N.B.: As always, THANK YOU so much for reading, reviewing, following, favouriting, etc.: YOU ARE ALL SO AWESOME! I truly appreciate the time you take to do all that.

Firstly, Happy New Year! :D

I apologize for the delayed update. Hoping to have another update before Sunday (fingers crossed).

To kindleflame5 and highlander348, I am definitely considering a BC route for Laurel, however, since I have never read the comics, it will be handled a bit differently since I use the show as an inspirational starting point. :)

To Manuela, all I have to say is that I am a mad Lauriver shipper. ;)

Disclaimer: I do not own anything. Arrow, its characters, and everything that relates to it and to them belong to their rightful owners.

Chapter 14: We Lost It All

"Dad, you haven't said much since this morning." Laurel asked as she stood in front of her father at the airport with Tommy and Felicity standing by his side. They were all standing quite a fare distance away from the entrance of Laurel's boarding gate.

"I just…I'll miss you…Very much…" Quentin sadly replied as he put a hand through his thinning hair, unable to look at his daughter.

"Dad…" Laurel started with annoyance.

"No, Laurel. New York is so far away, and I won't be there with you." Quentin said as he still struggled to let her go.

"Dad, we've been over this…" Laurel reminded him as he simply shrugged his shoulders before speaking.

"Laurel, you're my only daughter, and I know you said that you're doing this for you, but…" He took a deep sigh.

"Dad, you raised me, remember? You taught me how to protect myself. You taught me how to stand on my own two feet. You don't have to worry about me. I can take care of myself; you've made sure of that." Laurel informed him as she put her arms around him and pulled him in for a hug. "And, it's like grandma always says…"

"If you love something, let it go…Yeah, yeah, yeah…Let's just hope you come back to me soon." Quentin finished as they both pulled apart slightly while their hands connected. "I'm gonna miss you, kiddo." He finally gave her a warm and loving smile.

"I'll call you every day, and we're Facetiming every day too, okay? You're going to have to start using that Ipad I got you for your birthday." Laurel informed him as she smiled brightly.

"I don't even know how to turn that giant thing on." Quentin shamelessly admitted as Tommy, Felicity, and Laurel chuckled lightly.

"No worries, Detective, I'll teach you how to use it." Felicity proudly offered as she smiled fondly at the older man.

"And he's also due for a phone upgrade in a month." Laurel was looking straight at Felicity. "Make sure he upgrades to an Iphone."

"Great, an even more complicated phone than the one I have now." Quentin said as he rolled his eyes and pulled Laurel back in for a hug. Laurel simply smiled at her father.

"I love you, Daddy." Laurel lovingly said as they held each other tightly. When they pulled apart slightly, Laurel placed a kiss on his cheek before letting him go.

Now it was Tommy's turn to say goodbye. "Dinah Laurel Lance, this definitely isn't goodbye." Tommy said as he hugged her tightly. "You can't get rid of us that easily." Tommy kindly whispered in her ear as she laughed lightly.

"I'm going to miss you, Tommy." Laurel sadly said as they held onto each other for a long moment before they pulled apart.

Finally, it was Felicity's turn. "Once a month, as promised?" Laurel questioned as she approached the blonde.

"Once a month at least or more, as promised..." Felicity reassured her as they hugged. If there was anyone that hated goodbyes more than Laurel, it was Felicity. Her eyes started to well up with tears as she hugged her dear friend tightly.

Once they pulled apart, Laurel looked at all of them one last time. "I am going to miss you all so much." She gave them a sad smile as she took a deep breath. "Alright, I should get going; I don't want to miss my flight. I love you all! This isn't goodbye, I promise."

"Call us the minute you land." Felicity said before Laurel started to walk away from them. Laurel simply smiled at them and nodded gently. They all stood there as they watched her turn around and slowly leave them. The tears that had formed in Felicity's eyes finally started to stream down her face. She quickly wiped them away so that she could comfort Quentin who looked like he was in a state of shock and disbelief.

Quentin, Tommy, and Felicity had stood there, watching her for a good fifteen minutes before waving a final goodbye to her and then leaving the airport; it would simply be too hard to stay and watch her officially leave them.

The line to her boarding gate's entrance was long. It did not surprise her since it was Thanksgiving weekend. However, she technically was still in Starling City, so she did not mind waiting in the long line because it meant that she was still home.

"Laurel…" She opened her eyes wide as she heard him call her name. She knew who it was. She turned to look at him. Without even thinking, she walked out of the long and busy line and started to approach him. She would definitely lose her place in line, but she did not care.

"Oliver…" Finally standing before him, she stared deeply into his eyes. "What are you doing here?" After hurting him with her words, she was surprised that he had even shown up at the airport.

"I wanted to say…" He could not say it out loud. "I wanted to come to wish you well." That sounded corny, but it was easier to say.

"Oh...Um..." She sighed heavily, her stomach becoming very uncomfortable. "Thank you for coming." She sheepishly replied. She wished she could just jump into his arms and stay there forever, but she could not.

"Laurel, I…" He closed his eyes and then opened them again, sighing heavily. "I wish you the best on this new chapter in your life."

She gave him a sad smile. She knew just how hard this was for him and it broke her heart to see him in this much pain. "Oliver, promise me something." She immediately threw herself into his arms. He happily accepted as he held her against his body tightly.

"Anything…" Oliver replied as he tightened the grip of the hand that was now on the small of her back while his other hand got lost in her smooth hair.

She slightly tilted herself back so that she could look straight into his beautiful green eyes again. "First, please never forget that you are a true hero. You might not want to believe it, but you need to start believing it, Mister. If not for yourself, then do it for your father and for Sara." She gave him a caring smile. "And second, promise me that you'll find happiness. Please be happy, because you, Oliver Queen, deserve a life of happiness. "

She was definitely making it harder than it already was. "Laurel, I just want you to be happy also; it's all I've ever wanted for you. If New York is where you'll be happy, then I'm happy for you."

If this was the last time that she would ever be in his arms, then she was going to make it memorable. She smiled at him before she immediately connected her lips to his, giving him a deep and passionate kiss that took both of their breaths away.

The kiss lasted until they both needed to breathe again. As they pulled apart, their foreheads connected. "Goodbye, Oliver." She gave him one soft kiss on the cheek before completely pulling herself away from his embrace. She turned around quickly and started to walk away from him.

"Goodbye, Laurel…" He whispered, watching her walk away. As she continued to make her way back to the long line, he noticed her shoulders starting to tremble, and it was then that he knew she was crying.

Just the thought of her crying was enough to make his entire body ache with pain. He never wanted her to experience any pain. Since it was hard thinking about her in any sad state, it was even harder to see it in real life, so he closed his eyes and turned around.

Opening his eyes again, he left the airport with his already broken heart shattering even more, becoming completely shattered beyond repair.

"Did you unmask her yet?" Felicity asked from her desk as she typed with velocity.

"Whoever she is, she's really good." Diggle chimed in as he sat on the edge of the computer desk by Felicity.

"No, she was absent tonight." Oliver simply replied as he walked around his lair before finally joining them.

"So, judging by the tone in your voice, you're clearly having a bad night." Diggle said as he crossed his arms over his chest and then leaned back slightly.

"Before I say what I'm about to say, can we please not be the ones to have an arrow put in us." Felicity swiveled her chair around to face him. Looking up at him, she opened her eyes wide. "Okay, I know saying goodbye to Laurel was hard, so we just want make sure you're doing okay. How are you doing with her moving away?" She saw his facial expression change into a much angrier one. "Please don't hurt us." Felicity put her hands up.

"I'm fine." Oliver informed them, his tone filled with anger.

"Which is code for, 'Let's drop the subject before I kill you,' right, Oliver?" Diggle teased as Oliver simply glared at them.

"If you'll excuse me, I have a vigilante to unmask." Oliver ignorantly stated as he rapidly walked over to the staircase.

"Typical..." Diggle remarked as he and Felicity looked at each other with frustration and defeat.

"He's definitely taking it harder than I thought he would." Felicity worriedly said to Diggle as she watched him disappear.

"I guess things are going to get even crazier now." Diggle retorted as he shook his head. "Complicated isn't even the proper term to describe whatever you call their...Well, whatever they are to each other…"

"They definitely give new meaning to, 'it's complicated,' that's for sure." Felicity sadly added, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Well, I am going to go help him so he doesn't do anything stupid. See you soon." Diggle said as he started to gather the things he needed before going on an Arrow mission with Oliver.

Felicity swivelled her chair around, returning her attention back to the computer screen as she thought of Laurel and Oliver. She wished that fate would be kind to her two best friends, but she was reluctantly starting to realize that fate was not on Oliver or Laurel's side.

Once Laurel arrived in New York, she had gone straight from the airport to her hotel, not wanting to do anything else. She needed to search for a place to live, but she decided to leave all important matters for the next day. Saying farewell to her father, friends, and Oliver just a few hours prior was just too much.

As she lay in her hotel bed, new tears started to stream down her face. Her body curled up into the fetal position as she continued to cry herself to sleep. The dreams that she had so desperately wanted to come true no longer would, and she was slowly starting to accept that since there was simply no other way to deal with it.