A/N: This story doesn't really have any place in the TV show's timeline. In this world, Laurel and Oliver are together (for now) and Tommy is still alive and friends with both Laurel and Oliver. I think that about covers it. Hopefully This will turn into a longer story, but that is going to depend on how you all like it! If no one is interested, I won't continue.
I do not own any of the Arrow Characters, I'm just having some fun :)
Laurel and Oliver hand their tickets to the gate keeper and walk through the turn style, ready for a beautiful day at Starling City Waterpark. With a massive wave pool and numerous slides and attractions, the waterpark was sure to keep them busy for the day. Oliver had decided to let the bad guys have a rest for the day, so he sent a text Felicity and Dig telling them to take the day off. Neither complained, it was probably long overdue. The waterpark was Laurel's idea, and he was really looking forward to it. At first she thought he might be self-conscious because of his scars, but really he couldn't care less. He didn't want to talk about the scars, or how he got them, but he wasn't worried about hiding them. Besides, it was still early in the summer and there weren't as many people at the park as he expected. As they walked, he peeled his shirt off and stuck it in his bag.
"Oh look, isn't that the girl who did your internet at the club? What was her name?"
"Felicity?" Oliver said, surprised see his IT guru lying on a lounge chair about fifteen feet away from them.
"That was her name! Felicity. Let's go say hello." Laurel suggested. Oliver looked at her with an incredulous look. It was weird for her to suggest going over to say hello to someone she had only met in passing and, as far as Laurel knew, that Oliver just hired for some work at the club. But he follows her over anyway to say hello.
"Felicity!" Laurel says as they approach.
Felicity turns her head away from the friend she is talking to toward the sound of her name. Oliver is taken aback by how peaceful and beautiful she looks. She is wearing a black bikini that is just skimpy enough to be sexy, without being trashy and she has a smile on her face that could light up the foundry. Oliver was even more convinced that giving her and Dig the day off was the right choice.
"Oliver! Laurel! Fancy meeting you here." She said with the same radiant, confident smile on her face. Oliver couldn't help but smile back. She turned back to her friend and said, "Arielle, this is Laurel Lance and Oliver Queen. Oliver, Laurel, this is my friend Arielle." Oliver could see the young woman's shock as she took in his scars, but just politely murmured a, "Nice to meet you."
"Hello Arielle, Felicity." He said with a nod to each woman. "Enjoying the nice weather we're having?"
"Very much, thanks. I'm surprised to see you here; I would have thought you had a pool at home." Felicity replied.
"A pool we have… but no water slides." He said in a playful tone.
"Well we just wanted to say hello," said Laurel. "Enjoy the rest of your day!"
"Thank you! See ya later." Felicity replied with a small wave as she turned back to Arielle to continue their conversation.
Laurel turned away from the pretty blonde techy, contemplating her reaction to Oliver. After she suggested the waterpark this morning, she immediately regretted it. What was she thinking? Oliver wouldn't want to flaunt his scars for everyone in Starling City to see. She felt terrible for even suggesting it! But he didn't see any problem and was determined to go after she suggested it. Therefore, she had spent the morning preparing for the questioning looks and the sidelong glances that they were sure to receive. That was why when she saw a familiar face in the IT girl, she thought it would be good to go over and say hello. Now, she wasn't so sure. Felicity didn't seem fazed by the sight of Oliver's scars. Almost as though she had seen them before. Like she was used to seeing them. Laurel was even still slightly taken aback when he first removed his shirt so it surprised her when Felicity didn't seem disturbed by the sight. She thought about bringing it up with Oliver, but deciding against it. Maybe Felicity just had a killer poker face.
As Felicity turned back to Arielle, ready to resume their conversation about Arielle's recent vacation to Europe, she noticed the look on her friend's face and decided to give her a minute. Seeing Oliver shirtless was probably a bit of a shock for her. And not only because of the scars. Felicity brought Arielle back with a snap in front of her face. Arielle blinked a few times and then looked at Felicity in shock.
"You know OLIVER QUEEN!?" she stage whispered.
"Not very well," Felicity replied, untruthfully. She'd been working with him for months now, and they had actually gotten to know each other pretty well. She would even go so far as to say they were friends, of a sort. "I work for his company and he's asked me to do some odd jobs here and there." She didn't feel bad about lying to her friend. It was better for everyone this way.
"Good Lord, even with all the scars, he is gorgeous. Too bad he's got a gorgeous girlfriend to match."
Felicity smiled and said, "Yeah that's pretty much the gist of it. Ken and Barbie, those two." Arielle murmured her agreement and they returned to their earlier conversation.
Oliver was still thinking about Felicity and how comfortable and relaxed she looked lounging in her pool chair when Laurel broke into his thoughts.
"What about that one?" She asked, pointing up at a large platform with four different colored tubes coming off of it. "We can race!" she said excitedly.
"Let's do it" He replied with a smile on his face. He needed this day off as much as his team did. Together they climbed up the stairs to the back of the line. When they reached the last person in line, Oliver recognized the sexy black swimsuit standing there. "Felicity! We meet again." He said, a boyish smirk on his face. She turned and greeted them with an adorable smirk, but Oliver's attention was drawn to Felicity's right side. At first, he thought she had a piece of grass or something, just under the string of her swimsuit top, but then he realized it was a tiny arrow tattooed along one of her ribs. He blinks and looks up into her crystal blue eyes. An overwhelming sense of pride and belonging filled him. He is shocked at the reaction the small tattoo causes and it takes him a moment to get his emotions under control. He gives Felicity a small smile to show his appreciation and approval.
"Are you guys ready to race?" The lifeguard managing the slides broke the spell with his question and all four contestants stepped up to their slides. "On your mark! Get set! GO!"
Felicity was exhausted. Something about spending a day at the water park was even more tiring than her "regular" gig as side-kick to the Starling City Vigilante. Thinking about Oliver brought a smile to her face. She hadn't been sure how he would react to her tattoo. She didn't want him to think she was being sloppy and that someone might figure out that she was working with the hood. It was small and inconspicuous, though and he seemed to actually appreciate it. She turned off the lights in her apartment and headed to bed.
Something woke her up, right before her alarm would have. She lay in bed, silently listening to the sounds of her apartment, trying to figure out what might have woken her. Then she heard a sound that was out of place, a slight tapping that sounded like it was coming from her window. She sighed in relief. It was just the tree outside tapping on the glass. She heard it again and decided to get up and just open the window. It would drive her nuts if she had to sit and listen to it. She through back her curtains and promptly lost five years of her life. Irritated, she opened the window to see a grinning vigilante perched on a tree limb outside her window. "Oliver!" She scolded. "What are you doing here? You scared the life out of me!" Backing up to let him climb through the window, she crossed her arms and waited for an explanation.
"I have something to show you."
"Something that couldn't wait until I see you in two hours?"
He looked as though he was pondering that for a moment, then replied, "Yeah it probably could have waited. But I'm here now," *charming grin* "and seeing as how you're up, I didn't want to wait to show you."
Rolling her eyes, Felicity gave him an exasperated smile and said, "Okay, well what is it?"
He grinned as he started to remove his jacket and un-tuck his shirt. Felicity raised an eyebrow and said, "Exactly how undressed are you planning on getting?"
Chuckling, he lifted the hem of his shirt and showed her the tiny, fresh arrow tattoo that mirrored her own. Her breath caught in her throat and her vision blurred slightly when her eyes filled with tears. Oliver broke the silence saying sheepishly, "I really liked yours." She chuckled and blinked back the unshed tears, gingerly running a finger across the arrow. "I think we should talk Dig into one too… Make it a team thing." His voice was slightly hoarse and she was surprised at the effect it had on her emotions, already in overdrive.
She gave him a smile as she back up a step and said, "Fantastic idea. Do you think it's dangerous?"
"Only if someone found out what it means. I think we can keep it between us."
Felicity's alarm rang from her bedside table. "Time to wake up." She said, ironically. "Would you be so kind as to leave so I can get showered and ready?"
Oliver gave her one of his real smiles and left the same way he came. "See you at the foundry."
While she was getting ready that morning, she had thought about the small arrow tattoos. She couldn't… or perhaps didn't want to identify the emotion that hit her so strongly when Oliver lifted his shirt. She couldn't deny that she had a bit of a crush on him. But that's all it was, she would get over it eventually. Any girl would be hard pressed NOT to have a crush on the man. He's gorgeous and charming. Double whammy for all us romantics out here. She thought. And that doesn't even begin to touch the whole hero thing. Felicity is convinced that her crush will dissipate eventually and therefore the emotion that assaulted her this morning could not have been love.
Now, as Felicity walked into Verdant to grab a bottle of water before heading down to the basement, she did not notice the other two people occupying the club. Sitting at the bar, chatting with Tommy, was Laurel. She'd been spotted, so she couldn't turn around and sneak out, so she walked up to them, as though it wasn't strange at all for her to be at the club on a Saturday morning.
"Hello! Oliver called and said he was having some tech problems that he needed some help with." She was doing her best to keep her cover, but the people across from her looked at her skeptically.
"Oliver called you over this morning?" Laurel asked. "Because he didn't say anything about it yesterday when we ran into you at the waterpark."
"Yeah, he called me this morning and asked if I could stop by." Felicity answered, hoping that would be enough.
"Hmmm." She replied. "Well he's not-"
"Felicity! There you are, where have you been?" Oliver asked, unaware of their audience. Felicity spun around plastering a big smile on her face and trying to convey her distress to him. He, of course, misunderstood her distress and looked at her in alarm. "What's wrong? Are you okay?" He asked, grasping her upper arms.
"Hey Ollie." Laurel's greeting caught him off guard and Felicity could see that he finally got it and she gave him a look that said, Way to go, genius! Now what?!
Oliver slowly removed his hands from Felicity, trying to think of a way to smooth this over. Nothing came to mind so he just acted like nothing out of the ordinary happened. "Hey Laurel, Tommy. Felicity and I have some business to take care of, so we will see you later." He turned and looked at Felicity pointedly and she gave him a look that said, Smooth, Queen, real smooth. As he turned her by her shoulders and led her away from Laurel and Tommy.
Laurel watched her boyfriend walk away with the IT girl and wondered again about the strange feeling she had that they knew each other better than they let on. She decided to ask Oliver about it. As soon as she got the chance to talk to him, and not a minute later.