Hello again lovelies! This chapter is inspired by a scene in the "The Iron Fey" book series by the awesome Julie Kagawa. It is a long chapter to make up for the absence of updates lately and also what happens when I'm trying my best to ignore my studies.

Thanks so much to everyone for the constant support and reviews/faves/follows.

I hope you enjoy this one and I'd prepare a toothbrush (to handle all the sweetness) if I were you.

I am sadly obliged to inform you that I don't own anything or anyone.

The first time Felicity had said the words to Oliver took place on a relatively normal day. They had been together for six months at the time and neither one of them had cared to put what they felt in common terms or words. They hadn't even bothered with defining their relationship to the world; because the words girlfriend/boyfriend sounded too insignificant and the words partners/lovers too cheesy and at times too heavy. So, on they went being just Oliver and Felicity. Best friends. Colleagues. A Billionaire and his assistant. But most importantly; together.

It stayed that way between them for so long that Felicity didn't even question it anymore. At least, not in the way she had done a few months prior when doubts and questions crept into her mind so late at night while his arms were drawn around her waist and her head rested against his chest. Back then, the doubts -and the insecurities- stabbed her so hard she couldn't breathe. What if he's not here when I wake up. What if he goes back to Laurel. What if he never loves me. And on and on the thoughts went. So ugly and persistent that she had to get out of bed at times. But in the morning when Felicity woke up with Oliver still next to her, his arms tighter around her than the night before, the doubts would slowly fade away and she'd breathe easily again.

At some point the dark thoughts had stopped keeping her up at night and when Oliver gave her a secret smile or touched her hand briefly in passing, she'd allow herself the small thrill of knowing that he was hers and that she did not need a silly title to make that official. Nor did she need those three little words. Not a tiny bit. Not even at all. She'd think.

The day the words sprang to her lips for the first time, she had bitten down on her lip so hard she drew blood. It was during a mission and over the comms. Oliver had been literally fighting for his life alongside Diggle and the two men had finally made it out but just barely.

"Felicity? Send the signal to Harper. Get us out of here." He had said gruffly and she felt tears springing to her eyes. He was alive after she'd been on the edge of losing him and the three words had never seemed so tempting to say, but she knew that she shouldn't. Not now and not this way. She bit down on her lip as she pressed a few buttons. She took a deep breath, then finally answered him.

"Done. And Oliver?"

"Yes?"

"Scare me like that again and I'll kill you myself." The only response she got was Diggle's snort and Oliver's quiet sigh.

The second time Felicity wanted to whisper the words against his lips, was at a charity their company held. The guests had been mingling around and chattering Oliver for the past hour and Felicity had finally managed to draw him aside for a few minutes.

"This making an appearance stuff is getting silly and those heels are killing me," She had complained to him. "Exactly how long is this thing going to last?" At the time she was just getting used to being Oliver Queen's "girlfriend" and the attention was taking its toll on her. "I'm also hungry."

"There's food, you can eat." He said with a twitch of his lips. No doubt anticipating her response.

"You call THAT food? It's more like cat bites or whatever. It's like something that's only pretending to be food." She had exclaimed and Oliver laughed. The sound had been so warm and new to her ears that she momentarily forgot her annoyance.

"Have some of it now and we'll slip out in half an hour to have real dinner," He bargained tactfully "I promise."

The offer satisfied Felicity and she nodded reluctantly then stopped a passing waiter. "What's this?" The man started giving an elaborate wording of some foreign food, and Felicity cut him off with a sheepish smile. "Just tell me, does it have peanuts in it?" The last thing she needed was for her allergic reaction to make a guest appearance.

"None of the foods offered tonight have peanuts or their derivatives in them, ma'am." The man answered patiently. "Mr. Queen has specifically ordered that."

For some reason, the statement had hit Felicity so hard she couldn't manage a response. Did he really specify that for her or was it something else entirely? The embarrassed, almost bordering on nervous, look on Oliver's face told her everything she needed to know. Her stomach suddenly felt too full with butterflies to eat anything and she thanked the waiter then turned back to her boss.

"Did you..?" She had asked with a shy smile and Oliver's eyes softened.

"You did mention it once," He cleared his throat. "A long time ago. And I thought you'll want to eat at some point so.." He trailed of with a shrug and another sweet smile that only she got to see.

In that very moment and for that one silly little incident, Felicity had felt a jolting rush of affection for the man standing next to her. She had wanted to stand on tiptoes -although she had heels on- and kiss him. She had wanted to tell him just how ridiculously sweet she thought he was. But most of all, she had wanted to confess that she was maybe falling in love with him even harder than before. And that she never wanted to stop.

Still she had said nothing and settled for kissing his cheek then keeping hold of his hand for the rest of the night.

Many times after that had led the words to her lips. She brushed them off just as many because she knew that despite what he might feel for her, Oliver Queen was not ready yet to return the words back. She had accepted that fact and decided to live with it. He'd come to trust her with his heart so completely as to say them one day -but until that happens, she'll simply have to wait.

And so she did wait. For six months she waited. Always holding the words in. Always making a game of the many different ways she could say them without really saying them. Until the day she finally gave in and let the words loose.

Surprisingly enough, the world did not end that day. And not so surprisingly Oliver hadn't said the words back.

It had been at the end of a normal day -according to their standards- while they laid down in bed. Their limps were entangled and Felicity rested her head on the pillow a few inches from his. It had been a tiring day with another one of Felicity's rare field missions and Oliver had been so worried earlier that it resulted in him crushing Felicity in a desperate hug when she came back intact. The effects of the mission followed them home and when Felicity went to sleep next to him, Oliver had turned to face her and rested one arm under her waist while he moved a hand gently against her back. He smoothed her hair and ran his hand up and down her spine until the movement started lulling her to sleep. With heavy eyelids she had looked up at him and seen the strong emotion shinning through his eyes.

"Felicity?" His voice sounded lost like a little boy's. His eyes shone with emotions. "What you did today. You can't do that again. Please. I need you to be safe. To stay with me. I can't afford to lose you. You have to promise to never act outside the plan. I won't ask you to never do a mission again; I know you'll refuse. But.. Next time, even if we lose the target and even if it compromises the mission, your first priority is your own safety."

Felicity had wanted to argue that she had gotten them the man they needed and that she had done the right thing, but the desperation in Oliver's eyes and the heaviness in her own had stopped her. The now familiar rush of emotions didn't help much either.

"Fine," She stroked his face and he let out a small sigh. "I promise." Felicity closed her eyes and his hand returned to stroking her back. Her eyes sprang open and she felt the decision forming in her mind plus the helplessness at stopping the words just as her lips moved.

"Oliver?"

"Mmm?"

"... I love you."

His hand stilled. She felt him tremble. "I know," he said softly, resting a kiss against her forehead. "Get some sleep. You certainly earned it."

His deep voice was the last thing she heard before falling asleep.

After that something had shifted between them. Oliver's smiles came a little easier than before, and his emotions seemed more on display for her. At the lair he stopped being The Arrow even with his hood on and started being just Oliver. It didn't matter if the green paint still smudged his eyes or if his T-shirt was dampened with sweat from training; when he caught Felicity's eyes, an invisible door opened and Oliver's features seemed softer, happier and a little bit younger. She always committed those shifts to memory.

Felicity had stopped holding back when the words hammered at her lips. She didn't say them too often, or often at all if she was being honest, but when she most felt like telling him, she'd softly whisper an "I love you" and watch as his eyes filled with awe. And she appreciated those awestruck looks so much that she started looking forward to them and forgot about the words not being returned.

Until the day he had allowed the words to pass his lips and she realized just how much she had yearned for them. Just how musical and meaningful they sounded on his lips. And just how delicious they tasted against her own.

The day Oliver Queen had finally admitted his love to Felicity Smoak was the day her heart had soared so high she thought she might lose it to the clouds. It was the day she thought the world would truly end, although again it didn't, and the one where her worries were silenced once and for all.

That day Oliver had made himself a vow and Felicity a promise. The words that clawed at him for so long were released and he knew that in years to come they'd only ring truer the more times he said them.

He had thought that he'd never make himself so vulnerable as to love again. He had thought that his heart was too damaged for that sort of emotion to blossom in it. And most of all he had feared the inevitable heartache that would follow if he let himself feel that way. But then Felicity came and he had no choice but to feel love -even when he wouldn't allow the slightest trace of that word to make it to his lips.

He had thought the words so many times that it scared him. And he had thought them at the silliest of times, like that one time where she smiled at him in an office meeting or the time where she stood up to him for taking it out on Diggle. And the day she had said I love you he had trembled with the effort of not returning the words.

Oliver had decided that when he finally tells Felicity that he loves her, he'd make it worth the wait and her patience.

It didn't occur to him that the words would slip before he had the time to register what was happening. And he most definitely didn't think that it'd happen in their little kitchen with Felicity's laughter coloring her cheeks pink. Especially not when she was laughing at him for burning their popcorn and claiming that he could burn water if he attempted boiling it.

"You're terrible," She said jokingly. "what are we going to have now with the movie?"

"We can order something," He smiled sheepishly. "or just go to a theater."

"What theater is open at one in the morning, Oliver?" She rolled her eyes and it drew another smile out of him. These days his smiles came to him too easily and the lines around his eyes were threatening to turn into laughter lines.

"I don't know, you're the know-it-all in this relationship." Her raised eyebrows urged him to tease her further.

"So, that's the reason you're keeping me around?" She returned playfully.

"No. I do that because I love you."

And just that easily, the words were out. No commotion, no candles, no build-up. Nothing. Just them, their little kitchen and a burnt pot of popcorn as their only witness. And yet it felt right in how easily it slipped and the lights in Felicity's eyes made up for what a hundred candles could have supplied.

That day was the day Oliver had fallen in love a little deeper with Felicity Smoak and the day he vowed to never leave her side. It was also the day he was assured that his love for her would only grow and take roots in his heart the more time passed.

"What did you say?" She had slowly asked but the lights dancing in her eyes had told him that she heard him perfectly. He smiled.

"I said that I love you."

"Again." She demanded then came a few steps closer; her lips smiling and a ghost of a breath away from his.

"I love you."

"..I know." Her triumphant smile lasted only as long as it took for him to kiss her.

A/N: For some strange reason, I'm really fond of this chapter and I really reallyyy hope you guys liked it. I wanted to give more to Oliver's POV but the chapter was getting too long and I felt that no matter the original plans, Oliver is't the type to make an ordeal out of a love deceleration. But if you think otherwise then I'd love to hear why so!

Thanks sooo much for reading and I'd love to hear what you think of the chapter. Honestly, did you like it or should I stop trying my had on fluff and go back to me beloved angst?

Tell me what you think of this chapter. Review!

P.S: Go vote for Olicity in PCA awards and let's show the writers how big and strong we are. Maybe we'll get an Olicity kiss then. GO! (but review first ahem)