A/N: Sooo... I had not realized that I hadn't updated in this long. Seriously, I think this has been the longest I've ever gone between updates. I am sooooo sorry! I promise that I'm not going to abandon this story, it's much too precious to me.

The reason I updated now is because of a very sweet review I got a while back. It reminded me to go back and take a look at this.
On another note, I know that some of you are probably either quarantined, or are self-isolating. I know it can be scary or (in my case) a little surreal. Please be careful, stay safe, and try to stay sane in these crazy times!

C16:

The mission went… badly. To say the least. Derek Reston ended up taking a bullet for his son, and Oliver looked seriously torn up about it when he got back to the cav- the foundry. More than Felicity expected, actually.

She didn't know what to say, but Diggle seemed like he had an idea, so Felicity just squeezed Oliver's hand and grabbed her bag. "I'm just a call away if you need me," she whispered, and then took the steps up to the factory proper. This wasn't something she could help with, not right now. Tomorrow, she might have to beat some sense into Oliver's head - because whatever he thought, this wasn't his fault - but right now, she'd leave it to the armed forces guy who probably knew more about losing people than she did.

So, she went home, cuddled a very reluctant Byte, drank some wine, and went to bed.

And woke up two hours later when she heard a sound at her window. She shot up, instantly awake as she reached for the mace she kept in her nightstand.

Then, she overbalanced and fell out of bed. Loudly.

"Motherf-"

"Not the greeting I was expecting," an amused voice said from the direction of the window.

Peeking over the edge of the bed, Felicity saw Oliver sitting on the window sill, looking a lot lighter than he had before. "Well, that's what you get for scaring the crap out of me. Would it have killed you to call? Or knock? Or go through the front door?" she said testily, extricating herself from her sheets.

"Sorry," Oliver replied, sounding anything but. Once she was standing and got a good look at him, she got the feeling that something had happened. Something good for a change. Her quirked eyebrows were all the prompting he needed. "I had dinner with my mother."

Oh. Felicity blinked. That was nice for him, she guessed, but wha- Oh. Oh no. Oh no!

"We… made amends. She said you told her off for what she said to me," Oliver continued. Felicity hoped that he couldn't read the sheer panic on her face, but this was Oliver. For all that she was good at reading him, he was equally good at reading her.

"Oliver, I-"

"Thanks," he interrupted. "I don't think anyone's ever told my mother off, least of all on my account."

Felicity blinked again. Did Moira not mention…? But why? "You're… welcome?"

"I took her to Big Belly Burger," Oliver said, and his grin was so sincere, Felicity couldn't help but laugh.

"I can't even imagine your mother in a place like that. Although, no, I can; she'd have a napkin on her lap and she'd be using a knife and fork," she joked, sitting back down on her bed. God, she was sleepy.

Laughing, Oliver joined her. "She did actually. It was… nice. We talked." And there was that boyish smile again. He looked so much younger and lighter like this. She wished she could see him like this all the time.

Belatedly, she realized she should probably respond. "Sounds good. What did you talk about?" Felicity scooted a bit further up the bed and lay back down. Oliver, who was wearing a hoodie and jeans instead of his Arrow suit, joined her.

"Just… stuff. Reminisced about when I was a kid, she told me stories about dad, I told her some of the stuff Tommy and I got up to… it was so… normal."

Felicity's eyes were fluttering closed, but she made a point to keep listening. "'S nice. You had a good time then?"

"Hmm," he hummed in affirmation.

They lay there in silence for a moment. Felicity felt herself sink deeper into sleep, but Oliver wasn't talking anymore, so it was okay. She was sure she'd wake back up if he said anything.

Just as she drifted off, she was sure she'd heard him murmur something, but she was too far gone to crawl back to consciousness, so she just made a mental note to ask in the morning. Sleep was good now.

/*/

Too early.

It was too early to be up. Why was she up?

Felicity managed to crack an eyelid to glance at her alarm. The screen was blurry. Right, no glasses plus sleepy equals no more ability to read clocks. Wait, did she even need to be up? No, Tommy's gala thing had been last night, so no work today. Which meant sleeping in. Good.

Felicity rolled over and snuggled into the figure laying there.

Wait.

For some reason, she didn't immediately panic.

Why not? Because there was a protective arm over her shoulders and she actually felt safe. Inhaling deeply, she identified her partner.

Oliver.

Still, not panicking. In fact, she was a lot calmer than she thought she'd be, waking up in Oliver's arms for the first time. But this was Oliver, and she remembered their conversation from last night. He'd been happy, and he'd wanted to tell her about it, about the mundane stuff. With Oliver, that meant something.

And whatever that something was, she didn't want to break this spell, so she kept quiet, and snuggled deeper against him. She could blame her sleep-addled brain if need be.

/*/

The next time she woke up, she was alone, and the scent of bacon and eggs drifted through the apartment.

This time, the panic did set in, because Holy Shit, she had slept with Oliver!

Felicity took a few deep, calming breaths, sent a message to Katie to 'remind me to call you later', and made her way to the kitchen, infinitely grateful that she'd chosen to wear one of her more understated Hogwarts Alumni PJ's.

Oliver was at the stove, cooking breakfast. Felicity's knees might have gone a little bit weak at the domesticity of it all.

"Morning," he said without turning around.

Rolling her eyes, Felicity took a seat on the counter. "Ninja," she muttered under her breath.

"Not a ninja." Oliver turned around with a grin. "Just trained by one."

Felicity quirked an eyebrow at that, but he didn't elaborate, and she didn't want to press. That he'd shared even this tiny little bit was a huge step for him. "Okay, 'just trained by a ninja,'" she teased. "What are you making and can I have some?"

Instead of answering, he put a plate in front of her. It was an omelet, but it looked divine, and smelled it, too. The taste was even better. "Oh my god," she moaned. "This is heaven. I died and went to heaven, and I don't even care."

Oliver actually laughed. Like, out loud. "You're welcome to move into one of our guest rooms, but you'll have to put up with Thea's morning moods."

"And your mother," Felicity muttered, thinking back to last night. Dear god, she hoped Mrs. Queen wouldn't say anything. Though, Felicity did wonder why the other woman hadn't told her son. Maybe she was used to hearing women declare their love for her kid?

"Mom spends most of her days at the office right now, so no need to worry."

"Yeah, until I run into her in the middle of the night for a snack run and she goes all 'Ms. Smoak', and gives me that look," Felicity said, taking another bite.

"What look?" Oliver seemed amused at the turn of the conversation, and Felicity felt like wiping that smirk off his face. With a slap or a kiss, either would work. Or not, because she was not going to do either.

"You know, the one where she looks you up and down and judges every life choice you've ever made, all without breaking eye contact."

Another genuine laugh. "I think you're exaggerating just a little."

"Am I?" she asked innocently. "Also, is there coffee? Because some rude guy came into my apartment in the middle of the night and gave me a heart attack, so now I need caffeine."

"You always need caffeine," he teased, as he put a mug in front of her and sipped from another one himself. It was her 'aim to misbehave mug'. So appropriate.

"You should only ever drink from that mug," she muttered.

"Sorry?" Oliver said, frowning adorably in confusion.

"One day, my young padawan, I will make you watch Firefly with me and you will love it. I bet you and Captain Reynolds will have a lot in common."

Oliver smiled softly. "I look forward to that," he said. "Unfortunately, I have to head out. I'm meeting a contractor at the foundry."

"Actual business stuff, huh? Good luck," she replied, getting up to walk him to the door. Not that it was necessary - it was only 4 feet, if that - but her mother had taught her nothing if not to always look her best, and to be a good hostess. And how to bleach her hair. And how to do the perfect manicure. You know, life skills.

Before Oliver could open the door, though, Byte shot out from where he'd been hiding under the couch and headbutted his legs. "Such a traitor," Felicity muttered, shaking her head at the disloyal feline.

Grinning, Oliver put a hand in his pocket. "To be fair…" he pulled something out, "I cheat." And then he handed Byte the treat he'd been hiding in his pocket.

"You're so evil, buying my pet's love. You're lucky I like you, so I'll forgive you. Just this once. You're not allowed to bribe my cat anymore."

"Deal," he said, and with that, left the apartment.

Felicity looked down at Byte, who was still staring at the closed door. "That man will be the death of me," she sighed.

"Mrow?"

"You too, huh? Can't say I blame you."

/*/

Working at QC was just like any other job, really. Except for the family who had their name on the side of the building, they were pretty unique. That said, usually, it was just a regular job.

Except, of course, when Moira Queen and another employee got shot at on the front steps of the building. Felicity was just heading out for her lunch break when it happened.

Felicity was frozen for a second, before running over. The man who was shot was riddled with bullets, and she was pretty sure he was already dead. She pushed down her nausea at the thought, and ran over to Mrs. Queen. She seemed dazed, but okay, thankfully.

"Is she okay? Felicity?"

Felicity looked up to see Oliver running towards them, his eyes scanning their surroundings. "She's fine, go!" He nodded and took off after the shooter.

"Mrs. Queen?" she said, kneeling by the Queen matriarch. "Can you hear me?"

"I'm fine, Ms. Smoak," came the terse reply. "Where is Oliver?"

"Uhm… I think he wanted to try and catch the guy's licence plate?" she said hesitantly. "But are you sure you're okay? You didn't get hit?"

"I'm-" Moira started to say as she got up, but then lost her balance, and would have fallen down again, if Felicity hadn't caught her arm.

"You might have a concussion, I think you should go to the hospital," Felicity said. Several bystanders had their cellphones out, and she had no doubt that someone had already called an ambulance. Two people from QC security were kneeling by the man who had been shot, but by their lack of actions, Felicity assumed that they'd been too late to help. The man had most likely been dead before he hit the ground.

"Honestly, I don't know why you're making such a fuss," Mrs. Queen grumbled, though she kept a firm grasp on Felicity's arm. Soon enough, though, it became a moot point, as the ambulance rolled up. The EMT agreed with Felicity and wanted Mrs. Queen to go to the hospital, just in case. Then he asked if she wanted to ride along. Feeling bad about leaving her on her own, Felicity got into the ambulance. Needless to say, it was awkward as hell.

She called Thea just before they arrived, and, luckily, it didn't take her too long to make it there.

Felicity left the family in their private room - no way was Moira Queen going to be seen in one of those little corners behind a curtain in the ER - to wait in the hallway.

Just as she was contemplating leaving or calling Oliver, the man in question showed up. "She's fine," Felicity said quickly. "Light concussion is all."

She expected him to go right into the room, but he stopped and gave her a hug. "Thank you, Felicity," he whispered, before joining his family.

This time, Felicity fully intended to leave, before she realized that her car was still at QC and that the hospital was on the other side of town. She could get a cab, but… "Shit…" she muttered to herself, and settled down to wait for Oliver or Thea.

It wasn't long before she heard the door open. "So, did you get the license plate?" Thea asked.

Uh oh. Felicity knew that tone; the younger Queen was angry. Seriously angry.

"No, he got away," Oliver replied. His voice was light, but from the set of his shoulders, she knew he was everything but.

"Maybe you should spend less time trying to be a hero. You're obviously not very good at it."

"That's cute," Oliver said, his voice strained.

"I wasn't trying to be," Thea replied, uncharacteristically serious. "You left mom on the street. Alone, and hurt. In the street… to get a licence plate?" She scoffed.

Okay, this was going badly. Felicity got up and prepared to run interference.

"You don't believe me?" Oliver asked, and Felicity wondered how his sister couldn't hear the hurt beneath the fake disbelief.

Thea sighed. "I love you. Mom loves you. But it's getting hard when you won't be truthful with us." And with that last painful remark, the younger queen walked back into her mother's hospital room, leaving Oliver by himself.

Felicity carefully stepped closer, wrapped a hand around his and pulled him further down the hallway. "She doesn't know," she whispered. "She doesn't understand." About the Island, about being tortured, about being the vigilante… privately, Felicity thought that Thea would just think it was cool, but it wasn't her place to say.

"She's not wrong though."

"Oliver, if loving you was hard, I wouldn't be here," she said, before her brain could catch up to her mouth. "I mean, none of us would be," she added quickly, feeling her face heat up. "Your mom, your sister, Diggle, me, Tommy… We all care about you, and we're sticking with you."

Oliver was looking at her with that inscrutable look, and for one crazy moment, Felicity was sure he was going to kiss her. But then the moment passed and she realized she had clearly been watching too many medical drama's lately.

Oliver opened his mouth to say something, but his eyes flicked to something behind her, and his posture changed again. His shoulders tensed up again, and his face was less animated, closed off. "Thank you, Felicity. Would you keep my sister company? I'm sure she'll give you a lift home if you need one," he said.

When Felicity looked over her shoulder, she realized why; detective Lance and his partner were coming down the hallway. Oliver looked just about ready for battle, so she turned so she was standing shoulder to shoulder with him, brushing her hand against the back of his in a show of support. "I can catch a ride with you," she said quietly.

Oliver glanced down at her, but didn't have time to reply because the detectives had arrived.

It was a short, mildly hostile exchange, from which all they learned was that Mrs. Queen hadn't been the target of the assassination. Oliver headed straight for the Foundry. Which meant that Felicity did, too. They had work to do.

A/N: So, I hope the fluffiness and general feel-good tone of the chapter makes up for the (ridiculously long) delay, at least a little. And I hope that in this time of Corona-virus quarantine, this was a small distraction. Stay safe and healthy, everyone!