A/N: SORRY! I would like to apologize because I know that this delay has been extremely long. And I'm so sorry! It wasn't my intention at all, but it was impossible for me to write due to some circumstances in my life that you probably don't want to know about. So I just going to say (once again) that I'm incredibly sorry. I hope you haven't lost interest in this fic and that you still enjoy it. I really hope so.

On the other hand, I want you to know I'm doing my best to write and translate as much as I can these days, since I have more free time than I have had in a long time. I hope that way you will forgive me for the past delays. :-P

That all said, I would like to thank you for the (both new and old) favorites and followers, and for the reviews you wrote. I can't put into words how much all of it means to me. THANK YOU! And of course, I also want to thank my amazing beta, luvtheheaven, who once again has done incredible work helping me to fix this chapter.

Enjoy reading and don't forget, when you're bored, take some paper and your favorite pen and enjoy writing!

Chapter 25. Unexpected Visitors

The two girls sat in silence, watching the motionless form of Oliver. Felicity wondered if Oliver had ever slept so much and so easily before. Must be the drugs, she told herself. Now I understand why he never wants to take any painkillers. They really knock him out.

Her thoughts were interrupted when her empty stomach growled. With flushed cheeks, Felicity looked at Thea to see if she had noticed, and of course she had heard it. In a room where the only sound was the constant beeping of the machine that monitored Oliver's heart any other little sound was clearly audible.

"I'm sorry," Felicity apologized.

"When was the last time you ate?"

"Eh... What time is it?"

Thea looked at the clock that was on one of the room's walls before answering, "It's quarter past six."

"Then ... Something like twelve hours," Felicity answered, shyly.

"What?!"

"Yeah, well, I was supposed to have lunch with Oliver. Not with Oliver, with Oliver. I mean, yes, with Oliver, but not as in a date or anything. This afternoon there weren't going to be any meetings, so we thought that we could go out to eat. Because, did you know that we have been having lunch in his office the whole week? Not that I'm complaining, but... what was I saying? Ah yes. I was going to have lunch with Oliver, but we ended up locked in the bank and then after we left the bank everything was still a bit hectic, and with all that has happened... The truth is that eating has been the last thing on my mind."

"Well, it's time to change that. The cafeteria food is probably not very good, but it's better than nothing."

Felicity was about to protest, not wanting to leave Oliver, but her words died in her throat when someone knocked on the door. Both girls were surprised when they saw Quentin Lance.

"Detective, what are you doing here?" Felicity asked, surprised. "Did you come to take a statement?"

"It's Officer now, Miss Smoak," Lance replied, with a slight smile. "And no, I'm not here to do that. Your statements can wait. I just came to check on you, and also Oliver."

"Since when do you care about my brother?" Thea asked, not sure of the cop's intentions.

"I know I haven't been very... friendly with your brother lately, but I've learned to respect him, Thea. It hasn't been easy, but I've realized that it's been almost six years. And I think it's time to move on."

Having heard Oliver apologizing to Sara in his delusions, as well as now knowing for sure that he was The Arrow had affected Lance more than he had thought it would.

Thea looked at him in surprise, Felicity gratefully. The blonde really hoped that if people around Oliver stopped blaming him for things, he would also gradually learn to stop blaming himself.

"That said... Can I come in, please?" he asked, looking at the young Queen, for he was still at the door.

"Yes, of course," she answered, politely.

"Thank you." Lance looked at Oliver, who was still asleep. "How is he?"

Thea shrugged, unsure about what to say. The truth was that she didn't know how to describe her brother's condition. Seeing her hesitation, Felicity stepped in to answer Lance's question.

"He's been better, but thankfully it's not as bad as it could be. The bullet hit his liver, but it was just a scratch."

"And you? How are both of you doing?"

"Better now that we know he's going to be fine," Felicity said, her emotion evident in her voice.

"If you need anything, don't hesitate to tell me. A coffee, something to eat... Whatever."

"Actually... I had been telling Felicity she should go to the cafeteria to eat something right when you arrived."

"I think that's a good idea," Lance agreed. "In fact, I think you should go too," he told Thea. "I'm pretty sure neither of you have left this room since you entered it. Am I wrong?"

Thea didn't expect that response from the cop. She had spoken thinking that he would accompany Felicity while she would be able to stay with her brother.

Lance saw the doubt on the faces of the two girls, so he kept talking. "Don't worry; I'll stay with him until you come back."

This wasn't the way Lance had planned his visit, but Felicity was like a daughter to him, and if the way to help her was to stay with Oliver so she and Thea could eat something, then he wasn't about to object.

"Are you sure, Detective?" Felicity refused to call him 'Officer'. Not when he had been demoted only because of his relationship with The Arrow.

"Yes, I am. Just go. I'll be here."

"Thank you," both girls murmured in unison as they got up slowly, reluctantly. Although they knew that they weren't doing anything wrong, they couldn't help but feel bad about leaving Oliver. Thea kissed him on the cheek before following Felicity out of the room.

Once the door closed and Lance was alone with Oliver, he sat beside the bed, in the chair where Thea had been sitting.

He wondered how many drugs the doctors had given him, considering he had not woken up despite the conversation that had just happened in his room. He hadn't even moved a muscle. He was sound asleep.

When a few minutes later Oliver's lips twitched almost imperceptibly in what surely was a sort of smile, Lance couldn't help but think that he was probably dreaming about Felicity.

They could deny it to themselves and to the world, but the way they looked at each other, their conversations, the way the acted with the other... If that wasn't love, then Lance didn't know what love was.

The cop kept looking at Oliver, who seemed to be enjoying his dream.

Meanwhile, far from the hospital, Diggle was preparing himself for one of the things he liked the least. He had been in the Queen's mansion to collect some clothes for the siblings, and he had also gone to the lair to pick up the bag of clothes that Felicity kept in there.

Now, Diggle was sitting in the visiting room of Iron Heights, where Moira was awaiting trial. He knew that Oliver wouldn't be pleased when he'd find out that Diggle had gone to tell his mother what had happened, but she had the right to know, especially since it was something unrelated to The Arrow and eventually the news was bound to reach her anyway.

Although visiting hours had ended some time ago, the prison guards had allowed Diggle to enter due to the unusual nature of the situation. Diggle's mind was going at full speed, trying to decide what would be the best way to approach the subject. He hadn't come to any conclusion when the door in front of him opened and Moira entered into the room, followed closely by one of the guards.

"Mr. Diggle?" she asked, confused. "What are you doing here?"

The usually cold and impassive face of Moira was now full of concern. She knew the fact that the man she had hired as her son's bodyguard was there when it wasn't even visiting hours couldn't be good.

"Sit, ma'am, please," Diggle asked, which worried her even more. Those words never meant anything good.

Moira didn't want to sit. She just wanted an answer, so she ignored his request and asked frantically, "What's happened? Is Oliver okay?"

"There has been an... incident, and your son got hurt. But he's fine," Diggle said, knowing that 'fine' would be the word Oliver would use. "He was in the bank when a robbery happened. The robbers were armed and Oliver was shot." Moira began to slowly sit down. Diggle continued, "It's not serious, the bullet just grazed his liver, and the doctors said that he'll recover in a few weeks."

Diggle waited in silence while Moira absorbed the information. He saw her world crumbling with every word he had said. The woman in front of him wasn't the strong and feared Mrs. Queen, but a frightened mother, worried about the life of the son she had already lost once.

"And where were you?!"

"He'd asked me to wait outside, ma'am," Diggle said, defeated. He hadn't expected this personal attack, but now that it had happened, he quickly realized that it actually was a reasonable question. After all, he was his bodyguard.

"I hired you to look after him! And now he is in the hospital, again!" she shouted while a tear rolled down her cheek.

The guard who had come with her said, "Visiting time is over."

Moira wiped the tear fiercely with the back of her hand, frustrated with herself for showing that sign of weakness. She closed her eyes for a few seconds to compose herself, and breathed deeply. When she opened them again, Diggle saw on her the mask that he had seen on Oliver so many times. Her face was emotionless; only the moisture of her eyes showed how shaken she really was.

"Thanks for coming," Moira said before getting up and allowing herself to be led out the same door through which she had entered. Diggle could tell that her gratitude was sincere. After all, she wasn't stupid. She knew this conversation couldn't have been an easy task for the bodyguard, and she also couldn't overlook the fact that he'd decided to be the one to tell her, instead of doing it through her lawyer.

Letting out a long sigh, Diggle got up too. He had nothing more to do there, and he was sure that Felicity would appreciate a change of clothes so she could take off the scrubs the nurse had given her.

A/N 2: Thank you for reading! I'll be very grateful if you leave me reviews, because I would like to know what you think. Thanks!

My dear guests, I can't forget to reply to your reviews, so here we go:

Forouzan: You got a little impatient, didn't you? But that's ok, I guess, because it means that you are still enjoying this fic... =D I hope you haven't lost interest due to this delay and that you've enjoyed this new chapter.

Laura: He has a quite long recovery ahead, but yeah, we'll keep positive and remember that the shot could have done much more harm. ;-)

Ferapaul: Aw, thank you very much! Know that your comment took my breath away. =D You don't have to worry, I haven't given up in this fic, nor do I intend to do that (that would be a little cruel). I hope you haven't lost interest due to this delay and that you've enjoyed this new chapter.