Bound To You
"stop fidgeting Oliver! Here let me help."
Felicity reaches up and begins straightening my tie. She and Digg came to the new lair to pick me up for tonight's fundraiser. It is to help the people of Starling city rebuild after Slade Wilson's attack on the once beautiful city. With Laurel now standing in as acting district attorney all of starlings unsung heroes snagged a personal invite to attend.
"I really don't see the point in me having to go. I can understand you Oliver, and even Felicity, with you on the brink of getting QC back, Felicity is your right hand, but why does the "black driver" need to attend?" Digg whined, obviously uncomfortable in his tux.
"Because Laurel invited all of us, and by invited, I mean she threatened us with bodily harm if we don't show! Besides Digg, this gives me an excuse to attend a formal party with 2 handsome men on my arms without the pretense of a mission! Sometimes a girl just wants to feel pretty, and be the center of attention, and there's no way I won't be the center of attention with my 2 muscular escorts!" Felicity huffed out.
I roll my eyes and tried, and failed, to sound annoyed when I replied "we are not prize racehorses Felicity!"
"No Mr. Queen, to be a prize racehorse, you have to have a ton of endurance, do you have a ton of endurance Oliver?" She cheekily replied with a smile and a lifted eyebrow.
"Alright, alright! I'm gonna stop this one before it gets out of hand! Settle down kids." Chuckling in amusement, Digg quickly and efficiently quieted us both.
An hour later we arrived at the large ballroom where the gala was meant to be hosted. Laurel ask that we arrive early, in case she needed any help with getting things ready, so we showed up 30 minutes early, and right in the nick of time it would appear.
"Finally! Where have you been? I have been waiting on you three!" Laurel breathily said as she came swiftly walking up to the three of us. When she stopped in front of Felicity, she was almost in full blown panic mode. "Roy has been here for the past hour helping out! Where have you guys been?" Laurel nearly shouted.
"Laurel, breath! Deep breaths." Felicity tried calming the usually composed woman. "Now talk to me, what's wrong?"
Laurel,seemingly feeling a little better began telling Felicity why she is so panicked. "We are supposed to have a live singer tonight! Her manager just called and said she caught strep throat! I don't know what we are going to do now! She was supposed to sing while Frankie played the piano. Just simple, soft music. I wanted it to be different! I didn't want to go with the typical orchestra."
"Didn't you have a back up plan?" Felicity asked
"No, I didn't have time for a back up plan! This whole thing was last minute, and I was lucky to get the singer I had. I just wanted everything to be perfect. The city needs this!" Felicity could see the tears building up in her new friends eyes, and sighed deeply. I could tell that she was deciding something in her own head.
"Laurel, look at me. Do you trust me?" Felicity asked
"What? Of course I do!"
"Then leave the singer to me. I will take care of it. I promise"
Laurel looked skeptical, but relieved at the same time. She hugged Felicity, then thanked her profusely before rushing off to tend to the next disaster.
"Felicity, I know your planning skills are amazing, but how are you going to pull this off in 20 minutes?" I asked her.
"And by planning skills, he means hacking skills" quipped Digg at us.
"It hurts that you still doubt me. Truly it does boys."
"Ha! So hear you are gonna have to show everyone your super secret, super power tonight Blondie!"
"Roy what the hell are you talking about?" I glared at him, wondering when the kid got so sneaky.
"Well if I told you, then it wouldn't be super secret anymore" answered Roy. I am seemingly irritated at Roy because it seems as though Roy knows a secret about my Felicity and I do not, and cannot for the life of me, understand why she would confide in Roy over me!
"As fun as this is boys, I have a singer to track down" Felicity walks off and I can't help but watch her. She is in a full length sequence gown, deep emerald green, and the back of the dress was wide open all the way to her lower back. Her hair was down and wavy tonight, and she had on these black strappy heels that showed her legs for miles when they peeked out of the hip high slit. It made my mouth go dry every time I looked at her.
It seems as though, ever since that night at the mansion, the night we beat Slade, she has been wearing risky things around me. Saying more provocative things, she has this air of confidence to her, almost as though she knows that I actually meant what I said that night. A big part of me really hopes that she does, and yet a big part of me hopes that she does not. I cannot allow her to be put in that type of danger. I will not purposely paint a bull's-eye on her back.
"uh emm" A throat clears from the microphone standing by a beautiful white grand piano. The speaker pulls Me out of my thoughts.
"Ladies and gentlemen, there has been a change in our scheduled entertainment for the evening. While I know That everyone was expecting a singer tonight, it appears as though even the best laid plans go awry." You could hear the absolute disappointment in the crowd.
Then I see Felicity walk behind the speaker making the announcement and whisper something in her ear. The short brown headed lady has a look of relief wash over her face, due to what ever Felicity told her. She then steps away from the microphone and let's Felicity take over. Somewhere in the mist of the speakers announcement I had struck up a conversation with a board member of QC, and never to miss a chance at trying to get my family's company back, I was invested in this conversation, and never noticed Felicity walk to the microphone. Then my companion, Mr. Teller, looked over my shoulder and said "hey Queen, isn't that your former secretary up there?" Then I spin around to see what he's talking about, and see that it is indeed Felicity standing behind the microphone. At this point I am utterly confused, because if she had found a singer why did she not let the speaker introduced them? Then the piano start playing, and Felicity is still standing behind the microphone. Myself and Digg exchange looks of absolute confusion with each other at this point. Standing beside Me, and leaning close Roy says to me, "man if you think she was hot before, just wait!" Before I had a chance to respond, a voice begins to ring loud and clear through the microphone. Singing in time with the piano player. Her voice was smooth and clear, but loud and strong at the same time and it was the most beautiful thing I had ever heard in my life.
"sweet love, sweet love, trapped in your love.
I've opened up, unsure I can trust.
My heart and I were buried in dust, free me, free us"
By this point the entire room was mesmerized by this beautiful woman I called my partner. I, myself was completely entranced, pulled into her voice as if her voice had the powers of a siren. Roy glances over at me and says "See, I told you man, superpowers!"
"you're all I need, when I'm holding you tight"
Her voice remained somewhat soft, and her eyes were downcast, I could not believe that she was this insecure in her ability to carry out the notes. She looked up, right as she began to sing the next line, and her eyes caught mine. I tried to convey with my eyes "it's okay, you can do this, I believe in you." she seem to get the message, I realize suddenly when she delivered the next line, this powerful voice came out of such a tiny body and put the entire audience back on their heels.
"If you walk away, I will suffer tonight.
I found a man I can trust, and boy I believe in us. I am terrified, to love for the first time. Can't you see that I'm bound in chains? I've finally found my way, I am bound to you, I am bound to you."
I just held her gaze. It seemed as through she was singing right to me. Every word she sang, every note, they struck something deep inside of me.
"So much, so young, I've faced on my own. Walls I built up, became my home. I'm strong and now I'm sure, there's a fire in us. Sweet love, so pure"
The notes seemed to carry right into my heart as I listened and watched her pour her heart out to me through the music.
"I catch my breath, with just one beating heart, and I brace myself, please don't tear this apart.
I've found a man I can trust, and boy I believe in us. I am terrified, to love for the first time. Can't you see that I'm bound in chains? I've finally found my way. I am bound to you. I am bound to...
I noticed the tears building in her eyes as she sang. The agony and fear running through her strong voice with every word.
"Suddenly the moments here, I embrace my fears, all that I have been carrying all these years.
Do I risk it all? Come this far just to fall? Fall, fall I can trust, and boy I believe in us. I am terrified, to love for the first time. Can you see that I'm bound in chains? I've finally found my way? I bound to you. I am, ohh I am, I bound to you..."
As she finished singing, I felt a wet tear work it's way down my cheek. How had this beautiful woman, this tiny, brilliant person, grabbed ahold of my heart so tightly? I Begin to question everything. Am I doing the right thing by keeping my feelings secret from her? Does she already know? How can I possibly stay away from her after that?
"Wow Ollie. I had no idea she could do that. She's amazing" Laurel's voice floated from beside me.
"Excuse me Laurel" I say as I walk away, because suddenly I need air. I feel like I am suffocating as everything that I have worked so hard to keep hidden, came crashing down on me like a ton of bricks. All because of this blond woman who came into my life Like a tiny little hurricane, and shook my world up.
I escaped to the balcony outside. I had to get away from everyone and everything, I needed to breath again. Felicity had single-handedly knocked the wind right out of my chest.
As I am standing outside leaning over the rails, and I can feel her approach me. I did not have to turn around to know it was her. All she has to do is be in my vicinity, and I know she's there. It's like an electric current between us, that I can no longer deny.
She comes and stands beside me silently. The quiet stretches out over what feels like ours, but could only have been minutes. Then she turns to face me, and that's it. There is nothing more I can do. I realize at this point that I cannot keep this to myself any longer.
"I'm sorry that I never told you I could do that. It's something that my father and I used to share together before he left. I continued singing after he was gone, but never in front of people. Singing is my personal escape. It's my way of releasing everything inside of me, and saying everything I need to say, without actually saying it. Does that make sense?" she explains to me.
"You don't have to explain, or apologize for anything to me. That was incredible. Roy was right, you do have a superpower. How does something so big and powerful come out of someone so tiny I wonder." I chuckle lightly at the thought.
"Felicity, you truly are remarkable" As I tell her this, I turned to face her and brush a stray lock of hair behind her ear. I can see her eyes close momentarily, as she takes in, and relishes my touch. Almost as if she is cataloging it, filing it away, so that she may go back to it another day. My left hand then cups her cheek, and she leans into it softly, still with her eyes closed.
"Felicity, look at me please." I plead with her. She opens those beautiful blue eyes, that are unhindered by her glasses tonight. I can read every emotion in the depths of them. She has dropped her walls, and has completely opened herself up to me in this moment. I feel so honored to be the one that she does this with. I cannot stop myself from what I am about to do. As I lean in close, my face inches from hers, I softly whisper "it wasn't all an act Felicity. What I said that night, that was real." I see the tirade of emotions flash across her features. Then I lean in and gently capture her pink lips in mine. The kiss began soft, just a brush of our lips, barely there, like a whisper of a secret we are sharing only between us. I pull away slightly looking for any sign to continue. She wraps her arms around my neck, and pulls my head to hers. The kiss went from being a whisper, to shouting it from the rooftops. I gently run my tongue along her lips, and she moans, opening her mouth to mine. My tongue clashes with hers, as we pour every ounze of emotion we feel into it. I can feel everything she just sang her heart out. Love, pain, despair, hope, fear. It's all there, in her kiss, and I know that I share the same emotions, and I try to pour it all into this moment. This single kiss. Finally we pull away, when breathing became impossible. And Felicity, in all of her awkward glory, looks up at me and starts saying
"Wow, that was even better than I had imagined. Not that I have imagined it a lot. But if I had imagined it that would definitely be better than anything I could imagine. I mean, I knew that kissing you would absolutely be amazing, but wow! I have never been..."
"Felicity?" I cut her ramble off with a smirk on my lips. She really is adorable when she's nervous.
"Hmm" she replies
"I mean this in the nicest way possible, but shhh" as I lean in and capture her lips once again.
That was the night I heard the voice of an angel.
That was the night I kissed the lips of the woman who saved me time and time again.
That was the night she saved me from my worst enemy...myself.
That was the night our love story truly began, because she convinced me that I can be happy. All by the lyrics and notes of her angelic voice.
As I lay here, alone in my bed thinking of her, and how much I miss everything about her, her smile, her laugh, her rambles, her scent, her voice, all of it. I know in my heart that she is in my vicinity, because, I can feel her presence with me. My eyes close, I can see her reaching for my hand. Suddenly I'm no longer an 84 year old man alone in my bed anymore. I'm 30 again, and my beautiful angel is once again holding my hand, guiding me into the light. Forever with her.