Author's Note:
Thanks everyone for reading! Also, big thanks for following and faving!
If there's anything that you would like to comment on, then please, by all means, review it! :D
So, this one is kind of long, its more like a one shot then drabble, but either way, please enjoy!
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ARROW, IF I DID I WOULD DIE HAPPY.
Car
"Oliver, I don't need a new car." She retorts back to him. Oliver knows that her car is ancient and needs to be replaced. "Yes, you do. I insist." He tells her with his usual calm and 'I'm-in-control-here-so-don't-say-another-word' voice. "Oliver, seriously. Don't spend your multi billion dollars on me." Oliver watches as she turns back around in the office chair, she continues to type on the computers in front of her. Her back is now faced to him and he just leans on one of the arrow crafting tables he has set up in the headquarters.
"Doesn't CEOs personal assistants always get presents from their boss?" Oliver is determined to buy her something. Every time he has tried to offer her some kind of expensive dress, or top of the line makeup, or jewelry in the past, it always ended up being a complete failure. Oliver recalls that she would barely take a cheap bottle of wine for her birthday about a month ago.
Felicity was silent, she continued rapidly typing on the computers, "Hmm? Sorry, what did you say?" He could tell that she's being sincere about not hearing him. She didn't bother to turn around.
Oliver didn't feel like repeating what he said, "Well then, I relieve you of duty." He states as if he was asking her to attend to some of his office paperwork.
Oliver's comment made both Felicity and Diggle turn around and face him. "Excuse me?" She asked staring at Oliver in what is obviously shock. Oliver even saw Diggle completely stop what he was doing and look up. He is officially amused, for him, this is going to be interesting. "I said, you are temporarily relieved of duty." Oliver repeats with a stony expression.
He maybe expressing nothing on his face, but inside, he's burning. He doesn't know why, but every time he looks into Felicity's eyes or comes in contact with her, or is even in the same room as her, his entire body feels like its on fire. Oliver's never felt this kind of reaction towards anyone before. When it first occurred, he thought he was coming down with an illness, but when he got his temperature checked, he was perfectly normal. Of course he wasn't in the same room as Felicity when he checked his temperature later that day. But he soon found out that she was the cause of his burning the day Barry Allen decided to 'drop' by and investigate. He was flaming up – a different flaming up – more than usual.
The thought of Mr. Allen around Felicity was enough to put him on edge, he wasn't sure if he likes that, however.
"What do you mean I'm 'relieved of duty'?" She asks in very shocked voice, her mouth slightly agape. Oliver realizes that when he left Starling city all those years ago, he was a completely different man then he is today, but the island didn't change his light playfulness side one bit. It only momentarily repressed it.
Oliver continues to shape and cut his arrow, "You heard me, Felicity in both lives is temporarily relieved of duty. In the adjacent office to Mr. Queen, Felicity is taking a paid vacation break. In the HQ, you're relived of duty because you need a break. Bad." He said simply leaving no room for comments.
How did this all start up anyways? Oh yeah, he wants to buy her a car but she won't accept.
Oliver sees himself as her personal guardian, he doesn't pay her any better then he really should, she works for him – and with him – for more than fifteen hours a day. He feels that he should do much more for her then to just protect her from the people he hunts on a nightly basis. He's been trying for months now, everything he offered her, she turned down, no matter how small it was. This time, he's not taking no for an answer.
"Are you sure, Oliver? We need her for the mission you've been planning for three weeks now, and according to you, she plays quite a big role." He can hear Diggle trying to knock some common sense into him, he doesn't need to be lectured about what he should and shouldn't do. Besides, this is about him and Felicity.
"I realize that, Diggle, but do I have to remind you that I used to do all of this by myself?" He returns his attention back towards the arrow that he's forging. "But… Uh… You weren't as good as you are now- I'm not saying that you aren't good, its just that we-" He sees in the corner of his eye, Felicity point back and forth between herself and Diggle, "Help make you better!" She gives a nervous smile.
Oliver will probably never admit it, he has a hard time admitting it to himself, but he loves the way Felicity rambles on. It's adorable, it's something that she finds annoying, but something that just can't escape his attention. The corners of his lips tug up slightly, a smile only he feels graces his lips.
"Ok, Felicity, you're excused to go home." He states calmly. "But-… I-… You can't-" She stuttered looking at him, but he quickly cuts her off, "No." He looks up at her with an I'm-the-boss facial expression. She sighs and grabs her handbag off the table. He hears her exchange good nights with Diggle before she trudges up the stairs. When the heavy metal door closes tightly shut behind her and it echoes off the walls, Oliver's bodyguard – while he's the rich careless playboy – turns to approach him with a question of his own. Oliver already knows what he's going to say.
"What was that all about?" He asks with a very stern and scolding voice. "She needs to have proper rest, its amazing that she can perform the way she does at work." Oliver states it so matter-of-factly. "Which work?" Diggle asks with an accusing streak in his voice.
Oliver decides against replying and continues to sharpen and forge the arrows that he's going to need for the hit tomorrow. Its going to be a big one for the team, and Oliver knows that Diggle's right, they – he – needs her for this mission. Without her help is like losing before the game even begins.
Oliver didn't want to return home last night, ever since his arrival back home, things have been rocky. Home doesn't feel like home, the HQ starts to sound more like home sweet home by each passing day that he sleeps there. Thea is upset about how overly secretive he's been, he's ignoring his mother because of her lies, and Roy's been AWOL. Its not like he hasn't dealt with this kind of issues before, its just that with each argument, things slowly start to explode in his face.
Pushing the thought to the deepest, darkest part of his mind, Oliver thinks out what he's planning on doing today. Oliver Queen's social gathering and work hours have been off the charts improvement lately, so he can afford missing a day of work.
He had called into the office yesterday asking that they shouldn't let Ms. Smoak to her office if she does decide to show for work. He had done most of what he said he would the day before.
Oliver pulls a hand down his face to wipe away the fatigue of the morning. Ok, so he plans on going to the dealership later that day to pick up a brand new car for his girl, or so she calls herself. And for some reason, he was ok with that.
Oliver finishes dressing and double checking everything in the HQ before locking up the basement of Verdant, the house to his second life.
As he walks away from the closed bar and to his car parked across the road, he runs through a mental checklist, first he needs to approach his IT girl and pull her along to the dealership against her will, second, he needs to get the car – and the girl, he silently adds – and present it to her with all the insurance and gas fully covered. Lifetime guaranteed!
It's an offer that Oliver is sure that she can't deny. He realizes that she's not a material girl, not like the gold diggers that he used to date and pick up when he was young and naïve. He wants her to know that there's a meaning behind every gift he gives her, he's not used to buying all this crap, but usually its something that sticks out to him, something that reminds him of her.
Touching the handle of the door, the car automatically unlocks, it actually surprises him that over the night, no one tried to break in and steal something inside or the entire car in general.
Oliver slides in and makes his way to Felicity's small apartment just on the outskirts of downtown with a led foot on the petal. It pleasantly surprises him how comfortable it feels to drive to her place, it seems like he's been doing it for years. Well, almost, its only been a year. Oliver makes it a routine to watch closely over her for at least three or four times a week when she makes her way to the house at night. Sometimes he just sits on a nearby roof neighboring her apartment and watches during the nighttime when his vigilante activities are not so demanding.
The familiar neighborhood comes into view and he pulls up to the curb next behind her old and beaten VW Bug. It makes noises and smells terrible, inside and out, but for some odd reason that Oliver's not sure of, she loves it.
As Starling City's richest man locks his car and leisurely walks up to the apartment's front door making his way in. He walks up the flight of stairs and knocks on her door just to the left of the staircase. He waits for a few moments, "Coming!" The door swings open and she sees a dressed up Felicity. The usually straight faced billionaire feels the heat rising, the mixed feelings he has about the heat makes his temperatures rise even higher.
"Oliver? Did you hear me?" He looked up to her eyes, "I'm sorry, what did you say?" He can hear her lightly sigh, "What are you doing here?" She crosses her arms.
"Come." Oliver quickly says as he grabs her wrist and pulls her down the stairs and out the door, "Oliver! What are you doing?" He opens the passenger door for her, "Just come." When he continues to hold the door open for her, but doesn't see her step in he gives her a You-can't-do-anything-about-it face. This time, he let a heavy sigh fly before slowly hopping into the car. Oliver quickly follows suit.
Later on during the car ride of silence, Felicity finally speaks up. Oliver's glad that she's able to break the silence, he knows that he's not very good at being the first to say something. "Where are we going? I thought you said no work." He briefly glanced at his personal assistant, "To the dealership. I'm surprised that you didn't show to work demanding that you need to talk to me." He replies with a slightly surprised tone. "I took your offer seriously, if I ever want to come back to work with you, I need to listen to you. And why are we going to the dealership?"
'I'll always save that spot for you on my team, you're always welcomed.' He wants to tell her that so badly, but he knows, like everything else he wants to tell her, that he can't. No matter how hard he tries, he can't bring himself to say anything remotely close to what he wants to say to her. It'll always come out sounding like, advice from a friend, or something that only a close comrade would say.
The rest of the car ride to the dealership is spent in painful silence.
As Oliver pulls up to the dealership, Felicity begins to squirm, "What's wrong?" Her head shoots up, "Wh-what do you mean? I'm totally fine! It's just that I'm not dressed to go to an expensive car dealership with Oliver Queen! What's the press and paparazzi going to think?" He knew that she was going to start rambling in 3… 2… 1… "Yo-Your image! I-I'd ruin it! It's not like it's a bad image, its just-" I rest my hand on top of her own, "Felicity, its ok." I give her a reassuring smile.
As they walk throughout the dealership, Oliver notices that Felicity tends to stray away from the overly expensive sports and luxury cars. He watches her every movement with much intent, and he realizes that she's been eyeing a dark green mini cooper with two big black stripes. He knows what car he's going to get her.
Oliver follows Felicity and the dealership's owner around the entire building, he doesn't bother to listen, he just reflects.
He realizes how far he's gotten since the year and a half he's been back. To Oliver, it feels like years since he and Tommy were first kidnapped by some guys in Lucifer masks. Then when he met Felicity in the IT department a little over a year ago. Meeting her was the turning point in his life, without her, he would feel empty, hollow. Maybe even lost or dead because if she wasn't there to either save his ass or help him during some hooded escapades, that's what he'd be.
This is the first real time Oliver is able to admit it to himself. Why had it taken him a year to comprehend it? He blames it on being blind with rage.
"Oliver? Can we go?" Felicity's sweet and smooth voice brings him back to reality. "Oh, yes, sure." He follows her out of the warehouse with cars.
Oliver never thought someone could surprise him, but recently, that's all Felicity Smoak has been doing. For about the third time today, Ms. Smoak surprises him about the fact that she didn't question why he took her to the dealership. He's grateful about that because he's not sure how he would answer.
He drops her off at the curb and walks her up in silence, she bids him goodbye. "I'll call you when you can return to work."
She nods her head and silently walks into the apartment.
She surprised him yet again, he didn't think that Felicity Smoak could be this quiet.
Later that day, Oliver had managed to make his way to Queen's Insurance Company, the one that his family has owned since day one of Queen Consolidated. He was able to get lifetime car insurance that the Queen family would pay for, he was also able to purchase the Mini Cooper in dark green and black just for her. It arrived a few hours later.
When night fell, Oliver drove the Cooper to the curb and had her old car towed away to the HQ just incase she wanted to know where it was. He placed a note on the windshield and left to change into his nighttime uniform.
Oliver had to admit, it was rough out there in the field without Felicity backing him up. She'd always be able to track down the person on his hit list, or she'd always be able to easily hack into databases or past firewalls. Oliver realized for the first time, that he takes her for granted.
He missed her during the mission, and so did Diggle. The Arrow got thrown around a little more than usual and his partner in crime had to do a lot of computer work that he wasn't as familiar with as Felicity is. It was rough, but they somehow managed to work through it.
But, boy, did Oliver miss his girl.
Oliver crawled out of the makeshift mattress in the HQ at four thirty in the morning. He forces himself to get dressed in the hood, he'll never fight crime in broad daylight, but he'll protect Felicity in it.
After riding his bike to her house the long way, through the Glades, he finally reaches the back of her apartment. He parked the bike behind a dumpster and climbed his way to the roof of the apartment. He watched from the ledge for two hours before Felicity finally woke up, the light in her bedroom indicating her arousal.
Oliver waits another hour before the lights turn off and she makes her way down the stairs, he leans over the edge not wanting to miss a single moment of her reaction. He hears the door to apartment open and close, she walks over to the car and looks left and right before picking up the small note underneath the windshield wiper. Her hand flies to her mouth and Oliver can feel the light smile touch his lips.
The ride of your life: Wasn't exactly what you thought.
-OQ
Oliver remembers writing that note for her, he recalls her saying that working with the Arrow is the ride of her life.
He continues to watch her intently as she runs a finger over the handle.
When he sees her reaction, Oliver knows that he wouldn't miss this for the world. Never in his wildest dreams did he think a car would finally open his eyes for him, make him see what he's been blind to for so long, what has been staring him in the face for an entire year.
He lets the tender smile stick on his lips for a long time, maybe he did get the girl too.