"Please don't leave."
Felicity was aware she was talking through a mouthful of pancake, but she didn't care. She reached out and tugged at Oliver's arm, preventing him from getting up off her couch.
Oliver just smiled. "I have to go back to the loft. Pack some stuff."
For a moment, Felicity didn't say anything, taking the time to swallow before she spoke. Her hand was suddenly on his cheek and she edged a little closer to him on the couch. Even now, it was comforting to feel the slight roughness of his stubble beneath her fingertips.
"I just don't want to let you out of my sight," she admitted.
He caught her hand, then, pressing his lips against her palm. "I'll come back," he said softly.
"Promise?" Felicity didn't realise she was whispering, or that that one word came out as a quiet plea. But then, after a few second, she felt his hand in her hair, sliding down to cup the back of her neck. Automatically, she closed her eyes, just before Oliver kissed her forehead.
"I promise." His lips mouthed the words into her skin, soothing, calm, and she felt a wave of comfort wash over her.
All too soon, though, he pulled away, getting to his feet. "I should go, though. I need to check on Thea."
Immediately, Felicity sensed a slight change in his demeanour when he mentioned his sister's name. She got up too, placing her empty plate on the coffee table.
"Hey," she murmured, her hand on his arm, "you okay?"
Oliver nodded quickly, attempting a smile but not quite succeeding. "I'm fine. I just need to see if she's all right."
With that, he turned away from her, gathering the plates and empty coffee mugs from the table and taking them to the sink. Felicity watched him, not sure whether to be worried at the look on his face or amused by his sudden domesticity.
"What, you mean the fact that she was kind of brought back from being mostly dead and now wants to follow in her big brother's vigilante footsteps?"
To her relief, Oliver let out a chuckle, releasing some of the tension in his shoulders. She made her way over to where he was standing, at the sink. The tap was running, but Felicity turned it off and fixed him with a stern look. "Leave it," she said firmly, and he opened his mouth to argue, but she silenced him with a kiss, before saying against his lips, "My apartment, my rules."
His lips upturned into a smile against hers when she said that, before she reluctantly pulled away. "I'm just worried about what could happen to her," Oliver said. "Out in the field… it's a dangerous place. Especially for her – we don't know if there are any… lingering after effects from the Lazarus Pit."
"I get it," Felicity said, "really, I do, but… it's not like she'll listen to you if you tell her not to. She's her own person, Oliver, however much you want to protect her. Besides…" She smiled up at him, and he smiled back. "She's strong. Like her brother."
"I guess archery isn't the only thing that runs in the family." And this time Felicity laughed, moving her hair to one side so he could kiss her neck. "Thank you," he said, just as he slid his tongue along the hollow of her throat, "for taking care of her."
"Mm… you're welcome." A moan escaped her lips when she felt his mouth on her collarbone. She took a step back, letting him press her against the kitchen counter. "You know, if she's going to be a superhero like you, she deserves a superhero name."
Oliver's smile was warm against her skin as he buried his face in the crook of her neck. "I think I have that covered."
