A/N: Ok, so I wasn't going to continue that last one but, well, last week's episode sparked an idea for a second part. I usually let any ideas I get hang around for a few days, and if they're still with me then I write them out. This one was pretty persistent, so here it is. Let's pretend the first part of Demons of the Night took place between 2.18 and 2.19, and this one will take place a couple of weeks after 2.19. It's from Sara's perspective, but it follows her realization that he went to Felicity to sleep, and is basically her realizing there's more to the two of them, despite their denial and ignorance to it.

Demons of the Night, Part 2

Sara stares at the ceiling, unable to lull herself to sleep. It's not that she doesn't feel safe on Laurel's couch. She just can't shut her brain off. Every time she tells herself she's being ridiculous, her thoughts circle back to the beginning and start all over again. At this point, she'd welcome the nightmares that come with sleep. She's used to them; she knows how to handle her nightly demons. She doesn't know how to deal with these new and suddenly intense daily anxieties.

It's not just Slade and worry for her family keeping her awake, either. It's Oliver. When they got together, it was an unspoken agreement of need and understanding. They needed each other to deal with everything that happened on the island. They understood each other in ways that no one else could and they needed that understanding. There were no promises of undying love, no declarations of long repressed feelings finally coming to the surface. Just a mutual understanding of need.

Which is why she's so confused. She shouldn't be lying awake, agonizing over the events of the past couple of weeks. She shouldn't be dissecting the ease with which he lied to her about spending the night at Felicity's, and it shouldn't be bothering her this much. She should be happy that he finally found a way to get some rest, but she's consumed by a burning in her gut every time she thinks about it. Whenever she watches them interact it's with renewed calculation, studying every word, expression, and faint touch, cataloguing them in her mind and bringing them back out for the ultimate game of masochism at night. If she didn't know any better, she'd say she was jealous.

But she can't be, because she's Sara Lance, and she doesn't do jealousy. She's a former assassin, has killed far too many people to count. Jealousy isn't a luxury she has anymore. Not only should she be incapable of it, but it would mean she's broken their unspoken agreement. She's allowed emotion to seep in where it doesn't belong. Sure, they're connected, and they certainly love each other, but they aren't in love with each other. They both knew that going in. Neither of them cared. They wanted companionship without any questions, and they could give that to each other. Not to mention they were both scared to lose the other again. So they fell into familiarity and comfort, the only semblance of a relationship they can have. And yet here she lies, night after night, staring at her sister's ceiling and agonizing over his relationship with another woman. Because that's what it is, if she's being honest. Those two are not just friends, regardless of their ignorance to that fact.

She didn't tell him she knew where he'd really spent the night, both because she doesn't want to cause a rift and because she isn't sure she wants to know what exactly happened. She's sure he wouldn't do that to her, not after what they did to Laurel, but the idea that nothing happened is somehow worse than the possibility that something did. It's easier to think he found physical solace in Felicity than emotional understanding. Maybe it's because she can feel him slipping away when all she wants is to hold on tight or because understanding is what they're supposed to have, but her stomach twists just thinking about it.

So she may be a little jealous. But shouldn't she be? She's his girlfriend, not Felicity. He should be talking to her, smiling at her, laughing with her. Oliver should be coming to her when he can't sleep. Instead, he seems to be seeking out the only other female member of their team for all of the above and it's grating on her nerves. She can't help it. As much as she wants to repress the irrational feelings, she's a woman and apparently she's fallen back in… something with Oliver somewhere along the line. It isn't love, she knows that, but it's more than either of them bargained for.

She's been playing the moment they found Slade in the foundry on a loop in her head. Felicity was in front of him, she and Digg behind. The second the other blonde stopped short she felt the tension rolling from Oliver in waves. Her breath caught when Slade pointed the gun up at them and she sensed Oliver's muscles coiling to attack just as hers were. But instead of going for Slade like she expected, he reached out for Felicity, pulling her behind him and over the railing. The epitome of human shield, he remained guarding her until it became clear that she and Digg couldn't take Slade down. She remembers wondering where he was and why he wasn't immediately on the offensive against his former friend, but she shouldn't have even needed to ask. He made a choice to protect Felicity, something the petulant, jealous girl inside of her points out Diggle could have done just as well.

She knows she shouldn't question it. He was closer to her than Diggle was, but he was also closer to Slade than either of them. He could just as easily have provided the distraction Diggle needed to get Felicity to safety. She can't help but think his instinctual reaction to grab Felicity rather than launch himself at Slade tipped his hand to the man a little too much. It tipped his hand to her, too. But she shouldn't care so much. It shouldn't keep her awake at night the way it does.

Sure, he insisted on taking her to the hospital afterward, but she could sense his restlessness while they waited. He was anxious, and that feeling still hasn't dimmed. Ever since that night, Oliver's been on overdrive, never slowing down. Sara tries to talk to him but he brushes her off, saying they need to stay focused. He has time to talk to Felicity, though. She remembers overhearing them one night when they obviously thought they were alone.

"Oliver, you need to sleep. You won't do anyone any good exhausted."

"I can't. Every time I close my eyes…" He's silent for a moment, and when she hears his next words she can almost feel his heart breaking. "He was pointing that gun at you, Felicity. He was going to shoot you and I can't help but wonder what would have happened if he'd-"

"But he didn't."

It shouldn't surprise her, really, the way he sticks close to Felicity, especially after hearing that, but it does. Ever since Sara first returned to Starling City she noticed Oliver keeps a firmly defined distance between them and Felicity respects that. Now, with Slade getting closer, she expects Oliver to expand that distance like he started to when the man made his first appearance. Instead, he seems to be pulling her closer after the incident in the foundry. The only time Felicity isn't within arm's reach of him is when she convinces him to head out on patrol and when he sends her home with Digg at the end of the night.

She tells herself that it's because they've already had this conversation and he knows she can take care of herself, but the small nagging voice in the back of her head tells her that's not all of it. She can see it in the way he discreetly places himself in front of her before they enter the foundry, even if she or Diggle is already ahead of her. He hovers when they're in public, putting his body between her and wherever he deems the greatest threat to be capable of coming from. On a recent trip to Big Belly, he ushered her into the side of the booth opposite from where she usually sits, putting her between the wall and himself, facing the door the way he likes to.

She isn't even sure he realizes he's doing it, to be honest. It's one of the only things keeping her in check. She can't be angry at him for something he isn't consciously doing, can she? Especially not when he and Felicity are so naturally close that she's probably overreacting. She noticed their relationship wasn't exactly normal the first time she met Felicity, but back then she'd been on the run from the League and she was just happy to see that Oliver had friends helping him. Now, though, she's beginning to resent their close bond, and she has no idea how to cope with those feelings. She hasn't been jealous in a very long time (the last time she was with Oliver, actually) and she's still trying to get a handle on it.

She tries to tell herself she's being ridiculous. She shouldn't feel the need to still be sleeping on Laurel's couch. Her sister wants to question her about it, she can tell, but thankfully the brunette hasn't worked out the best way to do that yet. She shouldn't be lying awake at night either, trying and failing to quiet her racing mind. Sara's not the insecure girl she was before the island, scrambling for any scrap of Oliver Queen's attention. She's his girlfriend now; she's not the other woman. So why does she still feel like she is?

A/N: Ok, so that was pretty short and not directly Olicity, but I'd still love to hear your thoughts! I try to remain fair to all of the characters (even Laurel) when I'm writing, and I really do like Sara. I just don't like her with Oliver. To me, they seem better as a platonic crime-fighting duo. I don't see the whole 'epic love' pull that I feel like the show wants me to, so instead I take a somewhat depressing outlook on their relationship.