Leverage | Barry Berkman x Reader
The weight of his bag pulling down on his shoulder, Barry pushed the key into the lock, turning the knob to his apartment with ease before slipping through and kicking the door closed with the side of his boot. “Hey…! I’m sorry I’m late I stopped by the store to grab some coffee–” He called out from the hallway, expecting for you to answer back from your computer or even greet him. However, when he looked up towards the end of the hall, silence, and the lack of you, instead greeted him. “Y/n?” He called again. Maybe she has her earphones in. He then thought, temporarily pulling the nervousness from his throat, its coils slithering around his fingertips.
He turned the corner with hurried steps, nervousness making the blood in his face rush to his chest.
“Hey, Barry!”
Barry stopped abruptly, not even having to look from the empty chair of your desk to know that it was Fuches. When he turned to him, his eyes were wide and his lips had begun to pull over his clenched teeth. “What the fuck are you doing here?” He hissed back at Fuches, who sat on the edge of your side of the bed, an item of your clothing bunched in his fist. “Where’s Y/n?”
“I came to talk to you about your next hit.”
“I told you no and I fucking meant it.” Barry spat out his words, clenching his fists by his sides before looking around the room. Turning his head back, he saw Fuches lift your clothing to his nose, inhaling a deep breath laced with your perfume. Barry lunged at him, snatching the fabric, shaking with rage. "I don’t work for you anymore.”
Old wounds scabbed over, the last time he had seen Barry, they were in a tight bind with the mob. How they escaped, well, that was all due to Barry. That night when he came home, broken and bruised with tears flooding his eyes as he saw you for the first time since the thought of losing you had first infected his thoughts, was the night he restarted. He had called Fuches, telling him he was done. No more jobs, no more hits. Nonetheless, Fuches had called him two weeks later with a proposition. The same proposition being pushed at him now.
“Once you do this job–this ONE job–Barry! We’ll be rich! You can finally have a life, you can disappear. You can finally escape anything and everyone you’ve been ru-”
“Fuches just tell me where Y/n is, please. Come on. Please. Where is she–” Barry had lifted his palms to his face, his fingers rubbing his eyes and temples. A sigh leaving his lips while he shook his head towards the ground, Fuches sensed the desperation in his tone and thought perhaps he could use it to send Barry against the edge. “Please… Fuches, I don’t care what games you’re playing, just tell me where she is.”
“I’m sorry, Barry. But you left me no choice.” Fuches stood up, walking to the hallway when Barry dropped his hands to his sides.
His rage becoming fury, and terror, when Fuches had become in reach, Barry threw his hands out, grabbing the man and slamming him against the wall. His hand wrapping around his throat. “B-Barry come o-come on, sh-she ca-”
“WHERE. IS. SHE. WHERE THE FUCK IS SHE, FUCHES!” Barry screamed, throwing Fuches to the ground. He coughed, gulping in air, and groaned due to the harshness of his landing. He always forgot how strong Barry was, due to his lanky figure and how he slumped his shoulders.
“Barry-” He coughed again. Barry rushed at him again, as if to beat him bloody, but before that fear could manifest itself into reality within the second it took Barry to reach him, Fuches raised his hands. “B-Barry she’s fine! SHE’S FINE! Please! Jesus fucking christ, Barry.”
Above him, Barry let out a huff, his heart pounding. “Tell me where the fuck she is, Fuches.”
“She went to the store! She went to the store, okay? I got her to leave so I could talk to you in peace. God fucking dammit. She’s FINE! Alright?” Fuches began to push himself from the carpet when Barry reached down and hauled him to his feet. Nearly dragging him through the hallway and to the door, Fuches fell against the door and grunted, cursing under his breath. “Wait-Wait, Barry come on, buddy, she’s okay, you know–”
“I need you to leave.” Barry cut him off, pushing him to the side so he could swing the door open. “Don’t you dare fucking co-”
“Barry!”
“GO!”
With that, Barry slammed the door behind Fuches, who hesitated in the hallway. His footsteps thudding away from Barry’s apartment, he listened for a second then fumbled for his phone. Patting down the pockets of his jacket, finally, Barry pulled it from his black jeans and speed-dialed your number.
“Hey, Bear.”
“Y/n?” Relief made his voice wobble, weak. His knees crumbling, Barry slid against the wall to the floor and hugged himself, his forehead resting in his palm.
“Is everything okay?”
“Where are you?”
“Oh! Fuches stopped by, but we were out of coffee so I picked some up. I’m almost home. Are you okay?”
“Can you hurry? I mean–” He cursed, feeling tears sting his eyes. “When can you get here?”
“Bear, you’re scaring me. Are you okay?”
“Ye-Yeah-yeah I’m… I’m fine I just need… I need you to come home.”
“I’m 5 minutes away, okay?” You picked up on the urgency and obliged, no questions asked. “I love you, Bear, you know that, right?”
“Yea-Yeah.” He cleared his throat. “I love you.”
The line went dead. Barry dropped his phone to the floor, immediately hiding his face in his hands as the worry melted away from him. In the next moment, however, his tears smeared against his fingers and dripped from his chin. His sobs growing louder, choking him, until he felt like he couldn’t breathe.
Exactly 5 minutes later, you opened the door, skidding to a stop from your run. Gulping down air and seeing Barry on the floor, you dropped the bag of groceries you had been holding in the crook of your elbow and hurried towards him. His face red and his eyes blurry, sniffling, Barry grabbed at you; pulling you into his lap so your arms around his neck and he could bury his face in your chest. Brushing his hair back, slowing his cries, he shook against you, trembling, but okay. “Hey, hey Bear… Bear, look at me. Barry.” You slipped your hands to his neck, brushing your knuckles against his jaw as he lifted his chin. Allowing you to cup his face in your palms. A simple act, but one that made his cheeks warm and his heartbeat heavy. “I’m here. I’m okay. I got you.”
He gave a weak nod, his bottom lip trembling. He hugged you again.
