SNOW WHITE (Someday My Prince Will Come)

Chapter 4

Summary: Felicity is in trouble. Oliver comes to the rescue.

Oliver had already made it to his car and turned on the engine, but he hadn't left yet. Just like he had at the end of their previous date, he had waited in his car for her to get inside safely, pulling away from the curb only when he'd seen the lamp turn on in her bedroom. He was really just trying to be extra careful; he had developed that habit, become more protective of every member of his family back in Starling City since his wife's demise. And to him, Felicity now counted as family.

He sat in the driver's seat, grinning like a lovesick fool. He still felt like what had just happened between him and Felicity had been surreal. They had shared their first kiss, and it had been incredibly amazing. Except for his mother and his sister – which didn't count – he hadn't kissed a woman since his wife died, and he had forgotten how wonderful it felt to hold someone special that close. He could still feel the tingles on the digits of his hands and feet, and the warmth that crept up to his neck when her hands found their way to his chest. He could still feel her soft lips pressed against his own and smell the lavender scent of her hair. He was, no doubt, falling for Felicity. Hard and fast. He knew it, and he liked the idea.

He turned to look out the window of his car, angling his head slightly so that he could see the window of her bedroom through his car window. The room was still dark. Curious, he looked at the digital clock on the dashboard. How long had he been sitting in his car?

After another minute, her room was still dark. Something inside him told him that something wasn't right. Still, he waited another minute. Maybe she was still in her kitchen. The dim light in her foyer had been turned on since she closed the front door behind her and he walked back to his car. Through the other windows that were visible from where he was parked, no other light had been turned on in her house. Strange.

So, he decided to call her. Her phone rang, but she did not pick up, and his call was directed to voicemail. He pursed his lips and shook his head. This was not good.

Oliver got out of his car and walked briskly to her front door. It was locked. "Felicity?" he called out after pressing her doorbell twice. "Felicity? It's me, Oliver. Is everything okay?"

That was when he heard the first crash. "Felicity!" he shouted, gripping the door handle of her front door and trying to force it open. It was no use.

Then, there was a scream, followed by another crash. "Felicity!" he yelled again in frustration. The locked door would not budge even if he tried to knock it down with his upper body. He took a couple of steps back and then kicked the front door so hard that it finally gave way.

Oliver ran to the direction where the crashing and shuffling sounds were coming from, his eyes slowly dilating and adjusting to the dimness inside the house. When he got to the door of her bedroom, he could see the silhouettes of two persons struggling. His eyes quickly made out that Felicity was pinned against the wall by a man of average height wearing a dark hoodie. When the mysterious man struck her on the cheek with the back of his hand that was holding a gun, Oliver saw red.

"Hey! Leave her alone!" Oliver yelled, as he darted across the room in a split second.

Startled by his voice and his presence, Felicity's attacker shoved her harshly, ramming her against the nearby dresser. Her head hit the edge of the hard wood furniture, and she fell on the floor unconscious.

Before the guy knew it, Oliver already tackled him, grabbing his wrist to force his hand to let go of his gun. They struggled, but Oliver prevailed, and the guy dropped the gun, wincing and groaning in pain because of the death grip that Oliver had on his wrist. Oliver kicked the gun away, letting it slide underneath the bed. He then punched the guy on the jaw and the stomach and kicked him on the shin, causing him to stumble down on the floor. Despite his obvious lack of skill in a hand-to-hand brawl, the guy still tried to fight Oliver off. But being the better fighter, Oliver did not take long to put him down. After a few more punches, the pathetic guy that assaulted Felicity was knocked out. Oliver's training at the police academy and his experience as a cop in Starling City had paid off.

After turning on the lamp on her table and making sure that the assailant was indeed knocked, he hurried to Felicity and knelt beside her. He tried to get her to respond to him, but she was unresponsive. "Felicity, can you hear me?" he asked her. He lifted Felicity from the floor a little, taking care not to shake her too much. In the dim light, he could see blood oozing out of a cut on her temple, the side of her head that had hit the edge of the dresser. The bleeding area was also beginning to swell. "Felicity, please wake up. Felicity!" He was getting more and more worried by the second.

Oliver pulled out his phone from his pocket and called in the incident. The police and the paramedics were immediately dispatched. He then carried her from the floor to her bed and laid her on it.

"You gotta wake up, baby. Come on," he coaxed her gently, taking care not to shake her, even if he knew full well that she couldn't hear him in her condition. He had to try, and he kept trying until the paramedics, the deputies, and Sheriff Diggle himself arrived.

In the hospital, Felicity slipped in and out of consciousness. On both occasions that she had been somewhat lucid and slightly conversant but disoriented, she had thrown up. The doctor said that she had a mild concussion, so she had to be admitted for close monitoring. She complained of a bad headache, so she was given some pain medication. After applying ice to reduce the swelling on her head and making sure that she was aware of who she was and of her situation, the doctor let her go to sleep.

The problem was, Felicity did not wake up the next morning. The doctors told him and the Diggles that some patients have different reactions to a concussion, depending on its severity, and cautioned them not to jump to conclusions. She was still under observation. They were advised not to become overly anxious and to let the head trauma just run its course and allow her body to heal itself.

Oliver couldn't help it, though. He realized that he already cared about Felicity very deeply. He thought it was safe and honest to say that, more than the fondness and affection that he felt for her, he actually already loved her. He was so looking forward to moving their relationship forward. He didn't want to think about what would happen if her condition was more serious than the doctors were letting on.

Oliver was also struggling to resist the nagging negative thought that he was going to lose another precious woman in his life because of criminal activity. He had already lost his first wife to a shooting in Starling City Bank, and back then, he wasn't able to save her even if he and his partner were among the first responders to the robbery and hostage situation. Now, something similar happened again. And while he had been able to stop Felicity's attacker from killing her, he was still unable to protect her from being seriously injured. He was tempted to think that he was jinxed or something, and that maybe it was better for him to just remain a single parent for the rest of his lonely life.

He looked at Felicity who was sleeping peacefully in front of him. He thought about how special she was and wondered why anyone would want to harm her. He had so many questions. He only hoped that he would still be given the chance to ask her, and that she would humor him and answer them when she wakes up.

"Wake up, Felicity. I miss you already," he pleaded, whispering with earnest longing as he held her hand.

A/N: This chapter and the next are shorter than the ones before. That's because they're supposed to be just one chapter, but I decided to split it into two.

Just one more chapter left. Let me know what you're thinking. Thanks again for reading!