Chapter 3 My Choice

Felicity

As she saw him drive away she finally let go of the breath she had been holding. It had been a crazy night and it still wasn't over because she had this big decision to make. After standing for another minute she sat back down on the bench and the first thing that popped into her head was, "what the hell I am going to do?"

A month ago this would have been an easy decision but now she wasn't so sure. She had feelings for him and she knew that but he had hurt her and she didn't know whether she wanted to go through that again. For so long she didn't think they would ever get the chance to be together. She thought he would always just see her as the nerdy IT girl and she would just have this crush on him and she was ok with that. But then he said he loved her and she knew it was to fool Slade but the way he had said it made her almost believe it. Then he finally asked her out and they got to go on an actual date. And it was perfect until it got blown up and their relationship was over before it even began.

Now they things were more complicated and Ray was in the picture. She knew he had feelings for her but she knew what she felt for Ray was nothing close to what she felt for Oliver. Ray would be a safe choice and she could develop feelings for him. With Oliver things would always be challenging but there would always be something between them that drew her to him and him to her. There was something special that they shared that no one could understand or replace.

Oliver was right this was her decision and she knew exactly what she wanted. So she strode off prepared to make one of the biggest decisions of her life. And hopefully she made the right one.

Oliver

Sitting in the Foundry alone used to be something Oliver enjoyed. It gave him time to think and time to be at peace. But now he didn't want to think because all he could think about was that Felicity was going to say no.

So to distract himself he started to workout. He started by working on the tire with the sledgehammer. He used the wall to do handstand push ups and finished it off by doing the salmon ladder, his all time favorite.

"I love watching you do that."

He was so immersed in his workout he didn't even hear her come in. She was still in her blue dress but she had let her hair down and had her glasses on. He continued to stare at her as he jumped down from the salmon ladder and picked up his shirt.

"Sorry I didn't think you would come this late so I decided to get a late night workout in." He put his shirt on as he saw Felicity looking him up and down. The sweat was still beading on his forehead and he could feel his heart beating. He couldn't tell if it was from the workout or the fact that he was so nervous about what Felicity was going to say. If he had to bet he would think it was the latter.

"Don't apologize. Like I said I like watching you do the salmon ladder." She smiled at him and walked closer to where he was standing. He could tell she had taken her heels off because she was only up to his chest where as earlier she was at least up to his shoulder. She looked completely relaxed which actually calmed him down as well. She had that effect on him.

Felicity

She did not feel calm at all. She was trying her best but on the inside she was freaking out. Oliver was shirtless and sweaty and was doing the salmon ladder. Saying what she wanted to say was hard enough but with him looking like this it was even harder. She could see the sweat dripping down his chest towards his abs and it took all her power to concentrate on anything besides that. So she walked over towards him and luckily he had already put his shirt back on.

"I thought about what you said and you're right this is my decision. I have to make it for myself and no one else." He nodded in agreement and stepped a little closer to her. She took another step as well and the distance between them was only an inch or two. She looked into his eyes and saw the love that he had for her reflecting in his them and she hoped he saw the same thing. "I love you Oliver Queen," she said with total certainty and with no fear whatsoever. She let what she had said sink in before she continued.

"You are stubborn, hotheaded, and sometimes a little crazy but I love you. You have changed my life in so many ways. You made me believe that I could be something better and actually make a difference." She had grabbed his hands and continued to look into his eyes to make sure he understand that she meant every single word. "You are a great man and I will continue to tell you that everyday and every moment until you believe it. You have made me so happy over these last couple of years. We have had our ups and downs but I wouldn't change it for anything. You have opened up my heart in a way I didn't even know was possible. So this was never really a choice Oliver. I pick you and this life we lead. I was just waiting for your stubborn ass to finally figure that out."

Oliver

In spite of everything he had put her through she loved him. He didn't think he had ever smiled so much in his life. He had a grin that went from ear to ear. Felicity Smoak the love of his life loved him back. At that moment he felt like the luckiest person on the planet.

"Isn't this the part where you're supposed to kiss me?" She sidled up closer to him her lips only inches from his and wrapped her arms around is waist.

Still with a smile on his face he said," I'm still kind of sweaty," but he put his hands on her cheeks and leaned down even further.

"I know it's amazing."

This was their moment and nothing could stop them from being together now, or so they thought. The silent alarm went off and they both heard footsteps getting closer and closer. It was 2am and the only other people that would come in knew the passcode so why was the silent alarm going off. On reflex Oliver immediately pulled Felicity behind him and grabbed a knife from the glass case and prepared for a fight. Nobody was going to hurt her they would have to through him first. He raised his arm and as he saw the shadow coming around the corner he prepared to release the knife in the intruders direction.