This started as a one shot that I could not get out of my head, but when I started writing it, it took a mind of its own and was quickly at around 4000 words and still at least a few thousand off completion, so here is the first part. Will probably be a two part story.
Set sometime after end of season 2, not incorporating any spoilers for season 3, Detective Lance knows Oliver's the Arrow, established Olicity. This is my first attempt at writing Arrow and these characters, so any feedback is much appreciated.
Do not own Arrow.
Enjoy!
They were at the mansion with Laurel and Quentin when Laurel got the call, her mother had been rushed to hospital. The Lance's had gone into panic, Felicity left to try to calm them and usher them outside, while Oliver got a car to drive them to the hospital in Central City. The drive there consisted of the two Lance's sitting in the back ringing the hospital every ten minutes for an update, while Felicity sat in the front, getting live traffic updates and directing Oliver for the quickest way there. The Intel they had been pouring over, long forgotten as they drove on into the night.
Arriving at the hospital, the group had quickly been ushered into a waiting room to await the outcome of surgery. Feeling out of place with the family of a women she had never met, Felicity stuck close to Oliver's side, at least there she had a purpose, a reason to stay. Once in the room, Oliver's strong arm around her waist guided her away from the seats the father and daughter had chosen to start up their camp on and toward the windowed outer wall, partly due to sensing her discomfort but also due to his own. They stood watching the lights of the dark city below, Oliver having made note of the quickest exit routes, should one be needed, and the lone woman sitting opposite the Lance's.
"Where is she? Where is my daughter?" A man in the hallway yelled loudly, making Felicity jump at the commotion, but then freeze at the voices familiarity.
"Sir..." Oliver vaguely heard a nurse attempt to calm the man, but focused his attention to the blonde frozen at his side. She was looking straight ahead, her blank expression and pale face made him tighten his grip around her protectively.
"Susan?" The man asked, entering the room and walking to the women on the opposite side to the Lance's. Oliver felt Felicity shakily exhale, before glancing quickly over her shoulder at the man, as if to confirm her suspicion. By the way she sunk further into his side, he knew she hadn't gotten the answer she wanted.
"Is she going to be okay? I left as soon as I heard, I came as quickly as I could but all I could think was what if I was too late, what if I didn't get to say goodbye. Is she going to be okay? Please tell me she's okay. I'm going to kill the bastard that did this, that hurt my little girl." The man rambled to Susan, fear and concern, but also conviction lacing his words. Had he been paying more attention to the man, and less to Felicity, Oliver would have almost Definitely made the connection then.
"It's okay Tim, she's going to be okay. I know you'd do anything for her, but please don't kill him, he was just a drunk driver, he's not worth you going to prison, he's not worth you not being there to see her grow up." Susan responded, attempting to calm her husband, before quietly explaining their daughter's condition to him.
Tuning them out, Oliver finally caught Felicity's eye, the distraught look her face making him want to punch someone. His concerned, questioning look and a slight squeeze to her side was all she need to answer the unasked question.
"I'm fairly certain that's my father." She said, turning slightly to him, just enough for him to hear her almost silent whisper. Her admission made him freeze, but he quickly felt rage bubbling through his body as he recalled the older man's words, realising why they were affecting her so much. She mightn't have told him much about her father, but he Definitely hadn't forgotten what she had.
"Are you okay?" He asked, the kindness in his words not matching the anger on his face. The slight nod she gave him before looking back down at the city, told him she was anything but. His jaw clenched as he felt the stares from Felicity's father and his new wife, but his anger was interrupted by a nurse coming to update Laurel and Quentin. He begun moving back to be a part of the update, but barely got a step before realise Felicity wasn't coming.
"Come on." He whispered forcefully, attempting to make sure his words actually registered in her brain. His arm directing her once more, they made it back to the Lances, giving him a chance to glare at the man causing her distress. He saw Laurel's brows frow at the Arrow glare he was giving the stranger across the room but they both quickly turned their attention back to the nurse.
"So she's going to be okay?" Quentin asked.
"Like I said, she had a mild heart attack but got here in time, it was touch and go for a while but the surgeon is confident that as long as there are no complications for the rest of the surgery or the next 24 hours, that she should make a full recovery." The older redheaded women restated.
"Thank-you." Laurel said for all of them, the relief evident on her face as she watched the nurse re-treat.
"We'll go get some food and coffee." Oliver offered, the desire to get Felicity out of the room too strong to fight now that he knew Ms Lance was going to be okay. He nearly smirked when he realised the mention of coffee had gained him her attention and smiled at her when she realised he was giving them a reason to leave, relief flooding her face.
"That would be great, thanks." Quentin responded, looking between the vigilante and his girl, sensing something was up but knowing better than to question either one of them.
Leading Felicity out of the room and to their car as quickly as he could, Oliver couldn't help but miss the normal talkative nature of his girl. He knew it must have nearly killed her to see her father again after so many years, especially the sight of him with a new family, but he couldn't help but want her to open up to him, to tell him what was going through her mind. Instead of questioning her, he held her close to his side offering comfort, as she had done so many times to him.
It wasn't until they were in front of the car that he felt her stop, his body so in sync with hers that he stopped with her before he even realised it. She turned in his arm, wrapping hers around his neck as he drew her into a hug, both seeking comfort, her for the pain cause by the one man who was never supposed to hurt her and him for the pain he felt seeing her hurt.
Pulling back slightly, Oliver lowered his head enough to softly kiss her, one of his hands moving to her cup behind her head, treading through her loose hair as the other moved lower on her waist, drawing her as close to him as she could get. Her hand not playing in his hair grabbed a part of his jacket as she increased the speed and intensity, trying to take as much of his strength as she could.
Breaking away, she dipped her head beneath his chin, staying close until their breathing even out. She then backed away slightly, releasing his jacket before flattening out the creases she had created and allowing him to direct her to the car, instantly missing the contact when he removed his hand fully to shut her door.
Once both in the car, she pulled out her tablet and started some searching, stating that she needed to be 100% sure. The searches gave her a chance to do an easy simple task that she could do without thinking, but the answers they gave Definitely didn't help take her mind off things.
"It's really him," she stated quietly, as if she hadn't believed it until reading the electronic proof in front of her. "He married Susan 15 years ago and had Mia, who is technically my half-sister, 10 years ago." She gave him a sad smile before continuing, "I've never had a sibling before, it feels weird to find out I have one. Huh, I guess we both have half-sisters, only you grew up thinking yours was, well, your sister and I didn't know about mine." Felicity paused when she remembered about the unsure whereabouts of the other Queen sibling. "Sorry." She said quietly, the concern for his emotional state made his heart swell, the compassion she gave him had always made him feel less like a killer and more like the hero she pushed him to be.
"You have nothing to apologise for." Oliver told her firmly, unable to stop the smile at her small ramble, a ramble that told him she would eventually be okay, as always.
"I don't know what hurts more," she started, looking away from his glaze, "that he was in the same room and didn't recognise me, or that he," he took her hand at the pause in her sentence, the soothing strokes he was giving it helping even out her shaky breathes. "Has a new family, one he apparently loves more than his first. You know what? I lied, I do know which one hurts more." Her eyes shot to his, on a desperate mission to find the strength she knew he would without question give.
"The second one." She declared, "Definitely the second one." He knew his anger was written all over his face, but he knew she understood his anger. "I mean, I could deal with him not wanting a kid, not wanting the responsibility, not wanting to be a part of a family. I could deal with that, it would hurt but I could accept that. But to find out," she swallowed loudly, as if she was still trying to come to terms with the hundreds of thoughts running through her head. "To find out that he has another daughter, one he is worried about, one he clearly loves and would do anything for, that hurts, Oliver, that really hurts. It's like he decided that his first family, that I wasn't good enough, so he just created a clean slate." Her watery eyes had him wanting to give her father a taste of the pain The Arrow could inflict, to make him pay for the pain he has cause her.
"He's worse off for not knowing you." He told her softly, wanting to give her the chance to vent, but also not wanting her to forget she's not the one in the wrong. She gave him a lopsided smile, trying to believe him.
"But that's the thing, I was five, no one could have known who I was, who I was going to be. He didn't even know who I'd turn in to and he still decided to leave." Her grip on his hand tightened, seeking the comfort it could offer. "She's ten, ten Oliver! She's already spent twice as long with him as I ever did. What made her so special that he chose to stick around?" Her last question so quiet, that he almost missed it.
"Your special, Felicity, believe me," he said looking across at his partner. "I don't know how anyone could meet you and not want to be around you."
"Just give it a couple years and you'll change your mind." She said with a humourless laugh.
"I've known you over three years now, and trust me, there's never going to be a time I won't want to be around you." He stated with such conviction, he nearly had her believing him.
"How can you be so sure?" The hesitation to her voice made him frown.
"Because I know you. You've seen me do terrible things, you've seen me at my worst, you've seen me ready to give up, you know about every side of me and yet you still see good in me, you still chose to stand by me. You saw light in me when everyone else saw darkness, and you harnessed that light, until I became a hero. Everyone else shied away from me, whereas you gave me your trust, your loyalty, your love. You're the one person I've always felt was on my side." He said, every word full of honesty and admiration.
"Diggle has always been on your side." She countered, trying to lighten his speech.
"Not always, he took a lot of convincing, I was nearly giving up on him joining. But you? I simply asked and you agreed, you trusted me even though I had lied to you, even though I was bleeding out on your backseat. You brought out the human side of me, when even I had given up on that side. But that's just the thing, you never give up on me. Felicity, I would be nowhere near who I am today, if it wasn't for you. You taught me how to smile again, you taught me how to love. So, trust me, when I say I'm never going to ask you to leave and trust me when I say he's a lesser man for never having known you." It truly terrified him, just what he may have been had he not met her, had she not stuck with him. If there was one thing Oliver Queen couldn't understand, it was why anyone would not want to know Felicity.
"You are a good man, Oliver, don't let anyone ever convince you otherwise." The genuineness of his words took her breath away, she had always hated compliments and even if she hated them a little less from him, she still felt more comfortable turning the tables.
"This isn't about me," he stated with a huff, "I'm just saying that you're irreplaceable, Felicity Smoak."
"Thank-you," she responded, her smile reaching her eyes for the first time in too long. "Not just for this," her free hand gesturing between them, "but also for letting me in, for letting me be a part of it all and most of all for making me feel a part of a family with you," she paused, her smile growing "and Diggle and Roy and Sara. I haven't had a lot of that, but I kinda like it."
"Me too." He admitted, smiling along with her.
"Let's go get the coffee now." She said, dropping the heavy conversation so quickly it would give anyone else whiplash, but for them, the transition was smooth.
"Where do you suppose we go at 2am?" He asked with a laugh, turning the car on.
"Give me a second and I'll find somewhere that's open." She answered, turning back to her tablet.
"Are you okay?" Oliver questioned, watching her put an address into the navigator.
"Yeah, I will be." She said, her smile slowly coming back, "Although I'm choosing not to think about the fact we have to go back."
"You don't have to if you don't want to, we can find a hotel and I can drop off some stuff for them then leave." He said, offering her a way out.
"Thanks, but I always find myself facing my fears with you, so what's one more." Felicity reasoned.
"Just let me know if you change your mind." Sometimes she was just too strong-willed for her own good.
"God, I'm a mess!" she exclaimed, after spelling the street name wrong for the third time, "you deserve someone less of a mess than me."
"You're allowed to be a mess Felicity, but don't ever think you don't deserve me, if anything I don't deserve you." Oliver told her, reaching over to type the address himself.
"We are messes together." She said giggling as he hit a wrong letter, he couldn't help but smile widely at the sound.
"I guess we are." He responded, after fixing his error and finishing entering the information into the navigator. "I not able to change what he did to you, the hurt he caused you, but I love you and that's about all I can offer you." He said sincerely.
"That's enough, that has always been enough, Oliver." She stated him as she reached across, giving him a quick kiss. "I love you too." She quietly told him before sinking back into the Lexus' comfortable seats, watching as he pulled out of the car park and drove away from the hospital.
The relief that his ex-wife was going to be okay, made Quentin able to breathe for the first time since they got the call. He had been so terrified that she might die, that their family would take another hit and he knew that the next time a member of his family died, they won't be as lucky to have them come back from the dead. One resurrection was all they got.
Time still passed slowly for him and his daughter, if her constant tapping on her knee was anything to go by, but a least it didn't carry the feeling of dread. As if sensing that they were all in the same sort of predicament, the couple who he had overheard earlier had come over to offer support. Quentin was glad for the distraction it gave Laurel, who seemed happy to talk about the legal side of the case the couple had against the driver who had caused the accident their daughter had been involved in.
"I'm sorry if this is crossing a line, but you's just seem like such lovely people and I just wouldn't feel right if I didn't at least ask," Susan's strange statement drew Quentin's attention back to the conversation at hand.
"Please, ask anything." Laurel encouraged.
"It's just that I couldn't help but see your friends that were in here earlier, the ones that left not long after you found out your mother was going to be okay?" Susan hesitated.
"Oliver and Felicity," Quentin offered, unsure where the woman was going.
"Yes, Oliver and Felicity," she paused, "He just seemed a bit, I don't know, rough with her, like he looked pretty angry, like the kind of angry that could hurt someone and he was sort of forceful with her." She spoke quickly as to make sure not to give either Lance a chance to cut in.
"Susan!" Her husband scolded.
"I'm sorry but I just noticed few things about her too, and I wouldn't have been able to forget if I didn't ask if there was a chance he was violent with her, spousal abuse is rarely discovered until too late." She finished quickly.
"Wait, you think Oliver is abusive to Felicity?" Laurel asked through a laugh, Quentin himself unable to stop his smirk.
"I'm sorry about my wife." Tim said, him and his wife looking at their smiles confusedly.
"That's okay, and I didn't laugh because I think it's a joke, I completely agree it's a serious issue, it's just" Laurel started to clarify, Quentin was slightly concerned as to how his oldest daughter would handle this, he knew Oliver's relationship with Felicity made more sense to her know that his secret identity was out in the open, well at least between them, but he was unsure if she had realised just how close the vigilante was with his I.T girl. "That if you knew them, you wouldn't think that for a second."
"What do you mean?" Susan asked, more lightly now that she hadn't lost her new friends from her accusation.
"He would never hurt her, he would do anything for her, he would kill for her," Laurel paused, Quentin could hear the small hint of resentment to her voice but was actually a little surprised at just how small it was. "She's his girl, I don't think anyone or anything could come between that, it's complicated but no matter what, they are sided together, it is often them against the world."
"What was their problem then?" The older woman pressed.
"Neither of them really like hospitals, too many bad experiences." Laurel stated, having decided upon that as the reason for their departure not long after they left.
"He's just extremely protective of her." Quentin added, ever since he had found out Oliver's secret, he had realised just how protective he was of his assistant.
"There is such a thing as being over-protective." Susan continued, unable to drop the nagging feeling something had been off.
"Trust me, if she had been annoyed by his actions, she would have told him." Laurel said with a bright smile.
"Really?" Susan asked, starting to relax about her concern.
"Definitely , I've seen her stand up to him on many occasions. She's about the only one who can and actually be listened to." Laurel responded with a laugh, she had bore witness to the power Felicity had over Oliver many times now, but the first time she saw the tiny blonde go head-to-head with him in full arrow get-up, she had initially been concerned, uncertain as to how it would unfold. But the concern had left when she had seen Diggle smirking at the scene nearby, and soon enough the fight was done and dusted- won of course by Felicity.
"I'm sorry for implying, I'm usually better at reading people." Susan broke Laurel's memory, drawing her back to the present.
"Don't worry about it, you have a lot of other things on your mind," Laurel said gesturing to the fact they were all in a hospital waiting room. "Not to mention, Oliver is an extremely difficult person to read. He went through a lot of stuff and isn't very open. Well, except with her, he's different with her." Quentin couldn't help but feel proud of how well his daughter had accepted Oliver's relationship with Felicity.
"That Definitely makes me feel better." The other woman said with a smile.
"Thank-you for being understanding, everyone in this place is always so stressed." Her husband said.
"Hey, we're all in the same boat." Quentin told them.
"You's are going to be stuck with tens of thousands of dollars of hospital bills making you have to get a third job, at least until the person at fault is prosecuted or their insurance pays, well at least hope for some sort of re-imbursements, as well?" Tim asked, attempting for humour but coming off as depressed.
"Well, not quite." Quentin responded, years on the force allowing him to maintain a neutral expression.
"Don't you have insurance?" Laurel asked.
"Unfortunately not, I work two jobs as it is and neither have many benefits, but we need the little money they offer." Tim said, the disappointment clear in his voice.
"Tim works hard for our family," Susan said looking at her husband, "But enough of our sob story, I'm sure you two would like some time to yourselves." She finished with a half-hearted smile, making a move to head back to their old seats.
"Don't be silly," Laurel began, glancing at her father, "Oliver, is a billionaire, I'm sure he would be happy to cover your bills, at least until you get the money."
"Laurel." Quentin scolded, his daughter was always trying to help people, something he loved but it could get tiresome.
"Your father's right, it's not your money to offer." Susan stated, having easily understood Quentin's issue with Laurel's offer.
"Plus, it's way too much, we could never accept it." Tim said.
"If it was offered to us, we couldn't really say no, Honey, I wouldn't knock back something like that just because you can't stand handouts." Susan told her husband.
"Well there's no harm in asking, I'll even do it for you." Laurel said, glad to have the wife on board.
"It's not his job to pay for our family." Tim countered.
"He is a billionaire, Tim, it's not like he'd really miss it." Susan reminded him.
"And anyway, Felicity is very giving and if she tells him to, he'll be on board." Laurel reasoned.
"You think she'll be on board?" Susan asked, anticipation lacing her words.
"Felicity is one of the nicest people you'll ever meet, she'll Definitely be on board." Laurel said with a wide smile, happy to be able to make a difference.
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