InsaneJournal

Who: Iris West, ft. NPC!Joe West
What: Working through a lot of frustration
When: 16 February 2021, evening
Where: Orange County Picture News to Irvine PD
Warnings: Low
Status: Narrative | Complete

Iris had hoped that after the long weekend, her anger would have abated. But no. It really hadn’t. It probably hadn’t helped that she’d already been frustrated with casual and subtle racism all week. The comments she would hear at work that then showed up seemingly everywhere even now because apparently some general empathy and human kindness was just too much to expect when there was a headline to make fun of without going into the details. Reminders of being six years old and comments about her hair, about her dad’s heartbroken look when she said she wanted to do something different with her hair and him not knowing what to do because her mom had just died. Of how dress codes were very white based, where even natural hairstyles or boxes or braids weren’t allowed. The constant balancing act she had to deal with.

So finding out that Barry had been lying to her in the Dreams, that her dad and Eddie had been as well… Nothing like having all three people you trusted most in the world betraying that trust and expecting her to be what, okay with it? Of course she would. It was like she said to Ahsoka. Expected to understand and be okay and not at all upset or hurt by the lies. It was even worse that she was pretty certain that Barry was keeping things from her here. He couldn’t control the Dreams but he could control here. And the worst part was she didn’t even know if it was only for a month - the near car accident that had happened in the Dreams as well - or if it had gone on longer, since his coma three years previously.

It was a lot and it hurt. Even without having been cheated and lied to by her ex-fiance. Truth was one of the most important things to Iris and now? Now she didn’t even know because it wasn’t like she could call him out on it. Had he not been in a funk, she probably would have just as she had in the Dreams. But even now, she was managing Barry’s emotions and so instead she left an open post to give him the opening and nothing.

They were best friends. They were supposed to talk about major life events. They told each other everything. And yet…

Her dad knew that something was bothering her but she couldn’t explain it to him. Not when part of her was angry with him as well, not like that was fair. Even in the Dreams, it wasn’t his secret to tell but Barry had used him as an excuse and her dad had agreed. Said he was trying to protect her. And here? Well, here her dad had no idea about the Dreams. Which meant she couldn’t even voice it. Luckily (if it could even be called that), Valentine’s Day had been that weekend and so he just figured it was that.

Which she wished that was the main cause of her frustration. Not like it helped. It was just another reminder and compacted the dealing with lies thing even more so.

So when she’d finally gone into work that day after a long weekend of being frustrated and nothing seeming to help, Iris was already on edge when she was called into the editor’s office. It would be just her luck to be given a story that either was dealing with anything that was already stressing her out and not being able to make it her own. Only no. It seemed that her latest story about the current investigation at the LAPD had drawn a lot of hostility and vitriol. Not surprising. Iris made it a point never to read the comments on the stories she wrote when they were posted. Do that, and it was a rabbit hole of hatred and vile threats full of racism and misogyny.

Apparently there were credible threats, at least ones that had the editor worried about her. It was always a risk and it wasn’t like Iris backed down from a story just because it was going to bring out the bigotry. Even so, it just added to everything. Especially since it had been reported.

Where her dad would hear about it.

He already worried when she travelled for work. She tried to keep the comments away from him but now? Tension headache increased to ten. She knew she would be hearing about it once they were both home.

Somehow, Iris managed to get through the day. She had other stories to work on and she wasn’t about to be scared out of doing her job. Even so, she did end up heading to the police department. She needed to punch something and there was a punching bag there. She would just do her best to avoid her dad and Barry for the time being. She needed to get her head on straight.

Pulling her gym clothes out of her bag, Iris went to change once at the station before she put her gloves on. It wasn’t uncommon for her to be there for this very reason. Okay, not this exact reason. But since she’d been back, whenever it seemed she was getting too in her head about broken engagements or just needing to work things out, her dad brought her to the gym or she came in by herself for the same reason.

Sometimes it was said to picture the person you wanted to punch. But that never worked for Iris. But each punch was for each lie. Each comment. Each threat. Everything that had been building for over a week coming out, each punch more and more aggressive. Iris didn’t know how long it was until she heard a voice behind her.

“I heard you were here. Everything okay, babygirl?”

That twinge of worry in his voice and Iris just closed her eyes as she wiped at her forehead.

“Yeah. Just a rough day at work.”

“I heard.”

“It’s fine, dad. Really.”

And of course the look he gave Iris showed that her dad didn’t believe her. No matter. She would deal with it, just like she always did.