Love, I Know You Are the One

by Tarafina

[3-Parts] Oliver and Felicity make their public debut as a couple. It's both as difficult and as easy as he expected.

2. Part II

Title: Love, the kind that's not undone (Love, I know you are the one)
Sequel to: I Can Feel Your Heartbeat (Running Through Me)
Category: Arrow
Genre: Romance/Drama
Ship: Felicity/Oliver
Rating: NC-17-Explicit
Word Count: 7,938
Summary: [Three-Parter] Oliver and Felicity make their public debut as a couple. It's both as hard and as easy as he expected.

Love, the kind that's not undone (Love, I know you are the one)
-2/3-

Love, they say it heals all wounds
Love, removes the hurt in you
Love, I know that this is true

II.

Oliver's immediate reaction to the flurry of flashing cameras was to don the mask he wore so often. He offered a smile for the crowd and gave them a wave, even reaching out to shake the hand of a reporter he knew often tried to paint him and his family in a flattering light. Fingers twined, his and Felicity's hands hung together between them as he started forward and she matched his steps. Questions were called out, asking for her name, who designed her dress, how long they'd been seeing each other, but Oliver simply maneuvered her up the stairs to the front doors.

"You good?" he murmured against her ear.

She blew out a shaky breath, but nodded.

He squeezed her hand before turning his attention to the man taking names at the front. He didn't even bother to ask Oliver for a ticket or identification, though, recognizing him on sight. "Have a good evening, Mr. Queen."

"Thank you," he replied, ushering Felicity inside.

The front foyer was large, with a high ceiling that meant everything echoed, including Felicity's stiletto heels on the shiny marble floors. Oliver had long become used to the grandeur, but Felicity's eyes were wide as she took in the tall, pristine white walls with gold borders that gave them an antique look. A large coat check took up a good portion of the room, a small line-up of people were waiting to add their jackets to the rest. Bypassing it, having left their coats at home given the warm night, they made their way to one of the curved staircases leading up into the main hall. Felicity's hand slid over the banister as they climbed the stairs. Classical music and the mixed noise of people talking carried from the open double doors at the top.

"They're not going to do that weird introduction thing, are they? Where they tell the room who's arrived…?"

He smiled, helpless to it as she peered up at him, looking nervous. "No."

"You're sure?"

His lips twitched. "I can ask someone to if you want."

She jabbed her elbow into his side, frowning at him.

He laughed under his breath, ducking his head to hide a smile. "It's going to be fine." He reached up, his hand finding her neck, and kneaded softly. "Trust me."

She sighed, but leaned into him.

When they reached the doors, she stared inside with wide eyes, but didn't falter as she stepped over the threshold and into the hall. The decorations were classy, using pale colors to add to the decorum rather than overwhelm it. There were flower arrangements set up on the outskirts of the room that left a sweet scent on the air and blended in with the muted color scheme. Tables were set up with platters of food, arranged perfectly to appeal to the eye. His mother had, apparently, decided to forgo the four-course meal this year. A classical band was set up atop an elevated platform, where a microphone waited for the charity coordinator to make a speech.

Oliver kept up with Felicity's slow steps, casting his eyes over the large crowd, all wearing designer gowns and tuxes, showing off their wealth in their over-the-top jewelry. The room was filled with acquaintances he'd made over the years, people he had to know because of the family he grew up in rather than because he wanted to. Not all of them were terrible; in fact, there were a number who were good people. But a few of them were names on his list, and that made his gut twist.

"No Hood business tonight, remember?" Felicity reminded, her head tipped toward him and her voice pitched low so only he would hear.

He nodded, not bothering to wonder how she knew exactly what he was thinking. Felicity had spent so much time with him, aiding him on the list, that she always seemed to know when it was weighing on his mind. While it certainly helped on missions and as a couple, it was extremely important to him from a purely individual basis. There were times that Oliver had trouble understanding himself, when his mind would wander to the island and he became a fragment of himself again. Felicity had a way of making him focus on the here and now, always seeming to know when he was far away, drowning in those memories, and she was the hand that reached down and pulled him up.

Oliver blinked a few times, shaking off the internal dialogue.

"I think I saw my mother," he told her, his eyes cutting a path toward where Moira stood, looking elegant as she entertained a group of people. Despite knowing all he did about her, he watched his mother with a smile. She was still the woman who raised him, good or bad, and he loved her.

Felicity made a strangled noise and he turned toward her.

Raising a brow at how her mouth pinched with nervousness, he asked, "Not yet?"

She shook her head. "Maybe we could get something to eat…? Dance…? Sneak out the window…?"

He smiled understandingly. "Sure." He cast his eyes upward and amended, "For two out of three."

"I can skip dancing, but if I don't get food, I'm going to have to make Dig go through drive-thru before we go home," she warned with a grin.

Amused, he leaned over to kiss her hair, lingering there a moment to breathe in the soft scent of her shampoo.

Relaxing into him, she slid an arm around his waist. "Okay. One dance, then we'll properly introduce me to your mom, sound good?"

"Good," he agreed, before leading her out toward the dance floor. He nodded to a few familiar faces, even shook some hands in hello, but didn't stop to chat. He knew the Oliver Queen image demanded it of him, but there was still plenty of time throughout the night to make up for being impolite now. Felicity needed to gather up her gumption and he was more than willing to help her do so. Besides, spending a few minutes holding her on the dance floor didn't exactly seem like a chore to him, especially in comparison to trying to impress boring, but wealthy, businessmen.

The floor wasn't overcrowded with couples dancing, but enough so that they could blend in comfortably. Oliver's fingers drummed down her back as she turned to face him, her hand raised for his to meet. He brought her in close, his fingers stroking soothingly over the small of her back. Felicity's free hand moved from his shoulder to the collar of his jacket, teasing at his neck.

For a while, all they did was sway together, a simple dance that kept them close. He twirled her a few times, just because he liked the way she smiled when he did. She played with his fingers as their raised hands pressed together, palm to palm. He watched as she tried to stretch her fingers out to match as long as his was and a low laugh left his chest. Giving up on making her hand any larger, she dragged her nails down the lengths of his fingers before fitting hers between them. He brought her hand over and kissed her knuckles and then her wrist.

With a soft sigh, she stepped in closer to him, leaving them chest to chest.

"It's nice, isn't it?" he asked, resting his cheek against her temple.

"Hm?"

"Being out, together… All pleasure, no work…" He slid his hand up her back a little before moving it back down, and felt her shiver. "No more keeping us secret."

"It's nice," she agreed. "Although I wasn't complaining about all the risky sex… Or, well, sex with the risk of being caught. Not really risky sex. I mean, at no point was I worried about my safety."

His low chuckle cut her off, and she dropped her forehead down to his shoulder. "This is what I meant. This is what's going to happen when I talk to your mother."

"Well, it'll certainly break the ice."

"Oliver…" she complained.

He rubbed his hand up her back and between her shoulder blades. "I promise I'll interrupt you if you start rambling, okay?"

"You have my permission to stomp on my foot if it gets out of control," she told him.

His brows rose. "Physical violence; you really think it'll get to that?"

"I think we should be prepared for the event of."

"Prepared for what? What are we preparing for?" a voice interrupted.

Oliver turned his head abruptly, his brow furrowed. "I thought you were going to be late."

Thea rolled her eyes. "Roy talked his boss into letting him off early, so we got here on time." She looked between him and Felicity, who'd lifted her head off his chest and was now staring nervously at his sister. "So? What are you preparing for?"

"The inevitable," Felicity replied.

"Which would be…?" she asked, shaking her head questioningly.

"That I'll embarrass myself and won't be able to stop, so Oliver will have to come to my rescue."

"Oh, well at least you have a safety plan. Personally, I just like to act like whatever I did wasn't embarrassing. People usually just forget it if you're not reacting. What's the point if they can't make you feel bad, right?"

Felicity blinked. "That's… actually a pretty good idea."

"Thanks, I have a lot of them." She grinned. "It's Felicity, right…?" She smirked playfully. "Oliver's Felicity."

Felicity flushed, obviously remembering the last time she and Thea were introduced and he'd stumbled over what to call her.

"My much smarter and prettier girlfriend," Oliver added, this time without any uncertainty.

"If she's so much smarter, why'd she settle on you?" Thea teased.

"He's talented in other ways." Felicity paused and then winced. "That came wrong. I didn't mean... Well, not that he isn't. He is. Very. But, I meant—"

"It's fine," Oliver interrupted, knowing exactly where that thought well on its way to taking her.

She smiled at him gratefully, apparently also anticipating how that word-vomit was going to end.

Thea looked between them, grinning. "So! Felicity." She moved toward her and hooked her arm through Felicity's. "You hungry? We could go set some really tiny food that won't fill you up at all and talk about how you managed to snag my perpetually single brother."

"Oh, uh…" she trailed off, her nose wrinkled.

"That's cute. You think I'll take no for an answer…"

Felicity looked back at Oliver, but he merely shrugged.

Thea was already dragging her away; there was little to do now. They left him standing in the middle of the dance floor, partnerless, shaking his head in amusement. He should have anticipated that Thea would do that. She wanted answers and, now that she knew Felicity had a habit of rambling, she was probably going to use it to her advantage. He briefly considered whether or not he should go after them. He had promised he would keep Felicity from rambling after all…

"Hey," someone called.

Oliver turned, finding Roy standing nearby, looking somehow both bored and slightly uncomfortable in his tux. Much as Oliver still worried about his sister spending time with him, he also knew that Roy wasn't a bad guy. He had bigger dreams and he wanted to do good in the world. But Oliver hadn't yet let him into the world of the Hood. He wasn't sure he ever would. Roy was young and, whether he wanted to admit it or not, innocent to a degree.

"You seen my date?"

"She just stole my date," he answered.

Rolling his eyes, Roy nodded. "Yeah, she's been talking about that all week. Apparently it's big news that you're in a relationship." His raised eyebrow said he didn't get why that would be worth talking about.

"Considering how my previous ones have ended, I suppose I understand why."

Oliver let himself consider for a moment all that had happened in his former relationships. From Laurel, both before and after the island. He'd gone from running far, far away from commitment to cheating on her with her own sister, who died because of his selfish actions, only for him to return to her life, turn it on its head, and nearly destroy her relationship with Tommy in the process. Then there was Helena who hadn't quite been a girlfriend so much as a lover who'd had the potential to be more, only to choose her vendetta against her father over the justice and companionship he offered. And then McKenna, who'd suffered a debilitating injury because of his history with her and Helena's reappearance in his life. Not to mention his constant lying and disappearing act, which just about anybody who dated him had to put up with. Except Felicity, though that was usually because if he had to disappear for Hood business, so did she. And, if she didn't, she could at least understand the 'why' of his actions.

Despite not knowing the details of Oliver's screwed up romantic history, Roy shrugged. "We all got pasts."

Oliver raised an eyebrow at him, his protective streak suddenly hitting him hard. "And how does Thea feel about your past?"

He glanced at him. "Thea's different… She's special."

He stared at him a long moment, only a little surprised at the sincerity in Roy's face.

There was a part of him, a very large part, that wanted to scare Roy off. Putting the fear of God into him might even make him feel good. But he didn't think it was really Roy so much as that he didn't like the idea of his sister being with anyone. Whether that was partly due to the fact that, in his head, she would always be so little, so much younger than him, didn't matter. Another part of him understood that Thea was capable of making her own decisions and it wasn't up to him to twist them to his benefit. Roy was a nice enough guy and he seemed to truly care about Thea. For now, Oliver would just have to accept that and allow things to happen as they were meant to.

"Oliver?"

He turned then, searching out the voice, and found his mother walking toward him. He instantly smiled in greeting, his carefully cultivated image picking itself up for her.

"There you are. I've been looking for you." When she reached him, she raised her cheek for him to kiss and then turned to see Roy. "You made it on time," she said, her brows raised slightly.

Oliver was amused to see Roy stand a little taller. "Yes. Sorry for the mix-up. I talked to my boss, asked if he could let me off earlier. I know how important it is that Thea's here."

"Good, I'm glad." She smiled softly. "And where is my daughter?"

"With his girlfriend," he answered, pointing a thumb at Oliver.

"Apparently getting food and gossiping about me," Oliver explained.

"Ahh… Well, why don't we go find them then?" she suggested, turning on her heel and starting toward the buffet tables.

Oliver sighed, but followed after her, Roy right behind him. He was a little worried about what he might stumble upon, now that he thought about it. Knowing how nervous Felicity was, he wouldn't be surprised to find her mid-ramble about their sex life. He was relieved to find that instead they were laughing, a plate of fruit, cheese and vegetables in each of their hands. Felicity didn't look embarrassed at all, she wasn't even blushing. He felt himself relax and moved toward her, his hand finding her waist.

"Something funny?"

She and Thea exchanged a look and started laughing again, and he knew immediately it was about him. He couldn't even find it in him to be irritated, though, since Thea had warned him she'd break out the embarrassing stories. He rolled his eyes to himself and accepted his fate.

"Thea was just telling me about your love of the Power Rangers growing up… and that your favorite was the yellow ranger."

"He was the yellow ranger for Halloween when he was twelve," Thea continued, wiping under her eyes.

"Wasn't the yellow ranger a girl?" Roy wondered, his brow furrowed.

"She was a very skilled fighter," Oliver defended.

"Thea found the pictures when she was ten; she called him 'Olivia' for a whole month," Moira added, smiling fondly at the memory.

He rolled his eyes. "She still does sometimes."

"Well, I'm proud you were fighting gender roles that early in life," Felicity told him, bumping his hip with hers.

"I'm not sure that was my intention, but as long as you're proud," he said, smiling down at her.

She smiled back up at him and, for a moment, everyone else faded away. He could already imagine her bringing it up later, telling him he'd been preparing to be a hero as early as twelve years old, even if it was a fictional female one.

A throat cleared, drawing his attention, and Oliver looked over to see his mother waiting, her brows raised. "Oh, right. Felicity, this is my mother, Moira Queen," he introduced.

Felicity's smile turned slightly nervous, but she held a hand out. "It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Queen… Again. I mean, the last time was really brief and I don't expect you to remember me. And I've seen you around Queen Consolidated but we've never really talked. Walter spoke very highly of you though. But he's your ex-husband, so you probably don't want to talk about that." She fidgeted. "I'm sorry. You make me nervous. Can we just pretend I stopped at 'It's nice to meet you'?"

Moira's eyes widened slightly, but she smiled all the same. "It's nice to meet you too, Felicity." She glanced briefly at Oliver and then returned her attention to Felicity. "So, you work at Queen Consolidated then?"

"Oh, yes!" She nodded. "I'm happily employed in the IT Department… So happily I would be really disappointed to ever be fired, so it'd be great if we could avoid that."

Thea laughed outright, smothering it behind her hand before she popped a cherry tomato into her mouth.

Moira let the comment slide and instead asked, "And is that how you and Oliver met?"

Felicity nodded. "He spilled a latte on his laptop; he was hoping I might be able to fix it."

"Which she did," he said, squeezing his hand on her hip. "She's very talented."

"So what took so long for you two to get together?" Thea wondered, brow furrowed. "You guys were friends for a while, right?"

Felicity nodded. "We just weren't ready yet. There were a lot of things we needed to deal with, separately, before we made sense together."

Speaking of, Oliver spotted one those things as she was talking. Laurel and Tommy were standing together in the distance, talking to an older couple. They looked good together, something that would have bothered him a year ago. Had the situation been different, Oliver might have waved them over. He wondered what Tommy would think of Felicity, if he'd be excited for Oliver or not. But things between he and Tommy were tense and he didn't want to put any pressure on it. Maybe, in time, his best friend would forgive him, and maybe not. It was difficult to swallow, but he had to accept either outcome.

Oliver turned his attention back to Felicity, who had somehow gotten on the topic of her first boyfriend. His mother and Thea listened intently, apparently not the least bit surprised by the turn of subject. "I should have known when he told me his name was Melvin that this was going to be a story I told later," she sighed, shaking her head. "Anyway, long story short, if you have braces, never date a boy who also has braces…"

"Amen, sister," Thea agreed, holding a fist out for a bump.

Felicity awkwardly bumped back and then tipped her head in surprise. "You had braces?"

She nodded. "Please, in this high society cesspool? Not a hair out of place or they crucify you. Same goes for teeth."

"Oh, it isn't that bad," Moira denied, shaking her head at her daughter.

"Trust me, it is," Thea argued, her brows raised.

"Don't scare her off." She turned back to Felicity and put a bracing hand on her arm. "Thea exaggerates. She wasn't a big fan of how she was raised. Yes, there are vultures, but there are good people too."

"It makes sense. There's gotta be balance, right? We haven't achieved utopia so in order to have good, there has to be bad," Felicity answered. "Of course, sometimes the balance gets skewed, which is why it makes sense that if there's an excess of bad, we need an excess of good."

"You mean like how when Starling City started getting out of control, the Hood showed up," Roy piped in.

Everyone went silent for a moment, even Thea, who stared up at her boyfriend and then cut her eyes away to take in everyone's reaction. It wasn't exactly the setting to be discussing such things, but it was obvious that Roy had an opinion and he was willing to challenge others. Oliver both appreciated his gumption and recognized his foolhardy approach. Depending on the company, having such obvious opinions could get him into trouble. If he truly wanted to work with the Hood in future, he would have to be more careful about who he let know about his support of the Starling City vigilante.

It was Felicity who chose to answer though, her lips curling at the corners. She, apparently, had decided that the company she kept could be trusted. "Exactly."

"You think the Hood is a good person?" Moira asked, a brow raised skeptically, though there was no censure in her voice.

Oliver watched his mother for a moment, carefully deconstructing her expression but finding no hidden emotion there. Having the knowledge he did meant that he knew the Hood wasn't a welcome figure to her city. But she had an image to keep up and she wouldn't let her true feelings show if she could avoid it. It was possible that she was just curious about Felicity's opinion; maybe even interested in hearing her break it down for her so she could have a better understanding herself. Whatever her reason, Oliver still knew that having a positive opinion of the Hood could mean attention, and he wasn't sure if he wanted that attention on Felicity.

"I think the Hood has done a lot of good for the city," she announced. "His methods might have been questionable when he first arrived, but I think he's made an effort to be better… Crime rates speak for themselves, I guess. They've been down for almost two years now."

Moira nodded. "Which could also be contributed to the fact that the police force has been working harder."

"Oh, I agree. But I think part of the reason they're working harder is because they saw the Hood as a menace and started focusing on tracking him down. At the same time, their attention started to focus more on other police work, too. Take the Glades, for instance; there's been a huge drop in crime. Yes, it still definitely needs help, but between the Hood and the extra bodies added to the police force, we're seeing it put a real dent in the problem."

"I like this girl," Roy told his girlfriend.

Thea rolled her eyes up at him. "You would." She passed her attention to Oliver and wondered, "What about you? What do you think of the Hood, Ollie?"

"Honestly?" He shrugged. "I haven't given it as much thought."

"Oliver was accused of being the Hood once," Moira explained to Felicity, shaking her head. "Can you believe that?"

Felicity laughed. "It'd be quite a shock…" She turned to look up at him, her eyes twinkling. "What do you think? Between all the time you spend in your club and with me, you really think you have time for fighting crime?"

He shook his head. "I think I'd rather devote any spare time to you. Leave the theatrics up to someone else."

She grinned. "Best leave it to the professionals."

"Mmhmm." He dipped his head down and kissed her, short and sweet.

"Gross. You are so mushy," Thea muttered.

Oliver turned a smile on his sister. "Distract me then?" He held a hand out for her. "C'mon. Show me what all those dance classes taught you and take me for a spin."

She laughed under her breath, but handed her plate to Roy and took Oliver's hand, letting him lead her out onto the dance floor. Oliver looked back over his shoulder to see his mother get swept away by a potential bidder for the charity while Roy moved over to Felicity, probably to engage her in more conversation about the Hood.

"She's gonna be his new best friend," Thea sighed, looking back at them.

Brows furrowed, Oliver looked at her questioningly, though he was fully aware of Roy Harper's Hood idolization.

"Seriously, his favorite subject is the Hood. But finding somebody who agrees with him that the Hood's good…?" She shook her head. "That's hard to find."

"What do you think about him?" he wondered, turning to take her hand, while his other hand fell to her waist and guided them into a simple two-step. "Good guy, villain, whack job?"

She smiled, shrugging. "I don't know… My opinion goes back and forth. Sometimes I think he's good, that he's capable of good things… And then, somebody dies and the papers are saying it's on him, and suddenly justice isn't so black and white."

"Everything has shades of grey," Oliver mused. "If the world were easy to understand, we wouldn't so much time trying to make sense of why bad things happen to good people."

"You mean like why my brother was marooned on an island or my dad drowned at sea…?"

He met her eyes, dark with bitter sadness. "Exactly." He shook his head. "There's not always a straight answer for why things happen. Why people turn out the way they do."

Thea turned her head away for a moment as she let his words sink in, before finally raising her chin and looking him in the eye. "When you got back, you were different… You still are. Sometimes you act like you did, but it's not real, is it?"

His lips pressed into a firm line and, not for the first time, Oliver regretted that he couldn't be completely honest with her. "It's as real as it can be."

She sighed. "You're never going to be him again though."

He shook his head. "We all grow, Thea. You have, too."

"What if we don't grow the right way…? What if instead of becoming a better person, we become someone else entirely?"

"Is that what you think happened to me?" he wondered, and for a moment he felt a pang in his chest. Not because she was wrong, but because he feared the new him would never be completely accepted by her.

"I think it's hard to stop thinking about the person you were, especially when you keep trying to be him… I also think tonight's the first time I've seen you smile, really smile, and mean it."

He tipped his head down at her, brow furrowed.

"I don't know her well. She seems nice, and funny, and way too smart for you," she teased. "But for whatever reason, you're real with her… The way you look at her, it's like… Salvation." She shrugged. "So I don't know… Maybe you'll never be the Ollie I lost, but if the Oliver you are now can be happy, then I can be okay with that."

Stopping the dance, he reached for her, his hands settling on her shoulders. "You make me happy, Speedy. Maybe I've been trying too hard to be who you remember so you'll be happy, but that doesn't change the fact that you're my sister, my family, and I would do anything for you."

She half-smiled. "I know." She reached up and socked him in the arm. "So don't screw it up with her, okay…? 'Cause it really is nice to see you smile."

He nodded. "I'll do my best."

"Good." With a sigh, she turned on her heel. "Now come on, let's go rescue my future sister-in-law from my fanboy boyfriend."

Chuckling under his breath, he followed her back to where Roy and Felicity had apparently moved past talking to the Hood and moved on to talking about the Glades in general and what would have to be done to clean it up.

"We can't ignore how much new job opportunities are needed," Felicity told him, shaking her head. "Yes, cleaning it up and bringing down crime is going to help, but the aesthetics aren't going to last unless you make the Glades into an extension of the rest of the city. It has to be a place people are willing to go to and spend money. As soon as business starts booming, the area will flourish."

"Yes, but if the area gets too good, that means that rent will go up. They'll start taking out the older houses and knocking down low-income housing to put in condos. The people that live there will be pushed out and, before you know it, a new Glades will have to be made or the homeless population will sky rocket," he argued.

"Industrialization will happen, you're right, but if the people in the Glades are getting the jobs there, then they're going to be able to grow along with it."

"But how does anyone guarantee a job to someone in the Glades? Let's face it, even the people that live there would rather hire somebody outside of it. There's no trust."

"Wow, we leave you guys for five minutes and it turns into a political statement over here," Thea said, drawing their attention.

"Roy was just telling me about how he'd like to see the Glades rejuvenated, as long as it's for the people already there and not some money-grubbing contractors with dollar signs in their eyes and a steam roller at their disposal."

"And Felicity was saying that for anything to progress, we'll need to get outside help, even if it could blow up in our faces and make things worse," he sighed.

"My justice seeker," Thea murmured fondly at her boyfriend. "He's hoping to change it from the inside out."

"That's an admirable goal," Oliver told him.

Looking awkward with the attention, Roy shrugged, casting his eyes away.

"Where'd mother go?" he asked, turning to Felicity.

"Oh, Senator Brightman needed her for something." She shrugged. "He asked about you too. I think she said you'd talk to him later."

His lips pursed. "I should probably make the rounds," he admitted.

"We can do that."

He looked over at her, a little surprised.

"What's a few socialites, right?" she joked.

He nodded, his arm sliding around her waist. "Exactly."

After saying they'd see Roy and Thea later, they started moving through the crowd. Oliver donned his socialite mask and searched out particular faces. He spoke highly of the hospital and of the charity they were sponsoring as well as asking after family and business with each person he talked to. He introduced Felicity, who surprised him with how much she knew about politics, falling into conversation with most of the people they stopped to talk to, carefully debating certain topics that had been raised without pushing any buttons. For all that she worried she would ramble too much, she seemed to find her confidence when it came to exercising her brain. He was reminded that she wasn't ordinary, she was a genius, not just as IT, but in general.

Time seemed to fly by, between meeting people and getting most of them to agree to do as much as they could for the cause, they stopped by the buffet table to pick up a few snacks.

"I still expect real food after this," she told him, holding a strawberry up for him.

He bent to take a bite of it and nodded. "Whatever you want."

She grinned. "Those are dangerous words to be throwing around, Mr. Queen."

He licked his lips and smiled down at her. "Are they?"

She turned toward him, her hand reaching up to smooth down his tie. "How do you know I won't take advantage of you?"

His lips twitched at her wording, which would've made her stutter and hurry to cover up in the past, but only made her smirk. "Maybe I'm hoping you will."

She stared up at him, giving his tie a tug, and he answered, leaning down to slant his mouth over hers. She tasted like strawberries, which was his excuse when he let his tongue stroke over hers, despite how many people they were surrounded by. Felicity sighed against his lips and drew back, pressing a few lingering kisses to his mouth, before she shook her head. "How much longer is this thing?"

He chuckled lowly and slid his hand over her hip, drawing her closer. "Too long," he said, before pressing a kiss to her hair.

Harrumphing, she rested her arm around his waist. "Maybe we should go find your mother?" she suggested, looking up at him. "We didn't get to talk much."

He nodded. "We can set up a dinner later this week, too. Something low-key."

"At the mansion?" she wondered, tracing the lapel of his jacket.

His hand stroked over her back. "If you want, sure."

Her brows raised curiously. "And I'd get to meet Raisa, too?"

He smiled. "You would."

"Sounds like a deal to me." She held her hand up for him to shake.

He let out a quiet laugh and shook her hand, before giving her a little spin and catching her around the waist. "Why don't we get another dance in before we find my mother?"

"Hmm… I could be persuaded."

"Yeah? How does a bottle of your favorite wine sound?"

She smiled slowly, nodding. "I'm listening…"

"A weekend long classic Who marathon."

"Getting warmer…"

He chuckled. "And I will paint your toes for you, the brightest shade of pink you own."

She threw her head back as she laughed and he felt his heart lurch in his chest. "Okay, you've found my weaknesses. Lead on, Mr. Queen."

"You drive a hard bargain, Miss. Smoak." He hugged her close to his side as they walked toward the dance floor.

"I'm a hard lady to please," she murmured, resting her chin on his shoulder as she looked up at him.

"I like to think I'm doing a pretty good job of it."

"Mm, ten out of ten, would recommend."

He grinned down at her, turning so he could take her hand, taking her by the waist and pulling her close. "So? Was it as scary as you thought it was going to be?"

She shook her head. "Your sister's cool. Happy to embarrass you, that's for sure."

He nodded, amused. "I think it comes with being a younger sister."

"And your mom seemed nice. She let it go when I accidentally brought up Walter, anyway." She wrinkled her nose. "Total accident. It just kind of slipped out."

"It's fine," he reassured, rubbing his thumb over hers. "It's been hard on her since the divorce was finalized. I think she was hoping he might change his mind."

She winced. "And I just brought it up, totally casually…"

He shook his head. "She won't hold it against you. Besides… it's good to talk about it. I think you've been the champion of trying to get me to talk more."

"Yes, and I've had just enough success to let it go to my head," she agreed, smiling.

"You were right." He let go of her hand so he could wrap both arms around her waist and Felicity took his cue, her own encircling his neck. "There were things that happened that I needed to talk about… Things that made me think I'd never be able to relate to normal people again…" He stared searchingly at her. "And you've been… invaluable to me."

Felicity's fingers slid up into his hair, stroking down his neck soothingly. "You did the hard work. I know talking about it wasn't easy. I just want you to be okay. I want you to know that there are people here who love you."

Her face was so earnest, so loving, that he fell even more in love with her. Leaning down, he pressed his forehead to hers, his arms tightening around her waist. "What you said earlier, about good balancing out bad…?"

She nodded.

"I think you do that for me," he told her. "I think the best part of me loves you, and the worst parts are balanced by all the good in you."

She swallowed thickly and stared up into his eyes. "I wish you could see how good you really are."

"Maybe one day I'll see myself how you see me…" He smoothed his hands up over her back. "Just to make sure, you better stick with me."

"Yeah…?" She grinned. "For how long?"

He raised a brow. "How does indefinitely sound?"

"Like it could be very interesting."

"Probably death-defying," he agreed.

"And full of mystery."

"Tons of it. You'll never be bored."

Her lips quirk. "And fun?"

"Mm…" He pressed his lips to hers, lightly nipping at her mouth. "The funnest."

"This is a lot to promise," she warned teasingly.

"The reward is worth it."

Felicity's lips parted to answer, but she was cut off when they bumped into someone, their heads swiveling as he readied to apologize, wondering if it was too early to play the tipsy card. He hadn't had anything to drink, but it would help the careless image a little. Instead, his brows arched high as he found himself faced with Laurel and Tommy, who were parting from their own dance, looking awkward as they stood before them, exchanging a look.

Standing silently, the tense moment seemed to drag until Felicity stepped in. "Sorry… We didn't mean to bump into you. I have two left feet and neither of them are coordinated."

"Oh, uh…" Laurel dragged her eyes off of Oliver and turned toward her, her brow furrowed slightly. "It's fine. No harm, no foul. Um… Do—Do I know you?" she wondered, her brow tipped.

"We met, briefly." Felicity nodded, half-smiling. "I was setting up Oliver's internet router at the time…"

"Oh… Oh." Her eyes widened as the memory hit her. "Right. I… remember now. It's Felicia, right?"

"Felicity," she corrected before waving it off. "And you're Laurel?" She turned her eyes to the left. "And Tommy, right? Oliver's said good things."

"Has he?" Tommy replied, his voice and faint smile strained and forcibly polite.

"Of course. He only has praise for you," she assured, nodding. "Well, that and he hasn't been able to find anybody who can manage the club that's anywhere as talented as you were. But that's mostly complaining."

Tommy's brow furrowed a little as he looked at Oliver, like Felicity's words confused him and he wasn't sure if he should take it seriously.

"Which I guess is a moot point since you've taken over Merlyn Global. I don't imagine Verdant can compare to running a multi-billion dollar company…"

"It's a bit of a pay bump," Tommy mused, his lips twitching with humor.

"I'd hope so. Or you'd need to have a serious talk with accounting." She frowned thoughtfully. "Must be a big change from the club scene too, but I'm sure you're doing great." She shrugged. "Me, personally, I'd never be able to handle that kind of job switch."

"It hasn't been easy," Tommy admitted. "There's a lot of loose ends to tie up, a lot of people relying on me."

She nodded understandingly. "That must be a huge responsibility."

"It is." He rubbed a hand down the back of his neck. "I guess you don't know how hard it is when you grow up with the silver spoon firmly implanted in your mouth."

"Well, that could be said for anyone, really," Felicity assured.

At Tommy's furrowed brow, she explained, "Most children grow up thinking that their parents' jobs can't be that important. The majority of us tend to think they're superheroes. They handle work, put dinner on the table, and kiss your boo-boos, no matter how insignificant. So if you think your dad's Superman, it's hard to imagine that anything he does is really difficult for him. Of course, when you have to trade shoes, that's when you're hit with reality." She nodded. "On the bright side, you seem to be handling it well. I know stock in Merlyn Global has gone up in the last six months, so you're definitely doing something right."

He stared at her a long moment and then a funny smile crossed his lips. "Thank you…" He shook his head. "I, uh… I get the stock reports but I guess I never really considered that I might be doing something to contribute to them."

She smiled brightly. "Sure." She squeezed Oliver's shoulder. "I don't want to take all the credit though. Oliver told me about how hard you've been working… He's very proud of your success."

Tommy looked at him then, trying to understand, to pick apart what he knew and what he was being told.

Oliver knew it wouldn't be as easy as Felicity smothering Tommy with kindness and praise, but just the fact that Tommy was looking at him, brief as it may be, with something other than blind hatred was enough for him.

"So, you and Oliver are… friends then?" Laurel probed, looking between them curiously.

Oliver finally found his voice, "Felicity's my girlfriend." He rubbed a hand up and down her arm affectionately. "We've been seeing each other for a while."

"Oh…" Laurel nodded, her brow slightly furrowed. "That's… great. I… I'm really happy for you."

He turned a genuine smile on her. "Thank you." He nodded his chin toward Tommy. "I'm happy for you guys, too. I'm glad you could work things out. You fit together."

Tommy searched Oliver's face momentarily before giving him a short nod, as if maybe he accepted that for the truth it was.

"Well, Felicity wanted to talk to my mother before we left, so if you'll excuse us…" He squeezed her waist.

"Right." She grinned at Tommy. "It was really nice to meet you."

He held a hand out for her to shake, which she took. "Nice to meet you too." He still looked a little surprised by her and the things she'd said, but he genuinely seemed to like her.

With that, Oliver nodded goodbye before he and Felicity started walking away.

Turning her head, she said over her shoulder, "Have a great night!"

Laurel smiled faintly and nodded. "You too."

As they moved through the crowd, Oliver bent his head toward her. "That was awkward."

"It could've been worse."

"Really? How's that?"

She smirked up at him. "This time last night, we were having sex on your desk at Verdant… They could've walked in on that. So as far as first meetings go, I think this one is pretty good."

He laughed under his breath, a grin forming on his lips. "In that context, yes, you raise a valid point."

Expression sobering, she reached up and tugged on his tie. "Was it weird for you at all…?" she wondered. "Seeing them together…"

His brow furrowed as he shook his head. "I got used to it a long time ago… I wasn't just being polite; they really do fit together."

She smiled faintly. "I wouldn't be upset, you know. If you still had feelings for her. She's Laurel… Gorgeous Laurel, who helped you live through the island…" She stared up at him searchingly. "It's not easy to let go of that."

"It wasn't," he agreed. "But it was harder holding on to it." He shook his head. "I love Laurel, I always will, but I'm not in love with her anymore." He watched her face, but her eyes were on his chest, carefully avoiding his. "Is that why you didn't want to come tonight? In case we bumped into her…?"

She shrugged. "Maybe it was part of it…" She licked her lips. "She just represents a really large part of your life… A part that I don't think I'm ever going to fit into, really."

He caught her chin with his finger and tipped her head up so they were eye to eye. "This person, the one who puts on a show for the cameras and strokes the egos of these socialites, this is a persona, it's not who I am… The expensive suits and the fake smile, this whole show, this is just somebody I have to be… The guy I am in the foundry, watching TV with you on the couch, that's the real me. And you fit into that life; you fit with me."

Her lips turned up in the corners, tension bleeding away. "Okay."

"Yeah?"

She nodded. Smoothing a hand down his chest, she added, "I like the suit though. It looks good on you."

His thumb rubbed up her cheek. "I have a few of them."

She raised an eyebrow up at him as she bit her lip. "I think I'll like it better when I take it off you."

His chuckle was warm and promising. "I feel the same way about your dress."

"Good."

He leaned down to kiss her, but before his lips could meet hers, he heard his mother calling his name. With a sigh, he rested his forehead against hers and wished this night would end already, so he could take Felicity home. She bit her lip to hide her smile, staring up at him knowingly.

Taking a deep breath, Oliver raised his head, picking up his fake, indulgent smile. "Mother," he greeted.

She smiled between them. "Oliver, I need to steal Felicity away from you. Senator Davis is ranting about the Hood and crime in the Glades and I thought, who better to help me shut him up?" She waved a hand at Felicity. "If you wouldn't mind?"

"No, that'd be great," she agreed, nodding happily.

"Wonderful." Moira stepped aside, encouraging Felicity to join her. Over her shoulder, she said, "Oliver, darling, why don't you see how the Welsh's are doing? I've been trying to get an estimate on what they'll be donating tonight, but they keep avoiding the question." She waved him off before turning her attention to Felicity, whose arm she looped with her own, leaning in to talk to her.

Smiling lightly to himself, he shook his head and watched them go. It looked like Felicity was fitting in better than she expected. He took that as a good sign and turned to do as his mother bid, making his way through the crowd, searching out the solemn faces of Barry and Elizabeth Welsh. If all went well, he could schmooze a few pockets empty and escape with Felicity long before the fundraiser ended.

With hopes of take-out and undressing Felicity with his teeth firmly pushing him forward, he forced a charming grin on his face as he found the dour couple and made the necessary effort. The reward would be well worth it in the end.

[To be continued: Part III.]