Arrow In My Wild Heart

Dinner

Tommy picked me up fifteen minutes late, which I had expected. He drove us over in his sports car and I watched as the grounds of the Queen Estate passed me by. They were so familiar but seemed like such a distant memory after five years. Tommy and I headed up to the door but he stopped me, gently nudging me to hide. "Surprise," he whispered. I suddenly felt nervous and wondered if the Queens even knew I was coming. He pushed open the door and stopped a few feet into the grand foyer. "What did I tell you, yachts suck," Tommy joked. I knew then that Oliver must have been right there. Then I heard Tommy chuckle.

"Tommy Merlyn," I heard Oliver's voice call to him before Tommy disappeared from my view. "I missed you, buddy," I heard him say. "And," Tommy added with an exaggerated voice. "I brought you a present," Tommy added before sticking his head out of the door. "I hope it's a girl," Oliver said with a dry chuckle. "Your wish is my command," Tommy called back to him before taking my hand and pulling me towards the door. I sort of drug my feet, feeling a bit queasy. Would Oliver want me here? Would he want to see me? Or would I remind him too much of Laurel and Sara?

Tommy forced himself to laugh and turned back to Oliver. "She's a little shy," Tommy told him as I took a deep breath. I stepped into the doorway to see Oliver's eyes move from Tommy to me, his smile dropping slightly. "Hey, Ollie," I muttered, a nervous smile on my lips. "Melly?" he asked me, his voice barely more than a whisper. And then he was moving around Tommy. I took a step forward, giving him a big hug. He held me close, as if he was afraid I would somehow slip away. "I missed you," I whispered, closing my eyes to push back the tears that were threatening to spill. He didn't say anything, just kissed my head. Oliver and I had always been close even though we had never dated. When we were younger, before he fell for Laurel or slept with Sara, we had often been found hiding in the trees or tracking mud through the house.

He pulled back and just looked at me. I looked at him too, examining the roguish stubble on his face that hadn't been there before. But then I looked into his eyes and saw how false his smile was. He was sad. Glad to be back and to see me, sure – but there was a loneliness and a darkness in his eyes that worried me. "I, uh... I didn't expect to see you any time soon," he told me, attempting a jovial tone. "Well, it's hard to visit someone when they're dead," I replied, trying for the same tone.

"Melly!" I heard a very excited squeal. Thea Queen, Oliver's younger sister, came rushing towards me. She hugged me quickly before pulling back with a bright smile. "Hey, Thea, how've you been?" I asked her. "Better," she said, glancing at Oliver with a smile. Then she took my left hand and held it up, staring down at my engagement ring. It had a fairly large diamond in the center with a riveted texture running along the white gold band. "That's different," Oliver said, his light tone a little more forced. "Yeah. Got this baby about eight months ago," I told him. He gently took my hand from Thea and examined my ring before glancing over at Tommy. "Whoa, not me," he said, holding his hands up in defense, earning a laugh from me.

"No, not Tommy," I agreed. "It's not that loser, Danny, is it?" Oliver asked me, almost sounding concerned. "No, no. I, uh, dumped Danny a few months after you... disappeared." It felt weird to say he died when he was standing right in front of me. "My fiancé's name is Jeremy Stinger," I told Oliver with a nod. "Yeah, the 'brilliant doctor'," Tommy said, making air quotes with his fingers. "Oh, shut it," I snapped at him playfully. "Oliver, who is tha –" Moira Queen's voice cut off when she saw me. "Melanie, I didn't know you'd be joining us," Moira said with a smile. She was Oliver's mother. "I hope you don't mind. Tommy invited me and I thoug –" but Oliver cut me off before I could finish. "Of course we don't mind. Come on, let's eat," he called, faking his happy tone.