The Foundry should be empty.
Emphasis on should. Diggle is at home with Lyla and Sara - the teething baby was getting the best of them, or so it felt like. Laurel was out doing whatever she does in her spare time. Honestly, he tries not to think to hard on that one. And Thea is, to his knowledge, upstairs in the club. But, it isn't quiet. Not completely. He can hear the distinct sound of fists colliding with a punching bag, soft groans and grunts accompanying the effort, whoever it is, is obviously putting into it.
There can only be one person, really. And, when he peeks around the corner, his suspicions are confirmed. There she is. Felicity. Dressed in a pair of loose black shorts with a white stripe down the side and a neon pink sports bra, her blonde hair swishing messily in its ponytail, and her hands wrapped with tape. Her punches are clear, focused in on a single spot on the bag, and he can't help but smile at the concentrated scowl on her face. He watches her shoulders move, a wave of ripples beneath the skin as muscles contract and relax and adjust to her movement.
"I didn't know you were here." his voice startles her, eliciting a squeak of surprise; obviously, she wasn't expecting anybody to show up.
"Oliver!" Felicity clears her throat because she does not enjoy sounding like a chipmunk. "I was just - "
"Working out." Oliver grins, making his way to her. "Felicity, why do you workout here? Your salary would more than afford you a membership to any gym you want. Why here?"
"I'm comfortable, here." Felicity shrugs, tossing a jab at the bag, but Oliver's presence is enough to distract her and she doesn't quite hit the mark. "Gyms are a nightmare. I'm not good with people, usually. Most of the time."
"But here - "
"Nobody can judge me." her voice is soft; confessing things like this make her feel vulnerable and she's not especially fond of it. "I thought."
"I'm not judging you, Felicity." Oliver shakes his head.
No.
It would never be his intent to judge her. Felicity is far too important to him. She is his Girl Friday, his partner, and she is his best friend. The one person from whom he seeks solace, counsel, and with whom he can confide his secrets, share his pain, and open up about what's made Oliver Queen who he is. He would never risk losing her by passing judgement. Not intentionally. There have been a few instances in which he criticized her in moments of anger or frustration at whatever mission they happened to be working, but was soon made to feel like the biggest asshole on the planet.
"I needed some place where I could burn off my frustration alone. Where I could feel like I was gaining something." Felicity looks down at her shoes; the neon pink and black shoes she'd invested in for her secret workouts. Guess, that was money wasted. "Not just letting snotty women take my confidence from me."
"Nobody has that power over you, Felicity." he's never seen anyone take Felicity's confidence from her. Not successfully and not without consequences. "Especially not the women of Starling."
"You'd be surprised, Oliver." her eyes are so very, very blue and glassy when she looks up at him. "I'm better at being smart than being physical. Put me in front of a computer and I can give you whatever you want. Give me a barbell and I'll drop it on my head."
"You seemed alright with that bag." Oliver nods toward the punching bag, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Not everyone can do barbells. It's not a bad thing, Felicity."
"It is when you feel like you're being watched." Felicity's bottom lip trembles a little. "Like I said, I don't do physical. I do mental, I do math and computers and designing tech for CEOs with their heads up their asses."
That last one is true.
While working undercover, so to speak, as his assistant or, Girl Wednesday as they affectionately call it, she had designed new tech that made Green Arrow invisible to security cameras. A tiny button on the inside of his bow, that when pushed, disable any security cameras within range and kept the police or any enemies from being able to track him down or get a lead on who he might be. It was brilliant and so far had worked exactly as designed.
"Felicity," Oliver moves a little closer, reaching out to take her hand. "I don't mind if you work out here. You are always welcome to use whatever you want but I don't like that going somewhere like a gym makes you feel uncomfortable or makes you lose all confidence."
"Oliver - "
"You're a confident person, Felicity." he speaks so matter of factly, she almost believes him. "And if somebody, even without meaning to, is taking that from you, then those people deserve to be dealt with."
Felicity's mouth curls in a fond smile; "You can't put an arrow in everyone who might affect me, Oliver." her eyes quirk upwards in thought. "You'd have to put an arrow in a lot of people. I don't even think you own enough arrows."
Oliver just laughs and gives her hand a little tug, so she steps closer. When she's more than invading his personal space, he brings his hands up to cradle her face and leans down to press his mouth to her soft little smile. It's a long, languid kiss and Felicity feels damp and overheated against him but he doesn't care. He loves it. He loves her.
"I'll leave you alone, now." Oliver mumbles against her mouth, trying to pull away. "I didn't mean to interrupt you."
"I don't mind." Felicity smiles, biting down on his bottom lip.
Oliver's eyes close and he bites back a groan. "Fe-lic-ity!"
She nibbles, again. That does the trick. Felicity hits the mats with Oliver not far behind her. And, there may or may not be a neon pink sports bra hanging precariously from the salmon ladder when Laurel comes into work.
She doesn't ask.