Title: Until I wrap myself inside your arms (I cannot rest)
Series: If I Were a Better Man [Part 3 of 3]
Category: Arrow
Genre: Romance/Drama/Humor
Ship: Felicity/Oliver
Chapter Rating: PG-13/Teen
Overall Rating: NC-17/Explicit
Notes: This is a sequel to a story based on an AU idea where Felicity and Oliver met before he was stranded on the island; it's pretty important that you read that too or you'll be confused.
Word Count: 6,071
Summary: Oliver Queen has returned from an island of purgatory to avenge a city in need of justice. Finding balance in his life is made all the more difficult with a book of names to strike off and a remarkable woman to convince he's worth her time. Fighting crime as the Hood keeps him busy, but getting Felicity to fall in love with him? Now that'll take a whole new level of dedication.

Until I wrap myself inside your arms (I cannot rest)

III.

The foundry beneath the Steel Fabrication and Welding warehouse was exactly what he needed. After circumventing his new bodyguard – John Diggle; a former Army Ranger, 105th Airborne out of Kandahar, retired, and in the private sector a little more than four years – he'd managed to get inside the building and begin work on what would be his new base of operations. It took time; he first had to make sure the structure was sustainable and then he had to start taking out walls. Wielding a sledgehammer, he got to work, losing himself in hours of manual labor, sweat beading on his skin and cement dust clinging to it. The strain felt good; he had been all too still lately. To his mother and sister, he was still recovering, still getting used to his surroundings. His mother especially tended to coddle him, keeping a constant eye out, as if she thought he might break at any moment. While he appreciated her concern, he was not the same man who had fled on his father's yacht, looking for one last hurrah. Neither was he the brittle boy he'd once been; he wasn't sure there was anything brittle or boyish about him anymore.

It was easy to focus on tearing down walls and putting together the foundry. There was little thinking involved outside of making sure the renovations were safe and wouldn't disturb the foundation of the building. He didn't have to think about how much his life had changed, how grown his sister was, how his mother had a new husband, or how Felicity was not so eager to pick up any semblance of a relationship. In retrospect, it had been stupid of him to think that the world would freeze itself, waiting for his return. Of course people moved on, grew up, let go of him. Still, it stung.

It was late when he finally left the foundry. Chaos still littered the floor, but the promise of an early return to business made it easy to walk away from. He would finish the foundry over the next few days and get his computers set up. He needed to start putting his plans to work on Adam Hunt. What a coincidence that Laurel Lance was also looking into him, though he imagined her approach would be far more lawful. Oliver would give him a chance to change his ways, but when justice fell, it wouldn't be via a gavel.

When he returned to the house that night, he found Raisa had left him a platter or fresh fruit, sliced cheese, and crackers. He hadn't realized how hungry he was until he saw it. After stripping off his grimy clothes, he quickly showered before returning to his room and dressing in a loose pair of pajama pants. Sometimes it still felt unusual to be back in regular clothes, to be able to change each day. It also felt good. Freeing. He didn't have to don the same shirt, trying to keep the sun from burning his skin. He didn't have to scrounge up food or desperately conserve water. He didn't have to worry that whatever he was eating was poisonous, though he'd long learned which was which. Was it the red berries or the orange berries that would twist his stomach into knots? Were those orange or did they just need more time to ripen? It didn't matter here. Here all of the food was ready to eat. He could have anything he wanted at any time. It still jarred him, that easy access.

Sitting at his desk, he soon found himself on Google, and rather than search out information on Hunt as he'd meant to, he found himself searching for Felicity. It didn't take him long. She had a Facebook profile, though it was locked. More, however, she was featured on a number of news and gossip sites. Her name was constantly linked with Tommy and Thea. It seemed she and his sister were bosom buddies of the highest order, seen shopping and eating together on a regular basis. Pictures went back as far as when Thea looked like the gangly pre-teen he remembered her to be, and he thought back to what Felicity had said, about how she'd stepped in when Thea was early in her grief over him and tried her best to help her through it. Five years. Five years she'd done everything she could to help Thea and Tommy survive without him. His heart clenched hard in his chest. Not for the first time, he realized he wasn't sure if he even deserved her.

A knock at his door suddenly drew his attention and he looked up.

"Ollie?" Thea's voice called. "Can I come in?"

He half-smiled. "Of course." When the door cracked open, he waved at her to keep coming. "It's a little late for you, isn't it?"

She shrugged, dragging her feet as she made her way over to his desk, taking a seat on the corner and stealing a piece of cantaloupe. Leaning closer, she eyed his computer screen before he could exit the page, and smiled when she saw a picture of Tommy and Felicity at a fundraiser, smiling as they talked to a couple Oliver didn't recognize.

"I remember that… It was a few years ago. Tommy always gets invited to all those things, but he wasn't going as much back then. Felicity was pushing him to get back to basics, but he was, well, himself, and told her he would only go if she would." She laughed under her breath. "I'm pretty sure he only said it because he thought she'd turn him down, but she's smart and figured him out, so she bought a dress and told him he was her meal ticket for the night…" Her smile softened. "She let me do her hair and make-up, and after, she came back here and we watched movies and ate too much junk food…"

"Sounds like you two are close."

Her eyes darted to him. "We are…" she murmured. "You know, when you, well… died… Mom was pretty useless. I mean, she just lost her husband and her son, so who could blame her? But… I was still here, so it was hard, you know? Trying to grieve and survive at the same time…" She hugged her arms around herself. "Don't get me wrong, I don't blame you. I can't, really. But… It was hard. My friends kind of ditched me. They didn't know what to say, I guess. And Mom wasn't leaving her room, and you weren't there, so…" She shrugged, her eyes falling to her lap. "So I called Tommy and… he brought Felicity. The rest is history."

He nodded slowly, staring up at her gently. "She's a good person. I'm glad you had her."

"Me too." She offered him a faint smile. "This is probably the part where I threaten you with bodily harm if you break her heart, or not so subtly suggest she'd make a great sister-in-law…"

His lips twitched with humor. "Is it?"

"Probably." She hopped off his desk, stealing a piece of watermelon and popping it into her mouth. "But I think it goes without saying, right?"

He watched her as she made her way toward the door.

"Thea?"

She looked back, a brow raised.

"You didn't just come here to steal food…" he said leadingly.

She frowned, shrugging her shoulders high. "I guess I just wanted to see you… I mean, it's not every day your brother gets kidnapped and then decides to just disappear for the rest of the afternoon like nothing is wrong."

He winced. "I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to avoid you. I just…" He sighed. "I'm not used to being around so many people. I'm still getting used to the noise and… how busy everything is. I needed to clear my head."

"And I get that," she assured, her eyes wide. "But you were literally kidnapped, and then you had a bodyguard put on you and for some reason you decided it made sense to leave him high and dry. Now, I don't want to poke holes into your logic, but does that sound like a good idea?"

His lips curled faintly at the corners. "No. You're right, it doesn't… I'm sorry if I made you worry."

"There's no 'if' there. You did." She stared at him seriously. "Ollie, I want you to be happy, so if that means you take some time to find your zen on your own, fine. But, more than happy, I want you to be alive… So no more disappearing acts, especially not after nearly fatal kidnappings, all right?"

He nodded. "All right."

"Okay… Thank you." Awkwardly, she shifted on her feet. "Now that this weird family moment is over, I think I'll get some sleep. I have school tomorrow and a test I barely studied for."

With a faint chuckle, he nodded, watching as she went, but when she reached the door, he called her name again.

"Before you go, I just… I know I can't make up for what you went through when I was gone… but I want to make up for lost time."

Nodding, she half-smiled. "Good. Because you owe me a lot of it."

He grinned then and chuckled under his breath. "Duly noted, Speedy."

With a roll of her eyes, she exited his room, closing the door gently behind her.

He stared at it a long moment before finally turning back to the computer. Felicity had donned red for the event, from her gown to her lipstick to her nails. Small black studs dressed her ears, mostly covered by her hair, which she'd left straight, pulled to one shoulder more out of comfort than style. In the picture, she was mid-laugh, her nose wrinkled, and her pearly white teeth on display as she smiled. She was stunning, and he found himself studying how lighthearted and open she looked. The complete opposite to how he felt every day of his life these past five years. He wondered again how he would fit with her now. He wasn't willing to give up, but reality seemed to be knocking at his door a lot lately, and it wasn't kind.

Clicking out of the page, he shut off his computer and focused on his food. He had an early morning, especially if he wanted to avoid Diggle again. While the man had fallen for his escape out of the moving car, Oliver imagined he would try to be more prepared in future. While he would much rather he not have a bodyguard, he was completely certain that Diggle wouldn't give up so easily. He seemed the stubborn type, which meant Oliver would only have to try that much harder.

When he finished eating, he finally climbed into bed. After laying his head on his pillow, he dug a hand into the drawer of the bedside table and pulled out the faded keychain he'd had with him through the very worst of times. He squeezed it tight, settling his fist over his chest, and fell into a fitful sleep.

Felicity glared at Tommy beside her, which he went out of his way to pretend he hadn't noticed.

"I was supposed to be at work…" she checked her watch, "twenty minutes ago."

Tommy sighed. "So call in sick."

"It was my lunch break! You don't think that might look a little suspicious?"

He shrugged. "I have repeatedly offered to fund your early retirement. It's not my fault you keep turning me down." He grinned at her. "You don't think I'd make a generous sugar-daddy?"

Felicity reached up to readjust her glasses. "What exactly do you think you'd be paying me for?"

"Running pointless errands with me and keeping me company when I'm bored," he answered simply.

"You know that's not what a sugar-daddy pays for… right?"

He snorted, looking at her incredulously. "Listen, if anyone knows better what a sugar-daddy is paying for, it would be me. You are the innocent one in this friendship."

"Just because I've never been arrested for public nudity does not mean I'm innocent. It means I managed to stay sober enough not to make bad choices."

"Or you have really good timing," he corrected.

Flushing, she frowned at him. "That was one time, and that was the tequila's fault. I told you never to let me drink tequila."

"Ah, but your first mistake was telling me tequila made you do bad things…"

Rolling her eyes, she reached over to pinch his arm.

"Ow," he cried, frowning at her. "Your tiny little fingers hurt."

Huffing, she crossed her arms over her chest. "Well, your bad timing is hurting my career. Where are we going?"

"We're visiting the clubs you picked out," he said, still rubbing his arm. "Seriously, I think you bruised me. I have very sensitive skin."

"Do not tempt me," she muttered scathingly. "Now, why do I have to come with you? I already picked out the club and set everything up yesterday. You know, before you were kidnapped… Ringing any bells?"

"Somebody's cranky today."

Felicity huffed out an irritated breath. "It has been a really busy few days, okay?"

Tommy's expression softened. He held a hand out to her and, with a soft sigh, she uncrossed her arms to take his hand. "Things haven't been easy for you since he came back, have they?"

She shook her head. "It's not just about him. I mean, yes, things have felt really complicated and… weird, but… Tommy, you've never been kidnapped before. How are you not worried? I mean, masked men knocked you out and held you hostage. And some… guy in a hood just came along and saved the day. Can we talk about how insane that was?"

He frowned. "The kidnapping or the hood guy?"

"Both!" She gripped his hand hard. "I know we joke about how worried I was and that you're fine, but this is big. This had to be coordinated, you understand that, right? Somebody probably hired those men to kidnap you and Oliver. So what does that mean? Why would they do that? Who is behind it?"

"All right, Nancy Drew, I hear you. You're worried. But Felicity, listen, I really don't think it goes as far as you think. It was probably somebody looking to make some money off of ransoming us off. Let's face it. We're both from very wealthy families and with Oliver's recent return, he's gotten a lot of coverage." When she still wasn't comforted, he half-smiled at her. "You said it yourself. Lance is on the case. I'm sure they'll realize it wasn't anything big. I mean, they couldn't have been that good, right? Some guy in a hood just strolled up and took them all out. One guy against three?" He scoffed.

Felicity chewed on her lip. "That's the thing though… Those men had guns, they were prepared with knock-out darts… And one man managed to take them all out…" Her brow furrowed. "Even if this was just a ransom plot, that man saved your life… Why?"

"Ouch," he said in faux-hurt. "I'd like to think I was worth saving, thank you."

"Of course you were," she dismissed. "But I'm supposed to think that; I'm your best friend. Why would your average citizen go out of his way to save a complete stranger from people who were clearly armed and dangerous?"

Sighing, apparently tired of the conversation, Tommy shrugged, and turned his car into the empty parking lot of a club. "I don't know. Maybe he's not as average as you think. Maybe he's some vigilante out to offer up a taste of justice…" he joked, his voice filled with mocking.

Felicity bit her tongue rather than respond, because, truth be told, she was wondering if he might be right.

Tommy pulled the car into a parking spot and turned it off. "Come on. Let's go haggle with the owners and see if we can get them down to a better price."

"What's wrong with the place I picked?"

"Nothing. But I like to haggle and I have nothing better to do with my day."

Climbing out of the car, she raised an eyebrow at him over the roof. "You realize if you go with my choice anyway this will have been a complete waste of my time and energy."

Circling the car, he tossed an arm around her shoulders and squeezed her against his side. "Let's be honest… Any time spent with me is never a waste."

Laughing under her breath, she slid her arm around his waist and let him lead her into the club. He wasn't completely wrong. Though, as soon as his back was turned, she was going to check in with Patricia to see how she was handling things. And then she'd check in with Rudy just to be sure. Though, admittedly, having an afternoon to hang around with Tommy was nice. She could admit that with Oliver back she'd been worried Tommy might have less time for her, but it was clear that he was making sure that wasn't the case at all.

Smiling, she told herself that it was okay she was missing work… After all, Tommy had been kidnapped yesterday. That was a good enough reason, wasn't it? Seeing him grin at the club owner, that mischievous, about to get everything he wanted grin she was so used to, she decided it absolutely was a good enough reason.

Four days had passed without the company of Mr. Diggle. Oliver managed to fix up much of the foundry, clearing out debris and knocking down the last of the walls he wanted removed. He set up a table with his computers and prepared a station for his bow and arrows. With the help of a generator, he was able to get electricity running through the place and, while it still needed some work, it was a good place to start.

He took some time to prepare his arrows. At times, it could feel tedious, but he enjoyed the constant noise and the feel of each arrow between his fingers. It was much easier to build them here than on the island. There were so many tools at his disposal, so much time that was saved. It helped too that he didn't have to constantly worry about his surroundings. It would be difficult for just anyone to get into the foundry and, given its current state, he didn't imagine many would try.

When he was finished with his arrows, he spent some time working off the last of his excess energy. Between the salmon ladder and doing stomach curls from various pipes running along lowered parts of the ceiling, he managed to work every muscle until they screamed. Sweat soon collected and the cool air made steam rise off his too-warm skin.

Donning a shirt, he made his way over to his munitions box, fishing out his bow to get some target practice in. He emptied a bottle of tennis balls and pinned each to the cement wall with an arrow through the center. There was a sense of accomplishment each time an arrow left his fingers and stuck through the rubber ball. It was rare for him to miss. His mind and body was so trained that it moved and reacted without him having to first consider his options. Like a well-oiled machine. If that machine were a weapon, of course.

Laying his bow back in its case, he returned to the large circle of computers he'd set up, each working overtime, many scanning the topography of Starling City, preparing as much information as he could take in. The city had changed while he was away and he needed to reacquaint himself with it. Knowing his landscape was a priority if he planned to be running from one place to another, possibly outrunning various goons in an effort to stay alive during his crusade. Some of the other screens were running background checks on various names on the list his father had left him. It was one thing to know what Google could bring up, but he needed to know the stuff they weren't posting for the world to see.

Briefly, his mind was taken away from the task at hand as the multiple lit up screens reminded him of a certain IT genius, though he wasn't sure how he felt about that.

Felicity had made it clear that she wasn't looking to rekindle anything. Considering her acquaintanceship with Quentin and Laurel Lance, it was obvious that she knew about Sara. He hadn't planned on keeping it from her, he just wished he'd had a chance to explain. Five years was a long time for her to go over those 'what-if' scenarios she'd talked about, and he imagined most of them ended in him breaking her heart with cheating or getting bored. Truthfully, maybe the man he used to be would have done just that. He obviously hadn't been mature enough to do the right thing. He'd ran off with a woman he didn't even know because he was scared of his life changing. But the man that came back from the island was not the one who'd broken his promises to Felicity.

The man he was now wanted to live up to those promises and make it right. Not just to her, but to everyone who mattered in his life.

He wanted to believe that he could change her mind. He just needed to show her how different he really was. But there was a line he couldn't cross. He was different, yes, but that reached a level she could never know about. His conscious gnawed at him. If he did manage to convince her to give him a chance, wasn't he already sabotaging himself by lying to her from the word 'go'? His jaw ticked with uncertainty. He didn't want to lie, but something about telling her he was planning to become a bow and arrow wielding vigilante just didn't give him the confidence to be completely honest.

Maybe, in time, he could feel out her thoughts on the vigilante and take it from there.

He was probably lying to himself, but he wasn't willing to explore the issue further. If it tipped too far in either direction, it meant he would be losing something important to him. Either Felicity or his drive for justice.

Turning his attention to one particular screen, he watched the KQBC news as it detailed the upcoming trial between Adam Hunt and Laurel Lance.

"…the suit alleges that Hunt committed multiple acts of fraud and theft against the city's underprivileged…"

Leaving his computer, he moved toward his weapons cache and went through it, lingering on a hunting knife. Adam Hunt's crimes went deeper than just fraud or theft, but he'd been able to bully, bribe and kill anyone who got in his way. But that was before.

Oliver returned to his munitions trunk, reaching inside to retrieve a green hood from the confines, rubbing the rough fabric between his fingers. It was time his alter-ego paid Adam Hunt a visit.

"All right, what'd you bring me?"

"Is that any way to answer the door?" Felicity wondered, raising an eyebrow.

Thea rolled her eyes. "Didn't I mention I was raised by wolves?"

"I think your mother might take offense to that," she argued, walking past her into the foyer. "I brought Chinese, and a really cheesy rom-com, because I know you like those."

"Hey, don't lay all the blame on me. You're the one who's got a will-they/won't-they romance going on in her life."

Shucking her jacket after she placed the take-out bag on the edge of the table dressed in family photos, Felicity wrinkled her nose. "I object to that."

With a snort, Thea rolled her eyes. "This isn't Law and Order, and I'm not Laurel. So you can object all you want, but I'm still going to pick and prod until you tell me what's going on with you and Ollie."

With a heavy sigh, Felicity discarded her shoes and grabbed the bag of food, making her way toward the family room, where the TV would be happy to play their crappy movie choice of the night. "Nothing. Literally nothing is going on. We talked the other day, you know, after your brother was kidnapped…"

Thea waved a dismissive hand. "Don't change the subject. You talked. And…?"

"And I told him that we should start over and be friends. I don't plan on walking away from you or Tommy, so we'll just have to find a way to be civil and make things work."

She scoffed. "And that worked?"

"Of course it worked. It's true!" Passing the bag of food to her, Felicity made her way to the Blu-ray machine and put the movie in. "And I find the note of disbelief in your voice really discouraging."

"Can you blame me? When was the last time you went on a date?" Thea asked incredulously.

"I've gone on plenty of dates, thank you very much. Mark from Marketing asked me out a few weeks ago… We had drinks. It was nice."

"Okay, one, never date a guy whose name is part of his job, and b., if it was so 'nice' why haven't you seen 'Mark from Marketing' in a few weeks?"

"Because… I've been busy… And also he made a lot of terrible puns. Not the funny kind where you can't help but laugh, but the really bad ones that kind of make your soul weep."

Thea blinked at her. "Okay… Well, who did you date before that?"

Felicity shrugged. "I don't know. I've dated around… There was that musician, Jensen. He was okay. I mean, he talked too much about his band and where they were going, but he did give me a discount on their CD and I listen to it when I'm cleaning, so… I kind of feel like that evened out in the end." Tapping her chin thoughtfully, she said, "Oh, and there was Brad, he was really into comic books, which was great, but… he brought up role playing a lot, and I could see where that was headed…" Her brows hiked. "Not totally a problem, except his idea of sexy costumes was definitely not on the same wavelength as mine…"

"Wow, okay, this conversation took a weird turn."

Felicity shrugged. "You asked."

"Not about the weirdoes who wanted to dress you up as their personal Chewbacca and get creepy with you. I asked you who you dated lately that was even kind of viable for a second date."

With a sigh, she collapsed onto the couch, making grabby hands at the bag, wishing she'd grabbed her chow mein before she sat down. "I don't know. You know I don't date long-term. I have too many commitments."

"Well, what happened to Matt?" Thea tried. "He was nice, and hot. Like, really hot."

"He cleared his throat too much. It was distracting."

Thea rubbed her fingers between her eyes. "Are you serious?"

"What? It was a legitimate reason. He was constantly clearing his throat. It was at the point where I told him he should see a doctor about that. Who knows, he could have something lodged in there!"

"You are seriously too picky."

"I am not. I'm just… not willing to settle."

"Didn't mom introduce you to Carter Bowen a few years ago? You guys went on a date and I know he wanted to see you again."

Fidgeting in her seat, she shrugged. "So?"

"So? So he was literally the perfect person. Like, annoyingly perfect. I hate him on principle alone, but even I can admit that he was perfect boyfriend material."

"That was the problem," she sighed. "Well, that and he was a little narcissistic. But in that sneaky way, you know? Like, he pretends that he's as surprised as anyone that he's an amazing author and neurosurgeon, but clearly he understands he's gifted. I don't like that. If you're good at something, own up to it. Like I know I'm amazing with computers. There is literally no one better at QC. You think I'm going to pretend I'm not?" She scoffed. "I did not work my butt of at MIT not to brag a little. And bragging is fine, as long as you're not obnoxious about it."

Thea threw her hands up in defeat. "Fine, let's change the subject before you start throwing ones and zeroes at me." Opening the take-out bag, she started dishing out their food. "So, which club did you and Tommy pick out?"

"One that you are still technically too young to set foot in."

She smirked. "Technicalities never stopped me before."

"On a related note, please tell me you're not underage drinking or anything that would make me worry."

Rolling her eyes, Thea shook her head. "Okay, if I say I'm not getting black out drunk, would that help?"

She nodded slowly. "It would ease some of my fears, yes."

"I'm not getting black out drunk," Thea offered in a deadpan.

Dramatically, Felicity wiped a hand over her forehead. "Phew."

Lips twitching with humor, Thea handed her a box of chow mein and dug out one of chicken fried rice. "All right, let's curb the serious talk and focus on cute boys," she decided taking up the remote for the TV and Blu-ray.

"Agreed."

With that, they quickly found themselves immersed in a love story that resembled nothing of their own lives.

When Oliver returned home that night, he could still remember the look of angry disbelief on Hunt's face, vowing to kill the Hood if he ever dared threaten him again. The mere idea that Hunt was anywhere near the worst of people Oliver had faced might have made him laugh. Hunt was nothing but a cockroach in the larger scheme. A cruel man who didn't care about the lives that suffered around him. That would end. Soon.

The house was mostly silent. He expected everyone to be sleeping, which was why he was surprised to hear the television playing in the den. After kicking off his shoes, he made his way down the hall, his brow furrowed. He paused for a moment, just short of the doorway, worried he might walk in on his mother and Walter having some kind of date night. But then he heard a laugh, a soft, tinkling laugh that he remembered so very clearly. It had given him comfort more times than he could count over the years he'd spent away.

His feet were moving before he gave it conscious thought and he soon found himself leaning in the doorway of the den, watching as Felicity sat curled up on the couch, her head balanced on her hand, watching the screen in front of her with rapt attention. Thea had fallen asleep, her head pillowed on the arm of the couch, her legs stretching all the way toward Felicity on the other end. There was an empty brown bag with discarded Chinese food containers littering the table and chopsticks laying haphazardly nearby.

Oliver took a moment just to watch Felicity; the easy smile on her lips, the relaxed slump of her shoulders, the engaged look in her eyes.

He didn't know what movie she was watching or what it was about, but he liked how enthused she was by it.

Silently, he entered the room and moved to take a seat on a nearby arm chair. "Good movie?"

She startled, her head swiveling toward him, eyes wide. "Hi," she squeaked.

"Hey," he returned, his eyes turning toward the television curiously. "What are you watching?"

"Oh, nothing really. Just… a movie." She fumbled for the remote and hit stop. "I actually already watched it, but I liked it so I played it again when Thea fell asleep."

"Must be a good movie."

She shrugged. "I'm sure it's corny and unrealistic, but sometimes you need that." Pushing off the couch, she started gathering up the garbage to put away. "You're home late."

He nodded. "Errands."

She quirked an eyebrow. "Really? And what kind of errands can you even get done this late at night?"

He blinked. "There's a 24 hour Laundromat on King and 2nd."

Tipping her head to the side, she offered an amused, and completely unconvinced, smile. "So at eleven o'clock at night, you decided to drop by a 24 hour Laundromat…?"

He nodded slowly. "Yes."

"With what clothes?"

"They're still there."

"So you brought clothes to a Laundromat, despite the fact that you have a perfectly good washer and dryer here, not to mention paid staff to wash them, and then just… left them there…? Because, I know it's been five years, but most Laundromats that are open overnight don't have people who switch the clothes over for you, and if they do, they're probably going to steal them before you come back."

His lips twitched. "So you're saying my favorite argyle sweater has been stolen."

"Argyle, huh?"

"I'm a man of mysterious taste."

She laughed, shaking her head. "Clearly."

He watched her as she finished with the garbage and set the bag on the table. Crossing the room, she knelt in front of the television and ejected the dvd, putting it back in its case to be stowed away in her purse.

"Are you going home?"

"That is generally what people do when their host falls asleep on them and they have work in the morning…" she answered lightly, casting an amused smile at him.

His brow furrowed, lips set in a frown. "It's late, you're probably tired, you shouldn't be driving…"

"I've left here later and far more tired. Trust me, I'll be fine," she dismissed.

"I'd feel better if you stayed, or at least let me call a driver."

She turned to look at him and he stared up at her, not even bothering to hide the blatant concern on his face.

Biting her lip, she crossed toward him, taking a seat on the edge of the coffee table. Hands on her knees, she leaned forward, peering at him curiously. "What are you doing?" she wondered.

He eyed her thoughtfully. "What do you mean?"

"I can't read you…" Her voice was wrought with frustration. "You used to be so easy…" She scrunched up her nose at her wording. "You know what I mean. Well, not that you weren't easy, because you kind of were. But I meant easy to read. You were like an open book. And not only because you tended to just say out whatever you wanted…"

"Are you asking what my intentions are toward you, Miss Smoak?" he asked, a teasing quality to his voice.

She rolled her eyes, leaning back from him. "You know what… No. Never mind." She shook her head, waving her hands as if to wipe the conversation out of existence, and stood from her seat on the table, pulling her purse up and over her shoulder as she did.

He sobered quickly. "You can ask me…" He stared up at her, his expression the picture of serious. "But I'm not sure you're ready for the answer."

Staring down at him a long moment, she looked thoughtful, chewing her lip. "No… I'm not sure I am," she murmured. With that, she turned on her heel to walk toward the doorway, her car keys jangling in one hand. "Goodnight, Oliver."

"You're sure I can't convince you to stay…? Or have my driver take you in?"

She half-smiled back at him. "Very sure."

"Okay…" He nodded in defeat. "Goodnight, Felicity."

She waved a hand over her shoulder as she disappeared down the hall. He listened for the front door to open before he sighed.

Climbing from his chair, he moved toward Thea and, with little effort, managed to pick her up off the couch and carry her upstairs to her bedroom. Tucking her in, he finally made his way back to his room, all the while wondering how Felicity might've reacted if he told her his intention was to show her he was the right man for her to fall in love with, and spend the rest of his life proving it to her. Another day, perhaps, when he was sure she wasn't just ready to hear it, but to believe it too.

[Next: Chapter Four.]

Author's Note: This chapter's a little shorter than I wanted it to be, but I didn't want to jump into the 'welcome back from the dead' club scene just yet and I felt this was a good place to end this particular chapter.

I love writing Felicity's friendships with Thea and Tommy and these little moments where Oliver finds her there, a part of his life while still too much on the outside for his liking. To be honest, my favorite part of this was that after Oliver returned from threatening Hunt, he found Felicity in his house and she mentioned he was 'home late.' It's just so domestic, and kind of funny, because she doesn't yet know about what he's doing that's keeping him out. Also that he failed to lie to her and she still called him on it; those scenes are fun.

I hope you liked this and I'm sorry for how long it's taken to update it. Since I have a lot of free time over my holiday, I'll try to stock-pile a bunch of chapters for this story to post while I'm back at college.

Thank you for reading, it means a lot to me. Please leave a review, I'm eager to hear what you think.

- Lee | Fina