Arrowverse One Shots

WestAllen - A Scream in the Night Pt 2

As i was writing the last part I began to wonder what would happen with the roles reversed, so here we go...

Barry had always been somewhat of an insomniac even before he had powers. As teenagers Iris would climb in the window after a night out and find him still awake, book in hand. The same was true even now, it seemed like nighttime was when he reached peak nerdiness. However there were also nights where Barry's fast feet caught up to him, and he would crash the second he got home. Iris was particularly fond of those nights because she loved how peaceful he looked when he slept. This was one of those nights.

Iris paced around the bathroom brushing her teeth and tying up her hair, giggling at the sound of Barry's muffled snores. As she finished getting ready for bed, Iris realized Barry's cute snores had turned into ragged breaths. Something was wrong. As she made her way to the doorway, she saw her husband straining against the sheets as if they were holding him back from something. Suddenly Barry let out a blood-curdling yell as he shot up in bed, his eyes now wide open with terror.

"Babe," Iris cried as she rushed towards him.

"Iris?" He panted.

"Yeah, yeah it's me. I'm here," she assured him, taking his face in her hands as he tried to calm down. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he said quickly. "Yeah, it was just a nightmare. I'm fine."

"Babe you're shaking," she whispered, sitting down on the bed next to him and pulling him towards her. Barry tried to keep a straight face, but Iris could see he was visibly still trying to catch his breath. "Hey, it's okay. You can tell me."

Barry took another breath. "I've been having those dreams again," he said finally. "Like the ones I had about you and Savitar."

"You mean of me dying," she said quietly. Barry just nodded and Iris' heart sank. He tried so hard to be brave for her, sometimes she didn't realize just how much he was hurting. "Babe," she whispered. "You know you don't have to hide these things from me."

Barry shook his head. "I just don't want to hurt you. I should be able to handle it."

"Barry, nightmares about losing someone you love is enough to rattle anyone. Even the Flash, you don't have to be brave for me." As those words left her mouth it was as if Barry finally processed the events of his dream, and his face broke.

"I'm sorry," his voice cracked, as tears began to swell from his eyes.

"Hey, hey," Iris said softly, "I've got you." She let his body slump over so that his head rested in her lap, as Barry cried quietly. "I'm right here," she repeated and felt his arms wrap around her waist. They stayed in that position for a while, Iris quietly stroking his head until Barry's tears slowed. When he finally raised his eyes to meet hers they were red and swollen, windows to the years of darkness and pain he'd been witness to.

"I don't know what I'd do if I lost you," he said quietly.

"I'm not going anywhere," she smiled and placed a gentle hand on his cheek as she gazed into his eyes. He was so strong and took care of so many people, but sometimes it felt as though not enough people took care of him. "I love you, Barry Allen." She slowly leaned forward until her lips were pressed against his. Barry wrapped one arm around her waist and leaned into the kiss, and in that moment all seemed right in the world once more.