Author's Note: Don't kill me, I know it's short. But there wasn't much to wrap up, considering I am leaving things open for the sequel I plan to do. However, just be aware that it won't come right away! I have already started a new story that I think you all will enjoy; sequel planning will commence after that! I hope you guys have enjoyed this story, and I hope that you will enjoy what is to come! A special thank you to TrueLoveExists02 for always reviewing, sticking with me and helping me out whenever I needed advice or information to continue! You are truly something amazing! Anyways, here is the final chapter!

After the incident at the press conference, it hadn't taken long for the team to get back to STAR and regroup. Things hadn't, however, exactly calmed down. Barry was sitting by the computer monitors, his head in his hands as he listened to Iris continue to rant as she paced back and forth next to him.

"I mean seriously," she was saying. "What an asshole! That was totally uncalled for."

Barry sighed. "He wasn't completely out of line," he muttered, running his hands through his hair. The journalist stopped dead in her tracks, turning her head to look at him with an expression of disbelief.

"Bartholomew Henry Allen," she reprimanded. "Don't you dare say that. He was completely out of line. You do absolutely everything in your power to keep everyone safe, and you did. The only reason you didn't stop them was because you were in no shape to do so, which is perfectly understandable."

"The entire city saw that I was weak, Iris," he countered. "How are they ever going to trust me to handle anything ever again?"

"Bar," Caitlin cut in before Iris could. "Did you see the people there? How excited they were to get the chance to talk to you?" she asked. "Okay, so one guy had the nerve to question you; even before this happened, you knew you didn't have the support of every single person in Central City. That's impossible! So maybe they're a little bolder now that they know who you are, but it doesn't matter. What does matter is the love and support you'll get from the ones who know you do good - and from us."

Barry closed his eyes and sucked in a deep breath, letting Caitlin's words sink in. He opened them again as he felt a hand on his shoulder, and looked up to see Joe smiling softly at him.

"They're right, you know," he said, and both girls looked pleased at the remark. "This doesn't change anything, Barry. The people who really believe in you won't be so easily swayed because of one person, or one incident."

"And besides," Cisco cut in, "I'm pretty sure Iris made any doubters seriously rethink their positions. That guy looked terrified that she would bite his head off or something," he said with a grin, and Iris gave him an amused look. Barry couldn't help but smile softly. In the moment, he had been less than thrilled. Now that he thought about it, however, that guy had looked thoroughly scared. Iris did tend to have the effect on people quite easily when she wanted to.

"Well, Iris is pretty terrifying," the speedster replied with a light teasing tone. Iris smacked his arm playfully, looking quite happy to spot the small smile on his face.

"And don't you forget it," she teased in return; Barry chuckled.

"So you're okay then?" Caitlin asked after a few moments, looking at him sympathetically. The hero hesitated only for a moment before nodding.

"...I am," he said. "Everything - everything is still…weird," he added. "And I think it will be for a while. "But I have you guys," he continued, his smile widening a bit as he slowly looked around at each of the four people standing around him. "And I really think that we can handle anything together."

The words brought out grins from everyone.

"Okay, this is too good to not be a group hug moment," Cisco said, a wide grin once again plastered on his face, and Barry laughed as his friends and family converged on him, crushing him in a tight hug.

"Alright, guys, can't breathe - slowly suffocating," Barry said after a few moments, eliciting laughs as the team backed away and smiled at him as he stood. He smiled back.

It was a few hours later, as Cisco and Caitlin finally got the sleep they deserved and Iris and Joe went to their respective jobs to work on damage control that Barry found his feet carrying him once again down to the Pipeline, though this time without having to sneak around. The speedster drew in a deep breath as he made it and opened up the door that would reveal Shawna's cell. Upon hearing the noise, the meta girl's head snapped up, eyes staring out even though Barry knew she could not see anything beyond the special glass.

"...Barry?" she asked hesitantly, unsure who had come down to visit.

"Yeah," Barry answered after a moment. "It's me." She seemed to visibly relax slightly.

"What are you doing back down here?" she questioned, clearly remembering what had happened the last time he had attempted to speak to her; they hadn't gotten far before everyone else had come barging in.

"I wanted to see how you were doing," the speedster replied, and the girl shook her head in a sort of disbelief, obviously still finding his concern over her strange.

"I'm holding up fine. What about you?"

"Much better," he assured, and he could see the small relief that seemed to grace her features. "Listen," he continued after a moment. "I just - I wanted you to know that I talked to Joe. Detective West," he clarified, in case she only knew the man by his title. "And while he isn't willing to forgive so easily, and doesn't exactly agree with my viewpoint…I asked him not to be so rash, in deciding what to do with you. And he agreed."

Shawna looked shocked. "You…why would you do that?" she asked.

Barry let out a soft sigh. "Because like I said before, Shawna - I don't think you're a bad person. You did some bad things, but you've also showed that you have a conscience. You have regret. And that's a step in the right direction."

Shawna nodded slowly. "So then…what does that mean?" she asked after a moment. "What's going to happen to me?"

"I don't know yet," Barry admitted. "Joe and Captain Singh are really the ones who are going to get final say, once things start to calm down. But I'll - I'll keep you in the loop. And I'll do whatever I can to make sure it's not bad. But you know, you have to put effort in, to make it work. If you want to live a normal life, Shawna, and be a decent person - you have to work for it. You need to show everyone else that side of you that knew what you were doing was wrong."

Shawna nodded again, her face serious, and she spoke again after a few seconds of silence.

"Barry?" she asked.

"Yeah?"

"...thank you," she said sincerely. "Seriously. I never - I feel like I don't deserve how kind you've been, after what I did. No one's ever believed in me like this. I'll do whatever I can to make this right."

"I thought you would," Barry said with a soft smile. "I'm gonna head back upstairs. But - I'll be back, okay?"

"...I look forward to it, Flash," Shawna replied, a small smile of her own forming.

With that said, Barry stepped back and once again closed the entrance to the cells, turning on his heel to go back up to the Cortex with a soft smile still on his face.

Things were far from perfect. His identity was outed, they still had to come to some decision about Shawna's fate, and Roy Bivolo and Nathan Bliss were still somewhere at large. But despite the way fate seemed to have it out for him and his team, Barry was confident that they could face whatever was next thrown their way. He was still the fastest man alive, and he had one hell of a support system - and they would face these new challenges together.

Author's Note: Well, that's it guys! But like I said, look out for the sequel in the future! Thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited and followed: your support means the world to me!