Author Note:

Wow! I can't believe the response I have gotten for this story. I'm competely touched. So, to show my gratitude here is another chapter. I've decided that this is mostly going to be done from Felicity's pov, but every so often I'm going to pop into Oliver's pov and I figured this is a good place to start. Disclaimer: I still don't own a thing except the plot

He didn't have the heart to wake her as he left. She only lasted about twenty minutes before she fell asleep to the movie and another hour before she laid herself down on the couch that left her head on his lap last night. He has been smelling lavender since he left her place and he has been silently blaming Felicity the whole way to the Foundry. He didn't notice he was doing it so he has no idea how long he did it, but he caught himself very carefully running his hands through her hair and he didn't even try to waste the energy to pretend to be mad at himself for doing it.

He walked in to find Diggle sitting at Felicity's computer desk facing the screen. "Do you remember what happened the last time you touched her stuff," Oliver asked with a slight hint of amusement in his tone.

Digg turned around to face Oliver with a look of shock and a small smile on his face, "Yeah I do. The bruise on my leg just now went away. She's little, but she kicks really hard... I blame training with you." For the first time in two months Oliver actually laughed and the shock on Diggle's face spread to the point his eyebrows disappeared into his very short hair.

Oliver stripped his shirt and jumped onto his salmon ladder and got to work. He has been reconditioning his body since he stabbed himself with an arrow to kill Malcolm and Felicity saved is life again. He shakes his head to clear those thoughts, he actually feels like he is standing a little taller today, standing taller than he has in a while. He doesn't attempt to lie to himself, he knows that's thanks to Felicity.

He remembers her holding his face trying to reach him after he came from the destroyed building that claimed Tommy's life. She wiped away all his tears and she held him as he had his break down. What really stuck out to him about how she treated him was that after his tears stopped flowing and he pulled away from her she never used his tears against him or held it over his head. She never even mentioned it to him, and after all of that she was still there for him.

When she started sitting in the dark with him, he wanted to hate her and he desperately wanted her to hate him so she would go and never come back. He wasn't proud of how he acted toward her in the beginning, but he was so proud of her. She took everything he said and did to her and she didn't give up. Not many people have that kind of a heart, but she does and he has known it since the day he met her. He has also known that she isn't like anyone he's met before. Yes he has known all of this since the day he walked into her office and said, "Felicity Smoak? I'm Oliver Queen."

If it wasn't for her and Diggle, Oliver would feel so alone and he would never tell them that or that they saved him from retreating into himself. Thea has been visiting with Walter out of town since the undertaking. Then there was Laurel, she told him that she can't be with him after all because she felt that it was a slap to Tommy's memory and Oliver had to agree.

Oliver's train of thought was broken by Diggle's voice asking him a question, "You and Felicity weren't here when I got here... Is everything ok?"

Oliver let go of the salmon and landed on the ground in a crouching position and slowly stood straight again, but his time to figure out how he was going to answer the lingering question. "Felicity pretty much kid napped me last night and took me to her place to sleep on the couch. She's grown really tough the last six months, I think we have been a bad influence on her." Oliver didn't make eye contact with Digg until he finished speaking and when he looked to him Oliver saw a ghost of a small smile.

Oliver and Diggle didn't speak much after that except for training talk, "You need a stronger block", "Remember what I said about your opponent changing his pace". Things like that. It felt a little like it was three months ago, before the undertaking, before his mother was sent to prison for a list of felonies that was too long to memorize and before Tommy was gone.

Diggle waved his metaphorical white flag after training for close to four hours, but Oliver kept going. He kept going back to last night in his head and that made him want to push himself just a little harder. He actually put his hands around her throat and squeezed. There are no words to express how much he hated himself when he completely woke up and saw what he was doing. Then there was Felicity with a look of concern on her face and sadness in her perfect silver blues eyes. And of course the concern and sadness wasn't for herself it was for him and she started apologizing because she woke him up from his nightmare.

Oliver lost track of the time and it wasn't until Felicity walked in talking on her phone that he realized how long he had been training. He clung to the rafter her was currently hanging from to avoid starling her and would wait to make himself known until she was off the phone and as he waited he couldn't help the small smile that stretched across his lips.

"... Daddy I'm telling you that this is a VERY bad idea. If she really wanted me there she would have sent me an invitation." She went silent for a minute or two before she spoke again, "It's not that hard to get a hold of me. If she really wanted to talk to or see me I'm sure she would talk to you about it." More silence, "Hundred dollars says I'm right." Oliver this time heard a male voice he had no idea what it was saying but he could at least hear it, "Yes that means I'll be there. Make sure to bring my money old man. I got to go Daddy. I love you." About nineteen seconds later (not that Oliver was counting) she hung up her phone and dropped herself into her chair and took a deep breath.

That was when Oliver decided to let go of the rafter and dropped to the ground scaring Felicity despite his effort not to, "Holy shit! Oliver, that was not cool!"

He tried, he really tried but he couldn't help but to start laughing at her. "I've never heard you swear before", he was able to get out between his laughter.

"Keep laughing Hood boy and I will hack your trust fund and donate all of it to saving sea otters," she replied with a smile on her face and then stuck her tongue out at him. Oliver's laughter stopped, but he was unsuccessful at losing his smile.