Bad Idea

Broken Nose

He hated how his powers worked.

Wally dashed over to the kitchen sink and turned the faucet on. Then he pulled out a dish cloth and damped it under the stream before turning the faucet off again. After wringing out most of the water, he gently applied it to his nose. It still stung, but at least he wasn't dripping blood on the floor.

Recognize Artemis B06.

And here comes Miss Ice Queen.

"Baywatch."

"Speedy Wannabe."

"Wow." Artemis said sarcastically. "That almost sounded like an insult."

Wally chuckled. "So, how's your uncle handling you as his sidekick? Aside from comparing you to Spee – I mean, Red Arrow, that is."

Artemis shrugged. "You know, shooting some bad guys. Jumping across buildings. Shooting some more bad guys and hoping that they don't die from blood loss."

Now they both laugh out loud. They weren't friends, but Wally realized that he and Artemis always had a fun time ribbing each other. It took the initial sting of Roy not being on the Team away. Just as long as no one assumed they were a couple...

Then again, she is kind of hot...

"Is that an arrow in your pants or are you just happy to see me?" Artemis smirked.

CRAP! He forgot about the energy bar in his pocket. It must have shifted while he was running again!

"No! No, no, Artemis, it's really not what it looks like." Wally held up his hands in a sign of good will.

"Funny." Artemis replied dryly. "Looks to me like you're having a-"

"Problem keeping my energy bars in one place." Wally interjected, fishing the snack out of his pocket to prove it.

Artemis seemed satisfied – good – until...

"Wally, what happened to your nose?"

Wally blinked, the arm holding the wet cloth limping to his side. The once snow-white cloth was now showing a large red stain.

"Nothing to worry about, Wannabe." He unwrapped his energy bar and began chewing the snack slowly. His voice was muffled as he spoke. "Just ran into a wall again. Still not vibrating through."

"Uh huh." Artemis frowned. Her eyes started looking softer than usual. The metaphorical steel in her eyes was replaced with...aw to hell with it, Wally sucked at English and doing an inner monologue about what Artemis' eyes looked like wasn't going to change that. Ever.

Great. He was getting one of those looks again. The ones that almost lead to Child Services being called and people automatically assuming the worst.

"I'm serious, I just ran into a wall to try vibrating through it like the Flash does." Wally insisted. "It's not one of those 'I fell down the stairs' excuses."

"Wally, you don't need to lie about it. We're here for you. You can talk to me about it."

"You mean you tried running into a wall on purpose?" The joke only made Artemis frown deeper. She opened her mouth to speak again when the intercom echoed in the Cave.

Recognize Miss Martian B05.

Oooh. Megalicious was here. Maybe the presence of another female would distract Artemis and hopefully stop her poor attempts at detective work. That was Robin's job.

"M'gann, how was school?" Wally dashed over to the green Martian, trying not to think about how hot his cheeks were becoming.

M'gann smiled at him for a few seconds until she looked directly at his face. And probably noticed the blood if her frown was any indication otherwise.