"Felicity…Felicity!" Felicity startled as Oliver's voice registered in her head. He gave her an annoyed look and pulled himself onto a rung on the Salmon Ladder.
"Yes, sorry! I was a little distracted." She gave him an apologetic look.
"Yeah, I noticed." His voice strained as he slammed the bar onto another rung. Felicity finally shut off the alarm ringing from her computer that signaled the finger print analysis scan was done. Oliver gave a sigh of relief at the end to the incessant beeping that had been ringing off the Foundry walls for the last five minutes. Reaching the top of the ladder, he began working himself back down, barely concentrating since he'd memorized the distance between each rung. Once he dropped down to the mat, he grabbed a towel and walked over to her station.
"Did it find anything?" He rubbed the towel over his body glistening with sweat. She shook her head and nibbled on her pen.
"No. The finger print on that arrow didn't match anything in A.R.G.U.S.'s data base, which isn't surprising because if the killer is slash was a member of the League, A.R.G.U.S. wouldn't have anything on someone so skilled." Felicity sighed in frustration. Oliver threw the towel over a bench and went to the training dummy. He beat his frustration out through his forearms, creating an intricate rhythm only developed from years of practice and discipline. Felicity tried not to feel frustration but it had taken her a week to get the finger print off the Arrow that killed Sara; now she had to figure out another way to find her friend's murderer. She looked at her watch and realized that she needed to get going if she was going to get home at a decent enough hour to be able to make it to work on time. She told Oliver not to worry so much, that they would find whoever was responsible, and bid him 'Goodnight'. Her only answer was the increased tempo of his strikes on the training dummy.
Amazingly Felicity had enough energy to make it to work on time the next morning and didn't look like a zombie; a huge bonus because she doubted Ray would want to go on a date with someone looking like an extra on The Walking Dead. Felicity made herself comfortable and got to work organizing Ray's agenda and key notes for his meetings today. Since Ray was currently in a meeting she took the time to set up another finger analysis scan for the computer in the Arrow cave. She almost dropped her tablet when a man cleared his throat.
"Sorry Jim, I guess I didn't hear Carlos page me." She set her tablet aside and tried not to go into cardiac arrest. Jim, the usual mail delivery man for Queen Consolidated gave her an amused look and held a clip board out for her to sign, asking her about her day. Felicity smiled and almost hurriedly scribbled her signature until she realized that the package was addressed to her and not to Ray. That was a first.
"Umm, I didn't order anything." She looked up at the delivery man and handed him the clipboard with her signature. He shook his head and placed two boxes on her desk. The boxes were royal blue with a light blue ribbon tied in a neat bow.
"Your name is on both of them Ms. Smoak, with no return address." He waved goodbye and walked to the elevator to continue his daily route. Felicity took one box in her lap and began to undo the light blue ribbon. Her eyes widened with shock when she took of the lid. Lying in the box was a brand new replica of the terribly expensive crimson silk she'd purchased for the gala. She picked the dress up out of the box and let her fingers ghost over the expensive silk. A handwritten card tumbled out of the folds in the dress.
'I owed you one
-Ray'
Felicity read the card with a smile and placed it back with the dress in the box. She grabbed the second box, extremely curious what it could be. She opened it and almost choked. She pulled out the same dress only in a royal blue that she knew would instantly enhance her eyes. Under that dress was one in the most vibrant yet deep shade of purple she'd ever seen. Another card tumbled from the dress and she picked it up from the ground.
'That dress looked too good on you to only be worn once, even though I enjoyed the dress much more on the floor. Don't take this as a sign to wear to dinner tonight; wear something casual and comfortable.
-Ray'
She wasn't exactly sure how to feel about his gifts. Replacing the dress he'd torn was nice of him, but unnecessary since he'd paid for it anyway. Felicity again thanked the Lord that she hadn't bought that dress with her own money; otherwise she would have been devastated. But buying her two other dresses on top of the already expensive dress bothered her a little. Was she turning into a kept woman? This went beyond atonement and into a category she wasn't quite comfortable with, nor should she be comfortable with it. Oliver had on occasion bought her things but only to help her look the part she'd be playing for a mission. This was much different than giving her the cash to buy the face cream that the Dollmaker used to target his victims, or the diamond necklace that functioned as a tracking device he'd bought her to slip into the pockets of one of the men on the List; this was a gift from her employer with whom she just happened to be having crazy hot and pleasurable sex. She essentially the poster child for every sugar baby and secretary porno fantasy ever, and she needed to put an end to that.
The doorbell rang and Felicity threw on her shoes and grabbed her purse. She checked in the mirror on the wall beside her door to make sure she looked ok and took a deep breath before opening the door. Ray Palmer's eyes widened as he took in her leopard ballet flats, dark jeans, peach baby doll top, and brown leather jacket. She'd pulled sections of her hair up and left the rest to cascade straight down her back.
"Wow, you look good. I mean not that you don't always look good, fantastic even, but this…is the first time I've ever seen you in something that wasn't business related or formal. Ready to go?" Ray wiped his clammy hands on his jeans. Felicity gave him an appreciative smile and locked her door behind her. They walked down the stairs and out to where his silver sedan waited on the curb. He opened the door and waited for her to settle in before walking around and climbing into the driver's seat. He pulled off the curb and headed out into Starling City.
"So where are we headed?" She turned a little in her seat to face him. He glanced at her then focused back on the road.
"There's a music festival in Starling Park tonight, I thought we could try some of the truck food, listen to good indie and alternative rock, maybe explore some of the vendor booths set up, that is, If that's ok with you?" Felicity nodded quickly.
"Sounds good. I used to love going to music festivals in Vegas and when I went to college." She wouldn't call herself a flower child, but indie and alternative rock music was some of her favorite music. The lyrics carried a real soul to them that she could always connect to and there was something in the real instruments, dedication, and emotion of the music that a lot of other genres were missing.
"Were you wild in college?" Ray looked over at him and she met his eyes before looking away. She hadn't meant for him to focus on the exact time in her life, just that she loved music festivals. She debated telling him more about her pre Queen Consolidated days, and shockingly realized that the first time they'd had dinner, she told him something about herself even Oliver didn't know. That was a very scary fact.
"I wouldn't say wild, as I told you before I couldn't afford to focus on anything that would take my focus off of school, but I had fun. My roommates and I got into some shenanigans that will make for good wedding stories. That is if we ever get married." Felicity's eyes enlarged when her sentence fully hit her. "Not we as in you and me! Not that you're not marriage material, in fact I don't really know if you're marriage material. I meant we as in Chloe and Savannah, my old roommates from MIT."
Ray couldn't hold in his laughter and tried to ignore the slight hitch in his breathing when she had somewhat implied marriage to him. Watching a flustered Felicity was easily one of his favorite pastimes.
"I got what you meant. Will I ever hear of any of these shenanigans?" He stopped at a red light and looked over at her.
"Not if you want to keep your billions you won't" She muttered and looked out the window. He laughed and pulled into one of the few parking spaces available. He pulled out a blanket big enough for both of them then locked the car. The park was alive with food trucks, pop up tents, and people everywhere. Little tea lights strung along the tree line glowed as the setting sun lit up the sky in pink, mauve, red, orange, and gold. Children ran around stalls with carnival games, laughing and enjoying their prizes. Amazing that she'd lived in Starling City for a few years now and had never heard of a mid-Autumn music festival, but then she thought of the way she'd been spending her nights for the last year and a half and wasn't so surprised. She stiffened a little when Ray put his arm around her shoulder, but relaxed into his side. She could already hear the guitars, drums, keyboards and some other instrument that gave off the eerie heartbroken sound often heard in country songs. They walked around looking at food truck menus and letting their noses guide them through the smells of fresh funnel cakes, barbeque, popcorn, tacos, burgers, French fries, and other delicious smells. Felicity eyed a cotton candy and caramel apple vendor and she swore to herself she wouldn't leave the park without a sweet treat to munch on.
"So how Jewish are you?" Ray asked, ushering her through a crowd of people.
"Huh?" She looked up at him a little confused.
"I know you're Jewish, but I also know that you love Big Belly Burgers, which I can guarantee are not kosher, so how Jewish are you?" Felicity had to laugh; no one had asked her that before. Where she was concerned most people only remembered she was Jewish when they told her Merry Christmas and then recanted the statement. It was kind of him to actually take in to consideration her eating habits.
"I will say that I can be tempted and have fallen short many times; whoever decided to put cheese on beef to make a cheeseburger was a genius and obviously did not care about the cleansing rituals I should be adhering to after eating." She turned and stuck her finger at him. "But if my mother asks, I have never had a cheeseburger and I eat complete clean got it?"
"You want me to lie to Mama Smoak?" He gave an innocent look while grabbing her hand and lowering it.
"To save me from one of her famous lectures, yes!" They laughed and continued down the cement pathway. Felicity stopped at a particularly interesting truck with a lobster wearing sunglasses holding an electric guitar and giggled. Ray followed her line of sight and laughed at the rock lobster pun. She looked over the menu and stopped at "Rockin' Po'boy".
"See anything good?" Felicity continued to study the sandwich description.
"I've never had shellfish before; I wanted to see what's all in a lobster po'boy."
"You've never had shellfish of any kind before? Even though you've lived in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Starling City, both thriving port cities with a variety of seafood?" He looked somewhat amazed. Felicity shook her head. "I cannot let this affront to your taste buds go on any longer. You are getting shellfish, and if you don't like it, we'll just grab something else."
Ray walked up to the counter and ordered two Rockin' Po'boys with two orders of fries and sodas. The order was up pretty quick and he handed her the blanket to grab napkins, sanitary wipes, ketchup, butter, and tartar sauce packets. He put a little butter on both of their sandwich and gave his fries an almost picture perfect drizzle ketchup. She wrinkled her nose cutely. She put the blanket between her legs so she could add condiments.
"How can you eat French fries like that?" She moved her French fries to the side and put a glob of ketchup in the basket.
"I'm guessing you're a dipper then?" He wrinkled his nose at the glob of ketchup and bare fries.
"Yes, don't you hate when your French fries get soggy and drippy with ketchup?"
"I eat them too fast for them to get soggy." He picked up a smothered fry and popped it into his mouth, careful to avoid getting too much ketchup on his fingertips. Felicity fake gagged and took a bite of her po'boy. She moaned at the gooey butter and the warm taste of lobster she had no clue how to describe. She eagerly took another bite. Ray smiled at the easy enjoyment on her face then took a bite of his own sandwich. They settled at a picnic table and enjoyed their seafood, each arguing the merits of their way of eating French fries. After they devoured their dinner, Felicity handed him the blanket and pulled him towards the stalls. They looked at turquoise jewelry and homemade toffee, all natural soaps and fragrant oils, hand painted parasols and some CDs of Celtic and Native American music. Felicity picked up a silver ring with a pink opal in it and then set it down, moving on to a necklace with a large amethyst gem. Ray watched her float from stall to stall taking an interest in the wares each vendor sold. Even if she didn't buy anything, she gave a big genuine smile. Ray was hesitant to pull out his wallet; Felicity had scolded him earlier on flamboyantly purchasing the blue and purple dress and expressed her discomfort with him buying her things. Ray hadn't thought twice about buying the dresses. He'd looked at the tag of the dress while she was in the shower the morning after the gala and went to purchase a replacement. He'd seen the blue and purple dresses, though not in her size, and had ordered them without a second's hesitation; needless to say the girl who had made the commission was very excited and also a little awestruck at a man buy three beautiful dresses for his "lucky lady". Still, this was a date, and anything Felicity wanted was on him. They walked down the aisles and one particular jewelry vendor caught her eye. Felicity couldn't say exactly what about the old Middle Eastern woman's jewelry, but the woman had a wise twinkle in her eye as she waved Felicity over from across the aisle. The woman grabbed a dainty silver chain link bracelet with a small circular blue topaz pendent in the center with a seashell pendant on each side. The bracelet was beautiful and the woman pointed to the back of the bracelet. Felicity flipped it over and saw a 925 etched on the metal leaf served at the end of the bracelet, meaning that it was sterling silver. Felicity looked up and the woman smiled. Felicity smiled back but shook her head. Ray stepped forward but the woman shook her head at him. The woman clasped the bracelet around Felicity's wrist then encased Felicity's hand in her gentle, wrinkled ones.
"My husband gave this to me. We did not have much, but we had great love, and a willingness to make our love last through life times." She said with a deep wisdom. Felicity gave her a questioning look. "A good man knows what a woman is worth. A wise man knows a good woman is worth no price." She smiled a contagious smile and laughed heartily; Felicity had to laugh with her. The woman then turned to Ray expectantly and gave him a look that bespoke the wisdom in her wrinkles and gray hair. Ray, seeming to understand her message, nodded. The old woman nodded back, let go of Felicity's hand and told them to enjoy the festival before she settled back down in to a canvas folding chair and went back to mending a piece of jewelry. Ray draped his arm over her shoulder and ushered her through the rest of the shopping area. He doubled back to the cotton candy and caramel apple vendor and bought a large cotton candy swirl and two caramel apples. Felicity dug in to her apple and licked her lips as delicious caramel strung down her lips and chin. Ray laughed and swooped up the line of caramel and licked it off his thumb. They reached the stage in middle of the park where the bands were playing and settled down on their blanket in the grass. Felicity sat crisscrossed on the blanket switching between devouring bites of her caramel apple and thin strings of faerie floss. Ray shook his head, settling back on his elbows with a smile and bit into his apple, enjoying the contrast between the tart Granny Smith and the sweet caramel. The next band set up to play their set.
"Do you know who this is?" Felicity asked, trying to prevent apple juice from drooling down her chin. Her mother would flip at the unladylike way she was eating her dessert but caramel apples were meant to get messy.
"I think they're called The SmoakingAtom." Ray responded trying to read the person on the next blanket over's program. The band, consisting of a guitarist/ lead vocalist, a keyboard player who served as a backup vocalist, a bass guitarist, and a drummer, set up, introduced themselves, and began their first set with a popular cover. Felicity sat up a little straighter when she heard the melody of Snow Patrol's "Chasing Cars". One of her favorite songs, Felicity had spent many nights in her dorm listening to the song and wishing for the kind of summer or romance that every teen in the movies seemed to have. She thought maybe because she grew up in Vegas and away from the woods or beach where all those movies seemed to happen that she had missed that crucial and staple part of being a teenager. Now as an adult, here she was on a date at a music festival under the stars.
"Something we haven't talked about, what's your favorite band?" Ray wrapped his apple stick in a napkin and pulled off a piece of cotton candy.
"Ooh that's really hard. I have a lot of bands that I like." Felicity looked up trying to think of her absolute favorite. "I can't pick just one!" She laughed and Ray laughed with her.
"I agree; it's hard to pick just one, especially when we go through different stages in our life."
"Exactly." She agreed. As a tween she had a different taste for music then her teenage and college years, and now her post college years. There were bands she still loved, and songs she still loved.
"Alright let's go with this, what band has made the most songs you love?" He took his eyes away from The SmoakingAtom and looked at her.
"That's a little easier. Probably Paramore or, even though she's not a band, Lana Del Ray. Oh or the Hex Girls!" She threw in quickly.
"The Hex Girls? Never heard of them before." He gave her a curious look. Felicity laughed and grabbed another piece of cotton candy.
"They kind of aren't a real band, well I mean they are but they aren't like real people."
"I'm not exactly following you." He sat up and stretched his elbows which were a little uncomfortable supporting all of his weight.
"They're from Scooby Doo." Felicity finally admitted looking down in her lap. Ray tried hard to hold in his laugh. "Go ahead and laugh before you explode." She said giggling herself. Ray's laughter burst out, eliciting looks from the people around them. He tried to reign in his thunderous laugh, but every time he looked at Felicity's embarrassed face another wave of cackling hit him.
"I swear I'm not laughing at you." He tried to breath in between spurts of chuckles.
"Uh-huh, sure you're not." She rolled her eyes and tossed a handful of grass at him. Once he was able to talk again without snickering he looked at Felicity.
"I'll have to check them out, since you've given their stamp of approval." He looked at her with a wicked grin that signaled another bout of laughter if she said the right thing. She admired the way his eyes sparkled when he laughed. She also admired the carefree way that he let humor over take him. She hadn't truly noticed how long she had gone without hearing a man lose himself in laughter. Sure Diggle would give her a couple chortles and Roy would smirk and let out puffs of air which counted as amusement, Oliver was progressing with small smiles but she hadn't really heard a man abandon his tough exterior and laugh since she'd joined Team Arrow. Looking up at the stars, then at Ray, she decided she liked to hear his laugh.
After realizing how late it was, Ray drove her home, chatting about their favorite acts from the festival. Sometime during their ride, their fingers hand become intertwined and Ray's thumb smoothed circles absent mindedly on the back of her hand. Once he parked the car, he opened her door and assisted her out of car. She stuck her hands in her pocket as they walked through the main door and up the steps to her door. Felicity bit her peach toned lips and turned around.
"I should invite you in." She whispered nervously. It was late, and they did have to be at work early in the morning. Ray shook his head but stepped closer, pinning her against the door. His hand came beneath her chin and brought her head up to look him in the eye.
"If you invited me in, I would do something that I really shouldn't do at this moment." He whispered; his lips were a ghost against hers. Puzzlement showed on her face but he pressed a firm kiss to her lips. He pulled her into his body but his hands stayed put at the small of her back. He did not deepen the kiss but still pleasant tingles ran down to her toes. Ray released her and stepped back. He nodded to her and Felicity unlocked her door on autopilot. She turned around and smiled at him.
"Goodnight Felicity." He whispered and began walking down the hallway.
"Goodnight Ray." She whispered and closed her door once he disappeared around the corner. Felicity kicked her shoes off and tossed her keys into the teal ceramic bowl by her door. She began undressing, nearly crashing to the floor as she tried to shimmy out of her jeans. Her phone buzzed and she saw a message from Roy. She opened the message which threatened her with an overnight coffee ring on her computer desk if she didn't give him full details tomorrow, to which she replied for him to stop hacking her cellphone lest she tell Oliver that he was the one who ate the last dumpling imported all the way from Hong Kong, one of the only truly good things to come from Oliver's experiences from his exile; when it came to dumplings, Hong Kong had spoiled Oliver from ever settling for an American imitation. She tossed her cellphone on the bed with a smile. As she changed into her pajamas her phone vibrated again. Thinking it was Roy begging for his life she unlocked her phone to see a message from Ray.
'I know I've already said this, but goodnight Felicity.'
Felicity smiled and sent a quick reply before snuggling into her warm bed.
'Goodnight Ray.'