A/N
I originally started this story as a little side project. I wasn't going to get too invested in it, but now I am. I don't want this to just be a little pointless fix. I have a plan and with every line I write it becomes bigger. I really think you guys are gonna like where this is going. Or atleast I hope so.
Oh God I really hope you do.
Felicity pressed the button to the ground floor and leaned against the wall. She shut her eyes and grinned.
"Good day?"
Felicity opened her eyes and saw Oliver standing at the elevator doors. She smiled at him and nodded. Oliver let out a small laugh and walked into the elevator.
Felicity hadn't seen him since the day he had come into her office asking for help with his phone. She had, however, spent a few shameless hours googling the billionaire.
It's not like it meant anything. It was just curiosity.
But damn, life had been kind to Oliver. Born with good looks and a silver spoon in his mouth, Felicity wondered what it felt like to not have to work for anything. Felicity didn't know how to be idle. She had worked so hard all her life. It had paid off too. She had gotten a full scholarship to the school of her choice. Even at MIT, Felicity didn't stop. She worked part-time at the Apple store while staying at the top of her class. When she graduated, the top three companies in the country were begging her to join them.
Choosing the right company had been hard.
She had originally planned on joining Wayne enterprises. They had been making huge strides in the tech department and Felicity wanted to be a part of it. It was far from home, but when Felicity stepped foot in the massive campus, she felt her dreams coming true. She was going to be a part of something huge and all her hard work was going to pay off.
She had almost accepted the offer, when she received a phone call from the head of HR at Queen Consolidated asking her to just take a meeting with them. Felicity agreed after a lot of convincing.
She had been expecting to meet Theodore Winn, the head of technical development. They had met at a dinner hosted by the dean of MIT, and it brought together potential employers and employees. Theodore hadn't made much of an impression on Felicity but he had been nice enough, and she decided to take the meeting as a courtesy. To her surprise, she was directed to the office of Walter Steele, CFO of QC. The short meeting that she had expected, one that she would end with politely declining their offer, lasted over 45 minutes. By the time they were done, Felicity had walked out with a job.
At that meeting, Walter had promised Felicity something, and today he had fulfilled it. She would have never doubted that he would, but by keeping his word, Walter had confirmed a loyal employee.
"Do you have a cat?"
Wait what?
Felicity stared at Oliver as he looked at her, expecting an answer.
Oliver had had a not very good day. After a massive fight with his father and at the threat of being cut off, Oliver had agreed to start learning the ropes at QC. It was his destiny, but he had spent hours shadowing his dad and had basically learned nothing.
This is why is I should have paid more attention at business school.
He was frustrated. He didn't want to let his family down, but maybe running this company was not his cup of tea?
When he had walked into the elevator, and he saw the IT girl standing there, smiling to herself, like she had this great big secret, Oliver felt a weird sense of happiness fill him.
It was the oddest thing. There was no reason for him to be happy really, but looking at Felicity reminded him of day he had woken Thea up early one morning and taken her to the beach. They had snuck out of the house, without letting their parents know, and Oliver had driven them two hours away to the beach. It had been one of the rare occasions when he had spent time with Thea, doing just normal big brother stuff. Their entire life was lavish parties and society events, and they never got to do simple stuff like going to the beach. They had sat on the sad, eating sandwiches that Raisa had packed for them and he had listened to his little sister babbling about school, her friends and boys. At a time when he was trying to figure out what to do with his life, his little sister provided him with a few hours of freedom and Oliver had felt like a huge weight on his heart had been lifted.
That had been one of the best days of his life. And today, even after spending hours stuck in stupid board meetings and after endless financial presentations that he didn't understand, he felt like he had just spent another fun day at the beach. Like he had just spent the entire day swimming; and bathing in like this glorious sunlight.
It made him wonder what kind of a girl this was. He had forgotten her name, and that didn't surprise him. Remembering the name of a girl was not something Oliver Queen did, but today he wanted to kick himself.
He wondered if she liked her job. She looked like she did. He remembered the way her eyes lit up while she was explaining what went wrong with his phone a few weeks ago. That was the look of a person who was passionate about something. He wondered what she did when she went back home. Did she live alone? Did she have a boyfriend? He imagined her going home to a little apartment. He thought about how she unwound after a long day at work. Did she go out and party? Did she drink till she blacked out? Or hooked up with some guy she met in a bar?
Even as the images came to his head, he knew they didn't fit. She probably liked to drink a glass of wine and read a book. She probably cooked with her boyfriend and then they spent time talking about their day, or talking about music and books. Was her boyfriend a good guy? Did he treat her right?
He wanted for her to have a good guy. To have a happy life where she didn't wait by her phone hoping he would call while he was actually out, with another woman.
Did she have a pet? Someone to comfort her and someone she could take care of. Maybe a little cat that she adopted. A cat that waited for her to come home and liked to snuggle next to her.
He wanted to know. He needed to know.
He needed to know why this woman made him feel like a happier man just by standing in an elevator, smiling to herself.
"Do I have a cat?" She asked back, not exactly sure where this line of conversation was going.
"Yes. Or any pet actually." He shot back.
He had thrown her off guard.
What kind of a stupid question was that, Oliver?
Felicity had always wanted a cat. She loved cats, but Laurel was crazy allergic, so unless she wanted her best-friend slash roommate going into anaphylactic shock ever few minutes, Felicity could only ever wish for one.
The lift landed before Oliver could get an answer.
Felicity looked at him, and with a small, sad smile said, "No. I don't."
And then she was gone.
Oliver stood there for a moment just trying to process this strange interaction he had just had. It unsettled him. She unsettled him; and Oliver Queen did not like to be unsettled.
A/N
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I like to know what people think. It helps me build stronger characters.
