Arrow 1. Chapter 1

"Oh my God..." muttered Felicity looking at the computer screen.

She was with Oliver and Diggle at the Arrow cave. They had been training for half an hour while she had been tracking Roy. After all, Oliver wasn't still 100% sure they could trust him. However, Roy had been at the Queen's Mansion all afternoon, so Felicity decided to have a look at the news. That's when she stifled a scream. Given Felicity's reaction, both men came closer to her, worried.

"What happens?" Diggle asked taking a sit next to her.

Automatically, she raised the volume of the computer.

"_Latest news: as it was announced some minutes ago, the Orbit Corporation was hacked into, resulting in the loss of 7 billion dollars and, thus, the company's collapse. The Chief Executive Officer of Orbit Corporation has just claimed they would take the necessary measures in order to find out who is after this."_

Oliver looked at Felicity without knowing why she was so shocked.

"So what?" he said.

Felicity rolled her eyes with exasperation.

"So,"she began, "this is a huge company Queen Consolidated happens to be rather related to and I don't know about you, but if I were the CEO I would be really worried about one of my allied companies being hacked and stolen because that means that _your_ company could also be hacked."

Diggle and Oliver shared a look and the last one said: "Then we're lucky we have an expert computer hacker to check this and find whoever has done it, aren't we?"

She faked a smile and answered "Of course. I'm on it".

"Well, guys, the night seems pretty quiet, so I'm gonna have dinner with Carly. Is it ok with you?"

Oliver nodded immediately.

"Sure, have fun."

"Bring me a hamburger!" exclaimed Felicity, making Diggle laugh on his way out.

Felicity was busy with her computers, looking for this hacker who was causing so much troubles when Oliver stared at her. She was so focused on her task... It was as if the world around her didn't exist. She was extremely devoted to her job.

"Oliver, stop."

He looked astonished.

"Stop what?", he asked amused.

Felicity turned around to look him in the eye. "Stop staring at me. You make me nervous. Not that I normally get nervous when you look at me because that would be weird, but staring at people is way too annoying. I mean, you're not annoying, just what you do. Which is not everything you do, only when you look at...-

"Felicity," he said, interrupting her from her babble.

"All right..." she wishpered. "Anyway, stop staring."

Oliver was about to reply, but his mobile phone rang. It was Oliver's phone, not the Arrow's.

"Hi, Isabel. Yes, I heard about it. Don't worry, I've got my best employee working on that problem. No, it's not my assistant, though I'm sure she would handle it perfectly well. Yes. Crystal clear."

Felicity stopped typing on her computer to look at Oliver, obviously pissed off.

"Why does she always have to talk about me? It's not as if she said cool things...".

"She just wanted to let me know about Orbit Corporation and I told her I had the situation in control".

"Yes, I heard you, as well as the 'employee part'. What has happened with 'you are my partner' and all that tall tale?"

Clearly, she was teasing him and he liked it.

"We _are_ partners, just not on Isabel's eyes. By the way", he said before Felicity could keep on provoking him, "what about Roy?"

She pressed some bottom and a new screen appeared. "He's in your house. Actually, there's just Roy and Thea. Guess what they must be doing?", she answered giggling aware of how tense Oliver was.

"I don't even wanna think about it or I will kill him," he said.

Felicity seemed impressed. "I know you're kidding... Because you're kidding, right?"

Oliver just chuckled.

"I'm going home. Are you staying?," he asked her grabbing his coat.

"Yes, I need to know who is after this theft".

"Ok. Just be careful when you leave. Good night!"

"Good night, Mr. Queen," she said teasing him, making him smile like he usually did when he was around her. In fact, Felicity knew she was really happy: she was almost the only one person in the world who got to see Oliver's real smiles.

Next day, Oliver was in a meeting with Isabel Rochev when Felicity arrived. She was late and Oliver was worried because that was not her style. She caught Oliver's attention from the very first moment she walked in the office.

"Excuse me, Isabel,"he said going to Felicity's desk. She didn't like the idea of Oliver leaving Isabel to talk to her, but he would never learn. "Is something wrong?"

"Actually, yes", she replied.

He frowned.

She bowed and lowered her voice. "I couldn't find any track of the hacker. He must be an expert, he managed to erase any trail".

"Are you sure there's nothing you can do'"

Felicity looked daggers at him. "I spent all night searching for the hacker and I haven't slept. That's why I've been late and have baggy eyes. Does it answer your question?"

"Should we worry about it?"He said, ignoring her annoyance.

"I don't know. Maybe."

Oliver was going to ask her to keep trying when he saw Isabel leaving his office.

"Isabel?Wait, we need to discuss some important issues," he claimed following her.

"You're right. I came here to talk to you about company issues, not to see you drooling over your secretary." She said with her typical serious facial expression.

Both Oliver and Felicity froze. Felicity stood up, ready to fight, but Oliver told her to stay calm with a gesture. Isabel continued her way out of the office and Oliver followed her once again.

"Wait!", he shouted grabbing her by the arm. "I'm sorry if something bothered you, but it wasn't deliberate."

"If you really care about Queen Consolidated, then I think you should make some changes. And firing your utterly incompetent assistant would be a great start" She let out.

Oliver looked confused. "I'm not firing anyone."

"Why not? Because she's your one-night stand?"

Oliver was about to confront her, but he suddenly realized something: it would be useless. Therefore, he tried a different argument to win this battle.

"No, because she is my girlfriend."

The shock in Isabel's face was obvious. Oliver had to work very hard on hiding a smile.

"I considered you more intelligent, Oliver Queen. Being with your secretary is so... typically boring. Besides, one way or another you'll get bored of her. It's just a matter of time..."

"Well, I prefer boring than annoying."

And then, Isabel left without looking back.

Oliver didn't realize what he had just done. In fact, it wouldn't be until that night that he would.


	2. Chapter 2

_Hi everyone! _

_As I said before, please, forgive me if I make any mistakes, but I'm Spanish, so I'm not totally proficient in English.__Also, thank you so much for reading and commenting! It makes me so happy!_

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><p>Sacrifice. Effort. Enthusiasm. And patience, especially pacience. That was all Roy needed to survive the training Oliver made him do. He wanted to learn quickly and without doing such silly exercises, like smashing water for hours. However, that didn't seem to be happening any time soon. Sure Oliver had taken him to some missions, but they were not that important. Other than that, he only trained with Oliver. Well, and he tried his best not to let Thea be suspicious, which sometimes was rather difficult. Even though everything could seem complicated, there were good aspects of his new life. For instance, now he understood Oliver's weird attitude (which usually let his family down) and, of course, he got to meet Diggle and Felicity. Roy really had fun with them, especially with Felicity, who he was getting very close to.<p>

"Are you sure you want to touch that?", asked felicity seeing Roy touching Oliver's arrows.

Second thought, he left the arrows alone. He didn't want to piss Oliver.

"Right,"he answered. He was waiting for Oliver to continue with his training, but Oliver was late. In fact, an hour late, and Roy was already desperate.

"So... how are things with Thea? I mean, regarding your new condition in the Arrow Team", said Felicity trying to entertain him while Oliver arrived.

Roy rested on the table. "Sometimes it's difficult to make up a story to explain where I've been, but generally speaking we're good".

"Oliver makes you train a lot, doesn't he?" Felicity half smiled.

"Yes, I'm a little bit fed up with it."

"Do you want me to intervene? Because I could talk to him, thoug he wouldn't listen to me..." she said amused, making Roy laugh.

"No, he wouldn't listen, so don't waste your time. But thank you."

Suddenly, Diggle and Oliver came in, visibly angry. Felicity stood up and approched her friends.

"Are you ok? How was it?"

"It could be said we failed this city," Diggle joked.

"Why so?" Felicity insisted. Seeing Oliver so pissed off, she turned closer to him. "Oliver, are you injured?"

"I'm fine, but the drugs dealers got away," he roared.

However, Felicity found some scratches on his hand, so she proceeded to treat his injuries. He sat down and let Felicity do.

"Well, don't worry, you will catch them another day," she tried to comfort him.

"Yes, I guess so..."

That's when oliver realized Roy had been waiting for him.

"I know I'm late, we'll start in ten minutes, so get ready", he told Roy.

Diggle looked at Oliver and Felicity and couldn't help but make a comment: "Felicity, don't worry about me, I'm ok too..."

She thus noticed she had only worried about Oliver. How could she have forgotten about Diggle? Well, obviously he was fine, but she always checked them both.

"I'm sorry Digg, I was just about to see if you were ok..." she said, but nobody bought it.

A mobile phone rang. It was Oliver's. Saved by the bell.

"Oliver Queen. No, I didn't have time to... WHAT? Are you serious? Ok. I'm on my way,".

"What's wrong, mate?", asked Diggle.

"Queen Consolidated has been hacked. We're bankrupt." He asserted.

Felicity covered her face with her hands, totally overwhelmed.

"OMG, this is my fault." She immediately said, going to her computers to verify the information.

"Felicity, I need something to work on. We have to stop this." Oliver was clearly furious.

"I know, I know. But I can't find him. Or her, why do we always refer to this person as a man? A woman could perrfectly be after this. We shouldn't be so sexist, it bothers me and it is-

"Felicity! Focus." Shouted Oliver, who didn't seem to have time to listen her babble.

"Yes, right."

Diggle put his hand over Oliver's shoulder. "Do you want me to take you to Queen Consolidated?"

"Yes, I have to meet the committee".

"Including Isabel?", asked Felicity at the same time she typed incredibly fast.

Oliver looked at her and remained silent.

"After what happened this morning and now this, she is going to die." She said a little bit amused. "Well, actually, she's too mean to die. I won't be that lucky".

Oliver put his hands on Felicity's desk and look at her seriously. "Felicity, it's not a good moment to joke, I need something useful."

"I understand, but having you right next to me shouting and stressing me out does not really help, you know that?"

Oliver sighed, exasperated. "I have to go. Tell me if you find out anything."

"Sure."

He went away accompanied by Diggle, his official driver. Roy, who had seen the whole scene from behind, came closer to where Felicity was.

"I guess I won't be training today."

She got to laugh. "It seems so."

"Is he always so stresful?" Roy asked referring to Oliver.

Felicity looked at him just for a second, but that glare had said everything. "Yes, always."

"You know, you're kind of funny."

"Define 'funny'."

"I mean... one moment you're fighting and then you're so kind to each other... you look like a married couple."

This time, she turned to stare at him. "Excuse me? We're not married. Well, of course you know that. Because if we were married I'd live in the Queen's Mansion and you've been there so many times and I wasn't there, so obviously I'm not Oliver's wife and... what am I even saying?"

Roy chuckled. "Does this usually happen to you?

"What do you mean?"

"Babbling."

Felicity approached more the screen. "Unfortunately, yes."

CLING. A strange noise came from the computer. Roy didn't know what was going on, but it couldn't be any good thing since Felicity had become pale. Rapidly, she called Oliver.

"Shit, he's forgotten his mobile phone".

She tried calling Diggle, but he appeared to be out of signal.

She took her bag and the keys of her car. "I've got to go to Queen Consolidated. Take care of our lair in the meantime."

"Understood."

Felicity needed to talk to Oliver. She had found something. An address. A place. She cursed Oliver for forgetting his phone: now she would have to get in the middle of the committee's meeting and she hated that idea. Especially knowing Isabel would be there. But she knew Oliver would like to know the new information now, so there was no other options. She walked in and saw the committee in Oliver's office. She tried to catch her boss' attention, but he seemed very far away that he didn't notice her.

"Damn it, Oliver..." she wishpered. She sent him a text message, but that's when she remembered he didn't have his phone with him and she couldn't help but smile at her bright idea.

Suddenly, she saw Isabel talking to Oliver and he immediately looked at Felicity. She indicated him to come out, which he did, causing everyone to stare at Felicity. She obviously blushed.

"Do you know this tiny thing called mobile phone? It's very useful, you could try and take it with you!"

"I must have left it at Verdant."

"Don't tell me... and by the way, couldn't you be more attentive? I almost have to totally interrupt the meeting."

"Do you have anything?" He asked, realizing that if he got along with her comments, they could spend hours like that.

"Yes. I found an address: 1000 Fort William Road."

"Great job." He said leaving.

"What? Wait! You can't just leave the meeting!" she blurted out, grabbing him by the elbow.

"Tell them I got a family emergency or whatever you can come up with. And tell Diggle I'm out."

At that moment, she was all alone right next to her usual desk, being looked by all the members of the committe, who appear to be shocked by Oliver's leaving. She went into the room to give them an explanation.

"Good evening... uhm... I'm sorry, but Mr. Queen has a family issue..."

"How can anything be more important than Queen Consolidated's bankrupt?" Isabel spat.

"I don't really know, Ms Rochev, but whatever it is, I'm sure it must be of high importance for Mr. Queen to leave..." she tried to take care of the situation.

"Of course you know what happens."Isabel roared. "After all, you two share more than an office, don't you?"

Felicity was wide-eyed. What was Isabel implying?

"Sorry, I think you're –

"Don't try to conceal it. It is perfectly understandable that a simple IT girl sleeps with Oliver Queen. Look at you now! You're the CEO's secretary. He must pay you a lot, doesn't he? I mean, for your company work, not other things."

The committee members smiled faintly and Felicity was red with embarrasment.

"Well, I guess the meeting is over. I suppose you're seeing him tonight, so could you tell your beloved boss to call me?"

Slowly, everyone in the room left. Isabel was the last one, dedicating Felicity a _nice _comment: "Good night, darling. And don't worry. At least now everyone is sure of how you got so highly promoted and the rumours will be done."

Felicity was by herself. She sat down in the chair Oliver had been using and she began crying out her eyes. She had been holding back tears for so long, that she had exploded. After such a scene, everyone would think she was going to bed with Oliver Queen and that was the reason why she had been promoted. As if her life at Queen Consolidated wasn't hard enough already... She was sick of Isabel. She was sick of rumours. She was sick of mean replies. She was sick of being criticized about something she hadn't done. She needed time for herself, so she stayed there, just looking anywhere, still crying but trying to calm herself down. She hated crying, but sometimes it was inevitable.

It was late at night. Oliver had checked Felicity's address, but there was nobody there. He looked for any clue, but it was all in vain. Frustrated, he came back to the Arrow cave, where Diggle and Roy were training.

"Nothing."he said disheartened.

"I bet Felicity will finally find something", Roy tried to comfort him.

"Yes. Speaking of... where's Felicity?"

Diggle and Roy exchanged a look and Oliver know something was wrong.

"Digg?"

Diggle sighed.

"I guess she is still at Queen Consolidated. She told me to leave. She wanted to be alone." Diggle explained.

Oliver frowned. Then, he changed his clothes (from Arrow's to Oliver's) and went directly to his office. He saw Felicity through the crystal walls. She was in the meeting room, sat down. He entered the room. She had not looked at him yet, but he was sure she knew he was there. She looked serious, and as if she had been crying. Finally, he approched her. Touching kindly her arm, he said "Hey..."

She met Oliver's eyes. "Hi... Did you find anything?"

"Nope."

"Next time, then".

"Yes..."

He took a sit next to her and stared at her. "Are you ok?"

Felicity laughed, though not happily. "It must be obvious I've been crying and you ask me whether I'm ok?"

Oliver felt like an idiot. She was right. She was always right.

"What's wrong, Felicity?"

"Nothing you should care about."

He nodded. "If it's important to you, I care."

Felicity looked away.

He gently held her chin to make her look at him in the eye.

"You know you can count on me, do you?" he said sincerely.

They kept looking until she said "Everybody thinks we had sex. In fact, everyone thinks I got promoted because of our love affair."

Oliver was confused. He wasn't expecting this.

"What? Why?"

"Isabel made a scene in front of the committee."

Then everything was crystal clear for was his fault.

"Im sorry..."

She shook her head. "Don't, it's not your fault."

"Actually it is".

She turned her eyes to Oliver, shocked.

"What do you mean?"

He looked down, ashamed.

"This morning I told her you were my girlfriend."

She totally freaked out. "You did _what?!_"

"I know it was a bad idea, but she was bothering me and she was insulting you, and I couldn't help myself..."

"Are you kidding me? Among all the things you could have said and you told her I was your girlfriend? Are you trying to ruin me? Because you're on the good path..."

He grabbed her by her shoulders. "Felicity. I'm sorry. I made a mistake, I know. That won't ever happen again, I promise."

"Oliver, do you have any idea of how hard I worked to be here? And I don't mean being your assistant-secretary or whatever, I mean being in the IT department of this incredible company. I wore myself out working to get this job and now all my efforts seem to have been in vain 'cause now I am not the genius IT girl I used to be, but just one more girl on Oliver Queen's love list."

Both of them were stood, looking agitated. She was doing her best to hold back her tears, but it was clear she wanted to cry, and that broke Oliver's heart. He caressed her face and he wishpered "You're not another girl. You're Felicity Smoak, the strongest, bravest, most honest and craziest person I've ever known. I'm sorry for what I did, but what does rumours matter? We know the truth and we know how much you're worth it. That should be enough."

She sighed. "I'm tired of these fake identities... Sometimes I wish I could always be in the lair."

"I understand, but it's the only way, Felicity."

She was still mad at him, but he looked so repentant and his eyes were so deeply blue and beautiful that she could not reply anymore.

"I know."

Oliver knew she was still upset and he didn't want her to go home like that, so he suggested something. "Do you feel like eating ice cream?"

She looked amazed. "Ice cream? Seriously? At 3 a.m.?"

He smiled and she captured that moment in her retina. "Yes, why not?"

He offered her his hand and, after some seconds of deliberation, she accepted and took his hand.

"So now tell me, how are gonna do to find a shop which is not actually closed at this time? I mean, you're a billionare, not a magician." She joked, breaking the tension.

"Really? I am Oliver Queen. The whole world would open up for me." He said acting on purpose like the playboy he used to be.

They both chuckled and after exchanging glances, they left the office.


	3. Chapter 3

_Hello everyone! Thank you again for your support! :)  
>I would be very happy to see more comments from you to be able to know what you think, what you would like to happen, etc. So please, feel free to comment (not only good things, but also the negative ones to improve).<em>

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><p>Being so late, all ice-cream shops were close except for one which was in the outskirts and it looked as if it was gonna collapse. Anyway, they got inside.<p>

"We're in the middle of nowhere, in a horrendous place, eating my favourite ice cream, at almost 4 a.m. It looks like I can cross that of my things-to-do list" Felicity commented sounding amused.

"Do you have a things-to-do list?" he was curious.

"Yes, don't you?"

Oliver shook his head while eating some ice cream.

"Don't you have dreams, things you're looking forward to doing?"

He thought his answer for a second. "I know I wanna save this city. And I wanna make my family and my friends happy. Other than that I don't really wish anything. What about you? What do you dream of?"

Her eyes sparkled when she began talking. "I'd love to go to Egypt, I'm fascinated about the Pyramids. I also want to learn French, it must be incredibly difficult though... I'd love to create something, I don't know. Maybe a new Social Network or a machine to pick up dogs' poo because it's so disgusting..."

Oliver laughed at her comment. Only Felicity would think of that.

"And I'd love to travel in time, that would be awesome though technically impossible right now... and well, too many other things related to the Arrow issue, but that's not really the point, so..."

He frowned. "Do you have arrow dreams?"

"Yes... you know, little things like being able to say sometimes your famous sentence 'you have failed this city', training with you because I mean, Digg is good but you are way too better. Not that I like you, don't get me wrong, I just... well, I don't dislike you either, but..." She closed her eyes, breathed and continued talking. "Also, I'd like to take a picture with you all arrow-y dressed. Don't worry, I wouldn't post it on Facebook I just want a photo with my hero."

The phrase 'my hero' echoed in his head.

"Maybe you should wait for the next meteor shower to make all these wishes and hope for them to come true."

Felicity sighed. "Come on, you're not even gonna take a picture with me? I confessed my secret arrow-y dreams to you!" She said, doing a little bit of drama. He grinned.

"No photos with the hood. At least not without his manager."

She teased him "Oh, shut up, you cocky hero!"

They were having a great time. She was fine. With him she felt safe, she felt like home.

"Thank you." She finally wishpered.

Oliver looked at her tenderly. "I hate seeing you crying."

"You didn't see me crying. I had already stopped."

He rolled his eyes. "You were not smiling. For me that's a good enough reason to eat ice cream with you at 4.a.m."

She showed a sweet smile, giving him a look of complicity. "Good to know."

Then, she remembered something. "By the way, Isabel told me that...-"

"Stop." He interrupted her. "I don't want to know anything about that woman, at least tonight. Now it's just you and I."

She stared at him. How did she have to interpret that?

"So... what are we going to do from now on? I mean... in theory we are a couple now."

"Just act like a normal couple." He said and Felicity automatically shouted at him.

"I'm not kissing you, Oliver Queen! I don't mean you look like a bad kisser, pretty much the opposite, but I don't think we should kiss, and...-

"Felicity, don't worry. I was kidding." He tried to calm her down.

She took a deep breath. "Great. But then you didn't answer my question."

He fixed his gaze on the table until he finally said "well, I guess we won't have to do anything out of the ordinary. So relax and think about it this way: now that everyone believes we're together, we don't have to make up excuses to explain why we spend so much time together."

She nodded. "That's true..."

Suddenly she yawned. She wasn't bored; she was tired.

"Maybe we should go home. It's 4.15 a.m. already. It's very late." He said, looking at her tenderly.

"or very early in the morning, don't you think so?" she made a joke and he smiled.

"You have a point there. Anyway, I don't you to fall asleep tomorrow at the office. I need you fully awake, especially now that our company has been tracked."

She opened her eyes completely. "I'll try to get some more information about it tomorrow, I promise."

"Yes, please. We must stop this."

"I know..."

He came closer to her and grabbed her hand, keeping it inside his. "I'm sure you'll find something. You always do, because you're one in a million, Felicity."

She felt buttleflies in her stomach. "Yes, I'm a geek, remember?" she said, taking importance away from his sentence.

"You're more than a geek. You're one of the best people I've ever met."

She inevitably blushed.

"Yeah, well... I try to recycle and use the public transport..." she joked nerviously.

"That's not what I meant." He replied giving her a strange look.

"I know exactly what you meant."

And, in that very moment, he wished they could stay in that shop forever and ever...

#####

In a dark room, situated in a tall building, there was a one-eyed man looking at the screen of his computer. Suddenly, someone got in.

"We got something. Someone has tried to track us. You're gonna love it when you know where the tracking signal comes from."

"Surprise me." said the first man.

"Verdant. Guess you're friend is not as dumd as you thought."

The one-eyed man turned his back to the other. "No, Oliver is not that good at computers. There must be someone else helping him. Find out who this person is."

"I will, Slade."


	4. Chapter 4

It was ten in the morning. Oliver had just had a meeting in the office and now Diggle was taking him to the foundry, where they were going to meet Felicity and Roy. Oliver had given her permission to go to the lair to work harder on this expert hacker who was driving them crazy. Oliver had gone to bed really late, at about 5 a.m., so he had slept only for three hours and it was taking its toll on him now: he yawned every few minutes and it didn't escape Diggle's attention.

"You look tired. Have you returned to your old habits and you spent the night with any cute girl?" He asked half smiling.

Oliver was looking though the window. "I was with Felicity."

Suddenly, he realized it could sound very ambiguous, so he tried to explain himself. "We ate ice cream".

Diggle dedicated him a look though the rear-view mirror. "Sure..."

Oliver sat up straight. "It's not what you think... "

"What am I supposed to think, Oliver?"

He was serious. "I don't know, but whatever it is, it's not like that."

Some seconds passed by in silence, until Diggle coonsidered the conversation settled by saying: "Just be careful. Felicity is not like any other girl you've been with. She's special."

_Yeah, she's special_, he thought, but he didn't say anything.

###

At the foundry, Felicity was trying her best not to fall asleep. There had been two very intense days and she needed a night of non-stop sleep.

"Rough night?" Roy asked looking at her tired facial expression.

"Kind of."

Roy was dying to ask her about what had happened when Oliver had gone to look for her to the office, but he was hesitating.

"Did you do anything interesting last night?"

She was typing cruising speed. "Does eating ice cream count?"

He nodded. "Absolutely, I love ice cream."

Then, Roy came up with an idea. "Hey, I'm sure there must be some icre cream at the club. Do you want to come upstairs to check it?"

Felicity laughed. "Ice cream at half past ten in the morning?"

"You've been working for hours. You deserve a break.", he said trying to persuade her.

Finally, she agreed, standing up. "Ok, let's do it."

"Great."

She sat down again. "Wait, what if someone sees me? I could not explain being here at this time."

Roy rolled his eyes. "Come on, at this time there won't be anyone that important!"

He was right. People usually came at around twelve o'clock. They both went upstairs they she amazed by the fact that he totally knew where the ice cream was.

"hey, you've done this more than once, haven't you?", she joked.

"Yes, I must admit it."

Felicity couldn't help remembering last night with Oliver, eating ice cream together. Her weariness had been worth it. She had hardly slept, but for a good reason: she had been with Oliver.

"You know what? I think we should do this more frequently." Felicity claimed.

"I couldn't agree more. I usually come here to eat some when Oliver pisses me off."

She stared at Roy, considering what he had said. "Maybe I should do the same. I would get fat, though".

Both of them chuckled.

"Roy?" they heard. The voice was Thea's. Roy became nervous.

"Hi!"

Felicity didn't know what to do.

"Weren't you with Sin?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I was, but then I came here to talk to you."

Thea didn't seem to believe him. "And you decided to eat ice cream with her...?"

Felicity thought it would be a good idea to intervene. "Oh, this is my fault. I convenced him."

Thea frowned. "But you should be with my brother in the office. What are you even doing here with my boyfriend?"

"I sent her to take some documents I had forgotten", someone said. They all turned around and they saw oliver entering the club with Diggle by his side.

Saved by the bell, again.

"I'm sorry Oliver, I was going to bring the documents to the office but I found Roy here and he offered me some ice cream and I was carried along... You know how much I love ice cream," she explained, obviously pretending.

"Come with me." Oliver said grabbing her by her arm. They went to the liar with Diggle, but it took Roy some time to go down. He had to calm Thea down and make up an excuse to go away.

"Ok, that was awkward." Felicity admitted once in the Arrow cave.

"You two should be more careful", her boss told her off.

"I'm sorry, I know. And thank you for coming to my rescue. Thea was really freaking out."

She went direclt to her computers, while Diggle and Oliver prepared themselves to train.

"How was the meeting?" She asked him.

"Isabel was mad at me. Apparently, I was supposed to call her." He said with a knowing smile.

"Well, I was going to tell you that, but you didn't let me talk about her, so... don't complain now."

That's when Roy came in. He was a little bit stressed.

"What's wrong?" Diggle enquired.

He panted. "Thea doesn't trust Felicity."

She didn't look surprised. "Normal. She saw us together when you had told her you would be with one of your friends. She reacted the logical way."

Roy nodded.

"Anyway, no more ice cream at the club", sentenced Oliver.

"Yes, daddy", Felicity joked.

Diggle and Roy smiled, and so did Oliver, but he tried to hide it. Then, Oliver yawned and stretched, visibly tired. Roy was suspicious. They were far enough now for Felicity to hear them, so he took advantage of the situation and he lowered his voice:

"Rough night, Oliver?"

"Kind of."

Roy grinned. "Anything interesting you did last night?"

"Not of your business, actually."

"He ate ice cream." Diggle confessed, gaining Oliver's threatening look.

"What a coincidence! So did Felicity..." he hinted.

Oliver ignored them. "Prepare for your training", he said.

Diggle and Roy exchanged a look and then followed Oliver to the trainning place.

Felicity approached them. "Hey, I need to go to the office. I've got a call, they need my help".

Oliver nodded. "Ok. See you at lunch time?"

He hadn't done it on purpose, but it had sounded like he was setting a date with her. "We all could go have lunch at the Big Belly Burger", he tried to save the situation.

She smiled. "Sure."

_Sure. Let's go the four of us... how romantic!_, she thought amused.

###

"Apart from Oliver, his black driver and his sister and her boyfriend, a blonde girl has just gone out. She is Oliver's secretary.", a man said by telephone.

"It's Felicity Smoak. We move to plan B.", Slade claimed.

"Understood."

* * *

><p><em>Thank you people for reading this story! I hope you're really having fun with it :)<br>Please, feel free to make any comment so that I can improve the fanfiction. _

_See you! :D _


	5. Chapter 5

Felicity was in her desk at Queen Consolidated. She had spent more than two hours recovering the documents of one of her superiors, who had made a complete mess with his computer. She was congratulated on having solved his problem and then she went to 'her' office (Oliver's office). She had a terrible headache and didn't have any aspirins to take. She decided to go to the chemist's across the street. It would only take her ten minutes, not too much. However, her way to the chemist's looked like an eternity for her: everyone with no exception looked daggers at her. She felt awkward and ashamed. What was all that about? Then, while waiting for the elevator, she heard two girls whispering. "So they're together?" said one of them.

"Yes, and he promoted her to have her by his side", answered the other.

"How unfair! Maybe we should flirt with Mr. Queen. Everyone knows he's not a one-woman man…" she joked.

They hadn't noticed Felicity, but she had heard all their conversation. She looked around her and all the company workers seem to be staring at her. She felt anxious. She couldn't waste any more time waiting for the elevator, so she took the stairs. Not only until she was in the street could she breathe. She went to the chemist's and after that, she went to a little restaurant near Queen Consolidated. It was almost lunch time, but she didn't feel like leaving the office next to Oliver and under everyone's gaze. She would have lunch alone, that was the best option. She would apologize to Oliver and the others later on. She ordered a salad and a bottle of water. She wasn't hungry to be honest. Then she received a text message from Oliver. _Felicity? Where are u?_

She didn't answer, but Oliver didn't give up: _Is everything ok?Where are you? _Following his message, he called her, but once again, he got no response.

Realizing how hard it was for her not to reply Oliver's messages and calls, she turned off her phone. She spent more than the usual having lunch; she didn't want to run across Oliver nor Diggle. Eventually, she came back to the office. Luckily, there were just a few people there, so she could go to her desk without so much trouble. However, when she arrived Oliver's office, she was a man standing next to her desk. He turned to look at her.

"Felicity Smoak?", he asked gently.

She nodded, visibly confused. "Yes, and you are…?"

"Sawyer. Philip Sawyer", he said offering her his hand, which she shook.

"And how can I help you, Philip?"

She sat on her chair and told him to take a seat.

"I am new here at Queen Consolidated. I am in the Publicity Department and I've been having serious problems to log in. I heard you could solve any problem."

She smiled, flattered.

"Sure. Just wait a second. I need my tablet." She said entering Oliver's actual office since she had left there her tablet. She was glad Oliver was not there yet. She still didn't feel like explain herself.

"Ok, I will show you how to log in safely."

"Perfect."

Their 'meeting' only took ten minutes and then he left. She felt happy. She always felt like that after helping someone.

She went back to her work when Oliver came in, along with Diggle. She looked away.

"So you're alive, that's good to know", he claimed a little bit angry.

"Sorry, the battery ran out."

Oliver didn't buy it. "Really? Because it seemed to me like you were avoiding me."

"Ok, I _was_ avoiding you. So what? You're not the only one who wants to be alone sometimes."

Oliver was completely in shock. "Ok…"

"I'm going to the foundry if you don't need me, Oliver." Diggle said, leaving them alone to be able to talk freely.

"Sure, ok."

After Diggle left, Oliver remained right in front of Felicity's desk for a moment, staring at her, wondering what was going on with her.

Suddenly, Moira Queen appeared. She was all smiles.

"Hi, mum, what are you doing here?"

She kissed her son and said hi to Felicity. "Hello, Mrs. Queen", she answered and then she looked down, pretending to be focused on her work.

"I just wanted to let you know that I've come up with an idea to raise money for the company, given our current situation."

He nodded. "And what's that idea?"

"We're throwing a party in the Mansion tomorrow night. All the big shots will be there, so we should take advantage of it."

Oliver seemed pleased. "It's a brilliant idea, mum. I will be there."

She smiled and turned her eyes to Felicity. "I don't need to tell you that you can bring Felicity, do I?"

Felicity directed her gaze at Oliver, who was clearly lost.

"Come on, Oliver. Everyone knows you're more than friends. And, even if I didn't, Miss Rochev ensured I got to know that."

Then, everything was crystal clear. Of course, they _were _a couple. Felicity was overwhelmed, but Oliver faked a smiled. "Sorry I didn't tell you myself." He said.

"Don't worry. I just hope to see both of you there and from now on, I would like to be informed about you two."

They nodded. "Sure, Mrs. Queen."

"Felicity, now we're family. Please, call me Moira."

"Good. Well, I should go, you must have work." She kissed once again her son and said goodbye to Felicity.

"Bye, mum, see you tonight."

They were all alone. He sighed. "Well, are you ready for a dance, Miss Queen?"

She shook her head. "No way…"

He approached her and put his hand over her shoulder. "Don't worry, everything will be alright."

She nodded, not very convinced. "By the way, what does your mother mean by 'I would like to be informed about you two'? Should we post photos of us together on Facebook and tag her or something?"

He chuckled. "I think she meant that we should go to see her from time to time."

She freaked out. "OMG… like family dinners and all that horrible things?"

"Exactly. Relax, Felicity. Anyway, tell me you've got something about the company's hacker."

She blushed. "Nothing remarkable."

"Ok, keep searching, please", he said walking towards his office.

"Ah! I haven't forgotten how strange your behavior at lunch time has been. One day you'll have to tell me what it was."

"You're right, one day."

He smiled at her and then completed his way to his desk. He was already looking forward to that party. Pretending to be Felicity's boyfriend was going to be very funny, he was sure of that.

###

Slade was reading his employee's report on Felicity Smoak. He had pretended to be a new worker at Queen Consolidated and he had asked for Felicity's help to be able to put a microphone on her desk in order to listen to her conversations with Oliver Queen.

"So they are not only partners in crime, but also a couple…" Slade murmured.

"Yes, they are."

"keep listening to their conversations and keep me updated."

The other man looked at him with curiosity. "What are you going to do?"

Slade met his eyes. "I will pay her a visit".

* * *

><p><em>Hi there! Thank you very much for your comments and welcome to the new followers! <em>

_I'm sure you'll love next chapters in which we will see more of Slade, there will be cute Olicity moments and we will have some fun with Felicity's babbling :) _

_Please, feel free to comment and et me know your opinion. Also, provided they are respectful, I will be very glad to read helpful comments about aspects that could be improved :) _

_Thank you once again, _

_See you! _


	6. Chapter 6 (Part I)

Felicity had her nerves on edge. It was the day of the party and Oliver was supposed to pick her up at 6 o'clock. She had ten minutes left until that moment. Felicity looked in the mirror. She was wearing a long blue strapless dress with an overture in one side, revealing her left leg. She was also wearing a silver necklace and a bracelet made of the same material. She looked beautiful, she knew that, but it wasn't enough. At least, not enough to be Oliver's girlfriend. She wasn't the gorgeous Laurel. She was Felicity, a simple IT girl who happened to be 'cute', but not gorgeous. That night everyone would know about them being a couple and she wasn't ready to endure hateful looks. She wasn't ready to be Oliver's girlfriend.

At the same time, while Felicity was telling herself that everything would be alright, Oliver was inside his car with Diggle, waiting under Felicity's appartement.

"So you're together." The driver finally said.

"We're pretending to be together, I already told you."

Diggle half smiled. "Be careful, Oliver. Everyone knows how these games end up."

He didn't want to keep talking about it, so he got out the car and went to Felicity's house. He knocked the door and, when she opened it, he had to remember himself to breathe. She was completely stunning. He looked up and down and she blushed.

"You look beautiful, Felicity."

"Whatever..." she muttered closing the door.

They went to the car in complete silence until Diggle said hi to her.

"Remember I'll have to talk to some investors, so I'll have to leave you alone for a while. Of course, you could come with me if you want to, but those conversations are usually very boring", Oliver explained.

"No, I'll wait for you. I'll drink a martini. Or maybe two. Though I'm sure I would choke with the olive and not everyone knows the Heimlich's maneuver so I'd propably die... Perhaps I should wait for you in the bathroom, then I wouldn't cause any problems. Although it would be rather weird... Everyone would think I get diarrhoea".

"You're particularly chatty tonight, blondie, what's up?" Diggle said while driving.

She was nervous breakdown.

"Well, apart from the fact that I'm about to burst in a party as Oliver's girlfriend and that I will babble like crazy, I'm perfect."

Oliver took her hand and looked her in the eyes.

"Felicity, listen to me: you're incredible, so you're not going to cause any mess. And if those people don't see how awesome you are, that's their problem, not ours."

"Am I awesome?"

"Positive." He said nodding with his head.

She took a deep breath. "Ok. I'm awesome. I'm awesome, that's right."

_Who am I trying to convince?_, she thought, but instead of keep on freaking out, she remained silent.

When they arrived at Oliver's house, he turned to her before going inside.

"We don't have to do anything you don't want to", he said.

"I know, I know".

Just when they were about to cross the doors, she started to tremble. Being aware of it, Oliver didn't hesitate and grabbad her hand, interlacing his fingers with hers. She was surprised and she blushed, but she felt relieved. Having physical contact with Oliver made her feel more confortable.

Then, they saw Moira Queen coming towards them. Oliver squeezed her hand, trying to calm her down.

"Hello lovebirds", she said as a greeting.

"Hi mum. There's a great atmosphere here. There are too many people!" he flattered his mother.

"Yes, indeed. Well, I should probably continue talking with our guests. Remember to do the same, Oliver."

He nodded.

"Have fun, both of you."

Only when she left, did Felicity breathed.

"Your mother must think I'm dumb", she whishpered.

He chuckled. "At this stage I think she knows how talkative you are, so don't worry."

"True... Do you remember what I said when she came by to the office after being in prison? Oh God... I totally messed it up..."

Oliver grinned at the memory of that moment. "Do you feel like having a drink?"

"Yes, please."

He took two champagne glasses. That's when he realized their hands were still together. However, he let it be. They were just acting like a couple, there was nothing wrong about it.

Suddenly, Thea and Roy were right in front of them.

"Oliver, why didn't you tell me you were together?", thea reprimanded him. "Roy and I had an argument because of that!"

"Now you know".

Roy was completely lost.

"So... you're together? Like, together _together_." He said.

Oliver wanted to laugh and Felicity just wanted to disappear.

"Yes, Roy. Well, excuse me guys, but I have to talk to some investors. Do you mind, Felicity?"

_Of course I mind_, she tought. "No, go ahead."

He kissed her cheek and left. Thea was really amused, Roy was freaking out and Felicity was red with embarrassment.

"Felicity, I'm sorry if the other day I gave you the wrong impression. Usually I'm not that mean, but you know... I thought you were hooking up with my boyfriend when actually you were sleeping with my brother..."

She blushed. "Yes, I understand. The ice cream thing was a little bit weird."

Thea agreed. "In fact, it was. And how is my brother behaving? Does he treat you well?"

"Sure, like a Queen. I mean, not the surname. We're not getting married or anything. It's very soon. And I don't mean I've thought of marriage either, that would be crazy. Well, it's not that I wouldn't like to marry your brother, he's a wonderful person, but I-eh-uhm... I should probably shut up."

Thea laughed.

"I see. I think we're gonna be good friends, Felicity."

She was surprised. "Good. Winning my boyfriend's sister's favour is the first step"she joked and they both chuckled. Roy was like in another planet. What were Oliver and Felicity even doing?

"Felicity, is it a problem for you if Roy and I leave? We want some privacy, you know..." Thea said lowering her voice with a feline look.

"Sure, go do whatever you want to."

"Don't tell my brother" she asked her already leaving.

"I won't, Roy is too young to die, anyway", she muttered by herself.

She was alone now. She was surrounded by a lot of people, but alone. Then she saw Oliver. He was talking to some businessman. They were laughing, but his smile was not genuine. He only really smiled when he was with her and Diggle. She felt so happy to be one the few people who knew his real smile, who knew the real Oliver Queen... He was a hero. He was an incredible person. And nobody could see it, but her and ocassionaly Diggle. She was proud of him. He always put people's lives before his own and that was really generous of him.

"Why so alone, honey?" she heard. It was Isabel Rochev.

"Oh, hello, Isabel. Oliver is busy right now."

Isabel smiled. "I'm impressed you're here."

"Why? He's my boyfriend and this is his mother's party."Felicity was trying to sound confident.

"Yes, but you will never belong to this world regardless of how beautiful and expensive your dresses are. I thought you would be ashamed. Money can't buy elegance."

Felicity was about to burst into tears, but she swallowed hard and said: "Neither can it buy dignity nor compassion."

Then, she felt a hand on her back. It was Oliver's.

"I'm sorry, I was talking to our guests. Maybe we could go somewhere more private."he said looking at Felicity and ignoring Isabel.

"Sure."

"Have fun, Isabel", he finally told her, cutting her short.


	7. Chapter 6 (Part II)

So as to be more intimate, they walked to the garden, where there was nobody.

"May I get you anything to eat?" he offered, clearly aware of how good eater she was.

"Yes, please." She said and Oliver started his way to the mansion. "But Oliver"

He turned around with a questioning look.

"You'd better bring thousands of those tiny canapés. Otherwise, I'll die of starvation."

He grinned and went inside. He found some plates with caviar and pâté and he took some of the rolls. He asked a waiter for a tray and he put everything on it. On his way back to the garden, he saw her in the distance sat over the ledge of the pool. She had tucked up her dress and she had her legs inside the pool, playing in the water. Most of her legs were revealed. He stopped and looked at her. She looked so calm, so sweet, so charming, so tenderly sexy, even.

"Oh, Oliver, you're back", she said, realizing his presence.

He sat down by her side, putting the food between them. As he was wearing a suit, he didn't put his legs inside the pool. Instead, he bent his legs.

"You're going to stain your dress", he said pointing to her position.

She shrugged her shoulders. "So what? I'll just wash it."

Of course. That was Felicity, his Felicity. Completely simple, straightforward and natural. Completely different from the other girls.

"You know… I hadn't dressed like this ever since my prom."

Oliver listened to her in silence, paying attention to every single word she said.

"It was supposed to be a great day, all fun and touching. But it wasn't. My mum was drunk and… well, my father had already been gone since I don't even remember when. I had to get ready at one of my friend's house so that the boy I was dating didn't see my mother and all the mess. I don't have any picture of that day with anyone of my family. I was… alone."

Her weeping eyes talked more than her words.

"You're not alone now. You have _me_." He said very seriously. Then, he added downplaying his previous statement: "After all, I'm your boyfriend, right?"

She rolled her eyes. "Of course, my fake boyfriend because a real one seems to be unthinkable now".

"Any man would love to date you".

"_Any_ man?" she repeated, clearly referring to him.

Several seconds passed by in silence, until he said "Yes, _any _man."

They both knew the implications of their conversation. And she knew how perfect that moment was for a kiss. At least in films. Then, she noticed he was getting closer. She got nervous, _really_ nervous. So she stood up.

"I need to pee, so I should probably go to the bathroom…" she said awkwardly.

Oliver stood up quickly enough to grab her hand, preventing her from going away, forcing her to come back to his side.

"I am really happy you came here with me." He began.

Felicity saw his sparkling eyes. They were shining like never before.

"Are you?" she got to answer.

"Yes. I've always hated these parties and being with these artificial people. But tonight… Only with your presence it was a lot easier for me. For the first time I had a reason to actually want to stop talking to them: being with you. And here we are. Having fun. And I'm good because when you're around, it seems to me nothing could go wrong."

Her heart skipped a beat. What was he implying exactly? Once again he was coming dangerously close. She freaked out, so she tried to take a step back, but she trod on her dress, falling. Instinctively, Oliver tried to help her, but eventually both of them fall to the pool. When they emerged from the water, Felicity was almost hyperventilating.

"Oh my God… I knew I'd mess it up!" she exclaimed.

Oliver, on the other hand, was smiling. "Well, before the island I used to end up inside pools at parties because I was drunk. Now it's because of a girl. That's a big step forward."

"Oh, yes, I can't decide which one is worse." she claimed a little bit annoyed, making him laugh. "Is this funny, Oliver? Because I don't think it is".

Then, he laughed even more. Her hair was so messy and the mascara of her eyes had moved along that he couldn't help it. "You look like a raccoon."

And she chuckled. She chuckled because of how ridiculous the situation was. She chuckled because Oliver's laugh was contagious. She chuckled because she was happy. She chuckled because her heart was alive. She chuckled because she was in love with Oliver Queen.

"So now what?" she asked looking her dress, completely ruined.

"We'll get in through the back door. Only the servants will see us."

"Good. Come on. I don't want to catch a cold."

And so they did. They passed through the kitchen and they went to Oliver's room. It was almost as big as her apartment.

"I'm going to Thea's bedroom to take some clothes for you":

Suddenly, Felicity remembered what Thea and Roy were doing.

"Actually, I don't think you should."

Oliver frowned, but then he understood what she meant, making a murderous look while walking to the door. Felicity ran towards him, closing it right under his nose.

"Oliver, stop. Thea being your little sister doesn't imply she's still that little. What they do is totally normal. Besides, I bet you were far worse than her at her age," she added with a smile.

"But we're not talking about me, we're talking about her. And I'm killing Roy."

He tried to open the door, but she prevented him.

"I myself will wound you with an arrow if you dare get out of this room", she said moving aside.

Oliver was clearly pissed, but he remained still.

"You wouldn't hurt me."

"Try me." She answered with a challenging voice.

Finally, he gave up. "I guess you can use some of my clothes."

He took a grey t-shirt and some short trousers out of his closet and gave them to her. "They'll look baggy on you, but this is the best I can do right now."

"Thank you". She went to the bathroom in Oliver's room to get changed. She took advantage of the moment and had a look at his things there. He used the Hugo Boss cologne, as well as a dandruff shampoo. Felicity smiled to herself. She took a towel to dry her hair and then she tried Oliver's clothes on. She looked like a tomboy, but it made her laugh. In fact, when she came back to Oliver's room, he couldn't help giggling at her.

"I look horrible", she said laughing.

"You're beautiful."

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, you told me the same when I was wearing my dress. How can that be possible?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe it's because you're naturally beautiful".

She blushed. "Yeah, sure…"

She sat down over the bed and he smiled. _She's on __**my **__bed_, he thought.

"So what do you want to do now?"

"We could watch a film."

He nodded. "Ok, let me go down to pick up one."

"Just don't bother Thea, will you be able to do that?"

He forced a smile. "I won't. I'll be here in two minutes."

He was on his way to the living room when his mother saw him.

"Oliver! Thanks God I found you. Mr. Mackenzie wants to talk to you."

He sighed. He had no other option, so he talked to him.

"Saxord Consolidated has been the next. It is really annoying how little the police is doing."

Oliver nodded, but he wasn't really paying attention to him.

"Also, it is strange the hood has not already solved the problem, isn't it?"

"Yes, strange indeed." He agreed, though he knew the hood could not do anything yet.

"Hi Mr. Mackenzie", greeted another man. Oliver left them talking and went to pick a film. It took him some minutes to choose one, but eventually he took "Pearl Harbor", one of his favourite movies ever. Then, he went back to his bedroom.

"You're gonna love the film that I…"-he stopped talking when he looked at Felicity. She had fallen asleep and now she was sleeping like a baby. He considered waking her up, but she looked so calm that he couldn't. Instead, he took a blanket and he covered her. He changed into his pyjamas and stretched out on the bed next to Felicity. He was sideways, staring at her. When did she make his heart skip a beat? He didn't know. But right now, he knew one thing: he could only be himself around her. She made him happy. She made his life worth living. Then, thinking of her, he fell asleep.


	8. Chapter 7

_Hello everyone! Thank you for everything, seriously! You might have noticed I tend to update the fic frequently. The reason why I do this is because I, as a reader, always hate when writers take too long to update stories, so I try to be as quick as possible. _

_I'm glad you liked last chapter. I hope this one shocks you haha :) Please, let me know what you think about it and, as usual, feel free to make any kind of suggestion. _

_Thank you! _

* * *

><p>It was cold. Maybe that's the reason why she woke up. One way or another, she slowly opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling. <em>Where am I<em>?, she thought. That was not her own bedroom at all. Then, she heard somebody else breathing next to her. She looked around: Oliver was sleeping right beside her, like a baby. Suddenly, she remembered everything: how they fell to the pool, how they dressed in Oliver's clothes (which she was still wearing), how he went down to pick up a film and how she got desperate waiting for him. In fact, it seems it had taken him so long to come back that she fell asleep. Then, she thought about the two moments where they almost kissed. That was the first time she allowed herself to think about it and it hadn't been a good idea: she became extremely nervous just thinking about it. Would Oliver possible love her? Or at least like her? She didn't know. There were signs, she was sure, but was she interpreting them in the right way? Then, she heard somebody knocking the door.

"Oliver…", it was Moira, his mother.

Felicity freaked out. She called Oliver in whispers, trying not to make any noise. However, she didn't get any reaction on Oliver's behalf.

"Oliver?", insisted his mother.

What if she entered and found them there, in his bed?

"Oliver!", Felicity said hitting him with a cushion.

"Hey!", he complained. "I was trying to sleep!"

"Yeah, and your mother is about to step in and see the crime scene", she told him at the same time Moira knocked again.

He widely opened his eyes.

"Should I hide myself in the bathroom?", she proposed.

He nodded and said "of course. You must also get out throughout the window, using the blankets as a rope."

She looked confused but, when Oliver chuckled she realized he was making fun of her.

"Oliver, seriously, what do we do?!"she was almost shouting.

Oliver had no time to answer: the door opened and Moira Queen appeared. Instantly Felicity blushed under Moira's look.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know you were still here, Felicity."

"Yes, well, I hadn't planned on this. I mean, how could I ever thought of sleeping with your son? Well, I do, because he is my boyfriend, but not here, because you know, this is your house and-

"Mum, Felicity fell asleep last night and I thought you wouldn't mind if she stayed", Oliver said, cutting her up, for which she thanked him.

"Of course I don't, Oliver. Would you join us for breakfast?"

Oliver was about to accept, but he was sure Felicity would not feel comfortable in that situation, so second thought, he refused her proposal.

"Actually, I was going to take Felicity out for breakfast".

Felicity was relieved.

"What a good idea. In that case, have fun."

"Thank you".

And she left the room. Felicity took a deep breath.

"She must think the worst of me…"

Oliver got out of the bed. "Felicity, believe me, she has seen too many girls in this bedroom."

She didn't like that idea. "Right, I forgot your sexsymbol alter ego", she said a little bit annoyed.

He looked at her, noticing her annoyance. "I can't erase my past, Felicity."

She swallowed hard and he added: "The present is the only thing we have. So let's get out of here and make it worth it".

She smiled and got out of bed. Then, she looked at herself. She only had the dress from last night and surely it would be still wet.

"Hey, can we just go to my apartment first? I'm definitely not going out with this look."

He opened his eyes, pretending to be surprised. "But my clothes look good on you".

"Yeah, no doubt."

Thus, he put on a pair of jeans and a black jersey and they went to the driveway. Diggle was shocked. He thought Oliver had taken her to her apartment last night on his motorbike or something. But instead, she had spent the night there.

"Don't ask", she told him raising her finger.

"Have I missed anything? Because it seems to me you've slept here".

She rolled her eyes and said: "What did I just tell you?"

That made Oliver laugh. "Just take us to her apartment, please, Dig."

They got into the car. On their way to Felicity's house, Diggle and Oliver talked about general things and some possible targets for the Arrow. In contrast, Felicity was rather pensive. Last night had been so crazy… Suddenly, she noticed she smelled like Oliver. After all, she was wearing his clothes. She loved that.

"Remember you told Roy you would train him today", Diggle said.

Oliver nodded. "True. I'll be there."

Finally, they arrived. "Do you guys want to come in?"

They preferred to wait for her inside the car. "We'll wait here. Just don't take too much time, please.", Oliver claimed.

Once felicity left the car, Diggle looked at him through the rear-view mirror.

"You mid sharing with the class?" he asked.

Oliver sighed. "We fell to the pool, we went to my room to change clothes, I went to pick a film to watch, but people got in my way, so when I came back to my bedroom Felicity was already asleep."

"And you didn't wake her up…"

"It's obvious I didn't."

Diggle smiled. "And how did you sleep?"

Oliver looked offended. "Nothing happened, Digg, so don't go there."

Then, Oliver received a text message: _Hey! Second thought I think I'm staying. I need to catch up with work. You two have fun. Felicity. _

Oliver frowned. "What's up?", the driver asked.

"Felicity says she is not coming. She has work to do."

Diggle was as confused as Oliver. "This is very weird. I'm going to her apartment."

_I'm coming_, he texted her.

She was excited about going out with them to have breakfast that he couldn't believe she changed her mind so easily. Something had to have made her think in a different way. Once on the third floor, he knocked the door. She opened quickly.

"Oliver…", she said, without completely opening the door.

"What's wrong, Felicity?", he asked her suspiciously.

"I just got here and I realized al the work I need to do and you know… I stressed out."

"Work doesn't matter. I'm your boss, I won't tell you off, don't worry."

"Oliver! I just don't wanna go, ok?" she shouted finally closing the door, which shocked Oliver.

He didn't know what was going on with her, but right now it was pointless to insist. Therefore, he came back to the car.

"And…?" Diggle asked.

"And nothing. We're going to the foundry", he answered worried and pissed off at the same time. Had he done anything wrong? Had he scared her?

### FELICITY'S POV ###

I took the lift still thinking about Oliver and last night. If I wasn't so shy, we would have kissed, I was sure of it. And then what? Would I be another girl on Oliver's life? Or was he serious about it? It was impossible to know. Probably, not even Oliver knew it. I approached my door and opened it. Then, just when I made my way to the living room, I saw a man on my couch. I stifled a scream.

"Nice to meet you, Felicity Smoak", he said with a little smile.

"Who are you?"

"I'm a friend of Oliver's. Or should I call him the Hood?"

I wanted to run. I wanted to call Dig and Oliver. I wanted to come back to the car. If finding a stranger in your flat is bad enough, finding a stranger who knows who Oliver is in your flat was the worst thing ever.

"We need to talk, Felicity."

"Oliver is waiting for me."

He stood up and came closer to me.

"Then, you're going to send him a message and you're going to tell him you're not going anywhere. And don't you there do anything stupid because right now there are bombs in the Queen's Mansion, your lair and the car where your friends are. So if you appreciate their lives, you'll do what I tell you."

I was trembling with fear. I don't know how I got to send Oliver the message, but I did.

"He won't buy it, he knows me", I warned that man.

"In that case, you'll have to shut him out."

Just as I expected, Oliver was instantly knocking at my door.

"I told you he would buy the message", I told that man.

The stranger made a gesture telling me to be silent. I walked to the door and I opened it a little. I was desperate to let him know something was wrong, but I couldn't. Diggle was inside the car, Oliver's family was in the Mansion and Roy was probably at the foundry, She just couldn't be that selfish.

"Oliver…" I uttered.

"What's wrong, Felicity?", he asked me suspiciously.

I knew he was really worried.

"I just got here and I realized all the work I need to do and you know… I stressed out", I lied.

"Work doesn't matter. I'm your boss, I won't tell you off, don't worry."

I felt the stranger's hand on my back, so I had to do something to stop that conversation. I had to make him go away.

"Oliver! I just don't wanna go, ok?" I exclaimed closing the door. We waited in silence until Oliver was gone and then he invited me to take a seat. How ironic when we were in _my _house.

"Well done."

I was scared to death. What was that psychopath going to do?

"Who are you?"

He nodded. "Oh, yes, I haven't propperly introduced me yet. Excuse me, Felicity. I am Slade Wilson, an Oliver's friend from the Island."

Suddenly, I remembered what Oliver told us about Slade. The woman he loved had died because of Oliver. That was not good news.

"What do you want?"

That was a stupid question. I already knew what he wanted. It was crystal clear.

"Revenge."


	9. Chapter 8

The handcuffs hurt him. He was shut up in one of the rooms of the Police station, alone, waiting for the detective Lance to arrive. He was sure Felicity would get him out of there. She would find some piece of evidence to prove him innocent. Then, the door opened and Lance appeared. Oliver was calm. He knew everything would be alright. They would find a way. They always did.

"So you're not only a thief, but also a criminal. I've been right about you all this time", he said taking a seat opposite to him.

"Sorry, but I don't know what you're talking about", Oliver claimed staring at him with a quiet look.

"You're the Hood."

Oliver tried his best to remain calm.

"That's ridiculous. I thought we already clarified that aspect."

"Somebody sent us proofs against you. And… well, a video in which it is clear you're the Hood. I think you should watch it."

Oliver raised an eyebrow. "A video?"

"It's about our mutual friend Felicity Smoak."

Oliver shrank with fear. "What about her?"

"She's been kidnapped."

"What?"

4 HOURS BEFORE…

Felicity was still trembling. What would Slade do? How was she going to escape?

"I want you to work for me", he said.

She gathered her courage.

"And what makes you think I'd do that?"

He smiled calmly.

"Well… it's very simple: if you don't work for me, I'll kill you."

This time, it was Felicity who smiled.

"Go ahead, then. I don't care. I'd rather die than betraying my friends."

She would always sacrifice herself than helping Oliver's enemy.

"In that case, let me reformulate the threat: work for me. Otherwise, I'll kill Oliver and those two other partners you have."

"How could you do that? They're very strong."

Slade showed her something on his mobile phone. It was a live broadcast of the arrow cave. Felicity saw Oliver training Roy. They were fighting while Diggle was observing, waiting for his turn.

"You see? I know what you do any moment. And, as you might have noticed, I'm a big fan of bombs, so yes, there is a device in your lair. If I press this button, your friends will fly through the air."

She blenched. This guy wasn't kidding. This was serious. What could she do?

"What do you want me to do?" she finally said. She knew she was going to regret it, but what other choice did she have?

"I want you to place all the money stolen from Orbit Corporation, Queen Consolidated and Saxord Consolidated in Oliver Queen's checking account and call the police to inform them."

Felicity was shocked. "You hacked all these companies' accounts…"

"Well, not me, but I plotted it, if that's what you mean."

"But if I do so… everyone would think Oliver is gulty".

He smiled with proud. "Exactly. Come on. Do it. I know you can do it."

Felicity proceeded as he said. It was so hard for her to do that…

"Good. Now I want you to send this video to the police too."

Felicity had a look at the video: it was Oliver dressed as the Arrow getting inside the Queen Consolidated building. She was sure it was from the day the Count took her. He is not wearing the hood, so his face was easily recognizable.

"I can't do this", she said looking away from her tablet.

"Of course you can, Miss Smoak."

If she did that, it would be the end of Oliver and, in consequence, the end of everything. He would be sent to prison and, probably, sentenced to death. She could not betray him. She could not destroy his life.

"Either you do this or not, he'll end up dead."

He reminded her of the little button he had on his mobile phone with which all the foundry could be demolished with all her friends inside. She hated herself for that, but she couldn't let and see him die.

"Done", she said holding back her tears.

"Now I need you to be quiet: I'm going to record a video. I may require your participation, though. We'll see…"

She thought about last night. It had been such an amazing night with Oliver. And now she had exposed him and everything was about to crash down. How could life change so easily?

###

"Auch…" Roy complained after being punched by Oliver as part of his training.

"Don't be a moaner!" Diggle exclaimed amused.

Oliver laughed. He hadn0t forgot about Felicity and her weird behaviour, but at least he was having fun with Roy and Diggle. Actually, he was starting to like Roy. He was a nice boy. He was glad Thea had found him and not any other bigheaded man. Suddenly, his phone rang. He run to pick it, hoping it was Felicity, but it was his sister.

"Oliver… Channel 4. Now."

He followed her orders and he felt his entire world collapse when he read the news headline: _Oliver Queen: the billionaire who steals his own company_.

"Thea, I'll call you later".

The three of them watched the news carefully. Apparently, he had stolen the money from all companies affected and, obviously, the police was after him. He didn't hesitate and took his coat.

"Where the hell are you going?", Diggle asked him.

"I'm going home."

Diggle got angry. "Oliver, if you go home, the police will be waiting for you."

"I know. I want them to find me. I need to clean my name. Otherwise, the Arrow adventure will end."

Roy blocked his way. "And how are you going to do that, smart ass?"

"Felicity will solve it. She will figure out who is doing this and she will send it to the police."

Diggle was not convinced. "Why don't you call her first?"

Oliver did it, but she didn't answer. He tried again, but he got the same response. Thus, he sent her a message: _We're in trouble. Need your help. It's urgent!_

"Now I'm leaving. If I hide myself, they would think I'm guilty. Please, contact Felicity NOW."

Diggle and Roy stared at each other totally confused. Everything was going wrong…

Once Oliver arrived home, the detective Lance was already there along with some other officers. His mother was incredibly nervous and Thea looked in shock.

"Oliver Queen, You do not have to say anything but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something you later rely on in court, anything you do say may be given in evidence".

Moira Queen grabbed his son's arm.

"Wait, he's innocent!"

Oliver tried to smile. "Don't worry, mum, I'll be fine. This is a mistake."

"I know, Oliver…"

There was no time for more. He was sent to prison. He was directed to a lonely room and he remained there handcuffed for a while.

PRESENT TIME...

"So you're not only a thief, but also a criminal. I've been right about you all this time", he said taking a seat opposite to him.

"Sorry, but I don't know what you're talking about", Oliver claimed staring at him with a quiet look.

"You're the Hood."

Oliver tried his best to remain calm.

"That's ridiculous."

"Somebody sent us proofs against you. And… well, a video in which it is clear you're the Hood. I think you should watch it."

Oliver raised an eyebrow. "A video?"

"It's about our mutual friend Felicity Smoak."

Oliver shrank with fear. "What about her?"

"She's been kidnapped."

"What?"

Lance inserted a CD on the TV. After several seconds, Oliver saw Slade Wilson on the screen.

"_Hello Oliver. It's been a while since the last time we talked. However, I don't feel like catching up with you right now. Instead, I want to talk to the Arrow. I want to talk to __you. __Remember Shado? I do think of her every single day of my existence, the same way you think of a certain blonde girl." _

Felicity's face appeared on the screen and Oliver's heart skipped a beat. What was all that about? Then, Slade slapped her in the face, making her moan in pain. He felt his rage increase.

"_You see, we're having some fun. She's helped me a lot lately revealing you're Arrow alter ego to the world. She's really smart, I can see why you like her. But as you can imagine, I'm not letting her go. Unless you come to meet me, of course. How terrible that by this time you'll already be in prison, unable to go out. And, even if you got to get away, you would never know where we are. Don't worry, Oliver. I'll record all the show so that you can see your lovely girlfriend die. I dare you, the Arrow, to get out of prison and come to rescue your girl. You have four hours. Well, now I'll let your girlfriend say goodbye to you."_

Once again, the camera focused on her. She was dishevelled and she looked horrible. Her eyes were full of tears.

"_Oliver… I'm sorry, I got myself in trouble again. But whatever happens today, I want you to know that I don't blame you. I'm glad I met you. And by 'you' I don't mean the Arrow nor Oliver Queen. I mean __you__, Oliver, my Oliver."_

She took a deep breath and, crying, she continued:

"_I wish we could eat some more ice cream at 4 a.m. again… I will never forget being in that horrendous place with you, all smiley. Don't forget me, Oliver…"_

Then, he saw Slade and he said "Four hours".

As soon as the video finished, Oliver said: "I need to get out of here, detective."

"We'll look for Felicity", he assured him.

"You have no idea where to find her!" he shouted with anger.

"Do you?"

Oliver said with a tiny voice: "No…"

"We'll do anything in our power to find her."

He shook his head. "Even if you found her you would be able to save her." That man, Slade Wilson, he is incredibly strong due to a substance called Mirakuru which was introduced in his body."

The detective became scared stiff. "Like the one who attacked me and my colleagues?"

Oliver nodded. Both of them went silence, until the detective Lance stood up to leave.

"Detective! I need to get out! NOW!" he said visibly unsettled.

Lance looked at him one more time and, before leaving, he added: "I'm sorry, Oliver."

"NO!" he screamed running to the door and hitting it, but he couldn't do anything. There was no way of getting out of there. Felicity would die because of him. Felicity would cease to exist. He couldn't bear that. He couldn't live that way. He needed her. He needed her in his life. It was clear now for him: he considered Felicity as more than a friend. But what could he do?

_Felicity…forgive me_, he thought fully aware of the fact that he couldn't do anything. That was it. That was her end. That was _his_ end: Felicity was doomed to die.

* * *

><p><em>Thank you so much, lovely readers! I'm sure you're looking forward to reading what happens with our dear Felicity, as well as Oliver. So am I haha :) <em>  
><em>Please, express yourselves, let me know your opinion, as always. I would really appreciate your comments. <em>

_Also, as you may imagine, we're getting to the end of the fic. There are just a couple of chapters left, more or less. All good things come to an end, I guess :( _

_Thank you again and I hope this chapter has made you breathless. I was, however ironic it may seem. _

_Love you, guys! Thank you! :) _


	10. Chapter 9

_I'm so sorry it took me this long to upload a new chapter! And I know this new chapter is very short, but I'm really stressed at university, so right now I'm pretty busy. I'll try to upload as soon as possible, though, especially due to the fact that there are a few chapters left. _

_Again, thank you so much for yout patience and your support! _

* * *

><p>"Where the hell is Felicity?" Diggle groaned.<p>

He and Roy had tried to reach her for ages. They had even gone to her apartment, but there was no trace. They needed Felicity's help to save Oliver, to clean his name, but she was nowhere to be found. Had she vanished?

Roy went to the Queen's Mansion. He wanted to find Felicity, but he also had to be with Thea due to what was happening with her brother. She needed him next to her.

"I can't believe this is actually happening," Thea said.

She was seated in the living room, with the TV on, waiting for some new information to come.

Roy was beside her and Moira Queen was standing up, with a lifeless gaze.

"This is a mistake, I'm sure", Roy comforted her.

She nodded, completely sure of her brother.

"Well, I could make some calls and Oliver will be able to get out until he's proved to be innocent." Moira said, but Thea gave her a threatening look.

"Mum, Oliver _is_ innocent. You don't need to call anybody, ok?"

"Honey, we have to take into consideration any possibility…"

"I trust him. He may be a little bit weird sometimes, and he obviously has secrets, but so what? We all have secrets."

Roy was glad his girlfriend trusted her brother so much. At the beginning Roy wasn't a huge fan of Oliver Queen, but now that he knew his secret, he wanted everyone to look up to him. He risked his life every day and nobody seemed to appreciate that.

"OMG…" Roy heard Thea saying. He looked at the TV and saw some breaking news:

_Oliver Queen: the Hood? Reliable sources from the Police Department claim the existence of a video proving Oliver Queen to be the Hood. If this is true, he would have not only stolen from his own company, but also 'failed' this city. Who is actually Oliver Queen?_

"This is all a mistake!" Thea yelled at the TV.

"Oliver…" Moira murmured.

Roy was freaking out. Moira was pale and his girlfriend was almost crying. He had to call Diggle, but he couldn't leave them alone.

"Hey… everything will be alright, I promise", he told Thea, hugging her.

"Yeah…"

"I'm going to bring you two some water, ok?"

They nodded. He went to the kitchen and he used that chance to call Felicity. Still not available. Then, he called Diggle.

"Did you see the news?" Roy asked.

"Yes. Don't you think is weird Felicity is missing and, at the same time, Oliver is accused of being the Vigilante?"

"Totally. But what has happened?"

"Some bad thing must have happened, definitely. I'm going to try to visit Oliver. Stay with Thea and Moira, and if you contact Felicity, let me know."

"Ok."

###

Oliver was locked, alone, with his head spinning around, thinking of Felicity. He looked at his watch. There were 45 minutes left. In 45 minutes, Felicity would be dead and he would have done nothing. _This is one of my nightmares, _he thought_. _ But it wasn't. That was reality, damn reality. Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice.

"Please, I need to see Mr. Queen. I have to talk to him, Detective Lance".

It was Digg. He must have seen the video.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Diggle, but Queen is not allowed to receive any visits."

Oliver felt powerless. Neither Diggle nor Roy could get him out of there without Felicity's help to control the cameras and the security system. And even if they could, there was no time. He knew right now no-one could do anything to save him or Felicity. And even of the Police or Diggle or Roy found Felicity, Slade wanted Oliver, not them. He played Felicity's words in his mind over and over again. He knew them by heart. She was almost crying, but he expected her to be way too more emotional. Then, he thought it was weird the fact that Felicity mentioned the ice cream. If he was supposed to die and he was given the opportunity to say goodbye to her, what would he say? He didn't know exactly, but surely nothing related to the ice cream. He would be more sentimental. He would talk about his feelings for her, not about a horrible place where they ate some ice cream. Suddenly he realized it could be a clue. What if Felicity had taken advantage of that opportunity to give him a clue of where she was without being noticed? Yes, that sounded a lot like Felicity. She was smart enough so as to help him find her. So now she was probably somewhere near that ice cream shop. He didn't know where specifically, but at least it was something. He thought of telling Lance about his discovery, but they would fail. Slade was not a game. It had to be him. It had to be Oliver. And he was desperate. He was willing to do anything to save Felicity.

"Did you want to talk to me?" Lance said near Oliver.

He nodded.

"I want to negotiate with you."

Lance laughed. "I do not negotiate with criminals."

"I will do whatever you want me to. But please, let me go save her. I just want that and then I'll come back."

Lance was shocked. "Are you kidding me?"

He shook his head. "I've never been so serious before."

"How can I know you'll come back?"

"You can't. But deep down you know I'm not such a bad person. I've saved your daughter several times. I may have killed some people, but I just try to make justice to those who seem to get away. Please, let me save her. You know how it feels to lose someone you love. I can't lose her."

Lance was in silence. Oliver's heart was racing.

"Please… she isn't the one to blame for your disliking me. You know I'm the only one who can save her. I… I just… I love her."

Lance stared at him. It was the first time Oliver admitted his love for Felicity and it had been with Lance. The situation must be incredibly critical for him to open up to Lance so much. Then, Lance stood up and walked out, while Oliver felt how his heart stopped beating. That was his last chance and he had lost it. He had lost Felicity forever.


	11. Chapter 10

It was a very cold and dark place. It seemed to be like an old industry. Slade and Felicity were, indeed, next to the ice cream shop where she and Oliver once went. She standing up, chained, with her arms towards the ceiling. Also, she had something on her ankle. Slade had put it to her, it was like a metal bracelet, but it was very weird. Probably, it was nothing good. She was scared, but she believed in Oliver. She knew one way or another he'd come for her. He alwayd did. But there were 5 minutes left and everything was quiet and in control. Slade appeared even bored. He had been in that room with her the whole time.

"It seems your prince is not coming", he said with disappointment.

"He didn't do it on purpose", she answered.

Slade didn't know what she was talking about.

"Shado, I mean", she continued. "He liked her".

He got tense. "Shut up, my love. You don't really want to go there".

"He tried to save her!"

He approached her with a really slow pace. "He let her die. And I'm gonna do the same with you and, once he's suffered enough, I'll kill him too".

Felicity shook her head. "Revenge is not going to bring you Shado back. In fact, if you kill us, you'll feel worst than ever".

He raised his eyebrow. "I don't see why I would feel bad. My revenge would be complete".

"Yes, you're right. But then you'll have no one to blame for Shado's death but you. And believe when I say there is nothing worst than self-guilt."

Slade remained silent. He wanted to take revenge on Oliver, but he also knew the girl was right. However, he was willing to run the risk.

"There's nothing you can say to stop me, sweetheart".

She swallowed hard.

"I know. I know your thirst for revenge needs to be quenched. And I know I'm going to die because Oliver is in prison, but I wasn't trying to dissuade you."

She saw him smile. What was he thinking?

"You're wrong about one thing, Miss Smoak. But maybe someone else can explain it, doesn't it, Oliver?"

She followed Slade's look, and there he was: Oliver had come.

30 MINUTES BEFORE...

Oliver was still seated, thinking of Felicity. She must be very scared, that for sure. And he couldn't do anything. Lance had ignored him completely. Then, he heard someone coming. He heard footsteps. Suddenly, the door opened and he saw himself in front of him. It was him, it was the Arrow.

"What the hell...?" He said totally confused. "Diggle?"

That man took off the hood.

"What is going on?" oliver asked. The man in the Arrow clothes was Detective Lance.

"Come on, we're getting out of here!"

Oliver was freed by Lance 'the Hood' and they both walked side by side to the exit, hitting every man they met. Once on the street, they ran and hid in an alley. They were breathless.

"Thank you", Oliver said.

"I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing this for our mutual friend Felicity Smoak."

"Still, thank you."

The other nodded.

"Now... could I get my Arrow suit back, please?"

Lance frowned. "Actually this is not your suit."

"And where is it?"

"It's here, as well as your quiver and bow", a new voice said.

Oliver turned around and he saw Diggle. He was wearing an Arrow suit, too.

"What is going on, guys? How many suits are there? This is not possible".

Diggle smiled. "The real one is yours", he stated giving him the clothes. "Ours are just fancy dresses".

Oliver opened his eyes with suprise. "Fancy dresses? Like... a disguise?"

"It seems the Hood is famous enough for children to want to dress like him..." Lance murmured.

"But why are you wearing that?"

Diggle was expecting Oliver's answer. "We're going with you."

"NO WAY", he replied while he was changing his clothes.

"Queen, if what you told me is true and the psycho who has Felicity is that strong, you're gonna need help", Lance claimed.

"You're not alone, Oliver, remember?"

Oliver stared at them with a serious look. He didn't want them to come. He knew the odds of defeating Slade were slim, so he didn't want more casualties. But he didn't have time to argue; he had to save her. He had to arrive on time. So he agreed.

PRESENT TIME

"There's nothing you can say to stop me, sweetheart".

She swallowed hard.

"I know. I know your thirst for revenge needs to be quenched. And I know I'm going to die because Oliver is in prison, but I wasn't trying to dissuade you."

She saw him smile. What was he thinking?

"You're wrong about one thing, Miss Smoak. But maybe someone else can explain it, doesn't it, Oliver?"

She followed Slade's look, and there he was: Oliver had come.

Suddenly, Oliver jumped to the ground all arrowy dressed. He looked at her with a painful gaze. He wasn't wearing his mask nor the hood, so his eyes were reveiled. She felt her tears coming. She was glad he had come to save her, but she also knew they both could die, and didn't want him to die because of her.

"Hello, Oliver", Slade said calmly.

"Let her go. This is between you and me."

"Don't make me laugh. You know she is key here. But before you try some tricks, let me show you something."

He pointed to three crossbows on the ceiling. "Do you see them? Their mechanism is connected to my heart beat, which means that if something happens to me, they will be activated. In other words, if I die, _she_ dies."

Felicity started crying. "Oliver, go away. It's not worth it!"

"You have made a mistake, Slade, because I didn't come here alone."

Diggle and Lance, with their hoods on, appeared. They had already deactivate the crossbows.

"Your crossbows are fallen in combat", Oliver made fun of him.

"Did I forget to tell you about the microchip?", Slade asked pretending to have been forgetful. "Oh, yes. You see that metal thing on her ankle? I'm afraid it is also connected to me and I'm sure you won't be able to deactivate that any time soon, no matter your training as a policeman or as an army guy. So... who's laughing now, Oliver?"

* * *

><p><em>Hi there! Thank you so so much! Your comments and followings mean the world to me! :)<br>I hope you're having some fun with these last chapters. Finally, the epic fight between Slade and Oliver has come, aren't you excited? Because I am haha :D _

_So, this is all for now, I'll try to update soon! Thanks again! _


	12. Chapter 11

She was almost crying, shaking with fear, aware of the fact that she could die right there. Diggle and Lance were trying deactivate the bracelet and Felicity was helping them. However, Oliver was sure they wouldn't do that. Otherwise, Slade didn't let them do it. Thus, it was just him, Oliver, having to destroy Slade without killing him because that would mean Felicity's death. But then what? He could leave Slade unconscious, but he could never kill him if he wanted Felicity alive. He couln't wait until finding a way of releasing her. So what could he do? And where was Roy when he needed him most? Roy could just break the microchip by means of his 'mirakuru strength'. But he wasn't there.

"Don't touch that wire or we all will be meat balls", Felicity said nervously.

Lance looked at her in shock. "I think I will retire after this..."

"You could always join Team Arrow. Our lair is more crowded with each passing day, anyway...", Felicity rambled.

Diggle frowned. "I don't know why, but I can't imagine him in our cave".

"I would never join the Hood. I'm not Oliver Queen's biggest fan, you know..."

"Then why are you doing this?", Felicity asked.

Lance was in silence for a while, and then answered: "I owe it to him. He's saved Laurel so many times... and he helped me saw Sarah. Besides, apart from your hacking hobby you're a good girl; you don't deserve to die only because I dislike Queen".

She smiled briefly. "Thank you".

"Guys, please, keep your words for later, when we're far away from here, stress-free", Diggle told them.

"Yes, please, because I don't really like this bracelet, you know...", Felicity joked.

She looked at Oliver. He was suffering. He was desperate and she knew that. She smiled at him, trying to comfort him, but that made him feel worse (if that was possible).

"I'm getting bored", Slade suddenly said.

Oliver decided it would be better to stop looking at Felicity for a while and focus on Slade.

"Let her go".

"I think I want some fun before killing her."

Slade showed a little knife; Oliver wondered what his intentions were. Then, his enemy fixed his look at Diggle. Expecting the worst, Oliver took an arrow as fast as he could and threw it to Slade. However, Slade caught the arrow with his hand without showing any kind of emotion at the same time he threw the knife to Diggle, stabbing Diggle's back.

"Oh my God, Dig..." Felicity uttered with concern.

Diggle was notably bleeding, lying on the floor, in pain. Then, Slade approached Lance with Oliver's arrow in his hand. Oliver threw him several arrows, but most of them failed and some others hardly hurt him. Finally, despite Lance's resistance, Slade stabbed him on his stomach with the arrow.

"NO!" Oliver shouted.

Felicity was scared to death: being hurt on the stomach was a really serious thing. Then, she saw Oliver running towards Slade. He tried to punch him in the face, but Slade protected himself with his arm (hard as a rock). Diggle stood up trying to help Oliver, but it was in vain: Slade hit him, making him land a few metres away.

"Stop it!" Felicity screamed.

"Slade! Fight with me! They don't have anything to do here!" Oliver wanted his friends to be safe.

Slade replied with a blow on Oliver's tummy, knocking him down. Oliver didn't have time to stand up: Slade kicked him on his stomach and chest. Oliver was on the floor, with his hand on the stomach, trying to resist.

"Is this all you can do? You've got to be kidding me..." Slade complained.

Oliver stood up. He looked furious. What could he do? Slade was more dangerous and stronger than ever. And now he was all alone. He looked at his friends: Lance was almost unconscious, losing a lot of blood, Diggle was unable to bear the pain the arrow on his back was causing him, and Felicity was visibly desperate, in panic. Oliver knew he had a few arrows left, but he didn't want to waste them. Using arrows against Slade was pointless. Thus, he knew he had to fight hand to hand. He used his bow as a weapon and hit Slade, but his enemy only smiled. Slade tried to punch him, but Oliver dodged him. Oliver took him by his hip and tried to knock him over, but Slade was smart enough to turn the tables. He kept Oliver againts the floor, twisting his arm and squeezing Oliver's neck with his hands. Oliver tried to hit him to release himself, but it was impossible. Oliver couldn't breathe, he was near the uncounsciousness. Suddenly, Felicity shouted:

"Let him go! Please... Don't kill him! Kill me instead! Let him go...", she said in tears.

Oliver looked daggers at her. What the hell was she doing?

Then, Slade released him. Oliver started to cough, out of breath.

"You are right. I am almost carried away with so much fun with Oliver. Yes, I need to kill you first."

Oliver stood up and hit him with his bow, but Slade grabbed him by his shirt and lift him up from the ground.

"I have a brilliant idea. I won't kill her. _You _will."

Oliver was freed and he fall to the floor. Felicity looked sick. Oliver skipped a beat.

"What?"

"You killed Shado. Now killing your girlfriend is not enough. You will kill her."

Oliver laugh with irony. "What makes you think I will do that?"

"Because if I do it, she will suffer, that I guarantee you. However, if you do it, you could save her all the pain."

"I am going to kill you, Slade".

He smiled. "Do it, and she will meet the same fate as me."

"Do it, Oliver. Really, do it", Felicity begged him.

Oliver was in a corner. He could never hurt Felicity, but he didn't want her to suffer either. Then, he had an idea: he would use the technique he learnt from Yao Fei by which he could make someone look like they are dead, but actually they're not. Nevertheless, he had to be convincing. He had to act as if he was going to really lose her forever.

"I'll do it".

"Good decision."

Oliver came closer to where Felicity was chained. He revived memories of him in the Police Station, thinking Felicity was gonna die. He needed those feelings to look real.

"Hey...", he said trying to smile.

"Hi there..."

Oliver touched her face with his hand tenderly. "I don't want to do this, Felicity".

She nodded. "I know, but you have to. It's the only way you may have a chance to survive."

Oliver swallowed hard. She was willing to die to give him an opportunity to kill Slade and survive. Was she real? Just when Oliver thought there wasn't someone so generous and loving, Felicity appeared.

"Felicity, I...", he had to stop because he was just about to cry. She was all heart... She was too good.

She noticed that and she wanted to hug him, but she was cuffed.

"I don't blame you, Oliver. I will never blame you. How could I blame the man who gave me a purpose to live?"

He caressed her cheek. "At least, you will be in two places at the same time."

She frowned, not knowing what he was talking about.

"You will be in Heaven and in my heart. You'll fulfill your dream".

"Oliver, I'm Jewish."

He smiled. She contradict him even when she was about to die.

"True. In that case, you'll be in _Olam Jaba_ and in my heart. Forever."

"I can't believe you remember that. I told you about my dreams like ages ago."

He approached her even more before her blushing faces. "I remember every single word You've ever said to me."

"Thank you for making my dreams come true."

He shook his head. "No, thank _you". _

"Me? For what?"

"For being part of my life. For being _my_ life."

Felicity's heart was racing and Oliver was so close that she could feel his heart too.

"Oliver..."

"You asked me once if I had any happy story. Well, now I do, because you're my happy story, Felicity."

Her tears were streaming down her face. She could not help herself.

He ended the distance betwen their lips and kissed her. It was a sweet kiss. It was a goodbye kiss. It had to seem that.

When he separated from her, the intensity of her look was indescribable.

"I love you, Oliver Queen", she whispered staring at him.

He fondly kissed her forehead. "I love you, Felicity Smoak."

"How tender...", Slade said. "But I can't be here all day".

Oliver took her neck with both hands. "I'll see you soon", he said in her ear before squeezing her neck a little bit and pressing the particular artery to carry out his plan.

Slade approched them and checked if she was dead. He looked surprised.

"She's dead. You kept your word. You have killed her."

"NO!" someone shouted.

Both men looked to the place where the voice came from. Oliver felt relieved. It was Roy.

"What the hell did you do?" he roared coming close to Oliver dangerously.

Oliver remained quite and stiff. "Just release her, Roy. I did what I had to."

"But..."

"Roy, please."

Roy could not believe what he had just seen, but he also trusted Oliver. He could have never hurt Felicity. But the, what was going on?

"Choose a beautiful place to bury her. Maybe you can bury her in your Mansion, next to your father's gravestone."

Oliver made sure Roy broke the bracelet that linked Felicity and Slade. Once he did so, Roy took Felicity where Lance and Diggle were. Lance. He had almost forgot about him. He must be really bad.

"Roy, take everyone out of here. Take Lance and Diggle to the hospital."

Roy was furious. "No, I won't leave you alone."

Oliver knew Roy was way too stubborn to obey him, so he decided it would be easier to defeat Slade if they worked together.

"How nice... two against me. Anyway, I'm stronger than you."

Roy came closer. "Are you sure?" he asked punching him in his face, taking him by surprise. Slade touched his upper lip with his hand: he was bleeding. Roy had hurt him.

"You have the mirakuru..."

"Now it's when the real fight begins", oliver claimed.

* * *

><p><em>Hi people! I'm so sorry it took this long to update! I just hope you like this new chapter. I find the Olicity scene so sweet... :) <em>

_Anyway, thank you so much for your patience and support!_

_xxx_


	13. Chapter 12

Oliver noticed that Slade seemed a little bit tense. Now that Roy was by his side, the chances of getting out of there alive were bigger, and Slade knew that. He looked briefly at Felicity, who was 'asleep', lying on the floor next to Diggle and Lance. He though of her and how much she had been through. He had to destroy Slade not just for him, but also for her. He had hurt Felicity and that was unforgivable. However, keeping Roy under control was not going to be easy. He nodded, letting Roy know he could start. And so did Roy. He ran to punch Slade, but the villain was quick enough to avoid the blow. Then, Oliver hit him at the same time Roy tried to punch him in the face again. Oliver hurt his hand: it was as if Slade was made of metal. Thus, he used his bow to knock Slade, but it was useless. This time, Slade grabbed Oliver by his shirt and lift him up, like a leaf. Roy tried to help him, but he could not prevent Slade from smashing Oliver against one of columns of the place, breaking it partly, leaving some wires exposed. Roy gave Slade a hard punch and his upper lip started to bleed. Nevertheless, it began to heal instantly. Slade pushed him away, making him fly through the air, landing far away. In the meantime, he approached Oliver. He stood up to fight Slade, but he grabbed him by his neck, squeezing it. Roy realized what was happening. He had to do something before Slade killed Oliver. He run towards them, but he stopped when Slade said:

"Don't you dare take another step or I'll kill him!"

Oliver felt how difficult was for him to breathe at that stage. If Slade squeezed his neck a little bit more, he would be unconscious. He had to do something.

Roy took a little step, but he immediately regretted it: Slade strangled Oliver even more. He could hardly breathe. Suddenly, he remembered the wires in the column. They were uncovered and just next to him. Oliver made a gesture, hoping Roy would get it. And he did.

"Slade, Shado wouldn't want this! She wouldn't want you to kill Oliver"

"He killed her!"

"You know that's not true! Look around you: you're surrounded by death and suffering. This is no life."

Oliver took advantadge of Slade being distracted by Roy to punch him in the stomach and strip off one of the wires. Then, Slade turned to look at him and, without knowing what Oliver had done, he came close to him. In a matter of seconds, Oliver touched him with the wire, causing him to electrocute. Quickly, Oliver distanced himself from Slade and approached Roy, who was really shaken. They both saw Slade die by electrocution. It looked painful and, even despite everything oliver had been though, he felt pity about Slade. They were once friends and they suffered a lot together. But that was how things had to end. Once Slade was lying on the floor, lifeless, Oliver focused on his partners.

"Roy, take Lance and Diggle to the hospital", he said coming closer to Felicity.

"Wait, what about Felicity? What did you do to her?"

"Roy, NOW. They're gonna die".

It was too hard for Roy to do as Oliver said, but he did. Olivr took Felicity and got out of there. He didn't want her to see Slade that way.

"What am I going to say to the police and the doctors?" Roy asked.

"I don't know. But we can't save them in the lair".

Roy nodded. Oliver would have wanted to be with Diggle, but he had to take care of another person right now. He waited until Roy was gone to wake Felicity up. He was dying to hear her voice once again.

"Ahhh", she breathed, her eyes wide open.

"Where are we? What happened? Where is Slade? How are Diggle and the others?"

Oliver smiled and put his finger over her mouth, making her shut up.

"You're safe, it's over", he said, grabbing her cheeks with both hands.

"Did you...-is he dead?"

Oliver nodded and she felt relieved.

"Where are Diggle, Roy and the detective?"

"Roy has taken them to hospital. They'll be fine".

"I need to see them".

Oliver then realized they could not be seen out there. Everybody knew now he was the Arrow and Felicity was his friend (to say the least).

"We can't, Felicity. They know who we are. If they see me, they'll sent me to prison. And if they see you, they'll catch you for having helped me and having kept my secret."

She looked tense.

"So now what?"

"Now we go to the lair and I'll go to the hospital to see what's going on with Diggle and Detective Lance."

"Wait, we can have a look at the video cameras from hospital.", she reminded.

So they went to the Arrow cave and, before anything else, they checked on their friends. They saw both of them were in a room, resting.

"Thank God..." she muttered, taking a seat on the couch.

Oliver was sat on her usual chair, looking to the ground.

"Oliver", she whispered and he stared at her.

"You didn't kill me..."

It was obvious, but she hadn't wanted to tackle the issue until then.

"No, how could I? I used a technique Yao Fei taught me on the Island."

She nodded. "Thank you".

"You told me about the ice cream shop. You're the hero here, not me".

She smiled. "Honestly, I wasn't sure you would get it..."

Oliver pretended to be offended. "Hey... you don't think I'm that silly, do you?"

"Well..." she said and both of them grinned.

They knew they had to talk about their kiss and their 'I love you' exchange, but they didn't know how to bring up the issue. Oliver sat next to her on the couch, very close to her. She could feel his tense body next to her. Then, Oliver took her hand, interlacing his fingers with hers. She couldn't help herself and she blushed, looking down but grabbing his hand firmly.

"Felicity, I... What I said... I am... I just...", he tried to explain, but given his clumsiness, she smiled sadly.

"I guess if it was good it wouldn't be so difficult to say", she answered a little bit upset.

He looked at her immediately, fearing she thought he didn't love her after all.

"You're right. It's because it's not good that it's difficult".

She released his hand. She could feel her tears coming. _Typical Felicity_. How could Oliver Queen love her? It was nonsense. He had said he loved her because she was supposed to die. That was all...

"Felicity", he began, grabbing her hand once again, making her stare at him. "I love you".

Her heart skipped a beat.

"I mean everything I said to you. I mean it, Felicity. When I watched the video I would have killed Slade right there. I can't stand the idea of you being hurt, especially it is because of me. When I saw you there, cuffed... I had never been so mad before. I put all my efforts to focus on Slade, not on you."

She couldn't speak. She was shocked. She would have never expected such a declaration of love.

"I love you and I would die to be with you, but I can't be selfish. Us being together would ruin your life. I'm not good for you."

She immediately got angry.

"What the hell are you talking about, Oliver?"

He squirmed in his seat. He could tell how mad she was right now.

"I'm sorry, but you could only have a real life without me. Otherwise, if you are with me, you will always be in danger. And now the Police knows about us, and we-"

"Oliver, don't you see you're my life now?", she replied interrupting him. "I don't want another life if you're not in it. I just don't want it."

Oliver stood up and took some steps. Then, he added, turning his back to her:

"I can't let you do this. You almost get killed, I wouldn't forgive myself if something happened to you again and..."

"But Oliver", she tried to say.

"Felicity, listen to me."

She stood up, visibly angry. "No, _you_ listen to me. I'm not going anywhere, ok? I told you once and I tell you again: it's my life, my choice. We don't happen to choose who we fall in love with. So yes, being with you may not be the easiest thing, but I love you with everything it implies, the good and the bad. So excuse if I want to spend the rest of my life with you, but I can't help it."

In that moment, Oliver ended the distance between them and kissed her. It was full of passion, full of need. He needed her. He desperately needed her. And he would have been forever like this if hadn't been for his mobile phone. They came apart, him looking for his phone. It was Roy calling the Arrow (Oliver's phone was at the Police Station). He pressed the 'hands-free' buttom so that Felicity could hear the conversation.

"Everything ok?", Oliver said as his greeting.

"Yes, but I'm with someone who wants to talk to you."

They shared a look. They both knew it was Thea.

"Give her the phone."

Suddenly, Thea's voice appeared.

"Ollie?", she was crying.

He had a knot in the pit of the stomach.

"Hey, Speedy..."

"Ollie, where are you? Is Felicity ok?"

"Yes, she's safe. We're all fine", he answered. Having this conversation with her felt so weird...

"Ollie, I need to see you. Mum's worried and so am I. Please, come home."

His voice broke: "I can't, Thea." Felicity put her hand on his shoulder, trying to support him. "The Police is after me. I can't come back."

"Then where are you? I'll meet you."

He repressed his tears.

"Hi, Thea, it's Felicity. Don't worry, he'll meet you when you least expect it. I promise", she helped Oliver, who was unable to keep on talking.

"Thank you."

Once they hanged up, Felicity hugged Oliver very tight and, for the first time in forever, he cried over her shoulder. He cried like a child. He had been holding back his emotions for so long... and he couln't any longer.

"Shh... It's ok, everything will be alright, Oliver."

And like that, they spent a long time, just hugging and crying and looking after each other. Because now they had each other. And together they could go through anything.

* * *

><p><em>Hi there! I'm so sorry it took me this long to publish the new chapter, but I've been doing my exams at university, so I was kind of busy. I hope it's worth it and you like this Olicity scene. Also, I'm very sorry for Oliver and Thea. <em>_As you can see, I couldn't kill neither Diggle nor Lance. I love them so much :) _

_There are a few chapters left, so I hope you enjoy the rest :)_

_Thank you so much!_

_S. _


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Arrow, Adventure, Romance