Disclaimer: I don't own any part of Arrow. Characters, places, etc. (i.e. everything) belongs to Warner Bros. and DC Comics.

Chapter X

"So, I've been thinking…" Felicity looked up from the book she was perusing as Thea Queen entered the bright living room. She glanced around the large room of Queen Manor to see if the eighteen-year-old was speaking to anyone else. One of the maid's was still dusting the bookcases, and hadn't even cast a glance their way as the mahogany-haired heiress approached. "Yes, I'm talking to you, IT Girl," Thea said, rolling her eyes and slipping onto the leather couch in front of Felicity. "Anyway, I've been thinking, with all the crazy stuff that's been going on, you deserve a luxury day."

Felicity laughed out loud, then immediately bit her tongue upon seeing her boyfriend's sister stare at her seriously. She coughed before telling the younger girl, "Sorry. Understatement, y'know? I mean-"

"Spa day. Yes or no?" Thea interrupted, picking up a magazine off the coffee table, her slim fingers already flicking the pages.

"Well, I'd love to. Not often I've been able to go to the spa lately, but Oliver and I have plans today. I'd be more than happy to-"

Thea smirked. "Just keep Saturday afternoon open. I'll snag us an appointment at Bennet's."

"Bennet's Beauty Spa?"

"There's only one. I'll call you later with the details."

"Details about what?" Oliver questioned as he entered the room in a plain white tee and jeans.

Thea continued to flip through the magazine, looking down at it for the first time since she picked it up. "Girl stuff. What're you all dressed up for? Trip to the soda shoppe?"

"We're taking a ride," her brother answered simply before turning his gaze to Felicity. His eyes quickly scanned her appearance, the ends of his mouth lifting slightly. "You ready?"

Felicity snapped the old hardcover shut and moved to return it to its proper place on the bookshelf. "Yeah. Where are we going?"

"For. A. Ride." The genius rolled her eyes. "Glad you wore jeans. We're taking my bike."

"Really?" the blonde grinned, slipping the book back into its still vacant slot. "I've never ridden before. A motorcycle, I mean. I did have a bike when I was younger. Actually, I was twelve when I learned to ride my first two-wheeler. I was very attached to my training wheels." She took a breath and noticed her boyfriend and his sister were wearing the exact same look: strained smiles that were barely containing their laughter. "I'll go wait in the garage."

Oliver said goodbye to his sister before following his girlfriend out of the house and to the garage. "Could've gone through the house you know."

"Why, when it's such a beautiful day?"

"And you don't know the way."

"I got lost in a museum once, not that your house is a museum, but it was a museum on constellations that I stopped at. The room was humongous and made you feel like you were actually standing in space, among the stars," she smiled wistfully, her pace slowing unconsciously. "I think I stayed in the room for an extra two hours, trying to find every constellation. My class had moved on without me and none of us noticed until I was done and couldn't see anyone I recognized."

"Must've been scary."

"It was. Got worse when I was trying to look for help. I ended up everywhere except the front entrance. A security guard finally found me and brought me back."

Oliver grunted as they entered the garage and walked to his favorite motorcycle. He grabbed his keys and two helmets from the rack on the wall near the bikes. Holding out the shiny black helmet, Felicity took it with a smile, leaning in close. "If I ask you where we're going again, will you tell me?"

"You want me to ruin the surprise?" he teased in return, slipping onto the sleek custom-built motorcycle.

"I think I've had enough surprises this year, and it's barely even half over." Felicity slid into place behind him, pulling the helmet over her curly locks before wrapping her arms around his hard stomach.

Oliver nodded. "Okay. We're just going to take a drive down the coast and wing it."

"Sounds like you put a lot of thought into this date."

"All of five minutes. Ready?" He felt her chin bump his shoulder in a silent nod before he revved the engine and peeled out of the garage and down the long driveway of his family's mansion. He felt her arms tighten as he increased speed and pulled onto the highway, cutting in and out of traffic, and driving away from Starling City.

"Wow! That's a rush," Felicity exclaimed two hours later as Oliver stopped along a quiet bluff overlooking an empty beach and the patient Pacific. "I feel flushed. Do I look flushed? I think I'm starting to understand why people like convertibles, not that I have enough money to own one, but when I lease is up on my car, maybe I should-"

"You don't like the bike?"

"No. Yes. A little. Right now, I still prefer four wheels to two," Felicity stumbled off the bike, pulling off her helmet and nearly falling back onto the grass if Oliver hadn't grabbed her by the elbow to steady her.

He smirked as she finally jerked her helmet free. "Not a good place to be multitasking," he told her, swinging his leg around so her was leaning against his motorcycle before pulling his own helmet off. "Wanna go play in the water?"

"I didn't bring a suit with me." Then his words clicked and she bit her lip before he could add anything. "Pass." He tilted his head to the side, eyebrows raising as he silently conveyed another question to her. "For now."

Oliver took a breath and nodded before pulling off his boots and rolling up his jeans. "Alright. Just the beach, then."

"That sounds nice." Slipping off her sneakers and socks, she set them by his own before he took her hand and walked her down the bluff and to the sun-warmed sand. "Wow. I like it out here. Nice and quiet. Nothing but sun and sand and the waves."

He nodded, watching the water climb toward their feet before quickly retreating after touching their toes. "This is very cheesy, you know?" she continued as they walked down the beach, smiling and holding hands. "Who knew Oliver Queen was so cheesy?" He laughed and shrugged, not sure what to say.

Except he knew what he wanted to talk about, he just wasn't sure how to bring it up. So, instead, he listened as she told him about her first trip to the beach. How she'd reached out for a baby jelly fish and felt its sting and feared venturing into salt water even years later. She would have gone on, if he hadn't finally stopped walking and sat in the sand, gently tugging her down with him in a silent request before releasing her hand.

Her big blue eyes blinked at him curiously, but before she could voice her question, he took a deep breath of sea air and told her, "I went on a trip to Iron Heights when I was younger. Don't really remember it. Couldn't when I faked a lie detector test when I got back." Oliver sighed as Felicity forced herself to remain quiet, understanding what he was trying to do. "Laurel knows I faked it. Hasn't connected the dots yet, but it's something to look out for."

He watched the water, body rigid, emerald eyes lost in a memory far away as his girlfriend watched him struggle in silence. She may not have known him long, but she knew him now. He wanted to share something – something emotionally painful – but wasn't sure how without showing some of the emotion. He wanted to keep that part bottled inside, like he'd done for over five years now.

Eventually, he decided to just spit it out. "My father shot himself in front of me." Felicity felt her jaw drop on its own accord and couldn't contain the gasp that escaped, before snapping it closed again as he continued on quietly, "Actually, he killed our Captain first, told me to right his wrongs, then shot himself in the head and left me in a raft with the dead body, drifting in the middle of nowhere.

"I was so scared and confused and…" he fisted his hands, then flexed his fingers a few times, "It was only the beginning of it all, but it just seemed to be getting worse and worse for…weeks, months? Until I started changing. Learning to survive. That's what it was all about. Surviving. Getting home. At that point, I had no idea what I wanted to do after; what I would do. Hope for forgiveness, mostly. Try and make up for my mistakes."

Felicity reached for his still flexing fingers, slipping her soft hand into his calloused one and leaning close to him, letting him know she was there. "I'm sorry."

"I deserved it."

"No one deserves any of that, Oliver. Even worse that it happened all at once."

Ollie stroked his free hand over his unshaven jaw before pulling is other hand from hers and wrapping his arm around her shoulders instead. "Let's grab lunch."

"It's nearly three in the afternoon. And it looks like rain."

"Dinner then. It you thought it was fun riding in the sunshine just wait until you feel the cool rain against your skin at eighty miles an hour."

"Right. Maybe you should consider driving at a slower speed and I'll consider getting back on that bike."

"How slow are we talking about?"

Felicity took a moment to consider it. "Posted speed limit at most. If it starts raining while we're riding, then we stop and find shelter or I'm jumping off. She rolled her eyes at his amused look. "Shut up."

Ollie smirked before they both got to their feet and began the trek up the shoreline and back toward the bluff. The archer stopped as soon as his feet touched grass and glared at the spot his bike should have been parked at, fifteen minutes later.

Felicity let out a low whistle. "The Hood got jacked. I can't wait to tell Dig!" She grinned before noticing his emerald gaze had slid over to her. "Come on, you know this is something we'll laugh about. Me right now. You, me, and Dig later. Tommy for all of eternity."

"So will you be laughing before or after we walk in the rain?"

"Walk? Where to?"

Oliver shrugged as he found his boots, which the thieves so kindly left behind. "You said you wanted shelter from the storm and we're sure as hell not going to get any here."

Her shoulders sagged a bit, though she tried to remain optimistic. "At least they left our shoes behind. And once we get wherever, we could call someone to pick us up."

"I'd call Dig now, but on top of taking him at least two hours to get here, I told him to ignore my calls and sped the day with Carly and his nephew."

"And Thea's license is still suspended, right?"

"Doesn't keep her from driving sometimes, but I'd rather not chance her getting caught."

"She could also be on a date of her…own. Yeah, I'll leave that alone for now. I'll check my phone to see how far away we are from the closest town."

An hour later, Felicity was soaked, frustrated, and caked in mud. "I can't believe there aren't any cell towers around here," she groaned as she continued to trudge down the quiet road. "Or cars. Or other people period. How else could your bike get stolen, unless a ghost gang decided to swoop in and relive their wild lives. Which really wouldn't make sense because ghosts can't drive motorcycles. Can they?" Shaking her head, she answered herself, "Don't answer that. How do you know we're heading in the right direction? We came here the opposite way."

"Tracks," he answered shortly, keeping her close to his side.

"Sounds very specific."

"We're following my bike. Whoever stole it, kept it at a slow pace because of the storm and their lack of skill. They'll be stopping in the nearest town, waiting it out, and so will we."

"Perfect. And if they don't?"

"They will. Too dangerous to ride on further. On a turn, the bike could slip out from under the driver. Especially since our thief doesn't really seem to know how to ride. Those marks we saw in the grass earlier, they were from when he lost control. Didn't turn his body with the bike, so he lost control and slipped once already. Probably ended up with the bike on top of one of his legs."

"And somehow we still weren't able to hear them leaving. Granted, we were about a half mile down the beach and otherwise preoccupied, but we couldn't even pick up a cry of pain, let alone the sound of your bike being revved up."

Oliver's mouth set in a thin line. "We got caught up. Lost focus."

Translation: he got caught up. He lost focus, and it was going to be some time before he let it happen again.

She shivered as the rain continued to pelt down on them and held back a sneeze. Felicity grabbed hold of one of his shoulders, causing him to stop in his tracks as she had hoped. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she hopped onto his back and swatted his butt. "Giddy up!" He tilted his head and fought back a smirk as he glanced back at her. "You can't tell me this isn't faster. All that training and you can't carry little 'ole me into town? Disappointing, Oliver." She grinned, setting her chin on his shoulders, eyes twinkling with silent laughter.

He did smirk at her words before tucking his arms under her legs for a better grip. "Hold on tight. I'll get us there in no time."

"That's the spirit!"

"When we get into town, head straight to the nearest restaurant or store. Someplace that will keep you warm until we can find a way home."

"Oh trust me, I was planning on it."

He started to pick up his pace from a determined walk to a controlled sprint. What would have taken at least another hour or two in the rain, took about thirty minutes at most when they reached the tiny town and Oliver set her down. "Have you ever raced a car?" she asked, trying to smile but her chattering teeth just weren't cooperating.

"Sort of. When my mom got shot by Helena…" he trailed off, running a hand over his rain-darkened hair. She understood that was a subject clearly left best for another day. Or hundred.

"So where do you want to start?"

Oliver glanced around the tiny town, looking for anything out of the ordinary. He looked back at his girlfriend as he heard the faint rumble of her stomach over the pattering of rain against the slick street. "Diner's right there," he smiled, taking her hand and pulling her forward "Let's grab something to eat. Maybe one of the locals spotted him."

"Or her."

"Or her."

"And while we're there we could sit down, dry up for a few minutes and get something to eat."

"Like burgers."

"Um, Jewish," she reminded him, smiling a little easier.

"I've seen you eat non-kosher before," he pointed out with his usual tilted smile.

"Okay, so I'm a bad Jew, but I try to be good. Most days. Then again, we're not far from the beaches. They could have a lot of fish here." Her pale fingers yanked open the door, and she entered the diner before pulling off her glasses and trying to wipe away the rain drops with her wet fingertips, smudging the water across the lenses. Slipping them back on, she smiled at the waitress behind the counter, who just stared at Felicity and Oliver as if they were two crazies, "Hi! Table for two."

The waitress blinked before motioning a hand toward the mostly empty diner. "Self-seating," the greying woman told them before turning toward the kitchen. The young couple selected a booth by the window, sitting across from each other as they waited for their menus.

Oliver quietly surveyed the room as the waitress brought them their menus and some dishtowels to help them dry off. "Excuse me," he told Felicity, not even giving the menu a glance as he stood up.

"Whoa. Hold on. Where are you going?" she leaned over the table and continued in a whisper, "Did you spot him already?"

"No. I ran about eight miles in the rain. I've gotta use the bathroom."

Felicity pursed her lips in an "o" as Oliver smirked at her, emerald eyes twinkling. "Well…clearly I'm becoming potty patrol," she joked, causing him to chuckle before pecking her lips and walking to the restroom. She glanced down at the menu for a minute, before looking up and smiling at the waitress as the older woman dropped off two glasses of water. Then her baby blues narrowed slightly as she noticed one of the few other patrons in the restaurant get up, absentmindedly rubbing his side.

He didn't look any older than fifteen, with dark hair and grey, hollow eyes, but she couldn't ignore the traces of sand and dirt along his right side as he exited the diner. Without a second thought, Felicity immediately stepped out of her booth and followed him out the door.

Staying a few feet behind him as the rain continued to fall hard, the blonde followed his dark form off the main road and onto a quiet side street, stopping at the garage of a privately owned suburban house. He entered through the side door and she approached cautiously, trying to pick up any sound from inside over the rain hitting the garage roof and aluminum siding. Glancing around, she saw no one else in sight, s she tip-toed around the building, searching for a window to peek through. As she passed by the back of the house, an engine roared, causing her to freeze in place.

Turning on her heel, Felicity ran back toward the front of the garage, just in time to see someone else ride onto the street on Oliver's bike. Before she could make it across the driveway, the original their tackled her from behind, sending them both skidding along the slick asphalt.

Felicity grit her teeth before shoving her elbow back into the dark-haired boys face, breaking his nose before pushing herself back to her feet and stumbling down the road. "Hey!" she shouted, ignoring the stinging in her knees and hands. "My adrenaline rush is going to kick in soon. I'm going to run you down. Tackle you off that bike – ow! My side. I hate cramps," she muttered the last few words, after wincing in pain. Seconds after a gunshot rang through the air and she immediately dropped to the ground and covered her head.

"Stay low," she heard Oliver bark as he passed by, running after the other thief. Getting to her feet, she looked back to see the teenager lying unconscious in the grass behind her, his recently fired revolver next to him.

Oliver cut through the backyards of the houses on the left side of the street, meeting up with his motorcycle and its new driver in minutes. He climbed onto the back and shoved the guy off before gaining control of the custom bike and turning in around. Stopping inches from the more rounded teenager's face, he warned, "Don't even think about running," before reaching down and pulling the rotund young man to his feet. He yanked the helmet off the guy's face to reveal slick black hair and glaring brown eyes. Ollie cocked his head to the side and observed, "You look too young to be stealing bikes." The kid just attempted to spit in his face.

Oliver frowned before shoving the teenager over the bike and driving back toward Felicity. She was already speaking with local law enforcement, leaving them no choice but to stick around and file a report.

By the time they exited the police station, three hours later, it was dark and quiet and the stars were in full view. The street lights were on and the moon was nearly full. "It's so beautiful," Felicity commented as they walked hand-in-hand back to his motorcycle.

"Yeah. I'm sure this was just the perfect date," Oliver added sarcastically.

Felicity stopped and smiled up at him before wrapping her arms around his broad shoulders and pulled him in for a kiss. "More than you know, Oliver," she breathed against his lips, "and the night is still young."

He smiled slowly against her lips. "Anything specific in mind?"

The curly-haired blonde grinned as she eased away from him. "Teach me how to drive."

"It's the middle of the night."

"Here I thought you were supposed to be the dangerous one."

"Ouch. You've discovered my secret and totally destroyed my reputation."

"Clearly I'm the worst enemy you could ever have."

"I'll alert the media."

A/N: Sorry for the long wait! I've been busy for the last month+ looking for a new job (and the search continues on), so I haven't had much time to write. This chapter isn't as long as I wanted it to be, but I wanted to post something for all of you lovely readers who have continued to diligently check the story, review, follow and favorite. Thank you all very much! All mistakes are, as usual, my own though there are probably more than usual since it's late and I just finished typing this maybe ten minutes ago.

I'd also like to thank dhfreak06 for making me the awesome cover art for this story! It was a wonderful surprise that I still haven't gotten over. I love it so much!

To the Guest reviewer who was hoping to see Felicity go more on the attack, you're right. She is much more in your face than I've been writing her and I will try to build on that more, starting with this chapter.

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Thanks for reading. Please review.