I'm Fine (An Arrow Fanfiction)

Chapter Two

By the end of the day Oliver's headache had--thankfully--cleared up a lot, but not completely. He was used to pain, though, and hid it well. And after the incident at Felicity's desk, he hadn't been sneezing anymore.

Oliver glanced at the clock on the wall. It was almost 5:36 and he was to be home before six. He'd promised his mother and Thea that he'd be at the house in time for a dinner.

"Hey Dig," Oliver called, slipping his white t-shirt back over his head. "I gotta be home for dinner with Thea and my mom pretty soon. We should probably leave now."

"Okay, just a minute." Diggle said in a strained voice. He was doing pull-ups on Oliver's bar.

"Oh I just finished, too." Felicity said pulling her eyes away from the monitor. "I'll walk out with you."

"Great," Oliver said, smiling. "We'll be waiting for you by the car, Dig."

"Yep," he grunted back.

Oliver and Felicity climbed up the stairs and through the crowds of people in Oliver's club. The blinking strobe lights and the loud music that usually made Oliver exhilarated was making his already pounding head feel as if he had one of his own arrows piercing through his temples.

"Let's go," Oliver said, grabbing Felicity's cold hand. They manoeuvred through the screaming crowds, finally ending up next to their cars.

"You okay?" Felicity inquired of Oliver. She guessed that the craziness of Verdant was not helping with the headache that he'd been hiding all day.

He attempted a convincing smile. "Yep," he said lightly. "I'm great."

"You look kind of tired," she observed. "Not that you look bad," she amended, "just like you need a nap. I mean not that it's my business, I just mean to say--you know what, sorry forget I said anything." Her face flushed dramatically. Oliver loved it when she did that; it always made him smile even when there was nothing to smile about. Not that he'd ever tell her that.

"Hey, it's okay. I don't know what I can say to make you and Dig believe me, but I feel great. Really. You don't need to worry about me." He rubbed the hand she'd forgotten he was still holding.

"I just think you've been working too hard, like when do you ever take a break?"

"I take a lot-" Oliver paused, his breath caught again and he tore away from Felicity's soft grip and sneezed violently into his cupped hands. "Dammit, sorry," sneeze "I take a," sneeze "a lot of time" sneeze "off. I mean-" sneeze "excuse me for a," sneeze "minute."

Oliver turned his back to Felicity and set one hand on the hood of his car. He sneezed a few more times, covering his face with the back of his wrist. He took a deep breath and tried to compose himself. He turned back to Felicity with a polite smile.

"Sorry about that." He sniffed.

"Need a Kleenex?" she offered, rummaging through her purse.

"Ah, sure." Oliver said, embarrassment causing his cheeks to turn red.

She finally found a pack and handed it to Oliver. He blew his nose, then shoved the extras into his pocket.

Oliver leaned against the hood of his car and felicity stood next to him not sure what to say. He wouldn't admit to being sick, though he obviously was. Why? Didn't he trust her and Dig to take care of the work while he took a few days off?

"Alright, Queen, let's go." Felicity heard Diggle walk up Oliver and slip into the driver's side, interrupting her thoughts.

"'Kay," Oliver said heading for the passenger's seat.

"Hope you feel better," Felicity told him, as she slipped into her car.

"I'm fine..." Oliver protested weakly, then slid into the backseat.

For a second, Oliver slumped back in the seat, his head falling against the headrest. But before long, he resumed his polite mask, sitting up straight with a plastic smile.

What was wrong with him? He had had a sneezing episode right in front of his coworkers. Twice. He felt like crap. And now that he was sitting down, he started to feel congested. He blew his nose, but it didn't help much. Oliver glanced at his watch. He was probably going to be a few minutes late. He'd also need to change into something other than his dirty training clothes.