Life Without You (3/?)

[serafina19]

Title: Life Without You
Rating: PG
Summary: Chloe and Oliver attempt to learn how to live without each other after Chloe escapes from the Suicide Squad.
Timeline: Shield-Collateral.

Thanks to: mystic_ri96 for the song prompt. This chapter is "Supergirl" to "Homecoming."


Part 1 Part 2

 

Part 3

Didn't want to make a mess
Didn't want to feel again
This heart has had enough


The crumpled papers were scattered all over the streets, and Chloe couldn't help but pick up one of them. She had heard rumblings, possibilities of what the front page contained, but she didn't think it could be true. He was smarter than that.

Or so she thought.

Despite the puddles on the street distorting the text, she could still make out the headline and the picture was as clear as day.

You idiot, she thought.

No matter how strong he seemed on the page, he was a mess and she was half convinced that the only way to get him to snap out of it was to walk into his office. But she couldn't. She still couldn't.

Yet she knew it was what he wanted. He did this for her. He risked so much and she couldn't give Oliver what he wanted. That killed her.

The people congregated in the street, whispering about how someone on the penthouse suite was helping the common folk, or how an adrenaline junkie was taking the law into his own hands, depending on the conversation she heard. She wanted to speak up, say something, but she held back, continuing her walk down the street in silence.

~0~

It's this moment where Oliver wonders why he bothered with the interview in the first place.

He's forced to sit here, listening to the blonde woman who has already made up her mind about the Green Arrow. Talking about the backlash, asking for answers.

She wanted answers? The public wanted answers? So did Oliver.

If he wanted something from it, he would have come clean years ago. If he wanted to be selfish about it, he could have given himself a couple parades. But he didn't. He worked in the shadows to bring justice— that was his only reason.

Then again, as for his reason for coming clean, that wasn't completely true, an answer Clark, who had just entered the room, knew too well. It wasn't much, but knowing someone had his back was enough for Oliver to push forward.

~0~

It wasn't everyday Chloe noticed people huddled around the television at the street tavern, and consider how packed it was, she could only guess it was Oliver-related. Knowing she didn't exactly have cable where she lived, she bowed her head, risking to go inside.

Sure enough, Oliver's face is the first thing she sees as she enters, so Chloe takes a deep breath, wanting to push her way further through the crowd, but her head pops up when his first words enter her ears.

"I lost someone… she meant everything to me."

There was that hurt again, the confirmation that he did do all this for her, showing what Oliver was willing to risk for her. Chloe swallowed hard, wanting to feel guilty for what she had done, but she couldn't. Her mission at hand was much bigger than this, and short-term pain for long-term gain sounded better than losing Oliver for good. At least it was the only way Chloe had kept herself from going back to him.

~0~

The woman was shocked. Good. She could pick him apart, accuse him of things because of his public persona, but Oliver was ready, ready to prove her wrong. If she thought Oliver Queen was incapable of loving anyone, that he was a spineless playboy, she thought wrong.

But she wasn't done throwing punches, furthering her conviction that Oliver wanted something, so he put his foot down, but first a little digression.

"No, no... you're right. I'm not special. This isn't about who I am. It's about what I do. And I don't think I'm the first rich boy who felt that way. It was John F. Kennedy who once said ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country."

The woman stares at him and retorts through her blinking eyes, "So now you're comparing yourself to a fallen hero of this country?"

"Well, why not?" Oliver fired back. "He saw the hero in all of us."

His thoughts went back to Chloe, the person who always saw the hero in him. It was more than just the Roulette scheme, it was the eternal faith she showed in Oliver, no matter what he did.

"I'm not dwelling on revenge for past atrocities, or looking ahead to what I can personally gain from a few tax breaks, drilling oil wells in the ocean, putting up razor-wired fences to keep out immigrants who only want what our grandparents wanted."

The last phrase, Oliver felt his tone become harsher, but he had sat back, tried to play this whole thing safely. Now, it was the passion Oliver felt for what he did that drove his voice. "In this world of armchair bloggers who created a generation of critics instead of leaders, I'm actually doing something. Right here, right now. For the city. For my country."

He pauses, peering up at Clark, who gives Oliver the smallest of smirks. Again, a small action, but considering the person, it's a pretty grand gesture. The two men had seen their differences, but they had both lost Chloe. But they had to trust her, because it was Chloe.  She always had her reasons, and all signs pointed to her being alive. That alone was enough for now.

Oliver grinned back, showing Clark his gratitude for being here, before looking back at the reporter. He had supporters, allies, and friends; he wasn't alone in this.

More importantly, he would get through this. It wasn't going to be easy, but Chloe would come home eventually. For now, he just had to get through the tough days ahead, no matter how many days there were.

~0~

"And I'm not doing it alone."

It was that line that Chloe saw it, the spark in his eyes, the confidence that she had fallen for. Days had gone by since Oliver revealed himself to the public, but it wasn't until now that his natural, genuine confidence had shone through.  His final words of the interview proved that.

"You're damn right I'm a hero."

With that, pride welled up in Chloe's heart as she found it in herself to smile.  So she turned around to leave the bar, knowing that not only would Oliver get through this, but also that the odds weren't completely against them.  It wasn't going to be easy, but Chloe would come home eventually, and she had a lingering feeling that her and Oliver might actually survive this.



Part 4

Comments

[chlollie-4ever.livejournal.com]

Oh God, sooooooooooooooo beautiful!!!!!!!!!! I'm loving it!!!!!! More soon? :DDD

[serafina19.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much! Part 4 should be up fairly soon.