Work Text:
Oliver sucked in a deep breath. Nervous energy buzzed through his body from his fingertips to his toes. He wanted this to go well. It felt like a really big step for him. Felicity was going to meet him at a diner downtown; he was going to walk all the way to meet her and he felt like he was going to explode from his nervousness. His therapist, who assured him that this was a good idea, hadn’t even met him face to face yet. He was slowly working his way towards going to his appointments in person and not over the computer, but it seemed terrifying.
There were so many people and so many things that could go wrong.
He took in another deep breath. Everything was going to be fine. He was going to go have lunch with Felicity and come back home.
Oliver stepped out the front door, double checked to make sure he had his keys and wallet before he closed the door and started on his way. The sun shone brightly down on him, but it wasn’t hot enough to be uncomfortable. He took careful steps off the Queen property and onto the sidewalk. It was three blocks down the road before he passed an older couple, holding hands and walking together. He bit down on his lower lip, but reminded himself that they didn’t care about him, they weren’t judging him, or looking at him strange.
Taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly, he focused on the task at hand. There was no reason to think about the people around him when Felicity was waiting for him. Just the thought of her smiling face made him smile. She was so supportive and patient with him. He didn’t feel like he was weird or sick when he was with her; he was just another person who happened to have anxiety.
“Hi,” a young girl waved her hand at him.
He smiled and waved back, “Hi.”
Bonus points! He talked to another person and didn’t get even more nervous. It was only an exchange of “Hi,” with a little girl, but he didn’t care. It counted as working towards the bigger picture. He proudly walked the rest of the way to the restaurant.
“You made it,” Felicity beamed up at him.
“I did,” he leaned in and kissed her gently.
“I’m proud of you,” she held his hand and walked into the restaurant with him.
They sat in a booth in the corner of the restaurant. One day, he would be more comfortable sitting in the middle of the restaurant at a table, but he fully preferred not to have his back to a crowded room.
“What can I get for ya?” a younger boy asked them.
He nervously cleared his throat and Felicity squeezed his hand, “Just water for me.”
“And coffee, lots of cream and sugar for me,” she said.
The kid nodded and scribbled down on his note pad, “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“How’re you feeling?” she asked when the waiter was gone.
“I’m good… mostly okay,” he bit down on his lip for a second, “I said hi to someone on the way here.”
She smiled wide, lifting his hand to kiss his knuckles, “I really am so proud of you, Oliver. I know it’s hard for you to get out of the house like this.”
“You make it easier,” he said softly.
“This is all you, baby,” she kissed his knuckles again, “You’ve been working so hard and I know before long you’re going to be sitting on Dr. Diggle’s couch for your sessions.”
He smiled big and bright, “You help more than you realize,” he pulled her hand to him this time and kissed her knuckles, “Your support keeps me going some days,” he held her gaze for a few moments before letting their hands drop to the table, “But enough about me. How is work going?”
They both opened their menus as Felicity thought. “Hmm, how is work going?” she hummed, “It’s okay I guess. There’s some board members that still aren’t on board with me. They’re making life kind of difficult, but I did meet up with the Applied Science Division and they seem to have some good ideas. I’m looking forward to working with them.”
“I’m sorry the board is full of assholes,” he mumbled.
“It’s okay, they’ll get over their sexist issues soon enough,” she said. It sounded more like a threat than anything else.
He couldn’t help, but chuckle. She was so serious when it came to her work and very intimidating when she needed to be. He found it completely attractive and probably one of his favorite things about her. She wasn’t going to let anyone get in her way, it was amazing. He had to force his attention back down at his menu.
The waiter came back and set their drinks down, but neither of them were ready to order. His stomach knotted up with anxiety again. He knew the waiter had dealt with slower people than him, but for some reason he worried about taking all day to order and driving the kid insane. Oliver breathed deeply and let it out slowly. Felicity squeezed his hand again.
He finally decided on a cheeseburger while Felicity ordered the chicken cordon bleu.
“Mine is better,” he said when the waiter left again.
“Of course it is,” she giggled, “But it sounded good.”
He pretended to huff and feel offended.
“Oh stop it,” she smacked his hand gently.
He smiled at her.
“Are you okay, though?”
“Yeah, I’ll be alright. Just need to remember to breathe,” he mumbled.
As the words left his lips there was a crash from the kitchen. It startled him, making him jump violently. He hated that his anxiety made him startle easy. Closing his eyes, he put his hand on his chest and sighed.
“Hey,” he heard Felicity say, “It’s okay,” she came over to his side of the booth and sat down beside him.
He sighed again, “I feel stupid.”
“Don’t,” she said, rubbing his back, “I got scared too.”
“It’s different,” he finally looked at her.
“I know,” she wrapped her arm around his and pressed her nose into it as she hugged him tightly.
His heart pounded hard and fast in his chest. He closed his eyes again and focused on his breathing and Felicity’s warmth. His anxiety was high, but he was slowly calming down. He knew he was going to have a rough time getting back home, but he didn’t want to have Felicity miss more work just for him.
“You still here with me?” she asked.
“Yeah, I’m here,” he sighed.
“Okay,” she said, “Do you want me to stay on this side?”
“You don’t….” he stopped himself and looked down at her, “Maybe just for a little bit.”
She nodded and rubbed his back again, “I love you.”
“I love you too, so much,” he leaned in and kissed her temple.
“Want me to go home with you?” she asked.
“You shouldn’t miss more work,” he bit down on his lip.
Felicity rolled her eyes at him, “I’m the boss and if I want to take twenty more minutes of lunch, then I’m going to take twenty more minutes of lunch. We can even take a cab and I can make out with you in the back.”
He cracked a smile at that, “Well, when you put it that way.”
She leaned up this time and stole a kiss from his lips, “And you know what?”
“What?”
“Still proud of you.”
He smiled and kissed her again, “Thank you.”