Hurricane {Barry Allen} [2]

Atlantis // Seafret

The next three weeks were hectic and filled with large flurries of overwhelming emotions. No one really knew how to handle Mackenzie. She was different since they had last seen her. And Mackenzie had lost her ability to identify 'normal', meaning that she was slowly losing herself in the midst of the chaos surrounding Barry's condition and the emotional and metal state of her former friends. Mack spent most of her time during the next three weeks doing non-stop research and testing. She stopped once, halfway into the first week, to make a call.

<<<After A Week Back In Central City>>>

"Who the hell is this?" Oliver sounded as intimidating as ever when he picked up the phone.

The exchange reminded her of the first time she had called Oliver after she had woken up from her coma. He had come to pick her up in his private jet shortly afterwards.

"God... you're not gonna believe me, are you?" She sighed, thinking it over.

She was utterly exhausted and thoroughly drained from a days-worth of inconclusive research and testing. There was no way she had energy to argue with Oliver.

"How do you have Mackenzie's number? Do you think this is a joke??" He sounded so angry.

"No Queenie, it's me" She sighed

"Whoever this is-"

"Ask me a question. Anything" Mack offered.

Silence.

She groaned.

"Oliver, come on!" Mack sighed.

"I'll be at S.T.A.R Labs. If you are Kenzie, you'll know when" He mumbled

"Six it is" Mack replied as he hung up.

"Oliver?" Caitlin's voice asked. Mack turned around to find Caitlin giving her a small smile. She was leaning on a desk, arms folded, head tilted in a motherly fashion she seemed to have adopted while Mack had been gone.

"Yeah" Mack sighed, rubbing her face with one hand as she leaned against her own desk, facing her best friend.

"He might not exactly be... 'okay', Mack" Caitlin struggled with her words, frowning at the floor.

"Is anyone? It feels like the whole fucking world is collapsing" Mack huffed and rolled her eyes.

"Well... for some of us it sure felt like it" Caitlin defended softly.

"God, right... sorry. I know that I put you guys through hell I just-" But she was cut off by Caitlin's motherly tone.

"It's not your fault Mack. We all would've done the same thing in your shoes" Caitlin walked over and placed a hand on her friend's shoulder in a comforting manor.

She heard Caitlin say the words, but they both knew they were false.

Mack had taken the easy, no-strings-attached route because that was just who she was. She could've come back home. She could've called. She could've fought. But she didn't. And now Barry was dying.

"I'm just not solving this fast enough!" Mack groaned, letting her head fall back as she stared at the bland gray ceiling, filling her head with other worries.

"We wouldn't have anything to solve if you would have called us" Cisco said from the doorway, entering the conversation.

"And said what? Heyo, some-fucking-how I'm back from the dead because Wells kidnapped and did an unconsented surgery on me! But don't worry I'm a perfectly harmless human now, chilling in Australia! What's new with you?" Mack scoffed jokingly, but Cisco wasn't in a joking mood.