A/N: Thanks for all of the support! This chapter is really long. Hope you enjoy!

Chapter Four

"Hey, I just realized something," Oliver said, taking a pause from running his fingers through Felicity's hair as she laid on his chest after their second round of sex (she'd texted him this time). "We've never gone to your place. We always just come here for sex. Why is that?"

She shrugged, showing him that the thought hadn't really crossed her mind before either, and if it had, she'd never been bothered by it. "I have a roommate," she explained. "I don't really bring too many people by because of that."

"Oh, so she gets mad when you have people over?"

She shook her head. "No, but if they're doing what we're doing, then yes."

He grinned cheekily. "Why? Doesn't she get any action?"

"If she does, then I don't know about it. Caitlin doesn't make much noise. That's one of the reasons we're able to remain roommates and still keep our friendship in tact so that we don't have to worry about killing each other over the littlest thing. But that'll become a problem, because when I'm with you, I make a lot of noise."

Oliver smirked, and he couldn't help but feel proud of that. "So? It's your place too. You should be able to make as much noise as you want to."

She stayed quiet, turning over to face him without lifting her head from his chest. "Why do you want to come over so bad? Is there something wrong with us having sex here?"

"No, but I'm just a little curious to see your place. Call it intrigue." He gave her his best pleading face, the same exact one he used when he wanted sex, hoping it would be enough to convince her. "Please?"

Felicity sighed, caving. "Okay, fine. The next time we have sex, I'll host."

He grinned, feeling like he'd won the lottery or something because once the thought had entered his head, he couldn't wait to get a peek into Felicity's private life. There was so much more to her than just the little he knew. He may know her body like the back of his hand, but there was tons more he didn't. He didn't even know she had a roommate until three minutes ago.

Oliver wasn't sure why he wanted to know more about her personal life so badly. They were only supposed to be about sex, but he was making it something more like he was starting to catch himself doing more and more often. She didn't put up any objection to it, which he could only take as a good sign. But he worried now that something was going to happen to screw this up, and it would probably be him to do it.

He screwed nearly everything up. That was the main reason he always stuck to his system, making sure to not break any of the rules. But the woman on his chest had been an exception he needed to make because the very idea of only seeing her that one time was practically torturous. He didn't even want to think about the future, where the day would come when she met someone else and decided that having sex with him just wasn't enough anymore.

That was the day he was sure he'd be ruined.

"Hey, you okay?" she asked, bringing him back to the moment.

She was looking up at him still, concern in her eyes. He tried to play it off like he hadn't just been imagining the day she walked away from him to go chase that better life, giving her one of his reassuring smiles.

"I'm fine," he lied.

She stared still, and he couldn't meet her gaze. "Are you sure? You were thinking pretty hard just a second ago," she told him, placing her fingers on his arm and tracing them down to where his other hand rested on her hip. "And your grip on me tightened a lot."

"Oh," he breathed, immediately pulling his hands off of her body. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"You didn't. You do remember the night we were messing around and I fell off the bed, right? Because that time actually did hurt."

He couldn't help but smile at the memory, thinking back on how they'd both just stayed frozen in place, unsure if that had really happened or not. Then Felicity had started laughing, which had brought upon his own, and they could barely catch their breath enough to continue from where they'd left off. It had left her with a giant bruise on her ass that he made fun of her for a week for having.

"You can be so clumsy sometimes, Felicity Smoak," he said, and she smacked his chest, laughing despite herself.

"Me being clumsy had nothing to do with it. It was your desperateness and impatience to take me that caused it. You just couldn't resist throwing me down right onto that bed and flipping me over. How could you not have noticed how close to the edge we were?"

"Hey, you showed up in that barely-there lingerie," he justified. "Did you really expect me to be aware of anything apart from you?"

She exhaled, rolling her eyes at him in clear amusement. "You're such a guy. A girl invests in a little lace, and suddenly it's all about ripping apart the sheets and fucking the lights out of her."

"It's your fault for being so hot."

Felicity smiled at that, and he smiled back, cupping her face and leaning forward to kiss her. Her lips were so soft like they always were, and she moaned softly when he stroked her tongue with his own, like she always did. After a few minutes, they broke apart, and she rested back on his chest before getting up to head back home for the night.

He used to love that she would leave without him asking her to. Not that he ever would anyways, because at this point, he'd let her do whatever the hell she wanted to do. But in the beginning, when he was still getting used to sleeping with the same person more than once, he really appreciated her leaving right after sex. Then, he started to enjoy hanging out with her afterwards, when they'd make small talk and just... exist with each other.

Now, he wondered why she didn't ever try to stay the night. He wanted her to, and he wondered a lot what it would be like to fall asleep with her in his bed, and wake up to her still there. He never wanted to be the guy to ask her to stay, because then if he hated it, he'd have to tell her not to let it happen again. Still, he couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to just have her over for one night.

"So, what's on the agenda tonight?" Oliver asked, taking a seat next to Tommy at the bar.

His best friend had invited him out for beers earlier that week since they hadn't been seeing too much of each other lately. A lot of that had to do with Felicity, but Oliver didn't regret a moment of the time they spent together. Oliver wasn't sure if tonight was just about catching up, or if Tommy actually had a reason for wanting to see him, so he was ready to find out.

"I was thinking we could just hang out, watch the game, drink," Tommy listed, scraping at the label to his beer. "Then maybe we could head over to Club Zero and pick up some ladies."

Oliver smiled as his friend nudged his shoulder at his last suggestion, but his heart wasn't in it. Normally, when Tommy suggested they go out together, Oliver was thrilled by the idea. Picking up girls was already fun enough, but to do it with his best friend was even better. Tommy was his wing man, and vice versa. But now, the thought of going out and hooking up with some random girl was anything but appealing.

"How about we just hang out tonight? You know, no girls?" Oliver questioned, receiving a weird look from his friend.

"Are you crazy or something? The Oliver Queen that I know would never pass up an opportunity to get laid."

Oliver shrugged, not really caring to explain. "I don't know. I'm just not really feeling it tonight."

"'Not really feeling it'," Tommy repeated, confused. "What's up with you, man? You've been so preoccupied lately, you never go out with the guys anymore. And don't even blame it on work, because I see your friends out there all the time and you're never with them. Are you celibate now, or what?"

"No, I'm not celibate," he denied, shaking his head at how ridiculous his best friend was being. "I've been getting laid, Tommy. I just haven't been going to clubs to do it."

"Oh, really?" Tommy questioned, clearly not believing him. "So then just where are you getting these girls, Oliver?"

He sighed, looking down at his beer. "Not girls, Tommy. One girl."

There was silence for a minute or so, as Tommy processed what he'd just told him, and contemplated his response. Oliver waited in anticipation, knowing that his best friend was the last person to ever expect this from him. Tommy knew him better than anyone, and was there the day Oliver decided that he wasn't going to have sex more than once with the same girl. He understood his shock.

"It's that same girl you took home at Oblivion, isn't it? Felicity?" Tommy finally said.

Oliver nodded. "Yeah. That night, we decided to keep having sex. I got her number, and then I gave her mine, and whenever we want to hook up, we just text each other. I thought I was going to hate it at first, but the sex is different with her, Tommy. And we talk too. I tell her about work and she tells me about her friends and we... we just hang out. I don't really know how to explain it."

"But you're not that guy," Tommy reminded him, exhaling as he tried to figure this all out. "You're... a jerk. You don't do repeats. You hate it when girls try to linger around after sex. You're just... you're not that guy Oliver."

"Whoa, calm down," Oliver said, because Tommy's words were reminding him that he was becoming a different person now, and he wasn't sure he was ready to come to terms with that just yet. "Look, I said that we talk sometimes, but that's it. She's not my girlfriend or anything, and just because I'm not sleeping with anyone else doesn't mean I'm committed to her. It's just sex. It's actually easier this way because there's no effort put into it. It's just... fun."

Oliver felt like he was lying to himself. Each word made him want to cringe with how false it sounded in his head, but the way Tommy was starting to look at him like he recognized him told him it didn't sound as phony from someone else's perspective. He wasn't that same guy who'd asked Felicity for a second chance that night. He was someone else entirely, and the strange thing was, he was more bothered by the person he used to be.

"Well, you chose wisely with the person to have a sexual relationship with," Tommy told him, giving him his approval. "Felicity's hot."

Oliver smiled, thinking of her and how breathtaking she was. He could never get enough of her, it seemed. "She's amazing."

"Maybe when you guys end this thing, I could give it another try," Tommy joked.

Oliver eyed him, trying to hide the rush of jealousy that shot through his veins that burned so much more than it did the night her and Tommy were at Oblivion together. "Not a chance."

Tommy shrugged. "Worth a shot."

Oliver held the bottle of red wine he'd picked up on his way over, moving it back and forth from hand to hand. He was standing at Felicity's door, checking to make sure he was at the right place for the hundredth time. He couldn't really explain why he was as nervous as he was. It wasn't like it was the first time he'd gone over to a girl's house.

But she was Felicity.

Everything was different with her. The conversation, the sex, the feelings he got whenever he was in her presence. From the moment he met her, she'd been different, which probably explained the anxious feeling in the pit of his stomach as he tried to talk himself into knocking.

This evening was practically planned out. Oliver would walk in, they'd open up the bottle of wine he'd brought - hopefully taking some of the edge off of him - and then they'd go into her bedroom, where they'd have sex. Her roommate was gone for the night, leaving them with no interruptions. It was simple, and yet he couldn't bring himself to knock.

"Just do it already," he muttered to himself, taking in one more deep breath before knocking strongly on the door.

Within seconds, it was being pulled open, and he smiled, expecting to see Felicity. Instead, he was met with the face of another woman, one with brown hair and kind eyes. She smiled back at him, opening the door further. Oliver furrowed his brows, taking out his phone to check the directions Felicity had given him one more time.

"I am so sorry," he apologized, sliding open his phone screen. "I must have the wrong apartment number."

"You're Oliver, right?" she asked, and he snapped his head up, nodding.

"Yeah..."

She extended her hand. "Hi, I'm Caitlin, Felicity's roommate," she introduced.

"Oh, hi," he greeted, sliding his phone back into his pocket and shaking her hand. "It's nice to meet you. I'm Oliver, as you already know."

"I do," she laughed. "Come inside. Felicity should be out in a second."

He nodded, entering the apartment and taking a look around. From all of the images he'd conjured up in his mind as to how Felicity's place would look, this was not one of them. Her furniture was colorful, yet sophisticated. She had tons of knickknacks all over the place, and tasteful art covered the walls. The rugs were beautiful and laid out in just the right spots.

It was cozy and welcoming, just like her.

"So, Oliver, Felicity tells me you're a regular at Club Zero," Caitlin started, drawing his attention as she attempted to make polite conversation with him. "I recommended that place to her. I love the atmosphere."

He tilted his head, setting the bottle of wine down on the table as he frowned. "Actually, I don't really head down there anymore."

"Really? Why not?"

"I guess it's just not my thing anymore," he realized, suddenly disliking the idea of returning there for what he normally did before he met Felicity. "I have better things to do now than spend my weekends there."

"Like hang out with my roommate all the time," she suggested, smiling knowingly.

He nodded, smiling proudly. "Felicity is great."

Just then, the door across the room from him opened, and out stepped Felicity, her skin flushed like she was just as nervous as he was. He took in her appearance, feeling his breath catch. She wasn't in a dress or a skirt like he always saw her. No, she was dressed casually, in short pajama bottoms and a long-sleeved t-shirt. Her hair was tied back and she looked so comfortable.

He preferred this version of her to any other, because this was the version she clearly felt at most herself. She was breathtaking in any form, and he really couldn't think of a reason why he'd gotten so lucky as to have her interested in him in any way. She could be doing far more better with someone else. Someone who could offer her all the things he didn't.

"Hi," she murmured, padding across the room to him and standing next to Caitlin.

He looked down at her, leaning in to kiss her quickly. She was surprised by the gesture, but returned his kiss easily. Due to her roommate's proximity, he didn't do anything more than peck her lips before pulling back, but he knew for certain they would have done a whole lot more had she been gone. And when was she leaving, anyways?

"Hi," he replied, smiling at the blush that colored her cheeks.

"Can I talk to you for a sec?" she asked, and he nodded.

"Yeah, of course."

She led the way towards the other side of the room while Caitlin went into the kitchen, and he followed her there, wondering what was up. She looked a little anxious about something, which was never anything he wanted to see from her.

"So, I know I told you Caitlin was going to be out while you were here, but her date cancelled on her today, and she didn't have anywhere else to go. She offered to just leave and hang around some restaurant all night, but I didn't want to make her do that. I told her she could just stay tonight, and she was so grateful for it, she insisted on cooking for us, so now here we are," she rushed, sucking in a breath of air once she was done and staring at him with worried eyes. "I am so sorry about this, Oliver. If you want, we can just head over to your place, or-"

"Felicity, no, it's okay," he assured. "Believe me, I don't mind at all. That's very nice of Caitlin to make us all something to eat, and she seems really great. I don't mind her being here."

"Are you sure?"

He nodded, knitting his brows together to show her that she was ridiculous for even thinking he'd be bothered by it. "Of course I am. She's your friend. You're only being a good person."

She stared at him, giving him a look he was starting to become familiar with. It occurred at the most random times, but he recognized it as a good look. She never got it when she was angry at him or anything. He smiled at her, squeezing her hand before making his way back to where Caitlin was, serving the food for all of them.

"Need any help?" he offered, and she turned around in slight surprise, giving him a smile.

"Um, sure," she agreed. "Thank you."

"No problem," he responded, helping her serve the sides she'd prepared. "You know, I'm pretty good at cooking myself."

She looked at him, surprised. "Really?"

"Yeah, I used to help my mom make food all the time. Breakfast, lunch, dinner. She said I made the best scrambled eggs in the world. Then again, she may have been a little biased."

Caitlin laughed, and he smiled at her, taking two of the finished plates into the small dining area. Caitlin followed right behind him with the third, setting it down on the place mat. She offered to go get the wine opener and some glasses, and Oliver thanked her, taking a look around to see that Felicity was staring at him, a smile on her face. He grinned, finding her absolutely stunning like he always did.

"What is it?" he asked, because she only stepped closer to him, that smile never leaving her face.

She shook her head. "Nothing. You're just pretty great, is all."

"Am I?" he asked, huffing out a laugh. "So are you."

Caitlin came back into the room, and Oliver gave Felicity a wink before taking a seat at the table. Felicity sat down straight across from him, while Caitlin took a seat on the side, right between them. Oliver served the wine, setting the bottle down in the center of the table. He took a sip of it, glad that it seemed he'd picked the right one fro tonight.

They all began eating, Oliver and Felicity telling Caitlin profusely how amazing her cooking was. She'd done an amazing job with the meal, and Oliver was just glad he had the room to eat it instead of stopping for a quick bite to eat before getting there like he'd almost done. He had his irresistible need to see Felicity as soon as possible to thank for that. Near the end of their meal, they began to make some more small talk, which also went hand in hand with the wine they were starting to get a bit tipsy off of.

"So, Caitlin, how did you and Felicity meet?" Oliver asked once the laughter had died down from Felicity's story of how her and Caitlin tried to buy an apartment outside of the city, but the only one they could afford came attached to a concert venue.

"College," Caitlin answered. "We were roommates, and Felicity was the only person I'd ever met who liked watching Doctor Who. And I mean the old episodes as well,"

Oliver smiled, just like he did every time he learned something new about Felicity. "Oh, I bet she does. She seems like the type to be into that science-y, time-traveling stuff."

"It's about more than just that," Felicity defended, a slight flush covering her face. "And I don't make fun of your interests."

"Hey, I wasn't making fun of you. I think it's adorable that you spent your college years watching old episodes of Doctor Who," he teased.

Caitlin cut in before Felicity could respond to that. "Oh, that's not all she did. Believe it or not, but Felicity was quite the party animal. She was out all the time, wanting to check out the latest parties. All the guys wanted her there anyways. She was smart and pretty. Of course they did."

"I may have gotten you wrong after all, Smoak," he continued, grinning. "Looks like we were spending our early twenties the exact same way."

Felicity narrowed her eyes at him, making him laugh. Caitlin slapped her hand onto the table, gasping as she drew their attention.

"Oh my gosh, you know who I just remembered? Cooper."

"Who's Cooper?" Oliver asked, furrowing his brows.

Felicity shook her head, rolling her eyes. "He's just an ex-boyfriend from college. He was an ass."

"Totally," Caitlin agreed. "I used to hate when you had him over. He never wanted to leave, and he would treat you like crap. I remember that one time you caught him stealing money from your purse. I was about ready to kill him myself."

"Wait, Cooper is the guy that stole from you?" Oliver questioned, recalling a conversation they'd had about her dating a guy who sucked at getting her to orgasm and stole from her.

Felicity looked down. "Yup, that was him. I think you're fully aware of how little he had to offer me," she told him, finally looking up to lock eyes with him, and Oliver could just barely detect a hint of something he definitely liked in them.

"Well college was pretty great. When you weren't dating him, I mean," Caitlin said, earning back both of their attention. "Remember that week we waited outside that computer store all night because they had that new wireless speaker you wanted?"

Felicity laughed. "Oh god. I can't believe we actually slept on the sidewalk for it to not even work a month later. That was so dangerous."

"Not as dangerous as that time I lost my phone in the park and we spent the whole night looking for it. That place was terrifying at night."

"But we did find it," Felicity reminded her. "And we only had to pay that homeless woman $50 to give it back."

Oliver was chuckling at their conversation, the smile refusing to leave his face at the small glimpses into Felicity's past that he was able to get at the moment. He could picture each event vividly in his mind, and they only made him like her more. She was amazing, and that nagging fear came back with a vengeance at the very thought of her calling a quits to their arrangement to go after something even better.

When they finished eating, they all lingered around the table for a while, finishing their wine and conversations. Oliver told a few stories himself about things that have happened between him and Tommy. Felicity and Caitlin laughed a lot at those, which only made him want to keep sharing. Felicity stood up, and Caitlin did the same, an almost undetectable frown on her face as she seemed to realize that it was time for her to get out of their hair for the night.

Oliver felt bad though, because he'd been having fun just hanging out with them, and he liked hearing about what Felicity was like. He hadn't known her for that long, and he never asked her personal questions since their relationship didn't exactly require him to. Besides, Caitlin was sweet and her night wasn't supposed to be going like this either. There was no harm in hanging out with her a little while longer.

"How about we watch a movie?" he suggested, making both of them look his way.

Felicity stared at him, confused since he was basically putting off having sex. "Um, are you sure?"

"I don't have anywhere to be tomorrow, so I don't mind leaving a little later than planned," he assured. "What do you say, Caitlin? Do you mind sticking with us for a little while longer?"

She stared at him, visibly brighter. "Not at all."

Caitlin went into the kitchen with the dirty plates, going to set them down in the sink. Felicity made her way over to Oliver while her friend was occupied, placing a hand on his chest as she looked up at him.

"What was that about?" she asked, sounding more surprised than bothered.

He shrugged. "I don't know. You said that her date cancelled on her, and hanging out really seemed to take her mind off of things." He sighed, scratching the back of his neck as he figured out how he was going to word his next statement. "Look, I just didn't want your friend to be upset that her date fell through. I really don't mind hanging around a little longer. Caitlin's cool, and I know how much she means to you."

There was that look again from Felicity, and he was tempted to ask her about it, but was afraid that if he acknowledged it, she'd stop looking at him that way. And he liked being looked at like that from her. He didn't know what that look meant, exactly, but he knew it was something good.

"Thank you," she finally said, standing on her toes to give him a quick kiss.

Caitlin came back out and they made their way to the living room, where Oliver let Felicity and Caitlin decide on what to watch. He really didn't care, as long as it gave Felicity an excuse to cuddle into his side like she always did when they watched movies together. Sure, this time they had clothes on, but it was still nice. They finally put one on, and Felicity crawled right into his side, almost as if she belonged there.

"Alright, as fun as tonight was, I think it's time I get to bed," Caitlin said once the movie was over, and Oliver knew she was only saying that because she knew it was time she left him and Felicity alone.

"Well thanks for dinner tonight," Felicity responded, giving her a tight hug.

Oliver stood from the couch, giving Caitlin a quick hug as well. "It was nice to meet you, Caitlin."

"You too," she smiled, heading straight into her room.

Felicity turned around to face Oliver, smiling at him. He looked down at her as she brought herself against him, leaning in to kiss her. Her arms tangled around his neck, bringing him even lower since she was so short without her heels on. His hands rested on her waist, content filling him as he made out with the only person that made making out enjoyable for him.

"Come on," she whispered, breaking away and grabbing his hand. "Let's go to my room."

Wordlessly, he followed her, taking in his surroundings as he went. Once he walked into her room for the first time, he felt his eyes jumping from item to item, desperate to take everything in at once. She was so interesting to him, and he'd been nearly dying with curiosity of what her bedroom looked like, since it was a glimpse of the kind of person someone was.

He took in everything from her CDs, to her books, to the color curtains she had covering her window. He couldn't get enough of it, and strangely enough, it looked exactly like how he'd imagined it to look. It was so her, and it made him want to stay there, just existing around so much of Felicity.

"What?" she asked him, looking confused at how interested he seemed to be.

"I like your room," he explained shortly, and she exhaled like she found it funny.

"Yeah, well I do spend a lot of time in here when I'm not at work or with you. I should at least make it a little likable."

He smiled, taking the couple steps that were standing in the way of them, and bringing his lips back to hers. He cupped her face, controlling the kiss completely, and deciding that slow and deep would be how they played it. He pulled back after a while, dragging his lips over her cheek so that he was right against her ear, feeling her shiver from the way his scruff tickled her skin.

"You are extremely likable, Felicity Smoak," he murmured, immediately rejoining their lips and feeling her smile into the kiss.

She pulled away to start working on unbuttoning his shirt, and he watched her, mesmerized by her beauty. "You know, that was really sweet of you to want to keep hanging out with Caitlin tonight. I know she wasn't feeling too great after getting canceled on."

"Of course," he replied, shrugging off his shirt once all the buttons were undone. "She's your friend. And I didn't mind waiting to get my alone time with you."

"I like being alone with you," she whispered, looking up at him.

He nodded, staring into her eyes. "I do too."

Then she kissed him, and the rest of the world slipped away. It was effortless after that, because they'd done this enough times for it to come naturally to them. He took off her shirt, and then she undid his pants, and then he pulled down both his pants and boxers at the same time, while she did the same with her shorts and panties. Then he took her in because she was beautiful and overwhelming and he couldn't help but stare.

Because at that very moment, she was his.

"Why do you do that?" she asked, and he furrowed his brows, not sure what she meant.

"Do what?"

"You just... you look at me a certain way and-" She stopped, shaking her head. "Never mind."

He swallowed, feeling his blood rush at the very idea of her catching on to the way he thought about her. "What way?"

"Oliver, it's nothing. Just forget it."

She pressed her lips against his, trying to distract him, but he wasn't sure this was something he should just let go of. A part of him really wanted to tell her that recently, he'd been considering them being more than just sex. Another part of him was saying that he shouldn't screw up a good thing. The relationship between him and Felicity was one people would kill for.

Deciding against pushing it, he focused on the way she took him in her hand, stroking upwards. Whenever she did that, it drove him crazy, and she knew it. He kept kissing her, losing himself in her lips while he moved so that he was hovering over her. Her tongue stroked his, and he sighed contentedly, bucking his lower half in her hand.

Her hand wrapped around the head of his cock, guiding it right where she wanted it to be, just before pushing him into her. He groaned, doing the rest of the work, watching as her breath caught, her hands moving to tighten around his back. A sensation like no other flooded him, because up until this point, he always used a condom with Felicity.

Every single time.

She was so serious about that matter from the night they met, that he made sure every single time to have a condom ready for when she was over. It was just instinct now to use them, that he didn't think twice about it. But this time, she'd made the decision very clear that she wanted him inside of her condom or not, and he didn't know what to make of that.

"Felicity... we didn't-"

"It's okay," she interrupted, knowing exactly where he was going with that.

He swallowed, staring down at her. "We've never-"

"Oliver, it's okay," she assured, cupping his face as she prepared to kiss him again. "I promise."

He didn't argue with her anymore after that, fully appreciating the moment. He could have rushed it and gone fast, making her cry out his name like she always did, and letting himself flash through it all. Instead, he decided to go slow, thrusting deep, feeling each clench of her around him, hearing her whimpers in his ear. Everything felt so much better when he took his time, and it seemed to be the same way for her.

When she came, he couldn't remember her ever orgasming that intensely before. She'd shuttered with her release, grabbing onto him and staring up into his eyes. His gaze was unwavering as he held her in his arms, finding his own release as well. They were both breathless as they gazed at each other, remaining in that moment almost as if recognizing it would make it all go away.

"Wow," she breathed, and he smiled, finally pulling out of her and shifting over to his side.

"I know," he agreed, wrapping his arm around her so that she could settle onto his chest like she normally did after they had sex.

Her breasts remained to heave as she fought to regulate her breathing, and she glanced up at him, scrunching up her nose in thought. "You think it was because we didn't use a condom?"

"I think it was just more... intimate," he realized, huffing out air as well. "Slow is better than fast. Noted."

"You're so good," she praised. "How?"

He laughed, grinning. "It's always good with us."

"It is," she agreed, her voice sounding softer, as if she were completely worn out and even the effort of speaking was taking its tole on her.

Oliver glanced over at the clock she had on her dresser, seeing that it was already after midnight. He was a little surprised that time had gone by so quickly, but understood how that had happened. Dinner, chatting, and a movie were all time consuming things, not to mention the slow love-making afterwards.

Love-making.

Was that what it was? Was that the reason why it felt so different? Why it felt so much better?

He swallowed, pushing those thoughts to the back of his mind just like everything else that had anything to do with his relationship with Felicity being more than just sex. He opened his mouth to say something to her, hoping she'd distract him from his dangerous feelings, only to discover that she was asleep. Her eyes were closed and her breathing was slower, and all he could do was stare, mesmerized by the sight of her asleep on his chest like had never happened before.

He felt himself smile, not even attempting to fight it. He'd almost been ready to head home, not sure if she'd be okay with him sleeping over. But now, there was no way he was getting up and leaving that behind. His body felt heavier once he decided he was staying, and only then did he realize just how tired he was. His body ached from a long week of work, and Felicity's room made him feel more at ease than his own did.

Almost effortlessly, he fell asleep, squeezing her closer to him before doing so.

A/N: The next chapter is the last one! Felicity's feelings will definitely be known, like so many of you have requested. Let me know your thoughts!