So, this is my birhtday present to myself (Thursday was the big day, 26 on the 26th). It seems like the plot bunnies just won't leave me be, or maybe it's just this World Cup that is making me write all this stuff (toned men in short shorts are really good for my imagination it seems)

It's AU, but will still feature the vigilante, just because you can't beat the salmon ladder or those lovely leather pants.

I hope you guys like this, if not, I'll probably repost it as a one-shot in my other story.

Disclaimer: I own nothing, except a lot of imagination and a freakish love for TV-shows.

I hope you guys like it! Leave me reviews please, consider them a birthday present!

Prologue

"The world has gone completely crazy!" he said, while dropping in the booth in front of his friend. "How is it possible that a fantastically good-looking guy like me doesn't have a date for tonight? It isn't! And that my friend, is why the entire world has gone absolutely off its rockers!" His companion cocked her head to the side and said "Or, and this is just a random idea so don't shoot me, you've just gone through all of the available and most of the unavailable women in this city. And you know what they say 'fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice…'."

His expression turned a little darker, but the sparkle in his eyes made it clear he wasn't really upset. "So, basically you're saying I'm a man-whore? 'Cause that's what I'm taking from this conversation." Her smile grew wider and a chuckle escaped her lips. "I never said those words, but let's just roll with it. It's not that you're not a fun guy to hang out with, but this whole 'love 'em and leave 'em' attitude can be a little off putting for some women." She took a sip from her coffee while he was thinking that over, and he suddenly got a very devious look in his eyes.

"Some women, but not you, right?" he asked her, trying very hard to sound casual and not calculated. But she knew him to well, and wasn't easily fooled by his trickery. "Well, no, not me. But then again, I've never had the desire to end up with your last name. Which, coincidentally also makes me infinitely smarter than any of those other women." She glanced down at her watch, and saw that lunchtime was nearly over. "Oh damn, I need to get going. Superiors really frown upon being late. Not to mention my boss, he's a real hard-ass." She winked at him while sliding out of the booth and hiked her purse-string higher up her shoulder. When she was at the door, she heard him yell after her "So, I'll pick you up at seven? Wear something sexy, I've got a reputation to uphold!" The only response he got was her laugh ringing through the bistro and a hand waiving above her head.

There were a few things that Felicity Smoak really loved. She loved Marathon week on the SciFi channel. She loved comic book and movie franchises. And she absolutely loved technology. Which is probably why she loved her job so much. She got to create new tech, from design over programming to completion, and she loved every minute of it. Well, she loved every minute of it usually. Right at this moment though, it was not going the way it was supposed to. She and her teammates were in the process of creating a new kind of storage system that required less cooling for more storage-power. And while the design and the schematics were fantastic, there was a problem with the software. And, being the teamleader (and she hated that word from the bottom of her heart) it was her responsibility to find the error and fix it. So that's what she was doing. Going over lines and lines and lines of code, to find the one little error that prevented everything from working.

She'd been at it for several hours, and was totally engrossed with the lines that crossed over her screen. Which was why she didn't hear it when she had a visitor. In fact, she didn't even notice it when he came over to her desk and stood behind her, looking over her shoulder. It wasn't until he spoke that she realized he was there. "So, are you really working late, or are you just hoping you can hide from me here? Contrary to popular belief, I do not burst in flames by walking into a place of business." She was startled so badly, she jumped about a foot in the air. She was too busy to try and stop her heart from beating out of her chest to really focus on his words, but when they finally sunk in, she snorted.

"No, you just break out in hives and fake an allergic reaction." She retorted. "Why are you here? I'm working you know. It's not because your dad owns this company that you can keep mefrom my work. I've got important things to do you know." She frowned at him, because he knew how much she hated being interrupted when she was in the zone. "Felicity, you do realize it's 6.30 right? I told you I would pick you up at 7, and you were to dress appropriately. And while me and every other male in this office really appreciates your tight and short skirts, they are not really gala dress-code."

She glanced down at the bottom right corner of her screen and realized he was right; she'd been at this code non-stop since 12.30. Still, if he hadn't shown up, it could have been midnight before she stopped working. It wouldn't be the first time. And she highly preferred work over a stupid gala with all of Starling's elite. "I don't recall actually agreeing to go with you to that stupid thing. And even if I would, which I don't, I don't have anything to wear. Galas aren't my usual Friday night entertainment you know." He laughed at that, the sound she had always found oddly melodic for him.

"You know you'd never say no to me, you love me too much for that. And, if you don't go with me, they would revoke your best-friend membership card. And I got you something to wear, so don't say I never gave you anything." Darn that boyish charm. She knew she wouldn't say no, because she wasn't nearly cruel enough to let him go into society alone. That would be as damaging to him as it was to society. But she'd be damned if she agreed without a fight. His ego was inflated enough as it was, no need to add to that.

"I'll go with you, but not because you asked me. I'll go for the sole reason that at these galas they usually have the good red wine. And you know I'm a sucker for the good stuff." His grin was so wide; it nearly split his face in half. He took her hand and said "I've secured you the executive bathroom, so you can get ready here. And don't give me that bull about needing your make-up and stuff, because I know for a fact that 99% of the contents of your purse are make-up related. So come on, get up and get going. We've got wine to drink and people to make fun of."

She sighed and stood, but was secretly very excited to get ready in the executive bathroom. She'd heard stories about that thing, but really didn't believe most of it. The stories about it got bigger and bigger with every new employee, and at the moment the number of people who had actually been in there were limited to the boss and his son. And now, Felicity herself.

When she got up to the 55th floor and opened the bathroom door, she was actually a little disappointed. It was beautiful, but the rumors of bathtubs the size of a boat and golden faucets were very much exaggerations. But the shower was all it was rumored, and much, much more.

"You see that guy? The one with the hideous goat-tee and the ill-fitting suit?" He asked her, while not so subtly pointing over to the man in question. "Yes, I and every other person within a 10 foot radius see the man. What about him? She asked, a little embarrassed but a lot more curious. "Well, he and that brunette girl from that law firm, you know the one we went to high school with, are having an affair. And to think that his wife keeps flaunting her new jewelry like it's a sign of love. It's not by the way, it's a sign of guilt. And by the size of that 3 carat diamond, he's got a lot of it."

His whispers weren't really whispers, and she saw several women looking at him with a frown on their faces. Also, several of them were inspecting their respective jewelry, and probably trying to figure out if they too were guilt-money. In about half of the cases, she suspected it would be. "And how do you know this? Usually you're the last to know any of the gossip. Mostly because everybody knows that when they tell you something, it won't stay a secret for too long. You're a blabby drunk."

"I might have hit on her a few weeks ago, but she was less than willing to have me entertain her. She kept glancing at the old dude, frowning whenever he kissed his wife. A can put two and two together, I'm a society brat after all." She laughed at that. It was typical of him to forget the girl he slept with after senior prom and who followed him around for the entire summer after that. "You mean Laurel Lance? You seriously tried to pick up Laurel? Are you completely insane. Last time you went after her she stalked you for an entire summer. They had to send her across the country for college, just to keep her away from you!"

He blanched a little at her statement. "That's Laurel? Wow, she's all grown up now. I didn't even recognize her. Much less crazy now that she's older." He turned towards the bar and motioned the bartender for a Gin-Tonic. There were certain memories that required red wine to forget, like the time he jumped in the river on a dare and ended up with a nasty yeast infection. Or the time he tried to do a summersault with his BMX bike and landed on his shoulder. Laurel Lance however, was definitely a memory that required something a little stronger to forget.

"Oh no! Your dad is coming over here. Please don't do anything to piss him off, I'm still reeling from the last time you did something stupid. Like it was my fault that you are a moron who can't back down from a challenge." She was contemplating about running away, maybe make some excuse about the ladies room, just to get away from him. He was her boss, but that didn't mean she had to like him. She'd always found him a little (or a lot) creepy, with that smile that never really reached his eyes, and the thinly veiled contempt he had towards her. After all, a scholarship to a private school does not make you worthy of actually going there. Much less make friends with the richest children there. He only tolerated her now because she was a genius and he needed her.

"Son, I would say that it surprises me to see you here, but we are at the bar after all. And we all know that is your natural habitat." She also hated the way he acted towards his son. Like he was constantly ashamed of him. "Wow dad, you're here? I thought the sun was going to be up for at least another half hour. You shouldn't take chances like that with your health. Or maybe just have your security carry a fire-extinguisher around with them, in case you accidentally burst into flames." He turned towards Felicity and took her hand "Come on Liss, I think I need to show you off on the dance floor. Dad, if you'll excuse us."

When they reached the dance floor she slapped his shoulder. "Auw, what did you do that for?" he asked her, while rubbing his hand over his the spot she'd hit him in. "Because if you keep on mouthing off to your dad like that, he's going to cut you off. And where would you be without that lovely little trust fund?" She scolded him, all the while still slowly swaying to the music with him. "Well, I'd probably be staying on your couch, since I wouldn't be able to afford my apartment anymore." he said charmingly. She just shook her head and rolled her eyes. "No way you're going anywhere near my couch. Some things a couch just can't recover from."

Their wine intake of the night was equal to the time progression. Until about midnight, when he decided they needed to steal a bottle of wine and get the hell out of there. They decided to find a quiet place to make the bottle less full.

They drank in silence, sitting on a bench in the gardens behind the Symphony where the gala was hosted. When the bottle was about three quarters gone, he started talking. "So, I've noticed you haven't dated anybody since…" his voice trailed off. There was no need for him to finish it, she knew what he was talking about. "Is that even healthy? It's been so long already. It's not good for you to be alone all the time. You need to move on." She wanted to be upset with him, for bringing this up now and killing her buzz. But she knew he was right. There hadn't been anybody since she lost the love of her life. "No, I suppose it's not really healthy. But I'm not alone, I've got you, and that's all I need right now."

"Felicity… "he turned towards her. His face dangerously close to hers. "You need to let somebody in, I'm worried. He's gone and he's not coming back. You need to get past it." And then he kissed her.

She woke up in his bed, him still softly snoring next to her. Her head was pounding like somebody was banging on it with a jackhammer. What she really needed right now was a bloody mary and a pretzel. She shuffled to the kitchen and turned on the TV along the way. She had just picked up her drink when she heard it.

After presumed dead for 5 years after the sinking of the Queen's Gambit, Oliver Queen has returned to Starling City. He was rescued off an island in the South China Sea late Thursday night…

She didn't hear anything what was said after. She stood there, glass in shards on the floor, dropped out of shock from hearing his name. Oliver. Not dead. Her mind couldn't comprehend what was happening. He came rushing to her when he heard the sound of the glass hitting the ground, not quite knowing what was wrong until she pointed at the TV. His eyes went wide at the sight of his friend's picture on the news, headline below stating 'Oliver Queen rescued'. He turned back to Felicity hugging her tight to him before she crumbled to the floor. "Tommy… he's alive."

So, what did you guys think? Did I fool you? Would you like it if I continued? Let me know please.

A/N2: For all the Americans who read this story and also (sort of) follow the World Cup; be prepared to get absolutely crushed when you face off agains us on Tuesday! Belgian Red Devils for the win! (Sorry, my patriotism just got the better of me :D )