Merry Christmas. Or something.

[bringstheheat]

Mick isn't sure when it happened, to be quite honest. The number of friends could be counted on one hand, but recently that number had grown by one. Cisco Ramon. One of the brains of Team Flash and while Mick wasn't a fan of the kid in the suit, he'd grown to like Ramon. He treated him normally. Talked to him like he was a human being with thoughts and emotions and it's a true testament to how fucked his life is that something like that isn't the norm.

Whatever. Mick doesn't care.

The point was, Cisco had become his friend and friends did things for one another, right?

Which is why on Christmas Eve, Mick is dragging a struggling, swearing and slightly terrified figure by the scruff up to an apartment door before hammering on it with his free fist. "Quit squirming or I swear I'm gonna knock you out again."

He'd done the calculations, used Gideon to confirm everything before stealing the jump ship to bring Cisco what he hoped was a decent thank you.

".. hijo de puta! Put me down!"

Huff. Mick simply bangs harder on the door. Cisco had better hurry up.

Comments

[thisismadfreaky]

Somewhere along the way, in some weird twist of fate, Cisco actually started calling Mick Rory 'friend'. He isn't entirely sure how it happened or when that shift solidified, but he mostly just doesn't bother questioning it. It's easier to just accept it.

He doesn't see Mick too often, they're both busy with their respective corners of world-saving going on, but whenever he has half a second to jump back to Central City in 2016, Mick drags Cisco out for drinks or whatever. It's weird, but it's not the worst.

Cisco's not in the best of moods, he'd planned on no company and not going out. The first Christmas without Dante looming above him meant he would rather lock himself up in his apartment and pretend this whole stupid holiday didn't exist. He may not have had the perfect relationship with his brother, but that doesn't make the whole thing feel less hollow. So the absolute last thing he expects is a knock on his door that night. He waits, thinking maybe whoever it is will just go away if he doesn't answer. People aren't something he remotely wants to deal with right now. But there's another loud round of banging on the door and he pauses his game and drops the controller on the couch, pushing himself to his feet with an annoyed sigh.

"This better be good," he starts as he's almost to the door, "because I am not in the mood for--" his words stop short, breath caught in his throat as he swings the door open and finds Mick on the other side, holding Dante in place by a well-placed hand on the back of his neck. His chest is tight and it's hard to breathe and oh, fuck, oh, fuck, what had Mick done?! Cisco isn't much more than a wall of cascading emotions that can't figure out where to land as he stares, blinking rapidly, at the ghost in front of him. "I-I-- what-- how--"

[bringstheheat]

Dante is still struggling and swearing as Mick releases him, propelling him towards his brother. "Merry Christmas, kid."

Oh. He should probably elaborate a little more. That was something else friends did. "The Oculus is gone, but I was able to program Gideon with enough information. Confirmed that while your brother's impact on the timeline was minimal, the impact he left on you.. wasn't."

[thisismadfreaky]

Cisco still feels like he's been punched in the gut as Dante stumbles toward him, probably confused as all hell at the way his little brother is latching onto him like his life depends on it.

"Wh-why?" He's staring at Mick over Dante's shoulder, confused, shell-shocked. He could hardly get his mind wrapped around it at all. Mick, who'd only barely become a friend in the last handful of weeks, month, whatever, had gone out of his way to do something his own supposed best friend wouldn't even do. He hates it, but he can't help the tears that shine too bright in his eyes. "I-- thank you."

[bringstheheat]

Why? The answer is simple. When Cisco had no reason to, he'd listened to Mick. Treated him like any other person struggling with his grief and with hallucinations of his fallen partner.

But he's not the type to come out and say as much. Besides, Cisco needs time with his brother. "Because you needed him."

"And you're my friend. I ain't exactly got many of them."

[thisismadfreaky]

He untangles himself from his brother and ushers him inside, with a promise to be right behind him in a few minutes. He tugs the door shut behind him as he steps out into the hallway, still gutted for everything that had happened, that had changed in the last five minutes.

He tries to find his words again, but for once he's at a total loss except, "I know you're not hugger, but--" And he breaks the unspoken 'don't touch me' agreement and pulls Mick into one anyway, tight and clinging and desperate for a moment. "Thank you." he whispers as he pulls away, still the picture of shell-shock.

[bringstheheat]

The thing is, Cisco doesn't need to say anything. Mick can read it in his expression, in the way his fists had twisted into his brother's shirt before getting him into his apartment. Cisco needed Dante back, so Mick made it happen for him.

"No, I'm.." and of course he goes and does it anyway. It figures. Mick tries not to go too stiff, even bringing up his arms to give him a slightly awkward pat before he pulls away.

There might even be the slightest trace of something warm in his expression. Cisco had listened to him when no one else would. "Figured I'd steal you something good for the holiday. Go on, get inside and catch up with your brother."

[thisismadfreaky]

He chuckles softly at the theft comment, but he nods at the push to go inside because he can't deny that he wants--needs--to talk to Dante about so many things right now.

"Yeah, yeah, I-- I should..." he nods a little. "I'll see you around." He'll be back, whenever there's a break in fixing timelines or something. And maybe by then, Cisco will have found a way to repay him for this, for making Cisco's world right again.