Where do I start... I was incredibly overwhelmed with the response to this story. Never imagined so many people would read or even like it! So to be honest, it took me a long time to figure out where I wanted it to go. I really wanted to make it something worthwhile. Hopefully you all enjoy, I loved writing it!

(FYI: If I owned this story, I would not be reading or writing stories on this website!)

I was thirty minutes late for my date with Keith. It wasn't intentional, it was an accident. Oliver called as I was leaving the office and I naturally couldn't say no. I didn't feel comfortable saying, 'Sorry Oliver, I can't search for the address of our jewel thief's mistress because I have a date with the owner of the place we order take out from.' No, instead I opted to sit in the former Queen Consolidated, now Palmer Technologies parking lot and hack into the Social Security Administrations data base for background information. In the end Oliver was happy and didn't even question my 'I'm going to be late tonight, have to take care of something line,' when I delivered the intel.

But now walking across Temple Street's main square with Roy's vague description of Keith as a "tall Asian dude, wearing a black trench coat and sitting on a bench in Temple Park,' echoing in my head, I was nervous. Would Keith be annoyed that I was late? What if he had gone already? I hadn't really dated anyone properly in ages, what could we talk about? I hadn't even read up on any world news and I didn't watch regular TV like most people because I was always too busy. Would he be good looking? Why a trench coat? Would he be naked underneath? Was I power walking toward a deranged man who had a double life as a flasher? Maybe he lived a double life as an owner of a family run restaurant by day and mass serial killer by night. In my line of work, anything was possible.

My heart began pumping faster as I neared Temple's open courtyard. The first date jitters had arrived and I cursed Roy again and again in my mind. I always thought first dates were fun if you knew the person somewhat, but a blind date felt like you were about to take a test that you hadn't studied for at all.

I arrived a little out of breath and sweaty. Roy had called Yummy Yummy last night to get a description on what Keith looked like and what he would be wearing. The weather was turning colder now and the black trench coat could have easily blended in with a sea of young professionals strolling through the square, but Keith stuck out instantly. The man was handsome. Roy, if he was anywhere nearby, as he promised he would be in case this all turned into a bad slasher film, was probably gloating.

"Hi… are you Keith?" I asked tentatively, my breath coming out in little puffs as my heels stopped in front of the park bench. Keith had strategically placed himself on a bench facing the square's main entrance. But I hadn't found any parking near the main gate and had parked two streets over, causing me to slip in the back way. It also satisfied Oliver's constant demands that we all know multiple ways out of an area in case of trouble.

The man in question looked up surprised and quickly smiled, "Felicity?" I smiled nervously, nodding.

Keith quickly shot up from his seat and towered over me. He was a tall man and lanky. A full head of hair graced his head and slipped over his forehead in a chopped layered look. His eyes were dark and his face smooth. He looked to be in his late twenties and was dressed in a pair of dark washed jeans underneath his coat. A red sweater and a white collared shirt peaked out from underneath his coat. His nervous smile only added to his attractiveness.

"I thought you might be bailing on me. I'm Keith," he stuck out his hand awkwardly, "Keith Sun Jiu."

"Felicity," I placed my hand in his, my face already flushing, "nice to meet you."

He flashed me a brilliant white set of teeth and gave me a firm handshake, "It's really nice to meet you too."

I let my fingers fall from his grip and tried to breathe deeply to settle my nerves.

"I'm sorry I'm late. I got stuck at work and I only have the restaurant's number and I didn't think you would be still there. Well I hoped you wouldn't still be there. I knew you would probably be on your way… or maybe already here… but... " my voice trailed off, I mentally cringed at my own nervousness.

"Don't worry about it. I'm just glad you came." I nodded and silence settled over us for a moment.

I could see a faint tint of red starting to bloom across his cheeks too. This was obviously awkward, and it was sweet to know I wasn't the only one affected by it.

"To be honest, I didn't really think you would show up." He didn't know how close I was to turning the car around and speeding my way back to the Foundry.

"I knew there was a possibility you would show, but I thought it was all going to turn out to be a prank by Roy… I mean I don't even know what he looks like either." His face turned a darker shade of red and I laughed softly. "Roy is over-eager, not a jerk. He wouldn't set something up like this as a prank."

He nodded in acknowledgment and I shifted in my heels, the cold nipping at my knees. It was still light out but the sun was starting to dip slightly, casting shadows across Keith's face. His eyes looked warm and despite the awkward set-up, my initial fears of meeting a 'serial killer' were now fading.

"So…" I trailed off slowly. We grinned at each other stupidly and he was the first too look away. I couldn't help but swallow a giggle.

"So… do you want to eat something? Or we could stick around here if you're more comfortable," he asked.

I shook my head, "No food is good. I've been at work all day, dinner would be nice."

"Great," he grinned, "How do you feel about Greek?"

"Greek sounds wonderful. Do you know a place?"

It turned that he knew several places, but we settled on a small little hole in the wall, known for their squid and lemon potatoes. The owners knew him well, he apparently ate their regularly. I tried not to wonder if this was a regular date spot for him and settled in for a night of light conversation.

"So what do you do at Palmer Technologies?" he asked as he poured me a second glass of wine.

So far the date was going well. Over dinner I learned he preferred red wine to white, always a plus in my book. He knew how to cook, but wasn't a professional chef despite owning a restaurant. He liked seafood, had no allergies, and was the baby in his family, with one older brother. My favorite lo-mien was his brother's creation, a best-seller. The wine and his easy way of speaking had lulled me into a false sense of ease that ended when the conversation became about me.

"I work in IT," I said, sipping from my wine glass, hoping he didn't ask what position. His eyes had lit up when I said I was a graduate of MIT. I didn't believe in women dummying themselves down for men, but my position at Palmer wasn't exactly clear to me either. I had my own office, ran around doing IT work and researching advanced technologies for Ray, but exactly what was my title or my job description was still debatable.

"Do you like it?" he asked.

"I love it," I gave him a genuine smile; "computers are my world. They made more sense than people sometimes."

"I loved it too when I ran my own computer business. I had this small shop outside Los Angeles as a base of command and traveled to San Diego for –

The shrill sound of my cell-phone ringer cut him off. I quickly dug behind me into my coat pocket and looked at him apologetically.

"Sorry," I mumbled.

I flipped over the phone to see Oliver's face shining back at me. I swallowed down a groan and tried to keep a cool face. I wasn't surprised that it would be him to interrupt. I tapped 'ignore' and silenced the ringer before dropping the phone face down over the table. I had vowed this morning to make this date work no matter what. After our own disastrous first date, Oliver didn't have a right to check in on me anymore. I could lie and pretend all I wanted, but I needed to make an effort to get over Oliver. He wasn't going to change or make room in his life for me; he wasn't willing to take a chance. I needed someone who was willing to take a chance, I deserved that.

"I traveled to San Diego for conferences and consulting work. But the flights and long hours finally got to me. I don't regret it though; the work was fun and taught me how to hustle for the restaurant." He sipped his wine before continuing. "Now instead of staring at computer screens, I argue with my brother and handle calls from beautiful girls ordering lo mien." I blushed at his attempts to flirt.

"It sounds like it was a good life choice." I responded, smiling softly. He let silence settle over us before asking another personal question.

"Can I ask…" he trailed off as he settled his wine glass back on the table.

"Why did you agree to this?" He folded his arms over the table to talk lower.

I wrinkled my brow in confusion and the sudden subject change. "What do you mean - this date?"

He nodded and I scrambled for a decent answer. I couldn't very well tell him it was because Roy forced me into it. I liked Keith. Somewhere in the middle of sharing pita bread and swapping stories on our childhood, I had started to develop a small crush. Keith was easy to talk too. He had no baggage. There was no Hood business to talk about. There was no strategizing on how to take back Queen Consolidated. There was no cameras trying to peak in through the restaurant's glass windows for a shot of us. There were just two normal people on a date. I hated to admit it, but Roy was right to set this up. I needed to get out of the Foundry's basement more often. Plus, Keith wasn't bad to look at. His high cheek bones, easy smile were something any girl could get used too.

"Well, why not? We talk to each other often enough." I joked playfully. "And we both like the same things and we're both single… you are single right?" I cringed at my sharp tone. I hadn't thought to ask him earlier in the date, I had just assumed.

He laughed and nodded, "Yea, I'm single. I wouldn't be here otherwise." I blushed in relief.

"But what I mean is… why agree to this date? You obviously have this jet-setting career and probably have a ton of men asking you out." His ears started to turn a cute shade of pink as he continued, "Honestly, I don't go out on a lot of dates with MIT geniuses who work at the most powerful companies in the city." My eyes widened at his confession and compliment.

"I don't work at the most powerful company in the city," I interrupted. It was a lie, but he didn't need to know that.

He laughed, "You used to work at Queen Consolidated and now Palmer Technologies. Both companies are on the Fortune 500 list. I think that's pretty powerful, Felicity. Before this date, I was worried this was a hoax. And now I'm just sitting here, wondering how I got lucky enough to be in a room with someone so beautiful and smart." He lowered his face as a full on blush settled across his face. "To be honest, I'm sort of also sitting here wondering how I can make my life more interesting so you'll agree to go out with me again."

A warm feeling started to spread across my chest as a smile slipped across my face.

"Keith, I …" My phones sharp vibrating cut me off. I cringed at the timing. It was likely Oliver, unconsciously working to sabotage the only romantic moment I had in a long time. I flipped over my phone to see his face shining up at me once again. This time I hesitated at the 'Ignore' button. The vibrating wasn't for a call, but rather a text. I already had six missed calls waiting for me and now Oliver had switched to texting.

Oliver: "Where are you? I met with H's girlfriend. Talking to her now. We need you."

I had a feeling the "Talking" was really some form of interrogation that I wasn't going to agree with or want to be involved in right now. And the, "We need you" really should have been an "I need you". I hit ignore and was flipping over the phone when another text came through.

Roy: "Sorry to cut in - but O is pissed."

Roy: "He met a long lost friend. And we need help using Google Maps."

Roy: "Can you come?"

I almost rolled my eyes at Roy's poor attempt of masking his text messages. They wanted me to hack and all I really wanted to do was sit here and stare into Keith's dark eyes and try to pretend I was normal. I flipped the phone over and whispered a quiet "Sorry" into the air. Keith was drinking deeply from his wine glass and smiled encouragingly, "No worries, it happens."

"What I wanted to say…" another ding cut me off once again. This time my phone revealed multiple messages.

Oliver: "Where are you? Today wasn't an off day."

Roy: "Seriously, pissed. Can we tell him I set up the date another day?"

Dig: "Felicity, everything okay?"

Roy: "I know I promised, but can we tell him sometime next week? Or like next month?"

Oliver: "I'll be driving by your place, call me."

Roy: "He's heading to your apartment! Are you there? Are you still at the Greek place? I'm trying to stall but Dig might smarten up and ping your car's GPS."

I groaned in frustration. It was like living in a house with the cast of "Three Men and a Baby." Only I wasn't the cute baby they fawned over, I was the cute baby they obsessed over and couldn't let go.

"Everything, okay?" Keith gave me a worried look.

I grimaced and gave him my best fake smile. This date was now officially a bust and now I had to let Keith down gently.

"Actually, it's work. They're calling me in… IT emergency they say and on a Tuesday!" I laughed awkwardly as I started wiping my mouth and folding over my napkin.

He shifted in his seat, "I'll call for the check."

"No, no, you stay and finish." I gestured to our wine. I had to leave the restaurant alone on the off chance that Diggle really did ping my car to find me. Diggle respected my privacy, but with Oliver harping in his ear, he was sure to cave eventually.

"I'll just head out; my car isn't that far away." A look of surprise and confusion settled over his eyes.

"What do you mean? Let me at least walk you to your car." I shook my head again and got up, smoothing out the wrinkles in my pale blue dress.

"Really, there is no need," a couple from a few tables began staring at us with interest as I put on my coat.

"I can just walk over; it will take two seconds, really."

"Felicity," Keith stood up, laying his napkin down, "Really, let me just pay and I'll go with you."

Suddenly the small hole in the wall restaurant felt too small for me. I felt everyone's eyes on me as Keith stood next to me awkwardly.

"Keith, really, it's okay. I had a really nice time. I hate that I have to leave suddenly like this."

"So don't." He looked annoyed, "Give me five minutes and we can walk out together."

"It's a serious emergency, they are still calling, see?" I held up my phone, which was vibrating again in my hand. He looked unconvinced but there was no time for small talk now, I had to leave. I took a step closer to him, hating myself for what I was about to ask.

"Um… Can I help pay for my half?" I whispered softly, my eyes darting to the table as a signal of what I meant. Keith was obviously a blusher, but the shade that fell over him now wasn't in any way endearing. He looked angry.

"I can handle it" he replied stiffly. I couldn't blame him. One minute the man was confessing he sort of liked me and the next I was dining and dashing. I stared at him apologetically and shifted even closer.

"Look, I really did have a good time. And you're wrong. I don't jet-set around the world… well there was that one time I went to Russia." I shook my head to focus, "but really, you'd be surprised at the "tons" of guys," I held up my fingers in quotation marks, "there really are." ZERO my mind echoed for me.

"And for the record, I was worried I'd be the one who wasn't interesting enough for this date." Keith's eyes relaxed slightly and I could see my words slowly start to ease the tension on his shoulders.

"So, if you're up to it, we could do this again sometime." I finished with a genuine smile.

"I'd like that" he replied slowly. I let my shoulders sag in relief.

This hadn't been a complete disaster. The man was charming and intelligent. He thought I was charming and intelligent. I thought he was semi-attractive and he thought I was semi-attractive. I could give this is a second shot, Arrow business be damned.

"Great, and again, I hate to do this… but I have to leave you now." I gave him one last apologetic look and impulsively gave him a quick hug goodbye. I moved away too quickly to let him hug back or even respond properly. I snatched my purse up and high tailed it out the door. Keith probably thought I was insane now, but the thought of Oliver tracking me down and finding me here, left me swallowing down bile. By the time I made it to my car, two new messages had already hit my phone.

Roy: "Too late, O wants to track the GPS on your car."

Roy: "O thinks something must have happened to you. Apparently, you said you were going to run an "errand" and would be back home soon. And you say I can't come up with cover stories."

The messages left me fuming silently as I started up my car. Oliver could be ridiculous; I hadn't said I would be back soon. I hadn't set a time limit. And who cared if it wasn't my off day. Tuesday's were always slow for us and everyone tended to roll into the Foundry a little later than usual.

I opted not to waste time with calling and just drove all the way to the club. By the time I got there, it was already past nine o'clock, the time Arrow usually hit the streets. But instead of angry looks from Oliver and worried ones from Diggle, I was met with an empty room and Roy sitting at my computers.

I rushed over out of breathe, "What happened? Where's Oliver?"

Roy swiveled on my chair and gave me a look of relief. "Thank God, Oliver is two steps away from self-combustion."

"Where is he?" I asked, pulling off my coat and scarf.

"Don't get mad… but Oliver tracked you via GPS." I groaned and rolled my eyes.

"And when he saw that you were heading this way, he got angry because he says you're ignoring him."

"Yes, because he's annoying!" I interrupted angrily.

"Yea, he doesn't see it that way." Roy got up and let me take his place.

"He thinks you're hiding something and you aren't taking the job seriously enough." I scoffed in disgust.

"I'm here aren't I? I skipped dessert to be here!" I glared at my screens as I punched in the codes to log into my system.

"I really hope you're talking about food and not something else…"

"ROY!" I ignored his laughter and tapped into the com link to connect to Oliver and Diggle in the field.

"Oliver, check in please." I braced myself for his anger, but only got back radio silence.

"Oliver, check in please." I asked again. I sighed tiredly; he was going to sulk now. I should have known.

"John, check in please." Roy started fiddling with some papers on the side table and setting them up for me to look over.

"Felicity, everything okay?" Diggle responded. I held back a sarcastic retort and plowed on like nothing was wrong.

"I'm fine, what's your status." I focused on being all business. It's what Oliver was constantly pushing over the com links now. Recently, he had started cutting off light banter and side conversations that weren't related to Arrow business. Normally I ignored him, but tonight I was using it as a shield to avoid confrontation.

"We're in the Glades. We got a tip from Heyburn's mistress about a possible hideout. So far the place seems to be a bust, just an apartment building and an empty lot."

"Do you need me –

"We needed you an hour ago, Felicity." I flinched at Oliver's cutting tone.

"We needed you looking over building plans to find out what's inside this building, so we wouldn't waste time chasing after ghosts." He spat angrily.

With his current mood and attitude, I knew it would probably take all night to be back in his good graces. But I wasn't sure if I cared enough to try at the moment.

"I got held up, what do you need now?" I sat up straighter and gave myself a mental pat on the back for keeping my voice strong and even.

"Find out when Heyburn lived here. Knock out surveillance from Pullman Street. We're heading back to talk to his girlfriend again."

"Done." I spit back and disconnected.

"He's just worried, you know" I looked over up at Roy, hanging over my shoulder. He gave me a sympathetic look, having heard the tense exchange.

"It doesn't mean he can give be a jerk." Roy didn't argue with my statement and we both turned back to my screens.

I started bringing up video feeds and let myself get lost in the work. Roy brought me up to speed on what they had gotten off Heyburn's second girlfriend. He apparently had multiple homes, all bought and paid for under his mistresses' names. We tracked two new addresses by the nights end. All thanks to Oliver's interrogation tactics, which still made me shiver from miles away. The mood between Oliver and I never did lighten. He spent the rest of the night tense and sending me brisk demands from the field. It wasn't until both men said they were on their way back to home base that I finally let my shoulders relax and take a moment to remember what happened earlier.

"Have you eaten?" I asked, taking my glasses off to rub my temples. Roy, who sat in the desk char next to me, looked up and shook his head.

"Nah, too busy. Oliver was really mad before. I didn't want to add to the drama." He shrugged and slumped back into his chair. I frowned in annoyance. Roy's efforts to be the perfect apprentice for Oliver weren't lost on anyone except Oliver. He pushed Roy too hard sometimes.

I sighed tiredly, "Thanks for covering for me earlier... even if it failed in the end." I hadn't forgotten how they used my own GPS against me. If it was a serious emergency, I could understand, but tonight was just more running around and research. It hardly justified Oliver's frantic need to have me sitting in the Foundry.

"I'll deal with Oliver when he gets back. You should start heading home, it's late. Go eat something and get some rest. " I glanced at my computer to see the clock slowly tick its way towards two a.m.

"Go home? Are you kidding me, I want to know what happened with Keith." My shoulders perked up a bit and felt my cheeks warm at the memory. It felt like ages since the date, but really it had only been a couple of hours.

"It was fine. We had dinner and then I ran out to come here." I straightened up and turned to start a new search for Heyburn's fourth girlfriend.

"Come on Felicity. When I left, the two of you were just getting started on wine. You were with him for two and a half hours, obviously something was meshing."

I scoffed at his vocabulary, "There was no meshing." I pushed away from my desk to face him. I was ready to launch into another lecture about taking liberties with my personal life, when I stopped.

Roy looked exhausted, bags lay underneath his eyelids but his eyes were full of mischief. Sometimes during long work days I forgot how young Roy was. He was always working hard to prove himself to everyone and make up for what happened with Thea and the vertigo incident. His interest in my dating life annoyed me, but I couldn't hate him for it. He was young and his heart was in the right place, even if his head wasn't always there with it.

I took a deep breath and relented a little, "We ate, we talked, we ate and talked some more and then a certain misguided green monster swooped in and ruined it all." I stood up to stretch, ignoring his knowing smile. "Really, it was pretty normal." I added.

"Will there be a second date?" Roy cut in.

I sighed and slumped back into my seat and stared at my hands, "Maybe."

"YES!" He fist pumped the air in excitement and I let loose my laughter. "Roy, I'm still mad at you! This is not how I want my dating life set up. This was a onetime only thing you put together here, okay?" I schooled my face into my best teacher expression to show my seriousness.

"When are you going out again? I can set up a late training session with the boss to cover for you."

"Roy," I rolled my eyes, "you still need to tell Oliver. I am not forgetting your promise to tell him this was your idea." It was my own form of payback for the date. Roy had to tell Oliver the truth, sooner rather than later now that it seemed Keith and I would be going out again.

"And I doubt there will be any training until Heyburn is caught." I gave my computer screens a tired glance. This case was dragging on for too long now. Heyburn was good at keeping out of reach, and it was driving Oliver crazy that he couldn't catch him.

"Coffee date then, Ollie will never know. I don't have to know. You set it up and tell me about it after and then I can't be responsible for telling Oliver." I shook my head in amusement.

"We will see. Let's wait and see if Keith texts me tomo…." I trailed off as one of the most important rules of dating suddenly sat up in my mind.

We never exchanged numbers. I felt my face flush in embarrassment. I had left too quickly for the obligatory number exchange and our date wasn't a conventional set up so I didn't have it in advance. Keith had no way to contact me, other than through Roy. I had no way to contact him other than through his restaurant's main line.

"What's wrong?" Roy sat up and looked at me worriedly.

"I… I forgot to give him my number." I confessed slowly. A look of surprise settled over Roy before he burst out laughing.

"This is why I set up the date!" he teased. I groaned in frustration, "I'm such an idiot!"

"You're rusty, not an idiot. Call the restaurant and talk to him."

"UGH!" I let my head hit the chair's head rest in exasperation. "I ran out of the restaurant today like a crazy woman, he probably thinks I'm bi-polar."

"Stop over-thinking it, he probably doesn't care." I gave him a disbelieving look. "I literally got up and ran out of there after you started texting me. Literally, just made up a lame excuse and ran out."

I shook my head in embarrassment. "It was bad Roy, even for me."

Roy let loose another chuckle, "Trust me, he doesn't care. He's probably just happy someone showed up today." I absently nodded in agreement. Roy had a point, Keith did say he was worried about the date being a prank. But, what if he thought my leaving abruptly was a prank too? What if he thought I just used him for a free meal? What if he was just being nice and really didn't like me? I started walking down the road of irrational fears when Roy brought me back.

"Call him or I'll activate Plan B." I glanced back in confusion.

"What do you mean? What's Plan B?" Roy gave me a half smile in response. The same smile I had seen last week when this entire dating fiasco started. I felt the beginning of a migraine settle across my head, along with the faint echo of Oliver's voice saying, "patience."

"What's Plan B Roy?" I was afraid what he would say. "I told you this blind date was a onetime thing. You're lucky it wasn't a complete disaster, and that Keith and I got along. Whatever else you have cooked up is not happening." I lectured.

He let out a small laugh and opened his mouth to start explaining when the Foundry's back door banged open. I jumped in my chair and Roy's amusement melted into seriousness. Oliver and Diggle were back home.