Time Will Tell
Oliver sat up, cursing time travel and Rip Hunter and Barry's puppy eyes when he said, "But it'll be fun, Ollie!" Well, Barry, waking up with a migraine on a strange building with no idea how you got there is not fun. Not fun at all.
Stumbling over to the side of the building, the Green Arrow took in the bright neon lights of a city that smelled like gasoline, alcohol, and cigarettes. Thanks to his youthful revelry, he could tell where he was immediately. After all, he knew first hand that what happened in Vegas almost never stayed in Vegas.
"Flash?" He called, tapping his earpiece. "White Canary? Atom?"
No one answered. Not that he'd expected them to. (He didn't have much faith in technology if Felicity wasn't behind it.)
"Mind if I join you?"
Oliver blinked in surprise, whirling to face the intruder who had somehow managed to sneak up on him. Embarrassingly enough, it was a young girl. If he hadn't been frozen with shock, the Felicity in the back of his mind might have offered up the girl's abnormally skinny form as a possible excuse. But he was frozen because under the bottle-black hair and the heavy, smeared makeup, the puffy, red eyes and the nose ring was absolutely, unmistakably, Felicity Smoak.
Felicity Smoak, who gave a little snort when she saw his suit. "Nice get up." Felicity Smoak, who shivered in her thin, long-sleeved black shirt and strolled forward until she was next to Oliver, close enough to touch. Felicity Smoak, who hopped up onto the edge of the building and swung her arms back and forth like she was getting ready to leap off.
"What are you doing?" Oliver blurted.
Felicity – this dark, broken Felicity shaking with cold or maybe fear or maybe rage – snapped her head towards him. "What do you care, Robin Hood? It's a free rooftop."
"I just do. I just do care." Oliver cursed internally. He wished more than anything that Barry or Ray was here instead of him. He wasn't good at this whole making-people-see-their-true-worth thing. Felicity was the best at it. If only Felicity was here…then again, she was.
"Why?" Her eyes narrowed suspiciously and she shuffled away from him. It took everything he had not to lunge out and drag her away from the edge, but he knew that if he did he would only scare her more. Or worse, "confirm" her fear that he was some sort of weird predator.
"Because I…you're important, Felicity. You have so much potential. You can't do this." He pleaded, letting his hands drift forward, open and surrendering.
A flicker passed over her face. "How do you know my name?"
Oliver's mind raced. A million different excuses readied themselves, but when he looked into Felicity's face all he could see was the hurt that had consumed her when she found out he'd kept his son a secret from her. And all he could hear was her whispering, "I can't do this."
"Because I know you, Felicity." He had no idea where he was going with this, but he knew this was the only way to save her. If he lied, she would find out and everything he'd meant when he convinced her to step away from the edge would be for nothing. "I know this sounds crazy – and it is. But I do know you. Or…I will." He swallowed hard. "Please, just trust me."
"You're crazy." She murmured, backing away. But Oliver could see a tiny flame of doubt start to burn in her eyes.
"I'm not." He took a careful step towards her. "You're the smartest person you've ever known. You've been building computers since you were nine. You'll never admit it, but you love when your mom makes you hot milk. You're terrified that all you'll ever end up as is a waitress. You love pandas and ice cream and you want to change the world. You…"
Felicity was shaking and covering her mouth with her hand. A hand that had a promise ring wrapped around a finger. And suddenly, everything made sense.
"Your boyfriend just committed suicide in prison and you blame yourself." Oliver breathed.
"How do you know that? How do you know all of that?" Tears were running down her face and her voice was breaking with brimming hysteria.
"Because you told me. Or…you will tell me. One day." He took another step forward, bracing his legs to lunge if she slipped or collapsed. "You saved my life, Felicity. I can't lose you – not when we haven't even met yet. Without you, I wouldn't even be here. You changed everything. You showed me how to be a hero."
"What are you talking about?" Felicity choked. "I've never seen you before in my life."
"I know this sounds insane. I know." Oliver said. "But I'm from the future. You're going to do great things, Felicity Smoak. You're going to mean the world to so many people and save so many lives. I can't do this without you." He took a deep break and looked straight into her eyes. "Your name, 'Felicity,' means 'happiness.' And that's what you are to me. You're my happiness. So please…please let me help you find yours."