This chapter is long, long, overdue, and I am so sorry for that. I've had it typed up on my laptop for a few weeks, but then it started having problems and got sent away to get fixed, so this is the soonest I could possibly upload this chapter.
I really, really hope you all enjoy this installment and I'd like to thank you all for waiting so long for it.
V
"Wait, did you just say Mom?" Thea shrieked, "As in, your Mother?"
Felicity stayed rooted to the spot, staring, mouth agape, at her scantily clad mother.
"Why didn't you tell me you were coming home?" The older blonde asked, moving in closer to wrap slender around her daughter.
"It was a last minute type of thing." Felicity said, finally finding her voice, taking a step back from her mother's tight embrace.
A look passed over both Smoak's faces for a moment, a look that did not go unnoticed by their small audience, who dutifully stepped in to relieve the awkward tension.
"Hi, I'm Thea, Felicity's friend and all around favourite person." The young woman jumped in, holding her hand out eagerly.
Donna perked up immediately, side stepping to take the outstretched hand and shake it vigorously.
"I'm Donna, Felicity's mom. It's so nice to meet you - Lissy never lets me meet her friends."
"Mom."
Tommy grinned as he watched the exchange, before stepping forward to introduce himself, "Hi, I'm-"
"Tommy Merlyn, I know," Donna interrupted, "it's a pleasure to meet you."
"Likewise, Ms. Smoak." He winked, earning him a hard slap on the chest from Felicity, accompanied by a quiet muttering of 'gross'.
Tommy beamed down at her.
"I'm sara," The blonde smiled, giving a small wave, "it's really lovely to meet you."
"Lovely to meet you, too, sweetheart." Donne grinned and Sara's own smile grew in response.
"This is Roy," Thea piped in, pushing her boyfriend forward, "he's more the strong silent type."
"And by that you mean he's shy, don't ya?" Donna stage whispered, earning her a light giggle and a nod from the young brunnette.
There was a lull in conversation for a moment before Felicity broke the silence abruptly.
"Well, Mom, as great as it is to see you, we are super busy and we're only in town for a few days - lots to do, not a lot of time to do it, you know? So, uh, I guess I'll call you, or youj can call me, whatever, just don't try and text me again because you're really not very good at it." She babbled, waving her hands around to emphasise her points.
The bright beam on Donna's face faded further and further as her daughter rambled, but she quickly replaced it when she had finished, desperate to hide her disappointment.
"Yes, of course; I'm being silly, holding you up like this. Make sure you go and see Joanne and the girls at the club before you leave," there was a long pause before she finished, "again."
Her smile was clearly forced and she made her exit hurriedly, throwing the dress she'd picked up over the closest railing and moving around the group to reach the door.
"It was nice meeting you." Thea called over her shoulder just before the door closed behind Felicity's mother.
"So..." Tommy started, "are we going to talk about that big pile of awkward?"
"There's nothing to talk about." Felicity responded, quietly, a note of finality in her voice.
Another moment of silence passed, unsure looks being shared throughout the group, before finally Sara broke it.
"You know, I don't really fell like shopping here, can we go somewhere else?"
She was met with quick approval from all angles, a welcome change in mood, before the five of them collectively turned to leave the little store, smiling awkwardly at an annoyed looking shop clerk.
V
What did you think was going to happen, Felicity? She berated herself, That you were just going to come home and manage to avoid your mother, the woman with a knack for popping up at the worst times?
The most annoying part, though, is that she thought, yes, maybe she could. Just maybe she'd be able to steer her friends in such a way as to avoid Donna, but instead she'd gotten to wrapped up in actually enjoying herself and lost focus in this goal.
It was a worry she'd held onto since she first found out about the trip, an unwelcome and in some ways unwarrented fear of her two worlds colliding.
On the other hand, she thinks, after that terribly awkward encounter, maybe her worries weren't quite as unwarrented as some may think. Felicity completely rebuilt heerself after she packed her bags and headed to MIT, equipped with hair dye and a new personality.
Gone was the girl with frizzy brown hair and the cheapest glasses a one income household could buy. She'd promised herself that she'd never be those people again, not the struggling little girl or the rebellious college student, but she knew iit was only a matter of time before one of them caught up with her while she was back in the place it all started.
The longer she was here the more it would build, until the pressure grew too much and it all came out in a big, explosive, unstoppable way.
All she could do was wait for the bang.
V
"You would not believe who we met today." Tommy called as he walked into his and Oliver's shared room, having been dropped off at the hotlel by the girls. Roy trailed behind him, much less dramatically.
"Who?" Diggle asked, sitting up straighter on the couch as the young man flopped doown at the other end. Roy, though, chose to take the arm chair across from Oliver's, instead of filling the space left between the two on the couch.
"Felicity's Mom."
Oliver perked up immediately, taking a suddden interest in the conversation that he did not have moments before.
"You met her mother?" He asked, surprised.
Tommy rolled his eyes, head shaking, but a grin was spread broadly across his face.
"Yes, Oliver, that is what I just said. Are you familiar with the concept of a mom?" He teased.
Diggle saw his friend's jaw clench and the obvious irritation rising, so took the moment to take the conversation in a different direction.
"So, tell us about it."
V
"Let's not talk about it," Felicity sighed as she dropped own onto a chair, followed closely by Thea and Sara, who squished close on both sides, "please."
"But, Lis-" Thea started, whining slightly, her tone like that of a small child.
"Just for today, okay, can we please forget it?" She begged, putting on her best and biggest puppy dog eyes.
"Forget about what?" Sara asked, "Now, tell me, do you have Netflix in this place?"
V
So, that was short and very filler-y, but hey, it's an update and I just really wanted to get something up. I'm sorry this is the update I've made you wait so long for, the next one will be better (no promises).
Thanks for sticking around, guys, and do let me know what you think if you feel like it.