Chapter Text
“Hey Barry, everything alright?” Joe asked him when he saw Barry staring at the screen of his computer when he walked into Barry’s lab.
“What was that?” Barry asked, standing up and fixing files that didn’t look like needed some organizing. Joe’s eyebrows met in confusion and asked again, “You okay, son? You were staring into space.”
Barry rubbed the back of his neck and stammered, “Yeah. Yeah— I’m fine, just— just getting caught up in work.”
Joe slowly nodded but didn’t even believe Barry’s reason one bit, he raised the kid, he knows when something was up. And the fact that his computer monitor wasn't on, or that there weren't notes on his desk was already a give away. Knowing that Barry would not tell unless he was asked, Joe decided to open up a conversation without directly asking the problem.
“So, how’s Caitlin doing? Not really easy to move on from getting kidnapped, you know.” He casually asked referring to what Snart did. He sat on one of the stools jus beside Barry’s board.
Once again, Barry struggled with his answer, “C—Caitlin? She’s fine. I mean, yeah it’s hard but she’s holding up pretty good.”
“How about you, then? You holding up good?”
“Me? How did it become about me? What—?” Barry tried to fake confusion but when he saw the look Joe was giving him, with an eyebrow raised and a smirk going his way, he knew that whatever lies he make up it won’t work.
“Don’t give me that look.” He muttered, eyes bowing down while his hands fidgeted. He heard the metal of the stool’s feet coming in contact with the floor in a shriek-like sound and felt Joe’s hand on his shoulder.
“Caitlin is a nice woman, Barry." Joe squeezed clamped his shoulder and smiled at him, waiting for Barry to fess up to his old man.
Barry shook his head slowly and lifted his shoulder slightly, “It’s not like that, Joe. We’re just friends.”
Joe chuckled at him and began to step backwards out from the lab. With a meaningful look he said, “And I thought you were supposed to be fast."
Barry chuckled and shook his head at his adoptive father before his thoughts came back to someone he tried so hard not to think of.