Author's note: I loved the surprise party in episode 5x22 and I got this idea in my head. It has a little change to the original plot because Chase isn't part of the story. :)

Disclaimer: I don't owe Arrow and I don't make money with this.

Socks

Oliver's first thought had been to buy socks, although he had more than enough in his drawer. But instead of his family and friends he had no idea what to do with spare time. Despite his time away with Felicity last year he had just survived Lian Yu, Hong Kong, Russia and Starling City for ten years. Spare time was a luxury during these years. He obviously didn't know what to do without a threat. So Oliver was on the way to his man's clothier to buy socks the following morning when he noticed an outdoor shop. Immediately Felicity's plan to hike the Pacific Crest Trail and to spend a night under the stars came into his mind. Oliver could see her dressed in bright colors with a backpack full of outdoor equipment, technology, power banks and food while her ponytail bounced up and down with every step she took. Because of that picture in his mind he entered the store. Immediately a vender walked towards him and offered his help which he declined. Instead he looked at the displayed goods. Oliver didn't know what he was looking for, but Felicity wanted to sleep under the stars, so she would need some equipment.

At first Oliver looked at the sleeping bags and remembered the first night he had spent together with Felicity.
After Tommy's death he had gone to Lian Yu and had been there for a few weeks, when Felicity came to the island to bring him back home. While she drank some water out of his bottle she told him that his family and the company needed him. Although Oliver didn't want to go back in the beginning of their conversation, she finally convinced him. So Felicity called the boat with a satellite phone, but they couldn't pick them up until the following day because of the heavy sea. While Felicity prepared a place to sleep for herself Oliver hunted two small birds, collected some eatable plants and prepared a simple meal for them. They ate outside of the plane wrack at the fire. Afterwards she told him more news about Starling City until it was time to sleep. Because he was a gentleman and it became cold he gave Felicity his sleeping bag, but she insisted to share it with him. During the night she moved closer to him, pulled his arm around her and even shoved her legs between his, although she was sound asleep. Oliver noticed all that because of his light sleep. When they woke up the next morning, their bodies were even more entangled. Immediately Felicity moved away from him, while he smirked at her and told her about her strange behaviour. She confessed in her babbling way and with a faint blush on her face to freeze easily at night.
He knew she needed a sleeping bag which kept her warm. So Oliver red a lot of signs and found the perfect one easily, although he would prefer to warm her whenever she got cold.

Then he turned his attention to the backpacks. The different sizes and colors distracted him for a moment until a singleton caught his attention. It brought a grin to his face because a memory of her first official appearance as his executive assistant came into his mind.
Oliver was CEO for a couple of weeks when he asked Felicity to accompany him to a charity event of Queen Consolidated. The event was a week away when she walked into the foundry with lots of shopping bags in her hands and a frown on her face. Although he worked out on the salmon ladder that moment, it wasn't hard to notice something was wrong. So he got down and asked her directly. At first she hesitated, but then she told him she wasn't sure what she should wear. Felicity pulled five dresses out of the bags and showed them to him. Before he got a chance to say a single word, she went into the bathroom with them. When Felicity exited it, she wore a pale blue, floor-length, strapless gown. She walked towards Oliver, turned around and went into the bathroom again. The same procedure happened with a bright red, a dark green, a dark blue and a purple gown. Felicity had an eye for clothing, although she didn't believe in her taste that moment. But Oliver's gaze was a proof for that, because it was totally focused on her whenever she walked out of the bathroom and until she returned to it. Finally she asked for his opinion and he told her honestly she looked beautiful in every dress. Her cheeks turned into a pale pink after his comment while a rare real smile appeared on his face. Then he pointed at the pale blue dress and explained that she would be the most beautiful women at the event and he would be honored to be there with her. The pale pink of her cheeks itensified and she hurried back into the bathroom.
The pale blue singleton had the same color as the dress she had worn to the charity event, so Oliver didn't have to think about which backpack he would buy, because it had already chosen him. While he took it he relived their opening dance in his mind.

In the next aisle he found outdoor clothes. Oliver knew her style. He had more than once admired her looks when she wouldn't notice like she had admired him often while he trained with a bare upper body. Although she liked dresses and skirts, he knew it wasn't practical at a trail. So he gave the trousers a closer look.
Oliver sat at home and waited for her. Since they had left Starling City, they had spent nearly every minute together. But that day Felicity was on a shopping trip with their neighbour Laura, so he was alone at home. Although she was just gone for a couple of hours, the house was already clean, the laundry done and the dinner prepared. Because there was nothing else to do he did some sit-ups to distract himself from her absence until his phone rang. It was a picture from Felicity, which showed pale skin and a strap. Although his mind gave him ideas, what he saw, he returned a message with some questionnaires. Within seconds he got another picture, a selfie from the changing room which showed Felicity in black lingerie. Underneath of the picture she had written that her wallet was at home, so Oliver would never see these pieces on her again. Immediately his body reacted to the picture and he didn't think twice when he grabbed his keys as well as his wallet and drove into the city. At first Oliver went to her favourite lingerie store. But neither Felicity nor Laura were visible, so he went into the next store. Felicity's voice was clearly recognizable from the changing room, where he went. While she stood in front of a big mirror and gazed at her reflection she talked to Laura until she noticed him and locked her gaze with his. A wide smile appeared on her face which he returned. Meanwhile he closed the distance between them and whispered into her ear that the dress was gorgeous like the women who wore it. Then his lips brushed against her cheek from behind. They were disturbed by Laura when she exited a changing room. She smirked at the couple like she knew this meeting wasn't a coincidence. Then she said good bye to them with a lame excuse and the two of them were alone. Although he loved that dress on her, he hurried her into the changing room because he wanted to buy that dress and have a closer look at the lingerie. Afterwards he wanted to go home with her.
A pair of shorts and a pair of zip-off-trousers were his decision. Both had the color of the dress she had worn the night before. The dress he had bought for her while they lived in Ivy Town and he had never seen on her until his birthday party.

On the opposite site of the trousers hung tops, shirts and blouses. Felicity would definitely need them on her trip. He wasn't sure what she would prefer because usually she wore different styles. The only thing she didn't understand and didn't like at all was square check pattern.
Felicity and Oliver went back to Star City to help Team Arrow. After the first day they went to the loft which Thea had offered them. Oliver brought their luggage into his old room which they unpacked. Afterwards he changed into a pair of sweatpants and went downstairs to get two glasses of red wine. Meanwhile Felicity stayed in the room. When he returned, she lay on the bed and watched TV. Oliver didn't notice the naughty smile on her face because his gaze was fixated on her body which was barely clad by one of his white dress shirts. Only two buttons over her breasts were closed, obviously she didn't wear a bra while her belly, her silky panty as well as her legs were clearly visible. Within the blink of an eye he placed the glasses on the nightstand, got down on the bed and kissed her passionately while his hands started to work on the buttons.
Two white trekking blouses were the perfect addition to the colorful pants. Immediately he put them to the other items. Oliver could still feel her. It was a memory, he would hopefully never forget.

Oliver knew she needed more than his shopping for the trip, but she probably wanted to choose some things on her own, so he went to the checkout and paid everything. The vender put a small notebook with snowy mountains on the cover as a gift into the shopping bag. Afterwards Oliver left the store and ignored his former plan to buy socks. Instead he returned to his car. He opened the trunk and put the shopping bags inside. Then he got everything out of them, removed the price tags and put it into the backpack. Meanwhile his thoughts turned towards her, towards them and suddenly his feelings overwhelmed him. Oliver just wanted her and wanted to be with her. He knew he was ready for it while she had shown him she was too. But Felicity wanted to make small steps. That backpack was one step. With this thought in his mind he sat down in the driver seat and wrote some words on the first page of the notebook.

When Felicity left the loft in the afternoon, she was distracted by her mobile phone and stumbled over something in front of the door. Luckily she caught herself at the wall. At first she glanced on the ground and noticed the backpack. Then she put her phone into her purse because that surprise was more interesting than any message on her phone could be. Although Oliver had warned her more than once about deliveries and presents from unknown senders, she took the attached notebook curiously, opened it and red it.

Dear Felicity,
I wanted to buy socks today instead I found this.
I wish you lots of fun on your trip.
Send me a picture from the starlit sky.
Love, Oliver

Felicity couldn't suppress the smile forming on her face, because this was her Oliver. He rarely showed this side to her and he had probably never shown it anyone else. Although she guessed it was a small step for him, it was a big gesture for her. So Felicity walked back into the loft with the backpack in her hand and emptied it on the couch. She didn't know why he had chosen the items and colours, but every piece brought a memory back to her, so the smile didn't leave her face for a while.

Oliver went to the bunker after he had placed the backpack in front of her door. He had done the salmon ladder until his muscles ached, then he trained on the dummy until it broke. Before he ended the training with lots of situps, he lifted some weights. Although his body hurt, his mind was still stuck at Felicity. His exhausted body as well as the ice-cold shower after the training didn't change that fact. Felicity was with him all the time. It didn't matter if it was herself or a memory. The beeping of his mobile phone interrupted his thoughts.

Need your help at Palmer Technologies. ASAP. F.

Oliver had expected any kind of thank, but he hadn't expected this. For a moment he was worried about her until he calmed himself. If she was in trouble and could write a message, she would tell him directly what was up. So he put his leather jacket on, took his helmet and drove to the company with his motor cycle. Despite their separation Oliver had still a security clearance for the building and for the top floor. He left the elevator and walked directly towards Felicity's office. Neither her assistant nor she were there. Immediately his mind invented mostly bad reasons for that. Oliver walked into her office without hesitation and looked for an explanation. There were no signs of a struggle, everything seemed to be usual. Just the yellow card in shape of a star on top of her desk was outstanding. Without a second thought he took it and red it.

Follow your stars.

Three cryptic words in her handwriting was all he got and he had no idea what she wanted to tell him, although he assumed it could be a reference her plan. Oliver left the office because nothing gave him a clue where she was. While he returned to the elevator he noticed the yellow star attached to the staircase door. He pulled it off and turned it around, but there was no message on it. Oliver wondered if the card on Felicity's desk referred to this star. So he walked cautiously through the door and took in the surroundings carefully, but he didn't sense any threats instead he discovered another yellow star at the wall of the next landing. So he followed the lead and walked upstairs. No word stood on that card. His gaze wandered around and searched for another star, which he found on the door at the end of the staircase. He gathered that star too and opened the door.

Felicity sat on the ground when he walked through the door. She had awaited him for a while now, but she knew he had checked his way up for possible threats and traps. While he closed the distance to her, she smiled at him and padded on the place at her side. Meanwhile their gazes where locked the whole time. For the moment there was no need to say a single word and he didn't speak either. Instead he took the place at her side. The closeness to him felt right.

"Thank you." Finally she broke the silence, although she was lost in his gaze, lost in him. "The trail needs some preparations but I want to spend a night under the stars." Felicity took the new sleeping bag and spread it over their legs. "Maybe you want to spend the night with me." Immediately she hesitated. "I don't mean spend spend, just spend, like back on Lian Yu. The first time with you was on Lian Yu." Although she knew the words had left her mouth in a completely wrong way, his smirk told her that he had understood her even if she hadn't found the right words. For a moment they sat silently together. Meanwhile she took his hand, while her look didn't waver. "This is a big step." A flash of insecurity got visible on his face, so she moved closer towards him. Felicity looked at him and was absolutely sure about one thing. So she closed the last inches between them and touched his lips with hers smoothly. Immediately he returned that kiss. Meanwhile he laid his arms around her and lifted her onto his lap, she let it happen because it felt like coming home. Everything felt right. Still she pulled away from him despite his resistance and looked deep into his eyes. "I love you, Oliver."