Her chest, her hips, every parts of her body down to her hand were caught in hard pincers. The one around her head threatened to crush her skull when she tried to move. The pressure bruising her fingers eased, though.

"Hey… Take it easy, Sidekick."

"Ollie?"

His name wavered and died like a candle in the wind. Chloe tried to open her eyes instead. The brutal glare of Neon tubes cranked her migraine another notch. She abandoned her effort at once.

"Here."

She wanted to answer the warmth in Oliver's voice, and found her lips parched. Ice burned past them, then melt on her tongue. Chloe welcomed the wetness before she swallowed.

Pain bolted like lightning all the way down to the pit of her stomach. She fumbled for purchase, fighting to breathe through the pain.

"Hey, hey, it's okay… Shh… I'm right here. You're okay…"

The tight fist that squeezed her stomach couldn't be okay. Her pulse raced. Something screamed immediately after, a hurtful panicked sound. Then again. Then again. The loud blare scared her. Her chest hurt. Her heart was beating too hard and too fast. Dizziness threatened to engulf her again. She trashed against its pull.

"Chloe, you have to calm down. You're fine. You're safe. I promise. Everything's fine. Listen to my voice. Focus on my voice, Darling… Breathe… That's it, that's right, just breathe…"

The pressure in her abdomen decreased, chased away by the anchoring weight of Oliver's hands on her neck and arm, the warmth of his voice. Secure in his arms, her eyes fluttered open at last.

Oliver's smile trembled against her temple as he kissed her softly. The beginning of a stubble covered his jaw. He sat back into a chair by her side with another forced smile. Chloe curled her fingers into his palm, wincing when the tape on the back of her hand stretched the skin.

"Hospital?"

His dark eyes fell down to their hands.

"You're at the Star City Memorial Hospital, yes."

His thumb brushed over her knuckles. Chloe wondered who was shaking, him or she.

"Tell… me what hap-happened?"

Each word abused her throat, but she forced them out.

Oliver's grip on her hand tightened. "You moved."

Blood trickling down Chloe's pale throat. Oliver kept his eyes on Zlythe. The scumbag had her on her toes so he could use her as a human shield, his arm around her throat. If he missed his shot, Zlythe might inject her with the content of the syringe in reflex.

Chloe' five feet four left most of his head unprotected. Oliver aimed at his left eye. He'd never taken a life before.

"I'm dead anyway! Do it!"

Zlythe's angry shout startled her. Chloe clawed at the arm chocking her, her pupils wild in fear. The needle moved up to the underside of her jaw, puncturing her skin. Oliver let go.

"The arrow caught him in the hand. He dropped the syringe, but not you. So… The Green Arrow shot him in the leg, then the shoulder. When he released you, you went down like a log." Oliver swallowed. Emotions thickened his voice too much to speak clearly.

Chloe reached over with her free hand to cup his jaw. "Thank you."

"Fainting probably saved your life. Your heart…" He trailed off.

"It hurts."

Oliver looked stricken. "Emil will explain better than I can. I'll go and tell him you're awake."

"Wait! Oliver…"

She wanted to ask, and didn't know how. Instead, she brought their joined hand over her stomach, on the exact spot the worst of her cramps had started. Oliver's mouth relaxed. His smile was just a faint stretch of the lips, really. To her, it was blinding. Tension ebbed away, taking the pain with it.

"The peanut is fine." Her eyes welled. Oliver bent over to kiss her fist then her cheek. "I'll get Emil."

With him gone, Chloe rolled on her side the best she could with the drip attached to her hand, and the heart monitor wires. Her knees to her chest, she let the tears flow.

"Ah, so Sleeping Beauty is up." Emil walked into the room with Oliver on his heels. The doctor shot a glare at his shadow. "Oliver, why don't you go home for an hour or two, shower, shave, eat something. I promise we are competent enough to take care of Chloe without you standing guard."

The suggestion fell into a deaf ear. Oliver pulled the chair away from the hospital bed and sat down. She felt his eyes settle on her like a hawk's. Emil shrugged, as if he'd hit that particular stone wall many times before. He pointed over his shoulder with his thumb, smiling at her.

"Maybe you can convince him. He doesn't listen to me, and the brooding vigil of our resident billionaire is making the interns nervous."

"I'd like to go home, too."

Oliver brightened up at the request. Emil sighed. The metal end of his stethoscope pressed on her chest. She bit back a hiss against the merciless steel. He listened patiently, then looped the contraption around his neck. "Chloe, based on what Oliver described, you were on the verge of a heart attack. The paramedics intubated you on site, that's why your pipe is hurting. I also had you sedate for the past two days, so that your body could recuperate at its own rhythm. I was reluctant since you're pregnant but I had no choice. Your current condition increases the risk, for you and for your baby."

The heart monitor spiked. Oliver moved from his chair to the side of her bed immediately. He glowered at Emil. "You said they were okay."

"Yes, as long as Chloe gets plenty of rest, eats properly, and avoids any source of stress."

"I can do that at home."

Emil rose an eyebrow. "You don't have the best track record when it comes to take care of yourself, Missie."

"I'll make sure she does."

"You're not exactly a role model either, Oliver. How's the shoulder?"

Chloe's gaze snapped up. "What about your shoulder? Did you get hurt?" The monitor pinged again. She frowned. "Can you switch that thing off?"

"It's just a scratch," Oliver said as he stilled her hand when she pulled at the electrodes.

Emil shook his head. "You two are a match made in Heaven. Or my very own medical Hell."

Chloe pouted.

"I will discharge you if—" she beamed "and only if, a big, fat, ginormous if, I am satisfied with your blood test results, your physical, and the ultrasound."

Chloe felt another surge of excitement. Emil grabbed the pad to scribble a note at the bottom then he turned to Oliver once again. "Make yourself useful and ask a nurse to come in here to prepare her for the exams, will you?"

For a second, Chloe thought Oliver was going to refuse, as his eyes darted from her to Emil to the door and then back to her. Finally, Oliver released her hand and walked out. Emil waited until the door closed behind him to put off his glasses and wiped them on his tie. The gesture was so familiar Chloe felt her eyes prickled.

"So how are you feeling, really?"

"I… Tired. And scared. Is it… Is the baby really all right?"

"Yes. The ultrasound is just a routine exam, don't worry."

Emil sat on the edge of her bed. He put his glasses back on his nose. "Chloe, heart conditions are dangerous in general, but pregnancy adds another layer to it. Your body has to send more blood toward the fetus, and to do that, your heart is working overtime. We'll have to talk about your options for the birth at some point. For now, all you need to worry about is yourself. Your condition will have to be monitored closely, with regular check-ups, more than you normally would have for a simple pregnancy."

The heart monitor started to race, shooting ping after ping across the room. The doctor leaned sideways and lower the volume. "You're right, it is annoying."

Chloe tried to smile but failed, worry a weight that seemed to pin her down to the uncomfortable bed. "Do I have to stay in bed?"

Eight months on bed-arrest would be Hell on Earth.

"If you promise me to be careful, no. But I want you to wear a blood pressure controller. We'll start with a smartwatch, but I will switch you to the full armband monitor if I am not satisfied with the results. You are to stop immediately what you're doing if you heart rate increased to 90 bpm. No strenuous activities for now. Once I am satisfied that you're doing well, we'll see if we revise those parameters or not. I want you to mind your health more than you had in the past, Chloe. If not for you, do it for your baby."

"No more rushing to the delicatessen in the middle of the night for Almond butter?" she teased.

"That's what you were doing then… No, no more midnight grocery shopping. That's what Oliver is for."

Chloe giggled at the sudden image of the Green Arrow handing pickles jars and caramel ice cream pints to the cashier and saying 'My girlfriend's pregnant'.

"The wonders of dating a black Amex card never cease, you'll see. All you have to do it place a call, and you can have whatever you want deliver within the hour."

Chloe lost all will to laugh. Oliver, who'd just entered the room, sported the smile and bland expression he reserved for the public eye. His eyes were sad and angry. She lowered her gaze to the tape on the back of her right hand and the needle it protected.

She must have looked pitiful, as Oliver's hand gave her hair a quick caress before he pecked the top of her head. "We'll talk about it later?"

Chloe offered a wan smile, leaning her head against his arm. She'd only been awake for a few minutes, and she already felt sluggish with less energy than a newborn kitten. Her chest was aching and her whole body felt like it'd been used to mop the sidewalk all around the Queen Tower.

"I'd like to go home."

Emil pushed his glasses up his nose. "Let's get started, then."