Ch - 71 Criticised?

Felicity, still mesmerized by Swayam's godly physique, snapped out of her trance when Caitlin stepped in front of her and spoke. Seeing Caitlin's questioning look, Felicity quickly grabbed her handbag from Barry's hands. As she rummaged through it, she explained, "Well, I'm here because of this." She pulled out a metal boomerang encased in a transparent plastic bag.

Cisco's eyes lit up as soon as he saw the boomerang, and he excitedly snatched it up, exclaiming, "Awesome! What are the wings made of?"

While Cisco eagerly examined the boomerang's sleek design, Felicity chimed in with her best guess. "I'm not exactly sure, but I think it's some sort of composite or high-density plastic."

As if on the same wavelength, Cisco finished her thought. "Reinforced with carbon fiber." While feeling the boomerang, he noticed something strange and spoke aloud, "Oh, that's weird—it almost feels like it's..."

Felicity finished his sentence for him, "-Vibrating."

As Cisco and Felicity headed toward the research section of the lab, Barry, Caitlin, and Swayam watched them go, leaving the two science nerds to their work. Barry then approached Caitlin and Swayam. Caitlin, acting annoyed and pouting playfully, pretended to be upset with Swayam. Swayam, trying to soothe her, was gently persuading her, and to his credit, he was succeeding. After a moment, Swayam hugged Caitlin sweetly and whispered in her ear, which Caitlin clearly enjoyed.

Feeling a bit awkward watching their intimate moment, Barry coughed twice to grab their attention. He succeeded, but also inadvertently drew Caitlin's irritation. Before she could say something snippy, Swayam, knowing Caitlin's temper well, stopped her and turned to Barry, asking, "How did your talk with Arrow go, Barry? Did it go well?"

Although Barry could sometimes be oblivious and naive, he recognized that Swayam had saved him from Caitlin's wrath and felt grateful. He responded to Swayam's question, "It went well... mostly."

Caitlin, still slightly annoyed with Barry for interrupting their moment but now curious, asked, "What do you mean by 'mostly'?"

Swayam, intrigued as well, gave Barry an inquisitive look, waiting for him to explain. Barry elaborated, "Well, when I went with Arrow and met with his team, we talked about today's metahuman incident at 1600 Pass. His team shared their opinions and, well... they kind of criticized me. They pointed out that what Arrow suggested—blindfolding the metahuman to nullify his ability—was the best and quickest solution. They said I wasn't using my speed, my greatest advantage, to its full potential. They think I need some training."

Swayam tried to recall if this scene had played out similarly in the TV show but couldn't remember. Deciding it wasn't worth worrying about, he said, "Well, Barry, I have to agree with Arrow's team on that. You don't always use your speed and powers wisely. You could benefit from some training—not just for your speed, but to sharpen your mind as well."

Sensing the conversation getting too serious, Barry tried to lighten the mood with a joke. "Hey! Sam, not cool, man. I thought we were buddies. Now you're saying my brain isn't sharp? You're calling me stupid?"

Caitlin, who had been quietly listening, sighed in defeat, thinking to herself, *There it is, the man-child in Barry acting up again.*

To prevent the banter from escalating, Caitlin intervened. "Barry, Dr. Harrison Wells wants to see you."