When Felicity wakes up, she's pretty sure Oliver is trying to kill her. It's a little after seven when he starts nudging her and she bats him away.
"Leave me alone," she commands but it's muffled as she buries her face in her pillow in an attempt to block out the sunlight covering the room. She pulls the warm duvet over her head and attempts to block him out as well. It doesn't stop him from nudging her shoulder lightly again.
"Felicity, come on. I let you sleep in while I showered but you have to get up." Felicity groans and pulls the duvet tighter around her, ignoring the frustrated sigh from Oliver. "If you want to eat breakfast, you have to get up." Damn him. How dare he bring food into this? She heaves a great sigh and tosses the comforter off of her, glaring at him.
"You know food is my weakness," she grumbles and he grins and points toward the bathroom.
"I left a glass of water and some aspirin in there."
"Yeah, yeah," she rants as she heads toward the bathroom. "Stop being so fucking considerate, would you?" He laughs as she slams the bathroom door shut. She downs the water and aspirin and scrubs the sand and salt water from her hair in the shower, groaning when the water starts to cool and finally getting out. She pulls on a robe and heads back into the bedroom.
"Goddamn hotel," she grumbles, crossing to her suitcase. "How can you run out of hot water? Fucking unbelievable." Oliver chuckles across the room and she turns to shoot daggers in his direction, recoiling when it means turning towards the sun pouring through the windows.
"What are you laughing at, mister?" She asks, rubbing the heels of her palms over her assaulted eyes, trying to alleviate the pain.
"I just can't believe what a potty mouth you have when you're hungover." She can't see him but she can hear the smirk in his voice. "You're usually so perky."
"Go fuck yourself," she tells him, gathering up her clothes and heading back to the bathroom to change. She has a feeling she'll be sweltering in the printed sweater and black slacks she'd packed but can't find it in herself to give a damn. She scrubs the stale taste of beer and salt water from her mouth and doesn't bother straightening her hair, letting it dry into it's natural waves.
"Oh no," she groans, staring down at her suitcase.
"Hm?" Oliver asks from across the room.
"I didn't pack any sunglasses," she explains, dropping back to lie on the bed. "I wasn't exactly planning on battling a hangover." She hears him cover his amusement with a cough and bites down on her tongue to stop from snapping at him. Her eyes are closed when she feels him standing over her and she opens them to find him holding out a pair of black wayfarers that probably cost more than she makes in a week. If she weren't so desperate, she'd refuse the gesture afraid of breaking or losing them. Instead, she takes them from him and gives a lame smile.
"Thanks." She slips them on her eyes and grabs her purse. "You ready?" He nods and they head for the door. They decide to just head to campus to check in and have breakfast there and the tables are mostly empty when they sit down. Felicity doesn't remover her sunglasses and Oliver gets them both eggs, insisting they're good for hangovers. Felicity tries to make a joke about how he'd know all about hangovers but it comes out more angry than she intends and she ends up apologizing.
They eat in silence until Chester shows up and drops down next to Felicity.
"You look like shit," he informs her, snatching a piece of bacon off her plate.
"Gee, thanks, Cheesey," she bites back. "I don't feel so hot."
"At least your hair looks nice," he offers with a shrug, munching on the strip of bacon, "it always looked nice when you left it wavy like that." Felicity just shrugs and pushes the eggs around her plate.
"I've never even seen it like this," Oliver admits, happily eating his own breakfast and making Felicity want to throw hers at him.
"Well, I'm sure you've seen it like this after showers or something, right?" Chester asks with a raised eyebrow and Oliver rushes to cover.
"Oh, well, sure," he nods a little too vigorously, "I've just never seen her wear it out in public like this." Felicity runs a hand through her hair subconsciously, pushing it up and away from her face.
"Are you ladies finished?" She snaps, giving up on her food and dropping her fork on the plate, focusing on the glass of water Oliver had gotten her instead, sipping slowly. To her surprise, David drops down in the seat across from her.
"Rough night, Liss?" He asks with a grin.
"No, I got a full, uninterrupted eight hours," she answers snidely, "can't you tell?" He laughs at her response and nods.
"Yeah, you're all sunshine and daisies!" She rolls her eyes, the effect lost by the fact that no one can see her eyes through the dark sunglasses. "You never could hold your alcohol." She grunts in response, whether in assent or annoyance even she isn't sure.
"Alright, well, I just came over to ask if you guys are doing the Beer Game?"
"The Beer Game?" Oliver asks, looking between her and David. "Tell me that isn't some weird frat game." Felicity stifles a yawn and shakes her head.
"It's a simulated beer distribution game." He looks even more confused but she doesn't stop to elaborate before returning her attention to David, "I'd say I was gonna skip it if I didn't think Ari would kick my ass for so much as suggesting it." David nods and stands, pushing his chair into the table.
"Well, I'll see you guys there then," he says before walking away. Felicity pushes her plate away from her and buries her head in her arms on the table. Chester watches David walk away.
"I don't get that dude," he says. "Was he always that hot and cold?"
"I don't know," Felicity shrugs, picking her head up and resting her chin on the backs of her hands. "I think it's being back here, you know? Everyone's reverting to who they were five years ago. Like Jen and Ari last night. They're acting like they have senioritis all over again." Chester seems to contemplate this for a few seconds before accepting her theory and nodding.
"Oh, hey, those two guy were in my frat," he says, his eyes on the other side of the room but Felicity has no motivation to turn and see who he's talking about as he stands up. "I'll see you guys later."
"I think you're right," Oliver says when he's gone. "You've been different since we started spending time with your friends." Felicity raises an eyebrow at him, lifting the sunglasses up to rest in her hair, glad she picked a spot facing away from the large, panoramic windows.
"Bad different?" She asks quietly.
"No," he shakes his head, "not good or bad. Just.. more comfortable." He's quiet for a moment as they both think about what he's said.
"I wish you could be that way with me," he admits finally, the words coming out quietly as he stares down at his glass of orange juice. Felicity considers this. She's not necessarily uncomfortable around Oliver. But he does have some sort of affect on her. She babbles and stumbles over her words and says things she'd rather keep to herself. She knows it only because she's had a tiny crush on him since he walked into her office at QC two years ago. It doesn't help that close quarters and half-nakedness had only served to make that crush grow.
She considers, for a second, admitting this to him.
Instead, she shrugs and tells him, "I'm comfortable around you in a different way." She slides the sunglasses back down over her eyes and he doesn't respond.
They meet up with Arianna, Shane, and Jen before heading to the room where the Beer Game is being played. Chester teams up with the men he'd run into at breakfast so they each become a company, Felicity having Oliver work with her as one company since he'd never played before. The game goes for about three hours and, while their group does well, they don't win. Not deterred by the loss, Jen heads to another seminar and the other four decide to head off campus for lunch. They find a somewhat nice restaurant a few minutes away.
Felicity puts Oliver's sunglasses away for the first time since the hotel and orders real food and a sparkling water, feeling better than when she'd woken up.
"So, what do you guys have for the rest of the day?" Shane asks after their food has arrived. Felicity swallows her bite of chicken parmesan before answering.
"Nothing until all that stuff with the Dean tonight," she shrugs, cutting herself another bite.
"What are you guys planning on doing today then?" Arianna asks.
"I found this place online that gives guided tours of the city," Felicity explains, "I figured we could check that out." Oliver starts at this, staring at her.
"Felicity, I haven't been on a bicycle in probably more than ten years."
"Well, you know the old cliché," she offers with a dismissive wave of her hand.
"That's a cliché," he argues.
"It's a cliché for a reason, Oliver," she counters, getting a little annoyed when he looks ready to continue fighting. "Can you please just consider this, for me?" He sighs and nods.
"Yeah, alright." Arianna and Shane are both staring at them and Felicity remembers their in public, blushing a little at their bickering.
"You two are adorable," Arianna comments. "Weird but adorable."
After lunch, Oliver and Felicity head back to the hotel to change their clothes. Felicity moves wearily around the room, her lack of a good night's sleep weighing on her, and she can feel Oliver's eyes on her as she does.
"Why don't you sleep for like an hour?" He suggests. "The presentation isn't until 5:30."
"Is this just you trying to get out of a bike tour?" She asks with a smirk.
"Of course not," he chuckles. "I can wake you up in an hour and we'll have plenty of time to talk about the bike tour." Felicity considers it for a few seconds before finally nodding.
"Yeah, alright," she nods, pulling her pajamas back out of her suitcase to nap in. Oliver pulls a pair of sweatpants out of his duffel bag as well.
"I'm gonna go down to the hotel gym," he explains. "I'll come back, take a shower, and wake you up." Felicity nods, sitting down on the bed.
"Just an hour, though, okay?" He nods and leaves the room. She changes and is asleep before she hits the pillow. A little over an hour later, she's once again being nudged awake by a freshly showered Oliver. This time, she's much more receptive, rolling over and smiling lightly at him.
"G'morning."
"Good afternoon ," he chuckles. "It's almost three." Felicity nods and pulls herself into a sitting position. She runs a hand through her hair and tries to get her bearings.
"How about we skip the bike tour and just walk around the surrounding stores and stuff?" She suggests and Oliver nods.
"Sure," he agrees. "Walter called me earlier so I'm gonna call him back and let you get dressed." He heads into the hallway and Felicity pulls her tank top and floral shorts out of her bag again. She hadn't put them back on over her bathing suit and hadn't worn them for long in the first place so they were clean enough for a walk. She starts to pull her hair back into a ponytail but gives up and lets the curls hang loose. Oliver knocks before he comes back into the room and she smiles at the gesture.
"You dressed?" He calls, cracking the door open so she can hear him.
"Yeah," she nods even though he can't see her and he comes into the room.
"What'd Walter say?" She asks.
"Not a whole lot," he shrugs. "He wants to meet to talk when we get back to Starling City." Felicity nods and fishes Oliver's sunglasses back out of her bag, sliding them on along with the flip flops she'd packed to wear in the shower.
"Ready?" Oliver nods and they head out of the hotel again.
Their hotel sits in a hotspot of activity, surrounded by store fronts and restaurants, rather than just rested next to a highway or airport. Felicity had picked it specifically, knowing they'd have some free time and not counting on most of it being taken up by her friends. Not that she was complaining, her friends had definitely made the trip worth it and, assuming the stuff with Oliver didn't break her, she might just have to thank him for forcing her to go.
They walk side by side, not touching, down the sidewalk. Occasionally, Felicity will spot a store she wants to go into and pull Oliver along with her. At one small clothing boutique tucked between a pizza place and a Starbucks, she pulls a long, cotton scarf off of a rack and drapes it around his neck, looping it once. She steps back to inspect it and immediately starts laughing. He wrinkles his nose at her.
"What?" He asks, looking a little bit offended and she shakes her head, trying to staunch her giggles.
"You're definitely not a scarf guy," she teases, with a smirk and he pouts and pulls the scarf from around his neck. He tosses it resentfully back on the hook and Felicity mock pouts at him.
"Aw," she coos. "Don't pout. There was bound to be something out there that wouldn't actually somehow make you more attractive." She turns to inspect the earrings and yelps in surprise a few moments later when something comes around her neck. She grabs at it to find a thin gold chain with a small, carved and polished rock. Turning her head, she finds Oliver behind her, tongue between his teeth as he fastens the clasp at the back of her neck. She smooths her finger over the stone and turns to him, realizing it's in the shape of an arrowhead.
"You've got quite the ego on you, mister," she teases with a fond smile, still fingering the charm. He grins back.
"I just thought it'd look nice," he says softly, raising his hands defensively, "honest." Felicity nods and tries to turn the chain and find a price tag.
"How much is it?" Oliver reaches out and stills her hands.
"Don't worry about it."
"Oliver," she warns, meeting his eyes.
"Felicity, it's not that much. Just let me do this for you." Felicity sighs and rolls her eyes but nods.
"Men," she says, slipping her hands out from under his and throwing them up in the air. He chuckles and puts his hand on her shoulders, angling her toward the register to pay for the necklace. As they're leaving, when they reach the door a loud clap of thunder makes Felicity jump, accidentally tugging harshly at the necklace around her neck.
"Uh-oh," she murmurs, looking up at the sky through the glass of the door. Oliver places his hand on her lower back.
"We could stay here, see if the storm breaks," he suggests, "or we could make a break for the hotel." Felicity shrugs, debating the options.
"It hasn't even broke yet," she shrugs. "If we try to wait it out we could be stuck here a while. Let's just head for the hotel and hope we beat the rain." Oliver nods and removes his hand from her back to pull his light jacket off and hand it to her.
"Here," he offers, eying the thin straps of her tank top, "just in case." Felicity doesn't debate it, wanting to be as dry as possible if they can't beat the rain and pulls it on quickly. They rush out the door and begin to hurry down the sidewalk in the direction of their hotel. They manage about halfway before the large gray cloud above them breaks and the downpour starts. Felicity squeaks in surprise as she tries to tug Oliver's jacket over her hair. Oliver grabs her hand and they take off in a sprint to reach the door to the hotel.
By the time they make it back up to their room, they're panting and soaked to the bone.
"So much for your jacket keeping me dry," Felicity sighs as Oliver slides the key card into the lock. He shakes his head in amusement as she enters the room before him. She turns back to face him with a smile.
"And so much for beating the storm," she chuckles as another clap of thunder shakes the windows and a bolt of lightning flashes, filling the semi-dark room, the sun hidden behind the large storm clouds. She barely questions it this time when Oliver bends and presses his mouth to hers. It happens with much the same intensity as all of their other encounters as he peels his wet coat off of her shoulders and she helps him out of his soaked Henley.
She's pressed in between him and the wall, running her hand over the scar on his shoulder, and his hands are sliding up her tank top, separating cold fabric from her skin with warm hands, when she pulls away.
"Oliver," she breathes shakily, "what are we doing?"
"I don't know," he whispers back, voice ragged. "Do you want me to stop?"
"No," she responds vehemently, pulling his lip back down toward her own. He kisses her once, firmly, before trailing his lips down her neck, sliding his hands further up her torso until he can pull her tank top off. He separates his lips from her skin and tugs it over her head carefully. His head moves lower, lips dropping to the curve of her breasts revealed underneath her bra. Her hand travels up into the short hair at the back of his head. She gasps and tugs at it lightly when his tongue darts out to lick across the top of her breast.
"Oliver," she pants, "bed." He obliges silently, lifting her up to wrap her legs around his waist and moving backwards toward the bed, dropping down when the backs of his knees hit the mattress. She pushes him backward until he's lying back against the duvet and begins her own exploration of his torso. He groans and squirms underneath her as she kisses his neck and fans her hands out over his stomach. He cuts her ministrations short, flipping them over and covering her mouth with his own again, his hands coming up to palm her breasts over her bra. She fumbles suddenly, pushing him up to reach behind her and unhook the garment, tossing it across the room with more force than she'd intended.
"Oops," she murmurs, as it hits the sliding glass door with the rain still beating against it outside. Oliver laughs and leans down, brushing her wet hair out of her face before lowering his mouth to her breasts. He continues to move his mouth lower, kissing her navel and deftly unbuttoning her shorts. He hesitates at the zipper and looks up at her watching him. She covers his hands with her own and helps him remove her shorts.
"It's okay," she whispers, nodding at him in assurance, and pulls the shorts down her legs, tossing them behind him. His hands trail up the insides of her thighs, tracing the line of her panties. She squirms underneath him, breathing heavily, trying to encourage his hands to the spots she needs them at. His fingers are dancing across the line of the elastic when she sits up suddenly. He looks up at her, eyes wide.
"What's wrong?"
"Do you have a condom?"
"Yeah," he chuckles, "there should be one in my wallet." As he says it, he removes his hands from her lower stomach to pull a leather wallet from his back pocket. He opens it, pulling out the tin foil packet and tossing both it and the wallet on the bedside table.
"Whew," Felicity breaths, dropping back against the bed. "Good." He laughs and moves his hands back down to her underwear, easing them down her thighs. He kisses slowly back up her legs, nearing her center. He licks a hot stripe upwards, across her skin, stopping to swirl his tongue around her clit. She gasps and he holds her hips down when she bucks a little against his mouth. He sucks the little bundle of nerves into her mouth and she lets out a harsh breath.
"Oh, my God, Oliver," she moans, tugging at his hair and pulling him away from her. He looks at her questioningly.
"Take off your pants," she commands, sitting up and reaching down to where he's kneeling on the floor to fumble with the buckle of his belt. He bats her hands away and gets it unbuckled faster than she knows she would have and pushes his pants and boxers off in one movement. She bites down on her lip and studies him for a moment.
"Fuck," she breathes, "no wonder you've got such a massive ego." He chuckles and she tugs him by his hands back onto the bed, rolling him onto his back to straddle him. She leans down to kiss him again before reaching for the condom on the nightstand. He stops her as she rips open the packet.
"Felicity," he says, getting her to meet his eye. "We can stop." She looks at him like he's crazy.
"Does it look like I want to stop?" She asks, pulling the condom out and moving down on his thighs to roll it over his hard length.
His breathing grows a little more ragged but he presses on, "I just don't want-"
"Oliver," she cuts him off, settling back on her heels and staring at him. "Can we just not over think this right now? Please?" She bites her lip and he nods, reaching for her hips.
"I mean, you want this too, right?" She asks quietly, her self-consciousness taking over. "Because, if you don't we can-" He nods quickly, cutting her off.
"Yes, Felicity," he insists, "of course I do." She nods and positions herself over him.
"Then stop talking," she smirks and gasps as slides down onto him. He groans and they still for a moment, adjusting to the feelings, before he flips her over and takes control, moving in and out of her slowly. Her fingers explore the ridges and valleys of the scars that riddle his back as his hand moves down to where their bodies meet, urging her closer to climax. Her hands slip down to his ass and pull him harder into her, moaning out words of encouragement as she feels herself nearing the edge. He leans down to suck at a spot on her neck as he applies pressure to her clit and light explodes behind her eyes as she bucks against him, his mouth covering hers as she moans his name. He followers her over the edge and buries his face in her neck, trying to keep too much of his weight off of her. Felicity closes her eyes and wraps her arms around his back.
A little while later, she lays curled against his side with her head on his chest as her fingers move softly over a scar she remembers bandaging back in December. His fingers run gently through her damp hair, easing the knots from the blonde strands. She sits up, resting her chin against his chest and he meets her eyes curiously.
"What do we do now?" She asks quietly, afraid of the answer she might get. Oliver reaches forward with his free hand and fiddles with the small stone dangling between them from the gold chain. He smooths the pendant between his thumb and forefinger before meeting her eyes again.
"I don't know," he admits and Felicity nods silently, relaxing back against the pillows. He rolls onto his side to face her and kisses her shoulder as she stares at the ceiling.
"We'll figure it out," he promises, murmuring the words against her skin.
They shower separately and Felicity takes time styling her hair and applying her makeup to gain some distance from Oliver. She isn't necessarily regretting the sex. She's just fearing how many bridges they may have inadvertently burned by giving into that fire between them. She knows better than to expect things to not change once they head back home and reality sinks back in. When there are no more fake relationships, no more hotel rooms, no more soft kisses as if it's normal. She stares at the necklace he'd bought her laying on the bathroom counter.
"We should probably get going," Oliver calls through the door, shaking Felicity out of her thoughts. She shakes her head and snatches up the necklace, clasping it at the back of her neck, before opening the door and reentering the bedroom. Oliver is sitting on the edge of the bed, looking every bit as unsettled as Felicity feels.
"Hey," he smiles softly.
"Hi," she responds quietly, biting down on her lower lip. She moves toward where her heels are sitting under the bench her suitcase is on top of. She slips her feet into them and turns back around to find Oliver behind her. She startles and places her hand against her heart.
"Jesus," she swears, "I'm gonna get you a bell." He smirks at her and she feels his hand slide into hers, entwining their fingers.
"Are you okay?" He asks earnestly and she feels her discomfort melting away as she nods at him.
"I'm fine," she assures him, squeezing his hand.
"Good," he nods once and she can't remember the last time she saw him this unsure of himself and it didn't involve a life or death situation. She laughs at the thought and turns back to her suitcase, zipping it up.
"I have to do laundry tonight," she tells him, "or I'll have nothing to wear on the plane but a skirt and heels." He nods and grabs his suit jacket from the bed as she pulls on her light pink cardigan. After the storm, the temperature had dropped considerably and Felicity was glad her outfit for the night included pants she'd worn that morning to breakfast.
"Fair warning," she begins, as Oliver opens the hotel room door for her and they start down the hall to the elevators, "this presentation is going to be boring as shit, I'm sure." Oliver groans good naturedly behind her and Felicity laughs, pressing the button to call the elevator.
"You wanted me to come to this thing, buddy," she teases and Oliver shrugs.
"Well, it hasn't been all bad," he comments, leaning down to kiss her softly.
"Yeah, I guess not," she murmurs as the elevator dings and the doors slide open.
At the Dean's presentation, they sit with Arianna and Shane. Arianna watches Felicity curiously and she tries to ignore it but after a while she snaps.
"What?" She hisses, looking over at Ari in the folding chair next to her.
"Are you alright?" Arianna asks with a shrug. "You, look, I don't know. Not alright." Felicity averts her eyes, pretends to pay attention to what the man standing in front is saying and shrugs.
"I'm fine," she insists. "I just had a tiring day."
"Did you and Oliver do that bike tour you were talking about?" Felicity had completely forgotten even mentioning the tour. Had it really only been a few hours since they'd sat at lunch with her friends and bickered over a bike ride? How many shifts had their relationship gone through in the past twenty-four hours? This whole weekend had felt like another universe.
"Oh, uh, no. We just ended up doing some shopping by our hotel," Felicity explains, absentmindedly fingering her necklace and glancing around to make sure their hushed tones weren't bothering anyone. No one seemed to be paying them any attention so she turned back to Ari.
"Did you buy that today?" She asks, indicating the small arrowhead necklace.
"Oh, yeah. Oliver bought it for me," she whispers, dropping her hand from the item in question. Arianna nods and returns her attention to the front, allowing Felicity to slip back into her thoughts. Oliver's hand lands lightly on her knee and Felicity stares at it, her earlier discomfort at their situation creeping back.
After the presentation, instead of dinner the university serves a meal of heavy Hors d'Oeuvres. Essentially, it means all they served were a bunch of finger foods like cheese boards and kabobs. Felicity takes a small plate and fills it with cheese and fruit and orders a glass of red wine at the bar. She munches on the cheese non-stop as her friends converse around her. She looks up when she feels Arianna staring at her again.
"Okay," she snaps, throwing up her hand that isn't holding her own white wine, "what is going on with you?" Felicity gives her a confused look and shrugs her shoulders, popping a grape in her mouth. Arianna rolls her eyes.
"I lived with you for all eight of our finals weeks, okay? I know what your stress eating looks like." Felicity drops the cheese cube she had been moving towards her mouth back to her plate and ops for a drink of her wine instead.
"I really don't know what you're talking about, Ari," Felicity insists, setting her plate down on a nearby table. Arianna huffs but turns away from Felicity, returning to her conversation with Jen. Oliver continues to eye her curiously and Felicity excuses herself to the bathroom. On the way back, she feels a hand on her arm and whirls around expecting Oliver.
"Oh," she says in surprise, as David drops his hand from her arm, "hey!" She manages a semi-genuine smile and he returns it.
"Hey, sorry," he says sheepishly. "I didn't mean to startle you."
"No," Felicity shakes her head, "it's fine, really. It's just been a.. weird day." David's eyebrows raise at this and he studies her for a minute.
"You want to tell me about it?" He asks finally and she shakes her head, looking down at her shoes.
"Nah, it's just some stuff with Oliver," she shrugs. "It's not a big deal." Of course that's a blatant lie. But she's not exactly going to discuss her hot, amazing sex with her fake-boyfriend whose feelings she can't even begin to decipher with her college boyfriend. She doesn't even want to begin to imagine how that conversation would go.
David seems to accept this answer, though, and nods. He shoves his hands in his pocket and scuff the toe of his shoe against the floor.
"Are you guys going to be at the barbecue tomorrow?" He asks, looking back up at her.
"Yeah," she nods, "our flight doesn't leave until five, I think."
"Great," David smiles. "You can meet my son." Felicity blanches at this.
"Son?" She asks. "Are you married?"
"Oh, uh, no. His mom.., she wasn't so reliable." Felicity nods, thinking about the dad she didn't know and the mother who barely knows her. Yeah, she could relate to the kid at least.
"I'd love to meet him," she smiles, earning a matching one from David. Just then, she hears her name from the door where the reception is going on. They both turn to find Oliver standing just outside the door watching them.
"I just wanted to check on you," he says, moving towards them. He reaches Felicity and places his hand on her lower back. She fights back a shiver at the warmth of his hand through her clothes and smiles at David again.
"I think we're gonna say our goodbyes and call it a night," she tells him. "I'll see you tomorrow. I can't wait to meet..,"
"Jackson," David supplies for her when she trails off and nods. "I'll see you tomorrow, then." He heads back into the crowded room and she can feel Oliver's eyes on her. She expects him to ask her if she's okay again.
"Let's say goodnight," he says instead, guiding her back into the room and towards her friends.
Back at the hotel, Felicity sits on the bed with her tablet and a rerun of 30 Rock playing quietly in the background as Oliver changes for bed in the bathroom. He comes out and hesitates, watching her cautiously.
"What?" She asks in confusion, powering off her tablet and plugging it in.
"Where do you want me to sleep?" He asks and she raises an eyebrow at him.
"Considering what we were doing in this bed earlier, I think it's okay for us to sleep in it together," she tells him with a roll of her eyes. He stands rigid and doesn't move any closer.
"What's going on, Oliver?"
"I know you're not actually okay," he tells her. "I'm an idiot for not realizing it right away, it took until Ari mentioned it and now I don't know how I missed it." Felicity sighs and crosses her arms in front of her.
"Oliver," she says wearily but he presses on.
"I'm sorry about earlier. It was stupid and shouldn't have happened." She gapes at him.
"What? Is that what you really think?" She asks, trying not to sound too broken and failing as her voice breaks.
"Isn't it how you're feeling?" She shakes her head quickly and he moves toward the bed, kneeling in front of her. "I don't know what's going on Felicity. I just know that I upset you and I hate it." Felicity runs her hand over her ponytail nervously.
"Look," she begins, finally, "in the time we've known each other, I've unintentionally made it painfully clear that I have feelings for you. But I have no idea how you feel about me and I'm no closer right now to figuring it out than I was before we left Starling City three days ago." By the end, she can't bring herself to look at him and instead picks at a loose thread between them on the duvet.
"You have to know how much I care about you, Felicity," he insists and, when she just shrugs, he falls silent. "I guess I haven't exactly been forthcoming about my feelings," he admits quietly. He reaches forward and stills her hand, covering it with his own.
"You're one of the few people I trust," he tells her, "and I can't lose you when I fuck this up. Because I will fuck it up, Felicity, it's what I do."
"Haven't you ever heard it's better to have loved and lost?" She asks quietly, aiming for facetious.
"I have lost," he tells her seriously. "I'd rather love from afar and have those I love safe." He squeezes her hand at this and she finally looks up at him.
"I don't want to be safe, Oliver," she says, adamantly, before placing her hands on either side of his face and pulling him up towards her for a firm kiss. He covers her body with his, moving them backwards on the bed until they hit the pillows. He pulls away from the kiss, pulling the blankets over them as Felicity snuggles into him and he wraps his arms around her.
"One rule," she says quietly after he's turned the light off. "You can't take all of this back when we get home. No running off to be by yourself and pretend none of this happened in the name of keeping me safe or whatever. If you're going to do that, then you should sleep on the couch." She feels him tense underneath her and for a minute she thinks he is going to do just that. Even the preemptive rejection stings. It surprises her when she feels his arms tighten around her instead of loosen.
"Okay," he murmurs against her hair. Felicity nods once before curling tighter against him and giving into her exhaustion. Deciding she'd simply have to hold him to his word.
Two weeks later, Felicity's got her phone pressed to her ear as she stands on her front porch and fumbles with her key ring, looking for her house keys.
"Yeah, I'm just getting home," she tells the person on the other end of the call. A moment of clarity hits her and she drops the multitude of keys – most of which she's pretty sure go to absolutely nothing – and tries the handle. It turns and she pushes the door open, shaking her head at herself. She still wasn't used to having someone else home to unlock the door.
"So, when should I expect the Save The Date?" She asks, dropping the keys into her purse and stepping over the threshold. She smells food cooking – or possibly burning – in the kitchen and toes off her shoes.
"Sometime within the week, probably," Arianna tells her and it sounds like she's shuffling with something on the other end of the line. There's a loud metal clang and triumphant squeal.
"There! I just dropped it in the mailbox." Felicity laughs at her friend and drops her bag on the floor next to her heels before making her way towards the kitchen. "You're definitely going to be able to come, right?"
"I wouldn't miss it," Felicity promises, stopping to stare at the calendar in the entryway. "When is it?" Arianna huffs in indignation.
"Isn't that what the Save The Date is for?" She asks and Felicity hears the beep of a car unlocking on the other end.
"Right," Felicity laughs, shaking her head and continuing on her path to the kitchen.
"What about Oliver? He can come too, right? I think it might break Shane and Chester's poor hearts if he can't." Arianna laughs on the other end as Felicity freezes in the doorway to the kitchen. She shrugs as her boyfriend turns to smile at her, flipping a pancake with a spatula.
"I don't know. It'll depend on what the Save The Date says," she laughs again as Ari groans on the other end. "See the Catch-22 you've created for yourself here?"
"Whatever," Arianna huffs, "those Save The Dates are gorgeous and I did not work both mine and Shane's asses off on them to just tell you when the wedding is over the phone." Felicity shakes her head and takes a seat at the island.
"Is that Ari?" Oliver stage whispers, apparently satisfied with the pancake as he slides it onto a plate with a few others, all of varying shapes and shades of brown. Felicity nods and he mimes a wave at the phone. Felicity laughs and shakes her head at his antics. She'd liked Vigilante-Oliver well enough but she's finding out boyfriend-Oliver is much more fun.
"Oliver says hello," she translates to Arianna and informs Oliver when her friend reciprocates. "He's cooking me dinner."
"Uh-oh," Arianna giggles and Oliver must hear it because he turns to glare at Felicity who smirks.
"Yeah," she tells Arianna. "So, I'm gonna let you go and make sure my fire extinguisher is up to code." The two say their goodbyes as Felicity watches Oliver pour more batter into the pan. She hangs up and sets her phone on the counter, the sound drawing Oliver's attention again.
"They finally set a date?" He asks and Felicity nods.
"She was literally mailing the Save The Dates as we spoke," she explains, before coming around the island and wrapping her arms around Oliver's back, the material of his t-shirt soft against her cheek. "What's this?"
"Breakfast for dinner!" He declares, looking over his shoulder to grin at her. "That sound good?" She smiles softly at him as he turns in her arms to place his hands on her waist. She indicates the box of pancake mix on the counter with a smirk.
"I don't rate homemade pancakes?" She asks with a mock pout. He laughs and leans down to peck her lightly on the lips.
"You rate something edible," he explains. "Chef Ramsey, I am not." She shakes her head and grins.
"Boxed pancakes are perfect," she tells him and he smiles, pleased, turning back to flip the pancake in the pan.
"Good," he smirks, "because I was thinking we'd use the syrup for the pancakes and then later we'd find a more.. interesting use for it." Felicity shakes her head and blushes lightly but plays along.
"Color me intrigued." He steps towards where she's leaning against the island and dips his head to kiss her more fully.
"I'm not kidding," he murmurs when he pulls back and she laughs and pulls him back down to her. He jolts at the smell of something burning and turns back to the stove.
"Shit!" He shouts, turning the heat down and prodding at the blackened pancake with the spatula. Felicity sighs and shakes her head.
"Damn, and I never checked the fire extinguisher."
Well, here it is, friends! The end of the journey. A few things about the ending, in the original plan I was going to write out Sunday, the last day of the reunion, in full and ending it with their return to Starling City but this ending sort of happened to me and it's where the characters ended up taking me and I couldn't be happier about it. I hope it's satisfying for you all too!
Thank you to everyone who commented, liked, bookmarked, etc.! I appreciate all the feedback and look forward to continuing to hear people's thoughts now that this story has ended. If you had any particular feelings about the original characters I created, I'd love to hear it! If people seem attached to them it gives me motivation to maybe write more in this universe.