Chapter Text
The next morning, Oliver woke up before her, feeling more energized and relaxed than he’d felt in a long time. He took a while before getting up, wanting to enjoy the feel of her in his arms for as long as he could. Unfortunately, he had to be at City Hall in less than an hour, so he gave her a kiss on the forehead and one on the belly and started getting out of bed. A small groan stopped him.
“No…” Felicity said, eyes still closed and her hands reaching out for him. “It was so warm…”
“I’m sorry…” He said, unable to keep the smile from his face. “I have to go to work. Believe me, I’d much rather stay right here.”
“Ugh,” she pouted. “I should get up too, the presentation at Palmer Tech is on Friday and I promised Curtis we’d focus on finishing it.”
They had breakfast together and he dropped her off at the bunker before going to City Hall. That night, she asked him to watch a movie before bed and he ended up sleeping in her bed again. The night after that, he was going to the guest room after dinner when she called him out shyly.
“Oliver?”
“Yes? You need something?” He asked worried.
“I just… Do you mind sleeping in our, I mean my, bedroom again?” She looked down at her foot. She was wearing pink flannel pajama pants covered in little bulldogs and one of his old white shirts, her round belly now the size of a soccer ball, and looking like the most adorable thing he’d ever seen. “It’s just… I’ve been having a lot of nightmares since Havenrock and now Prometheus and since that first night you got in there with me, I hadn’t had one good night of sleep in a long time. But with you… I feel… safe.” She raised her eyes up to him, who was looking at her slightly shocked. “I’m sorry, it’s just too weird… we’re not together, forget that I aske-”
“No! I mean, of course I can sleep there with you,” he said. “I… I sleep better when I’m with you too.” He admitted. “Are you having nightmares often? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“It’s just… well, since Havenrock,” she avoided looking at him. “It’s usually just me running from the explosions and people yelling that I killed their loved ones… except since I found out about the baby, she is now there with me too and sometimes Prometheus appears and I can’t run away… I can’t save us.”
“Felicity… you know Havenrock was not your fault, right?” He walked closer to her, her pained face pretty much killing him.
“Yes… I mean. I guess. Rationally I know Dahrk was the one who sent that missile, I know Dahrk is responsible for all those deaths. But it doesn’t change the fact that I was the one who changed the final destination. I knew I did what I had to do to save millions, but I couldn’t save those thousands of people,” she sniffed and he hugged her.
“It was not your fault," he repeated. “We can’t win all our battles, Felicity, as much as we want to and give our best, sometimes we lose. We just have to accept it, get up and keep fighting. You’re a hero.”
“I don't feel like one when I think about that night,” she murmured against his chest.
“Felicity, without you none of us would be here right now. Star City would have crumbled during the Undertaking and whatever lasted of it would be gone when Slade and his army got here. And don’t even get me started on Ra’s and Dahrk… honey, you are a hero.”
“Thank you,” she said, taking all her strength to let go of him. In times like these, especially since he had been so amazing and sweet with her after finding out about their baby, it was hard for her to remember all the reasons why they shouldn’t be together. Each day that went by, it was getting harder and harder to keep him at arm's length. That invisible wall she put between them was slowly losing its stance brick by brick and soon she would realize the only thing stopping her from being with Oliver is herself.
“Come on, it’s late,” he said. “Let’s get you and Chip to bed.”
“Chip??” She raised one eyebrow.
“Well, we haven’t decided on a name for her yet and Mint Chip is all you want to eat since you found out you’re pregnant, so... ” He shrugged.
“We’re not calling her Chip.”
“Why? I think it’s cute!” He pouted. “Like the little teacup in Beauty and the Beast .”
“I’d never think there would come a day when I’d hear Oliver Queen talking about Beauty and the Beast . The world really is full of surprises, isn’t it?” She teased him and he blushed. He was adorable.
“Well, I do have a baby sister and she’d make me go through all those movies when she was growing up and you know how it’s just impossible to say ‘no’ to Thea when she’s decided on something.”
“Did she make you dress up as the Beast and dance with her?” She bit her lips, trying not to laugh. Though, just the thought of it brought a pang to her chest. It was something she would do with her father when she was little, they’d watch those movies and then dance when her favorite songs started, her small feet on his shoes as they swayed around their living room. Back when she had a normal life, before her father left them and broke her heart. She never got to see those movies the same way again, it hurt too much. Maybe her daughter and Oliver would change that.
“No…” He looked away from her.
“Oh, my God, she so did! That’s adorable!”
“Not as the Beast, okay? She always wanted me to be Lumiere. Be Our Guest was her favorite song,” he confessed, blushing even more.
Felicity’s heart melted picturing teenage Oliver, playboy extraordinary, pretending to be Disney characters to entertain and make his baby sister happy.
“Baby Chip is so lucky her daddy knows all about Disney already. Remind me to thank Thea for that.” She winked and nodded her head to the bedroom. “Let’s go to bed.”
*
The next day, Prometheus attacked again, and once again, they’d got nothing on him. To say Felicity was frustrated was an understatement.
“Ugh… it’s just not possible.” She slapped the table, almost knocking the keyboard to the floor. “How come we still haven’t got anything on him?”
“Doesn’t he leave some of his throwing stars on the crime scene?” Diggle asked.
“Yes, but so far, SCPD got hold of all of them,” she sighed.
“Well… if only we knew someone working there…” He raised one eyebrow at her.
“What do you mean… Billy?” She wrinkled her nose. She hadn’t seen him since the gala.
“Oliver told me about your detective friend,” he shrugged.
“We’re not really friends, John, we only saw each other a couple of times. He was new to the city and okay, he might have wanted more than that at first, but as you can see, that wouldn’t have gone anywhere,”she pointed at her belly.
“Yeah, sure, the only reason it wouldn’t have worked is because you’re pregnant.” Diggle let out a laugh. “What I mean is, it would be a lot useful if we got ahold of one of his weapons, it might at least give us a lead.”
*
I can’t believe I’m doing this , Felicity thought as she walked into the precinct with a cup of coffee in her hand. She might have not followed John’s suggestion, but she found out none other than Billy was the one responsible for Prometheus' case. It was way too much of a coincidence to not give it a try.
“Americano, did I remember it right?” She said as she placed the coffee cup on his desk. He better like it, it was torture having to smell it all the way here knowing she couldn’t drink any of it.
“Felicity?” Billy asked, surprised. “Hi! Now this is a surprise. Don’t get me wrong, but what are you doing here?”
“I need your help,” she chewed on her lips. “Can we, uh, talk in private?”
“Sure…” He puckered his forehead. “Come this way…”
“The interrogation room?” She let out a laugh when they got there.
“It’s the most private place in this building,” he chuckled. “So, what did you want to ask me.”
“Okay… this will sound weird and it’s a long story…” She started. “I need some of the evidence you have on the Prometheus case.”
“Wait… what? How do you even know about that case?” He looked at her completely confused. That was classified information.
“You have to promise you’ll keep this between us.”
“You’re scaring me.”
“I work with the Green Arrow,” she blurted out, her heart racing inside her chest. Please tell me I wasn’t wrong about you, please. She opened up her coat. It was getting really hot inside here.
“You… what?” His eyes went huge.
“I work with the Green Arrow. We’ve been trying to find Prometheus for a while now but without evidence, we’re not going anywhere. But I promise you, if there’s anyone who can take that monster down, it’s us.”
“I’m-” He stopped when he noticed her belly. “You’re pregnant?”
“Yes…”
“So, let me get this straight. You’re pregnant. And working with the Green Arrow.” He ran his fingers through his hair.
“See? I told you the problem was not you, it really was me,” she reminded him.
“Felicity…” He took a deep breath, this was so not what he expected when he saw her coming into the precinct.
“I know… it must be hard… you’re a detective and I know I’m kind of a criminal-”
“Kind of a criminal? Felicity, you are a criminal,” he accused her. “I could… I should arrest you right now.”
Suddenly she couldn’t breathe. Was he going to arrest her? Oliver was going to kill her. She did not tell him she was coming here, much less that she was going to reveal her secret to Detective Malone of all people. But she felt like she had no other choice. Prometheus was trying to get him, she needed more information so they could take him down before he hurt anyone else.
She thought she could trust Billy. Granted, she didn’t know him much, but usually she was really good at reading people. She really hoped this pregnancy wasn’t messing that much with her brain.
“Will you?” She gulped. Was she going to give birth in prison? She’d never be able to see her daughter grow up, or see her first steps, her first word. Her eyes started to well up with tears.
“No…” He sighed, shaking his head. “You are a criminal. But… you do it for a good cause.” He motioned to the chair, asking her to take a seat. “So how did it start? Why do you need my help?”
“Believe me, I wouldn’t be here if I thought we could find another way, but you have evidence that might give us the lead we are missing,” she explained, relieved she would not be sent to jail. “We have reason to believe his attacks are connected to the Green Arrow.”
“So, you know the Green Arrow? You know where he lives? What does he look like without a mask? Is his face all scarred?” He seemed so excited, it scared Felicity a bit.
“Billy-”
“Sorry, I’m curious.”
“Well, like I said, it’s a long story…”
“Is it his? I mean, your baby,” he pointed at her belly. “Ar- are you pregnant with the Green Arrow’s baby? Is that why he still allows you to help him, because this way he can keep an eye on you? Oh, my God! No wonder Mayor Queen and you couldn’t work it out. Imagine competing with the Green Arrow for a woman… that guy is lucky he never got an arrow in his heart,” he said, feeling like he missed a bullet, or in this case, an arrow, when Felicity turned him down.
“The Green Arrow does not shoot innocent people and he never killed anyone unless it was strictly necessary in many years,” she felt like she needed to defend him. “Anyway, this is not about me. Billy, this Prometheus, he is way more dangerous than you think. SCPD will not be enough to stop him. You have to believe me.” She begged him.
Somehow, he believed her. More than that, he seemed to trust her too. “Okay, so tell me what can I do to help you…”
*
“What’s all this?” Oliver pointed at the table in Felicity's living room later that night. It was covered by unwrapped boxes. Felicity called earlier and asked him to come home instead of the bunker tonight, saying she had some good news to share and it called for a celebration.
“Those are pacifiers,” she lifted a purple one, covered in rhinestones, wincing as the light hit it and almost blinded her for a second. “I just got those packages from my mother. She had them custom made for the baby.”
Donna also sent onesies, tutus and a few bottles. Oliver took two more onesies out of one of the many boxes. One was pink with “ Pick my diapers, I’m going to Bubba’s ” written on the front, the other said “ My grandma never runs out of hugs and kisses ”.
“Good luck with that, kid,” Felicity scoffed and lifted another one, it said “ I get my attitude from… well, pretty much every woman I’m related to. ” “She’s not wrong, this kid is not even born yet, but I can already tell she’ll be a spitfire.”
“Daughter of Felicity Smoak, granddaughter of Donna Smoak and Moira Queen, niece of Thea Queen? What did you even expect?” Oliver chuckled.
Felicity shook her head, putting that one back in the box to take it to the office that soon would become the nursery. “Between my mom and Thea, we won’t need to buy this kid’s clothes until she’s at least eight years old.”
“They are excited,” Oliver smiled softly, still looking through the many onesies until he found one that took him aback. “ Best Oops Ever ?” He raised a brow at Felicity, clearly amused.
She rolled her eyes. “Don’t even ask.”
“How was your meeting with Palmer Tech?”
“It went great!” She beamed, putting the pacifier back in the box and clapping her hands together. “They reinstated me! You’re looking at Palmer Tech’s CEO. I’m back, baby!”
“No way! Really?” He opened a huge smile and pulled her in a hug. “Congratulations! You and Curtis have been working so hard on that project. They were idiots to let you go in the first place.”
“Yep. They were very impressed by Archer,” she grinned. “They didn’t even blink an eye at the fact that I’m pregnant and will need to go on maternity leave in a few months. They were that interested.”
“Archer?” He raised one eyebrow.
“Yeah… that’s the name of our new security system,” she smiled shyly. “I couldn’t think of a better name for something that is supposed to protect people.”
“I-” He didn’t even know what to say. She named her biggest project, the one she was calling her other baby, after him. He put a hand on his chest, really touched. “Thank you.”
She just smiled at him, their eyes holding for a minute.
“So…” she finally looked away, “there’s something else I need to tell you.” She bit down on her lip. “But I need you to promise me first you won’t get mad.”
“Felicity?”
“I told Billy I work with you,” she wrinkled her nose and closed her eyes shut.
“ What ?”
She opened up one eye, then the other.
“Well, not you you , the Green Arrow,” she explained.
“Wh-” He was at loss for words. “Why would you do that? He’s a detective, Felicity!”
“I knooow! But the search for Prometheus was going nowhere and John suggested-”
“ John suggested it?” He’d have to have a talk with his friend. What on Earth was he thinking?
“Don’t be mad. I found out Billy is the one responsible for his case. He has access to all the evidence we need to look further into Prometheus and you know I could never hack into SCPD to get the info on it because we know they won’t look into it the way we do. They don’t have the tech or the expertise we do.”
“He could have arrested you, Felicity!” His face was turning so red, she was about to offer him a glass of water.
“Well, he didn’t… he won’t,” she assured him.
“How can you be so sure?” Just the thought of Felicity going to jail made him almost lose his mind. Especially now that she was having their baby. Did she lose her mind?
“Because he told me.” Felicity could see he didn’t have much faith in that. “And… he seems to be a big fan of yours. I think he might even have a crush on you.”
“I- what?”
“The point is, he decided to help us, Oliver. I left the computers at the bunker running with everything he gave me, John will let us know if something new comes up.”
“You better be right about that…” He let out a sigh. “So, what do you feel like eating tonight?”
*
“You look exhausted,” Oliver commented after they finished their dinner and sat down on the couch to watch a movie.
“And I feel that way too. I’ve been nauseous all day. I thought I was past that, but apparently this little spawn you put inside of me had other ideas.” She patted her belly affectionately. “Twenty-two weeks old and already giving her mama trouble.”
“I’m sorry,” he frowned. He hated that she felt bad and there wasn’t really much he could do to help her.
“God help us all when she hit her teens,” she froze. “Oh my God, let’s hope this kid takes after me. Goth phase aside, I was a pretty easy teenager. I can’t even begin to imagine all the trouble you gave your mother.”
“I wasn’t that bad,” he said, a little offended.
She shot him a knowing glare.
“Well, if it’s up to me, I really hope this baby comes out 100% Smoak. I won’t mind having a little you running around. Now, if that’s the case, I’ll be the one in trouble if we end up with a little Felicity. If I already have a hard time saying no to you, can you imagine how it will be with your baby version?” He said, suddenly actually worried. He was so screwed. Though, just the thought of a little girl who was a miniature of her mother made his heart explode inside his chest.
She huffed. “You say that as if a little Oliver charming his way around would be any easier. Or in this case, a little Olivia. Olivia! I’ll add that one on the list of potential names.”
“Olivia, really?” He cocked his head.
“I think it’s cute,” she shrugged.
“Well, you have no trouble putting me in my place and calling me out when I do something wrong,” he snorted. “This kid will have no chance against your Loud Voice.”
“I won’t need to use my Loud Voice with her because she will be a perfect angel, right baby girl?” She said to her belly, then she looked at Oliver, both cracking up at the same time. Yes, there was zero possibility of this girl being a perfect angel being the amalgamation of their DNA. Kid would have a strong personality, there was no doubt about that. But you know what? They wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Did you know she can already recognize voices at this stage?” She asked him.
“Really? I remember reading something about that in the book, but I didn’t remember, it’s going by so fast.” Since he found out about her pregnancy, he ordered all books on that theme and had been reading them in his free time.
“Oliver Queen reading pregnancy books. Who could ever imagine, huh?” She smirked.
“My mom would be shocked, that’s for sure,” he let out a laugh, becoming a little sad when he thought of his mother.
They went quiet for a while, Felicity rubbing her belly thinking about her daughter and how their lives were going to change in a few months. She was startled out of her thoughts when Oliver leaned down to get closer to her baby bump.
“Hi, baby girl! This is your daddy! How is it going in there?” He said softly to her belly, covered today in a bright purple top. “I just learned you can hear me now! Isn’t that great? I read in a book that if I talk to you while you’re still in there, you’ll recognize my voice when you’re here on the other side, so bear with me, because I’ll probably be talking to you daily from now on.”
“You’re really going to talk to my stomach every day, aren’t you?” She rolled her eyes, but he could see that she was smiling. “It might answer you sometime, it’s growling a lot these days, but I assure you it’s not the baby talking back.”
He shot her a look.
“Sorry, go on… I’ll just take a little nap in here while the two of you have your little chat.” She leaned her head back on the couch and closed her eyes.
“What was I saying? Oh, yes, your mom told me you were giving her a little bit of trouble today. I know it must be pretty tight in there and if you’re anything like me, you can’t wait to be outside, but you just hang in there, okay? You still have time to grow in there before we finally meet. Your Mom and I are always gonna be here, so take all the time that you need to grow big and strong. So, please do not scare us trying to come out early just because you’re bored and anxious to see us. I know, I know… you’ve been listening to your mom this entire time and by now you must know how awesome she is and probably can’t wait to meet her-”
Felicity snorted. “The poor kid will probably decide to come out early just because she is so tired of hearing me babbling all day long.”
“Weren’t you going to take a nap?” He teased. “And I love your babbles.”
“Well, you don’t have to listen to them twenty-four hours a day, everyday.” She pointed out, lifting her head to look at him “Sometimes I wish I could take a break from myself. If you think it’s bad on the outside, you have no idea how it is inside here,” she pointed to her head, “a mess, that’s what it is. It’s so tiresome, no turn off button, unfortunately.”
“Shhhh, I’m talking to our daughter now, so be quiet,” he said in mocking anger, getting an adorable giggle out of her, but she did what he asked and closed her eyes again, relaxing against the couch. “So where was I? Oh, yes, your mother. She’s amazing, and so very smart, so I’m warning you, think carefully before you try to fool her, because I’ll tell you, baby girl, she can see right through everyone, she has that talent and you do not want to have a conversation with her Loud Voice. Just trust me on that, okay?” He looked up to sneak a peek of Felicity, but she was still quiet and her eyes were closed, maybe she did really fall asleep. She’d been doing that a lot lately. “And if you ever see her trying to cook anything, you come and call me immediately, you hear me? Because that usually only leads to chaos, fires and sometimes intoxication and we do not want any of that, right?”
“I heard that.” She said, still not moving or opening her eyes.
“...but more than anything, baby girl, you just have to know we both love you so, so much.” He leaned closer to her belly, whispering, “now go to sleep, because your mommy is tired, carrying you all day is no easy job, little one, so now I’ll take her to bed so she can sleep too. I love you.” He gave her belly a kiss.
He was about to sit back on the couch when Felicity jumped, startling the hell out of him.
“Oh, my God!” She put both her hands on her belly, mouth agape.
“What’s wrong???” His heart went to his throat. Did he do something?
She lifted her shirt, offering him a nice view of her bare rounded stomach, and grabbed both his hands, placing them on her warm skin. His breath caught on his lung. “What is going on?”
As if the baby heard him, he felt something move below his hand.
Felicity gasped, mesmerized. “Did you feel that?”
“Was that the baby?” He opened the biggest grin at her. Just as he talked again, there was another kick, this time even stronger. “Oh, my god!”
“I think she likes your voice,” Felicity murmured, her eyes getting wet with tears. “I’ve been feeling some movements for a few days now, but that was the first time I felt it so strongly.”
“This is amazing,” he let out a laugh, love shining in his eyes. He was so happy, so beautiful and he'd been so great and kind to her, that she just ignored everything her brain was saying and let her heart lead this time.
“Oliver,” she said in a whisper.
He looked up at her, both hands still caressing her stomach with so much tenderness that she wanted to cry. She placed a hand on his cheek and he leaned his head against it, craving for her touch as much as she craved his. They stared at each other for long seconds, their eyes catching fire and their breath quickening. Before she could talk herself out of it, she pulled his face towards hers and pressed her lips onto his.