Chapter 8
Based on the clues they could find, there was no connection to QC or the Arrow work to the break in to Felicity's apartment. Oliver was not satisfied with the security for Felicity at home so he and Diggle worked together to tighten it for her. Roy, Oliver or Diggle had taken her home each night since. She hadn't mentioned to them the nightmares that woke her in a cold sweat or how small sounds when she was alone had her jumping in her own home. She wanted to be strong and show she could handle herself and not always need them to come to her rescue.
They were focused on a new case. Someone was hacking and rerouting ambulances and risking lives within Starling City. She was focused on hacking into the Starling City EMS and Fire System to find the traces of the hacker who started this. She had placed her MP3 ear buds into her ears and was oblivious to the world as Oliver, Diggle, and Roy trained nearby. It had been an hour and the guys were finished but her focus and determination kept her attention to the screen in front of her. Roy had brought a sparkling water bottle down for Felicity earlier remembering she said the carbonation gave her energy when she was hacking. Roy and Diggle started to work on hand to hand combat skills and bumped the desk the bottle was on. It crashed to the concrete and caused Felicity jump and shriek out of her chair. Oliver quickly moved to her side to calm her down.
He pulled her next to him and whispered, "Shh, its okay. It was only a bottle, Felicity. You are safe."
She curled into Oliver's chest as tears fell from her eyes. "Oh, God. It was like it was that night again." She whispered.
"You are safe, Felicity. We are all together. No one else is here." He whispered to her as he ran his hand down her back.
She took a deep breath and stepped back a little. He could still see some of the fear in her eyes. "I'm sorry. I thought I was past this nonsense of being so jumpy. The dreams hadn't been coming in the last week or two. I wanted to be strong like the rest of you. I didn't want to be weak. I wanted you to not feel as if I needed to be saved all the time. I thought…" she said looking to Oliver
"What dreams, Felicity?" he said looking down at her.
She realized her babbling had revealed about the nightmares. "Well… I'd had been having a nightmare that keeps playing the same over and over again. He pulls me from the closet and no one else is there. I'm alone and he touches my hair and then pulls me as if to kiss him. That's when I wake up usually screaming or in a cold sweat." She said into his chest as she hid her shame.
He held her closer to him. He placed her head on his chest so her ears could hear his heartbeat. "You are safe here. You are not alone, Felicity. I wish you had told us about your dreams. We could have helped you."
Her tears flowed again slightly, "I hate being seeming so weak. I want to be able to care for myself so you all won't have to rush in to save me every time." She said as she curled into Oliver's chest again. He walked her to the couch where he pulled her into his lap. He looked over her head to Diggle and Roy who moved to clean up the glass and water before clearing out of the lair for the night. He held her as she calmed down. He felt her sit up slightly as she placed her head on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Oliver. I want to be strong and able to take care of myself like you and the other guys. Sara and Laurel are strong. They don't weep at the drop of a hat or need to be rescued every time you turn around. I just wish…"
"Felicity, stop right now." He said calmly as he sat her up to look in her eyes. "I am happy you are not like Sara or Laurel, that's what makes you, you. I can appreciate that you want to protect yourself but realize too that we want to be there for you because you are a part of this team. We work together to take care of each other. We take care of you because we care. When it comes to that night, there were two of them one of you. It would have been much worse if you had fought back. I am just glad you are safe. We will make sure Diggle keeps up your defense skills, okay?"
"Okay. I'm sorry, Oliver. Guess I let some insecurities get to me. You know what always makes me feel better?"
"What's that?" he said with a grin pulling her closer to him.
"Sitting with the best looking guy around and knowing he's all mine." She said as she placed a kiss on his lips.