Unravel Me | Arrow [ COMPLETED ]

chapter twenty two

"When you're in the half light, oh, it is not you I see

You live a half life, you only show half to me"

BANNERS - 'Half Light'

.                   .                .

"You had someone track my phone," Oliver said over his shoulder before Cali took a step into his room.

She stopped on the threshold; Oliver could sense her hovering in the doorway, debating with herself whether she wanted to start shouting or let Oliver explain himself. "Felt a bit stupid when you showed up here, at home."

Oliver's mouth quirked into a bitter smile and he lifted one shoulder into a careless shrug. "What can I say, Helena can only handle my presence for so long before she feels threatened."

"Ah." Cali shifted on her feet, and part of Oliver so desperately wanted her to go away now, to step backwards out of his room and leave him to ponder the world and all its failings. "Yes, I was wondering about your newest toy. She's a delight to talk to, by the way."

"Felicity likes expensive red wine," he said casually, ignoring the jab at Helena. He'd expected the animosity, of course, but he really didn't want to encourage it. He didn't have the energy for the fighting tonight. "You know, in case you wanted to thank her for helping to find me."

Cali hummed to herself noncommittally as she risked a step further into the room, clearly reaching a decision in her internal argument. Instinctually, Oliver's entire body stiffened, muscles tensing in preparation. He'd defend himself if he had to - physically protecting himself took so much less effort than shielding himself from emotional blows.

Cali stopped immediately, reading the stress in his body. "Oh," she murmured. "I see. I can go, if you'd like."

Oliver gritted his teeth. "No." He and Cali startled in tandem at the unexpected force to the word. Oliver shook his head and forced away the tension in his body, peeling open his closed fists and taking deep breaths to try and bring back some of the ease. "No. Stay. Please."

"Ollie-"

"It's okay," he insisted, but he didn't turn around to face her. "Please stay. I'm sorry."

'I'm tired,' is what he didn't say, but Cali seemed to hear it anyway, because she came close enough to lay her hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to say sorry for being uncomfortable, Ollie. If anything, I should be apologising for invading your space without asking."

"No," Oliver said, quieter this time, less forceful. He didn't want to be angry tonight. He didn't want to be the Hood, or the vigilante, or the monster that he'd been made into after he'd been stranded on Lian Yu. He just wanted to be Oliver, and he wanted Cali to be Cali, and he wanted things to be okay, for a little while. "I'm sorry."

"Oh," Cali said again, "okay." And that was that.

For a while, neither of them said anything. Instead, Cali very slowly moved until she was sitting beside Oliver on the bed, pausing often enough that when their arms finally brushed together, Oliver was so used to her presence that he couldn't really remember her not being there.

Being around Cali wasn't like being around Helena, wasn't like being around Laurel or Thea or Tommy or Diggle or Felicity or anyone really. Because Cali knew who he was, who he really was, and she didn't expect more from him than that. Sure, she had ideas about what he should do and how he should act, and she got upset when he didn't, but she didn't want him to be anything that he wasn't.