The Flash: One-Shots: I'll Always Come Running Home To You

Lighting Your Way

Dedicated to @CamrynKissel, NoraXSWest-AllenFam, and @Bloodypunkk for their amazing support of my Arrowverse work! I truly couldn't do this without any of you :)

Author's Notes: Hi, everyone! Hope you all are having a great day and thank you for reading this next oneshot! I appreciate your support!

This particular oneshot's storyline is seeing an inner look at what a parent (in this case, Iris and especially, Barry) feels when they have to leave their kids, Nora and Bart, for a day for a Team Flash mission. I honestly felt like it was just an interesting concept to get to examine those feelings of doubt, longing, and overall anxiety that parents feel leaving their children alone for the first time in general, but I personally think it adds an extra layer of connection for the readers because you are getting to see it all from Barry's perspective, feeling all of his mixed emotions, too.

Anyways, love you all and thank you again for reading :)

"Wow, I really thought we packed light this time around," thought Barry, frustratedly as he pressed his hands against an old leather brown suitcase's top with as much strength as he possibly could (without using super-speed, of course, because I'm guaranteed that would blow the hinges right off of this thing).

But despite his very best efforts, nothing seemed to be happening, aside from the speedster losing his breath and the occasional piece of clothing randomly fluttering onto the floor.

"Ugh," Barry sighed in frustration as he dropped down on their yellow-comforter covered mattress, the soles of his blue sneakers hitting against the ground with just as much force as he'd been trying to stuff the suitcase closed with.

Why can't I just get this thing done already?

But deep down, he knew that his and Iris' overstuffed luggage was far from where his actual worries lie.

This mission that she and I are going on today, it's dangerous. And yeah, of course it's in the typical Team Flash-style of danger, but now everything's different. Now, we have two wonderfully amazing kids that need us to come back. That we want to come back to. And it just feels, feels impossible to be leaving them, no matter what the reason is.

His gaze seemed to drift around the quaint room, examining all of the objects which stood casually upon their various pieces of wooden furniture. A gentle light from the early morning sun shined in through their ivory-curtains that swayed ever so gracefully in the AC's breeze. A small but organized polished chestnut desk was positioned in the far right hand side of the room, CCC Media's biggest accomplishments framed elegantly for everyone to see.

She's worked so hard for those awards and she deserves all the praise they can give her and more. Though, that's what I always thought she's always deserved.

But his attention was particularly grabbed by a single silver-framed photograph that casually sat on top of the couple's three-draw dresser, four smiling faces happily looking back at him.

In the photo, he was dressed in a navy blue and forest green flannel shirt paired with worn-out jeans, his spiky brunette hair tousled messily on top of his head, leading even more credence to the busy day he'd previously had. To the right of him stood Iris who was outfitted in a nice coral orange blouse paired with slick black jeans that exactly mirrored the small strands of curly black hair that sprouted energetically from their cute baby boy's head, his body fully supported in her caring arms. Lastly, to his left vibrantly beamed a little girl, her short brunette hair perfectly matching the craziness of her father's, though she was dressed in a bright purple jacket and blue skirt that resembled her mother's style much more. Her brown eyes seemed to pierce through Barry's chest, bringing an unrequited love that could only be described as the tenderness of his Sweet Nora's heart.