"You okay? Long night." Diggle asked, as Oliver walked in.
"Yeah, News Report said the bomber didn't steal any money." Oliver muttered.
"I think this guy just wants to make a statement... That went online an hour ago." Diggle sighed, handing Oliver a tablet that had a document pulled up.
"His manifesto. 300 pages of anti-government hate." Diggle clarified.
"We need to find him before he finds his next target." Oliver sighed, handing the tablet back to Diggle.
Felicity needed to be here, so that they could find this guy. He was worried why she wasn't already here.
"What is taking her so long, Diggle?"
Oliver paced back and forth in the foundry. He had talked to Felicity hours ago. She was supposed to be here by now, or that's what he thought. It didn't make sense to him that she wasn't already here.
"Oliver... There was probably traffic. She did ride a train here." Diggle sighed.
"Yes, I know, Dig, but it shouldn't have taken this long to get off a train and get here." Oliver closed his eyes, worried sick that she was in trouble, or something happened, and he wasn't there to be with her.
Diggle didn't respond, but just let him pace around, because he knew that no matter what he said, Oliver was going to worry.
"Hey, guys... I'm sorry I'm so late. Traffic was horrendous... and then I couldn't catch a cab here... Ugh, I'm pretty horrible at catching those tricky little yellow things." Felicity mumbled as she hurriedly walked into the foundry.
She walked in to see Oliver with a worried expression, and she suddenly wondered to herself if he was actually worried about her. With the way things ended the last time they talked in person, she halfway expected him to still be giving her the silent treatment. Because, of course he thought he was protecting her by staying away from her.
However, she felt the most safe when he was around.
"Oh." Oliver mumbled, while Diggle just chuckled to himself.
"Did I miss something?" Felicity motioned to Diggle's sly looks to Oliver.
"Just Mr. Worry Wart over here." Diggle laughed, shaking his head.
Oliver just gave him a pointed look, not really wanting him to fill Felicity in on his worries. It was already hard enough not being with her. If she knew that he was still overcaring for her, and overprotecting her, she wouldn't let him hear the end of it.
She would want more, and he couldn't have that. They were partners. But, that was all they were now. That was all they could ever be.
Felicity just looked at Oliver, knowing deep down inside that he was wishing that they could be together, just like she was secretly wishing.... But, she knew that as long as he was the stubborn man she knew and loved, he would hold his ground until the end of time, and they would never be together, because once Oliver made up his mind about something, there was no sense of trying to change it. Because it was final.
That's how it was when he went on that stupid boat.
And, that's how it was now.
"I'm sorry for bringing you here. I know you were supposed to stay in Central City for a few more days."
"I got a news alert about the bombing, OIiver. Whether you would have called me or not, I would have been here." Felicity sighed, putting down her bags.
"Good. We need you here." Oliver sighed as well, looking at Felicity.
Felicity smiled to that, seeing part of the old Oliver in there. The one that loved her.
And, then his emotions were masked once again, and his face became the stone-cold one that she now resented.
"How's Barry?" He breathed, not wanting to talk about how much he needed her anymore.
"Ah, he's still sleeping... I prefer sleeping to coma... Cause coma sounds, you know, not fun." She blinked, breathing in heavily, and looking away from Oliver and Diggle.
Oliver wanted to talk to her, to console her, but instead he just looked at her with a look that could make her heart melt 5,000 different ways. She hated that he still held that effect over her. She hated that she still loved him sometimes.
"I'll reach out to Detective Lance." Felicity sighed, not wanting to talk to him anymore.
Oliver just briefly nodded, and Felicity turned around and walked out. She needed air, something to get her mind off of him, of Barry, of everything that was going on in her life right now. Talking to Detective Lance might actually get her mind off of it.
As she drove to meet him, she realized that he would probably figure out that she was helping the "Arrow." She didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing, but she knew that she needed to get evidence from the bomb residue to better know who this guy is, and how to find him. She knew that's why Oliver called her. She knew how to track people. He knew that.
Maybe she could hide it, and just act like she wanted to help. I mean, she did want to help, but he didn't have to know that she and the Arrow were involved. It could just be like old times when she helped their investigations.
Felicity pulled into the parking lot of the precinct, and quickly got out. Detective Lance was waiting for her outside the precinct.
"I was hoping you would call." He smiled, holding the door open for her.
She just laughed, "You know I can't refuse helping big investigations."
He laughed too, leading her to his office. Once they were inside, Felicity sat down across from him, and waited until he was seated behind his desk to ask him about the residue.
"So, Miss Smoak, what can I do to help you catch this son of a bitch?" He grinned.
"Well, that bomb residue that you have in evidence... If I could get a sample of it, maybe I can backtrace him. All bombers have their own unique make-up. So, maybe knowing what he uses, I can locate him." Felicity babbled, trying to sound like she knew what she was talking about.
He just looked at her, and nodded.
"Of course. Sit tight. I'll get that for you." He said, getting up, and leaving her in the office alone.
She let out a sigh of relief, silently thanking Diggle for texting her more information about the bombs. She only knew so much about them. Felicity was a computer genius, not a bomb genius.
She got out her phone and quickly text Oliver, telling him that she was able to get a sample of it.
It wasn't even in a minute later when he responded a simple, "Good."
"A thank you would be nice." She mumbled to herself, angrily tucking the phone back into her pocket.
Lance came back in minutes later with a bag of the residue. He handed it to her, smiling.
"Here ya go. Let me know what you find out as soon as you know."
"Sure thing, Detective." Felicity smiled, putting the bag of residue into her own bag.
She then said her goodbyes, and walked out. She felt her phone buzzing in her pocket, and looked to see that it was another update. Another bomb had gone off.
She hurriedly got into her car, and made her way to the foundry. She could feel her phone buzzing again, but she didn't answer because she knew it was either Oliver or Diggle demanding her to get back to the foundry. Fortunately for them, she was already on her way.
~•~•~•~•~•~
Oliver was already out on the streets when the bomb hit.
"He's hit again." He spoke into his comm.
"Starling City Municipal Building." Diggle answered.
"Give me a location!" He breathed out in frustration, wondering why he wasn't hearing Felicity's voice.
He needed her. Right now.
"I'll give you one better... I'm checking the surrounding cell towers." Felicity spoke into the comm, and once he heard her voice, he was able to breathe again.
"There was a GSM spike...! Of 3,800 megahertz two seconds before the blast... That frequency's way outside the approved frequency for U.S. Carriers." She spoke frantically into the comm.
Felicity was indeed freaking out, and her heavy and fast-paced typing surely suggested that. Oliver was counting on her to track this guy, and she wasn't about to let him down. After what seemed like ages of stress-typing, she was able to get a detonation site, and his signal.
"Signal's moving. I think he's mobile." She searched her computer screen, following his signal.
"Give me an intersection!" Oliver breathed, beginning to run to track down the bomber.
Once he was on his motorcycle, he was awaiting Felicity's instructions.
"Right in front of you, 400 meters." Felicity guided him.
Oliver looked ahead, "I see him," he spoke into the comm, revving up his engine to gain more speed.
The bomber knew he was being followed, so Oliver had to zig-zag through traffic and obstacles just to stay behind him. Unfortunately, even with Oliver's skills, the bomber was able to get out of his sight.
"Turn left on 67th." Felicity said, saving Oliver once again.
Oliver quickly made the changes, and saw the van once again. He was right on him, curving at the right time, and he was sure that he had this guy. Oliver was surely tailing him. It was a no-brainer.
And, then the bomber threw something at him, which Oliver had to quickly react to. He shielded himself, and was right on him again, when the bomber threw another one. This one though was a smoke bomb, and it spread so quickly that Oliver had completely lost his trail.
"Felicity, I've lost him." Oliver spoke frantically into the comm.
"What?" She asked, confused. He had just had him.
"Me, too.... Hold on." She spoke again, even more confused, but began typing quickly to try and locate his signal once more.
Her breathing was getting faster and faster, and her eyes were growing and growing, trying to get his signal once again. But, she got it. Finally.
"Got him. Bank left on Gerrard Street. You're almost right on top of him." She spoke, sighing that she had bounced back.
Oliver quickly drove to that location, but once he got there, he almost ran right into a bus. He breathed a groan out in frustration as he lifted his helmet, and spoke on his comm.
And, he was mad.
"It's not him, Felicity. You picked up the wrong signal."
Felicity was surprised and hurt by his tone, but she didn't show it.
"What? I -- I thought... he must have -- he must have scrambled the signal." She sighed, defeated.
"It doesn't matter. He's gone." Oliver said, still angry.
Felicity just bit her tongue, and turned off her comm. Diggle didn't say anything, but he just sat behind her. She liked the silence, especially after Oliver had practically blamed her for losing him. She looked back at the computer screen, desperately trying to figure out what went wrong.
She must have been looking at the numbers and maps longer than she thought, because sooner or later, she heard Oliver come in.
"What happened?" He asked, confused, walking angrily towards her.
"He's using cellular technology to detonate his bombs." She played with her hands, but looked up at him.
"Clearly, his expertise extends to obscuring that signal." She sighed, looking back at the computer.
"Felicity, your expertise was supposed to trump his." Oliver spit out, turning to walk away from her.
But, Felicity wasn't going to let him off the hook that easily. She turned around in her chair almost instantly, getting his attention.
"Excuse me?" She asked, seeing that even Diggle was getting up out of his chair for this one.
When he didn't answer her, but instead ignored her by putting up his bow and arrow, she pushed further.
"If you have something to say to me, Oliver, say it." She spit out, just like he had done to her not even seconds ago. standing up out of her chair to face him.
"People ae dying... So, I would like you to pull your head out of Central City, and get back in the game." He spoke angrily towards her, letting his emotions once again, get the better of him.
"Sure, right after you get your out of your ass!" She yelled back at him, stepping closer to him.
"Excuse me?" He spat, getting closer to her as well.
"I mean, wh--what? Are you jealous or something? Because that is completely out of line!" She yelled in his face.
"That has nothing to do with it, and you know it!" He yelled back at her.
"Alright... Maybe we should just take a breath here." Diggle said, trying to calm both of them down.
"No... I want to know... What exactly was that crack about Central City meant to imply?" She asked, now more hurt than angry.
"When the first bomb went off, you weren't here... And, when the second bomb went off, you sent me the wrong way." Oliver looked at her, scowling.
"After you didn't catch him in the first place!" She yelled, completely done with this blame game. It wasn't fair to her. None of this was fair.
"Don't blame me because you didn't have it tonight." Oliver lowered his voice, and he sounded so mean, so unlike the man that she had fallen in love with, that it took her by surprise.
She just searched his eyes, looking for that man, but she couldn't find him. Not anywhere.
"I need some air." She spit out, completely and utterly heartbroken.
Fortunately, Felicity was able to keep her tears in until she made it outside the foundry.
Once she had left, Oliver sighed, frustrated with himself for letting it get that far. He just kept breathing, and turned around to see Diggle crossing his arms.
"At the risk of me getting my head knocked off... playing the blame game's not going to help us catch this son of a bitch." He looked at Oliver.
"Neither is doing things halfway." Oliver responded, still mad about the fight, about Felicty leaving in the first place, about everything.
Is that what you think's goin' on here, Oliver? You think she was distracted? She wasn't giving it her all?" Diggle asked.
"She almost ran me into a bus, Diggle. What do you think?" Oliver sighed, lowering his voice to an almost whisper.
"I think you didn't have a problem with Felicity's performance until she met Barry Allen." Diggle sighed, walking away from Oliver, and out of the foundry, leaving him alone.
Oliver just sighed to himself, but when he looked up, Felicity was back, and she was in tears.
"Felicity--"
"No, stop. You don't have the right to treat me like that." She sniffed, shaking her head at him.
"I snapped, I know." Oliver sighed, closing his eyes.
"You did more than snap, Oliver." She responded.
Oliver was about to respond, but she just shook her head at him, and walked closer to him.
"Here." She said, slipping off her ring, and handing it to him.
"Wh--what? This is yours, Felicity." Oliver shook his head, not accepting it.
"No, it's not. Not anymore." Felicity shook her head as well, and placed it in his hand.
"Felicity, stop." He pleaded.
"You're not the same man I fell in love with. When he comes back, tell him that I love him, and that I miss him, and to give me my ring back." Felicity said, letting stray tears fall, as she continued to search his eyes for the Oliver that she had let go on that stupid boat that day.
She saw a glimpse of him for a mere second, when he looked at her with the same hurt expresson that he had given her when she had walked away from him right before she left to see Barry.
"I--I--" Oliver stuttered, and Felicity just sadly smiled.
"I'll still be your partner, and I'll still help you with this thing that you're doing. But, I can't--- I can't do this, anymore, Oliver." Felicity sniffled, letting her hand that had once been holding the ring firmly in his hand, make its way up to his cheek.
"Felicity, I--"
She shut him up by reaching up and pecking him on the lips. It wasn't passionate or full of love like it used to be. Instead, it was full of sadness, and one that meant and served as goodbye.
"I don't want to be a woman you love, if you continue to be this man." She whispered into his ear, and turned to walk away.
Oliver couldn't utter a word.
All he could do was hold the ring in his hand... So tightly... That he didn't even feel it when it had cut into his skin.
Okay, guys.
Told you this one would be more meaty. And, sorry if there are mistakes. Didn't have time to edit! :)
But, hey, don't be discouraged. They're still going to work together, but you had to see this coming, right? I mean, I would do the same thing if I was in Felicity's place. She deserves happiness, and Oliver is just too stubborn to realize that he's the key to that.
So, Arrow is coming back this Wednesday, yay. Maybe that'll give me inspiration to write better, yeah?
Anyway, picture that's attached is of their fight. Well, the end of it. The one where they're just looking at each other. Yeah. Sorry bout that, but you know Felicity, and she always speaks her mind. And, you know Oliver, he had that silly little temper.
Especially around her.
Anyway, this early update is to make up for the super super late one. So, hopefully I'm forgiven now :)
I love you guys. And, thank you to those that asked about me. My family just had something to deal with, and I had to go back home and deal with everything, and it was hard, but life happens, you know. And, you just have to deal with it in the best way possible.
Oh, and I still haven't gotten my computer back, so I'm using my work's computer to do this. Yay. :D
Lol, you can tell I'm one dedicated cookie!
Love you allllllllll,
Alayna :)