Felicity had to go to work the next day, which thankfully got her out of the mansion and away from Oliver Queen. Tommy had actually offered to have her and Laurel driven to work, but Felicity had declined. For one, it would draw a lot of attention, and two, unlike Laurel, she was actually able to drive. At work, Felicity actually managed to have a productive day (partly because a lot of her co-workers had been injured during the earthquake), and went back to the mansion in good spirits.
However, when she got back, she saw her mother's car and groaned. Apparently her mom had decided to visit. After Felicity had put her stuff away and changed into comfortable clothes, she wandered around the house for a bit before finding the living room that people were apparently in.
Her mom had apparently brought Shado and McKenna with her. They were sitting on one of the couches, immersed in their phones, while her mother was talking to Tommy. Isabel was sitting next to Tommy, giving off an air of contempt and boredom, and Oliver was standing by one of the windows.
"…and I do hope that having Laurel and Felicity stay with you a while longer isn't a bother," Felicity heard her mom say as she walked over to a couch.
"Of course not, Mrs. Smoak," replied Tommy. "Both of them are welcome to stay until your house is repaired. Besides, Isabel is enjoying having some female company here."
Isabel nodded stiffly at that, causing Felicity to stifle a chuckle. Isabel seemed about as enthused about the idea of Felicity and Laurel staying here as Felicity was about working under Aiden. Still, Felicity's mother didn't seem to pick up on it, and continued talking.
"I would think so," she replied. "This is a lovely house, but it's just so big. Do you think that once your lease is up, you'll stay here or move to another house?"
"I think I might actually stay here," said Tommy. "I grew up in a house this size, so it feels more- comfortable, I guess. On the other hand, I'm a bit impulsive, so if I decided to move- to another house, or even another city- I'd probably do that in less than a week."
Felicity found herself nodding at Tommy's statement. It sounded exactly like something Tommy would say, based on what Felicity had observed about him.
"So you've been observing me?" she heard Tommy say, and Felicity froze. "Did I say that out loud?" she asked.
"Yep," replied Tommy. Felicity opened her mouth to apologize, but Tommy cut her off. "So would you say you've got me figured out?"
"Pretty much," Felicity said.
"And so the truth comes out," replied Tommy dramatically. "I was hoping that I could pretend that I wasn't a completely shallow person for a little bit longer, but you've managed to foil my plans."
Felicity smirked. "Well, you may be shallow, but you're still quite an interesting person," she said. "Hanging out with people who are 'deep' can get a bit boring after a while. They tend to brood a lot."
Felicity's mom coughed pointedly- a not-so-subtle reminder that she considered Felicity's behavior inappropriate- and Felicity flushed. Tommy, however, was still talking. "So you make it a habit of observing people?"
"You could say that," replied Felicity.
"It sounds like fun," said Tommy.
"It is," answered Felicity. "It's almost like hacking, but with people instead of computers."
Felicity almost jumped when she heard Oliver speak. "I would think that observing people could get boring, especially considering that you interact with a very limited group of people," he said. "If Starling City wasn't in such an economic downturn, there would be a lot more people traveling in and out of it. Somewhere like San Francisco or LA would provide a lot more people for you to observe."
Felicity felt herself get angry. Who the hell did Oliver Queen think he was, insulting her home town like that? "Yeah, but with San Fran and LA, a lot of the people are tourists, so it's not like I'd get a chance to study them anyway," she retorted. "And besides, the 'limited group of people' I interact with are always changing, so there's always something new to observe."
"Besides all that, Starling City has actually been growing over the past decade," Donna added angrily. "We may not have as many tourist attractions as other cities, but that doesn't mean that we're any less important than those two cities." Everyone was stunned at her outburst and didn't reply, which made her feel as though she'd bested Oliver Queen.
"Personally, having grown up in Las Vegas- which is almost completely filled with tourists- I quite prefer living here," Felicity's mother continued. "What do you think, Tommy?"
"Honestly, I can be happy pretty much anywhere," he replied. "I grew up in St. Louis and I liked it, then I moved to New York for college and liked it, and now I'm here and I like it. Pretty much every city I've been in has had its own unique appeal."
"It's a talent some people have, being happy to live anywhere," said Donna. "I personally think it's a bit of a pity your friend doesn't seem to have it."
"Mom- it's just his opinion. He has the right to think that certain cities aren't as appealing to him as others," Felicity said. "He wasn't trying to be insulting."
Donna only sniffed in reply, and silence fell around the room. The awkward tension in the room grew a bit thicker, so Felicity cast around for a different topic. Just as she was about to speak, her phone chimed.
Sara had texted her. Where are you? Everyone is at Big Belly Burger.
Felicity groaned. Every month, her co-workers all went out for dinner at Big Belly Burger, and she'd completely forgotten about it.
I don't think I can come. Too lazy to get dressed and drive all the way there. Send my regrets and excuses.
No problem, Sara texted back a few seconds later.
"Who was that?" asked Donna.
"Sara," replied Felicity. "Tonight is Big Belly Burger night, which I completely forgot about."
"Big Belly Burger night?" asked Tommy.
"It's an office tradition- once a month all of us go out together to Big Belly Burger. And that night is tonight." Felicity leaned back in the chair. "Dammit."
Her phone chimed again, and Felicity saw that Sara had texted her. I told them you got really sick.
"You, Sara Lance, are the best," Felicity muttered.
"She certainly sounds like an amazing person," said Tommy. Felicity smiled at the compliment, but the smile dropped off her face when her mother said, "Why is she still single then?"
Felicity resisted the urge to bang her head on the table. "Mom, a woman's worth isn't measured by her relationship status," she said. "It's 2014- she doesn't need a man to support her."
Donna continued talking. "And it's a good thing too, with her lack of boyfriends. My Laurel, on the other hand…Did you know, she had a very serious secret admirer when she was in college? She was single at the time, so I thought she might start dating him if he revealed who he was, but nothing came of it. Still, he did write her some very lovely poems."
"Which is probably why nothing came of it," interjected Felicity. "Writing poetry is a very sure-fire way of driving away any hints of feelings."
Felicity jumped a bit when Oliver spoke. "I thought poetry was supposed to encourage feelings, not get rid of them," he said.
"Nope," replied Felicity. "Well, I'm sure it helps when there are strong feelings involved, but it'll kill any kind of crush or infatuation."
Oliver only smiled, and silence descended on the room. Felicity started to tremble a bit- she was a bit scared that her mother would only say something more embarrassing- but when Donna spoke, it was only to thank Tommy for letting Laurel recuperate at his mansion, and for putting up with Felicity as well. She then stated that she needed to get back so she could have dinner, and at this point, Shado and McKenna exchanged a look.
Shado was the best fighter of the Smoak girls, but since she was 15, she was a bit boy-and-party-crazy. She and McKenna had been delighted when they heard that "Laurel's boy-toy" was going to be opening a nightclub, and while everyone else had been talking, they had been talking about which of them was going to ask Tommy when his nightclub would open.
The two of them had decided that Shado should ask Tommy, so Shado sauntered across the room and bluntly asked when Tommy would be opening his nightclub. His answer was very delightful for them to hear.
"I actually think that I'll be able to open it around when your sister's cast comes off," replied Tommy. "Which should be in a few weeks."
Shado grinned and walked back to McKenna, where they started whispering again.
"Well, we do have to be off," said Donna. "Come on, you two." With that, she walked out of the room, with Shado and McKenna trailing behind her.
"I'm gonna go eat and…do stuff," Felicity said as soon as her mother and sisters were gone. "You guys have fun doing- whatever." She hurried out of the room.
Oliver watched Felicity leave and felt a twinge of sadness. It may have been a bit clichéd, but it seemed as though Felicity's departure sucked some of the light out of the room. Stop that train of thought right there, he thought. I can't think about Felicity like that.
He felt Isabel sidle next to him and heard her voicing her negative opinions of the Smoak family again, but didn't respond to any of it. He needed to stay neutral when it came to the Smoaks.