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Zoom had taken something very important from Barry, something that allowed him to become a hero; his speed. However, the monster didn't stop there. Oh no, no, no. It seems he wants Barry to suffer. Hell, the psychopathic criminal probably gets off on the thrill of seeing a superhero nearly dead.
The silver clad speedster overpowered the scarlet speedster, taking poor Barry's underestimation of him as a challenge. Zoom- or Hunter Zolomon as he was known on Earth 2 to a select few- had beaten the brunette to a bloody pulp, dangling Barry's life in front of his face.
His speed was the only thing Zoom took from Barry. Zoom took Barry's dignity, his pride, and his self confidence. However, the one thing that struck Barry like a ton of bricks, was that he could not, for the life of him, move his legs after his first encounter with Zoom.
Doubt filled every corner of Barry's mind. How was he supposed to save the people of Central City? How was he supposed to protect his team? Then, after sitting in silence for a few hours, Barry was reminded of something very important when a glint appeared on the wall.
He looked down the elegant engagement ring on his ring finger. Oh God, how was he supposed walk down the aisle in this condition? Would Oliver even want you like this? A small part of his brain asked. Which great pain, Barry realized that his inner voice was right. Would Oliver still want him like this?
So here he was, sitting on the couch in he and Oliver's shared apartment in Starling City, the exact thought bouncing around his head like a child who on a candy and caffeine rush.
Oliver was in the kitchen, making him some tea. It's not that Barry doesn't love to cook- and he does- but he can't exactly move around the kitchen with much accuracy anymore.
After a few silent moment ticking by, Barry broke the silence, voicing his inner turmoil.
"Oliver, I don't know why you're still with me," Barry said once they were alone in their living room, sitting on the couch with a blanket over his immobile legs. Oliver turned toward him with a confused expression taking over his features. He stalked over to the younger man and crouched in front of the speedster, taking his hands into his worn down, larger ones.
"Barry, look at me," Oliver whispered, caressing the gentle skin as if it was the most fragile thing on this Earth- which could just be true in his exact moment. Barry stared at the ground, not meeting the vigilante's eyes. Oliver sighed and gently lifted Barry's chin so that those enchanting green eyes stared right into his own.
"Oliver..." Barry started, eyes drifting down to the engagement ring Oliver gave to him. The emerald archer's mind finally caught up to him, the realization hitting him harder than a ton on bricks- which mind you, is fairly painful. Oliver quickly cupped Barry's face and leaned in.
"Barry Allen, don't you dare finish that sentence with 'maybe you should end this.'" Oliver's voice was calm and gentle, like he was speaking to a scared animal. However, the undertone was cut and clear, sealing through the calm as if to warn the younger man seated on his couch that if he continued, then a scolding was imminent.
"It's true," the misty eyed man whispered in the softest voice he could manage, his voice sounding defeated and filled with melancholy. Oliver cupped the man's cheeks, rubbing his thumb onto the unblemished skin, thinking to himself how this man could have such self depreciation. This man had brought him out of the green archer’s greatest flunks. The brunette sitting in front of him had eluded and outwitted his mental walls, finding his way into his heart. Barry became the light in his eternal darkness. The one thing keeping him from turning into a monster like Damian Darkh was sitting in front of him, looking so broken and deflated.
This man was his everything, and the last thing he was going to do was let him fall into despair over a villain destroying his life simply for the brunette's speed.
"Barry," Oliver whispered, turning the man's head so that his mixed peridot eyes were staring into his. "I don't care if you never walk again," Oliver began, moving one of his hands down to gasp one of Barry's. "I didn't get down on one because you have super speed. I did that because I love you, not your speed."
Barry opened his mouth to reply, but Oliver cut him off quickly.
"Barry, you have no idea how much I love you. I wouldn't have proposed if I didn't," Oliver continued, dividing his concentration between talking and comforting his fiancée. "It doesn't matter to me that you can't walk. All that matters is that you made it out alive, Barry."
The aforementioned speedster looked at his fiancée with a melancholy expression on his face. Oliver cupped Barry's cheeks and leaned in, connecting their lips.
"I promise you, Barry Allen, that when you need me, I'll be there," Oliver whispered, his eyes remaining closed. Barry nodded slightly and kissed Oliver again.
~•~
When Barry began to get the feeling back into his legs, Oliver was there to hold his hand and help him walk slowly. The emerald archer was there when Barry fell, fulfilling his promise to catch the speedster. He was there through every process of getting Barry walking again, and when Barry could properly use his legs again, the first thing he did was run into Oliver Queen's arms and let the older hug him tightly and spin him around. Barry could finally walk down that aisle and so he did.