"This isn't going to work," Oliver whispered in her ear.
Felicity sighed. The situation was getting out of hand. They had such a good plan going in, but fate, it seemed, liked screwing with them. She had to think quickly.
"Okay, brain," she whispered to herself, whipping out her tablet. "Time to be impressive."
Oliver watched Felicity's fingers flying deftly over her tablet as she worked out another plan to get out of their current predicament. As soon as he heard gunfire, he had pulled her into a dark alcove, shielding her from the action with his body. So far, they hadn't been detected by the rival gangs, and he hoped to keep it that way.
"Got it!" she whispered excitedly. "There's access to a vent down the hall, we might be able to use it to get to the other side of the building." She showed him the path they would need to take.
"It'll have to do," Oliver murmured, peeking his head around to locate the fire fight. He quickly pulled his head back, muttering a curse. "Have to wait."
Felicity held her breath as the sound of gunfire seemed to move closer to them. Oliver pushed her forward into the deepest, darkest corner of the alcove, and then pushed them both down to squat, making their bodies as small as possible. She clutched her tablet tightly to her chest, trying to hide the glow from the screen. Oliver's quiet breath tickled her ear, and his arms were wrapped around her a little too tightly. She felt her heart hammering in her chest, and she briefly worried that it was too loud and it would give away their position.
One of the gang members took refuge in their alcove, and Oliver tightened his hold on Felicity and clapped his hand over her mouth, just in case. He felt her startle at the movement. He held his breath and shut his eyes, praying to a deity he didn't believe in to keep them hidden from view. After a very long, very stressful minute, the gang member moved on and the fire fight followed him, away from their hiding place.
Letting out his breath, he took his hand away from Felicity's mouth and loosened his grip on her body. He suddenly noticed that she was trembling, and turned her around gently.
"Are you okay?" he asked, cupping her face.
She nodded her head, a little too quickly. "That was scary."
He pulled her into a hug with a sigh. "You're safe. We're gonna get out of here." He felt her nod.
He stood up and took another look into the hallway, looking both ways. Seeing no one, he reached for Felicity and helped her stand up. "Looks like we're clear. Let's go."
They walked quickly and quietly to the vent she had pointed out. He kicked it open and pulled Felicity forward, urging her to go first.
She shook her head. "You first."
"I can't protect you if you're behind me, Felicity."
"In case you haven't noticed, I'm wearing a skirt. I don't want you peeking at my goods." She blushed suddenly, not meaning to be so blunt about it.
Oliver's breath caught slightly, his pulse accelerating briefly at the image his mind produced. He nodded in agreement, conceding that it would be an unnecessary (but not unwelcome) distraction.
"Stay close, stay low, and don't make a sound," he urged her. She nodded soberly.
Felicity did her best to follow Oliver's instructions, but she found herself distracted by the view in front of her. Oliver was crawling on his hands and knees in front of her, and his green leather pants were stretched tight across his ass, unsettling her equilibrium. She had a sudden inexplicable urge to slap one of his butt cheeks to see if it was as tight as it looked, and she had to hold her breath against the giggle threatening to burst from her throat.
After what felt like hours that was probably only a couple of minutes, they reached the other side of the building. Oliver tried to peer through the vent into the hallway, listening carefully for any movement, and when he decided the coast was clear, he twisted his body around to kick the vent open. He crawled out and helped Felicity up by the hand. She looked flushed.
"You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah," she said, a little breathlessly. She had a goofy smile on her face.
He smiled at her. "Enjoy the view?"
Her mouth fell open and she stuttered adorably. He gave her his cheekiest grin and winked.
Taking her by the hand, he led her to the door that led to the roof. Once there, he shot a rappelling arrow at the building across the street. He stepped up onto the ledge and pulled Felicity close to his body.
"Felicity."
She looked at him with a smile, already expecting his words. "Yeah?"
He smiled back at her. "Hold onto me tight."
She laughed. "Still not the circumstances I imagined you saying that."
Oliver chuckled. "One of these days, you're gonna have to tell me."
She gave him a coy smile. "You're gonna have to take me to dinner first."
He inhaled deeply and shook his head, strongly affected by her words. "Maybe I will." He tightened his hold on Felicity and jumped off the roof, reveling with delight at Felicity's exhilarated squeal.
