closed | I'm trying to outrun my past

[hardedged]

WHO: Barry Allen and Jessica Jones
WHERE: A noisy, insufferable arcade
WHEN: Sometime in January
WHAT: Barry and Jessica fall in love and get hitched. It's happening. 💖
WARNINGS: None yet, other than the standard alcoholism and Jess being an asshole.

[ fuck her life.

here she is, stuck in some hellhole that's supposedly a popular arcade in town, with crowds of boisterous morons and hundreds of bright lights. jessica jones showed up, based on a dubious lead, for the sole purpose of following the trail of a missing runaway. she can't articulate the reason she bothered to accept this case. most of the time, she limits herself to the typical cheating asshole, but the distressed couple knocking at her front door reminded her too much of the shlottmans. a compassionate couple concerned for their only child, who was off at college — it was a sharp, painful reminder that she couldn't ignore, no matter how heartless she pretends to be.

with a heavy exhale, jess sits by the food stand. slumping down in her seat, she orders a beer, annoyed that the establishment doesn't serve any hard liquor. after a moment, the employee at the counter slides the can of alcohol over, offering a judgmental stare as jessica opens the top and drains it within seconds. she scoffs, then wipes her mouth with the back of her hand. ]

When I ordered one beer, I meant a case, lady. So where's the rest?

Comments

[accelerate]

[ jessica may or may not notice the following: a young man, skinny and built like a beanpole, is over near the food stand, uncertain of what to purchase … and then he's gone, only for a second, as yellow kinetic energy wraps around the room briefly. it comes back, a case of beer dropped on the table near jessica, and that lanky boy is back at the counter, leaning half over it. ]

[ when barry chooses what he wants — a hotdog, a burger, and a can of coke — he plonks in the seat opposite jessica. his food, save his hotdog, rest on the top of the table, and he eats. ]

[ mouth full: ] Did you win that? [ sounds a lot like: ] Didja win da.

[hardedged]

[ although jess can play dumb when the situation demands it, she's a private investigator for a reason. the flash of gold, followed by the abrupt entrance of a slim stranger, is impossible to ignore. it takes her a moment to process what happened, but the realization hits her soon enough.

after she blinks once, jessica narrows her gaze with clear discontent on her expression. in a place like this, nothing truly surprises her anymore. ]

What the hell did you do?

[accelerate]

[ he's mid bite when he says and looks rather dumbly: ] What?

[ his mouth would hang open, but barry quickly catches himself and is, instead, simply eating. a big bite of his burger. not once does he think perhaps this woman has caught onto him being the fastest man alive ... or prepping himself for an eating contest. he's going to choke. ]

[hardedged]

[ jesus christ, he's going to kill himself at that rate. then again, jess suddenly realizes — he looks like he knows what he's doing. if he's fast enough, she supposes, there's no cause for concern. she also possesses an enhanced metabolism, but his clearly exceeds her own.

reaching out, she grabs another can of beer, then scoffs. ]

Light on your feet, for a kid with a big appetite.

[ yep, she's calling you out, barry. because that's what besties do. after this, you can start making friendship bracelets. ]

[accelerate]

[ he's almost laid his burger to waste when he looks up at her, chewing thoughtfully. busted? uncaring? freaking out? barry simply eats, feeling nothing other than a satiated hunger that's going to come back in an hour, at minimum. he swallows this time. ]

Pretty observant, for a woman who drinks a lot of cans of beer.

[ he goes back to eating, and has a long drink of his can of coke. best to wash all the shit he eats down with. if he's put out by jessica's comment, he doesn't show it. there's a lot of things to worry about, and someone calling him light while potentially heavy is the least of his problems. ]

[hardedged]

It's a gift.

[ she responds flippantly, opening the can with a pointed look. once she takes a swig, jess glances at her drink before looking back at him. ]

Like this one. From you. [ another sip of beer. ] So Robin Hood on speed — that your mantle? Steal from the rich, give to the drunk?

[accelerate]

[ he’d worked with iris to figure out a cover story to separate himself from the flash so many people seemed to know from an alternate central city. it seemed like the safest bet, even though barry felt awfully tempted to tell everyone he had super speed. wasn’t it best to keep it under lock and key? barry couldn’t remember why it was ... he just knew he had been. ]

[ he’s onto his hotdog now. ] Teleportation. [ the syllables are a little lost, given he’s speaking with his mouth full again. ] I ... teleport. Quickly. And I don’t steal! I pay for everything.

[hardedged]

[ she's conducted her fair share of research. enough to recognize the name, but not quite enough to put two and two together. no one is known as the flash in her world, and there are far too many superhuman idiots in this one to keep track of them all. ]

On your budget. Right.

[ he looks like a college freshman. perhaps a sophomore, if she's feeling generous. it doesn't help that he's stuffing his face like he's never seen food before. ]

You even old enough to buy booze?

[accelerate]

[ the flash is the best superhero idiot, ftr. ]

[ when she asks him how old he is, he's stuffed the end of the hotdog bun into his mouth. he says something completely implausible, which would, if translated from voice to text, read as: ] Shkalmp.

[ talking with bread in your mouth is hard work, even for the flash. ]

[hardedged]

[ how attractive. her expression twists into a tight smile, as jess observes this glorious display. ]

Eloquent.

[ if he isn't in the mood for coherent conversation, that's fine by her. she has four more cans of beer to drink, as well as a case to close. ]

[accelerate]

[ fortunate for them both that barry has experience with wells and his one-worded responses. he appears unfazed, swallowing before he follows it with a good draining of his coke. ]

Why do people always think I'm a kid? Is it because of what I eat? [ he shakes his head, as though they've had an entirely wordy conversation, and then: ] That's so foodist.

[hardedged]

[ how is it possible to be this annoying? jess huffs a breath, one sign of her growing exasperation. ]

Doesn't help.

[accelerate]

[ barry glances up, as though he's about to be offended. he ends it with a shrug and finishes what he's eating, chewing and swallowing before he speaks again. ]

Did you come to the arcade just for the beer? They keep half of it warm. Their specialty.

[ it's almost like they hadn't had a little friendly row of whether or not barry was of age, and if jessica jones was foodist. ]

[hardedged]

[ jesus christ, his stomach is a black hole. ]

Yep. [ she lifts her can, draining half of it before finishing her response. ] I'm not here for the company, kid.

[ an unnecessary nickname to use, yet one carefully chosen to establish her point. go away, barry. she's in no mood for conversation. ]

[accelerate]

[ unlike a fly that disappears when shooed away, he remains, sitting where he sits, drinking half of his coke. ]

You should've went to a bar. [ placing that can down, he feels a little refreshed. for a few minutes he'll sit and not touch the rest of his food, before that inevitable desire to eat and eat and eat comes back. barry doesn't regard her with any annoyance. a part of him suspects that's irritating for her. ]

You came to an arcade. Kind of contradicts your point, don't you think?

[hardedged]

[ barry allen, ace detective. she tips the can to her edge of mouth once more, finishing the rest of her drink. ]

My point, smartass, is this— [ her gaze narrows into a sharp glare. if the subtle approach won't work, perhaps a more intimidating one will. her fist closes around the empty can of beer, crushing it in an instant. ] Back off.

[accelerate]

[ in case you didn't know, he doesn't back off. ]

You have super strength? [ like a kid in a candy store, he brightens up. ] I knew this guy — this meta, who was terrorising my city — he could crush things. The Atom Crusher. When he absorbed enough radiation, he could grow twice his size, and was twice was strong. [ pressing his lips together, it's almost like he's comparing the two ... ] He crushed more than a can of beer, though.

[hardedged]

[ what has she done to deserve this hell ... ]

God. [ an irritated breath. ] Stop. Talking.

[ just like that, jessica stands up, grabbing another can of beer as she debates just bailing on her case and walking out the door. ]

[accelerate]

[ request denied. ]

[ barry goes back to eating, suspecting jessica will be back. people like her — gruff, unimpressed, moody — always come back for that one fish they can't catch. while barry doesn't want to think he'd exposed himself as the flash … she's onto something. and if his fast metabolism and childish looks can catch her attention, she'll be back for an answer. ]

[ arcade bells ring as someone hits the jackpot in a game. barry finishes his coke and asks without looking over his shoulder, ] Can you get me the other Coke I bought please?

[ yep, he put one on ice while he drank this one. ]

[hardedged]

[ she observes him shoving more food into his system. one can of coke is gone, and he's already searching for another. ]

Why don't you just teleport it over here?

[ his metabolism is a bit too noticeable to ignore. while jess has no reason to doubt the explanation of his powers, something doesn't quite add up either. ]

[accelerate]

[ that earns her an "are you out of your mind?" kind of look. it's the easiest way to deal with this, acting like he is a teleporter, and a shy one at that. it's all a lie, though. barry allen is not shy about his powers, not even close. the moment someone shows interest ... his secret is doomed. ]

No. [ he shakes his head, treating her like she doesn't understand that water is wet. ]

You're closer.