'd sit at the old piano in their home, learning how to play songs, or just having quiet music mornings with his mother. Nora had always loved anything music, and Barry soaked up anything he could possibly learn from her. Before he could even really register it, there were tears on his face, all the memories of his mother, along with singing the song, left him a bit emotional.

Once he was finished, Barry could hear the sounds of his friends clapping, but he was still stuck in his memories. He hadn't really sat down and cried over a memory like he was for awhile. In fact, he didn't like to dwell in the past any, if his history is any indication of that. But as he felt a hand on his shoulder, he startled, staring up at a concerned Trent.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly.

"Yeah, sorry. Got sucked into memories," Barry answered softly. "My mom taught me to play. She got me into music, really."

~*~

Feeling his legs pump, Barry grinned as he ran throughout Central City. He hadn't had much of a chance to just run lately with all the new people from his life in town. The feeling of the wind on his face was exhilarating, and something he was certain he'd never get tired of feeling. Around him, the town was passing in a bit of a blur, but if he really focused, everything would be in a slow motion, every detail able to be categorized in his mind. The little girl eating ice cream with her mom; the young dad holding his newborn child; even the fly landing on a woman's nose.

"Barry, there's a robbery at the bank over on 32nd," Cisco said through the coms.

"I'm on it," Barry replied, grinning a little as he sped over to the location. When he got there, he found people stumbling about like chickens with their heads cut off. They were either crashing into things, falling over them, or tripping over themselves. "What's going on?"

"I have no idea. This isn't usually how people react when the bank's being robbed," Cisco said. He was quiet a moment before he spoke again. "Could it be a meta?"

Scanning his eyes over the people in the building, Barry let out a sigh. He then spotted somebody walking out of the back with bags of cash in her hands. She looked shocked for a moment, seeing the Flash standing in the doorway while the bank went mad. Barry caught a hint of blue before quickly looking away, not wanting a repeat of Bivolo to happen. He hoped that despite the quick look, he didn't get completely whammied. When he looked back up, the girl and the cash were gone.

"Yeah, I'm thinking it was a meta. Everybody's calming down now that she's gone." Barry looked around, trying to spot anything abnormal. He helped a few people who were hurt but left after the police had got there. As much as he wouldn't mind staying to help, he had a metahuman to go after.

Upon arriving at STAR Labs, Barry felt his head spin, causing him to crash into the wall when he entered the cortex. Faintly, he could hear yelling before he felt hands on him. Blinking away the dizziness, Barry looked up to see Caitlin and Cisco staring down at him worriedly.

"Are you okay?" Caitlin asked, eyes scanning over everything she could see on the surface.

"The meta was like Bivolo," Barry said instead of answering. He wasn't even quite sure of that answer. "I saw a bit of blue before I was able to look away. It was weird, though. Everybody was acting like they were just learning to walk."

Caitlin furrowed her eyebrows before helping Barry over to the medical bay. She sat him down before checking over Barry's head. "I want to say she may be affecting a person's motor functions, but it's hard to say. I'd need more definitive proof before I can make a conclusion."

"What does that mean for me? If judging by what happened last time, this may not go away until we step in," Barry said, running a hand through his hair. "Can we just do what we did last time? With all the lights?"

"I'm not sure that would work the same way." Caitlin sighed. "Motor functions work differently in the brain than emotions do. What might work to help calm your anger may not work on your...clumsiness."

"Will this affect me as badly? I wasn't fully hit, maybe I'll only be temporarily hit," Barry inquired, playing with his fingers in his lap.

"That could be possible," Caitlin replied. "For now, I'd definitely just keep an eye out. See how you act in certain situations."

"Great." Barry ran his hands over his face. "The last thing I need is to be more clumsy than I already am."

"You'll be fine. If it does wear off, I'm sure it'll happen sooner than you think."

~*~

Barry wished he could make Caitlin eat her words.

After a couple hours, Barry had tripped so many times, he was sent to stay in his lab. The others cracked jokes about Barry being too light on his feet, but Barry could only roll his eyes and laugh along. He could tell Joe was starting to grow concerned for him, but Barry didn't have the heart to tell him the truth. Joe would've lectured him to be more careful, and Barry didn't particularly want to hear it. Again.

"Barry, seriously, are you feeling alright?" Joe asked, watching Barry carefully. "This isn't like you. I mean, you can be clumsy, but this is a whole other level for you."

"I'm fine, Joe. Seriously. Even if it I wasn't, I really don't have the time to not be." Barry ran a hand through his hair. "Oliver's been on my case lately about finding a place for the two of us, but I really haven't had the time to run to Star and go looking with him. He wants to get out of the apartment soon. Plus, everything with the charity concert is breathing down my neck now. So I have to spend time with all of them, while also doing my job. I'm...I'm just tired, Joe."

"Bear, how many times have I told you to not put too much on your plate?" Joe asked, giving Barry a stern look.

Barry sighed, looking down to mindlessly flip through the folder in his hands. He had already gone through it numerous times, but he couldn't find it in himself to meet Joe's eyes. "I know, I'm just...I need a distraction or something. Maybe I should just sing with everybody. I'm already there a lot to visit with everyone. What's the harm in joining?"

"That's your decision, Barry. But remember this will bring you more stress, so do it if you're willing to put yourself through that." Joe shrugged. "If you think it'll make you happy, I'd say do it."

Barry sighed. "I just want something positive to happen. Something I can actually look forward to doing. I'm not saying I don't enjoy my job or anything else that's going on in my life. But, I don't know, something to be excited for to would be a nice change of pace, you know?"

"Yeah." Joe had an expression on his face that Barry couldn't quite place, but it made Barry feel a little anxious. "I'm sure something will come up soon. For the meantime, do the concert if you want to."

Barry bit his bottom lip. "You know. I might. I miss performing, anyway. I sang a song for the group and I realised how much I missed it. How much I missed performing. My mom loved music, which is why I did it in the first place. Why should I completely abandon one of the things I bonded over with my mom?"

"Other than speaking French?" Joe teased.

"I took it in high school. That's not complete abandonment," Barry joked.

"You speak French?" Iris asked, walking into the lobby of the precinct.

"Yeah, I'm fluent in it. I have an uncle who lives in France so my mom learned it that way, and then taught me it from a young age," Barry explained, smiling. "I haven't seen my uncle in years, so I haven't really used it much."

"Oh, okay." Iris handed Barry a bag of food. "Here, I brought you guys lunch. Figured you'd be busy considering all the robberies lately. Speaking of, I hear the Flash was there this morning. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine. A little dazed yet from the meta, but it's nothing I can't handle."

"A meta? You never mentioned that." Joe looked Barry over. "What happened?"

"A meta that can affect a person's motor functions, apparently. I got a partial hit when I was there, so I've been a bit klutzy all morning. It should pass soon, though."

"So that's the excuse?" Joe joked. "And here I thought you were being your normal self."

Barry rolled his eyes fondly. "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, speaking of. Have either of you talked to Oliver? Other than asking about going house seeing, he's been kind of weird lately. I don't why, but it's starting to worry me."

"I don't know, sorry, Bear." Joe held up his food. "I better go eat this before it gets cold. Thank you for bringing it, Iris." He kissed her temple before heading back to his desk.

Barry sighed, watching after his foster father before looking at Iris. "I'm guessing you won't tell me anything?"

"I don't know anything more than you do," Iris answered honestly. "Your guess is as good as mine."

"That's what I figured." Barry played with his food and sighed. "Thanks for lunch, Iris. Do you want to eat it with me? I have to drop this file off with Singh, but my lab is free."

"Yeah, actually. That'd be nice." Iris gave him a small smile before Barry walked away. Once Barry was out of earshot, she let out a huff, already looking for her husband. After spotting him, she made her way over to him. "You know something I don't."

Eddie looked up, startled. "What are you talking about?"

"With Barry and Oliver. My dad told you something, didn't he?"

"Iris, why would your dad tell me about Barry? Your dad didn't even like me until you and I actually got married. I doubt he'd talk to me about his son," Eddie replied, quirking an eyebrow.

"You knew about Barry being the Flash before me," Iris reminded me in a quiet voice.

"That was to protect you." Eddie sat back in his seat. "Seriously though, Iris, I don't know anything."

"Alright. Well it was worth a shot anyway." She sighed. "I'll see you at home."

"Alright. I love you."

"I love you, too." Iris gave him a quick kiss before meeting Barry up at his lab.

Chapter Text

Barry couldn't help the smile on his face as he walked along the path that paved its way through the park. The pavilion that would be used for the charity concert was in the process of being set up. People were scattered around, either helping with the set up, or enjoying the nice day. Barry himself was doing the latter, loving the warmth the sun shone down on his face, and making him smile. The wind was blowing, just soft enough to keep him cool, but not enough to make him completely cold.

"Sebastian Smythe?" a male voice called out, causing Barry to stop in his steps.

Barry turned, his blood running cold when he saw who was walking towards him. "Hey, Hunter. It's...been awhile."

"Yeah, you look good, Bas." Hunter grinned at Barry, giving him a slow once over. Barry shuffled where he was standing. "So what has the great Sebastian been up to since I left Dalton?"

"I finished the school year, went to college, got a job. You know, the good stuff. Regular stuff." Barry cleared his throat softly. "I hear you went to military school after Dalton. How was that?"

"It went fine. I went straight into the army afterward. That was a learning experience. I haven't touched any drugs since," Hunter replied. He bit his bottom lip before speaking again. "Hey, I know it's been a few years since we...fooled around, and you probably hate me, but. Do you want to get dinner with me?"

"I, uh. No," Barry said, giving Hunter a strained smile. "I have a boyfriend, and I love him very much. But thanks for the offer."

"Oh, well. Shame, then." Hunter gave him another once over before smirking. "You really grew into your long limbs. I wonder if they still look good wrapped aro– "

"Hunter, stop. Seriously," Barry said firmly. "Oliver means a lot to me, and I don't think he'd appreciate hearing that my ex was trying to get me into bed with him."

Hunter frowned. "Well, he sounds like a stickler." He grabbed Barry's phone out of his back pocket, causing Barry to blush lightly. After typing his number, Hunter slipped it back into Barry's pocket with a smirk. "Call me when your boyfriend either gets tired of you or wants a threesome." He then turned on his heel and strolled away.

Barry clenched his jaw, glaring down at the ground where Hunter had just stood. "I hate you," he muttered to himself, knowing Hunter wouldn't hear him anyway. "You made my life a living hell."

"Seb?"

Barry looked up and saw Kurt and Blaine make their way towards him. It was then that Barry realised he was crying. As quickly as he realised it, he was wiping the tears away. He gave them a small smile, straightening up. "Hey, guys. What's up?"

"Are you alright?" Blaine asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

"I'll be fine, I guess," Barry answered, shoving his hands into his pockets. "It's something I've grown used to."

"Was that Hunter Clarington? Why is he here?" Kurt asked, looking the way Hunter had gone. "I thought he was banned from any Warbler events."

"He was. I don't know why he's here, but it makes me hate him even more. Which I didn't even think was possible." Barry rubbed the back of his neck. "He follows me everywhere. I thought I was safe with the name change. That was one thing I loved about going by Sebastian Smythe during high school. I could get away from Hunter. Apparently not."

"Why do you hate him so much? Last I knew, you two were all buddy-buddy." Kurt quirked an eyebrow. "Have some sort of falling out?"

"I...yeah, I guess you could say that." Barry looked around before sighing. "Do you want to go back to mine? This really isn't a conversation to have out in the open."

"Oh, uh. Yeah, sure," Blaine agreed gently.

Barry nodded and started walking towards the direction of Joe's house. He texted Oliver to meet him there, figuring it'd be best to tell the story of Hunter to him at the same time. Get it done and over with. Behind him, he could hear Kurt and Blaine walking, allowing Barry some space to be able to think. He was messing with his fingers as he walked, his phone burning in his back pocket, along with the places Hunter's fingers brushed against. "So, uh," Barry spoke up, glancing behind him. "This place we're going is actually my foster dad's. I live with my boyfriend in Star City."

"That's...quite a drive." Kurt furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you do for work?"

"I'm a CSI," Barry answered. He then realised he couldn't quite say he worked at CCPD. That would look too suspicious giving the distance between the two cities. "I, uh. Kind of work between Central City Police Department and Star City Police Department, in a way. One department is my base, but I help the other when I can."

"Makes sense, I guess," Kurt said with a shrug. "I'd never imagine that Sebastian Smythe would end up working with the police."

Barry pressed his lips together into a thin line before sighing softly. It seemed like more and more secrets would be spilled lately, and he wasn't sure if he entirely liked the thought of that. When they reached Joe's, he led them inside. Joe and Oliver were talking, which made Barry nervous to see him. Giving a small wave, he gestured to the couch for Blaine and Kurt to sit. Once everybody was paying attention to them, Barry stood in front of them and wiped his hands on his jeans.

"So, uh. I didn't think Joe would be home for lunch, but I guess it's a good thing he hears this," Barry started. He glanced around the room before letting out a shaky sigh. "So I ran into an ex from high school. His name is Hunter Clarington, and he's the guy who temporarily became captain, and gave us all steroids for Regionals that year."

"So why is he here? If he got in trouble for the steroids, I can't imagine the school would be willing to still have him at events that involve their name," Oliver pointed out.

"He was banned, actually, but he somehow found out about the whole charity concert and he's here in Central." Barry cleared his throat before continuing. "Blaine, I know Hunter said he 'wasn't even remotely bi-curious', but he lied. He was my roommate at the beginning of my senior year, and we kind of hooked up. For awhile, I fully believed that not only were we exclusive, but I also considered him my boyfriend. It kind of turned out he didn't consider the same."

"Didn't you sleep around during high school?" Kurt asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Just because I used to sleep around doesn't mean I'm a cheater," Barry said firmly. "Hunter slept around while we were together, and it hurt me a lot. When I confronted him, he...he didn't exactly react the best. He called me names, and threatened to tell everyone about Barry– how he found that out, I'm not sure– if I didn't stay with him. This is same thing he did when the steroids where found out about. Anyway, Hunter has always been an ass, especially when things didn't go his way. It wasn't exactly...I don't know, a healthy relationship after I confronted him about his cheating. When he was banned, I was so overly happy. This was around the time I started being nicer towards New Directions and all that. Everything with Hunter, combined with everything else going on, it really woke me up." He shrugged. "It's why I had such a hard time going into relationships afterwards. Oliver's the first actual solid relationship I've had since."

"Can I shoot him with an arrow?" Oliver asked Joe, his hands clenched into fists.

"No," Joe said, although he looked like he was about to say yes.

"That's not all, though. He kind of...felt me up a little today? He pulled my phone out of my back pocket, and he made it a bit handsier than necessary. It made me rather uncomfortable, to say the least. Hunter also got mad when I turned him down when he asked me on a date," Barry said, looking at Oliver.

Oliver looked at Joe again, an eyebrow raised. Wordlessly, Joe handed him his gun. A small smile found its way onto Barry's face. "No shooting anybody, please. As much as I hate him, I don't wish death on him."

"I always knew he was a shady character," Kurt said, his jaw clenched. "I didn't trust him since the minute I saw him. He has that look about him."

"Sebastian, are you alright, though? You were crying when we found you." Blaine stood up and looked like he was about to give Barry a hug.

"Mostly shocked from what happened. Regardless, I think we should just focus on getting things done for this concert. For now, we push Hunter to the back of our minds. He told he hasn't done drugs since he was caught at Dalton, and he's been in the military ever since. So unless he physically harms me in any way, this matter is dropped." Barry let out a sigh that sounded closer to a huff after he spoke. "We have bigger things to worry about than my crazy ex right now."

Oliver looked like he wanted to speak, but he was quickly shot down by a look from Barry. Blaine sat back down on the couch next to Kurt, looking conflicted. Joe looked concerned, but didn't make any move to say anything. The only person Barry couldn't quite decipher was Kurt, but then again, they never really got along anyway, so it wasn't too surprising to figure out he could read him.

"Speaking of the concert," Blaine said carefully. "The Warblers all want to have any former captains to have a solo song. So that means you, Seb."

"Oh, uh. Well alright," Barry said, eyes wide in realisation of having to sing solo in front of so many people.

"It usually helps if you pick a song that means a lot to you," Blaine spoke up. "If you sing a song you don't connect to, that's alright. But it usually helps with nerves if you pick a song that appeals to you. At least that's what I've gathered with my experience. At first, I wasn't completely comfortable singing in front a crowd, so I sang a song that meant a lot to me. It helped a lot with my nerves. I was more focused on portraying the emotion I felt into the song, than I was on the crowd I was standing in front of. I mean, you can sing whatever song you'd like to, I'm just trying to help. Nick mentioned something to me about your doubts."

Biting his lip in thought, Barry nodded along. He then let out a soft sigh. "That's a good idea," he said after a moment. "I need to brainstorm a bit, see what I can think up, before I decide on anything."

Both Blaine and Kurt nodded in understanding. "Take your time. Of course, we'll need to know by some point before the concert so we know what music to play and when, but it's still about a week away. You have some time left."

Shortly after, Joe had to leave to get back to work. The four men remaining stayed and talked. Oliver seemed to enjoy spending time with people who knew Barry when he was younger. Plus, it was also nice to see the speedster so relaxed and content with life at the moment. Sure, the man had unfortunately had bad luck follow him wherever he went, but he never seemed to let it get to him. Every day he woke up, there was still a smile on his face and a joke on his lips (even if they were often horrible). He was sunshine in human form. Oliver wasn't sure where and how he obtained this ability to be so happy and radiate it onto others, but he loved it. He loved Barry so much.

After Blaine and Kurt left for the night, Oliver pulled Barry close as they sat on the couch. Barry seemed to be lost in thought for the moment, his eyes looking blankly ahead of him, not quite taking anything in. Oliver rubbed his side, letting the man sink in his own thoughts. If it got too bad, Oliver knew how to pull his boyfriend from his dark thoughts. Barry may be human sunshine, but even he had his moments.

"Oliver, would you be alright if I sang a song about my ex?" he asked after a moment.

Oliver furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you mean? Like a love song?"

Barry shook his head. "No, of course not. It's just, well...everybody's expecting me to sing this love song about my amazing boyfriend. Or even this uplifting song because I'm such a happy person. But Blaine did make a point earlier. I need to sing a song that has some sort of meaning behind it. And to tell you the truth, I never really fully let myself grieve from what marks Hunter left on me. Like yeah it happened, and I managed to move past it in some way. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I need some sort of closure. And I'd rather cut off my foot than talk to Hunter again, but. Maybe if I sing a song about how I'm feeling, some of this weight I have on my chest might go away."

"I think it's a good idea," Oliver said once Barry was finished rambling. "Everyone needs some sort of closure for some things that happen in their life. If yours is this chapter, then who am I to stop you?" He pressed a chaste kiss to the brunet's lips. "Did you have a song in mind?"

"Yeah, but I'm not going to tell you what it is." Barry laughed as Oliver pouted a little. "I love it when I manage to make Oliver Queen pout. I deserve an award for that feat."

"You're lucky you're so cute," Oliver said with a roll of his eyes. "And that I love you so much."

"I love you, too, Oliver. So much."

~*~

"It seems like the meta's affects have worn off," Caitlin said, smiling. "Any clumsiness is strictly you."

"That makes me feel better," Barry remarked dryly, causing Caitlin to smile. "Seriously, though, either I'm clumsier than I originally thought, or the meta didn't affect me too badly."

"Probably a bit of both." Caitlin moved around her lab quietly, but sent Barry a smile. "You're more graceful when you're off being the Flash. Probably because you don't think about what your limbs are doing, but rather how to save people."

Barry smiled before letting out a soft sigh. "Caitlin, what if I mess up while dancing on stage? I mean, yeah, it's something I've done before and the whole riding a bike metaphor, but...the doubt will still be here. There. And I can't but worry."

"You'll be fine," Caitlin said confidently before her voice softened. "Honestly, you think too much, and you're too hard on yourself. You'll be great, honestly."

"You really think so?" Barry asked, biting his bottom lip after receiving a nod from Caitlin. "I wish I still had the meta's stuff messing me up so if I fell, I'd still have somewhat of an excuse. To at least use on myself. Everybody else already knows I trip a lot."

Caitlin furrowed her eyebrows a minute before standing up straight. "I thought you said you had two left feet? Or, at least you find every excuse not to dance. And yet you were captain of this great choir team."

"I dance," Barry admitted after a pause. "But I'm not very good at slow dancing and all that, honestly. We never really did that during school."

"Didn't you have school dances?"

"Oh, we did. And I had dates, sure, but I tended to avoid slow dancing with them in some way." Barry chuckled. "Made a couple of them mad, too. It was kind of funny."

Caitlin hummed softly, a small smile on her face. She then made her way over and sat next to Barry on the bed. "I remember my school dances. I had a date for my senior prom, and I was so happy." She then let out a humorless chuckle. "Turned out he was only using me to get into the prom for free so he could party with his friends. It hurt at first after learning this."

"Why are you telling me this?" Barry whispered, but not unkindly.

"Because I was able to forgive him, even though he hurt me badly," she replied. She gave Barry a small smile. "Joe mentioned something in passing to me. He didn't go too into detail with it, which I'm assuming he did that so you wouldn't be upset by him talking. So while I may not know the severity of the situation, I think some part of what I'm telling you still applies. Oliver did tell me that you were planning a song to sing at the concert as part of this healing process. But you and I both know you'll never fully be over this unless you forgive the horrors of your past. He may have been an ass to you, but in some sort of twisted way, it led you to Oliver. Who knew where you'd be if you hadn't found one another."

"Oliver would probably still be brooding in a corner over thinking he's not good enough to date anyone," Barry pointed out, smiling when a giggle came from STAR Labs' doctor. "Cait, what he did...it's hard for me to ever think I could even possibly forgive him. He really hurt me. And I'm not talking about like the guy ditching you at prom. He...called me names and...did drugs. I'm not sure if I could."

"What if...what if you look at it another way?" Caitlin offered. "Like the five stages of grief. Instead of forgiveness, look at it like acceptance. It's not necessarily forgiving him, but instead accepting what happened. Like, 'yeah it happened, but I'm stronger now because of it. I have a great job, a wonderful boyfriend, and amazing friends. I'm better now'."

Barry grinned. "Yeah, you're right. I really do need to accept that it happened, in all honesty. It's always been this thing in the back of my mind, always creeping into my thoughts when I'm by myself. Oliver's really helped me push those thoughts away, but they're always there."

Caitlin rubbed Barry's back, offering him a small smile. "Maybe this is what you really need. I'm sure singing will be a great help with it, too. This charity concert seems to be bringing up a lot of things for you, and you've had to deal with them all. How are you feeling?"

"A lot better, honestly. Lighter," Barry answered, smiling down at his lap afterwards. "Thank you, Caitlin. Really. This conversation meant a lot to me, in all honesty. You've been a big help."

"Of course, Barry. I'm always here to help you." With another smile, Caitlin stood off the bed with a smile. "Why don't you go train? I'm sure you've been itching to run lately with all the metas suspiciously quiet nowadays."

"Yeah. I have a feeling someone's going to try something during the concert. Hopefully not during a Warbler performance or during mine. I'm not sure I could come up with a decent excuse of suddenly disappearing and the Flash standing in my place." Barry scrunched his nose. "I'm already expecting to see Snart there. It's not a public event in Central City without Captain Cold being there."

"Speaking of, who all is coming to watch? Other than me, of course."

"You, Cisco, Joe, Iris, Eddie, Oliver, Felicity, Diggle, Thea," Barry listed off. "Probably a good chunk of CCPD. Ever since I mentioned that I'd be singing and dancing, everybody wants to be there, or least get a recording for those who still have to work that night."

"I guess you'll have to put on one hell of a show for them, then," Caitlin said with a smile.

~*~

"The show's this weekend, oh my god," Barry said, hands on his face as he stared towards the piano. "I'm not sure if I'm ready for this. No, I'm definitely not ready for this."

"Seb, you're going to be amazing," Blaine promised, rubbing Barry's shoulders. "We've all been practicing all week."

"I know, but I'm still incredibly nervous about this," Barry admitted, hands dropping to his sides. "I haven't performed since high school. I mean, of course if the occasional karaoke night doesn't count."

"It doesn't," Jeff quipped as he passed by with a box of different stuff for the show's set up. Barry half-heartedly glared at his back as he walked away.

Letting out a sigh, Barry looked around. Everybody was off either practicing or setting things up. In the distance, he could hear the traffic from the city, and the occasional bird chirping. Ever since a young age, Barry had loved coming to the park. The air always seemed to feel cleaner (it did help with the abundance of trees that were scattered throughout the park), and a lot fresher than in the city itself. The park always filled him with a sense of serenity he had difficulty finding with each passing day. He knew for a fact that after any particular difficult case (Flash case or work), Barry had a bad habit of curling into himself, and losing himself in his thoughts. While lately he had Oliver to help, the tranquility of the park always helped him clear his mind. More often than not lately, Oliver had been accompanying him on his trip. It slowly became a thing for them to go to the park every Friday night. Whether it be to help clear his mind, or just to talk. Even living all the way in Star City, they never missed a night to sit on a bench and stare at the stars. Of course it helped that Barry had super speed to get there, but the stillness of the park was relieving to the both of them.

"Seb? Are you alright?" Blaine asked, his voice startling Barry from his thoughts.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm sorry." Barry gave Blaine a small smile. "I was just thinking about this place. I came here a lot as a kid after my mom died, and now I come here with my boyfriend whenever we can." He pointed to a bench not far away. "We always sit there and look at the stars. We were just there last night, too."

"You really love him, don't you?" Blaine asked. His tone didn't sound harsh, but more fond than anything, if Barry was honest. "You're a lot happier now than you were during school."

"He's the love of my life," Barry admitted softly, a smile filling his face. "I met him when I went to Star City for some case I wasn't actually assigned to, but went to anyway. We didn't exactly get along at first, but we slowly came together. Oliver isn't the most openly affectionate person, in all honesty. The biggest romantic gesture he's ever done was bring me flowers for my birthday one year. While I was at work."

Blaine smiled, a soft one Barry had only ever seen previously around Kurt. "Sometimes loved ones do things they don't usually do when it comes to the person they love."

Barry hummed softly in acknowledgement. "Makes sense. I highly doubt Oliver will ever do anything big, though. Our friend Felicity likes to joke that I may be the runner between the two of us, but he does more running from emotions than I do on the street." He looked down a moment, sighing softly. He knew Oliver wasn't into big shows of affection, and it was something he'd learn to accept, but there were moments when he wished Oliver would do more. Barry himself was rather touchy-feely and his biggest accomplishment to get from Oliver was cuddling in front of friends and family.

Feeling eyes on him, Barry looked up to see Blaine watching him. He jokingly wiped his face for any drool, making Blaine laugh. Blaine walked away without another word, making Barry wonder what the man had been thinking about. Letting out another sigh, Barry grew worried if he had said too much. He knew it wasn't Oliver's fault that he was wired the way he was. Briefly, he wondered if he was being too selfish by wishing Oliver made some bigger romantic gesture than what he usually did. Barry did love the small intimate things Oliver did– his boyfriend could be rather romantic when he tried– but sometimes Barry just wished Oliver showed more while in public. There was even a time Felicity thought they had fought because of the way they acted. It was when they first got together and Oliver was still nervous to show the world that he had a boyfriend. Not that Barry minded too much, of course, he had learned to live with it.

Rubbing the back of his neck, Barry bit the inside of his cheek as his eyes scanned over anything he could do to keep his hands or mind busy. He spotted Trent making some signs on a nearby picnic table. Smiling, Barry made his way over and sat down across from him. "Hey, Trent," he greeted.

Trent looked up and smiled. "Hey, Sebastian. Haven't had much time to talk to you lately."

"Yeah, it kind of sucks." Barry laughed. "We've all been so busy. There are a few people I haven't had much of a chance to catch up on. How are you?"

"I'm good. Haven't had too much luck in love lately, but I can't find it in myself to be too upset by that," Trent replied, caping the marker he had been using. "How's Oliver? Haven't seen him much around lately."

"He's fine. He had to go back to Star City yesterday to get some work things done, and try to hold things off for a bit so he can be here tomorrow." Barry sighed. "And to bring some friends here, of course. Heaven forbid if our friends miss this concert and seeing me sing and dance."

The two of them laughed. Barry picked up a black marker and played with in his hands. Trent watched him for a moment before sitting up. "I'm really happy for you, Seb. I know high school was rough for you, and all the stuff that happened when you were younger. Seeing you happy with Oliver, it's nice."

Barry blushed a little, smiling down at the table. "Thank you, Trent. It's...it's definitely refreshing. He helps me a lot, especially on my darker days. Because there are days when I'm stuck in myself, whether because of my mom's death or my actions during high school, or even any case that I work on." Letting out a soft laugh, Barry looked back up at Trent. "You know, when everything was going on with the New Directions, I never thought I'd be sitting here a few years later, planning a charity concert with them. It's amazing how time heals things. I've made peace with all of them. I even text with Santana and Kurt on a daily basis now. Something I certainly never thought I'd be doing."

"We grew up. I always had a hunch you'd grow out of being...whatever you were when you accidentally got Blaine hospitalized. I knew you better than the New Directions did. You're a good person, Sebastian," Trent said honestly.

Barry's blush deepened. "Thank you, Trent. It means a lot, honestly. When I got this invitation in the mail, I was regretting it so intensely, it's kind of crazy. I was nervous, too. How people would react to seeing me. And I was right at first, of course. I was an asshole in high school. But then I apologized to people, and we all talked out our issues. It's great."

"Speaking of," Trent said, grinning suddenly. "I'm looking forward to singing Bad again. Doing collab songs like that are so much fun. I wish we did more of it during school, and more than the three songs we are doing."

"Three? I thought we were only doing two songs with New Directions." Barry furrowed his eyebrows. "I'm not missing any practices, am I? I've been working them in to the best of my ability."

Trent suddenly looked extremely nervous, making Barry wary. "I meant two, I'm sorry. And no, you're not missing any practices, don't worry."

Barry licked his lips in thought, watching Trent for a moment. The other man went back to making signs. "Alright then," he said softly. He still felt like he was missing something big, but there was nothing more he could do about it. Suddenly, he saw Santana and Kurt talking in the distance and had an idea.

Standing up, he gave a farewell to Trent before heading towards the other two. While he wasn't exactly close with them, he was still comfortable enough to talk to them about things bothering him. Especially considering the event they had been working hard on doing for the past couple weeks.

"Hey, Sha-queer-a," Barry said, smirking a little. "Am I missing something? Trent mentioned something about three performances that the Warblers are doing with your group. I thought we were only doing two."

Santana and Kurt exchanged a quick glance before the woman crossed her arms over her chest. "Trent misspoke, which I'm assuming he told you. We're only doing two with you and the fellow church boys."

Barry furrowed his eyebrows in thought. "Trent usually doesn't mess up when it comes to performances. He's rather serious with them." He then huffed. "Am I missing something? Because I don't exactly enjoy being lied to."

"No one's lying to you, twink, calm down. People mess up, deal with it." Santana rolled her eyes. "You act like Trent being serious about performing suddenly makes him perfect."

"He's probably just nervous, Sebastian. Cut him some slack," Kurt spoke up, quirking an eyebrow. "You're acting like a bit of an ass about this. Not like we're not used to seeing you like this."

"I still think you guys are lying to me, and I'm sick of it," Barry replied, glaring at Kurt. "But I'll let it drop. The concert's tomorrow and the last thing we need is a conflict. I'm going home. I'll be back later to help with the final touches. And don't worry, I'll practice at home."

The other two didn't have a chance to reply as Barry was walking off. He grabbed his bag from near the stage before walking away. Trent looked guilty as the others watched him with concern as he just stormed off. Barry was starting to feel guilty, in all honesty, and like he was overreacting. But he couldn't help his feelings, and the nerves of the upcoming concert was making him more snappish than usual.

He just hoped it wouldn't stick.

Chapter Text

"I've missed you," Barry said with a smile, his arms wrapped around Oliver's neck, playing with the soft hair at the back of his boyfriend's neck.

"I wasn't even gone that long," Oliver said with a chuckle, kissing Barry sweetly. "Besides, if I didn't pick up Felicity, Digg, and Thea, I'd never hear the end of it."

"Hmm, it was still too long." Barry chuckled softly, enjoying the feeling of being in Oliver's arms. It was a feeling he'd never grow tired of. "Speaking of, where are the others?"

"They're at the hotel, and Joe is at work," Oliver replied, gently squeezing Barry's hips.

Barry grinned, bringing Oliver in for a kiss. He hummed softly as he pressed himself impossibly closer to his boyfriend. Just as he was about to push his hand into Oliver's pants, there was a knock on the door. Barry groaned, burying his face into the crook of Oliver's neck. "We finally get alone time in awhile, and it's interrupted."

Once the door was opened, Barry let out a huff when he saw who was behind it. Blaine smiled apologetically behind Santana, while Kurt and Rachel watched on from the car parked in the driveway. "Hi, Sebastian," Blaine greeted.

"I'm missing sex, so this better be good," Barry said, quirking an eyebrow as he stared at the four.

"The concert is tonight, and we still have a lot to do since you stormed off yesterday," Santana replied. "And as much as I agree that you really should get laid, we need to get going."

"Alright," Barry agreed. He went back into the house to get his wallet and phone before heading to the doorway. After giving Oliver a kiss, he then went with the others to the car. "Any particular reason all four of you came to pick me up?"

"We need to pick up a couple things yet," Kurt answered. "And we wanted to spend more time with you before we leave to head back home."

Barry hummed softly, quirking an eyebrow at them. "Have we not just spent like two weeks spending time with one another? And isn't there a couple days yet that you'll be here after the concert?"

"Okay, one-on-one time," Kurt said with a wave of his hand. "Stop complaining, you enjoy our company."

"Well alright then." Barry smiled. "I'm glad this whole thing happened, though. I've gained great friends from this, and we've all gotten over whatever disagreements we had."

"I agree," Blaine replied, smiling himself. "I kept telling Kurt you weren't a bad guy. I guess it just took seeing it for himself for Kurt to finally agree."

Barry chuckled as Kurt scoffed in reply. "Excuse me for doubting Sebastian would be nice."

"It's still a blast from the past hearing people calling me Sebastian," Barry admitted. "Not that I have a problem with it, of course, I just never thought I'd hear the name once I got out of school."

"What's Barry short for?" Rachel asked, smiling politely.

Scrunching his nose, Barry shrunk a little in his seat. "An awful name," he said. "Bartholomew."

"No wonder you go by Barry," Santana replied. "Although, I do prefer Sebastian."

"When I turned eighteen, I legally changed my name. Well, rather I added a name to my name. Now my full legal name is Bartholomew Henry Sebastian Allen. Since it was a part of who I was for a bit, and I do like the name." Barry laughed at the others' faces. "What? My name isn't that terrible."

"Keep telling yourself that, Seb. Maybe one day you'll believe it."

Laughing to himself, Barry quieted down after that. He was used to running everywhere, so slowing himself to enjoy a ride in a car with other people was relaxing, and he quietly decided he'd do it more often. Shifting where he was sat in the front passenger seat, Barry stared out the window, humming along softly with the song that was playing on the radio. His mind drifted, thinking about the time before he met Oliver the very first time. Before he realised that Oliver was the person he was destined to be with. How he used to be jealous of Eddie because of the feelings he had had for Iris. Then he remembered how he realised his feelings for Iris would never go past a crush, and he suddenly felt free. From what, he wasn't entirely sure, but it wasn't long after he had this realisation that he started dating Oliver.

Thinking about it now, Barry realised his jealously might not have necessarily been for the fact Iris was with someone else. In fact, Iris was so happy, Barry used to be envious of that in particular. He wanted that type of happiness from someone, and he was jealous of the fact Iris had it and not him, as well. While, yes, he did deeply care for Iris, it may not have been in the way he had originally thought. It made sense, in a way. Up until arriving at Dalton, Barry was terrified to admit to more than just himself that he was attracted to both men and women. But the environment of Dalton, and the comfort of the no bullying policy, Barry just blossomed. Admitting that yeah, he liked men as well, and he owned it. Carrying that with him home, Barry quickly came out to Joe, Iris, and Henry, utterly relieved they hadn't changed their opinions of him because of it.

But, still, he did have lingering doubts.

For awhile, he remembered, he clung onto his feelings for Iris in hopes of finding happiness in some way. Sleeping around during Dalton had only brought a temporary happiness, but he quickly realised it wouldn't work that way forever. He didn't even want that to keep happening. So when Barry had met Oliver, the man that he was willing to find himself one day settling down with, everything fell into place.

Barry was startled out of his thoughts when the music from the radio suddenly stopped playing. He blinked a minute, willing himself to focus on the present as the others climbed out of the car. Following their lead, Barry got out, looking around where they had parked.

"Why are we at Target?" Barry asked, quirking an eyebrow, but following the others inside nonetheless.

"I told you that we needed to pick a few things up," Kurt said, giving Barry a look.

"I hope you're okay with the idea that we have," Rachel said nervously. Barry hummed softly, silently thinking her small size was rather adorable.

"Rachel, don't ruin the surprise," Santana chastised, but she was smiling anyway.

"What surprise?" Barry was led over to the jewellery section, which caused his confusion to grow further. It wasn't until Santana picked up a pack of bracelets when it finally clicked with Barry. "Aren't we a little old for friendship bracelets? I thought that ended when we were five."

Santana rolled her eyes. "That's what I said, too, but it's actually kind of cute. We all have some sort of matching bracelets with one another. It's our way of...accepting you into our circle."

Barry blushed a little, looking at the others in shock. "Wait, what? Really? I thought...I didn't think you guys warmed up to me that much."

"It's still a work in progress," Blaine admitted. "But we all agreed that we were willing to try to get to know you better. Considering you didn't really talk all that much to any other New Directions' members during high school, we figured the four of us would be the only ones who knew. And this would be a good first step in trusting you more."

"I...wow, okay. Yeah, um. That sounds like a good idea." Barry chuckled softly. "I'm sorry, I'm just in shock a little bit. Honestly, you four were the last people I thought would ever start to trust me."

"We grew up." Kurt grabbed the bracelets from Santana. "Unfortunately there's no five way friendship bracelet type of thing, so I hope you don't mind wearing four bracelets. We can get you something simple, if that would make you feel better."

"I'm not sure I'll be able to wear them at work, in all honesty, but get whatever. I'm up for wearing jewellery, it doesn't bother me any." Barry gave them all a warm smile before looking over the bracelets. "Couldn't we always just make our own? I'm sure it's cheaper than buying..."

"While that would be cute, we're all adults," Santana said flatly. "I'm not sure anybody would take me seriously if I walked around with string tied around my wrist."

"I would wear it, I don't care." Barry shrugged. "I wore the bracelet I made with Iris until it broke. And that didn't happen until I was halfway through college."

"Well I'm different." A smile was on Santana's face anyway. "I'm sure all your police buddies will be jealous with your cool new accessories."

"Oh hell yeah," Barry agreed with a laugh. "I'll be making new fashion statements all throughout CCPD. Watch out world, here comes Barry Allen."

The others all laughed along with Barry. They all picked out the ones they liked before soon leaving Target. Barry wore the new accessories with pride, smiling a little whenever they caught the light from the sun. Never in a million years did he think he'd be wearing matching bracelets with the former members of New Directions.

It wasn't much longer until they were at the park. Numerous people were milling about, either practicing or helping with any last minute set-up. Barry's chest filled with warmth as he looked at the scene before him. Earlier in the week, it sunk in just how much he missed performing. Seeing the sight before him, it sunk in yet again. The thrill, the adrenaline, the pure joy he got from being on stage.

"Man, I needed this," Barry said quietly, eyes scanning over all the people.

"The performance?" Blaine asked, his voice just as quiet.

"Yeah." Barry let out a breathless laugh as he turned to look at the others. "Maybe it was meant to be that nowhere else would book this."

Blaine furrowed his eyebrows. "What are you talking about?"

"Nick told me no other place would be willing to book this, that's why the concert is happening here in Central." Now it was Barry's turn to grow confused.

"What? No, that's not what happened. Trent found out you were from here, and that you still lived here, and managed to convince us all to hold the concert here. He did it in hopes to get you to crawl out of whatever hole you've hidden yourself in. It worked, obviously," Blaine explained. "I'm just curious as to why they didn't just tell you that. You're not mad, are you?"

"No, of course not. I'm just...I'm just as curious as you are to why they kept their mouths shut. Thank you for telling me, though. I now have something to tease them about."

~*~

It wasn't until much later when Barry finally saw his other friends and family. 'Last minute' end up lasting all day long, and Oliver had to take over Barry's Flash duty and catch the metahuman that had wrecked havoc downtown. Barry had felt terrible about basically dropping off the face of the planet all day, but nobody seemed upset with him, which was a relief. Oliver was more amused than anything to learn that Barry had been too busy dancing and singing to help.

When it came to get ready for the concert itself, Barry had dressed up in his old uniform, and after a few pictures, left around an hour before the concert was set to start. All around the park were tables set up for various charities for people to donate to, along with the small ticket fee they were charging to watch. There were tons of chairs set in view of the stage, and the sheer number of them made Barry a little nervous. He wouldn't be performing for a bit; he had three songs before the Warblers were going on stage to sing Uptown Girl, but still. He hadn't actually performed in front of his friends and family before.

"Nervous, meerkat?" a voice asked, making Barry jump where he was standing.

He turned to see Santana watching him. While the Warblers were all wearing their old uniforms, the New Directions had all decided to wear what Barry assumed to be old Regionals costumes. "You look nice," he said instead of answering Santana's question.

"You didn't answer my question." Damn.

"A little," Barry finally admitted. "But nerves are normal, though. And I know that, realistically, me performing won't really change their opinions on me, other than, holy shit he sings."

"I think you're being too hard on yourself," Santana stated, patting Barry on the back. "You can sing, twink, so stop sweating. Besides, after today, if you honestly mess up, I'll be after your ass."

"Thanks." Barry laughed. "Break a leg out there."

"Won't need it, but thanks." Santana smirked before heading onto the stage with the others.

Later on, when the Warblers' first song came up, Barry was practically shaking with nerves. He could feel someone squeeze his shoulder in comfort before they started singing. Once he got into the music, he was quick to find any nervousness quickly melt away. Nailing his solos better than doing so in practice, Barry couldn't stop smiling. From the corner of his eye, he could see everybody who came to support him smiling widely. Even Oliver, who never smiled that wide outside of it just being the two of them. Pride filled Barry's chest as the song finished out, breathing in the scent of the familiar afterglow after singing.

Once they were off stage, Barry squealed softly to Jeff, who couldn't stop laughing. "Oh my god, that was more fun than I remembered it being," he said, hanging out with Jeff and Nick off the stage.

"Dude, you were great. As you usually are," Jeff teased, lightly elbowing Barry.

"Twink," Santana said, touching Barry's elbow. She led him a little a ways before speaking again. "I think we should sing within the audience for Smooth Criminal. Have the cellists on stage."

"Oh, okay. Why the sudden change, though?" Barry asked. They had been practicing on stage the whole time, so he was a little caught off guard by the sudden change.

"Kurt made a point. The song has a lot of high energy, so it might be good to have a little crowd interaction." Santana smirked a little. "Maybe if we flirt enough I'll make your boyfriend jealous and you can have hot sex later. Although, with the way he was looking after that one song, that may happen whether we sing this duet or not."

Coughing a little, Barry blushed hotly. "Yeah, alright. That actually doesn't sound like a bad idea, anyway. Let's have fun with this, Satan."

"I look forward to it, twink." With that, Santana turned on her heel and walked away.

Humming softly, Barry looked out in the crowd from where he was standing. He could see his friends and family close to the stage. The thought that they were sitting so near to where he was performing made Barry smile. Even though he already knew they were more than likely already were, he still hoped they were having fun and enjoying themselves. They all looked loose and relaxed, which made Barry's smile widen even more so.

Sooner than he thought, Barry watched as the two cello players made their way on stage. With a wicked smirk, he placed himself near the back of the audience, spotting Santana on the other side. With a thumbs up from her, the players started the song. Taking a deep breath before singing, Barry once again lost himself in the song. Suddenly he was back in high school, dueling off against Santana. He could tell Santana was the same way considering their eyes never left each other. Around the captivated audience, they danced, and their voices flowed easily over the sound of the cellos.

When they were done, they were facing each other on stage, grinning widely as the crowd went wild. Barry dared a look towards them, blushing when his friends and family were standing and cheering. Both he and Santana did a quick bow before walking off stage. They were quickly engulfed in hugs and told how amazing they were out there. Barry can't remember the last time his cheeks were so sore from smiling so much. He was honestly having the time of his life, and he didn't ever want it to end.

The rest of the performances went smoothly. With New Directions singing songs such as Bad Romance by Lady Gaga, and Shout Out to My Ex by Little Mix. Warblers covering songs like Glad You Came by The Wanted, along with Whatcha Say by Jason Derulo. Along with beautiful solos like Rachel singing her song Get It Right, or another couple people singing Perfect by Ed Sheeran as a gorgeous duet. There was only Bad left to sing at the end of the show, but Barry's solo performance was next, and he was nervous. He was going to sing Jar of Hearts, and even though Hunter was banned (and then promptly chased out of town by a rather stern warning from Green Arrow), he still felt like it was something he needed to do. Of course, he had been on the fence about it, but there was no backing out of it now.

But before he could walk on stage, however, Santana walked out, a smirk planted firmly on her face. "Now, folks. There's been a slight change in our original line-up tonight. Before, I would've asked the amazingly talented Barry Allen to come out and sing the solo he's prepared, but we have something else up now. Don't worry, you're still going to hear him sing, but we have something for him first." She then turned and smiled over at him. "Come out here, twink, it's nothing bad."

Hesitantly, Barry made his way on stage. A chair suddenly appeared and he was pushed into it. He furrowed his eyebrows, momentarily looking into the crowd for Oliver, but frowning a little when he couldn't find his boyfriend. "Santana, what's going on?" he asked the girl softly.

"A surprise," she answered simply before both Warblers and New Directions alike came on stage.

Suddenly, the familiar chords of Marry You started playing, making Barry freeze in his seat. His eyes scanned the crowd once more as the two choirs started singing. The longer the song went on, the more Barry felt tears collect in his eyes, starting to slowly catch onto what was happening, and desperately hoping he wasn't wrong. Around him, the song continued, and everybody was smiling in his direction, knowing Barry already had a hunch as to what was going on. Even Kurt and Santana were watching the man fondly as he sat there in shock.

It didn't fully hit Barry until he saw Oliver walk on stage. Barry hadn't had the chance to see him get ready for the show, but he was glad he didn't because if he did, he wasn't sure he'd be able to leave the house. Oliver was dressed in one of the nicest shirts he owned. It was a maroon long sleeved button down, but the top couple buttons were left undone. He had it paired with a nice black jacket, and a pair of black slacks. He even pulled out his nice dress shoes and had them shined. Barry was in awe of how good he looked, even taking in the scent of Oliver's cologne from where he sat.

Barry had his hands over his mouth, tears running down quicker as the song ended and Oliver went down on one knee in front of Barry. Distantly, he could hear the crowd start cheering, but all Barry was able to focus on was Oliver, and the way he was smiling at Barry.

"Hi, baby," he said softly, resulting in a weak smile from Barry. "I know this is wildly new for me to make a romantic gesture this big, but you deserve it and more. I had to talk with everybody here on stage to get it to work, and I'm glad I did." Oliver took Barry's hands in his. Barry could barely see through his tears, but he blinked them away as best he could. "Barry, you're the best thing to ever happen to me. You're a ray of sunshine in my otherwise dark life. I'm so glad I met you, and I'm so glad I've fallen in love with such an amazing man." Letting go of Barry's hands, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. He opened it, revealing a silver band that had a small diamond on it. If possible, Barry started crying harder. "Barry Allen, will you marry me?"

"Yes!" Barry yelled before blushing hotly. "Oh my god, Oliver. Yes."

He laughed wetly as Oliver slipped the ring onto his left ring finger. Once more, the crowd was cheering loudly as Barry pulled his now fiancé into a kiss, smiling against the other man's lips. "I love you, Barry."

"I love you, too, Oliver," Barry replied, pulling away just enough to wipe away his tears. "I wasn't supposed to cry this much tonight."

Oliver chuckled softly, kissing Barry again before they pulled apart fully. "Blow them away with your song, baby."

"Okay," Barry said, wiping away the last of his tears. He noticed people had slowly meandered off the stage. To the few people he saw, Barry couldn't help but smile widely at as the chair was taken off stage and he was given a microphone. "Oh wow, okay. Not sure how I'll follow that now." Smiling down at his new engagement ring that sat on his finger, he felt something akin to pride filling his chest. Glancing offstage a moment, he finally made a decision he had been teetering on for awhile. "You know, I was going to come out and sing Jar of Hearts, as sort of a final goodbye to all the terrible things that happened while I was in school. But I just realised something. If I'm going to move on from what happened, I have to stop living in the past. So instead, I'm going to sing a song that I think fits with my relationship with the most amazing man I've ever met. And I know I said I wasn't going to sing anything too cheesy tonight, but certain things happened that have made me change my mind. I'm not going to focus on my ex anymore. Not when I've found someone immensely better to spend my life with."

Barry made his way over to the piano that had been brought onstage. He was going to use it to sing Jar of Hearts, but now he was going to use it to sing Thinking Out Loud by Ed Sheeran. He let his fingers dance over the keys, losing himself in the song as it progressed. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see lights swaying within the audience, making him smile. People were softly singing along, he could hear, but he didn't let himself listen to them. No, all he could focus on was powering himself into the song, and all the emotion he felt towards Oliver. All the love he felt for the older man. Barry knew he'd never quite be able to express just how much he felt for Oliver, but he was sure he had gotten fairly close while on stage. During the engagement, Oliver was all he saw. All he could focus on.

After he was finished singing, the piano was taken offstage, and the others filtered back on. He quickly pulled Santana into a tight hug, smiling as the girl just hugged him back. Barry wanted to hug so many others, but he had a hunch that not only was Santana was in charge of it, she was the person Oliver went to. Even though Oliver had witnessed firsthand how their relationship used to be, he also knew Barry fairly well. And he knew for a fact that Barry trusted her despite everything because deep down, the two of them were the same. Sweethearts who cared for their significant other (along with anybody they cared for) with all of their heart.

Normally, Barry would be fully into singing Bad. It was one of his favorite songs to sing. While he was into the song, everybody could tell part of his mind was currently elsewhere. More than likely on his fiancé, who was now watching the rest of the show from backstage. The minute the song ended, Barry was rushing towards Oliver, jumping into the archer's arms as soon as he was close enough. Oliver was laughing, Barry knew that much, but he could also feel as the man held him closer. Distantly, he could hear someone– probably Jeff or Nick– closing the show and thanking everybody for attending. Barry's focus was on the man whose arms he was wrapped in, however, and he didn't care much for the end of the show.

Barry was soon set down after the curtain closed. Person after person came up to hug him, and he hugged tighter to his friends and people he assumed help bring everything together.

"Congrats, meerkat," Santana said after Barry had hugged her again. "Everybody deserves their happy ending, even you. But you better not lose contact with everybody, though, because I will come down from New York and hurt you."

"I won't, promise," Barry said with a laugh. "Thank you, Santana, really."

"Of course." With one last smile, Santana disappeared into the crowd.

"C'mon, I know Iris is dying to see the ring," Oliver said, hand holding Barry's tightly as he led them through the thick crowds. Barry stuck close to Oliver, not wanting to lose him amongst all the people.

"Barry Allen!" a voice squealed loudly. Found her.

"Hey, Iris," Barry said, smiling wide. He let go of Oliver's hand to be pulled into a tight hug from his foster sister. "I do need to breathe."

Iris quickly let go, but she still had a wide smile on her face. Without asking, she grabbed Barry's left hand to stare at the ring. "Oh God, it's gorgeous." Felicity and Caitlin nodded in agreement, peering over Iris' shoulder. "Barry, that whole thing was so romantic. The song, and then your song. I don't know who was crying more, me or you."

"Congratulations, son," Joe said, patting Barry's shoulder.

"Thank you, Joe," Barry replied. He pried his hand from Iris before pulling Joe into a hug. A thought suddenly hit him, and he was pulling away. Looking between Joe and Oliver, his eyes narrowed a little. "Is that why Oliver stopped by the house the night I was meeting up the Warblers the first time?"

"Guilty," Oliver answered, resulting in yet another grin from the speedster.

"And I'm assuming all the times I just haven't seen you around, you were planning this. How were you able to do all of this without me finding out? Let alone getting them to agree to it?"

"Well it was fairly easy to get all the prep school boys to agree, but after I noticed you and the one Santana girl get closer, I asked her. I knew she'd get the others to agree, so. As for you not finding out, that was much easier than I thought. You're more oblivious than I originally gave you credit for. They'd usually meet up when you were at work, or after you already left practice for the night. Which surprised me because half the time they were practicing the song, you were doing your, uh, other job."

"This is why I'm not a detective," Barry stated, resulting in a laugh from the others. "Did anybody else know, or just Joe?"

"Just Joe. As much as I am fond of the others, the less people knew of the secret, the better. It was already one thing I had two choirs in the know," Oliver explained.

Nodding, Barry sighed softly. He then peered at the ring, humming contently. "How did you know my ring size?"

"Measured your finger when you were asleep. One of the perks of you being a heavy sleeper and me being an insomniac."

Barry let out a huff before he practically melted into Oliver's side as he was pulled closer to him. "I wish I was shorter so I could comfortably put my head on your shoulder," he complained to Oliver, scrunching his nose.

Oliver smiled and kissed the end of Barry's nose. "Yeah, but it's cute seeing you pout when you can't do just that."

"C'mon everyone. I don't know about any of you, but I'm starving, and we should have a celebratory dinner for Oliver finally settling down– I mean Barry and Oliver's engagement," Thea spoke up, grinning as her brother glared lightheartedly at her.

The others made their way towards their cars, but Barry couldn't help but linger a bit. His focus was on the stage, where the others were all interacting with one another, or members of the crowd. There was a surge of pride that filled him as he watched everyone, and remembered how much fun he had, and how much money he knew they raised.

"Barry? Baby, are you alright?"

"Oh, yeah," Barry said, shaking his head free from his thoughts. "Just thinking how proud I am of everyone for what happened tonight. I'm really happy I did this, and I got to see everyone again."

"I'm happy you're happy, Barry. Now c'mon, let's catch up with everyone." Oliver wrapped his arm around Barry's waist, leading them to his car. Their footsteps were dulled by the grass they walked on, and Barry couldn't help but watch Oliver.

He couldn't wait to spend the rest of his life with the man.