Notes: Changing up the timeline here for some of the earlier episodes. Most notable changes:
- Robert gave Oliver the book with the List in it, as that makes more sense to me anyway.
- Moira burned Robert's copy of the List, so Oliver still has her copy which is the more complete version. This was originally just because I forgot the actual order of events but I decided to keep it because it might turn out useful to have a more complete version of the List later in the series.
- Detective Lance knows Oliver knows Sara is alive and he knows the vigilante knows Sara is alive, instead of just the latter. In part because the opportunity to have Oliver having to keep straight what Quentin knows from Oliver vs his alter ego was kind of amusing.
Chapter 4
Part of Oliver is absolutely terrified to do this. But he already told Tommy and been promptly informed 'no take backs allowed' which means Oliver is now stuck.
Time to come clean.
"Hey Ollie," Thea said, walking into the empty club and pulling up a chair to sit with him at the bar. "So what's this important thing you wanted to talk to me about?"
"It's... this... this really not easy for me to talk about," Oliver said quietly. He passed Thea one of the sodas he'd grabbed from behind the bar earlier. The club's staff weren't due in for a while yet, so he had time to sort through this and try to explain it all coherently. "I'm going to tell you some stuff that I really don't want mom to know, okay?"
She nodded, growing a little more somber. "Yeah, okay. Is something wrong, Oliver?"
"It's just... some of this is about dad and the wreck and..." Oliver sighed and shook his head. "I'm going to make a mess of this, I can tell."
"You always do. Just... talk to me anyway." Thea popped open the can, but then passed the drink from hand to hand, more to get the noise out of the way than anything.
Oliver followed suit, popping the top of his Sprite. "I lied. To you and to mom. About how... about how dad died." Thea stayed quiet, just... listening. And Oliver couldn't bear to look at her face now that he'd gotten started. "When the yacht capsized, I was dragged out into the water and I almost drowned. Dad and... and Mr. Hackett pulled me out of the water and onto a lifeboat."
He had to stop a moment and used taking a drink as an excuse for the quiet. He could still remember screaming Sara's name, hoping to find her in the wreckage...
"I remember Mr. Hackett. He never much liked us," Thea muttered quietly.
"No. He didn't," Oliver agreed. "We had limited supplies and we drifted for days. And I developed a fever, which meant I was using up what was left of our water supply faster because dad wanted to keep me hydrated. Dave started carrying his knife again and... he and dad got into an argument about me being a waste of supplies. I don't even remember what they said." The soda can cracked as Oliver held it too tightly and then popped, loudly, a few seconds after he let it go. "Dad had a gun. And he shot Dave. He started rambling about having failed us and the city and gave me this," he handed over the book with the list in it. "Well, not this exact one. I got this one from Felicity, who got it from Walter, who took it from mom. But dad had one just like it."
Much like what Oliver had done with his father's book, he'd carefully written over the names in regular ink.
"Oliver, what is this?" Thea started paging through it. "All these names..."
"They were all involved in the Undertaking, one way or another. They may not have been aware of what Malcolm was planning but... they benefited from his bribery and corruption."
"Dad gave this to you and then... he explained it? Why did he kill Dave?" Thea put the book down, wiping at her eyes. "What are you telling me, Ollie?"
"He didn't explain anything. He was still too ashamed. He wanted me to have all the supplies. So after he gave me the book, he... he shot himself."
Thea made a distressed noise, latching onto Oliver's hand. Taking a shaky breath, Oliver brought his other hand over to cradle hers, pressing his forehead down against where their fingers tangled together.
"I'm sorry, I know this is... it's a lot..."
"It is a lot. And you've been carrying this around for too long. Have you told anyone else about this?" She sniffled and stood, wrapping her free arm around Oliver in a hug when he shook his head.
Oh he'd given vague statements about how before his father died he gave Oliver the list, but... he hadn't even told Tommy about Robert Queen's last moments. It hurt too much. How could it still hurt so much after all these years...
"Ollie," Thea murmured softly. "It's okay. I've got you." That was when he realized he was crying too.
They stayed like that for a long while, until Oliver felt capable of pulling away and continuing. "It was blank. The book was blank, when I looked at it. Or at least, it looked blank," he said, rubbing at his face and retreating around the bar to find a lighter. "Use this under one of the pages - carefully so we don't accidentally burn this one."
"Uh, okay." Thea snuffled and set the lighter aside first, pulling a kleenex packet out of her purse. She took a tissue and offered the pack to Oliver who, a touch ruefully, accepted one too. After a little more snuffling - this time into her tissue - Thea picked up the lighter again and carefully held the flame below a page from the book. The original writing curled into view behind Oliver's handwriting, revealing their mother's cramped script.
"How'd you figure it out?" she breathed, flicking out the lighter and watching the ink finish darkening.
"I might've burned a few pages first," Oliver admitted. "It was blank and I was alone and so frustrated and angry and... and when I saw the pages in the fire, I started to realize what I really had. That was when it really clicked that dad hadn't just... gone crazy at the end. There was a conspiracy and the ship's destruction wasn't an accident and dad had been in serious trouble. So I lit up the remaining pages with enough heat that I could trace over the ghost ink with something a little more legible."
"When the Hood saved you and Tommy... was that... were you working him last year?" Thea asked in wonder.
"Not exactly working with..." Oliver hedged. Deep breath. Here it goes. "I am the Hood."
"No," she gasped, eyes wide. "You... no way."
Solemnly, Oliver just nodded.
"Oh my god..." She put the book down and went around to the far side of the bar, flinging her arms around him in another hug. "You're teaching me to shoot a bow."
"I... what?"
Barry grinned as the mixture in the beaker successfully turned a deep forest green. There were a number of different types of compressible micro fabrics out there, but the easiest to manufacture with the Foundry's chemistry set would end up taking up the texture of a sort of plastic-based pleather. Which was theoretically comfortable to wear. Barry'd never actually tried it out himself. In fact, he'd never actually attempted to make anything like this before.
Which was why Felicity was now his partner in crime. Because helping a vigilante better conceal their identity was very much a form of aiding and abetting.
(It was definitely the sort of crime Barry could live with, however. The grease paint was just... not good.)
"Okay, so next step is that it needs to simmer for the next hour before being poured into the fabric mold. It should then produce a semi-stiff plastic fabric that holds its shape and is suitably thin enough to work as a mask." Barry turned to Felicity who held up the mold with a grin. "There should be enough give in it that it can conform to multiple people, so if someone needs to fill in for Oliver then the mask will work for them too. And the mold doesn't have to be a perfect match for his face."
"Which would ruin your surprise anyway," Felicity filled in, looking excited. "So I take it your more of a chemistry background than a physics background? I may have been looking into what goes into a forensics degree."
Barry nodded and grinned. "If I hadn't been totally focused on becoming a CSI, I'd have probably gone into bio-chem," he admitted. "And I may have been the mad scientist to Iris' Wonder Woman when we were kids more than a few times."
"Iris?" Felicity asked, curiously. "Who's she?"
"My best friend since kindergarten. She and I are kind of like... Tommy and Oliver, I guess. Always been friends; always will be friends." That was the vibe Barry got from the two of them, anyway.
"And causing trouble together all the time?" Felicity teased.
"Pretty much," Barry agreed with a laugh.
The door to the Foundry opened, letting Oliver in... and Thea too.
"I'm not agreeing to that," Oliver was telling her.
"Too late," Thea replied flippantly. "Holy shit. How did I miss all of this in my own club?"
"Oliver is really good at hiding shit. Always the best at hide and go seek when we were kids, remember?" Tommy spoke up.
Thea hugged him tightly and some quiet words were exchanged. Then, pulling away, she said, "hi Felicity and... Barry?" She turned to Oliver. "Look, I know you think he's hot, but why did the out of town CSI get to learn this before I did?"
"Actually that was my call. And as the token straight sibling, you can be assured I didn't tell Barry about the Arrow Cave because he's got a nice butt or whatever," Tommy told her.
Barry could feel his face go bright red and he ducked his head while Felicity and Dig snickered at him.
"Hi Dig," Thea added. "Okay, so I get why Felicity, since she's a tech goddess, and why Dig, since there had to be a reason why you became friends with Oliver after his absolutely shitty behavior towards you when you were his bodyguard. And I get why you already know, Tommy, since you two are at your best when you're living in each others pockets. But... no offense, Barry, but..."
"None taken. It was... sort of an emergency?" He offered hesitantly.
"You see," Tommy cut in, viciously ignoring Oliver's clear signals to cease and desist, "Oliver was a little busy having a near death experience last night and I made the call to bring in Barry whose expertise saved Ollie's life."
"You nearly died last night!" Thea turned to scowl at her brother, which was when Felicity slung an arm around Barry's shoulder.
"Let's give those three some privacy, shall we?" Felicity asked Dig.
"We should be anywhere but here," Dig agreed, leading the way out.
Barry just let Felicity guide him along. Behind them he could hear Thea, Tommy, and Oliver continue to talk.
"Oh you're definitely teaching me how to shoot a bow now, Ollie."
"You're going to teach her to shoot?" Tommy's voice did not sound happy.
"I didn't agree to that," Oliver insisted, sounding a touch panicked. "I most definitely did not agree to that."
Despite himself, Barry found himself snickering as he walked out into the parking lot exit with Dig and Felicity. As the door shut behind them, Felicity and Dig exchanged looks and then dissolved into laughter too.
Oliver's blood results come back with only trace amounts of both warfarin and what Barry refers to as a clotting factor concentrates, which is a relief to all of them.
"So now that I can actually see the chemical makeup of it," Barry was saying, "I actually recognize what this is. In small doses it's a treatment used in patients with hemophilia or given to people about to undergo certain kinds of major surgery to help prevent blood loss. If you'd gotten a normal dosage of it, you wouldn't have even noticed any effects."
"Thank you, Barry," Thea said, wrapping the scientist in a hug, "for saving my idiot brother's life."
Barry patted her back awkwardly. "You're welcome."
Some of Tommy's utter terror from the night before felt like it was creeping up on him, sending chills up the back of his neck. But it's a relief to know Oliver is mostly okay. "How long until he's clear of the drugs?" he asked.
"Ah... six hours? Maybe a little less than that." Barry shrugged. To Oliver he added, "I'm not sure these levels of warfarin account for the auditory hallucination you had, but it might just mean you're particularly sensitive to that drug."
Less comforting, but Tommy'll take it. "So who's ready for tonight's party?" Tommy grinned, changing the subject.
"Right, the party..." Thea sighed, probably have forgotten with everything else going on that weekend. "I should remind Roy he's my date tonight. Excuse me..."
While Thea went to retrieve her phone from the club upstairs, Tommy glanced at Dig, who shrugged. "I'll be there, but I never did get around to finding a date for it."
"Me either," Felicity sighed. "I'm not really sure I should be going, I mean... Moira really doesn't like me. I think she knows I'm the tech Walter used to spy on her."
"Moira will get over it," Tommy told her firmly. He wanted to ask Felicity to be his date. He even opened his mouth to ask exactly that. But then Tommy's anxiety twirled itself into a little knot in his chest and he said instead, "while I'm also sad and dateless, Oliver's got a dance partner for tonight... right Barry?"
Barry blushed right on cue. Surprisingly, so did Oliver. Tommy didn't think Oliver knew how to blush over a date. Maybe this was serious after all.
"Oooh," Felicity teased. "Though I can't imagine you brought a suit with you from Central City..."
"I'm lending him one of mine," Oliver said. "He's too tall for Tommy's."
"Hey! I'm not short." Just because he was a couple of inches shorter than Oliver...
"No, just... shorter," Oliver smirked, deliberately emphasizing the word 'shorter'.
Tommy was well aware he was hissing like an angry tea kettle. He did not care.
Deciding to be the bigger person, Tommy let the subject drop. Though he was definitely teasing Oliver about Barry getting into his pants later. These sorts of visual puns should never be allowed to pass, after all.
"How's she really taking things?" Dig asked Tommy quietly, drawing him aside while Felicity made excuses to leave so she could get ready for the evening's festivities and Oliver took Barry aside to flirt... and possibly try and find out what was happening with the chemistry set.
"Thea?" Tommy glanced over his shoulder at her where she was chatting cheerfully enough on the phone with Roy. "I think she really is going to be okay. If she'd found out some other way, it would've been bad. But this way she knows it was Oliver's choice to tell her." Oliver never chose to let Tommy know. And while he understands why that was, just like he knows Oliver is genuinely glad to have Tommy's help and support now, it still stings. It had felt like a betrayal of their friendship. Like he was looking at his best friend and seeing a stranger in his place.
He'd thought nothing could be worse than that. Tommy had been wrong, though. So very, very wrong. There were far worse things than finding out his best friend was vigilante capable of murder.
But though he didn't know even the half of whatever it was Oliver felt he needed to atone for, Tommy meant what he'd said earlier that day. Oliver was a hero. And Tommy would protect him in every way he knew how.
Today, that meant making sure the party wasn't a total bust. He'd reached out to a number of people on the guest list, securing several more RSVPs. But there was one more he needed to do. Preferably in person.
"I've got an errand to run. See you guys at the party," he said, heading for the parking lot exit.
Barry looks good in Oliver's clothes.
It's not a perfect fit, but its close and want pools in Oliver's stomach. And while Oliver knew he liked it when the person he was sleeping with wore his clothes - not that he was sleeping with Barry... yet - this was different. Before it had been his shirts being worn after sex, during breakfast the morning after. This was... this was Barry looking damn good in a suit, in clothes that were almost all Oliver's... he couldn't even articulate the utter possessiveness that thrummed through him at the sight.
Tommy was going to give Oliver hell for this at some point. Oliver could just feel it. As it was...
"He certainly cleans up nicely," Moira observed, smirking at Oliver.
"That he does," Oliver agreed, a touch warily. "You don't mind that I told him he could stay another night, do you?"
"No, of course not. I mean, I am wondering which room he'll be sleeping in - yours or the guest room - but either way is fine with me," Moira teased.
Oliver feels his face heat up. "That's... mother," he hissed, desperately and unable to form a coherent sentence.
"I like him. He's not... he's not exactly the type you'd have gone for before. But he's sweet and smart. Very easy to like. Admittedly, long distance isn't easy, but... that might actually be good for you," Moira continued. "Oh, stop fretting, it's not like he can hear us from over there."
Felicity had arrived early to discuss the outcome of their little science experiment - which Dig had eventually backed up Barry in hiding whatever it was from Oliver - as she'd apparently dropped by the Foundry to check on it. They've already had a few arrivals aside from her, not counting the catering and string trio playing for them. Oliver's still nervous about the turnout, even with Tommy's help. He doesn't expect a miracle, but Oliver wants so badly for this to go well... even if his mother does seem totally devoted to embarrassing him right now.
"He is sweet," Oliver agreed with a sigh. "I really like him."
"I can tell," Moira teased.
"I mean... I've only known him for twenty-four hours and I..." he swallowed hard. Oh, he'd fallen in lust easily enough, before the island. But there was a decidedly romantic bent to his feelings too. He hadn't felt this way since... since Laurel. "I'm already looking for excuses to get to see him again. To keep him here just that little bit longer."
"Then don't let me keep you from him any longer," Moira said with a laugh. "Though I do have one more question for you."
"Oh?"
"Which one is Thea bringing as her date tonight? Roy or Sin?"
Oliver didn't choke, but it was a near thing. "Roy. They're not officially dating Sin yet."
"Well, I look forward to seeing how long it takes before Thea finally tells me she's part of a... thruple? Is that the term?" Moira smirked as Oliver really did choke.
"I hope not, that sounds awful," Oliver groaned. And then he escaped before she could say anything else.
Sliding up beside Barry, Oliver took advantage of having invited the other man as his date and lets his hand slide along his shoulders until he's got his arm around the other man. Barry leans into the touch, clearly indicating just how welcome Oliver's actions are. And then Barry's hand sneaks around Oliver's waist.
"Well, you two are clearly about to devour each other, so I'm going to grab some nibbles," Felicity said, hurrying off with a smirk.
Barry flushes bright red, running across his cheeks and down his neck and disappearing beneath Oliver's suit that he's wearing. Relaxing his grip on Barry's shoulder and sliding his hand to between the other man's shoulder blades, Oliver turned so they could face each other, still very close and intimate.
"So, if I were to, say, maneuver us over to that mistletoe over there, how likely would I be to get a kiss?"
Chuckling softly, Barry took a step closer. "Honestly? You don't even really need the mistletoe."
Oliver couldn't help himself. He leaned forward and brushed his lips against Barry's in a chaste kiss. "Good to know," he murmured before pulling back. More guests were arriving - including Roy - and he had a host's duty to perform tonight. "Be right back," he promised.
"Looking forward to it," Barry teased, tongue flicking out to wet his lips in a motion Oliver could not drag his eyes away from.
Somehow he wound up at the door, ushering people inside and directing them to where they could leave their coats before joining the party. Tommy eventually arrives and immediately starts pitching in with the host duties, shooing Thea off to go dance with Roy. Oliver somehow missed Dig's arrival, but he's with Felicity and Barry the next time Oliver glances over. Laurel shows up, which isn't a surprise. Her plus one is her father, which is.
Part of Oliver is relieved that the detective won't be going after Cyrus Gold tonight. And part of him is very worried that every minute Gold is out there, he's causing more trouble. They still have no idea who is behind this new source of Mirakuru or why they picked Starling City as their target. It's probably arrogant of Oliver to assume it's because of him, but he just can't shake the feeling that it's too big of a coincidence not to be about him.
But Ivo is dead. And as far as Oliver knows, no one believed in his theories or in him enough to want to avenge his death. Even if there were, who would tie Ivo's death to Oliver?
Slade would want Oliver dead. But Slade is dead too.
Which leaves Sara. If it's not about Oliver, then it's about Sara and the assassin's guild she's running from. Only that doesn't really compute either...
"Oliver..."
Startled, Oliver looked over to see Detective Lance coming back over to him after having left Laurel in company with Barry and the others. "Detective Lance. Something I can help you with?"
"I was just... wondering if you'd heard from Sara again?" he asked quietly.
Oliver shook his head. "I tried to talk to her about Laurel and she got pissed off at me."
"I'm in the same boat." Lance grimaced as he realized what he'd just said. "I just... want to know she's okay. And I don't know how to tell Laurel if Sara isn't right there as proof."
"I do know she's friends with a girl about Thea's age. Goes by the name of Sin. Short for Cindy but I still haven't gotten a last name out of her. But Sin has gotten pretty close to Thea and Roy lately. If you ask Thea to introduce you to her, then you might have a chance to ask Sin about Sara. You may want to bring a peace offering, though. Sin's friend Max was murdered, but it's been ruled an OD last I heard. Barry took a look at the pictures Roy got of the crime scene and he's convinced it's a body dump."
Lance nodded. "If I can find out more about what really happened to this Max kid, then Sin might be more open to pointing me at where Sara has been staying," he summed up. "Max got a last name?"
Oliver gave Lance the rest of what he knew. Max's full name, that was an artist, kept clean of drugs so he could make money at blood drives, and that the last place he was seen alive, as far as anyone was aware, was one of the Sebastian Blood drives. "I think Thea already asked Laurel to look into it too," he added.
"You don't think Blood is involved in this?" Lance asked, sounding skeptical.
"I doubt it. Doesn't mean there isn't someone using his blood drives for something else on the side," Oliver pointed out.
"Fair enough. I'll check for any similar cases that've popped up lately too." He glanced over towards Laurel and the others as Tommy joined their group. "I'm surprised to see that CSI here."
"His hotel lost his reservation and, well... I didn't want his vacation to be ruined. I mean, he did identify we only had one thief at QC and found that sugar in the dirt of the thief's footprints that we forwarded to you," Oliver pointed out.
"Yeah, he did good. It links the break in at QC to another ongoing case, actually. Just got some information from a CI of mine that makes the same connections." The CI being the Hood, of course. Which Lance didn't know Oliver knew. "We should have your thief in custody by this time tomorrow."
"That's good to hear." Oliver was about ready to dismiss himself to join the others when it seemed one last guest finally arrived. "Excuse me detective," Oliver said, heading for the front door. It swung open to reveal... Walter.
He honestly hadn't thought Walter would come. A startled, but very pleased, smile worked its way onto Oliver's smile as he greeted the other man. And then hugged him because no matter how things ended up between him and Moira, he was family.
Thea clearly felt the same way as she practically materialized next to them to give Walter a hug of her own.
Tommy is, perhaps, a touch smug. There is a small, but decent, turn out to the party. Walter actually showed up, which meant going to talk to him in person was totally the right call. As was telling Walter that this was more for Oliver and Thea's peace of mind than Moira's. (There's definitely still something there between them, but only time would tell if they'd manage to salvage anything out of Moira's lies.)
Additionally, this is probably the least awkward things have been between himself and Laurel since they mutually decided not to restart their relationship after the Undertaking.
"So the cute CSI is Ollie's new boytoy?" Laurel asked teasingly, pulling Tommy aside.
"It does seem to be looking that way. I expect to hear that Oliver's got a new found interest in that accelerator STAR Labs is building and just has to visit Central City first week of the new year," Tommy quipped.
"The accelerator. Right." Laurel snickered, knowing full well what Tommy really meant. "Though I suppose if Barry wants to see it turn on, then there'll be at least some truth in there." She paused, tilting her head to the side as she watched the two of them together. "Twenty bucks says he's visiting Central within the next week."
"Two weeks," Tommy countered, accepting the bet. "Though if he ditches the shareholder's meeting next week to hook up with his boyfriend, he won't have to worry about external threat's 'cause I'll murder him myself."
Laurel chuckled and it made Tommy nostalgic. They'd been good together. But he'd never been entirely sure where he stood with her. And while he'd majorly overreacted to realizing the vigilante Laurel had a... mostly innocent crush on was actually Oliver, he rather suspects they weren't meant to last anyway.
"So are you planning to be in Central for the accelerator?" Tommy asked. "I remember you saying something about flying out to visit your mom for New Years and its, what... two days later?"
"Actually, yes. I am," Laurel replied. "It'll be nice to get out of the city for a while. I... I could have sworn I saw Sara last week. I think I need a break."
"And how are things going with your favorite vampire?"
"You really don't like Sebastian, do you?" Laurel, at least, sounded more amused than annoyed.
"He creeps me out. And I'm relatively certain it's not because he's been flirting with you either." Tommy shrugged. "Guy just rubs me the wrong way. Especially because of how strongly he went after Ollie and me earlier this year. Oliver's not holding a grudge and maybe I should just let it go, but..."
"He sent me flowers today." Laurel shifted and then added, "I'm not really sure how comfortable I am with that. He's seems really charming most of the time, but there's something... I don't know. Dad thinks I'm making something out of nothing."
"Hey, if you aren't comfortable, then you aren't comfortable. You deserve someone you find charming all of the time." He bumped shoulders with her and grinned when she bumped him back.
"That's a tall order." She looked a little wistful. "Being an adult looked so much easier when we were teenagers."
"Welcome to adulthood, nobody's got it figured out. But hey, at least there's beer." Tommy grinned and offered her his arm. "May I have this dance?"
"You may."
Barry's lips feel swollen and surely anyone who looks at him when he and Oliver slip back into the party were surely aware that they'd been kissing in the other room. He regrets nothing, though. Even if this thing with Oliver doesn't go anywhere after he leaves tomorrow... he can't regret taking the chance.
Not when Oliver kisses like that.
"Dance with me?" Oliver asked in Barry's ear and he shivered at the way Oliver's breath teased his skin.
"Yes." Barry's eyes fluttered closed for just a moment at the feeling of Oliver's hands at his waist. Then Oliver was leading Barry onto the dance floor and Barry might've lost track of time, just... enjoying himself.
Eventually he had to let go so that Oliver could be the host again as the guests trailed out. Walter Steele doesn't leave with the rest of the guests, instead sticking around even after the last stragglers - such as Dig and Felicity and even Thea's boyfriend Roy - leave.
Barry's suddenly acutely aware he's the only person who isn't part of the Queen family in some way left as Tommy announces he's going to crash in his room for the night and he hugs Moira and Thea before heading upstairs.
Oliver gestured to Thea. "Come on, Speedy, let's get this cleaned up while Mom and Walter have some time to talk to themselves."
"I can, uh, help too?" Barry offered.
"You're our guest," Thea told him. "Go change and then Tommy's door is the one across the hall from the guest room mom put you in. Tell him I want to watch the Polar Express and there's a mug of hot cocoa in it for both of you if the movie room is ready by the time I'm in pajamas."
"Sounds good. What about you, Oliver?" Barry asked, wondering if he'd get to spend the entire movie curled up against the other man, totally distracted from the screen by Oliver's very talented hands...
"I'm in," Oliver agreed.
Everything decided, Barry politely offered Moira and Walter a 'good night' and headed upstairs. He was a little reluctant to take off the suit - it smelled like Oliver and, yeah, Barry was a total sap. But off it went and he settled into his own pajamas. Then he dutifully headed across the hall to relay Thea's bribe of hot chocolate for setting up the movie room.
Once Oliver and Thea - both in pajamas and both bearing two hot cocoas each - joined them, the room was darkened (not so much that they couldn't find their drinks easily enough) and when the cocoa was finished Barry did end up curled up against Oliver's side, distracted by the shivery feeling of the other man's fingers running up and down Barry's spine.
Morning comes too early, revealing that Oliver never did manage to fulfill his idle fantasy of debauching Barry in his bed. Largely because they're still curled up together on the couch in the movie room. Someone draped a blanket over them and it's nice and warm.
Barry's blinking up at Oliver and they both grin sleepily at each other before kissing. They've both got morning breath, but neither really cares. It's worth it for the slow burn of a lingering kiss.
"Sorry to interrupt," which is clearly a lie. Tommy doesn't sound sorry at all; he sounds amused. "But Lance got his warrant. If you and Dig plan to shadow the raid on Cyrus, then you'd better get a move-on."
Barry's already getting up without having to be asked. "I've got something back at the Foundry for you," Barry said, rolling his eyes expressively at Tommy when the man 'corrected' Foundry to Arrow Cave.
"Tommy," Oliver sighed, "stop trying to make 'fetch' happen. It's not going to happen."
"Mean Girls, Ollie? Really?" Tommy pouted. "Also it's totally happening. I got Dig to slip up and call it the Arrow Cave the other day. Felicity already says it. It's just a matter of time before you join us. Resistance is futile."
"Whatever." Oliver needed to change out of his pajamas first, so he headed for the bedrooms, Barry right behind him.
Notes: So, during Three Ghosts, Barry has his chemistry set in the background doing something with a suspicious green liquid in a beaker. And then when he leaves, he's somehow left behind the perfect mask for Oliver. If it's explicitly stated that Barry's chemistry project is the compressible micro fabric mask, then I clearly blinked and missed it. But I love the implication that Barry's just been quietly working on a mask for Oliver for half the episode because he's just that irritated by Oliver's use of grease paint and took Ollie's comments about his issues with masks as a challenge. (Like... he clearly did not go out and buy the mask, so it had to be his little chemistry experiment in the arrow cave...)