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Hal bit into his burger and tried not to think about how impressively he blew it at Ferris this afternoon. Literally. He felt bad about crashing the plane, or drone, he should say. Almost as bad as his bruised ego. Where did those kids get off calling him old? Put them in jets, and he’d be doing flips in the air before they figured out how to get off the ground.
But he hated it when Carol looked at him like that. Like she was disappointed but not surprised. Anyone else would be fired. Hal was just demoted to the mailroom. Why did they even have a mailroom? Surely they had drones to sort and deliver the mail?
Hal sighed. Bitter was a bad look on him. He was already sick of himself, and he’d only been grounded for a handful of weeks. He wondered about the other Green Lanterns from 2814. It was needlessly cruel of the United Planets to cut off their communication channels, but no one’d asked Hal for his opinion on the ruling. Not that it stopped him from giving it. Loudly.
It was part of why he’d been so intense when he saw Carol. That, and he missed her. At least Carol isn’t entirely through with him. She paid him upfront for his next two weeks of work so he could afford to eat out instead of pretending to stomach whatever Kilowog would cook.
“It’ll do you good, Jordan,” he’d say while mixing goop that looked suspiciously like potatoes, bugs, and dirt. “It’s a classic on Bolovax Vik. Good for the soul.”
God knew he needed help in that department.
Hal shook his head as if the motion would expel the thoughts from his mind. Get it together, Jordan, he thought. All this self-pity was making him nauseous. That or the burger. He stared at the neon sign on the wall with the restaurant’s name - High Tide.
It was a new restaurant on the side of the PCH overlooking the ocean, not far from where Hal’d parked his trailer. It sat in the bones of Reel Inn Coast, whose owners died in the Coast City attack. The shack sat deserted for years before it was bought a few months back. It’d only recently opened as one of those cafe/event spaces/gift shop hybrids. They even sold pot.
Hal liked that the new owners kept the restaurant’s original interior. Reel Inn Coast was a staple for decades before it shut down. Natural wood walls with linoleum flooring and an ordering window where you can look into the kitchen. They’d even hung up pictures of the restaurant in its prime, along with the owners and former regulars. There was a haunting photograph of the Reel Inn Coast standing above the hole where Coast City stood.
Eating burgers always reminded him of Barry, and Hal abruptly decided to visit him. It’d been a few weeks since they’d last seen each other and even longer since they’d had a conversation. He should bring him food! But maybe not from here.
And Kilowog is right about a lot, but he was wrong about one thing - Hal loved to complain. And Barry was a great listener.
He pulled out his wallet and left $40 on the counter to cover his meal. His eyes nearly fell out of his head when he saw the price of the burger and fries (drink not included!), but he supposed he’d been gone for a long time.
“Do you want change for this?” the waitress called after him as he headed towards the door. She was young, pretty, and looked exhausted. Hal spent most of his meal watching her run the establishment alone.
“No ma’am,” he said. “Have a good night.”
The waitress looked shocked but recovered quickly, beaming at him. “You too, Sir!” she called.
“It’s Hal,” he said easily. He shot her his best smile because he could, and he swore he saw her blush.
⚡⚡⚡⚡⚡
Hal phased into Barry’s living room. The apartment was dark, except for the light peeking out from underneath Barry’s office door. Just as Hal sat the bags of food on the kitchen counter, a burst of wind announced Barry’s arrival.
“Most people use the door,” Barry sighed in lieu of a greeting. There was no malice behind it. He smiled tiredly at Hal in his sweatpants and t-shirt, lopsided and bright. Hal took in the shadows under his eyes, the way his shoulders sat around his ears. He was glad he opted for four of the XXL meals instead of their usual three.
“I hope you’d know by now that I’m not most people,” Hal said.
Barry chuckled and dug into the bags of Big Belly Burger. “I suppose so. Do you want any of this?”
Hal thought he saw a light blush coloring Barry’s face, but it could be a trick of the light. His uniform was the brightest thing in the room. “Nah, man, that’s all you.” Hal moved to turn on the overhead light before powering down his suit.
Barry’s apartment was modern and much more hip than he was, undoubtedly Iris’ doing. The only part of the apartment that screamed Barry Allen lives here was the gaudy collection of photos hanging between the kitchen and the living room. Hal spent countless sleepless nights staring at it whenever he crashed on Barry’s (Iris’) couch between deployments.
“So what’s the occasion? Did y’lose a bet I forgot about?” Barry asked around a double cheeseburger.
“I was in the area, decided to drop by and see my best friend,” Hal told Barry’s picture wall. In the center of the collection was a photo of Barry and Iris on top of Granite Peak.
“Right,” Barry said. He moved to turn on the coffee machine. “Seems like it’s going to be a long night,” he said to Hal over his shoulder. Hal smiled, really smiled. He couldn’t remember the last time he genuinely smiled. And he didn’t know what to think about the fact that it was apparently out of character for him to stop by just to say hello. He stared at a photo of a young Iris and Wally from Iris’ punk phase.
“What are you working on anyway?” he asked. Hal felt like an ass complaining about his problems, which were all his fault, if Barry was breaking his back solving some case about a child murderer.
“There was a homicide near the university,” Barry said. He rubbed his cheek absentmindedly, a tell that he was stressed or thinking too hard. “It’s been shut, but I know there’s more going on.” He stared into space for a second longer before turning his attention back to Hal.
“But I did everything I could do for tonight. I was working myself in circles when you came,” Barry grinned at him again, more tired than before.
Hal wandered to the cupboard where they kept the mugs and pulled out the two he secretly thought of as theirs. The least he could do was make the coffee - and hot chocolate for Barry. Hal shooed him towards the table to finish eating.
“I quit the Corps,” he said casually.
“You what?”
Hal waves him off. “It’s not a big deal. Bureaucracy bullshit.” He won’t tell Barry the whole story unless he has to.
“They let you keep your ring?”
Hal turned around from the stove to face him, beaming. “Oh, this?” he says, feigning nonchalance. He held up his right fist, letting his ring shine in the dull light of the kitchen. “Made it myself.”
“What?”
“Pulled it from an old manhunter. Light work, really.”
Barry couldn’t hold back a laugh at his antics. “You created your own ring? I don’t even know why I’m surprised. You’re always doing something extraordinary.”
Hal preened under Barry’s praise. There’s a small group of people whose opinions he gave a damn about, and Barry topped it. Barry was too busy thinking to notice.
“I mean, that’s fascinating. Does it work like every other ring?” he asked.
“Works better than before,” Hal said brightly. He mixed the chocolate powder into the saucepan on the stove. There was a comfortable silence before Barry spoke up.
“So you’ll be on Earth more often?”
“I am grounded for the foreseeable future,” Hal confirmed.
“That’s good,” Barry says, echoing a sentiment Hal had given him months prior. The only problem was that Hal did not do well on Earth for extended periods. He felt a familiar, unsettling itch crawling up his body.
“Just try not to…” Barry started, interrupting his thought.
“Try not to…?” Hal turned around to face him fully. Barry had his arms crossed, his fingers blurring as they tapped his arm faster than Hal’s eyes could track.
“I worry that… especially with the league disbanded… just ask for help before you get in over your head,” Barry fumbled through the sentence. “In and out of uniform.”
Hal’s stomach fluttered watching him. He was fluent enough in Barry-code to understand the sentiment behind his words. “You worry too much. I’m here now, aren’t I?” He gave him a reassuring smile. “I am happy to be back on Earth,” he lied. “Gives us time to catch up.”
“I’d like that,” Barry said lightly. Hal’s heart skipped a beat at the look on his face. He leaned back and nearly burned himself on the pot. Right.
“Didja hear Ferris is going all in on drones?” Hal told the saucepan. He let his muscle memory take over preparing the drinks.
“No, I must have missed that,” Barry said. “What does that mean for you?”
“You are looking at Ferris Aircraft’s newest mailroom assistant.”
“Sorting mail? You’re pulling my leg,” Barry sounded incredulous. “Do I even want to know what you did to deserve that?”
“Do you have that little faith in me?”
“I’m drawing conclusions based on past experiences,” Barry said wryly.
Hal grinned. “They don’t make the drones as sturdy as the fighter jets,” he said.
“Oh boy,” Barry said. He looked thoughtful as Hal set the mug in front of him and settled into the chair across the table. “How’s Carol?”
“Carol’s Carol,” Hal said.
Barry hummed and sipped his hot chocolate. He scooted the basket of fries he saved for Hal toward him, then stared at Hal while he ate, fidgeting. Just when Hal started feeling like one of his case files, Barry spoke. “Y’know, with your qualifications, you could be designing and building drones for Ferris.”
Hal hadn’t thought about that. It’d been years since he’d done any engineering, outside of it being an occasional hobby.
“That’s not what I want,” Hal said. He didn’t know it was true until he said it.
“What do you want?”
Hal paused. When was the last time someone asked him what he wanted? Barry watched him with those fucking eyes. Deep and big and blue, too weary to be innocent, but something close.
“I want to fly, really fly, not sit in a building behind a screen,” Hal said. “I want things to work out with Carol.”
Barry hummed thoughtfully and sipped his hot chocolate. “What happened to moving forward?”
“Change of plans,” Hal said. “I’m going retro. I find it suits me.”
“Huh,” Barry said. He sipped his hot chocolate. “Next you’ll tell me you’re taking a road trip.”
Hal smirked and shook his head. “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”
Barry yawned so hard his jaw cracked. “Well, you’re always welcome here,” he said. He looked like he might say more, but simply gave Hal a tired smile. He should head out soon; let him sleep.
“Thanks, Bear,” Hal said. “Where’s Iris anyway?”
“On assignment. Hey!” Barry said suddenly. “I can’t believe I haven’t told you! We’re engaged!”
Hal felt like he’d been hit with a bucket of ice water. “Oh, holy shit! Congratulations, man!”
Barry’s smile grew a bit strained around his eyes. He looked down, suddenly shy.
“When’d that happen? I didn’t know you were planning to ask!” Hal said.
Barry cleared his throat and sipped his hot chocolate. “I wasn’t. Iris asked me. A few weeks back,” Barry said, his eyes flitting from the table to his mug to Hal. “Had a ring picked out and everything.”
“Oh!” Hal said smartly. The silence stretched its legs before Hal said, “So, do you take her last name now?”
Barry barked out a laugh. “You know, I would,” he said a bit dreamily. “But no, we’re hyphenating. Ass.” At least Barry was smiling again.
“When’s the wedding?” fell out of Hal’s mouth. Barry’s eyes drifted down to the table. “We haven’t picked a date yet,” he said. “But Iris likes the spring.”
Hal felt a heaviness in his stomach that was separate from his own worrying feelings. “C’mon, talk to me, man. What is it?”
Barry’s face shuddered. He stared at the table for a few seconds before looking at Hal. His face was carefully blank. “It’s nothing. I’m just tired.”
The mood soured, but Hal trucked on. He knew how to outmaneuver defense systems, though it’s rare for him to flex this muscle with Barry. “Nothing wrong with having cold feet, Bear,” he said cooly.
Barry heaved a sigh and rubbed at his face. “I’m sorry. I’m maybe not…” he paused and looked at Hal again. “I would do anything for Iris,” he started. Hal’s heart clenched in his chest as he nodded.
“This is important to her. It’s the least I could do considering…” he let his sentence trail off. “And we love each other, and it’s the natural next step,” he finished.
“You don’t have to convince me,” Hal said with a chuckle. Maybe there was nothing that could salvage the mood. “You know me, man, if you like it, I love it.” Hal reached across the table to clap a hand on his back. “And if you ever need it, my trailer has a bunk bed.”
Barry collapsed into giggles across from him, a testament to how tired he was. Hal grinned and shook his shoulder before letting go and standing up. “Or we could go camping,” Hal said. He cringed. Camping brought up memories he’d rather not engage with. Barry didn’t even like camping. This whole visit went from affable to odd and perverse in an instant. It didn’t sit right in Hal’s chest. Barry had to feel it, too. He drained his coffee and set the mug into the sink.
“Let’s hope for both of us that I won’t have to take you up on that offer,” Barry said. At least he looked less tense than he did earlier. Hal powered up his ring.
“Who’s your best man?” he asked, just to twist the knife.
“Wally,” Barry answered. “I’ll need you to be a groomsman,” he said.
“Lemme guess, me and Bruce?” Hal said, raising his eyebrows. “Sounds like a riot.”
“You’ll have to learn to get along for a few hours,” Barry said. “Knowing him, he’ll only be there for the vows.”
“Glad to hear it!” Hal said. He gave a lazy salute before phasing through the wall of Barry’s apartment and starting the trek back to Coast.