AN: Thanks for the warm welcome back everyone!

Disclaimer: I don't own Arrow or DC Comics.

.

.

.

You're Banging My Bedroom Wall

XXXIV. Coffee After a Stressful Day

"It feels like it's been a forever since we last got to do this," Sara groaned, leaning back into the cushions of her armchair. She and Felicity were sat in the café near her apartment relaxing after one of the few panic-riddled wedding planning sessions they'd had with Laurel.

What was affectionately called the Merlance wedding by Malcolm and Dinah had been blessed with fewer problems than expected and made as extravagant as Laurel wanted much faster than anticipated. After what had been one of the most panic-inducing conversations Felicity had ever had with her mother — and they'd had many over the years — Oliver had spent a very long week talking Moira down from single-handedly planning a wedding that they hadn't agreed to.

In just a couple weeks Moira Queen had secured the highly sought-after botanical gardens in Hyde Park for both a ceremony and reception during prime wedding season, got one of the best restaurants in the city to cater the occasion, and the flower shop that she seemed to all but buy had ended up being Dinah's. Malcolm had overheard them arguing, and since it was everything Laurel and Tommy were already looking for, he'd simply offered to take over everything. Oliver had happily agreed and thankfully Moira had gone along with it after seeing how unhappy she was making her son and his girlfriend.

In the end, Laurel and Tommy had less to worry about for their wedding and Felicity and Oliver no longer had to stress about an unwanted arranged marriage when they hadn't even been dating for six months yet.

It was a win-win if anyone asked Felicity. The fiasco at the bakery with the cake tastings had been like a bad omen pointing toward complete and utter chaos being the theme of the wedding, so the fewer problems the better.

Felicity glanced over at Sara with a roll of her eyes and a grin. "We were here just a few days ago," she reminded her. "I was helping Roy study for his finals when you came crashing in here after teaching one of your classes. You fell asleep in that same exact chair and Leonard had to come pick you up."

Sara let out a huff, blowing a wayward strand of hair out of her face. "Yeah, well, it feels like an eternity after spending the day with Laurel," she said, sinking even deeper into her chair. "You'd think with how much work Moira had already done and Malcolm helping her and Tommy, she'd be coasting right along. But, no, she's having a meltdown over our dresses."

"Well, there's only a over a month to the wedding now. I'd be surprised if she wasn't panicking over something," she told her as Oliver and Leonard finally joined them. Felicity shot her boyfriend a grateful smile as she took the steaming mug offered to her. "Thank you," she whispered.

Oliver grins, bending down to press a kiss to her cheek before sitting close beside her on the sofa. "Of course," he whispered back.

"You two look like you had fun today," Leonard drawled as he draped Sara's legs over his lap as he sat in the same chair with her. "What did you ladies get up to with the soon-to-be bride?"

Sara lets out a groan, dramatically biting into the cookie he offers her. "Felicity and I went with Laurel to get our dresses fitted since they finally arrived," she grumbled, taking an angry sip of her black coffee.

"I bet you look sexy in it," Leonard tells her and Felicity hides her grin by taking a sip of her own coffee when Sara's face turns bright red.

"Damn straight I do and I'll show you later tonight," she promised when she recovered. But her good mood doesn't last for long. "But today was most definitely the opposite of fun. Laurel had some sort of lapse in memory today with her dress and threw a fit over it."

Oliver frowned and glanced at Felicity in question. "What happened?"

Felicity merely sighed, taking a big gulp of coffee. "Laurel's just panicking a little now that the wedding's getting closer," she explained. "She thought the bridal shop didn't order the right dress and it escalated a little."

"A little?" Sara scoffed. "She made the poor girl trying to help us cry."

"And then Laurel proceeded to cry because she was crying," Felicity continued, shooting her a pointed look. "She spent the rest of the appointment apologizing for everything under the sun. For yelling at that girl, for every insult she's hurled at you, for disappointing and embarrassing you and your parents for her and Tommy's previous behavior, and for the few times she blew up at us since we started helping with the wedding. You started crying with her so cut her some slack." She looked at Oliver and Leonard, ignoring the betrayed look on her best friend's face. "They made up today and she's just too embarrassed to admit she's happy about it."

Leonard tightly hugged Sara, pressing a quick kiss against her cheek. "Aw, you and Laurel apologized to each other," he cooed as she half-heartedly protested. "I told you it would happen. See, trying to make peace with her wasn't a waste of time after all."

"It's just weird," she mumbled. "Me and Laurel haven't gotten along since we were teenagers."

"But everything's just going to be smooth sailing from here on, right?" Oliver asked, glancing around at the others. "No more problems with the cake or clothes or anything else?"

Felicity nodded with a slight smile. "No more," she promised. "Just have to wait the next few weeks out and as long as everyone sticks to the rest of the schedule the Merlance wedding will finally be here."

"But that's then and this is now. Let's just enjoy our coffee tonight and not stress about it, yeah?" Sara suggested, drinking from her mug to punctuate her point. Everyone agreed and the four of them spent the rest of their time relaxing and enjoying the coffee while they talked.

.

.

.

One more chapter until the end unless anyone has any specific scenes they want to see ^_^