An Origin Story: 15/23

[bluesuedeshoes]

Author:  BlueSuede
Title:  An Origin Story
Rating: R/M
Genre: Friendship/Romance
Pairings:  Chloe/Oliver
Summary:  AU in which Oliver's parents never died
Warnings: minor spoilers for most early seasons



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Prologue

Previous (Chapter 14)
Next (Chapter 16)

Chapter 15:

Winning the Lady's Favor

When spring rolled around, Chloe's level of panic had dramatically decreased. It had become obvious that Oliver wasn't going to push her into anything she didn't want. She'd convinced herself that as long as she continued as she was, Oliver would eventually get bored with the idea and give up, not that it ever occurred to her why she wanted him to give up. If she ever stopped to question that, she wouldn't have been able to come with an answer.

Oliver, on the other hand, was confident that if he continued exactly as he was, Chloe would eventually give up and give in. Every day he watched as she weakened slightly.

Like now, for instance. They were at a Rockets game, and Chloe was having a great time. She was saying something to him. He should probably be listening. He should definitely not be staring at the smudge of mustard just to the right of her lip. He should absolutely be listening to her.

"Oliver!"

He blinked and laughed. "Sorry. You've just - you've got this - " he chuckled and wiped the mustard away with his thumb.

She sighed. "Next time I'm letting Jeremy be my date. Do you know he almost cried when he found out I had these seats? Press passes don't generally get you right behind the plate." She glanced across the stadium and spotted Jeremy's baseball cap where he was taking photographs dutifully.

"Yeah, but you don't get to make out with Jeremy afterwards."

"I'm not making out with you afterwards, either."

He grinned at her. "We'll see."

Chloe rolled her eyes, laughing and shoving him away from her.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry. What were you saying?"

"I said I got the pitcher to agree to interview with me after the game. And the coach was telling me that apparently they're working on some sort of charity with your parents? How come neither of them told me about it?"

Oliver shrugged. "It'll probably come up eventually. I'm surprised it hadn't already."

Chloe stared at him.

"What?"

"You knew about it?" She threw her napkin at him. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"You didn't ask," he said, throwing his hands up defensively.

"God, what good is it being friends with you people, anyway?" she teased.

"I knew you only kept me around for my money," he said as their eyes turned back to the field and the next inning began.

"Don't be ridiculous," she said, "I keep you around for your parents' connections. Usually," she added resentfully.

He ruffled her hair in retaliation.

"I can't take you anywhere, can I?" she asked condescendingly, smoothing her hair out again.

He stole her last bite of hot dog from her fingers and popped it in his mouth. "Nope," he said with his mouth full.

Chloe rolled her eyes and turned back to the game. "You're buying me another one, you know."

"On it," he grinned, already waving the vendor over.

---

After the game, Oliver hung around while Chloe first spoke with the coach and then with the pitcher, Seth Daniels.

When Chloe came back to find him for her ride home, he noticed her face was bright pink.

"What?" he asked suspiciously.

"Nothing," she said quickly. She glanced over her shoulder and Oliver followed suit where he saw Daniels wave at her and then wink.

He looked at Chloe, who instantly turned around, cheeks darkening further. Oliver's eyes narrowed. "What?"

Chloe bit her lip. "He...may have asked me out."

Oliver's brow shot up. "Sorry?"

Chloe looked over her shoulder again and then actually giggled slightly. "I don't know. He just asked if I wanted to go to the Make-a-Wish ball with him - which apparently is the charity ball that none of you told me about. I can't believe you didn't tell me that you were raising money for a bunch of kids to come out to play in a Rockets game."

"Well, technically, only one of the kids is going to 'play.' The rest of his little league friends are just getting to hang out in the dugout during the game. Can we get back to the part where he asked you out? What did you say?"

"I said I'd think about it. He gave me his number, and I figured I'd rather try meeting him for something small like coffee first, you know?"

Oliver was staring at her.

"What?" she asked, uncomfortable under his gaze.

"I'm sorry, did you just say you're actually thinking about going out with this guy?"

"I said I might. I don't know. I'm thinking about it - would you stop looking at me like I just said I'm killing puppies for a hobby now?" she demanded as they approached his car.

He shook himself. "I'm sorry, you just...I mean, you normally don't give guys like that the time of day."

"Guys like what?" she asked, in the car now.

"The male kind," he laughed. "Seriously, when was the last time a guy hit on you and you didn't turn him down in five seconds flat?"

Chloe shrugged evasively. "I don't know."

"I'll answer that for you, then. You haven't been on a date since we met, and from what I've gathered, even before that it had still been a while."

Chloe didn't say anything, and Oliver felt a small amount of anxiety building up.

"You like him then?"

"I guess. I don't know. He was cute."

"Cute?"

"Yeah, cute. As in, not repulsive. Like, he was attractive and he made me laugh."

"Right." There was a long, awkward pause. "So are you going to go with him? To the fundraiser, I mean. Because - "

"I-don't-know, Oliver. Jeez, how many times do I have to say it?"

"Sorry, I'm just wondering. Because, I mean, I was sort of counting on us going together, but if you want to go with - "

"You were? Okay, well then I'll tell him no. Really, I'd rather go with you, anyway. I don't even know him."

Leave it at that. Leave it at that. Take what you can get and run with it. "Well not if you want to go with this guy, though. I mean, I can get a date. We just usually do this stuff together, but if you like him..." he trailed off uncertainly.

Chloe fidgeted. "I don't know."

"You keep saying that. What does that mean?"

"Are you serious?" Chloe turned to stare at him like he was a complete imbecile.

"Sorry."

---

Chloe never told Oliver whether she called the stupid lemming - as he'd been referring to Seth Daniels in his mind - but he realized he had to step his game up.

Chloe, personally, was staring at the phone number, which was stuck to her fridge, on an almost daily basis, trying to make up her mind to call him.

"What's the big deal?" she asked at the end of the week. "Hi, Seth. You want to do coffee? I mean, how hard is that?" she demanded.

Leanne, sitting at her desk, shook her head. "Beats me. I mean, I'd call him in a heart beat. Then again, I don't have at least two billionaires hanging at my fingertips." She sighed dreamily.

"Okay, Bruce and I don't actually have a thing for each other," Chloe responded irritably. She was waiting outside Robert Queen's office to get a brief quote from him on the Make-a-Wish deal, and in the meantime she was chatting with Leanne, a fairly common occurrence.

"I notice how you completely neglect to defend yourself against the other drop-dead-gorgeous, incredibly wealthy man in your life," she said, eyebrow raised as she typed something into her computer.

Chloe sighed, staring at the ceiling. "That's the thing. I mean, technically, there's nothing going on with me and Ollie. But at the same time - "

"You feel guilty about going out with someone other than him?" Leanne suggested.

Chloe glared.

"What? I'm just sayin'. We both know it's true, whether you're willing to admit to it or not."

"Okay, maybe it's ever so slightly true. I mean, he's...we're...I don't know," she sighed finally. "It's like you said. I feel a little bit guilty considering going out with someone else, which is ridiculous," she added, "because I have every right so see whomever I want."

"Having the right to see other men doesn't mean you actually want the right to see other men," Leanne offered sagely.

Chloe stared at her.

"What? I sit in here all day and take phone calls. What do you think I do with my down time?" She turned her computer to show she was logged into the website for a woman's magazine.

Chloe laughed. "All these months I had my own dating guru and I didn't even know it."

"Yeah, well," she studied her fingernails vainly, "What can I say? Is it my fault you take more than just Oliver Queen for granted?"

"I need to introduce you to my cousin sometime. You two would get along."

"Can I assume that was a compliment?"

"Coming from me, probably."

"Well, anyway, are you going to call Mr. I'm-A-Gorgeous-Male-Athlete-In-His-Prime-And-I-Have-Great-Biceps?"

Chloe heaved another sigh. "I guess not."

"Uh huh. And are you going to stop stringing along Mr. I'm-Incredibly-Hot-And-Even-If-I-Weren't-Rich-Women-Would-Still-Throw-Themselves-At-Me?"

Chloe laughed. "I haven't been stringing him along!"

Leanne arched her brow but said nothing, staring at her computer.

"...intentionally."

Leanne nodded, still not looking up.

"I don't know. I mean, it's not like he hasn't had a million opportunities to make a move. Maybe he's not - "

Leanne scoffed.

Chloe stopped. Who was she kidding? "Right. Well, I guess if Oliver decides he wants to make a move, actually, you know, do something, then I won't stop him."

She smirked. "How very passive-aggressive of you."

"Miss Hart? Is Miss Sullivan here?" Robert Queen's voice buzzed in, interrupting them.

"Yes, sir."

"Send her in."

Leanne looked up to Chloe and smiled.

Chloe was halfway in the door before she glanced back at Leanne. "Um, Leanne?"

"Doctor/Patient confidentiality. Got it," Leanne smirked. "Don't I always?"

Chloe shook her head. "You're a good woman, Leanne."

"So you keep telling me."

---

"Miss Sullivan, what a pleasant surprise."

Chloe's eyes closed and she felt her cheeks burn slightly as she turned to see Seth Daniels, looking extremely attractive in a tux. "Oh, Seth! Hi!" she smiled pleasantly at him. "And please, it's Chloe."

"Chloe, then," he grinned. "I'm surprised to see you," he said redundantly, attempting to be subtle about wondering why she was there.

Chloe's blush darkened. Ollie, where are you? "I had-" she swallowed "-someone had already asked me, and I decided it would be impolite to turn him down for another offer." Although not as impolite as keeping my date waiting for over an hour. "I'm sorry I never called," she added.

He nodded. "It's fine. So where is your date this evening?" he asked, noting her obvious lack of company. Chloe had been hovering near the entrance most of the evening, trying not to draw attention to herself.

She shrugged. "Running late, unfortunately. You know businessmen. They never stop working. What about you?"

His grin grew embarrassed. "Can you keep a secret?"

"I am a reporter," she joked. "But I'll do my best."

"I took my sister. I knew she was dying to go, and since I didn't hear from you..." he trailed off for her to fill in the blank, and Chloe smiled warmly. It was sweet, though she felt a bit guilty knowing that if she had had the decency to call him he might have had time to find someone else. "Would you like to dance?"

Chloe bit her lip, glancing at the door. Still no word from Oliver. With a brief sigh, she nodded and let him lead her onto the dance floor.

"I enjoyed the article," he said after a moment, attempting conversation.

"Hmm? Which one?" Chloe asked absently, mind clearly elsewhere.

He chuckled. "I meant the one about the fundraiser that you interviewed me for."

Chloe started slightly and then sighed embarrassedly. "Sorry. That's nice. You liked it?"

He lifted his shoulder slightly. "Half of it was over my head. I've been dying to ask you: What does 'perspicacity' mean?"

Chloe laughed. "Insight."

He laughed. "I'll never remember that."

Chloe almost jumped out of her skin when her phone rang, letting out a small squeal of surprise and stumbling into Seth slightly. "Oh, god," she muttered, clutching him awkwardly to regain her balance as her phone continued to buzz. "I'm sorry."

He was laughing good naturedly, though. "Where is that coming from?" he asked, noting that there didn't exactly appear to be room for her phone on her person. She was clad in a green silk dress that hugged her curves and definitely didn't appear to have pockets.

She lifted a conspiratorial brow. "Can you keep a secret?"

He nodded, eyes gleaming with amusement.

Chloe inconspicuously slipped her fingers down the neckline of her dress, producing her phone and smiling sheepishly. Seth laughed whole-heartedly. "I never go anywhere without it," she said, then sighed slightly as she looked at the screen. "It's my date..." she looked at him apologetically.

"Go, go," he shooed her off. "But I expect you to make it up to me later," he added, winking.

Chloe nodded, glad for the chance to escape him. She subtly slipped out of the ballroom in the Queen's home and into a hallway before flipping open the phone to call him back.

"Too busy dancing with Daniels to answer your phone?" joked Oliver's voice on the other end.

"Are you here?" she asked, thinking he must have seen her.

"Why? Is that actually what you were doing?" he asked in surprise, his tone betraying a trace of jealousy, but mostly just good humor.

Chloe sighed. "Where are you?"

"I'm sorry I'm late. There was a bank robbery. I'm coming in through my window."

"Why?" she asked stupidly.

"I don't think the Green Arrow is on the guest list," he teased.

Chloe shook her head in exasperation. "I guess I meant why is the Green Arrow coming in through the window as opposed to Oliver Queen walking through the door."

"I may have neglected my tux."

"Oliver!"

"Relax. There's one here. Want to come up?"

Chloe sighed.

"We both know you're secretly fed up with all these high class parties. Come chill out and gripe about rich people."

"The only rich person I've got to gripe about is you. You know your parents have been asking me where you are all night?" she added irritably, already on her way up the stairs in spite of herself.

She could practically hear his grin. "Yeah, yeah."

"A bank robbery took you over an hour?" she asked grudgingly, making her way down a long corridor.

"Lay off. There were hostages."

"Really?" she asked, brightening up. She would have been concerned if it weren't for Oliver's evident good mood. If something had gone wrong, he wouldn't be so lighthearted.

"Yes. And yes, I'll give you the full scoop so you can get it into tomorrow's paper."

She pressed her lips together, fighting a grin. "I might forgive you yet."

"Such a sweet, selfless girl."

She rolled her eyes, knocking on the door of his room.

The door swung open. "You knocked? Seriously?" he laughed, hanging up.

"Well you said you were changing and-and-" Chloe faltered.

Oliver had not changed into his tux. He was still in costume, and he was sporting a rather dark bruise across the left side of his face. He looked at her sheepishly, seeing the scowl forming on her face.

"Oliver," she scolded.

"I know, I know," he said, letting her in. "You look really pretty, by the way," he said, attempting to distract her.

Her lips were pressed into a thin line.

"Right. Well, as you can see-"

"You can't be seen at your parents' own party."

He shrugged. "Well, there are a couple of options here."

"Enlighten me," she said tiredly, sitting on his bed to watch him.

"I can pretend I got in a fight with someone."

"Over what?"

He shrugged. "Bar fight. Girl. The usual. We could say someone made a pass at you," he added thoughtfully, noting by the look on her face that she wasn't going to go along with it.

"Option B."

"I can suck up my pride and you can try to cover it up with makeup."

"Won't help the swelling and even by the time we ice it down, the make up I have isn't heavy enough to hide something like that, not when people will be so close."

"Right," he said, grinning in spite of himself. "Well, the final option is that you can keep me company and we just won't go down there at all. Though it's a shame to waste that dress," he added, nodding at her.

Chloe groaned.

"Relax. There's enough people down there that no one will really miss us."

"Except your parents."

"We'll tell them I was proposing to you outside."

She giggled, shaking her head.

"I knew I'd get you to laugh."

"You're not forgiven, though," she said grudgingly, trying to force her smile back down and pin him with a piercing glare. The result was slightly less than formidable.

"Come on, do you know how many more of these things I'll have to attend in my life?" he begged. "One won't kill me."

She sighed. "Fine. But personally, I don't see why I should have to miss anything," she said. "I'm not the one sporting a bruise the size of Texas."

"Aw, come on," he said, wrapping her in an unfair hug. "Keep me company while I'm confined to my room. Pleeeaaaase," he pleaded with her as she scrambled to break free.

"Fine, fine. I'll stay," she gave in, laughing.

"Sweet," he said.

"Are you going to change now?" she asked in resignation.

He nodded, smirking. "You're welcome to wa-Where are you going?"

She laughed, her hand on the doorknob. "I'm going to find my spare pajamas in the guest room."

He pouted. "I like the dress."

"Yeah, me too," she laughed sarcastically, rolling her eyes as she left.

When she returned she found Oliver clothed in a T-shirt and sweats, a pack of ice on the side of his face.

She shook her head.

"How is it your parents haven't figured you out, yet?" she asked, sitting down with him on the couch.

"Beats me. Because I'm clever as hell?" he suggested lightly.

"That or they're completely dense when it comes to you," she tossed back.

"So how's it going down there?" he asked, referring to the party.

She shrugged. "Smoothly as usual. Your parents always put together fantastic events. Tasteful, elegant, fun..." she sighed, trailing off wistfully, trying to make him feel guilty.

"We both know you're thrilled just to get out of the shoes you were wearing."

"Maybe," she admitted grudgingly, a smile tugging at her lips.

"C'mere," he said, setting aside the ice for his face and pulling her feet onto his lap and beginning to massage them. "See? So much better than a stuffy party."

"Your parents' parties are not stuffy," she sniffed, trying not to completely melt at the feel of his hands rubbing her ankles warmly.

"So did you dance at all?" he asked casually.

"Mmhmm," she sighed.

"Who with?"

"Your father."

He chuckled. "Of course. Anyone else?"

She knew what he was getting at, but she didn't give in just yet, instead lying back on the couch and closing her eyes.

"Was Bruce there?" he prompted.

"Mmm no."

"What about that baseball player?"

"Mmhmm."

"Well?"

She opened an eye to look at him. "Yes, he was there," she sighed, the slightest hint of irritation in her voice. "Yes we danced. And then you called."

He nodded. "Huh. He's not waiting on you, is he?" he asked, trying to keep the impatience from his voice.

She shook her head no, then paused and nodded yes. "Sort of. Not really. No big deal."

Oliver's hands paused. "Did you want to go back down?"

She looked up at him, amused. "I'm already out of the dress. I think I'm good."

"Right," he said, somewhat mollified as his hands started up again. "So did you ever call him?"

"No. I decided not to." She opened an eye again to watch his reaction closely.

Relief flashed quickly across his face before he replaced it with carefully constructed indifference. "Yeah?"

"Yeah. I never really had a thing for athletes."

"Didn't you have a crush on Clark all through high school? I thought he was a football player."

Her eyes drifted shut again and she muttered something incomprehensible.

"What?"

"I said that didn't really have anything to do with him playing football. I liked him a long time before that ever started," she said, mind wandering to a much younger version of her and Clark. She smiled softly.

"What did it have to do with?" he asked curiously.

Her eyebrows went up, but her eyes remained closed. "Oh, a lot of things, I suppose. It was easy to have a crush on Clark. He was cute and we were friends and he was so noble all the time. It was sweet. But we were just kids, too," she added thoughtfully. "He and Lois are...beautifully cliche."

"What does that mean?" he laughed.

"They're meant for each other."

He nodded thoughtfully.

His hands paused again and Chloe sat up, yawning. "Your turn," she said, crawling over to him. He looked surprised but she just pushed him forward on the couch, moving to sit behind him so she could start massaging his shoulder. Oliver immediately groaned. "Did I hurt you?" she asked nervously, instantly freezing.

He shook his head. "Dear God, no."

She laughed, returning to her work. "Jeez, you really get tense up here, don't you?"

"You try rescuing hostages from an armed robbery sometime," he said sarcastically, laughter in his exhausted voice.

She chuckled. "Good point."

They were silent for a good while, save Oliver's moans as Chloe slowly but surely worked the knots out of his back.

"You're an angel," he said finally, as she finished. He pulled her hand around and kissed her finger tips.

Chloe wasn't exactly thinking about it. At least, if she tried to figure it out later, she couldn't remember if she was thinking about anything. She slid her hands over his chest, hugging him and pressing her cheek against his. "Not really," she said lightly. She planted a kiss on his cheek.

His hands moved over her arms, keeping her from pulling away, and his head turned slightly, resting his forehead against hers.

Chloe found herself very aware of the effort it suddenly required to breathe steadily, butterflies rising in her stomach and fluttering hopefully.

"Want to know a secret?" Oliver asked.

A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Sure."

"I am really glad you never called that blasted ballplayer," he said, before closing the small space between them and kissing her.

Chloe thought she could feel a small shudder travel through her body, as if each nerve had to be awakened for this. Oliver was turning, pulling her around from behind him as his lips molded to hers, softly savoring hers. His hands traveled around to the small of her back and she slowly began to return the kiss, her hands threading into his hair as she rose to her knees to better match him, tilting his head up to her.

Oliver's lips pulled away from hers and began trailing over her jawline before reaching her ear and biting it, making Chloe laugh, her body arching in surprise. She could feel his lips smiling against her neck and she pulled back giggling, though his arms around her didn't let her retreat far.

She looked into his eyes, and she had a feeling all the things she was thinking, wondering were reflected there, and she knew it was all right, that this was right. She tried to press another kiss to his lips but found it difficult.

"Do you know how hard this is when you keep smiling like that?" she laughed.

"Sorry," he teased, grinning back at her regardless, pressing his nose against hers.

She tried to be serious with minimal success. "So..."

"Yes," he said, silencing her with another kiss.

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