Chapter 6: THANKSGIVING (William's POV, from 6x07)

A/N: So, here it is, the final chapter of this 5+1 fic. I'm so sorry for the delay. I know I said this would be up before 6x07 airs, but I decided to wait and see what happens in that scene that's been spoiled by the paps weeks ago. I though it better to be consistent with canon and not stray too far even if I've tweaked it a little bit in each chapter. I wasn't going to divert from that concept in this chapter too. Please note that I am taking off only from the episode's opening scene - up until Oliver comes back with Felicity to give his public speech.

I hope you enjoy this last update, even if it's not as long as the previous ones. There wasn't very much material to work on, considering there are just a few scenes in the show where William and Felicity interact. Thanks again for reading and following! You all are fantastic!

Summary: The one person in Oliver's life at this point whose opinion matters most, notices the thing he does with Felicity's ring finger.

William is in the booth in front of Star City Metro Police Department, waiting for his dad to come back. He had told Oliver to go and rescue Felicity from the ambush interview she had just run into with a sneaky reporter at the entrance of the building. His father must have thought it was a good idea, because he immediately excused himself and walked away to go to her.

Other people are at the booth, too, waiting for the Mayor to deliver his public speech to cap the SCPD's Thanksgiving Day Food Drive that was for the benefit of more than one thousand indigent residents in the city. The press and media people are already there with their cameras, microphones, and recording devices ready. Unlike them, who have to be there either because they're curious or because they have to do their jobs as reporters, William is happy to be there because he really wanted to support his father. He is also very excited, as it is the first time he has appeared with his father, the Mayor, in a public event that is covered by the media.

Oliver had spoken with him a few days ago and invited him to come to the Thanksgiving Day Food Drive. At first, he was a bit hesitant even if he liked the idea of going out with his dad and doing something fun together for the needy people of the city. He didn't like the attention it will draw, considering he'd already been teased quite a few times at school because of who his father is, and bullied that one time when his dad was rumored to be the masked vigilante known to the people of Star City as the Green Arrow (which he knew to be true). He didn't want to go to school and have to deal with another incident wherein he'd have to take his dad's radical advice and punch someone's nose. However, when Oliver mentioned that Felicity would be there with them, William didn't have to think twice. He was going.

William thinks that Felicity's cool. Considering she's more than a decade older than him, he finds it cool that she can still speak his language and understands how a kid thinks. She knows about what's in and what's out in popular culture. Like him, she's a fan of superheroes, the Star Wars series, and the like. He finds her geekiness and her babbling adorable (something he might have inherited from his dad). She's terrific with technology and enjoys playing video games with him even if she ends up losing and has to ask for a rematch over and over again.

Unlike his dad and Raisa, Felicity isn't so strict when it comes to what he's allowed to eat. Last week when his dad had to be out-of-town to help a friend with a domestic situation, he and Felicity had rocky road ice cream for dinner. That was fun! William remembered thinking that if his mom were alive, she would never agree to that. "Not in a million years," she'd say. He had almost sulked in sadness and misery when the thought of his mother Samantha crossed his mind, but when he'd seen Felicity picking her ice cream and removing all the nuts she could find while babbling about her allergy and how it had gotten her in trouble so many times, he couldn't help but smile.

"That's all right," William had told her, feeling sorry that she had to remove the good stuff from her ice cream. "Tell you what, I'll take those, and you can have all the marshmallows from mine." He'd begun to scoop out all the nuts that Felicity had put into an empty cup and had dumped them on top of his ice cream, when she had replied, "Why, thank you! You really are your father's son. Just as thoughtful and handsome." He had blushed and grinned sheepishly at the compliment from his favorite blonde.

William hadn't known Felicity long, but she had won his heart. No sweat. He had met her just weeks ago, close a month to date. But he's already decided that after everything he's been through, his life has definitely become so much better with her in it. He thinks that the same is true for his dad. There's just really something about Felicity that makes everyone around her happy and at ease. Her smile and her laughter are infectious, viral even. She's like a ray of sunshine on an otherwise dreary, cloudy day.

William remembers the first time he'd met her. He had had a really important math test coming up, but he was so behind in the lessons for his grade level due to all the moving that he and his mother had done in the past year, that he was so anxious about the upcoming test. What had been worse was that his father – a fact that he's also just learned about five months ago – had only been vaguely familiar (okay, hadn't been familiar at all) with what quadratic equations are, much less be in a position to help him. A few days before the test, Oliver had told him that a really good friend was willing to tutor him in math. Said tutor was, as his dad's own words, "Nevada's three-time state Mathletics champion." William had been impressed with her credentials, and the way his father had beamed while talking about this Felicity had told him that she was perhaps more than just a regular friend.

After just an hour of algebra review with Felicity, he'd been more than impressed. He had let her into his life.

When William had gotten frustrated about binomials at one point during that first study session, he had exclaimed, "I'm gonna bomb this!" But instead of scolding or judging him, Felicity had simply pointed out that the mere fact he was frustrated meant that he saw how mathematics can be useful. She had even complimented him that he's really good at math.

When William had gotten his math test sheet back with a huge "A" written at the top of the front page, he had told his dad that it was Felicity's encouragement that had kept him going, and that she really deserved most of the credit. Oliver had remarked that Felicity really does have a way with words, a fact that he had agreed with, so he had suggested that his dad should get her something as a thank-you gift from both of them.

William remembers telling Felicity that night, "Oliver says that school doesn't matter in the real world."

Felicity had quickly responded, "Well, Oliver didn't grow up in the real world. School changed my life."

"I used to love school."

"Yeah, you will again. Promise."

Oliver, whom William had seen had been standing at the doorway and seemingly listening to his conversation with Felicity, had come in and asked them how things are going. William had said that things are good, and Felicity had said that they had been making progress. And they had been. In fact, they had been progressing so well that he had wanted her to keep on tutoring him in math, maybe even in other subjects that he had been having difficulty coping with.

"Could you tutor me some more before the test?" asked William.

"Yeah! I mean, if it's cool with your dad, it's cool with me," Felicity answered cheerfully and enthusiastically, looking Oliver's way.

"If it's cool with you, it's totally cool with me," his dad replied with a definitive sparkle in his blue eyes and a winsome smile that was meant only for the blonde beauty that was his personal tutor.

William had felt like his hunch had been confirmed. Felicity was clearly more than just a friend to his dad. Her fangirling over Oliver's Monte Cristo waffles like she's enjoyed his specialty nighttime snack a hundred times before – and the way Oliver glowed when he remarked "She's pretty cool," and Oliver had answered, "Yeah, she is" – had been more than enough evidence of the fact.

After that night, he had once asked Raisa to confirm it, and Raisa had, discreetly and very briefly explaining that Oliver and Felicity had been engaged to be married more than a year ago but had broken up over a "serious disagreement" that Oliver hadn't elaborated on. William had thought that it was too bad. He wouldn't have minded having her as a stepmother by now.

For William, Felicity is remarkable, and William has become fond of her. He had been glad that she had agreed to become part of his life and his dad's life again. He knows she's not his mother, and she will never be able to take his mother's place in his life. But he sure didn't mind that she is becoming more than just a special friend of their very small family.

Truth be told, he is excited for her relationship with his dad to progress faster than his relationship with her as his tutor – so excited that he had dared to ask him dad if he could accompany them on their first dinner date in a long time. Oliver had declined nicely, telling him that, as much as he loved his son's company, Raisa would have to be his son's date that night. His dad had been so nice about letting him down, suggesting that William be the one to pick out the tie he was going to wear. William, in turn, told his dad that if Felicity asked, his dad was supposed to tell her that he'd been the one who picked it out.

Just last week, when his dad came home from the out-of-town trip with the friend who needed his help, William had been happy to share the good news that he had gotten an "A" on his science project, which was a bottle rocket that reached up to 300 feet, the farthest in his whole school. Sure, William had been more than happy to go get the rocket and show his dad how it worked, just like his dad had asked. He also knew that his dad had really been proud of his accomplishment. But he had also been willing to bet that Oliver also wanted to have a few minutes of alone time with his girlfriend, maybe steal a hug and a kiss or two without him looking.

And he'd been right. He had given them a couple of minutes, stalling for another minute or two, before coming out of his room and saying out loud, "If we can go up to the roof, I can show you how it works." He had caught Felicity and his dad in an embrace and ready to kiss. In a rare moment of mischief, he had felt amused at having broken up their intimate moment. Anyway, he was sure they'll have plenty of other times to enjoy each other when he's not around to notice.

William looks up and watches his dad and Felicity interact with the lady reporter. Felicity smiles and leans into Oliver, wrapping her arm around his waist. As if instinctively reciprocating her gesture, Oliver lifts his arm and drapes it across her back. His dad speaks to the reporter, then the reporter nods her head and walks away. William thinks that whatever it is that his father told the woman is enough for her to leave him and his girlfriend alone.

William notices something when his dad and Felicity turn around and start to walk away from the building entrance. He sees Oliver reach for her hand. He doesn't intertwine their fingers, though, like most couples that have the habit of holding hands while walking. He gets hold of her ring finger and rubs it with his fingers in gentle, caressing strokes. William smiles, because he finds that simple show of endearment very cute. "Nice one, Dad," William whispers.

Felicity's ring finger. William wonders when it would actually be wearing a diamond-studded engagement ring. He hopes it doesn't take that long. His dad better not mess things up with her again, because he is sure that Felicity Smoak is the just the right person for Oliver Queen, his Dad. As soon as an opportunity presents itself, William will make sure his father listens to what he has to say. There had better be a ring on her finger before Thanksgiving next year.

A/N: Last chance to leave a comment or review! I hope to hear from you. Thank you for reading!