What Brings Us Together (A Ralph Dibny/ The Flash Fan-Fiction)

Chapter Twenty-Three: Get Dressed, Dibny

The next morning came, and I couldn't stop thinking about yesterday. I had a great time with Ralph over lunch. The food was amazing and he made me laugh and we talked about things he could potentially do with his powers, for example, wanting to see if turning his finger into a key would unlock a door. I told him to keep me posted about that one.

"Security guard found him here this morning." I jumped as Joe appeared next to me. I had zoned out and completely forgotten I was at a crime scene. Joe furrowed his eyebrows.

"You ok?" Barry asked, looking up at me from beside the body. I nodded.

"Yeah. Sorry, I just...zoned out I guess." I can't possibly tell them that I was zoned out think about Ralph. They wouldn't understand. Heck, I don't understand. The man, just yesterday, spouted off two women's measurements just by looking at them, I should be disgusted.

But I'm not. I'm just the opposite actually. I think I'm starting to...like him? Is that possible?

"They haven't ID'd him yet. His personal effects are scattered everywhere, so we didn't find his wallet. But we may find it when we find the rest of his briefcase...and his missing hand." Joe lead us over to a piece of a metal briefcase, including the handle, which had a pair of handcuffs attached to it.

"Based on the avulsion and the claw marks, this would have to be a large predatory animal, which...shouldn't surprise me at this point, but it kind of does." I stated.

"But whatever it was would have to have four-inch canines, a bite force of five thousand P.S.I. and weigh over a ton. That animal doesn't exist." I looked over Joe's shoulder, spotting a concrete jaguar sculpture.

"But...if it did, I imagine it would look something like that." I pointed behind him and they turned, looking at it.

"You don't think..."

"Do you remember back in the day when we wouldn't calmly consider a stone statue our prime suspect?" Barry asked.

"No, I actually don't." I held out my hand and Barry put a swab in it, which I ran through the statue's mouth. There was blood on the end of it.

"Would you look at that...blood."

"Hmm."

~~~

We wrapped up the crime scene, and Barry and I got ready to head over to STAR Labs to fill the team in on what we'd found.

"So...what happened earlier?" Barry asked, closing his CSI case.

"What do you mean?" I questioned.

"I've known you for a long time, Laura. I know what you look like when you're distracted by something...or someone." I raised my eyebrows.

"I have no clue what you could possibly be insinuating."

"So you weren't zoned out earlier thinking about Ralph Dibny?" I shook my head. "Come on, Laura. You have to admit what happened with you two in therapy yesterday was weird. And then you went to lunch together-"

"Nothing is weird! We're becoming friends, it's new, uncharted territory for us. That's all."

"Uh-huh." I rolled my eyes.

"Think what you want, Barry. There is absolutely nothing going on between Ralph and I."

"What ever you say."

"Stop it." I warned.

"Stop what?"

"You're doing that thing, where you make it very clear that you're not convinced, so I will get overly defensive and solidify your opinion, but guess what, that's not going to happen Allen, so suck on that."