***Please go back to Chapter Six in case you missed it when I updated my note. Also I hope the dividers for the time gaps showed up this time, if not, once again I'm sorry. Anyways please enjoy and leave reviews they mean so much to me.

"Hey, Felicity, what's up?" Roy asks over the phone.

"Hi, where are you?" She asks as she sits on her couch and takes her heels off.

"Central City, still following the lead you gave me on Thea, why?"

Shit. "Um, when are you coming back?"

"Is something wrong? Is Oliver okay? Digg? Shit! Is it Lyla? Is the baby okay?" He asks, the panic evident in his voice.

"No! No. Everyone is fine, Roy." She chuckles a little at his anxiety.

"Good" he sighs. "Then what's wrong. Are you okay?"

"Yeah I, I'm, I'm okay, I guess. Well not okay okay because I… I, I was interrogated today" her voice breaks and a hard lump forms in her throat. "And the men who tortured me… Roy they hurt a lot of people. More than just me. And, and I…" she sobbed and lifted her legs from the ground to bring up to her heaving chest.

And just then, Roy, bless his heart, started shushing here and whispering that she was going to be okay threw the phone. "Hey, shh, Felicity shh. It's over, no one's going to hurt you again."

"Anyone can hurt me Roy! I'm a weak, timid coward. You guys can't protect me. I'm a liability and, and… and Roy I need your help. Roy please, please I need your help-"

"Yeah, yeah what do you need, anything." He says quiet and firm.

She wipes under her eyes and tries to calm her breathing.

She's quiet except for her slowing sobs. She takes a few minutes to breath properly again and then she continues.

"I need to be trained." Her voice is quiet and wavering. "I need to be able to protect myself."

"What about Oliv-"

"No I can't train with him. Or Diggle." She says sharply.

"Why not, they could teach you more than I could." Roy asks.

"I can't fight with Oliver, Roy. I just, can't."

"Aren't you two… dating now? Shouldn't he teach you?"

"I don't want him to teach me. I need you to teach me. Okay, Roy, please?"

He's quiet for a moment. "Sure."

"Thank you." She whispered.

"Yeah. I'm guessing Oliver and Diggle can't know, right?"

She nods and then realizes she's on the phone. "Yeah."

"Okay. Okay, I'll be back in a few days I guess… do you want to start right away?"

"Yes."

He sighs. "Alright. I'm going to go. Have a better night."

He hangs up and she closes her eye shut tightly.

Images of Seth and Nick burn her mind constantly. She needs this. She needs this self-defense lesion.

She snapped her eyes open and got up to take a shower, she would have forgotten Diggle asked for her and Oliver to come over tonight if they hadn't reminded her when they dropped her off, and for that she felt guilty.

"What do we do about her, Digg?" Oliver asks softly. "She's in so much pain right now. I can't stand it."

Diggle watched the blonde open her door and get inside her house. "Just when she was getting back to normal they had to fucking interrogate her." Digg growl in disgust. "That Faris guy should have gotten his face been in."

Oliver frowns more deeply. How could that detective be so relentless? How could he do that to a woman, let alone someone like Felicity? Oliver sighs deeply. Why can't he fix her like she fixed him? Why did he fuck up everything? She's all that's good in his life and he'd be damned if he was going to watch her sink into depression.

It feels like a piece of him dies every time she hurts.

"When she got out of that room my heart broke, Diggle. She looked… Empty. She had this, this cold stony look in her eyes and when I tried to hug her… she just pushed past me. She's broken and I don't know how to fix her. And I need to fix her."

"Oliver… She doesn't feel safe anymore. She feels vulnerable. Like anyone can harm her at any moment. She's little, Oliver, she's little and afraid. She's afraid of people who hold power over her."

"I know that. But I don't know how to make her feel safe again." Oliver whispers.

"Oliver, for starters, maybe you stop refusing to train her. I know you don't want to train her because you never want her to be in a position where she has to use it. But it's better to know it than not. She needs to be able to protect herself. We won't always be here to save her, and Starling City is a dangerous place."

It's true that Oliver had refused to train her so many times, he, for one, didn't want her hurt under any circumstances, and secondly he knew if he trained her back then he would make some poor decisions and let his feelings surface. He was only human of course, and when a beautiful, sweating, panting Felicity Smoak is underneath a shirtless sweaty Oliver Queen, things would happen.

But now she knew how he felt.

Now, maybe, just maybe, he could train her.

"I'll see if it's something she'd want to do when we go to your house tonight."

"Good." Is all Digg said, but it was enough.

Oliver called and asked Felicity if she wanted a ride to Digg and Lyla's, she refused, but he insisted. It hadn't really been a request, he was already at her house when he called and asked. Which, again, sounds creepy and stalkerish, but it's not.

He leaned against his car and waited for her to come out.

She was ready in about ten minutes and was locking her door when for some reason it became really hard to breath. Really, really hard to breath. She wasn't wearing anything that he would normally consider being sexy but she looked sexy. He didn't even know sweat pants could arouse him but they did.

His eyes watched her walk down the steps. He took her in fully for a moment and noticed how different she looked.

Her hair was in a cute messy bun, it was always a pony tail or down. A bun looked good on her, he thought.

She wore a slightly tight dark grey tank top and black somewhat fitted sweat pants that were rolled up at her waist.

"Wow." He said apparently out loud.

"I know, I look like shit." She said dryly as she walked the remaining few feet.

"No, no, you look…" He smiled stupidly at her. "Beautiful" he whispered after a moment with narrow eyes.

For a moment she though he was definitely kidding, but that look in his eyes… it was something serious.

He leaned off his car and open her door which made her blush more than the compliment.

"Thanks." She said awkwardly. Do people still do that? She thought.

He shut her door lightly and ran to his side.

When he buckled he looked over at her. She was looking deeply out her window but turned when she felt his eyes burning into the side of her face.

He had this really stupid adorable smile as he stared at her.

"What?" She whispered.

He looked over all the features on her face. His eyes lingered on her lips a lot longer than he intended to. No bright lipstick this time. No makeup at all. Felicity had freckles. Who would have guessed?

"What?" She whispered again as pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose.

His smile grew.

She looked confused and gorgeous.

He leaned over and with his left hand he grabbed her face and pulled her mouth lightly to his. It lasted only a few seconds but it was enough for him.

Her cheeks burned under his fingertips.

He smiled and looked her over again.

"What?" She asked with a sweetly confused smile.

He sighed lightly, "I just love you."

Her smile grew too. Why exactly had she wanted to pull away and hide from this man, exactly? He's been through a lot. He could help her move past this.

His hand fell from her face and both let out a reluctant sigh from the loss of contact. Or maybe his was from her not saying she loved him too.

He started his car and along with that started the questions.

"Favorite movies?" He asked.

She was slightly taken aback. "What? Oh, uh, I, um. Anything Disney. Which is kinda weird... And 'White Chicks' because it was terrible, but in a good way. And 'Pitch Perfect' and… Sorry babbling. Your favorite movie?"

Oliver laughed and stored the information away deep in his mind so he wouldn't forget. "I don't know. I really haven't seen many movies since… but I liked 'Paul'. Favorite color?"

She pursed her lips. "Yellow or pink." And dark green. She wanted to add, because it really was becoming her favorite. A really sexy color. "Green, I assume?" She asked smiling lightly at him.

He laughs. "No, actually. Dark blue." A short pause. "Favorite childhood memory?"

She smiled over at him. "I'd have to say… the time when I first ran away. The whole day I hid in the town library reading books. What about you?"

His heart clenched, she ran away? More than once? Did her mother just not care about her own daughter's safety?

"Oliver, she didn't care." She sighs. "Doesn't care. It's fine." She corrected herself.

How did she always know what he was thinking? And how was that fine?

"Favorite childhood memory, Oliver?" She asked again.

He nodded. "When me and Tommy met." He said as he thought back to that Christmas party so many years ago.

"I'm sorry." She whispered.

"It's not your fault, it's his fathers."

But it is my fault. She wanted to say. I could have deactivated the second earthquake matching and saved the 503 people that died.

"Favorite show?" He asked, he glanced at her and noticed the guilt on her face. It's not her fault but she blamed herself. He guessed they had blame in common.

"I have a lot."

"Tell me."

She laughed. "Um, okay. My all-time favorite is 'Lost', I can't watch the two hour final and not cry for the whole episode. Annnd, 'Dexter' that's a show that's kinda like what we do. And 'Blue Mountain State' is always funny."

"You like 'Blue Mountain State'?" He asked completely shocked.

"Yeah?"

"Wow, that, that's surprising."

She rose an eyebrow and laughed. "Okay, why?"

He shook his head. "It's a pretty… dirty show, I just thought you wouldn't like a show like that?"

"What? I love it. They're making a movie soon and I swear I need it. Why would they cancel it, it was gold?" He saw his Felicity just then, the one whose eyes lit up when she talked about something she loved. She continued "And what do you mean you didn't think I would like it. Have you heard me talk?"

He laughed a laugh that he hadn't heard from himself in a long time. Ah, her innocently adorable sexual comments. "When the movie comes out, you and I are going, and I have most definitely heard you talk." He promised.

She smiled. "Favorite show?"

"It was 'Lost' but I only watched it before the island, never after. Tommy said that they were all apparently dead?"

"No. No. That's not true. Well kinda because. No. You and I are going to restart 'Lost'. Tonight."

"How? Do you have the boxed DVD sets?"

She frowned. "Do you not know what Netflix is?"

He shook his head.

"You're going to learn tonight, then."

"Okay. Back to 'project get to know Felicity.' Most embarrassing story."

They continued the questions and answers till they got to Diggle's. She felt like she knew Oliver better now. A lot better. The new him and the old memories.

It was nice to know only his vigilante secret but also his other personal secrets.

When that car stopped and she unbuckled and reached for the handle. He leaned over and stopped her.

"No. no, uh wait. One second. Don't move." He said firmly and got out and ran to her side of the car and opened it with a smile that lit his eyes and a rough hand that met a soft one.

She laughed awkwardly. "People don't still do that, either."

"I want to." He stated simply.

"Oliver, you would never have done that for another girlfriend, so why are you doing it for me, why are you treating me like I'm made of glass or something?" She said slightly offended.

He gave her a confused look and then answered slowly. "Felicity, I'm not treating you like you're breakable. I just… I really don't want to mess this up. Us up. You're not like other woman I've dated. You're special. You're remarkable. You're…" My future, my light, my happiness, my world. "Felicity... And I want to… to take this slow. I want to know you. Really know you. I mean, I hardly know you. I want to know everything about you. I want us to be different. So I want to try, and actually try, not the half-ass attempts I've done in the past. You're worth it, you're really worth it."

She let his powerful, beautiful words seep into her mind. Oliver Queen, never, and she means never, talks like that. Like a softy. Was Oliver Queen, The Arrow, a softy? She doubted it highly.

Still her eyes slightly filled with tears and she was happy that for once these tears weren't caused by pain, anger, jealousy, or hurt. They were caused by happiness.

She laughed silently to herself and allowed Oliver to lead her into John's house.

Dinner had been going great. They all talked with ease. Lyla was really nice and Felicity was glad John had her in his life. He needed that. Needed her.

Like she needed Oliver, regardless of whether it was in a romantic way or in a friendship way. They needed each other and she knew that but it was hard dealing with everything. From the past and present, she had her own fair share of secrets she buried.

"I want to try, if you do." Felicity had said to him.

With a reassuring kiss on her forehead he had whispered. "Let's try."

They at least deserved a chance at happiness with each other.

But based on everything that's happened since he came into her office that day, there doesn't seem to be a way for them to end well.

Someone's going to die or something going to go terribly wrong.

The only outcome is going to be pain.

"Felicity?" Oliver said softly as he took her hand that was under the table.

She shook her thoughts from her mind and looked at him.

"Are you okay?" Her eyes met his concerned dark ones.

"Yeah. Fine. Uh, Digg what exactly is the big news you wanted to share?" She said looking across the table to a smiling John and Lyla.

"I wanted the gender of our baby to be a surprise, but Johnny had other ideas." Lyla turned to look at her soon-to-be-husband-once-again and smiled. "We're going to have a boy!" She said with a beautifully stunning smile with tears in her eyes.

"Oh my God! I'm so happy for you both!" Felicity squealed as she grabbed Lyla's hand that lied on the table across from her own and squeezed it happily.

Oliver smiled as he looked at a happy Felicity squeezing an ecstatic Lyla's hand.

"John you're going to be a great father." Oliver said softly.

"The best." Felicity added as she stole a glance at Digg.

Diggle smiled. "Thank you. Both. For everything, and hopefully one more thing… You two are already a part of my family." He looked to Lyla briefly "Our family. Oliver you're my brother, and you're my little sister." He said looking at Felicity. "You two are already this little one's aunt and uncle whether you like it or not." He laughed and quickly composed himself. "But if anything should happen to me or Lyla…" He trailed off and looked at Oliver and Felicity's stunned faces. "We need to make sure our baby boy is in good hands. Your good hands." He said observing their shocked expressions.

"John." Felicity whispered. "What are you asking?"

"If you two will be his godparents." Lyla asked squeezing Felicity's hand with one hand and rubbing her belly with the other.

"Yes." Oliver answered almost instantly, which surprised everyone at the table including himself.

"Yes, is this even a question? Yes, of course." Yet her mind doubted it.

There was a quiet happy silence.

Until Felicity shattered it.

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