"You sure you want to take time off to come with me?"

"You sure you're going to be okay that it's just the two of us going?" he shot back with a grin.

Felicity rolled her eyes in response and then looked out the passenger side window. "I'd rather you come than Curtis, I think he actually gets more nervous about what the doctor says than you."

"Did you even tell your mom?" Oliver asked as he moved his attention back to the road.

Her mother had been staying with them for two weeks already and things were awkward, even more than normal. Felicity had expected things to be a little tense between her and her mother given how her mom got when she was hurt (there'd been past experience to pull from) and then on top of that...she'd expected things to be downright awkward because of Quentin. Things had actually seemed to fall right into place between her mother and Quentin while things were just this weird level of awkward between her mother and her. Felicity wasn't sure if she was pushing her mother away, trying to be more independent and not wanting to be coddled or if it was something else.

"Nope," Felicity said and looked over at him. "I just...she would have wanted to come...and then my blood pressure would have been high and-" She didn't miss the smile spread across his face.

"Okay, okay…"

"And she's going to want to know about the implant and get all upset if the doctor says that this is my life again," Felicity explained. "But I can do things in the chair...I think I've more than proved that…"

"You have," Oliver confirmed and looked over at her for a moment before looking back at the road. "Your mother just wants-"

Felicity sighed, she already knew what he was going to say. "I know."

"She means well."

"I just feel horrible feeling that it's so much harder when she's here," Felicity admitted. "I mean, I know she means well and she loves me and she just wants to help...and there are moments…" She pushed out a breath and closed her eyes. "I just...it's so complicated."

"Why?"

"She's the only one who doesn't know that you're the Green Arrow," Felicity pointed out.

"I really don't know if that would get me points or take them away when it comes to your mother," Oliver pointed out.

"I feel like at this point, the fact that as long as we get married and she eventually gets to meet William...she probably really won't care at this point," Felicity told him honestly. "Also, don't promise a baby anytime soon...because I'm not ready." She knew it was something that her mother would push for and Felicity just couldn't even think about that, plus she was still so young. She and Oliver weren't even married yet and Felicity wanted to enjoy their honeymoon period...plus they had to figure out how to be a blended family with William in the mix (which she really didn't think would be too hard since he was such a good kid). But there was just so much more she wanted to do with her life before they threw a baby into the mix.

"Noted," he said.

"Also, I've been thinking that we should go away somewhere that maybe is landlocked for our honeymoon," Felicity brought up.

"No beach?"

"I feel like Lian Yu has turned me off of islands and beaches for a little while," Felicity pointed out.

"Fair."

Silence filled the vehicle as they drove and Felicity found that it only made her more anxious. She really was glad that it was just her and Oliver for this doctor's appointment, otherwise she wasn't sure she'd be as close to calm as she was in that moment. "Will you be disappointed?" Felicity suddenly asked, looking over at him.

"What?" Oliver mumbled as he glanced over.

"Will you be disappointed if I can't have the implant?"

"No." A beat passed. "Will you?"

That felt like such a loaded question. She had so many thoughts and feelings on it. Mostly, everything that made her feel like she'd be disappointed had to do with other people in her life. She pushed that aside. Felicity knew that she could have her life and do everything that she wanted to do implant or not. "No."

He reached out and took her hand, squeezed it for a moment before bringing it up to his mouth and pressing a kiss to the back of it. "I love you, no matter what, Felicity."

"I don't know if you feel that way when we all play video games," she teased to change the subject. He just grinned like crazy for a moment.

"I've explained this to you, it's not accurate-"

"You're seriously not going to tell me?"

"Nope."

"Felicity-"

"Curtis, I am not going to tell you what the doctor said," Felicity told him firmly. "Oliver knows."

"He won't tell me."

Felicity grinned at that because it was so true. The only person that was likely to get the information from Oliver was Thea. "I know."

"But we're working on an upgraded version of the implant?"

"Well, we have to have tech in order to start our own company, right?"

Curtis made a face. "Yeah…"

Felicity had a feeling that she was going to have to deal with grumpy Curtis if she didn't tell him, but at the same time she didn't want anyone else to know...plus, news would travel from Curtis. He wasn't the best at keeping secrets, especially from the team...and her mother was just really good at getting information from everyone. "Are you going to be gloomy until you know?"

"I just feel like it's my fault because I designed it-"

She understood that and she felt bad in that moment. Felicity reached out and covered his hand with hers. "Curtis, it's not your fault. Chase was the one-"

"I know, but still-"

"Listen to me," Felicity told him seriously. "I'm going to tell you because I think of you like a brother...who is not going to tell my mom." She let a beat pass. "Right?"

"Right," Curtis then said quickly.

She didn't want him to worry about it or fret or just go on some kind of self induced guilt trip. Felicity and Curtis had a lot in common and she knew that in his place, not knowing might eat away at her too and she just didn't need that right now. They needed to focus on the future and moving forward. They needed to focus on tech and their company. "The doctor said that my spine looks better. There's still caution against using the implant, but with more healing and more time…"

"So right now, it's a maybe?"

"It's basically when I feel like it or if I decide I want it," Felicity explained. "But I don't want my mom to know...to think that the implant is an option...because I don't know if I want to risk it." She would always have the spinal injury from when Damien Darhk tried to have them killed and she was shot, but injuring it further...Felicity knew that her spinal cord wasn't something to gamble with.

Curtis nodded on that. "It could further injure your spine…"

"No offense to your design, Curtis. We just get into dangerous situations in which the implant can either fail or be damaged," Felicity told him.

"So, in the meantime...we're just going to work on a better version?"

"Yep."

Curtis seemed to be taking that in for a moment and then shrugged. "Okay." He paused and looked at her. "But first coffee?"

"Are you serious?" Felicity asked probably too seriously because Curtis looked confused for a moment. "Always the coffee..."

"Are we hiding?"

"I...I don't know that we'd call it that," Felicity stumbled. She shrugged and twirled a piece of her hair around one of her fingers. "Would you call it that, Curtis?"

Curtis looked up and had clear confusion on his face. "What? I mean, right...right…" He motioned around randomly. "Better lighting here…"

"Right…" Thea told them both as she shook her head. "Where's Ollie?"

"He's on his way in," Felicity filled in.

"Shouldn't you be like entertaining your mom?"

Felicity groaned. "She hasn't texted me? So...no?"

Thea just grinned in response to that.

"What are you doing down here?" Curtis asked. "Thinking about suiting up again?"

"Pass."

The elevator opened and not only Oliver stepped out, but Dinah and Diggle as well. "Speedy," Oliver said, clear surprise in his voice. Then he eyed her and Curtis. "What are you two doing here? I thought you'd be working at home? Where's your mom?"

Felicity just shrugged.

He sighed and then looked to his sister. "What's up?"

"I was hoping that next time you go to Central City to see William, I could go with you," Thea said. "You know, get the cool aunt thing started in full force…"

"I'm not sure when that'll be, Speedy," Oliver told her. "It's not just getting back to being the Green Arrow but being the mayor-"

"You can't just ignore him."

"I'm not, it's just-it's new...and I wanted to sort of give him and Samantha a little space so they can settle back in and get back to what's normal for them."

"This is also about the public not knowing about William, isn't it?"

That was something that Oliver wanted to keep a secret, mainly so that William and Samantha had privacy. With everything that had happened, Felicity had to agree wholeheartedly with that decision. It was tricky, though, because they all wanted to be able to get to know William better. Now that everything was out there in the open and there were not secrets or hiding between all of them that made it all easier...but at the same time after what Chase had done...there were still some hurdles they needed to surpass.

"Thea...I just...I don't feel like it's fair to William and Samantha…"

"You can't hide him forever."

"No," Oliver agreed. "But I can at least wait and then have the right story as to me discovering William later in life without making anyone look bad to the press."

Thea nodded. "Okay, okay...I just...I maybe just needed another outlet besides helping at the office."

"We still have your suit," Oliver clearly joked.

"Okay...I get that everyone misses me down here," Thea said a bit dramatically.

Felicity just smiled at Oliver's confused face. He hadn't realized that Curtis had just brought up Thea wearing her suit. She got why Thea didn't want to be part of Team Arrow anymore, but she did miss her being down there with them and being out in the field. Even though the bigger the team, the more things going on...it also meant that that was another person watching everyone else's back.

"You know what we should do?" Felicity said aloud. "Family dinner. Make it a regular thing...even if it's Chinese down here…"

"I like that idea," Curtis chimed in.

"I don't mind that idea," Dinah said as she moved to look at what Curtis was doing.

Oliver moved up onto the platform and over to her before pressing a kiss to her temple. "How are you doing?"

"I haven't electrocuted myself or burned my fingertips, so I'm going to go with really good," Felicity said with a smile.

"Have you even talked to your mom today?"

"No?"

Oliver sighed in response.

"You know what I can totally do and you'll see she's fine. She's probably just at her hotel ordering room service and like using the hot tub, taking it easy," Felicity told him. "I'll use a facial recognition search."

"Don't we normally use that kind of thing solely for bad guys?" Curtis asked slowly.

Felicity shrugged and typed like crazy. "Does it really matter? I have the skills and equipment...I might as well use them. Plus, this way I don't have to call her and have to hear her go off on a tangent...and if I text her...it's seriously like a fifty-fifty chance that she'll remember to press send on the message she typed out as a response." Soon enough, Donna's face was up on a screen and dots mapped out her face before there was a search within the Star City's limits going on. It took about three minutes before her mother was located. "Well, that's not the hotel," Felicity said aloud.

"Can we get a closer look?"

"Yep," Felicity replied and typed away. A moment later, there was a clear picture of her mother sitting at a table in outside seating of a restaurant...and she wasn't alone.

"Shut up," Thea said loudly.

"It's about freaking time," Felicity mumbled. Her mother was out to dinner with Quentin, they were drinking wine, and they both looked like they were having a great time.

"Well, I don't think we can be upset with Quentin about calling your mom now," Oliver told her. "Hopefully things work out and they're both happier."

"Everyone cross fingers and pray to whatever you pray to."

TBC...