Certain Things, an arrow fanfic

A/N: I'd never heard this song before until a fan vid came across my Tumblr dashboard and now I'm in love. It's perfectly beautiful. The song is "Certain Things" by James Arthur.

Certain Things

There's something about you. It's like an addiction. Hit me with your best shot, honey. I've got no reason to doubt you 'cause certain things hurt and you're my only virtue and I'm virtually yours.

He finds himself inexplicably drawn to her. No matter the situation, no matter the mood that either of them may be in, he is pulled to her as if by some invisible thread. And as time passes, that draw grows. It strengthens, hardens and swells and he has realized that there is no use in fighting it. Because he cannot fight her. He cannot fight the way that his body comes alive when she's near him, the way that his heart races.

Oliver has never been in love before. At least not like this. Not with someone who knows him so thoroughly. Someone who loves him because of his flaws rather than in spite of them. And he has found that type of love with Felicity. He found in her a safe place, a haven, to escape his demons. Because no matter how bad it gets, she remains. She holds his hand and offers her shoulder and she is a pillar of strength when he is at his weakest. And in return he gives her everything that he has. He gives her every part of himself, letting her in when he has fought so hard to keep everyone out.

And you keep coming back, coming back again. Keep running 'round, running 'round my head. And there's certain things that I adore, there's certain things that I adore. But I'm certain that I'm yours, certain that I'm yours, certain that I'm yours.

She sighs contentedly in her sleep and curls herself impossibly closer.

It has been a long day, an emotionally challenging one, and being alone with her in their home is the only way he knows to recharge. He combs his fingers through her hair where her head rests on his shoulder and closes his eyes.

He knows that the ring that he chose for her isn't hidden far from where they sit on the sofa and the urge to reach for it, to slip it quietly onto her finger and profess the words that have been on the tip of his tongue, rises fiercely within him. But now isn't the right time. He wants it to be, wants to finally make her see that he plans to spend the rest of his life with her, but her emotions are in turmoil. Not, he knows, where they are concerned but her fragile frame of mind is a definite indicator that now is not the time.

She blames herself for Palmer's accident. She blames herself for the tension between him and the rest of their team. She blames herself for the failings of Palmer Tech.

He knows that the burdens are piling up, that she's struggling to stay afloat, and he can sympathize. He's been there. And just like she has always been there for him, he will be there for her. Because they have fought hard for this happiness and he will keep fighting to make sure that it doesn't slip through his fingers.

She mumbles something unintelligible and the sound of her voice, soft and disjointed and laced with sleep makes him smile.

He has always loved her voice. Whether in his ear guiding him home or rambling through an uncomfortable monologue or spouting off innuendo, the sound of her voice has been a salve on his soul since the moment that he met her.

There's something about you. It's when you get angry, you have me at your mercy. And you're like the shoulder to turn to 'cause certain things mend us when we're hanging on for dear life. We held on so tight.

Shifting her carefully so as not to wake her, Oliver slips his arms beneath her frame and lifts her, cradling her to his chest and carrying her through the loft to their bedroom.

There are so many things about her that he loves. She is kind and generous, beautiful and brilliant and stronger than any of them give her credit for. She is all of those things and so much more but the thing that he adores the most about her isn't the way that she crinkles her nose when he tries to feed her something other than junk food or the way she punches her fist into the air after beating some unbreakable string of code. He does love those things about her but it is the way that she loves him, the way that she gives him so much of her heart, that he loves the most. It is the certainty that he feels when he is with her, the honest faith she has in him but also the faith that she has given him. Faith in himself and in his mission. Faith that he is a better man than he's been led to believe by so many. When everyone else has torn him down, Felicity has been the one to build him back up.

He lays her gently on her side of the bed and stands back, watching as she shuffles around for a minute before settling on her stomach, her face buried in her pillow.

Kneeling at the foot of the bed, he removes the heels that she'd left on, pressing his thumbs along the bottom of her foot, and even in sleep she expels a soft whine. He repeats the action with her other foot for a moment before moving up the length of the bed to slide down the zipper at the back of her dress. It takes some shifting but he works the material free of her body, leaving her in her bra and panties. He changes his own clothes quickly and climbs into bed. She moves into his arms willingly and he tugs the comforter up around them as she burrows into his warmth. Her head settles on his chest, her ear just over his heart, and she's sound asleep almost immediately. His fingers tangle in her hair again.

Oliver has never been in love before. Not like this. Because loving a woman like Felicity Smoak is a once in a lifetime experience and it is one he doesn't intend to waste.

There's certain things that I adore, there's certain things that I adore. I'm certain that I'm yours, I'm certain that I'm yours. I adore you.