A/N: This was inspired by the fact that Rene shooting at Felicity was basically swept under the rug.


Felicity placed her keys on the table before gingerly removing her jacket, her side burning and aching. She grimaced as she tossed her jacket over a chair.

"Hey, Felicity, your home, do yo-" William's voice broke off and she looked up at him to see him staring at her wide-eyed.

"What wrong?" she asked.

"Did you get hurt?" he asked in concern.

"No, of course not." was her instinctive response. "Only a little." she then amended.

"But your bleeding." he pointed out, stepping closer.

"It's just a scratch." she dismissed, not wanting him to worry about her when she was fine

William frowned. "Please, don't lie to me. I hate it when people lie."

Felicity looked regretful. "I know, bud, I'm sorry. Things just didn't go as we planned and I got hurt."

"How?" William asked.

"I was shot," she admitted, not sugar-coating it.

"What?! We have to get you to a hospital!" William exclaimed.

"No, I promise, I'm fine," Felicity told him.

"But you were shot!" He protested.

"I was." she conceded with a wince. "But it was just a graze."

Felicity placed her hands on his shoulders. "Hey, I promise if it was serious I would have gone to the hospital. I'm okay."

"I don't want anything bad to happen to you, Felicity."

"I know, bud. I know. But bad things happen sometimes but I'll always do everything to make it back home to you and your dad, okay?"

After a moment William nodded.

"Okay. C'mon, let's have some ice cream before your dad gets home." She led him toward the kitchen, ignoring the stitch of pain in her side for the moment.


Oliver walked in the door, shucking off his jacket but still felt the weight of everything that happened that day weighing down on him.

He found William on the video game. "Hey, bud."

William paused his game when he saw his dad, frowning as he looked his father over.

"What's wrong?" asked Oliver.

"You're not hurt?" asked William, brow pinched.

"No, I'm fine. Is that what's bothering you?" Oliver wondered, joining his son on the couch.

"Does Felicity normally go out in the field with you?" William questioned.

"Sometimes," he answered. "What is this about?"

"It's bad enough that I have to worry about you but I don't want to have to worry about her too." his frowned deepened.

"I know Bud but she's fine." Oliver tried to reassure him.

"This time maybe but what about the next time." Willam challenged. "She could have been hurt worse."

Oliver's brow pulled together in confusion. "What do you mean next time? She didn't get hurt tonight."

"She did." William countered. "She came home bleeding, she said she was fine. I guess she is but she still got hurt when she shouldn't have."

Worry filled Oliver, how had he not noticed that his wife had gotten hurt? "Okay, bud, I understand that your concern but you have to know that I will always protect you and Felicity."

"I know." William nodded. "I just I don't want to lose her like I lost my mom."

"You won't," Oliver vowed. "I won't let that happen. I promise, okay."

William watched his father carefully before finally saying. "Okay."

"Why don't you continue your game, I'm going to check on Felicity and then the three of us can have a late dinner."

William nodded, picking up his game controller and unpausing his game.

Oliver clapped him on the shoulder once, before getting up and making his way to his and Felicity's bedroom.

Oliver quickened his steps to their bedroom, however, he changed directions when he heard low mutters coming from the bathroom just down the hall.

He opened it quietly and his breath caught in his throat, she stood there in just her jeans and bra, attempting to take care of a wound that was on her ribs, it was no longer bleeding but he could see the cloths of blood in the sink that she used to press against the wound until the blood had slowed.

When he saw her clench her jaw against the pain he was moving quickly to her side, his hands landing on her hips, barely registering her gasp of his name as he dropped to his knees in front of her to get a better look. "What the hell happened?" His voice came out like gravel, anger boiling to the surface.

"It nothi-"

"Don't say nothing." he tore his eyes from her wound and stood back up, his hand reaching out to cup her jaw. "You getting hurt is not nothing, Felicity."

She leaned into his hand, placing her hand over his heart. "I'm gonna be fine."

"I didn't even know you got hurt," he said with self-crimination.

"You have a lot going on, Oliver." Felicity dismissed.

"That's no excuse. I should have known my wife had gotten hurt. I should have kept it from happening."

"Hey, stop that. Don't blame yourself for this." she slid her hand up from his chest to cup his jaw and he leaned into it automatically. "You can't always protect me."

Oliver's eyes flashed with anger but not with her. "I'm sure as hell am going to try. Anytime I think you might be in danger I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure you're okay because anything less than that is not an option."

Felicity shivered at the fierce protectiveness in his words, the look on his face reminding him of the same one he wore before he put three arrows into Count Vertigo when he dared threatened her life.

"What happened?" Oliver jaw clenched as he tried to reign in his anger.

"Renee was firing at Quentin and Thea," He was targeting Black Siren but still Quintin and Thea were in the line of fire and she just acted. "I tried to stop him by getting in the way."

"And he still fired the gun? He shot you!" Oliver was seeing red. "I can't. I can't let this go."

"Oliver, I'm fi-" she let out a surprised yelp as he lifted her, sitting her on the edge of the sink and took over doctoring her wound, she could see the anger just beneath the surface, waiting to be unleashed, in all honesty, she worried about what he might do.

"How did things go at the hospital?" he asked.

Felicity didn't think he really wanted to know and only ask because he was trying to distract himself but she still answered. "Rene had a collapsed lung, he needs better care than the doctors can give him, Dinah and Curtis blame us." Her voice drifted off as she mentioned Curtis.

"What's bothering you about Curtis?" he asked, doing his best to disinfect the wound.

"He said we were done with everything, no communication, nothing. I don't think he want's to go into business with me anymore." She bit down on her lip, hurt in her eyes.

"Hey," Oliver caught her attention making sure to catch her gaze. "Curtis is smart but he's also an idiot and what he did tonight to John was crossing the line, it could have easily been your chipped he hacked. You don't need him. You're Felicity Smoak. The strongest, smartest, woman I know. There's nothing you can't do once you set your mind to something."

Felicity smile his words just making her fall even more in love with him. "You have so much belief in me."

"It's impossible not to when you're the one who gave me hope, who made it possible for me to believe again." he lifted her hand with her wedding band to his mouth and pressed his lips against it and Felicity smiled, her heart fluttering with the sweet gesture.

Once Oliver had carefully bandaged her wound, he got one of his shirts, slipping it over her smaller frame.

"Thank you." She placed her hands on his sides. "I know you want to go after Renee but there's no point."

"He hurt you." Oliver growled out his anger returning, there was no better reason to go after him.

"I know but it's over now." Felicity tried to soothe his anger.

Oliver cupped her face and pressed his mouth to hers, his lips slanting over hers.

Felicity moaned against him and Oliver had to force himself to pull away. He leaned his forehead against hers. "It's not over." He pulled back, his eyes roaming over her before locking with her blue eyes. "But it will be."

He pulled away before Felicity could stop him and she sighed when he was gone. She hoped he'd show restraint and not let his anger override his actions.


Oliver slipped into Renee's room he didn't care that it was past visiting hours, he stepped up to the man's bed, Renee jolted awake as he came to a stop next to his bed.

"What are you doing here, hoss?!" Rene demanded, struggling to sit up in the bed.

Oliver reached his hand out, gripping his shoulder tightly, squeezing and forcing him back down. "No more, Hoss. I am done putting up with your disrespect, your attitude. You're recklessness, everything. I've held myself back tonight because I was trying to be better."

"Holding back!? Look at me? I'm in the hospital." Rene said angrily.

"Be glad you're not dead." Oliver growled his hand that still gripped Rene's shoulder clamped down harder, making Rene face scrunched up in pain. "You're going to leave my city and you better hope I never see you again."

"Or what?" Rene challenged, gritting his teeth against the pain but he cried out lowly not a moment later, from Oliver vice like grip on his shoulder.

"You shot at Felicity!" Oliver growled angrily through clenched teeth. "You shot my fucking wife! I have killed people for hell of a lot less than that. It is taking everything for me not to finish the job I started by putting you in here." Oliver released his grip on his shoulder. "You're going to leave or so help me God, you'll be the next man to die at the hands of the Green Arrow!" He cast one more last murderous glance at Rene before exiting the room and walking down the hall.

If Rene had any sense at all he would heed his warnings and leave before he did something he couldn't take back.


When Oliver returned home again that night, he could hear the voices of his family, he felt a weight lift off his shoulders, he followed the sound to see them on the couch watching a movie.

"Hey, Dad." William's eyes lit up. "Where did you go? We ordered Chinese. It should be here soon."

"I just had some last minute business to take care of." Oliver replied, shucking off his jacket.

Felicity stood. "I'm going to get something to drink. You want anything, William?"

"No, I'm good." he shook his head, his focus back on the superhero movie playing.

Oliver followed Felicity into the kitchen.

Felicity turned pulling him toward her. "How'd it go?"

"He's alive." Oliver answered. "And it's more than he deserves after what he did."

"Oliver.." Felicity murmured, knowing his anger was coming from a place of fear about her safety.

"I can't lose you, Felicity. I can't.." his voice broke and he took a deep breath, clearing his throat. "I won't survive it. I can't live in a world without you."

Felicity nodded. "I know," she murmured, pulling him into her, his arms wrapped around her back, lifting her to accommodate their height difference as he buried his face in her neck, his lips pressed against her skin.

He loved when he could wrap his arms around her and just hold her, knowing she was safe with him. Knowing she was safe was everything to him. "I love you," he murmured against her.

Felicity carded her fingers through his hair, her eyes tightening around his shoulders. "I love you, too."

If what he needed was to wrap himself around her to assure him she was okay then, she was perfectly okay with that. He could hold her in his arms for as long as he needed. There was nowhere else she rather be than in the circle of his arms, being surrounded by every ounce of love he had for her.


A/N: Reviews are encouraged and Appreciated. Thanks for reading!