Story of Us – Arrow – Ep9

Oliver came into the old Queen Consolidated factory three days later with a huge grin on his face.  Tommy couldn’t help but return that grin.  It had been so rare since Oliver had gotten back that Tommy was instantly wary.  Oliver looked around and saw that nobody was around.  He walked straight up to Tommy and took his face in his hands and kissed him soundly.

Tommy was still slightly stunned by Oliver’s affection for him, so it took him a few moments to react.  But in his hesitation, he missed the opportunity.  Oliver was pulling back from the kiss before Tommy could wrap his arms around him.

“Hello, you,” Oliver said quietly and then backed away as they heard voices coming from the front of the building.

“Hey yourself,” Tommy said in return, his smile slightly sad at the fact that the kiss had been so brief.

“So, I am having a Christmas party at my house,” Oliver said without any segue.

“Cool!” Tommy said with a grin, “Your family-”

 “Stopped having them after I disappeared, I know,” Oliver said, his smile faltering slightly, “But I’m back now and we’re going to re-start the tradition.”

“That’s awesome, Oliver,” Tommy said, reaching out tentatively to grab his hand.  He groaned as he saw two workers come around the corner of some old equipment and let his hand drop back to his side.

“Of course,” Oliver said with a small smile, understanding Tommy’s frustration, “I want you to be there.”

“Of course,” Tommy smirked, “wouldn’t miss it for a thing!  Man, the times we used to have at those parties!”

“Oh yeah,” Oliver said with a laugh, “the number of times you got me in trouble with Dad!?  I remember those!”

“But we had fun, right?” Tommy asked, a small crease of concern between his eyebrows.

“Oh yeah,” Oliver replied with another laugh then sobered, “You can bring Laurel if you want.”

“Really?” he asked, “That’s okay with you?”

“Yeah,” Oliver said quietly, his voice dropping so the two workers could not hear him, “We need to keep up appearances.  And if I am happy to see both of you there, people will assume I’m happy the two of you are together.”

Tommy nodded, “Makes sense.”

Oliver then stepped back a little further and said, “Saturday night.  Eight o’clock.  I look forward to seeing you, Tommy.”

Tommy went to go see Laurel and asked her to the party.  They hadn’t seen each other since before Tommy had talked to Oliver, so she had no idea what had happened between them.  And there was no way he was going to mention actually talking to Oliver in front of the Detective.  Tommy knew he wasn’t liked any more than Oliver was, but mentioning Oliver was only asking for trouble.  Instead, he gave Laurel the picture that he had found of her father and sister and her.  He had wanted to say so much more, but with Detective Lance there, there was no way an honest conversation about him and Oliver was going to happen.  He gave her a brief peck on the cheek and left as quickly as possible.

Party of Three with a Side of Uncomfortable, Take 2

Tommy was more than slightly nervous as he and Laurel walked into the room.  She looked stunning in a beautiful red dress and her hair down in loose waves around her shoulders.  But he only had eyes for Oliver the moment he saw him.  Oliver smiled at the both of them and stepped forward to greet them.

“So glad that both of you could make it,” Oliver said with a smile.  It wasn’t his genuine smile that Tommy loved, but it was a close approximation.

“Merry Christmas, pal,” Tommy said, stepping toward Oliver for a hug.  He inhaled deeply as Oliver held him and wanted to sigh out loud and hold on tight.  But he knew he needed to let go…for appearances.

“Merry Christmas,” Oliver said as he hugged him.

Oliver smiled at Laurel and leaned in to give her a hug and wish her a Merry Christmas as well.  There was a part of Tommy that was giggling on the inside that the hug she got and gave was only a one-armed hug of people who didn’t want to be near each other.

“So how long do you think it’ll be before it’s not so weird…you know, the three of us,” Tommy asked.

“It’s not weird at all,” Oliver said quickly, staring straight at Tommy.  When he started chuckling, even Laurel had to laugh.

She visibly relaxed in that moment and Tommy pulled her a little closer.  She turned and smiled at him and then turned and genuinely smiled at Oliver.  They talked about inanities for a few minutes before Laurel pulled away from him a bit.

“Tommy, do you mind if I talk to Oliver,” she asked.

“Yeah,” he said nervously, glancing at Oliver, “I’ll just grab us a couple of drinks…and drink them both.”

He walked away to the bar and felt his stomach drop.  He knew Laurel had been pushing to know whether Tommy had talked to Oliver or not.  It was a conversation the three of them should have, not one with just Oliver and her.  He knew that there shouldn’t be an issue.  She knew what was going on as far as Tommy was concerned.

Add a Dash of Complications

He watched the conversation from the distance and saw Oliver kiss Laurel on the cheek and give her a hard smile.  He could read from that distance that Oliver was not happy with the direction of the conversation.  However, Laurel looked less stressed than she had.

“Everything okay?” he asked as she approached.

“Yeah,” she said, glancing back at the spot Oliver had been, “I think Ollie and I can be cool now.”

“Okay…” he said with hesitation, “Laurel?  What’d you say to him?”

“I just let him know that I really think I’m over him,” she said with a smile, leaning in to kiss him on the cheek, “I told him I needed to move on with my life and that I was moving on…with you.”

“With me?” he said incredulously, “Laurel!  Why would you say that?!”

“Tommy!” she laughed, “He’s okay with it.  You don’t need to worry.”

“Laurel,” he said, lowering his voice, “you know how I feel.  I can’t- “

“I know, Tommy,” she said, lowering her eyes, “You don’t love me the way you do Oliver.  But maybe we can try?”

Tommy stood looking at her, absolutely shell-shocked. 

“I mean,” she continued, “it’s not like you’ll ever do anything towards telling Oliver.  I know I’m not all you want, but if Ollie hadn’t come back, I would have been.”

“Laurel!” started. He was appalled.  She really did want a relationship with him.  He knew he needed to talk to Oliver.  He looked around the room, searching for him, but he was nowhere to be found.

“No worries, Tommy,” she said with a smile as she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, “We’ll figure it out.”

Not Now…And Yet…

When he heard about Oliver, he was in a panic.  He’d just gotten him back, he sure as hell didn’t want to lose him again, especially knowing what he did now.  He rushed to the hospital to see him. 

It was after visiting hours, but he knew he had to make sure that Oliver was okay.  Tommy was about to step into the room when he realized Oliver wasn’t alone.  Oliver was standing by the window, overlooking the city and Mr. Diggle was sitting in one of the visitor’s chairs, both of their backs to the door. 

He leaned against the wall outside the door to wait.  He didn’t intend to listen, but it was rather difficult to not hear what he heard.

“You know, Dig,” Oliver said, “When I confront somebody on the list, I tell them that they failed the city.  But tonight, it was me who failed.”

“Oliver, five hostages are home with their families enjoying the holidays,” Mr. Diggle said, “because of you.  This guy, the other archer, he’ll get his and you’ll give it to him.”

“We might have a bigger problem,” Oliver said, “the other archer told me that somebody compiled the list.  I always assumed it was my father…But what if it wasn’t?”

“What do you mean?” Dig asked.

“I think there’s someone else out there,” Oliver said, his voice growing rough, “Someone who’s more of a danger than the Archer.  And I am gonna take him down.”

Tommy stood straighter and started to pay attention.  He had been pretty sure that Oliver was the Hood, but now it was confirmed.  At least, their conversation sounded like it.  He didn’t know how he felt knowing Diggle was the one who knew Oliver’s secret.  But he knew he had to let Oliver know that he knew.

“First,” Diggle said, “you need to heal.  Take the time you need to, Oliver.”

Oliver turned around to face Dig and responded, “I will.”

Our Story is Needing…Confessions

Tommy stepped far away from the door to make it look like he was just coming in as he realized Dig was leaving.  He hesitated for a moment when he saw the angry look on Diggle’s face.  He tried to cover by shooting him a bright smile and nodding, but he saw that the man was suspicious. 

Oliver was watching him enter the room.  The predatory look that swept over his features tightened every sex-related organ in Tommy’s body and swept any thought of the Hood from his mind.  He smiled at Oliver and nearly ran the few steps toward him.  But then he hesitated and stopped, not even two steps from Oliver.  He didn’t know how hurt Oliver was.  The type of hug he wanted to give him could do more damage.  He didn’t know the extent of Oliver’s injuries…or how he would have reacted had Ollie been lying in the bed instead of standing at the window when he had arrived.

Oliver stepped towards him and used his free hand to grab Tommy’s face.  He pulled him in and kissed him.  Still, Tommy hesitated.  Oliver pulled back, his hand still on Tommy’s face.

“Tommy?” he asked, the confusion clear on his face.

Tommy smiled reassuringly.

“Are you okay?”  Tommy asked stupidly, “I mean- I know you’re not.  You’ve got bandages. Your-”

Oliver leaned in and kissed him again before he leaned back and smiled, “I’m okay…Banged up pretty badly, but nothing worse than I had on the island.”

“What really happened, Ollie?”

Oliver dropped his hand and stepped back.  Tommy instantly felt the loss as Oliver dropped his eyes to the floor.

“It wasn’t a motorcycle accident, was it?” Tommy asked.

“Tommy,” he said, his eyes firmly fixed on Tommy’s shoes, “I can’t- I can’t talk about it.”

Tommy stepped into Oliver’s personal space at that.  He put his hand to Oliver’s cheek and none-too-gently forced him to raise his face.

“Tell me,” he ordered softly as Oliver’s sad green eyes met his.

After a very long pause where Tommy started to doubt his instinct that Oliver needed to talk about it, Oliver sighed heavily.  Oliver squeezed his eyes tight as a single tear slipped down his cheek.

“It was the Black Archer,” Oliver said softly, “He beat the crap out of me.  I really think he meant to kill me, Tommy.”

Tommy hadn’t really paid attention to the news in forever because of his Dear Old Dad, but even he had heard about the copycat vigilante the press was calling “The Black Archer”.  He suspected who the “Black Archer” was taking orders from. 

Oliver opened his eyes to look at Tommy.  The sadness in those eyes made him want to weep.  He eased the grip on Oliver’s chin and slid his hand to the back of Oliver’s head.

“Ollie,” he sighed, “what happened?”

He watched as Oliver hesitated, trying to decide what to say and how to say it.  Tommy saw the moment Oliver decided to lie and almost wanted to cry.

“He beat me, Tommy,” Oliver said, “I was trying to get away from the fiasco that was that ill-advised party and he attacked me.  Told me I was causing him problems…I don’t even know what I’ve done to piss him off!”

Tommy held his tongue.  As much as he wanted to tell Oliver that he knew why, he needed Oliver to tell him the truth in his own time.  He dropped his hand and stepped away again.  He knew he couldn’t accuse him of lying…not this time.  It was too dangerous and their relationship too new.

“It’s probably simply because of who you are,” Tommy said tightly, “You’re Moira Queen’s eldest and only son.  He probably hates you simply for that.”

“You’re probably right,” Oliver said, the tension obviously easing from his voice, “He did mention my family being a royal pain.”

Tommy’s shoulders slumped.  The truth was not going to come out.  He wanted the truth from Oliver, but he knew that he couldn’t force it from him at that moment.

No Acknowledgement

Oliver’s hand touched his shoulder.  Tommy turned his head to look back at him.  He knew the hurt and anger were in his eyes, but he couldn’t force them away.

“What’s wrong?” Oliver asked sincerely, “Are you okay?”

Tommy laughed harshly as he turned around.

“Let’s see…the man I love just got the shit beat out of him by a vigilante and isn’t sure why,” Tommy growled, “I want to kiss said man until his head spins, but I have no idea how injured he really is…oh, and yeah…apparently the girl who is my beard has decided she’s in love with me…What could possibly be wrong?”

“Yeah, Laurel told me that she was moving on with you at the party,” Oliver said, jumping on the last part of Tommy’s sarcastic statement, “It was part of the reason I needed to get out of there.”

“Yeah,” Tommy said with a half-hearted grin, “and left me to deal with her being stuck on me, thanks for that.”

“Tommy,” Oliver said, “I-”

Tommy leaned in and kissed him.

“You got the shit beat out of you,” he said, leaning back, “I think you’ve received enough of your penance.”

Tommy leaned back in and brushed his mouth against Oliver’s jaw.  Ollie sighed and relaxed physically.  Tommy’s mouth slid to his ear.  He took the lobe between his teeth and nibbled at it.  Oliver’s sigh turned into a soft moan.  His arms wrapped around Tommy tightly, the cane clattering to the floor as he turned to find Tommy’s mouth.  Tommy obliged and kissed Oliver’s lips.  He slid the hand on Oliver’s face into his hair and gingerly placed the other on Oliver’s hip as he stepped closer.

Oliver tried to deepen the kiss, but Tommy kept it gentle, trying desperately to keep things from getting too heated.  He chuckled and broke the kiss.  Ollie’s scowl at his breaking off the kiss made him chuckle again.

“We can’t, Oliver,” he whispered as he leaned his forehead against Oliver’s bent head, “God! As much as I want to be with you right now, there are too many people here and we have too much to talk about.”

“What’s to talk about?” Oliver asked with a heavy sigh, “I’m sick to death of talking with you, Tommy.  I just want to be with you.”

“Oliver!” Tommy said sternly, reluctantly stepping away, “First off, we’re in a hospital!  And granted, you have a beautiful single room, but I don’t really think we’d be able to keep Dear Old Dad from finding out about us if we continue in this vein.  Secondly, there are complications about us and people who know about us that we really need to discuss.  And third, and more important than anything, you’ve just had the shit beaten out of you.  I don’t know what your injuries are, and I don’t want to make them worse.    As much as I really want more than anything to have a serious make-out session with you…or more…you are hurt and need to rest…and heal…”

An evil grin washed over Oliver’s face.  Tommy instantly knew that he had latched onto the “or more” part of that rant and grinned back at him before he forced himself to sober.

“We can’t, Oliver,” he said again, stepping in to give him a lingering but brief kiss, “I love you, Ollie, but I’m going to be the responsible one here.”

Oliver whimpered, actually whimpered before turning away to limp toward the window.  Tommy looked down and saw the cane at his feet.  He stooped down and picked it up before looking again at Oliver.  In a way, Oliver had not lied.  The Black Archer had beaten Oliver.  Not just physically, but Tommy could see the mental devastation was setting in.  Something about what had really happened had broken Oliver’s spirit, not just his body.

He vowed to himself again that if he ever found proof that the Black Archer was taking orders from Dear Old Dad, there would be nothing on the planet to stop him from killing his father.  He’d put pain and anguish back into Oliver’s life just when things were starting to go right.  He’d broken Oliver’s will.  And Tommy hated Dear Old Dad for it.

A very small part of him knew he was jumping to conclusions, but it was something that ran along Dear Old Dad’s modus operandi.  So, he was more than eighty-five percent certain the Black Archer was connected to his father.  And that was more than enough for him.

He stepped closer to Oliver and placed his free hand on his shoulder.  He gently wrapped the hand with the cane around Oliver’s body and hugged him carefully.

“I should go, Oliver,” he said quietly, allowing Oliver to take the cane from his hand, “You need to rest.”

Oliver’s eyes caught him in the reflection of the window.

“Stay, please?” Oliver said, “Nothing needs to happen.  I just don’t want to be alone right now.”

“Only if you promise to lie down and get some rest,” Tommy said.

Oliver answered by limping back to the bed, barely using the cane in his hand.  He sat on the bed and kicked off the slippers on his feet before carefully swinging his legs onto the bed.  Tommy stepped over and pulled the sheet and blanket over him before he sat down on the edge of the bed.  Oliver grabbed his hand and held tight.  Tommy could already see Oliver’s eyes drifting shut.

“I love you, Tommy,” he said with a soft sigh.

Tommy leaned in and kissed him lightly on his forehead.

“I love you, too, Oliver.  Now, sleep.”

He watched as the lines of pain and agony slowly slid away as sleep claimed Oliver.  It was only when Oliver’s face showed only the innocence of sleep that Tommy leaned over, kissed his lips. He pulled his hand out of Ollie’s grasp to get a chair.  It was going to be a long night, but at least, for now, Oliver was safe.

The discussion about the Hood would have to wait…again.

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