Chapter 35 — Twice

The months pass by quickly. Zoey keeps herself busy with finishing her undergraduate degree at Metropolis University and matters at Queen Industries. She doesn't tell Oliver about taking the LSAT nor about the score she received (a 175). She doesn't tell anyone about applying to different law schools or the admission letters to multiple schools. Ever since overhearing Oliver and Clark talking, she had made it a point to keep him at a distance.

Oliver, for his part, does everything he can to keep Zoey out of anything relating to the Green Arrow, the Justice League, or the Vigilante Registration Act. Everything for him changes after Chloe comes back to town. Living in the penthouse with Zoey allowed him to keep an eye on her; to ensure that she was safe. And with Chloe back, he was torn. He wanted to spend time with the woman he had fallen in love with; the one who treated him like an equal. He also wanted to make sure the woman who had always been there for him; the one who knew him inside and out was safe.

Oliver frowns, walking into the penthouse. A suitcase was sitting by the door, while Zoey was finishing packing a small bag. "You know, I don't think Clark and Lois's bachelor/bachelorette party requires an overnight bag, Zo," he amusedly says.

Zoey shoots him a confused look. "What are you talking about?"

"Clark and Lois are having their duel bachelor and bachelorette party tonight." Zoey stares at him. "Did no one tell you?"

"No," Zoey replies, turning back to her bag. She grabs her laptop and shoves it in. "No one told me about their party."

"Maybe they thought you already knew since they told—"

"Oliver, stop," Zoey softly interrupts. "They didn't say anything to me because I'm not invited."

"Let me call Clark and we'll get this cleared up."

"Oliver, stop. Okay. Just…stop. We broke up. You got the friends. End of discussion. I mean, do you really think Lois would invite me to anything where Chloe is going to be there? I haven't even been invited to the wedding, Oliver."

Oliver tenses. Part of him didn't want to acknowledge that what she was saying was true; that he had been partially responsible for her being shut out of everything because he wanted to protect her. It's at the moment, that he remembers what weekend it was. "You're going to Gotham."

"It's that time of year," Zoey reminds, zipping her bag shut. "Don't worry. Part of the weekend will be miserable. Uncle Max and Austin will be there. Neither one of them have spoken to me since I fired Austin."

"If Max is representing CRC, then why are you going?"

"I'm not representing CRC. I'm representing Queen Industries."

"And you didn't tell me any of this why exactly?"

Zoey scoffs. "You know, this is the first time in six months that you've been around in order to have any kind of conversation. Luckily, you're so public about anything to do with the VRA or Green Arrow, it hasn't been hard to explain why you haven't been at company meetings. I'd rather the sympathetic looks be over, but those aren't going away any time soon."

"Zoey—"

"We are living very separate lives and once things with the VRA have calmed down, then the divorce will be back on. And you will sell me your shares."

Oliver lets out an annoyed breath. "I'm not selling you my shares, Zoey. End of discussion."

"No! Not end of discussion!"

Now, he was getting angry. He had been hoping to relax before heading out to Smallville to join the party. "End of discussion, Zoey," Oliver snaps, moving closer to her. "I mean it."

"No! You need to give me—"

Zoey's cut off when he yanks her against his chest and presses his lips against her. He doesn't know what possesses him to do it, but he does. She yanks back, anger written on her face. She raises a hand, ready to slap him. They had never fought like this before. Oliver wraps a hand around her wrist. They're both breathing heavily. The air around them was hot. He kisses her once more. She pulls him close, her nails scraping his scalp. There was something about the pain that turned him on even more.

Her back hits the wall, something that neither of them were expecting. They make quick work of riding the other of their clothes. For so much of their relationship, sex was gentle and loving. It was about making sure it was pleasurable for each other. This…this was about taking and not caring.

"Fuck," Zoey moans when Oliver slams into her. His hands tightly grip her hips. He didn't care if she ended up with bruises, part of him wanted to remind Bruce that she was his. He hated that she made no secret of the fact that she crawled back into Bruce's bed; he hated that he was the reason she had done so.

Oliver lets out a low grunt as he spills inside of her. More than anything in that moment, he wants to call Clark and tell him he can't do any best man duties that weekend; he wants to go with her to Gotham and remind Bruce Wayne to stay far away from his wife.

"Shit," Zoey mutters, pushing at his shoulder. "I have to go or I'm gonna miss my flight."

Oliver tightens his grip on her. "It's a private jet. They'll wait for you." She's not expecting him to start walking towards the bathroom.

"Oliver—"

"Round two is in the shower," Oliver tells her. She shoots him an annoyed look. And he can feel himself start to harden once more. Once in the bathroom, he presses her back against the wall. She lets out a gasp at feeling the cold tile. His lips hover over hers. "I'm just reminding you that I'm better than him."

Zoey softly sighs as turns in the bed. She could tell that something was different. She could feel that it was a goodbye between them. It had been something she felt the entire weekend. She places a hand on Bruce's chest. "Whatever happened with the guy that killed your parents," Bruce asks, staring at the ceiling.

"He went to prison for a few years," Zoey softly answers. "The day that he was released from prison, I was in the hospital because I got stung by a bee. Uncle Max flew out to Smallville to tell me about it. Then we just…I just moved on. Uncle Max on the other hand…"

"What did Max do?"

"He put out a statement saying that he wasn't going to put our family through the trauma of a public spectacle by acknowledging it. Of course, that stupid photo was all over the news once more." Zoey rolls onto her back and stares at the ceiling. "Uncle Max did everything he could to get that fucking photo out of the press. I know that he tried to get that photo of you out of the press too when you were a kid too."

A silence settles over them. Bruce reaches out and grabs her hand. She didn't know why, maybe it was because he understood where she was coming from or what, but Zoey lets the tears fall.

"One day, my personal tragedies won't be entertainment. That's what I hope anyway. Part of me feels like that will never happen though. It just…it makes me want to leave and go somewhere where no one knows me."

"Didn't you get that when you moved to Smallville?"

"I did. But only because Uncle Max and Austin went to such extreme lengths to cover up that I was going to be living with my godparents. Even then, Aunt Martha would have to lie to people in the grocery store. Kinda hard to hide that I'm there when my face is plastered all over the newsstand. Eventually, everyone treated me like any other kid in town."

"What made them do that?"

Zoey sighs, wiping away the tears. "Another tragedy a year later took over the news."

"I'm thinking of leaving."

"Does this have to do with what happened a few days ago?"

Zoey hadn't missed the news of the man who had murdered Bruce's parents being paroled from prison. Or the fact that Joe Chill had then been gunned down in the courthouse. Bruce remains silent, answering her question.

"They shouldn't have released him," Zoey tells him. "He killed them in cold blood. At least he's dead. But the people who killed him should be in prison. The guy who killed my parents…he's dead too. Lionel Luthor had him murdered not long after he was released. Probably to keep him quiet. Lionel paid him to kill my parents. Lionel paid to have Oliver's parents murdered. All because of his belief that aliens exist and that my parents, Oliver's parents, had proof of it. Such bullshit."

"When did you learn all this?"

"Last year when Oliver finally told me. He kept it from me for two years. When do you think you'll leave?"

"Soon."

Oliver jumps up from the couch when there's a knock on the door. He was hoping that the memories he and everyone else had lost due to Zatanna's spiked champagne would come back. Upon waking up the night after the bachelor/bachelorette party, he had found a ripped-up half of a marriage certificate in his pocket. He didn't need the entire certificate to know who had almost married while drunk. And he knew for a fact that Zoey kept their marriage certificate locked up in the Carmichael family vault.

Oliver opens the door to find Chloe standing there. "Chloe, hey," he greets, sticking his head out of the door. He wanted to make sure that no one saw her. He grabs her arm and yanks her into the room.

Chloe holds up her torn half of the marriage certificate. "I'm guessing you have the other half."

"Uh, yeah. And, uh, we're not married." Chloe shoots a questioning look. "Because if we were actually married, then, uh, I could go to jail for polygamy."

"So, you and Zoey are still married."

"Yep."

"And you're still living with her."

"Yep."

"Are you having sex with her?"

Oliver hesitates. Before Friday, he would have quickly answered 'no.' But now, he wasn't sure how to answer. "It's complicated."

Chloe stares at him. "It's a yes or no question, Oliver. You're either still having sex with Zoey or you're not."

"It's complicated."

"You know, I thought Tess was full of shit last week when she told me that you always pick Zoey."

Oliver tenses. "You've been talking to Tess about my relationship with Zoey."

"She said she wanted to warn me. And I told her that she was wrong. Because from what I've seen and from what you've told me, it was over between you and Zoey. I know you guys are friends, but most friends don't live in a one-bedroom penthouse together."

"Like I said it's complicated."

"Then why don't you make it uncomplicated for me."

Oliver stares at her. He could see having a future with Chloe. One that would be very different from having one with Zoey. "Zoey…she…Zoey is the majority owner of Queen Industries."

Chloe shakes her head. "You told me this before, Oliver. I want you to tell me the truth. One not related to Queen Industries."

"Because it's the only way I can keep her safe."

Chloe shakes her head. She clearly didn't believe him. "Zoey's a big girl, Oliver. She can protect herself."

They turn when the penthouse door opens. Zoey pauses, looking between them. "Oh. I, uh, I didn't—"

"It's fine," Chloe angrily interrupts. "I was just leaving."

Chloe shoots Oliver another angry look before pushing past Zoey to leave. Zoey glances between Oliver and in the direction that Chloe had gone. "I think you two need have angry, violent sex," she mutters.

Oliver snorts. "Chloe's not exactly the type for angry sex." Zoey shrugs, dragging her suitcase into the bedroom. "How was the gala?"

"Fine. Awkward. Apparently, Uncle Max and Austin are still pissed that I fired Austin. You'd think they get over it by now," Zoey tells him.

Oliver leans against the doorway. "And Wayne?"

Zoey bites her lip. "He's leaving."

"Did he say where?"

"Nope."

"When?"

"No idea. Just that he was leaving." She looks at him. "The guy who killed his parents was released from prison last week. And the mob killed him. He…I'm worried that Bruce is going to do something that will end up getting himself killed."

Oliver pushes away from the door and walks over to her. "Look, Zo, if you want to go help him, then I can take care of things here for you."

Zoey shakes her head. "It won't make a difference. Bruce has been living with guilt since…That guilt isn't something you can let go of easily. Even if you know it wasn't your fault, it still stays there. So, nothing I do will help him."

Oliver places a hand on her back. "Zo, I'm sorry."

"It's fine. Uh, look, I will head down to the front desk and see if I can get another—"

Oliver presses his lips against hers. This was one was soft and slow. It was about giving comfort. Her hand grips his shirt. Then she's pulling back. "Zo—"

"If we do this, then we do it for real," Zoey whispers. "Because I can't take you breaking my heart anymore, Ollie. I just…I can't do it."

Oliver gently cups her face. "I'm not going anywhere, Zo. We're doing this for real." Zoey stares at him for a moment, then nods. He pulls her into a tight embrace. She buries her face in his chest. He was doing the right thing. At least, he hoped it was the right thing given the ache that he was currently feeling in his chest.

Was it the blue night
Gone fragile?
Was it both men
In wonder steady gone under?
Was it the light ways?
So frightening?
Was it two wills?
One mirror holding us dearer now