Well, here it is. The last part has arrived! I know I'm usually not much a talker but I'm going to take a minute to thank all of you who has been stuck with me and my story, supporting and cheering me and leaving me comments and opinions. Thank you all! But mostly, thanks to my beta youfixmybrokenwings for her amazing work, because without her, you probably wouldn't understand half of this story. I don't know If ever going to risk again to write an english story, but If I do, I hope all of you keep me company. You can follow me at if you want to know something in case I decide to write again. Thank you all again. See you!
Felicity closed her eyes and went back into the clinic. She was not going to be the one who interrupted them... on top of that, she wasn't willing to let them see how that kiss had affected her.
"Ray... Can you do me a favour?" She tried her voice sound as always.
Ray looked up from some papers he was reading. "Whatever you want."
"Can you go out and tell my sister and the other guy who is with her not to wait for me?"
Ray frowned. "Aren't you leaving?"
"I've changed my mind ... I'll stay to close the clinic with you."
Ray seemed find her change of heart strange, but finally went out to take the message to her sister without asking. He suspected that that talk with Felicity could go on for a long time...
He separated from Laurel a bit confused. That... that was not what was supposed to happen. Was that all? So many years waiting for that moment and... it was just that? He looked into her eyes... Oliver wasn't sure if he saw relief, nervousness, fear ... but he was totally sure that Laurel could see only disappointment in his.
He had come to town looking for something, and only when he finally kissed her, was when he realized that that "something" had long been dead.
He thought of Felicity and their kiss. That kiss was certainly much more special... more intense.
It's funny how something he had never thought of, something which came up suddenly, had penetrated deeper into him than a kiss that had been planned since his return... He almost dared to say that he had been waiting for it since he left.
Oliver ran a hand over his face. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry Laurel, I shouldn't have..."
"No! Don't say you sorry! This is something that had to happen... sooner or later had to happen."
Oliver looked at her trying to guess what was going through her mind at that moment, what she meant with those words... "had to happen?" He didn't know what that meant.
"Wait... Laurel ... I think I've confused you…" He scratched his head. "Or maybe I'm the one confused now..."
He closed his eyes and sighed, he had never been good with sincerity stuff.
He was silent for a few minutes and finally decided to speak. "What have you felt?"
"At first, when I saw you approaching... I was scared, very scared…" She wrinkled her nose. "But at the same time… I was looking forward to it, it was strange" Oliver raised his eyebrows, indicating her to continue. "But then... nothing… Nothing at all. Sorry, Oliver, but there's nothing between us anymore... we'd better accept it."
Oliver smiled... Being rejected was never nice... But he was happy with that answer. There was nothing anymore. It was the best he could have heard, he was convinced that he was now happier and calm than if both had felt in the sky with that kiss.
"We're a couple of idiots, you know?"
"Excuse me?"
Oliver smiled again. "Well, at least I've been an idiot... I've been living in an illusion, and I had to come back, find you and kiss you to realize that our path together ended too many years ago."
Laurel nodded. "These things happen. As I told you before, this moment was necessary so we could finally turn the page once and for all and continue with our lives."
"Sorry… Am I interrupting?"
Oliver turned and looked at the guy. Why every time he met someone knew in town, he automatically dislike him? This guy looked like a completely nerd, but Oliver knew better that trust in a first impression. No, no. He didn't like this guy. Not a bit.
"Who are you?"
Laurel grabbed his arm. "It's Ray, Felicity's partner... and a great friend too."
"We have some work in the clinic and Felicity asked me to come to say that you shouldn't wait for her."
Oliver frowned at him. "She said it wouldn't take long, she told me to wait for her."
Ray shrugged. "She changed her mind."
Oliver leaned against the car. "Well… I'll wait for her anyway, I'm not gonna let her go home alone."
"Don't worry, I'll go with her."
Didn't that guy speak English or what? He had decided to stay and wait for Felicity, and that idiot "friend" wasn't gonna change his mind.
"And who is going to come with me? You're about to punch each other just to escort Felicity but nobody cares about me, huh." Laurel joked.
"You know I would accompany you happily, but I still have to close..."
Laurel looked at Oliver. "What about you? Do you have to close too?"
Oliver sighed and opened the car door for her. Being a Big Head was only making him look ridiculous.
She was leaning on her desk with her head resting on her arms. She shouldn't feel that way. She COULDN'T feel that way. She had never allowed anyone to crash her walls down, not allowed anyone get to the bottom of her feelings... She shouldn't let that stupid blondie succeed now. She raised her head and sniffled, she was willing to have a crush on anyone... except him. That would be like betraying her sister... even more, betraying herself. Hadn't she hated him all her life? Things couldn't change that much in just one week.
"Felicity! What's wrong? You're crying…" Ray asked when he got back to the office.
Felicity stood up quickly and turned, mopping her face. "No."
"Don't try to fool me, I've known you for too long so you can't do it... Also, I know that you don't cry easily."
Felicity turned and looked at him. No tears... it was controlled and she wasn't going to cry anymore. "Where do you see the tears?"
Ray raised an eyebrow. "Really? You may not be crying right now, but you've been doing it just a moment ago." He stared at her for a few seconds. "Is this about the guy who was with Laurel? "
"I do not know!" She collected her things on the table. "I don't want to talk about it, Ray ... Neither him or anything related to him."
"It is not good that you keep it all in, sometimes it is good to talk about it."
Felicity approached to the door. "Don't insist, please..." She ran her hand across her forehead. "I'm going home... I'm really tired."
"Wait, I'll go with you. I don't want you to be walking alone so late."
"It is a small town, Ray... everybody knows me, nobody is going to kidnap me."
Felicity left the clinic and breathed deeply once she got to the street. She was overwhelmed, dejected... all she wanted was to get home, lock herself in her room and get into bed. Forget Oliver, Laurel and even herself, if that was possible.
"Thanks for bringing me home."
Oliver smiled. "You're welcome."
"Can I ask you something?" He nodded and she continued speaking. "I would like you to come to my wedding... I mean, if that doesn't make you feel uncomfortable...It would mean a lot to me."
Oliver laughed. "I told Felicity I would like to be your photographer... but she refused."
"Really? Do the photography, video and all that stuff? "
"Sure... that's a photographer's job."
Laurel smiled, thrilled with the idea. "That would be perfect! Our photographer dumped us the last minute!"
"I would be happy... but Felicity might not agree with the idea... Knowing her, she is likely to make a fuss. Don't you think?"
"Bah! She didn't want you there because she didn't know what could happen... As soon as you tell her there is nothing going on between us anymore, she won't be against this... Moreover, I am convinced that she will be glad to not have to go chasing you around all the time.. and I guess you're wishing the same."
Oliver lowered his head. Should he be wishing that? Maybe... after all, he had spent all week complaining about having Felicity following him as a shadow. He hadn't thought about the fact that as soon as the wedding ended, Felicity wouldn't be chasing him anymore. That idea wasn't attractive at all... Let her get rid of him a day sooner? No way... in one day things might change a lot and he wasn't going to miss that opportunity.
"Would you do me a favour?"
"Yeah, sure. What is it?"
"Don't tell Felicity what happened... not the kiss, nor that we have already clarified everything... okay?"
Laurel nodded slowly. "Okay... but I don't understand... why would you want to hide it?"
Oliver showed a small smile. "I don't know... I guess I've gotten used to having her yakking all day next to me... And if we tell her that there is nothing to worry about anymore, she won't come tomorrow for me..."
Laurel laughed. "Now I understand! Of course! How could you feel anything for me, if you are already whipped with..."
"No one!"
"Oh my God! You are really smitten!"
Oliver laughed. "You're a clown..."
"Why don't we tell the truth and you go for her, for a change?"
Oliver raised both eyebrows. You know me... the saying "If Mohammed will not go to the mountain, the mountain will go to Mohammed" is not for me... You just… don't tell her, okay? Please… It costs you nothing to help me..."
Laurel nodded smiling. "Okay, whatever you want." She left the car and spoke to him from outside before entering the house. "After all, we still going to end up being family!"
He started the car as he thought of Laurel's words. Was that so serious? Did he just admit to her something that he hadn't even admit to himself? No... his feelings wasn't that big… probably the next morning everything would be back where it belongs.. That night the emotions were skin deep and he was thinking nonsense.
He checked his watch and dropped his head back. It was almost lunchtime and he hadn't heard from Felicity all day. He had been waiting at home until nearly 11, usually she came for him earlier than that, so when he saw that she wouldn't appear, he went looking for her. But there was no sign of Felicity... She wasn't anywhere. All he knew was that she had awakened early and had left early, at least that was what Laurel had told him when he went to their home looking for her.
"Do you mind if I sit down to eat with you?"
"Are you stupid, Roy?" He pointed to a chair. "Of course I don't mind! We barely have been able to speak since I came back."
"Buff, I've been working butt... but I promise you, before you leave I'll call you again and we could talk calmly. By the way, when do you go? "
"I guess as soon as Laurel's wedding ends."
Roy looked at him as if he was crazy. "Are you planning on going to the wedding?"
"Sure, why wouldn't I?"
Roy rolled his eyes. "Because you wanted to steal the bride, for example?!"
"Everything is cleared up with Laurel." He shrugged. "Nothing happened."
Roy frowned at him. "How did "nothing happen"? So why did you come back?"
"Now I know that there's nothing... but before I came back, I didn't. If I hadn't come back, I would still think things should happen between us..."
"OK. OK! You're going to get me dizzy with so many "feelings" and "thinking" and "knowing"... Let's see, How have you realised that there is nothing between you anymore?"
"Because I kissed her."
Roy opened his eyes even more. "You kissed her?! You kissed my cousin? When?! How?! Where?!"
Oliver laughed. "Stop with the questions! I kissed her, and that's it. I'm not gonna tell you the details."
"Okay, okay, sorry... but you know... I have to worry, it's in my DNA...and she's about to get married… with a really good guy, I have to point out... Well, then you're leaving tomorrow?"
"Yes, probably. I don't have anything to do here."
"And why do you say it like that? What's wrong? Aren't you happy?
"What do you mean?"
"I don't know... You just detach yourself from something that had you tied for like... a thousand years. And now you can return to your home, with your people… right? Because after seven years out of this place I guess your people are the ones there... you can go back to your world without leaving anyone behind. However it seems that you're not happy with the idea."
He ran a hand across his forehead and closed his eyes. His people were out of town? He wasn't leaving anyone behind? Oliver sighed. That life that Roy was talking, didn't look much like his... Of course, he wasn't planning to stay there for life, he needed the bustle of the city, the hustle... in that small town he could die of boredom... but if he compared what he left here with what he had there, Oliver wasn't quite sure which way the balance would incline.
"Can you miss someone whom you don't care for?"
"If you don't care about a person, how are you going to miss them? That's nonsense," a new voice said.
Roy rolled his eyes. "Women... always getting into other people's conversations." He looked up to see the person who had intervened. "Who asked your opinion?"
"Wow! What a way to treat your girlfriend!" She smiled. "When it comes to conversations between you and your friends I can always give my opinion."
Oliver smiled. "Well, apparently, Roy, Thea continues to control and boss you around just like when we were fifteen."
"Nobody bosses me! Not now, not ever!"
"Honey, how naive you are... Women always do what we want with you men."
Roy looked at her defiantly. "Not with me."
"Oh, no? Tell me then, how you were doing my maths homework every day for over a year. Explain me, why were you doing that when by that time we were not even together..."
"Can we stop talking about the past?"
Thea looked at Oliver, smiling. "Now that he doesn't have a response, he changes the subject."
Roy decided to ignore her. "So tell us, Who is that person whom'll you miss?
Thea rolled her eyes. "You can't be more blind, my love. I think everyone has realised who that person is... and let me clarify to you: He's not going to miss her, he is already doing it."
"I don't understand. Do you miss anyone?"
"No, is not that... I had just gotten used to her company," Oliver glanced at the clock. "I don't know what would have happened to her today, she didn't come to pick me up..."
"But who?!"
"Felicity, honey! Felicity!"
Roy looked at Oliver surprised. "Have you fallen in love with Felicity? MY Felicity? MY COUSIN Felicity? What the hell happened to you with my cousins?! Do you know there are more women on the earth apart from those who share my DNA?"
"No! I haven't fallen in love with anyone!"
"Liar…"
Oliver was beginning to feel upset. "Why do you exaggerate things so much? I'm just saying that I find strange not to have Felicity with me all day, and a second later you're talking about love."
Thea frowned at him. "I don't know why you insist on denying it, I..." Roy's cell phone started to ring, interrupting them.
"Sorry," he looked at the screen, "it's a message from work."
Oliver worried. "Is something wrong?"
Roy shook his head. "Nothing important... I think." He got up and put on his jacket. "But I have to go." Before leaving he turned and looked at Oliver. "Don't you dare to leave without coming to tell me about this!"
When they were alone, Thea attacked again. "So?"
"So? What?"
"Aren't you planning to do anything?"
"Stop bugging me, Thea. Can we talk about something else?"
"Okay, but only one thing before that." Oliver looked at her waiting for her to finish. "You came back to town looking for someone you thought was important to you... because you thought you loved her. Are you going to leave empty handed just because the identity of that person has changed? It doesn't matter if it is Laurel, Felicity, Luna or Merry... If you really want her, fight to get her."
Oliver got up. "The point is that I don't know what I feel."
"Well, my advice? You have to find out the answer to that soon... or you may not be able to get her in the end."
She dropped onto the bed, if it could be called a bed, and sighed, covering her eyes with her arm. How could she be so unlucky? If the previous day was terrible this was not far behind... What had started as a small and innocent protest to prevent a small park being built up into a commercial area had ended in a kind of pitched battle. And the worst is that they all blame her! Felicity didn't know how, but she had ended up locked up at the police station. She rose, resigned, and went to the bars. She was in a really bad mood, but she knew that if she wanted to get something useful, being friendly was a necessity.
"John! Can you come here?"
Digg came with a very unfriendly face, and looked at her sternly a couple of steps from the cell.
"Do not try to win me over! It doesn't matter how well I know you, I'll treat you like any other criminal."
Felicity's eyes widened. He was calling her "criminal"? That was it. The desire to be kind, at first already slim, was now replaced by a terrible desire to get an arm through the bars and break his face. That jerk!
"Criminal! Tell me! What I have done to you for you to lock me here?!"
Digg raised an eyebrow. "You better ask me what you haven't done... Do you want me to start listing your great deeds today?"
"If all your cops are so yielding that they can't bring order, it's not my problem." She kicked at the bars. "Let me go!"
"I'm going to leave you there until I see you more calm."
"You can't just lock me here!"
"Can't I? I'm the captain here."
Felicity, deciding she was not going to get anything, went on to her next target.
"Roy! Tell him he is abusing his authority, tell him to get me out of here."
But Roy wasn't feeling cooperative. "After what you've done, I'll throw away the key of that cell in the nearest well... Do you know how bad I'm going to look in the wedding photos with this face?!"
Felicity was outraged. "You two are going to get yourself in a lot of trouble, you idiots! I know my rights! Give me a phone! I want to make my call, someone will have to come get me."
Digg shook his head. "Don't worry about it, I've already made the call for you."
Felicity rolled her eyes. "What did Laurel say when you told her that I was here?"
Digg turned and started toward his office. "I never said I called Laurel."
Felicity saw him go into the office and shut the door, so she sat back on the bed. Digg hadn't called Laurel? Well, then, maybe, he called Sara... That was preferable because Laurel would be attacked by wedding nerves, if it finally was a wedding...because after what she saw between her and Oliver the night before, Felicity was expecting anything… and because she wasn't feeling herself this morning, she had woken up early and had gone to the protest saying only a simple "Goodbye, I'll be back later" to Laurel, instead of having a very needed conversation.
She leaned back and closed her eyes, trying to be patient and wait for Sara.
Knowing her, it would take her at least a couple of hours to get there, maybe more if she got distracted talking to all the people who crossed her in her way to the station. Sara had been out for a long time and probably everyone would want to catch up with her... But Felicity was wrong, not more than ten minutes after Digg left her alone, she heard at the entrance the voice belonging to the person who had come to pick her up.
She sat, startled, when she recognized his voice and, for the umpteenth time that day, a terrible desire to crush Digg's head against the wall filled her. Or that giant idiot called Oliver, or what she felt toward him was very VERY serious and she was starting to have hallucinations... If she had to be honest, Felicity didn't know which of the two options was worse.
She got up and walked to the bars to watch them. Okay, she wasn't hallucinating, Oliver was with Digg and certainly he hadn't come for some car fine... She looked down to her clothes and shoes... all muddy, she was all muddy, including her hair. Great, besides the embarrassment of being "prey", she looked like a vagrant.
"Have you already calmed down or do I have to leave you here even longer?" John spoke from the hallway.
Felicity looked at him annoyed. "Why did you call him?! You should have called my sisters!"
"Because Laurel would have had convulsions and Sara would have flayed you for doing that to her. Oh, well… on a second thought, maybe we should have called them, Digg..." Roy said vengefully, rubbing his split lip.
Digg rolled his eyes. "I didn't want to bother them with nonsense like this..." He looked seriously. "In addition, I remind you that you are not able to request anything after your behaviour."
"My behaviour! I repeat that I haven't done anything!"
"You hit a cop! Which it happens to be your cousin, and that's not counting what you did to me..."
"That's a lie! He stumbled and fell."
"And then you fought with him in the mud."
Oliver laughed, causing all, Roy, Felicity and Digg, looked at him menacingly. Of course this was anything but funny for any of them.
Felicity attacked. "Have you come here to laugh? Because if that's what you are looking for, you can leave right now, Queenie."
"The one who decides who goes or who stays, is me," Digg said.
Felicity mocked him. "The one who decides who goes or who stays, is me." She muttered, "What an idiot..."
"You keep it that way and you'll see how this ends, Felicity!"
"Oh! I'm so scared..."
Digg pointed at his eye. "Look! Did you see what you did to my eye? Hitting the authority is a felony! So drop all this act... I can still take legal actions for contempt."
"You should have done it already." Roy said.
Felicity pulled her fist. "You see this? I can still match your faces."
Digg huffed heavily trying to compose himself. He didn't want to overdo things, but if he kept talking to Felicity, she would end up seriously arrested. He raised his hands and turned to Oliver.
"All yours... my patience has reached its limit."
Oliver waited for Digg to leave before talking. "So... you're coming with me?"
"Don't even dream about it!"
"Is something wrong? Yesterday everything was alright... and now..."
"Yesterday was yesterday and today is today! And I don't want to be with you! So get out and leave me alone."
"I'm not leaving. Who's gonna get you out of here if you cast me out?"
"That's not your problem."
Oliver sighed, he didn't understand Felicity's behaviour... Things couldn't change that much in one night... Not without a reason... And he knew that nothing happened that could have changed her attitude that way.
"Are you going to be this morose all day?"
"That's not your business. I won't be with you, so if I am or I am not morose it doesn't matter to you."
Oliver realized that talk to her was like talking to a wall. "Okay, fine, you want to stay here? Perfect, I won't move a finger to help you out." He turned around ready to leave. "I'll tell your cousin to bring you some blankets for you to sleep more comfortably."
Felicity bit hard her fist to stop a scream. She was feeling cramped up like never before. Being locked up, discussing with Oliver... everything was too much and she wouldn't take much more. If she wasn't so stubborn and proud... She tried to calm down, she need to seem normal, pretend that that kiss she had witnessed between Oliver and Laurelnhadn't meant anything to her... It was like… like when she saw Roy and Thea together. She felt nothing... so… with Laurel and Oliver it had to be the same.
Felicity hit her head against the bars and looked through them. She looked at Roy. He was tall, like Oliver. He was handsome, like Oliver. He had nice eyes, like Oliver. It was nice and polite... like Oliver. Why couldn't she like him? Okay, because she was his cousin, but what about Digg? She put her hands to her face and shook her head. Was she sick? First, she falls in love with the eternal love of her sister, and now she was trying to feel things for a lifelong friend's boyfriend. What the hell was wrong with her?! Being locked between those four walls for so long was starting to affect her head... She had to get out by any means, but if that involved going with Oliver... she would end up going crazy.
Felicity walked two steps ahead of him and had not spoken since they left the police station. It was late afternoon, almost evening, it was cold and it looked like it was about to start raining at any moment. What was he doing following Felicity when she didn't even deign to look at him? He should forget it and go home... but he couldn't. He couldn't leave her during any of the days he had spent in the village when her mere presence grated on him, so he couldn't leave her now when what he wanted was to be with her.
"Are you going to be quiet all the way? We've been walking almost half an hour like this..."
Felicity didn't stop to look at him. "I haven't asked you to come with me. If you get bored you can go."
"I do not want to leave."
Felicity shrugged. "Well, do what you want... but don't ask me to talk when I don't want to."
"Things have to be really bad to make you stay quiet for so long," he joked. "Don't you feel you're going to explode any minute?"
Felicity turned slightly and looked him. "I'm not up for jokes."
Oliver sat on a bench in the promenade. "Come, sit. Why don't you tell me what's wrong?"
"Because nothing's wrong... I have a bad day, that's all."
"Don't you dare to tell me this is for the incident with the police because I don't believe you... This is not the first time that you end up at the police station."
"But this time is different! It was unfair!"
Oliver laughed. "You hit Roy and Digg!"
"Because they started it!"
Felicity crossed her arms with a pouty face and stared, watching Oliver have fun.
"Do you remember the first time they locked you up? Like today, it was me who had to get you out so your parents didn't find out."
Felicity showed a small smile. "Laurel sent you, didn't she?"
"She freaked out! And let me tell you that that time it really wasn't your fault... it was that boyfriend you had. What was his name? "
"Cooper."
Oliver snapped his fingers. "Cooper! What an idiot... What did he do?"
"Pfft... I can't remember. I only know that I always followed him around. Well, I have to admit that sometimes I was the mastermind of those terrible ideas..."
"I don't know which of the two would come up with the ideas... but what I know for sure is that he was a jerk." He shut up for a moment. "Now that I think about it, the other boyfriends you had were also a peculiar variety of characters... Where did you find them?"
Felicity smiled. "No idea... I think they were the ones who found me..." She looked. "You know? Cooper was my first."
Oliver raised an eyebrow. "Your first? In what sense?"
Felicity looked at him opening her eyes and began to blush when she understood the implications of that question.
"Don't be rude!"
Oliver laughed hard. "You made it so easy... I had to ask! And be thankful that I did it delicately..."
"What it is is that you are sick!" She rose from the bench. "You always have to bring everything to that topic or what?"
"It's just that you're so bashful ... you have to take these things more normally."
"I don't see what's "normal" in talk about my experiences... of my life... Of those things!"
Oliver cried with laughter. "Talk about sex! Can't you even say it?"
Felicity watched him sitting on the bench and shrugging of laughter that had invaded him. It was THAT funny to him? A few days ago she had been angry with him for a similar situation, but right now she was feeling the urge to laugh with him.
"Do not be such a clown."
Oliver calmed down. "Okay. But the answer is yes or no?"
"To what?"
Oliver rolled his eyes. "To Cooper."
Felicity laughed. "Stop it!"
"Is that a yes?" He made a face. "What a bad taste Felicity! With him? Surely you had better wooers."
"I haven't confirmed or denied it!"
"Come on! Tell me about it!" Felicity shook her head laughing. "It's not fair! You do know who was my first girl in that sense."
"Not because I wanted..."
"You can't leave me now with this doubt... if I don't sleep tonight it will be your fault, you know?"
Felicity could not stop laughing. "Could you stop being an idiot? This is ridiculous…"
Oliver nodded briefly. "A little bit..." He looked at her. "But I'm having a really good time."
Felicity smiled. "Me too." She extended a hand to help him up. "Can we take another stroll? I don't want to go home so soon."
Oliver nodded and took her hand to stand up. He stayed close to her, standing and still clutching the hand of Felicity. That was his Felicity, the one who blushed over trifles, who laughed and talked nonstop. He couldn't understand how he could have missed her so much all morning and how in just five days she had become so essential in his life.
"Hi," he whispered.
Felicity frowned confused. "Hi?" She laughed quietly. "What's wrong?"
"Can't I say hello to you?"
"Yes... but not after nearly an hour. I had already felt greeted although you hadn't said "Hello" before."
"Well... It wasn't you before."
"Laughter has affected your mind?"
Oliver shook his head. "The Felicity I know is this... the one before it wasn't you."
"You barely know me."
Oliver shrugged "I don't care… the little I've seen it's enough to me."
He raised his free hand and stroked her cheek. Now he knew clearly what happened to him with her, the same way he knew that he wasn't going to let her go. It was ridiculous, he knew that he loved her and they had really known each other just for one week... However, every moment he spent with her, he was more convinced of his feelings.
Felicity closed her eyes and sighed nervously, feeling the caress on her face. She didn't understand Oliver's behaviour. After what she saw last night, she had finally convinced herself that he felt nothing for her, yet now he was acting like that... "The little he had seen was enough?" She wasn't sure what that meant... Was it good? She preferred not to think... It was much more interesting to get carried away by what she felt.
She put her arm around Oliver's waist and landed on his back, stuck herself to him and sighed again, opening her eyes. Felicity found his eyes looking at her carefully, like if he want to memorise every detail of her face. In any other situation that had bothered her, at this time instead, it seemed normal and natural. It felt good, comfortable... She wouldn't mind if he looked at her that way forever. Moreover, she wished he would like to look at her every day.
"I've missed you... I needed your company."
Felicity went blank. She always had an answer for everything and at that time it seemed that the words had vanished. She tried to say something nice, something according to what he had said... but definitely, it was impossible.
"Will you let me do something? I need to check something. "
"What?"
"Will you let me kiss you?"
Felicity stood motionless and silent. Deep down, from the moment he got up and said that "Hello", she knew he would end up kissing her. What she hadn't imagined was that he was to ask permission before. She wanted to laugh. Was she stupid? She wanted to kiss him and all she would get if she opened her mouth was laugh. She could answer "yes", "no", I don't know"... but laugh? That was typical of a crazy person... Oliver waited no longer for an answer and got closer, kissing her.
That was definitely what it must feel like with a kiss.
The night before with Laurel was all completely different... it was like if nothing had happened. However, with Felicity it was all perfect. Now he understood everything. He had spent seven years thinking he was in love with someone, and that was the reason why no other girl succeeded on getting deeper into him... He was wrong. Oliver stopped loving Laurel a long time ago... probably when he left town he wasn't already in love with her. If you care about someone, you are unable to leave and leave them behind... If he hadn't found anyone else during those years it was simply because the right person hadn't shown up.
Until now.
He had loved Laurel, had been in love with her all her adolescence, but Oliver was completely sure that he loved Felicity even more. And this time, that love isn't going to end.
When Oliver had kissed her two days ago, she hadn't expected it. Neither the kiss nor what she felt. And that's the reason why she hadn't given it more importance, she decided to take things as they were, a simple kiss and nothing else. Now it was different, now she knew that this meant too much for her and probably not so much to him... And that frightened her. She wasn't willing to risk suffering for anyone, and she was convinced that if she went ahead with this, everything was going to end very badly. It was impossible to replace what her sister was once to Oliver and she wouldn't settle for less than what she was willing to give... And, in that instant, she would give everything.
She put her hands on Oliver's chest and pushed gently to separate from him. She realized they were wet. When it had started to rain? Neither of them had noticed it... Oliver managed to make her escape from the world... that, of course, was anything but something good.
He opened his eyes and looked at her.
Felicity avoided meeting his gaze. "I... I have to go."
"What? Why do you have to go? "
She took a couple of steps away. "No, this," she pointed between them, "I don't want..."
He tried to think of something to hold her, to clarify things and confess everything he felt… but he didn't have time. She turned and ran away from him.
She was barely able to sleep all night. She hadn't even looked in the mirror that morning, but she was sure that she looked like a ghost… It was great, the wedding day and she seemed to have a hangover. Luckily, Laurel had a shipment of makeup... Felicity will pray to make a miracle with them and look like an ordinary person. She left her room and walked across the small hallway that separated from Laurel's room.
"Laurel?"
"Felicity! I was about to go to get you! I'm soooo nervous ... I have the feeling that we forget something important, or that something will go wrong. What if I fall down the aisle? I'll die of shame! You know I'm very clumsy ... and the dress train is very long, I'm going to stumble and fall flat on my face in front of all the guests... I should have bought the other dress I tried! It was simpler...
She kept walking from one side to another and exaggeratedly moving her hands as she spoke. Felicity sat at the end of the bed and watched her. She hadn't said anything about Oliver, or about them together, or what was going on with her... but seeing her so nervous and yet so excited about her wedding, Felicity knew that that story with Oliver was completely over to Laurel. That calmed her a bit, but she didn't want to delude because that wasn't a confirmation that she no longer meant anything to him... At least she could stop feeling guilty for having these feelings.
"Are you okay?" Laurel asked, seeing her so quiet.
Felicity nodded. "Yes ... Can we talk?"
"If we're quick. yes. I don't want to leave Tommy waiting."
"Are you sure you want to take this step? A wedding is something important ... I know I've talked to you many times about this issue, I have repeated ad nauseam what a good person Tommy is and how much he loves you... But basically the only one who can make this decision is you, and if you don't want to do it, it doesn't make sense..."
Laurel broke her off. "I'm absolutely certain, more than ever..."
"What about Oliver?"
Laurel smiled. "I don't know... You tell me."
Felicity rose from the bed. "Me? How should I know what's happening between you two?"
"Not between us. I'm asking about you two." Felicity turned and began to tinker with the bottles on the dressing table. "Are you interested in him?"
Felicity kept her back to her. "If I'm interested in Oliver? Please Laurel, don't say stupid things."
"He loves you."
Felicity turned and looked at her, deadly serious. "That's a lie. He loves you and you know it."
Laurel rose from the bed and sat in front of the mirror. "Me? Felicity you're completely wrong..." She picked up a hairbrush. "Could you brush my hair?"
Felicity took the brush and began to pass it through her sister's beautiful hair. "I'm not wrong."
"He loves you."
"Did he tell you that?"
"Well, not with those words exactly..."
"Well, he told me more than once that he loves you... and literally."
"Five days can change a lot of things."
"Yes, of course... in five days things change so much that he will forget you to notice me."
Laurel looked at her through the reflection in the mirror and smiled. "That means that you do love him."
"Don't change the conversation!"
"Why don't you tell him later?"
"Don't be silly. I don't want to make the biggest mistake of my life... I know what he feels about me and what he feels for you. I don't intend to change it… Also, later when? Is he coming or what?"
"Yeah, He's the photographer."
"What?! You are crazy!"
"Why? I needed a photographer, he is one... Where is the problem?"
"The problem is that in the part where the priest asks if anyone is opposed to that marriage, instead of doing his work Oliver will be raising his hand."
"Don't be silly! I repeat: he loves you."
Felicity dropped the brush and covered her face with her hands. "Can we talk about something else? It's impossible to reach an agreement in this."
Laurel agreed. "Okay, let's change the subject... but he loves you." She stuck her tongue out as a joke.
"Stop it Laurel!"
A noise from the door interrupted them. Felicity looked through the mirror reflection and wanted to disappear at that moment. Couldn't he leave town and leave her alone? She didn't want to see him, or want to listen him... She wanted to forget all about him, but no, Oliver seemed determined to not allow her.
"Can I come in?"
"You're already inside. Why you ask?"
"Felicity, please!" Laurel stood up and approached him. "Of course you can come..."
Felicity walked to the window and start looking out onto the street. She wasn't going to talk... She didn't know why Oliver was there, but if he wanted to talk to her he would find a wall of silence.
"Why have you come?" Laurel asked.
"Tomorrow... I'm leaving tomorrow..."
She made a great effort not to turn around and look at him... He was leaving? Well, what did she expect? She always knew that Oliver would leave sooner than later... it was logical. What she wasn't expected was how much affected her.
"... And I don't want to make the same mistake that I made seven years ago. I'm leaving, but I want to do it with the person I love."
Felicity closed her eyes. That was the last she could bear. Was he declaring his love to her sister in front of her? She almost preferred that he had made a cataclysmic entrance in the middle of the ceremony and dragged the bride... At least that way she could conceal better her disappointment.
But no. She wouldn't stay there to hear that. As they say: three's a crowd, and if someone remained in that room, it was her.
"I better go... this is your..." She turned and was speechless when she saw they were alone. "Where is Laurel?"
Oliver shrugged "She left. There was no point on her being here."
"How do...?" She looked at him totally confused. "What did you come?"
"I just told you." Seeing that Felicity was silent. "I've come for you."
Felicity was watching him, completely serious. Was she hearing properly? She had to be misunderstanding, that was impossible.
"And Laurel?"
"I've already told you! She left because..."
Felicity cut him off. "I don't mean that. What about Laurel?"
"Nothing, nothing happened with Laurel."
Felicity opened her eyes, feeling like she was hallucinating. How could he be so... shameless? She'd seen them together the other day... And he dare to deny it!
"I saw you! I don't know what you pretend with this... Make fun of me or something?"
Oliver approached her and took her hand. "No! That's the last thing I ever wanted!"
Felicity took her hand back and looked at him really disappointed. "Please... you're laughing at the two of us. One night you kiss one and the next you kiss the other. What is it? A tasting to see who's best? Some sort of weird contest?"
"You are unfair."
"Unfair! You're playing with both of us but I'm unfair!"
"I'm not playing with anyone, Felicity."
"Why did you kiss me then?"
"Because I love you!"
Felicity turned around and took a deep breath. She didn't know whether to believe him and run to him or kick him in the ass for being such a fool.
Oliver put a hand on her shoulder. "Could you get to love me?"
She kept showing him her back, Felicity knew that if she turned around, only with his gaze he could make anything he wanted with her... and she didn't want, she didn't want to budge. She was starting to convince herself that he was being honest, at least he was saying what he thought he felt... The point was that he was probably confused. This was something temporary. As soon as she said yes, that she loved him, they wouldn't spend more than two days together. He would realize that his feelings were something very far from love...
"I don't want to continue this conversation."
"Felicity... please... Please, I need you to answer me."
She turned and looked into his eyes, trying to stay calm.
"I already love you."
Oliver grinned. That was all that mattered to him, all he had wanted to hear since he entered the room. Now he wouldn't stop until he had her by his side.
"No... don't get excited." She said seeing his smile. "I love you, but I don't want to be with you."
"I... I don't... I don't understand! Felicity... If I love you and you love me... Where is the problem? We should be happy and together... not here... arguing."
"The problem is that I know that you don't love me. You love Laurel."
Oliver closed his eyes. "That's over… I don't feel anything for her. Not anymore." He cupped her face with his hands. "Trust me, please. I love you... Only you... and I love you more than I ever loved anyone, more than I loved her."
"That's impossible... your story with her was very strong..."
Oliver smiled. "My story with her is over... Now I want to start a story with you... and I promise it will be better."
He was so sincere... Felicity could see it written all over his face. She couldn't help but believe him.
She grabbed his neck and kissed him.
"A better story?"
Oliver smiled again and nodded. "It will always be a better story." He raised a hand, palm towards her. "I promise."
Felicity laughed and kissed him again.
She did not know if it would last long or not, nor did she know how it would be her life from now on... but as Oliver had said, she was sure that everything would be better with him.