Oliver sighed in frustration, one hand rubbing at his temple as his squeezed his eyes shut and willed the dull throbbing in his head to stop. Today had been particularly trying. It had been nothing but meeting after meeting, culminating with Isabel storming into his office to reiterate all the ways he was failing this company. The only thing that kept him from strangling her was the thought that if he would suddenly be expected to show up at all the other meetings she'd been covering.
By the time he'd left the office he knew the only thing that would help would be to hit something. Hard. Repeatedly. He'd raced to Verdant and stalked towards the lair from the parking lot, only to be waylaid by Thea. She'd wanted to talk to him about something but he'd snapped and managed to say exactly the wrong thing. He couldn't even remember what he'd said but she had looked hurt and stormed off in a huff, muttering obscenities under her breath as her heels clicked away down the pavement.
Opening his eyes he punched in the code on the small keypad at the door on autopilot. He took a breath and attempted to focus on anything but the knot in his stomach that had started forming the minute he'd seen that look in his sister's eyes as she stormed off. He was halfway down the stairs when his phone buzzed in his pocket. Slowing in his descent he retrieved the small device and pulled up the text message he'd received. It was from Thea. She'd sent him a photo, some angry looking little face things, and the word "REALLY?!". He frowned, then tapped the photo thumbnail to open it in a large resolution. It was a screenshot from some tabloid site she read. The photo showed Felicity adjusting his tie in front of the QC office building while he held her elbow and smiled down at her. It had obviously been taken from some distance, and the poor resolution made his smile look more like a leer, his head angled down in just the right way to imply he'd been looking down her blouse. The photo wasn't what his sister had been referring to, however. It was the bold print across the bottom that had caught her eye.
"QC EMPLOYEE REVEALS SECRET AFFAIR BETWEEN CEO O. QUEEN AND ASSISTANT!"
He growled and gripped the phone hard enough that he could feel the screen on the verge of cracking. He took a deep breath and was attempting to compose himself to reply when another text came through.
Speedy: You could AT LEAST keep it in your pants at the office.
"We're just friends!" he growled, the phone audibly cracking in his grip.
The sound of muttering punctuated by a short curse from the desk chair a few feet away caused his eyes to snap up from his phone, staring at a length of blonde hair dangling from a high ponytail over the chair back.
"WHAT?" he snapped at Felicity, finally pushed beyond the limits of what little patience he had left.
"DON'T call me a friend," she said, her voice oddly monotone. "If I hear that word again you might never get the chance to see me naked in your bed."
His heart stopped. For a split second, he even forgot how to breathe. His mind spun trying to formulate some sort of response while simultaneously burning an image that matched her words into his brain.
"I didn't… I don't…" he stammered, starting to take a step towards her. He needed to explain, needed her to understand. "I can't-"
"If that's the case I'm long gone," she snapped, punctuating her words with the sharp click of keys pressed just a little too hard on the keyboard.
"No," he breathed, panic beginning to well up in his chest. Her words formed a vice around his heart and he quickly took the last step to her desk chair, his hands fisting at his sides, suddenly unsure of himself. "I didn't mean to snap! It was just a mistak-"
"Bastard," she growled under her breath, cutting him off with a click of her mouse. "Consider this an invitation to kiss my ass goodbye!" she said as she suddenly shoved her chair away from the desk, starting to get up and walk away.
Fear washed over him. The knowledge that he'd finally pushed her too hard, too far sounding alarms in his head. He moved before he knew what he was doing, spinning her chair around to face him before she could stand. Her eyes went wide as she met his gaze, his hands gripping the arms of the chair so that she couldn't get away before he'd had a chance to beg her to stay.
"You can't go. Please! We need you here. I need you. I can't do this without you. Please just say you'll stay!" he urged, fighting to get the words out before the panic made it too hard to breathe.
Her brows furrowed slightly and he could see a range of emotions cross her face as she started to speak. "Oliv-"
He closed the distance between them without thinking, his lips slanting over hers fiercely. He poured everything he felt about her into that kiss, his hands reaching up to cup her face gently as he tried to show her what he'd failed to convey with words. His heart pounded in his chest as he pulled away quickly, resting his forhead lightly against hers, his eyes still closed.
"I love you," he said softly, his voice pleading. "Please say you'll stay."
He heard her gasp, felt her hands lightly grasp his wrists, her fingers coming to rest over his pulse.
"Wh-who are you and what have you done with Oliver Queen?"
He blinked his eyes open, pulling back far enough to look into the face he still cupped in both hands. She was looking at him with a mixture of confusion and concern, traces of another emotion he couldn't quite place flickering across her eyes.
When she gently tugged his hands away he finally noticed the earbuds that had fallen from her ears, strains of a heavy bass beat and a high voice suddenly audible.
He flushed, suddenly overcome with embarrassment as she continued to stare. "I thought…" he faltered, "I thought you said you were leaving…"
Her mouth fell open in a perfect 'O', apparently unaware of her hands still clasped around his wrists. "THE SONG!" she gasped. "I was working on that stupid hack and I was listening to that song and I must've said everything out loud and you probably heard that and thought I was leaving and then you said… you… said…" she trailed off, her mouth still forming the words but sound no longer coming from her throat.
He sighed and closed his eyes, lowering his head in defeat. There was no avoiding it now. Everything he'd been working so carefully to hide, to protect her from suddenly out in the open. He took a steadying breath before he spoke. "It's all right," he said softly, doing his best to keep his voice steady. "I underst-"
The words died in his throat as she kissed him, gripping him by the lapels and pulling him close with more strength than he'd thought her tiny frame possessed. His hands found her waist, fingers flexing over her hips as he reached for her, needing her even closer.
All too quickly she pushed him back slightly, lowering herself back to the floor off her tiptoes and smiling up at him. "I love you too, you idiot," she said breathlessly, eyes twinkling with adoration and more than a little mirth as she grinned at him.
He smiled down at her, his heart soaring at her words. "So… you're not leaving?" he teased, the embarrassment he'd felt moments ago swiftly fading.
"Nope!" she replied, popping the 'p' in that bright way of hers.
He bent down to kiss her again, pausing just as their lips were a hair's breadth apart with a grin that matched her own. "Then I supposed I'd better get you a pair of speakers."
Her laughter was music to his ears.
~Fin~
A/N: I recently finished watching Season 2 of Arrow, and was thinking about the show the other day when Meghan Trainor's "Title" came on. The chorus stuck out at me as a thought Felicity might have, and suddenly I had this image of her humming to herself or muttering the song lyrics, not knowing Oliver was in the room with her. The idea just wouldn't leave me alone and had me giggling long enough that I knew I had to get it out! Thanks for indulging my silliness, and if there's enough interest I'll write a quick follow up from Felicity's perspective.
The first bit of Felicity's dialogue comes from the song "Title" by Meghan Trainor:
Yo... Said I'm a special kinda woman Baby, don't call me your friend
I'm loving what you got, but I'm hating what you doing, yup
Gotta understand that I'm looking for a man who can get up on that bike...
Look ma, no hands!
You gotta just show me off, off
But you embarrassed?
If that's the case I'm long gone
You gotta treat me like a trophy on the shelf
Or call me something else
If I hear that word again
You might never get a chance to see me naked in your bed
And I know girls ain't hard to find
But if you think you wanna try
Then consider this an invitation to kiss my ass goodbye
I do not own the song by any means, nor do I own Arrow/Olicity. I just like to play in the sandbox once in a while.
Thanks for reading!