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Barry threw back his head taking a heavily alcoholic shot. He pulled the black t-shirt from his chest to cool down. Summer in Missouri can be warm, despite him growing up in this city. Central City that is. He's currently in a run down bar, Saints and Sinners, where it all started. Two years ago he was on a stage singing for the first time since high school. He rolled his head on his shoulders, loosening up, prepping to go back on that stage. He sighed and stepped on the stage, its been years. All his old family friends look different, all the people he knew are with someone. He barely recognizes Cisco with a tall brunette. Caitlin with an even taller blonde guy. Iris with Eddie and Joe. He barely recognizes Joe. Joe barely calls but that's because Barry doesn't pick up very often. The music begins and Barry grabbed the microphone and stand.
"He like to frequent this club. down up on 36th." Some people whoop and cheer at the first line and Barry continues, "Pimps and things like to hang outside, and cuss and kicks." Cisco and Caitlin beam up at Barry as if he never left them behind for himself.
"Talking to no one in particular, they say 'The baddest I am tonight.'" More cheers and Barry smirks and closes his eyes continuing the lyrics.
"Four letter words will not be heard. Not up on this stage tonight" Barry looks over the crowds again and nods to a couple people staring at him. "All the poets and part time singers, always hang inside." He slowly sways to the music.
"Live music from a band plays a song called Soul Psychodelicide. The song's a year long, and had been play for months when he." The door opens letting in outside light, a man enters. Broad, and seemingly upset. He stops looking up to the stage seeing the tall lanky brunette, with ripped dark jeans and a black T-shirt mouthing words to a song.
"Walked into the place." Barry stared at the man as he wandered deeper into the Bar. Their eyes connected and Barry continued.
"No one seemed to care, and introverted this-is-it look on most their faces." Barry bit his lip sliding his hands up the microphone stand pulling the microphone off the stand. He crossed the stage in a slow saunter.
"Up on the mic repeating two words, over and over again. Was this man he never noticed before. He lost himself in the" Barry breaths in and looked to the band next to the stage. The stranger's eyes still trained on him. He turned ordering something to drink.
"Articulate manner in which he said them." Barry pressed the microphone closer to his lips.
"These two words, a little bit behind the beat. I mean just enough to turn you on." The man turned back with a brown beer bottle in his hand he leaned against the counter eyeing the singer from across the room.
"For everything he said the words another one of his doubts were gone." The crowd slowly lost interest as they normally do until the chorus. Iris spoke with Eddie and Joe left, probably on call. Cisco was talking excitedly to Caitlin and the two strangers. The only person staring was the man.
"Should he rap with him? Should he stand and stare?" Barry sashayed across the stage, moving in such a captivating way the man didn't know how to stop staring.
"No one else was watching him, he didn't seem to care." Barry looked to the floor and continued. "So over and over again he said those words until he could no more." Barry smirked more strutting down the steps onto the Bar floor within the crowd. Some people looked up happy to hear that Barry was not faking.
"He dragged him from the stage and." Barry sang passing through tables and parting groups of people.
"Together they ran through the back door." Barry kept his eyes on the stranger, more people were watching now. As Barry strut towards the stranger he sang louder. Not to a screeching point but enough to not need the microphone.
"In the ally over by the curb he said, 'Tell me," Barry exaggerated his walk until he was next to the man, "what's your name?" The man watched closely, to Barry's lips, to Barry's waist swaying with his walk, to Barry's hand sliding up his arm and over his shoulder.
"He only said the words again and it started to rain." Barry wrapped Hus hand over the back of the man's neck, finger nails sliding into the man's short shaved hair.
"Two words falling in between the drops and the moans of his condition." Barry brought the microphone to his lips again as he leaned closer to the man.
"Holding someone is truly believing there's" Barry sang and took a breath before continuing, "Joy in Repetition." The man leaned towards Barry, sliding a hand over Barry's waist.
"There's Joy in Repetition." Barry grinned, all eyes on them.
"There's Joy in Repetition." The man pulled Barry flush against him.
"There's Joy in Repetition" Barry could feel the man's hand press into his skin, through the black cotton of his shirt.
"There's Joy in Repetition." Barry winked and the man released him, pulling his hand back. Barry continued in a soft whisper.
"He said, love me. Love me." He gently panted. "What did he say?" Barry strutted back towards the stage leaving the stranger sipping at his beer, ignoring the other people.
"He say, love me. Love me." Barry climbed the stairs not yet facing the crowd again he put the microphone back on the stand.
"Joy, why don't you love me baby." Barry turned around again and the man was still staring along with the rest of the crowd.
"Joy, why can't you love me baby. Joy, come on and love me baby." Barry swayed with the music again.
"Joy in Repetition." Barry he sang softly and quickly.
"Alright! Joy in Repetition."
"Alright! Joy in Repetition." Barry sunk down to his knees pulling the microphone stand underneath him keep the microphone near his mouth.
"Alright! Joy in Repetition. Alright! Joy in Repetition." Barry panted nearing the end of the song. He still has eleven to go after this one.
"Alright, Joy, all my wishes add up to one. Love me, joy. Love me, joy. Love me, joy. Love me, joy. Joy in repetition." Barry stood up again. Leaving the microphone stand on the ground. He finished the song.
" Joy, I'd like to go way up high and say, Love me, joy. I'll say Love me, joy. Joy, joy in repetition, joy in repetition. There's joy in repetition." Barry trailed off and the crowd went nuts. Cheering and clapping rung his ears. The man smirked at Barry from a bar stool. Barry turned and sauntered backstage.
He clicked away at his phone, when he heard a voice break through silence.
"You have a deliciously perfect voice there." Barry turned and saw the man, he smiled.
"Len." The man said holding out his hand. Barry took hold gently shaking but not letting go.
"Barry. And you have a deliciously perfect smile." Barry said slowly letting go of Len's hand.
"I wouldn't mind inviting you and your perfect voice to a date, tomorrow."
"I wouldn't mind accepting a date with you and your perfect smile." Barry said leaning closer to the stranger. Len let his hand rest on Barry's cheek gently enforcing a chaste kiss. Barry returned the kiss letting his eyes fall shut.
---
Two months later.
---
Barry lay on the couch, in the small apartment when Len enters with a smile setting the bag of groceries on the counter.
"Barry, babe, honey, sweetie, sugar." Len said in mock sweet voice. Barry continued playing on his phone.
"Yes? Light of my life?"
"Why can't you just get a job one of these days? I know staying here, with me means you can't keep traveling to run down bars and singing. But please?" Len asked and Barry sighed and nodded.
"Fine. But only because you're going to hand me those oatmeal cookies you just bought." Barry said holding up his hand still not looking away from his phone. Len looked at the bags, the cookies not even visible if Barry did look up from the bag.
"How did you?"
"When you ask me things you buy oatmeal cookies because you think they are happy, when you're horny you buy chocolate cookies because you think chocolate is sexy. When you want me to do or remember something you buy snickerdoodles." Barry said the box getting dropped into his hand.
"You have me all figured out don't you?" Len asked challengingly crossing his arms.
"What if I made you cookies?"
"You never make me cookies." Barry said sitting up looking at Len.
"Then I'm making you cookies." Len took the cookies back from Barry.
Almost an hour later a plate of cookies was set on Barry's lap.
"Now I know when you make me cookies. It means." Barry leaned forward and kissed Len. "You love me." Barry kissed him again.
---
Two years later
---
Barry sighed closing the door after a long night at work. Now a CSI forensic scientist. He smiled the smell of dinner filling his nostrils instantly. The aroma instantly calmed him. Len smiled at hi boyfriend.
"Len, you made dinner. And waited for me to finish at work." Barry hugged Len and kissed him looking to the finely set up table.
"Of course I did." Len said sitting Barry at the table. They at sharing moments of their day. When a timer dinged near the end of dinner. Len stood up with a smile.
"I know that scent, you made me cookies." Barry grinned and clapped excitedly. Len set the cookies on the table and Barry happily took one and bit into it.
"I love you Len."
"I love you too, Barry. But that's why I have something to say." Barry sat up and listened when Len's tone turned serious.
"Well I've been scared to say this for a while. But tonight is the night." Len grabbed Barry's hands. A second later Len was on his knees with a small plastic package in his hands. Easily recognizable as a fortune cookie.
"A fortune cookie?" Len nodded as Barry took it. Unsure what a fortune cookie should mean. He opened the package dropping the light plastic onto the table.
Gentle breaking the sugary cookie seeing the paper. He looks at the paper and reads the fortune out loud.
"Sometimes looking on the other side is lucky." Barry flips the paper to the learn Chinese side and read out loud again.
" Jiāng nǐ hé nǐ de wánměi de shēngyīn hé wǒ jiéhūn." Barry looked at it for a second confused, no translation. When he heard Len speak.
"Will you and your perfect voice Marry Me?" Barry gasped looking to Len seeing him with the ring box in his hand. Barry through his arms around Len kissing him.
"Yes! Yes! A million times yes. I love you Len." Barry kissed Len once before he looked to Len and the wedding band in the velvet box. Len slid the ring onto Barry's finger then kissing his knuckle.
"I love you to the end of the earth and back." Len said and then the song started. At first it confused Barry but he quickly caught on.
"Talking to no one in particular." Rung over the speakers, and Barry stood up taking Len with him and wrapping his arms around Len's neck resting his head on Len's chest. Len's hand wrap tightly around Barry's waist as they sway slower than the music.
"They say the baddest I am tonight." Barry sang along and Len smiled lovingly to Barry.
"For letter words will not be heard up on this stage tonight." Len joins in quietly.
"All the poets and part time singers always hang inside." They continue swaying and singing the lyrics to the first song they danced to. No intentions of an actual relationship from that first date Len asked Barry on.