6 months later.
Emma arrived at the lair.
"Good morning".
She passed in front of John. "One latte macchiato for you". Then headed towards Felicity. "One cappuccino, no extra foam for you". She walked over to where Oliver was working out and placed a paper cup on one of the cabinets near him. "And one Chai Tea for you".
Felicity took a sip and looked at her. "You must have been up at the crack of dawn, I didn't hear you leave this morning".
Emma took off her coat and sat down next to Felicity. They had both gotten very close and after Emma's apartment had been ravaged by the gang leader and her landlord had evicted her as a result, and Felicity's place had needed to be taken down due to massive termite invasion and fear of collapse, both girls had decided to combine their assets and rent a nice 2-bedroom apartment together not too far from the club. It was perfect. They were both very quiet, didn't go out much and respected each other's privacy.
Emma laughed. "You must have been exhausted then too..because I didn't come home last night"!
Hearing that Oliver stopped training and Diggle also put down what he was doing. Both men looked at each other. Was she dating someone that they were not aware of? Who was this guy? Was he trustworthy?
Felicity frowned. "No.. You didn't do it again did you"?
Oliver moved in closer. "Do what exactly"?
Both Emma and Felicity turned around. And Felicity sighed in disagreement. "She pulled an all-nighter again"!
John looked at Emma. "You staid here all night working"?
"No big deal. It's not like it happens a lot".
"Oh yeah right.. that's the fourth time in two weeks"!
Oliver was somehow relieved that it wasn't about a guy or anything to do with something being illegal or morally wrong but still he was surprised and concerned that she staid and worked for so long.
"Oh come on.. don't give me that.. like you're going to make me believe that you guys haven't done it in the past? Besides, I'm fine. I got a lot of work done. I finished my report on Marcello Benfinicio"!
Suddenly Oliver was very interested and glad she was done, but he knew that he would need to talk to her about the fact that she was working so hard. Yes, of course the clock was ticking sometimes but Benfinicio was not going anywhere and it certainly didn't need for her to feel like she had to stay up all night and work.
"What did you find"? asked Oliver as he got nearer to her.
He was still shirtless and even though Emma had been around him for the past six months in that kind of attire, she still found it hard not to check him out. At first she wondered how Felicity managed not to have her body react in any way around Oliver but then after a while, it had dawned on her, when she realized that Felicity reacted, the way she did around Oliver, but around John!
Emma massaged the back of her neck in an attempt to ease up.
"Well, thanks to Felicity, I have the video of his questioning at the SCPD. I've spent quite some time analyzing everything and he's not the one who's been dumping toxic waste into the river".
"Damn it"! snarled Oliver. He turned around and started to walk away. Emma turned her chair slightly and grabbed his bare arm with her hand. Oliver turned his head towards her. At first, she thought she had done something wrong. Her touch had not been harsh or rough or menacing and as she looked in his eyes she expected to see anger, but for some odd reason it wasn't what he was showing.
When her hand touched his arm, it sent shivers through his entire body. Aside from when he rescued her, they had never had any physical contact, but here her soft touch moved something in him. He had not felt this way in what seemed like forever.
"The good news", resumed Emma, after having removed her hand and having gotten Oliver's attention again, "is that even if it's not him, he knows who it is. Here look I'll show you".
She turned to the screen and typed away on her keyboard and the video popped up on the screen and at the moment she needed it too.
"Detective Monroe ask him if he has any idea on who is dumping and see right there…".
John leaned in as well as Felicity and Oliver. "What"?
Emma smiled. "He's pressing his lips together. This is the only moment in the video and the interrogation that he does that. When people press their lips together it is very often a sign and a reflex to prevent yourself from opening your mouth and talking. When you are keeping a secret".
"Now that is what I like to hear", said Oliver as he walked away. "I think Mr. Benfinicio needs someone who he can confide in"!
And with that, like he always did, he got in gear and disappeared to make sure that justice was served!
At lunch time, Oliver still wasn't back and Felicity decided to do the sandwich run. John sat down next to Emma.
"So, what do you girls have planned this evening. After all it is Friday night"?
"I don't know", shrugged Emma, "maybe some knitting".
John's face went blank and Emma burst out laughing. "I'm only kidding Dig".
"Phew.. you had me worried there for a minute. No come on seriously, you have anything planned"?
"No. Why"?
"Well we could all go out and grab a bite to eat at Big Belly Burger. What do you think"?
"Why not? Sounds like a great idea".
"Don't count on me, I already have plans", said Oliver as he nonchalantly walked in and put his gear away.
"Oh come on buddy, we've all been working very hard these past weeks, it would do us some good to spend some time together away from here".
"I'd love to but I've got some business I need to tend to at Queen Consolidated. As you say, we've done good work here but I need to do some work over there too".
John understood. "Fair enough. So what time should we meet there"?
"Meet where"? asked Felicity as she dropped the sandwiches on the table.
"We're going out for Burgers tonight".
Felicity looked at John. "That's a great idea".
He smiled back happy to see that she thought so. "How about we meet there at 8 o'clock? I'll have them keep a table for us".
Emma and Felicity looked at each other than nodded.
The rest of the day went by fast, really fast. They were still trying to figure out who was behind the toxic dumping and apparently Benfinicio had not been able to much aside give a name, of a man he had never met, only spoken to on the phone, and which made no sense and that didn't ring any bells to any of them, Lone Reklaw.
At quarter to eight, Emma and Felicity were a few feet away from Big Belly Burger. Emma could see that Felicity was a tad nervous. "You ok"?
"What? Huh yeah of course why wouldn't I be"?
They arrived in front of the burger joint and Emma looked inside the window and saw John sitting waiting for them.
"Look, I think I'm going to take a rain check on this one".
Felicity looked at her slightly panicked. "Wait? What? Why"?
Emma put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "I think you two would be better off without me around".
"Oh, no you don't. I can't go in there by myself".
"Of course, you can. You are going to walk in there, have a great time with John and let nature take its course".
"I hate it when you do that"!
"Do what"?
"Analyze me and turn it against me".
"Ah but see, I'm not turning it against you. On the contrary, I'm helping you. Sweetie, it's obvious that you have a thing for John, and who could blame you, he's an amazing man. I know you're afraid to tell him how you feel and give it a try but I truly think that you will end up being surprised of the outcome".
Felicity turned and looked at John. "Wait, are you saying that"….
"I wouldn't dare.. I know how you hate it when I do that". Emma winked and started to walk away.
"But wait! What do I do"?
Without turning around or stopping Emma answered her. "Just be yourself, sweetie. That's all there is to it. Bye. Have fun"!
Emma headed home. It was true, they would have a much better time just to the two of them. It wasn't as if Oliver was there either.
A half an hour later, Oliver pulled up his motorcycle in front of Big Belly Burger. He removed his helmet and looked inside. He was surprised to see what he saw. Not only were John and Felicity alone and seeming to enjoy themselves but it was obvious that Emma hadn't joined them. He put his helmet back on and rode away.
As Emma and Felicity rented the apartment on the top floor, they had negotiated with the landlord to have sole usage of the rooftop in exchange of organizing and decorating it, and he had agreed. They had worked on it for a couple of weekends and had made it into something warm and soothing. A haven as Emma had called it. They had added lights and big candles, a table with a few chairs, flowers in different pots and Emma had chosen a beautiful and comfortable canopy swing that she had placed so that they had an amazing view of the city.
The night was beautiful. It was the end of June and it was warm. Emma was impatient for the 4th of July, this would be a perfect vantage point to see the city's fireworks. She was swinging slightly, her legs folded atop the green cushion all the while enjoying the quiet as she drank a glass of the home-made lemonade she had just prepared.
"Weren't up for burgers tonight, huh"?
She looked away from the city skyline and found Oliver standing a few feet away from her.
"Nah.. I would have felt like a third wheel".
He didn't understand at first but then it became evident.
"Well, all I can say is they seemed to be having a good time".
He looked down at Emma and pointed to the empty seat next to her. "May I"?
"Of, course", said Emma as she unfolded her legs and placed them on the ground slowly slowing down the swing till it came to a complete stop. Oliver removed his suit jacket and sat down.
"How did you know where to find me"?
"I first stopped at the apartment, the lights were on but you didn't answer, then I remembered Felicity talking briefly about this um… den, so I came up and here you are".
"Haven".
"What"?
"It's haven not den".
He smiled. "That's an interesting choice of a word. Haven is a place of safety or refuge".
Emma looked at him. "That's how I feel when I'm up here. I feel safe. I'm unreachable here, away from harm. I get to see what you see, when on most nights, you are watching from the rooftops of this city. I get to see part of your world".
He looked away and stared out into the night. "My world is a lonely place Emma". He knew what he was starting to feel for her and even if she was the expert in reading people, he too knew that her feelings for him were growing, that she too was holding back. He hoped that by telling her this, he could make her understand that he was damaged, broken, that his world was a place of solitude and that he didn't want to bring her into it.
"It may be a lonely place Oliver, but when we're at work or when I'm up here, no matter where you are, I'm with you, you are not alone".
Upon hearing those words, part of the wall he had built inside of him to protect himself, to protect others before her, that no one had managed to weaken in any way, suddenly came tumbling down. He moved his hand towards hers and took it in his. They stayed there in the candlelight looking out at Starling City, holding hands not speaking, just feeling, breathing and living the moment.