closed | don't you worry, I've been there before

[eloquentness]

WHO: Iris West, Barry Allen, Ralph Dibny, and later Cisco Ramon
WHERE: Iris's and Barry's apartment => all over Heropa
WHEN: early February
WHAT: Team Flash helps one of their own adjust to this Earth!
WARNINGS: None yet!

[ It's a pretty typical morning at Casa West-Allen: Barry makes breakfast, Iris brews coffee, and they get down to either work or play video games (well, Barry plays games. Iris mostly watches). Except this time, they've got the newest member of Team Flash joining them for a quick cup of coffee and a grand tour of Heropa. Maybe even their workplaces and/or the clinic in De Chima, if they wrap up early.

Iris's already texted Cisco to join them when they head out to Ramon Tech, but she knows he's been stretching himself pretty thin between his work, his commitments, and that TV show he's about to star in. Time isn't exactly of the essence here.

So as they're waiting for the rest of their party, Iris glances down at her phone, highlighting possible routes that Ralph could take at proper human speeds, ] Hey, Bar - where do you think we should start the grand tour?

[ After all, Ralph'll be here any minute (if not any second!), and Iris doesn't want their meeting to start on the wrong foot. ]

Comments

[accelerate]

[ despite immediately forgetting everything about ralph dibny — from his height to his favourite pen colour to the evidence he'd forged — barry acknowledges the desire to be petulant and be purposefully late, or even stand ralph up, sits so heavily in his feet it threatens to stop him in his tracks. it doesn't, though. despite the desire to be so childishly immature, he stops himself because of iris. his gut tells him to trust in her instincts, even if they could be on the spritz since he didn't eat all of her ice-cream the other night and she finally didn't go without ... ]

[ shoving a muffin into his mouth, he tips his head back as though that'll prevent the crumbs from clinging to his shirt and jacket. he's dressed casually, with converse shoes to match. ] No — [ where. thankfully, he chews and swallows that muffin and seems to reconsider his answer. ]

[ he hates ralph dibny … except he distinctly remembers telling him he'd try. he'll try and be a nice guy. he'll try and be the barry allen he allegedly knows, even though he had felt the need to ask for some receipts to go along with that "we're friends and we skip" claim ... and, later, much, much later, ask ralph for a play by play on why they hate each other. ]

Er … [ his brows furrow as he thinks. ] Pancake factory. No! The diner on the corner with the cool muffin designs. And then the place that does the bacon and eggs.

[ is barry thinking of ralph or is he thinking of his stomach? ]

[eloquentness]

[ The Pancake factory, sure. They have a solid brunch menu, and Iris had been meaning to go back for another round and - and he's just gonna keep on listing restaurants, isn't he? Iris wishes she were remotely surprised. ]

Somehow, I don't think Ralph'll be able to eat that much.

[ She'll concede to his overall point, though, and give them a coffee break! Just because she knows that those two have some serious History, with a capital h because it sure didn't sound like the good kind. ]

So... Diner or the bacon and eggs? We'll probably need food after showing him the train and bus stations... but we won't have that much time.

[accelerate]

[ now he's going to have to associate the diner with the bacon and eggs with ralph dibny. good going, bartholomew. ]

[ barry's elation disappears. soberly and sensibly, ] Diner. It has something for everyone.

[ trying to avoid the inevitable will only cause his stress levels to rise … and barry knows when he's stressed his ability to keep a hold of his vibrating begins to fluctuate. around ralph dibny? mix anger and stress (and confusion at how they've become buddies) and he's going to be the flash on some trippy shit again. ]

[ scratching the back of his neck, barry rolls his shoulder and glances around, avoiding looking at iris. ] Do you really need me for all of that? I can just go after the food.

[stretchydick]

[It's about five, maybe ten minutes after Ralph was supposed to be there--but look, this city is huge, Ralph is still new, and someone totally tried to argue that they dropped the twenty Ralph found innocently lying on the sidewalk that morning, in complete violation of every statute of the "Finders Keepers" Act of 1992. So really, if Ralph is late, it's because he was upholding the justice known on playgrounds worldwide, and isn't that what it means to be an American?

...Yeah, well, anyway. Here he is, knocking on the door, looking stylish in his paisley button-down shirt and grey suit jacket-and-slacks combo. Way more fashionable than Barry, as will be proven as soon as they open the door.]

Hey West-Allen house. [Wait, is that revealing too much?] By which I mean West and Allen house--apartment! Because this is, you know--uh, yeah, it's Ralph!

[eloquentness]

Of course I need you.

[ Iris shoots Barry a confused look. Just how bad was this shared history, if he was reluctant to even be in the same room? She's known him how long? Dibny wasn't a schoolroom bully, or a frat guy Barry might've hated - Iris would've known. So this leaves a gaping, work-related hole in her knowledge that she can't fill.

Luckily for Ralph, Iris runs on CP time, so she doesn't even notice the late time. ]

It's fine, Ralph. [ Iris laughs, ] We call it West-Allen House too.

[ "Casa West-Allen," if they're feeling jokey, but the principle's the same. Iris reaches over for an empty coffee mug and taps it to pour a fresh cup of coffee. ]

Coffee?

[accelerate]

[ barry's clearly physically agitated, getting all clammy and less long arms and legs. he takes a moment to let iris handle it, as he breathes in then out, then wonders about the bacon on the diner at the end of the street with the dented sign … ]

[ another day, allen. ]

[ crossing his arms against his chest, barry does his best to remember the irritation he naturally feels at ralph isn't really there. he's lost his context already. but it seems to be natural to be irritated ... he's taking his cue from what he remembers of their conversations here, on this earth, and trying to act as he should. hmm, what a strange thought to have, bartholomew something allen. ]

Do you always make such an entrance?

[ he's allowed to be a bitch. friendship 🙌🏼 ]

[stretchydick]

[See, and this is why Iris is going to be his favorite forever and always. She's understanding, she's patient, she has no clue how Ralph ruined her honeymoon--things are great!

Less so with Barry, who gets a frown as Ralph steps inside.]

Nice to see you too, Allen. [He can be bitchy. Ralph's just going to smile at his one true friend in the room.] And coffee would be great, thanks! Great way to start the grand old tour of the city.

[Especially since, eventually, Barry will come to realize his role as the one who always happens to buy Ralph his coffee.]

[eloquentness]

[ Iris rolls her eyes at Barry, half-tempted to nudge him for being such a grouch mcgrouch! She hasn't seen him like this in a long time, and she's totally counting his early stressed-out days at work... ]

Best way, you mean. [ Iris grins, handing over the mug and filling her own with something a little fancier. A hazelnut latte, with extra whipped cream, just because she can. ] Now, if you two could stop your whatever-this-is for a moment, I thought we could start with the basics.

Get Ralph a metro pass, make sure he knows our favorite hang-outs, maybe even show him Cisco's workshop...?

[accelerate]

[ before iris even has a chance to get her proposal out, barry's gone in a flash of golden electricity and returns at the end with a metro pass in hand. handing it to ralph with a properly disgruntled look — his pride is at stake here, and for the sake of tension, he's got to be a bitch — and stands next to iris with his hands on his hips. ]

I'm pretty sure Ralph can find his own favourite hang-outs.

[ the silence doesn't last a minute. he shrugs. ]

But whatever.

[ iris is trying, so he needs to try harder. getting over the hurdle of his pride — anger is something he wants to wear like a belt, preferring to switch it out from sadness to that — is a lot harder than it needs to be. mentally, holding onto his irritation at ralph feels a hell of a lot more normal now than it has been in a while. ]

[stretchydick]

[Coffee! With a side of extra bitterness, apparently, because now Allen's just whipping around there and back again but hey! Ralph's getting a free metro card out of the deal. That's sweet.]

Well considering how lame the places you like to go tend to be Allen, I might just be better off.

[Hey, if they're sticking with bitchy? Ralph can do bitchy.

But...Iris is trying. And the warmth of the mug in his hands reminds Ralph of that.]

I'm sure the only cool ones are the ones Iris likes anyway.

[Nailed it. Look at Ralph grin just before he drinks.]

[eloquentness]

[ Under normal circumstances, Iris might've taken a cue from Barry's body language and bailed. Iris also doesn't know what's going on between these two, and part of her's tempted to just leave and let them duke it out for... whatever they've been fighting over. Some work promotion?

No, she would've heard about Ralph from Dad, and the name never struck her as particularly familiar. ]

Flattery will get you almost everywhere. [ Iris shakes her head fondly. ] Unfortunately, Barry and I like pretty much the same spots, so it's a glass half-full, glass half-empty type place.

[ she's quiet for a moment, glancing at the metro pass, and particularly at the image on it - ] Oh, what about the park? They're gearing up for that Love Awareness concert on Valentine's Day, and besides, there's almost always something going on.