Thank you! It's amazing to see all of the supportive reviews. And because of that I am going to put up the second chapter today! Don't expect updates to be this quick all the time, but review tend to motivate me a little bit more.
It amazed Oliver that after all this time, he still felt obligated to follow his father's last request. As he stared down at Abigail, curled tightly into a ball, she was shivering. It had been days of her fitfully resting and only getting worse. He knew she was weak and feverish, but not even the herbs were helping her this time. When he saw the boat, all he knew was he had to get their attention. If they didn't get rescued today, he'd have to bury another person he loved on this hellish island.
Oliver couldn't keep his eyes off the island as the fishing boat moved further and further away. It felt as though it was pulling him back. He only looked away when he felt Abigail shift beside him. She was pale and barely conscious. He reached for another cup of water to put to her lips. She coughed as she tried to drink down some of the liquid. All he could do was hold her close until they were back on land.
"Ollie," Abigail rasped out as he held her to his side.
"It's okay, we're safe." He promised as he kissed her temple. She relaxed against him, falling back to sleep from exhaustion. "Please stay with me, Abbie. You're strong, remember. Just a little longer." He kept her plastered to his side until the boat was docked.
The Chinese hospital was a nightmare of its own. The second the pair was brought in, they were pulled apart. Oliver fought like hell to stay with her, but even the doctors assuring him Abigail wouldn't be far didn't stop him from fighting against them. It took at least a half dozen orderlies and a sedative to get him into an exam room of his own.
It was late in the day before he could see her again.
"Where are we?" She asked hoarsely. Oliver nearly fell out of his chair at the sound of her voice.
"China, in a hospital. Tomorrow we're flying back home."
"Really?" A small smile broke across her face.
"Promise," he smiled down at her. He hovered over her bed, hand running through her hair, the other clasped tightly in her fingers. "I'm just glad you're alive."
"You look different, good different." She smiled.
"You'll get your turn. They wanted you to get healthy first." He leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead. "I'm going to get a doctor."
"Oliver, we're really safe now, right?" She asked as he reached the door. He turned, giving her a small nod before moving out to the hallway.
It was several more hours before Abigail was given another moment to herself. The doctors poked and prodded, taking more tests than she'd ever had done on her. After all the testing she was then allowed to shower, embarrassingly enough she had to have another woman help her because she was still too weak.
"Ms. Merlyn," a nurse called from behind the bathroom door. Abigail couldn't stop staring at her reflection.
Her dark hair had been chopped to just below her ears. It was the easiest way to get rid of the knots. She was thin, but there was still definite definition to her body from the years she'd spent fighting to survive. There were lean muscles all over her body, only separated by a variety of scars. She'd seen Oliver's body numerous times and knew that his was worse, but this was the first time in too long that she'd had the opportunity to look at herself.
"Ms. Merlyn, are you alright?" The nurse called again, softly tapping on the door.
"Fine," she smiled opening the door. "Is the plane ready?"
"Yes, miss. Mr. Queen is waiting in the hallway. It's a long flight back to Starling City."
Abigail nodded, following the woman down the hall. Her heart finally stilled when she saw Oliver turn to them. In only a handful of strides, he was by her side and taking her hand. There was security to escort them to a car that would take them to a private airfield. Luckily, it was nearing three in the morning and no one had caught onto their reappearance yet.
Once on the plane, Abigail fell against Oliver's side on the couch. It was strange to feel as if their old life was suddenly crashing back into them. The private jet and all its amenities were all too familiar.
"Have you talked to anyone?" She asked. "Your mom or Tommy?"
"No, the hospital contacted our lawyers who were going to contact our families. We were declared dead." He told her.
"Dead, as in never coming back?" She sighed. "Fuck, this is insane."
"Yeah, but we'll be home soon enough." He said, his arm drawing her closer.
"Then what?" Abigail asked. "Are we just supposed to act like nothing happened? Oliver, we're not the same people, but our families can never know what happened to us there."
"We'll work it out, Abs get some rest."
Exhaustion seemed to finally kick in. Abigail shifted so she was lying almost flat on her back, Oliver draped over her. Her fingers ran through his short hair and eventually her eyes drifted closed as well. It still surprised her how much of a comfort it was to be crushed by his weight.
She woke up warm, and surrounded by the smell of Oliver. A lazy groan moved passed her lips as she felt his large hand splayed across her waist, under her shirt. One of her legs had hooked itself over his hip, his head still pillowed on her chest.
"Oliver," she whispered against the top of his head.
He responded with a hum and a squeeze of her side. Goosebumps ran across her skin at the sensation, and she felt him smile against her chest.
"Ollie, when we get home…I know you have a plan. And I agree that you have to follow your father's wishes." This caught his attention, and he lifted onto his arms to watch her. "I can do whatever you need, I'm here. But I can't put that mask on."
"You don't have to," Oliver said kissing her jaw bone and then the hollow at her neck.
He fell back against her, his fingers drawing lazy patterns across the skin on her side. She heaved a deep breath and let their bodies fall comfortably close once again.
"Promise you won't leave me." She whispered keeping her eyes closed.
"They had to pry me away from you at the hospital. If it was up to me, you'd never leave my sight."
"When you put that hood on, I'm going to be there with you. We're still a team."
"We'll take it easy at first." He promised, one of his hands reached up to run through her now hair.
"God, I can already hear the therapists." She laughed softly. "We'll have to learn to be apart."
"We'll figure something out." He told her.
"But you're the best blanket, a girl could ask for." Again she laughed. This time her hand reached down and ran over the back of his short hair.
"Come on, let's try to get some more sleep." Oliver said as he shifted to the side of the couch they were laid across. He pulled Abigail into his chest, wrapping his arms around her securing her against him.
Landing in Starling City was surprisingly quiet, another testament to the fact the press hadn't caught wind of their return just yet. A helicopter was waiting to take them to the hospital from the private airstrip. Again they were separated from each other, their respective family doctors going over their battered bodies. It felt redundant, running through all the same tests they went through in China. The only time they saw each other was as they passed each other out of the examination rooms. For a brief moment, Abigail felt Oliver's hand grip her arm before she was once again pushed into another room. The urge to go out and find him was strong, but she fought it as hard as she could. She heard the doctors talking in the hall, leaving both her and Oliver for the first time since arriving. Hugging her arms around herself, she stared out the large windows at the city that was her home.
"Abbie," the male voice behind her caught her off guard. She whipped around and flung herself into her brother's arms. "Jesus, I've missed you."
"You have no idea." Her arms tightened around Tommy's neck. "I'm so sorry. You always said yachts suck."
Tommy kissed her hair before stepping back. He reached up and cupped her face, his hands lightly running through the now short locks of her brown hair, the same as his. The siblings stared at each other until the door opened again. Abigail visibly tensed when she saw her father. He moved towards her slowly, Tommy stepping out of the way to give the two privacy.
"Happy birthday, sweetheart." He said softly as he reached out for her. This time, her tears did fall. She felt like a five year old again, wrapped in her father's arms. "I'm so glad you're alive." She heard him murmur through his own emotions.
"I'm sorry, Daddy." She said through a sob as he held her against his chest. "I should have told you. It was so stupid, I thought you wouldn't let me go. All I wanted was to go to China."
Malcolm pushed her away a little before placing a kiss on her forehead. "All that matters, is that you're here now."
"The doctor's said you can come home tomorrow. They want to run a few more tests before you leave." Tommy informed her.
"Oliver's still here?" She didn't miss the glimpse between the two men. "What's that about?"
"You don't have to worry about him, Abigail." Malcolm said as she placed a hand on her shoulder.
"What do you mean? Where is he?" The panic that was rising in her was overwhelming. She took a step in the direction of the door before her father stopped her. "No, I have…"
"He's fine, Abbie. Moira's here." Tommy sighed as he watched the desperate panic that flooded his sister's eyes.
"Maybe we should talk to Dr. Hammond, he can get you moved…"
"No." Abigail stopped her father. "I'm fine here. I know what you must think, what everyone's probably thinking, but Oliver saved my life. For five years he took care of me. He didn't force me onto that boat, no one did. There's no blame on anyone, especially him."
"Sara said…" Tommy started, before Abigail cut him off.
"I lied. I was trying to stop them both from making a mistake. I had no idea he'd be on that boat with me. Robert's the one that asked me to come. He wanted me to meet some of the investors and learn the company." Her eyes moved to her father, not surprised to see that he showed no reaction to her words.
"You should get some rest, we'll be here tomorrow to pick you up." Tommy said before kissing her cheek and meeting their father moved to the door. Finding herself alone again, Abigail couldn't stop herself from moving down the hall.
"Ollie?" Her voice at his door shook him from his memories. The worry etched into his childhood nickname had him moving to her instantly. In three long strides he had her pressed against his chest.
Her hands fisted into the soft fabric of his shirt, as he cradled her head she relaxed as she felt his fingers gently twist around her newly cleaned and cut hair. Breathing deeply, the scent of fresh soap invaded her nostrils. Tears pricked her eyes at the simplicity of the moment.
"Can I stay here?" Her voice was muffled against his chest, but he had understood her.
"Yeah," he moved away a step. His eyes followed his fingers as they slipped from her dark locks.
Oliver took a moment to really look at her. It felt like it had been years since he'd seen her, the Abigail from his childhood. Her eyes seemed bluer than they'd been in a long time; the dark hair falling against her face had a shine to it, and her skin of clear and soft against his hand. She looked heartbreakingly fragile, although he knew that was the complete opposite of who she was now.
"Not bad, huh?" She deadpanned. "I was afraid they'd shave it like yours."
"Makes you look younger." Her face fell at that.
"It's my birthday." Again she felt water pool in her eyes. "I didn't even realize it until I saw my dad."
He didn't say anything, instead gripped her hand and pulled her across the hospital suite. They curled up on the bed, staring out at the window. Abigail melting against his side, Oliver held her tightly. Her head rested one of his arms as she pressed her back against his chest, their other hands clasped tightly against her stomach. It was a strange sensation, but he felt as if he'd wake up next to her sickly dead body in the morning which is why he didn't close his eyes.
It had been nearly fifty hours since they had left Lian Yu. And except for the few hours they slept on the plane back to Starling, neither had rested in days. As the morning sky turned from a deep blue to a soft pink, Abigail finally lifted her head. He knew she hadn't slept either as her fingers had been tracing invisible lines along his all night.
"I should probably get back to my room." She sighed as she stretched beside him. His eyes caught a small sliver of scarred skin peek out as her shirt rode up. On instinct he reached out to move a calloused finger over it. He knew he should pull back, but it was like second nature to be so familiar with her body. An almost primal possessive need over took him at the thought of having to share her with the world again.
"I'll go with you." He said as he helped her up. A weak smile graced her lips as she pulled out of his grasp.
"Co-dependency," Oliver's brow furrowed at the word. "It means we rely too heavily on each other. We'd do anything for the other, that's how we survived. We're safe here, though. We have another day of tests and seeing our families again, but by this time tomorrow we're going to be separated."
"You're right. It's just going to be hard to go back to that." He smiled weakly at her as she leaned back against the bed.
"We'll still see each other, probably more than people will know. But I don't need you to hold my hand through the hall." She gave him a confident smiled as she opened to the door and walked away from him.
Walking out of the room, Abigail almost felt as though a part of her was being ripped away. She physically had pull herself passed the three doors back to her room, forcing herself not to turn around and run back into his warm, strong arms. The tests didn't take long, Abigail actually found herself being given an elaborate spa treatment most of the day.
A team came in to work on her nails, painting them a fiery red that was once her signature. They waxed, moisturized, and tweezed for what felt like hours. There was a time she was sure to have enjoyed the treatment. She could name a few of them when she'd skipped out of class to spend a day having people dote on her like this, but now it seemed pointless. Her nails would chip and her skin was already marred with scars. No matter how long, or vigorously these woman worked on her body, she was never going to be the same girl everybody knew before.
"Can I have a minute?" Abigail asked, moving out of the claw like grasp of the women around her. "Please, I think I just need to get some air."
She walked out of the room, still wearing her hospital issue pants and loose tee shirt. Her hands were shaking as she reached up and ran them through her hair. The hall was almost completely empty, but she could hear the buzz of the people moving around the other parts of the hospital. It felt as though she was suffocating. There was too much noise, too many people, and too much light. She knew it wasn't supposed to be easy, but it shouldn't have been this hard. She was strong and brave, and there were five years of hell she survived that proved that.
Taking in a deep breath, she turned back to her room. She couldn't break down, not now. There were millions of people that wanted to see that. They wanted to see the broken and traumatized little girl that had disappeared on an island. She had to prove that she was still the beautiful, smart, and confident woman she used to be. Walking back into the room, she sat back down and was almost immediately surrounded again.
After being apart for six hours, Abigail moved carefully into Oliver's room. She noticed the way is eyes roamed over her body, once in a protective assessment, and the next actually taking in her appearance. She wore a well fitted black dress with her hair softly curled and falling down passed the thread thin straps across her shoulders. She was a few inches taller thanks to the heels she wore. For a moment she regretted changing out of the comfortable pants and tee shirt. Taking a calming breath, she gave him her best practiced smile.
"Wow, you look…" Oliver stopped at a loss for words.
"It's amazing what a Wonderbra and hair extensions can do." She smiled softly. "I heard you were taking the garage out. I thought I'd give the vultures something to nibble at."
"Abigail, you don't have to do that." He said, stepping into her.
"Yes, I do. I won't let them see what that place did to me. I'm not broken." The shimmer of tears was there, but she blinked them back. "Distractions remember. That part of the plan I can still do."
She pulled her sunglasses over her eyes, smiling brightly before walking down the long hall. Oliver caught the long pale scar running down the side of her thigh, and his heart clenched. She was essentially feeding herself to the press. They were going to attack her with all they had to get some idea of what happened to them all those years they were gone, and all he wanted to do was hide. She was always the stronger of the two.
"Are you sure about this?" Tommy asked Abigail when she met him down in the lobby. Their father was already standing in front of the press giving a statement from the family saying how glad they were that she and Oliver were finally home.
"Tommy, I was born for this." She smiled. His grip on her waist tightened for a moment before he smiled back at her.