Felicity flinched at the sound of her phone ringing. She couldn't imagine who would be calling her at a time like this.
"Hello?" she answered, caution creeping into her voice.
"Hey sweetie," her mother said on the other end, her usual chipper self. "How are you? How's Oliver?" Felicity choked back a sob, the unexpected mention of Oliver hitting her like a punch in a gut. It hadn't occurred to her until that moment that her mother wouldn't know about recent events.
"I'm fine," she said, injecting cheer into her voice that she hoped against hope wasn't obviously false. "I'm great, actually. Oliver's fine. He's at work right now, but I'll let him know that you called." She was banking on the fact that if her mother didn't know about Oliver being in prison, she probably also didn't know that he'd been forced out of office.
"Okay," her mother said. "Are you sure you're alright? You just sound...off."
"I'm fine," Felicity insisted, wincing at the lie. "I'm just really tired. I've been really busy with the startup lately, so I haven't been getting a lot of sleep."
"I see," her mother replied. She sounded suspicious, like she doubted the truth of that explanation.
"William's here," Felicity said, desperate for a distraction, for anything that would allow her a moment to collect herself. "Do you want to talk to him?"
"Sure," her mother said. She sounded thrilled by the idea. "Put him on." Felicity went to where William was curled up on one end of the couch, his nose buried in a book. She tapped him on the shoulder to get his attention, then put her hand over her phone's speaker and said, "It's your grandmother." In response to his puzzled frown, she clarified, "My mother" and handed him the phone. She heard him fall into conversation with her mother as she retreated to her room.
It wasn't until she was in her room with the door closed that Felicity finally allowed herself to cry, one hand over her mouth to muffle the sobs so that William wouldn't hear. She was supposed to be strong. He needed her to be strong. He didn't need to know that she was having a breakdown just a room away because her mother, not knowing anything of recent events, had happened to mention his father.
"Felicity?" William asked from outside her bedroom door a while later. "Your mom said she wants to talk to you again."
"Okay, just a second," Felicity replied, fighting to keep her voice steady. She made sure to wipe away any evidence that she'd been crying before opening her door and taking her phone from William.
"I'm back," she told her mother.
"Alright young lady, you are going to tell me what is going on with you," her mother said sternly. "Right now. And don't even try telling me that you're just tired. I know that's not it." Felicity hesitated. How on earth was she going to explain this?
"Okay," she said, finally deciding on a course of action. "Do you remember a few years back when I told you that I work with the Green Arrow?"
"Yes," her mother replied, "but I don't see what that has to do with anything that's going on with you right now."
"I'm getting to that," Felicity assured her. "I-more than just work with the Green Arrow. I'm married to him."
"Wait, wait, wait," her mother said. "Oliver is the Green Arrow? My son-in-law is the Green Arrow?" Her voice turned shrill on the last sentence, piercing Felicity's eardrum.
"Mom," she said quietly. "Please calm down for a second. I wasn't done."
"There's more?" her mother asked. "What more could there possibly be?"
"Oliver's in prison," Felicity replied bluntly, not seeing the point of beating around the bush about it. She took a moment to blink away the tears that had sprung into her eyes, the same way they always did when she had to relive that pain. The only consolation was that at least here, in this house in Hope Springs, under their cover identities, there weren't little reminders of Oliver everywhere, no empty spaces where he should have been. Or at least not visible ones.
"Oh honey," her mother murmured on the other end of the line, so quietly that Felicity almost didn't hear her. "I'm so sorry." Felicity suddenly wished that she could be a kid again, that her mother could hug her and tell her that everything was going to be okay and she would be young enough to still believe it. The unfortunate side effect of growing up was that she no longer believed that her mother had an answer for everything.
"Is there any way I can help?" her mother asked. "Anything I can do?" Felicity shook her head, forgetting for a moment that her mother couldn't see her.
"No," she said. "There isn't. I really wish there was, but…" She trailed off, caught up with her train of thought, and continued, "The team is looking for ways to work the system to get him out, but…I'm not sure I have very high hopes for that working out."
"Well, if it were your father, I'd say just leave him there," Felicity's mother said.
"But Oliver's not Dad," Felicity pointed out unnecessarily.
"I know, honey, I know," her mother replied. "Oliver's ten times the man your father ever was or ever could be. And he's certainly a much better father to William than yours ever was to you." Felicity didn't respond, because it was true, but she wondered how her mother knew it.
"So what do I do?" she asked instead.
"I don't know, sweetie," her mother replied. "I don't know that there's anything you can do right now, except to not give up hope. I won't claim to know what you're going through right now, but I know you, and because I know you I know that the only way you'll get through it is by having faith that you'll see Oliver again."
"Faith is a little hard to come by these days," Felicity remarked.
"Well, at least have faith in yourself," her mother replied. "You're so brave, and strong, and smart, and if there's a solution out there somewhere, I know that you'll find it. I believe in you, and you should too."
"Thanks Mom," Felicity said with the smallest, saddest of smiles.
"Of course, honey," her mother replied. "I'm just glad I could help."