After taking Oliver's car, he held the door to Big Belly for Felicity and the kids to enter.
"Hey give me a minute" Oliver says as he shows Felicity his phone.
"Alright monkeys let's find a booth" Felicity says as the two kids quickly run to the booth by the window.
Once they take their seats Connor and Emma sit next to each other and Felicity shifts herself to the far end of the table opposite them. "So shall we order, Connor do you know what your dad likes to get?" she asks.
"Yeah Big Belly Buster and onion rings" the boy says, both he and Emma are sitting on their knees leaning forward on the counter giggling.
"Ok, Em same as always?"
"Yes mommy" she giggles.
"Connor?"
"Same as my dad please"
After Felicity orders for everyone including chocolate milkshakes all round she enjoys watching her daughter interact with another child. Felicity works at QC not earning a great salary but she helps with organising QC events, organising all the tech stuff around it. She would get paid reasonably enough when she would help with these events. She also had her own organisation so to speak, she had a website where people would pay her for her computer advice and sometimes she would pay visits to these people's houses to fix their computers. She worked all these jobs so she could pay for her daughter's education. Emma was enlisted in Ravenscroft private school it is listed the third best school in Starling, she knew she couldn't afford first or second but third definitely was something she could manage. However because she paid for tuition she could not afford a great place to live. She and her daughter lived in a studio apartment in the Glades, she shared a bed with her daughter where the living room and kitchen were situated. It was not a great place to live the whole building would sometimes be left without electricity and the heating was quite frequently turned off too.
She wished she could afford a better place for her daughter, she only ever wanted the best and hence why she believed having the education was more important that a two bedroom apartment or house. But at times it would break her heart because her daughter struggled to make friends, she didn't understand how five year olds could be so judgemental and discriminative because she lived in the Glades. Felicity felt it too when she would pick Emma up from school, she would get looks and she could hear whispers. Yes the majority if not everyone except for Emma had millionaire, billionaire parents and Emma was the only outcast but they didn't have to treat her like that.
So Felicity smiled genuinely her heart filling with glee as she watches her daughter laugh and joke with Connor Queen. She wondered how long it would last until Connor found out she was from the hood as most mothers at the school said. But in the meantime she was going to enjoy her daughters happiness even if it would be short lived and over once they finish lunch.
Felicity wiped a tear that spilled from her eye.
"Mommy are you crying" Emma asks panic in her voice.
"No baby I am fine, Mom's just tired" she replies.
"So Connor why are you not at school?" Felicity asks coming to the realization that her daughter was not the only person who was not at school.
"I need to find a new school I don't like my school everyone is so mean" he snorts.
"Everyone at my school is mean too" Emma adds.
"Aww I'm sorry to hear that bud, hopefully you can find another school that you will like" Felicity smiles.
Once their food arrives Felicity looks over her shoulder and notices that Oliver is still on his phone, she turns back to ask the kids if they want to wait but chuckles when she sees them stuffing their faces in.
"My birthday is November 7th" Connor says amidst the chewing of his burger.
"Mine is December 7th" she says very excitedly causing both of them to giggle.
"I'm trying to get my dad to buy me a dog, he says no" Connor says.
"A dog is cool but our house is small it wouldn't fit a dog" Emma says regrettably.
Felicity finishes her burger and cleans Connor and Emma's mouths which has stains of ketchup all over.
"Hey" Oliver interrupts Felicity whilst she is using wet wipes to clean Connor's hands.
"Hey" she startles "Sorry hope you don't mind me …"
"Felicity of course I don't, sorry that took so longer, I am opening a club in the Glades and it was the contractors" he smiles quickly opening his burger and devouring it.
"Dad can Emma come to my birthday" Connor asks.
"Of course she can" Oliver says quickly noticing Emma's eyes light up. "His party is this weekend, it's a family thing, me him, my mom, Walter and my sister but it would be great for him to have a friend there" Oliver says.
"Oh, we wouldn't want to intrude …"
"Felicity" he lowers his voice hoping Connor and Emma's talk of the birthday party will not hear "He doesn't really have that many friends, he has been to four schools hasn't liked any of them, it would be nice for him to have a friend there someone his age, so if you can please do come" Oliver grins.
"Ok, I guess I can drop her off and …"
"You should join us" he says adamantly. "And before you say anything you will not intrude, you should join us too" he smiles.
"So what school does Emma go to, you mentioned the school is having plumbing issues, I had an appointment with a school for Connor this week and had to be cancelled because the school's plumbing issue"
"She goes to Ravenscroft" Felicity says.
"Really" Oliver says surprised.
Felicity raises her eyebrow clearly looking a little irritated now. "What's with that face, what a IT girl can't afford to take her daughter to a good school" she bites, now turning to face the window to hide her frustration.
"Felicity I never meant it like that … I am not … hey" he reaches for her shoulder so she can face him. "I never meant anything by it, I sounded surprised because that's the school I had the appointment with" he tries to relax his face so she doesn't feel offended.
"Sorry, I jumped to conclusions, it's just I hear it all the time, IT girl lives in the Glades sends daughter to 3rd best school in Starling she clearly must be working on the side of a kerb" she rolls her eyes causing Oliver to chuckle.
"Well ignore all those snobs" Oliver stares at Felicity and they remain like that for what seems eternity.
Oliver's attention is then caught when two men enter the restaurant. He turns and sees to young men he recognizes quickly as boys who are part of the Italian Mafia who were currently having difficulties with some of the street gangs in the Glades.
"We need to go" Oliver says, as he takes Emma's and Connor's hands.
"Dad we haven't finished" Connor argues.
"Oliver I still have 20 minutes, you guys can go and me and Emma …" Felicity begins to say.
"No" Oliver practically growls at her. Felicity blinks at him confusingly and even more confused that he is gripping her daughters hand for dear life.
Before Felicity can say anything screeching tyres can be heard in the background, Oliver watches as the blacked out car's windows roll down revealing MK47's. Oliver wraps one of his arms around Connor's waist and the other at Emma's and quickly pulls Felicity to the far end of the restaurant. He pushes Felicity under the table booth and pushes the children in afterwards.
Shots begin to fire throughout the restaurant, glass begins to shatter as the two men who entered earlier take cover and take out their own guns.
Felicity reacts quickly clutching the kids close to her and throwing herself on top of them. Oliver doesn't pay attention as he lays at the edge of the booth watching. His teeth clench as he notices Carly, his bodyguard's sister in law crouched on the floor covering her head.
"Carly" Oliver shouts. He looks back to ensure Felicity and the kids are ok before he is off, he crawls on the floor towards her.
"Oliver"
"Daddy" Connor cries as Emma grips his hand tightly crying with him.
Oliver grabs Carly by her front and is about to drag her back to their position. He is unaware that the car has moved down the alleyway now facing the windows where Felicity and the kids were. As shots begin to fire breaking the glass Oliver is on high alert that his son is in danger. Not to mention the woman he has just met and her daughter.
Felicity begins to panic, hearing the shots, feeling the glass fall on her. She changes position now shoving the kids into the wall covering them with her body as best as she can. She tries to remain as calm as possible even though she can feel their little bodies shaking in sobs.
Oliver sees that Felicity's back is turned, he turns and sees the two men dead, a couple of injuries and one which looks like a casualty. Carly is now hidden behind the counter. He rushes towards the gun by the dead member of the Mafia. Pulling his jumper so his finger prints are not on the gun he quickly stands and pulls the trigger killing the men in the car instantly.
Felicity turns her head slightly upon hearing the gun shots ends. Her head is a little hazy and her vision is a little blurry but she thinks she can make out Oliver Queen with a gun. Felicity touches her forehead noticing the blood, the glass had given her a nasty cut on her forehead. Feeling the darkness about to take her she runs her hands over Emma and Connor to ensure they are safe. Once she finds no visible injuries she allows the darkness to take her.
Oliver drops the gun quickly hoping nobody saw him and rushes towards Felicity and the kids. He crouches down.
"Felicity it's over" he yells the ringing still occurring in his ears. "Felicity" he flips her round to find her unconscious, bloody pooling out of her head. As his hand runs through her hair he feels all the glass that lays shiny in her hair.
"Dad" Connor yells throwing his arms around his neck. Using his free arm Oliver holds on to his son tightly feeling his back for any injuries.
"Mommy" Emma screams touching Felicity's face "Why is my mommy not moving" she cries.
"She's ok, princess we have to take her to the hospital though" Oliver tries to calm the little girl down by pushing back loose strands of hair behind her ear.
"Mommy" she cries as she drops her head in the crook of Felicity's neck.
"it's ok, your mom is going to be fine" Connor says reassuringly as he lays his head on Emma's back comforting her.
This gesture doesn't go unnoticed by Oliver as pride fills him when he sees his son offer his support.
"Emma can you take Connor's hand so I can get mommy to the doctors" Oliver says earning a nod in response. He lifts Felicity in his arms. Before he can walk away he looks around at the blood and dead bodies. He releases Felicity for a moment, her head is balancing on his chest as he turns to the kids.
"Ok we're going to play a game ok" they both nod. "Can you pull your hoodies up to cover your eyes" and watches as they both do so, counting his lucky stars it was chilly and they both had hoods. "Connor do you think you and Emma could hug" the two quickly take each other in their embrace.
Oliver lifts Felicity once more but is cradling her like a child. His arm is securely lifting her from her backside as her arms are loosely wrapped around his neck. Using his free arm he lifts the two scared kids wrapping his arm around their wrapped embrace. He quickly walks out of Big Belly Burger, spotting police and an ambulance he rushes towards the ambulance.
Dropping the kids he places Felicity on a stretcher the paramedics brought to him.
"Felicity Smoak unconscious, cut from the glass" he says. Knowing that the ambulance cannot take all three of them and not wanting Emma to travel alone he bends to her level to the crying curly little girl. "Sweetheart you're coming with me and Connor to the hospital ok" he wipes her tears from her cheeks.
"Is my mommy going to be ok" she sobs.
"Yes, she will be, she just hit her head a little protecting you and Connor" he smiles.
Emma begins to rub her eye, "I only have mommy" she sobs.
"Hey, hey come here" he hugs the little girl supporting the back of her head. He plants a kiss on the top of her head, "She is going to be fine ok"
"She will be, your mom was awesome she protected us" Connor interrupts.
"Yeah" Emma says in between sobs.
"Don't be scared I'll protect you until your mommy is better" Connor smiles hugging her.
Oliver lifts Connor into one side of his hip and Emma on the other as he walks towards his car.
