Segment Summary: Before their reunion in Watchtower, Chloe and Oliver consider their relationship, the time had passed, and where they go from here.
Segment Timeline: Collateral

Mine Again

There's a place I used to go
There's a world I used to know
There was a light and it was you
Every word I say is true

She almost couldn't go inside right now. This place, this building, it used to define her. It was her quiet haven away from the chaos of the world, or rather, her personal prison that Oliver had tried to break her free from. His plan did work, although Chloe doubted that those were the circumstances that he wanted her to take a break from Watchtower. That was because, in the end, she made the call to flee her familiar walls and to this moment, she didn't regret anything. But as she stood still in front of the main doors, feeling the wind blow her hair violently, Chloe remembered who she used to be, of how the world was once waiting for her to venture outside.

And she did. It was a decision that caused Chloe to learn more about herself than she ever would have guessed. The best part of being off the grid was that she could still have an active part in saving the world and not have it fall flat on her face. The fact that part of her plan worked out without too many hiccups brought her comfort even in the toughest of days.

However, she still had to face him after all this. Escaping from the VRA was one thing, but as the dust settled on their lives, and there wasn't a imminent threat to end the world as they knew it, this was the part of the relationship that always scared her.

When Chloe told Oliver that she loved him, it was supposed to feel like a reward for all the time they had spent questioning how real their relationship was. Granted, it could have also been meant as reassurance for him to keep fighting at the time, but Chloe shook that idea aside right away. She knew she meant those three little words. But she also knew that her relationship with Oliver wasn't that simple, not then, and especially not since he revealed his identity.

Yet she entered the building, with less second-guessing as she approached the elevator, taking only a deep breath before entering it. Chloe knew that she had some explaining to do, she owed Oliver that much, but it couldn't happen at the Kent farm, even if Oliver's situation with the law was less complicated. He couldn't hear the same reasoning she gave to Clark and Lois, because it didn't really apply to him. After all, there was only one person she had traded herself for.

As the elevator ascended, her nerves became more apparent over her disbelief of how Oliver still trusted her. Despite how relieved it made her feel when he admitted as much in the VRA's virtual reality, Chloe was still figuring out whether that was a good or bad thing. Because her track record in that department didn't do her any favours. Although that trust would make it easier for Oliver to believe her when she said how hard it was for her to be without him, but it didn't make this conversation itself any easier. The explanation of her leaving without a trace, erasing her existence, how she could justify any of that wasn't by any means simple.

Not to mention the road that lay ahead, as Chloe herself knew that certain things had to change from the life she had come accustomed to before her disappearance. Heck, whether Metropolis had a part of that life was one of the many questions Chloe was pondering, and she wasn't sure how to break that to Oliver. Because she wasn't sure if he would come with her if she left, and Chloe wouldn't make him choose between her and his role as Green Arrow. One was much more important and she knew that after the first few weeks of pain, they would get through it.

Stepping out of the elevator, Chloe felt her hand freeze again as she stood next to Watchtower's double doors. She shook her head, as the words left her, leaving memories in their place. An archery lesson, a stupid spoon, multiple occasions of reassurance... the way that his smile caused her to light up. She knew that he was on the other side of the door, and she wanted to see him, touch him again. No matter how rational her fears seemed, Chloe wanted Oliver in her life much more than she wanted to walk away from this relationship.

Because she knew what she had with Oliver. It was more than a relationship, it was a partnership. A cyanide antidote was enough for him to believe that she was alive and had a plan. Her word was enough for him to stop believing the worst in the virtual reality and fight through it with her. The chances of Chloe ever finding someone who got her like that were slim to none, and while she had changed since she traded herself for him, if anyone understood that some things never changed about her, it was Oliver.

"That sounds like the Chloe I remember...The one who can take on the world by herself and win...the one who saved heroes from themselves, all while being the hero that she was born to be."

It took leaving for her to truly believe in that herself and deep down, Chloe knew that Oliver could fit in with most new directions that she would take. But there was really only one way to find out and it wasn't going to be determined tonight. While the conversation she was about to have with Oliver wouldn't be any less complicated, Chloe knew that there was a chance to enjoy tonight and she wanted to take advantage of that.

The mess of their lives would always be there, but she had address one disappearance at a time, and the only way to know whether he'd stay by her side would be based on whether Oliver still wanted to keep their relationship going after hearing her out. Because no matter what the future held, Chloe knew that she wanted to try having an actual relationship with Oliver. So she pushed the door forward, the creak instantly giving her presence away.

And there he stood, with the biggest bouquet of roses she had ever seen. Pausing in her step, Chloe swallowed hard, knowing that from here, all she could hope was that it was possible for them to keep moving forward.

~0~

Every day I will wait till you're mine again
I will die every day till you're mine again
There's no words to explain
No beginning or no end

It had to be here, Oliver knew that. Even if he wasn't a fugitive, this talk had to happen here.

This is where things began to change between them. The interior decorating may have changed but he could still see the places that mattered most. The place on the floor where they slept during their first night together, the place not far from the door where she hugged him, grateful he was alright. The place he sat on the steps, holding the last shred of evidence Chloe was indeed alive.

He could only imagine the place she stood when he told her that he loved her through a walkie talkie, but even that was here.

Part of Oliver wondered if this was all a dream, that he would continue to stand here, not knowing if she was coming. It certainly wouldn't be the first time that she had disappeared on him, but Oliver hoped that wasn't the case now.

However, no matter how many scenarios had gone through his mind for when they were reunited, this wasn't what he had in mind. A shut-down Watchtower, his wanted man status, but like everything in their lives, it still fit. As two humans in a super-powered team, the world always found ways to make their lives extraordinary and unconventional.

After all, every step, each obstacle, brought them to this point, and Oliver couldn't find himself regretting a thing. He would always hope that certain things could have been different, yet if it meant that they could make things work, have a real future, then the pain they had experienced would be worth it.

That was why he had decided to give her roses tonight. They weren't her favourite, but they spoke to his intentions, the reason that he wanted her to stay. Because those words rung as true tonight as they did before. After everything that had happened, Oliver was convinced that he would do just about anything for Chloe, including what he had done to try and find her. He trusted Chloe, but that didn't stop him from riding the subway or peeking down back alleys for a glimpse of a face that had been erased from existence.

It was true that Chloe had always thrived from the shadows and this time was no exception, as she protected each one of them and sacrificed her future for theirs. That would be how she would see it, and no doubt, she would inevitably consider the possibility that was still the case.

In this case though, it wouldn't be about sacrificing her life, but rather, any future she had here in Metropolis, or any future their relationship had. It was no secret that her romantic life tended to be the sloppiest part of her life, but Oliver hoped tonight would change that. That she would see that he wasn't going anywhere, and if she let him, they could pick things off where they left off, no matter how much they had changed or how much the world had changed around them.

He truly believed that, which is why he smiled momentarily as the silence around him was interrupted. With the database shut down, the little sounds were that much more noticeable. That included the elevator arriving at his destination, renewing Oliver's hope that Chloe was coming.

After picking up the flowers, Oliver turned around, trying to hide all of his conflicting emotions in his face. Knowing Chloe, she would be guarded tonight, again. It would be up to him to break down a few of those walls to convince her to stay, but that wasn't anything new to him.

From the moment Oliver saw Chloe again, he knew that he'd have to fight for her. But it wasn't a fight he was going to lose.

It's just time that runs between us
It's the ocean underneath us
It's the picture that won't fade away

~End~

Sera's Scribbles: One more part to go. Hopefully you enjoyed this.