Title: Christmas Shoes

Author: Elizabeth

Pairings: Chloe/Oliver

Rating: T

Genre: Romance/Action

Summary: It has been 5 years since Oliver quit being Green Arrow. He has lost his faith in humanity, and with Christmas right around the corner finds himself lacking in the Christmas spirit. When he meets a young boy buying a pair of shoes for his dying mother, Oliver finds himself confronting old demons as well as facing the opportunity to learn what being a hero is all about. Along the way he will rekindle old friendships, find love with an unlikely person, and discover the true meaning of Christmas.

A/N: Ok here it goes. I wrote my first completed short fic not to long ago,and now I'm gonna try for a chapter story. This idea came to me while listening to the song Christmas shoes, and while the first chapter reflects the song quite a bit, the rest of the story will be different. Look forward to seeing all of your favorite JL members as they help Oliver save someone special, become the hero he can be, and learn the meaning of Christmas.

-As of now I do not have a beta or anyone reading my work besides me, so please excuse any errors, although if you notice something and want to tell me I appreciate Constructive Criticism.

-Also a big THANKS to everyone who read and especially those who reviewed my story My Circle. I very much appreciated the feedback.

Disclaimer: I do not own Smallville or its Characters. They are property of DC comics, the CW and other highly paid writers and creators. The Song Christmas Shoes is not mine and is sung by various artists, my favorite being Newsong.

Chapter 1

Oliver Queen glanced down at his watch for the third time as he stood impatiently in line. There was nothing he disliked more then being at a stand still, and this line seemed to be moving at glacier speed.

He glanced around taking in the holiday decorations that left no question as to what time of year it was. Everywhere he looked he saw fake Christmas trees, boxes wrapped with huge bows, cotton snow with specks of glitter, gaudy ornaments of red and green, and of course one too many Santa's.

He was greeted by a Santa ringing a bell at the entrance, then almost ran over by 3 children running towards a Santa set up in the center of the mall, his current cherry coke bottle sported a picture of the man in red, and the cashier ringing up the slowest ever moving line had on a Santa hat and a white bushy beard that actually might be authentic.

As he gazed towards the front of the store, he noticed a cardboard Santa display holding a days until Christmas sign. On the board was a large red 7. One week; one week until the holiday was over and the world could get back to being what it was, as opposed to using tinsel and garland as a poor attempt to cover up the ugly truth.

And what was that truth.

The truth was that the world was filled with people who didn't care, who only looked out for themselves and no one else. The whole world was crumbling in heaps of despair and pain, and all people were worried about was whether they could get their hands on a Wii.

There was a time when he did care. A time where he was delusional enough to believe that he could make a difference. He thought he could better the world with one good deed at a time, and maybe blow up a few evil labs for good measure. He had organized a group of guys, all who had amazing abilities, and with his leadership, the power to change the world.

For awhile he actually believed in his own save the earth from evil bald headed billionaires spiel. Then all his idealisms came crashing down on him with the knowledge and truth behind his parents deaths. He was just finally making peace with it all when he learned that they died because they were apart of some secret society, which ironically was named for truth.

One man had decided they, along with its other members, were a liability, and with his power he eliminated the potential threats, and unfairly faced no consequences for his actions. And now that man was dead, and Oliver could never confront him and find that ever fleeting closure.

It was too late to get revenge for his parents, and if he couldn't save them, or even himself for that matter, why should he bother with saving the world. A world who let a murdering bastard live a full life, while his good and loving parents died before their time to become nothing more then a tragic headline.

Oliver brought his attention back to his current predicament, standing in another line purchasing a gift he didn't even want to get. Being the rich billionaire he was, he usually would have had someone else taking care of the unpleasant task, but his personal assistant had requested the next two weeks off. He had no problem giving her the time off; he just wished he would have realized he needed a gift for his current 'flavor of the month' as his friend Bruce called them, before she left.

It never even occurred to him that he was expected to purchase anything for Netasha. That was until he received a message on his blackberry earlier that day that she made reservations at his favorite restaurant and that she was looking forward to exchanging gifts.

So here he was, buying some jewelry he didn't know, or honestly care, if she would like. He just asked for the most expensive set and figured it would be good enough. That's what gift giving was all about these days anyway right, the biggest and most expensive.

He looked down at his watch for the fourth time now, and noticed the line moved a little. Now there were only two others in front of him. The lady that was currently checking out was probably in her mid 30's, and looked very worn out and frazzled. She had a long piece of paper out and was making check marks and other notes. Oliver looked on in wonder as the cashier filled bag after bag of merchandise. Who knew people could buy so much for one day.

Movement directly in front of him drew his attention from the lady. The other customer in line before him was a little blond boy who could have been no more then 8 or 9. He was dressed in jeans that where just a tad to short on him, scuffed up sneakers with what looked like a broken lace, and his jacket looked like it had seen better days.

He watched as the kid waited anxiously, pacing around like little boys do and that's when he saw that in this child's hands, he held a pair of shoes.

The shoes were definitely for a woman, maybe the kid's mom or older sister. They were emerald green in color, simple in design with only a small heel to give it a dressier look.

Oliver looked around discreetly, but didn't see anyone that looked like they belonged with the boy. It seemed unusual for such a young boy to be out at the mall alone and he was surprised his parents allowed him to wander off.

As the lady finished paying and gathering her bags, the boy quickly stepped up to the counter. He laid his shoes onto the counter like precious cargo and looked up at the cashier. Oliver listened in disbelief at what the boy had to say.

"Sir I'd like to buy these shoes for my mama please. Green is her favorite color, at least that what she says all the time. She's says that to her, green always reminds her of hope. Right now we all need some hope, because Grandpa Gabe said there's not much time. You see, she's been sick for quite awhile, and I think that these shoes's will make her smile and when she smiles she is the most beautiful person you have ever seen and I want her to look beautiful for when she is ready for heaven."

When he finished talking, he began to pull out crumbled bills from various pockets. He added some quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies to the growing pile. When he was sure he turned out every available pocket he smiled and pushed the money closer to the cashier and looked up at him expectantly.

The cashier quickly counted the money, and then sadly looked down at the boy. "I'm really sorry son, but there isn't enough here. "

The boys face crumbled at his words, and he turned back towards me with tears in his eyes. "My mom is the most important person in my life. She gave up so much for us, and did her best to give us everything she could. She was there when no one else was. For once I want to give her something. I want to give her hope. Sir what am I gonna do, somehow I just have to buy these shoes."

Oliver felt his heart swell with something he thought he no longer had. He knew he just had to help him out so he reach for his wallet and removed several bills from it. As he laid the money down, he watched as the boy's face lit up.

Before Oliver knew what was happening, the boy leaped at him throwing his arms around his waist in a big hug. He looked up at Oliver's face and said, "Thank you so much! Mama's gonna look so great!"

The boy then grabbed his bag with the shoes and took off out the door with a final wave barely concealing his excitement.

Oliver remembered not seeing anyone with the boy and decided to find out where the kids parents were. "Hey kid, wait up!"

He turned towards the cashier, "Keep the change." Then setting down his non-paid for present, set off after the boy.

Oliver reached him just as he was stepping outside. He laid a hand on his shoulder to stop him from taking off.

"Hey kid hold on."

The boy looked at him questioningly. "Is something wrong? Oh, did you want my number so that I can pay you back. I don't have anymore money right now but I'm sure my older brother does."

"Naw don't worry about it. I was actually just wondering what you were doing at the mall alone. Where are your parents?"

"Umm, well Mom's too sick to go out, Grandpa Gabe's at work, so are my aunt and uncle, and I don't have a dad."

"You mentioned a brother, what about him."

The boy looked down with guilt all over his face. "Well, I might have been supposed to ride the bus home from school, and instead I got off early and walked to the mall." As he said this he scuffed his already worn sneaker into the ground.

Oliver tried to hide a smirk. "You might have huh. Well how are you getting home now?"

With a slight shrug he replied, "I can walk; it's not that far, just a few blocks."

Oliver nodded his head. "Right, well how about this? Why don't I give you a ride home, and you can introduce me to your Mom. She seems like such a wonderful person I'd hate to miss the chance to meet her."

"I really shouldn't, I mean I'm not supposed to even talk to strangers, let alone get rides from them. How do I know you won't kidnap me or something?"

"You are a very smart kid. You shouldn't talk or take rides from strangers. So how about this, first we will introduce ourselves, then instead of a ride, I'll just walk with you and keep you company on your way home. How does that sound."

"Sounds alright to me."

"Great. Well I'm Oliver Queen it's a pleasure to meet you," he said holding out his hand."

The boy smiled and grabbed his hand giving it a firm shake. "My name is Jacen Sullivan, but you can call me Jace."

Oliver let go of Jace's hand and furrowed his brow. "Did you say Sullivan? Your Mom's name isn't Chloe Sullivan is it?"

****

Well that's it for chapter 1. I have some free time coming up and plan to work on this story even though it's going to be after Christmas when I finally finish. Please read and review and let me know what you think so I know how I am doing.