Work Text:
Oliver Queen watched in horror as Lian Yu was blown up taking everybody he loved with it. He cradled his Son to his chest trying to shelter him from the trauma of everything. Somewhere in the depths of his mind, the thought that there might be survivors did linger but right now his son had to be his first priority. Oliver sat down and William’s head moved to rest upon his shoulder instead. “I’ve got you, it’s okay.” He spoke in a low voice trying not to spook his son. He could feel William’s weight beginning to feel heavier and noticed that the kid was almost fully asleep, the stress and emotional trauma, coupling with the safety he now felt obviously taking its toll.
Oliver tucked him in and phoned the first person who popped into his mind, Barry. He wasn’t expecting Cisco to answer. “Oliver. Hey.”
“Cisco, Why do you have Barry’s phone?”
Cisco didn’t answer at first and Oliver quickly grew worried, the answer he received didn’t improve his mood. “Barry’s gone.” Oliver could hear the defeat in Cisco’s voice. Honestly, it felt like a punch to the stomach, he couldn't imagine life without the dorky CSI anymore. Barry had become a permanent fixture in his life ever since Barry had awoken from his nine-month coma. Oliver heard Cisco take a breath. “I’m sorry Oliver.” After that Cisco had hung up.
Oliver suddenly had a better perspective on just what he had put his friends through when he went to fight Ra’s and it felt like hell. Whatever he felt could be dealt with tomorrow, for now, he needed to get home.
…
He’d had to fight his emotions as he entered the loft, everything reminded him of Barry, even some of the new things brought by William. He’d gone to the island the day after the explosion to check for survivors. He’d found Thea seriously injured but still alive, having been shielded by Felicity whose body lay cold and adjacent to Thea. John was in slightly better condition than Thea a little way away. Both Laurel, who had decided to turn a new leaf, and Dinah had survived and Laurel was currently helping Dinah work on her cry, Renee and Curtis were still in rehab working on injuries to this day and Quentin had initially survived but his heart gave out soon after. He’d found Samantha last, her body landing in such a way that Oliver knew by instinct that her last act had been a stubborn way of protecting her son. There had been no sign of Slade alive or otherwise but Oliver had later heard from him with an update about his son.
A couple of months had passed since then, William was thriving in school, his job as the mayor seemed relatively secure for the mean time and Thea had fully recovered. She and Roy now occupied Laurel’s old apartment, Earth-2 Laurel opting to live with Dinah rather than in her doppelganger's apartment. Oliver's biggest source of pain, he found was Barry. The man had left a lasting impression on him and he had grown to love the loveable science nerd. ‘Please come back to me Bear.’
The next moment, Oliver was very glad that William was at school. A tear of blue energy suddenly appeared in his living room and at first Oliver thought it might have been Cisco but then remembered that Cisco’s powers didn’t quite work that way.
“Ollie”
Oliver was on high alert, his bow grasped tightly in hand as he kept himself on the swivel. ‘ Barry’s gone’ he had to remind himself of that fact constantly. It was painful.
“Ollie.”
There it was again, louder this time but just as familiar. He glanced at the clock, 3 PM. He still had several hours until Thea and Roy would relinquish their hold on his son.
“Ollie, please!”
This one was the loudest and most desperate, it was also the first one Oliver was able to pinpoint a location for. He blinked and shook his head before deciding that the sight in front of him was real. Before him stood a fading Barry, holding out his hand.
Oliver made his decision quickly, striding over to the location he’d pinpointed earlier. He grasped Barry’s hand and began to pull him out of the speed force, pulling harder when he met resistance. In the end, Barry ends up falling out on top of him. “Hi.”
Barry gains an impish grin, “Hi,” Barry’s voice is breathy and light. “Good to see you.”
Oliver picks Barry up and carries them to the couch where Barry immediately lie between Oliver’s legs as Oliver runs fingers through the brunette's locks. Barry lets out a sigh of contentment as Oliver presses a kiss to his forehead. “I’m so glad you’re back.”
Barry readjusts himself so that he can look at Oliver. “What’s wrong Ollie?” He sends Oliver a playful glare as if to say ‘I’m not falling for your normal response.’
Oliver sighs, “Nothing in particular. I’ve just missed you.”
Barry burrows himself into Oliver's side where they sit comfortably.
…
They’re found this way by Thea, Roy and William later, but by that time Barry has fallen asleep. “Hi,” Oliver whispers, r eadjusting Barry so that he can greet his sister.
Evidentially his efforts are futile as the loss of warmth from human contact awakens Barry from his slumber. “Ollie?” Barry had pushed himself onto his elbows and was now staring at the group.
“Good morning sleepy head.” Thea teased him, the two having built up a rapport over the course of Barry and Oliver's relationship.
“Shut up. You wouldn’t believe how hard it was to get out of the speed force.” Barry said, making his way over to the group. “Especially when it likes you too much.”
Thea drew him into a hug, “It’s good to have you back. This one,” here she pointed her thumb at her brother, “gets too moody without you.”
Barry broke the hug, “It’s good to be back speedy. Nice to see you Roy.”
Barry held out a hand and Roy shook it firmly. “You too man.”
This left Barry with the last figure , who he knelt down to meet. “You must be William.” Barry said, glancing at Oliver who was sat in the background. His smile grew as the boy nodded. “ My name’s Barry, I’m your dad’s friend. Your dad says you’re r e ally good at keeping secrets. I have a big one, do you want to hear it? ”
William nodded feverently, “Please?” Oliver smirked as he spotted the Flash action Figure in his Son’s hand, the Flash was his hero, alongside the Green Arrow. He and Barry’s meeting may have been a classic example of why you should never meet your heroes, Oliver could already tell that this was going to go differently.
“I need you to promise not to tell anyone, it could be dangerous if you do.”
“I promise Barry.” William was practically vibrating with excitement.
“I’m the Flash.” Barry finally confided in a stage whisper.
William’s eyes widened in awe. “Really?” Barry nodded. “That’s so cool!” Barry chuckled and vibrated his hand slightly. “Awesome!” Thea, Roy, Barry and Oliver all smiled at the look of unbridled joy and awe on William’s face.
Yes, Oliver reflected, some heroes are different. Some deserve our respect. Some were worth it. And Barry? Barry definitely belonged in this category.