Heart to Heart. Written with reporters_lane.
Oliver needed some advice. And normally when he needed advice, he turned to Chloe, but given that the advice he needed was in regards to Chloe, that made things a little difficult. So he found himself on the doorstep of the one person who knew Chloe better than anyone else, and he knocked on the door and waited.
Lois glared at the door, the knocking throwing her off of her much needed zoning moment. She'd been swamped with articles after articles and she'd decided today was going to be a mental health day. So, with that in mind, she'd stripped down to a pair of boxers and a tank top, had turned the tv on to the So You Think You Can Dance marathon (it seemed like that show was ALWAYS on) and was happily vegging out to pretty people. It took her almost two minutes to decide whether or not she was going to move but finally, with a huff, she got up.
Opening the door, she glared at Ollie and turned back towards her couch. "Whatever you have to say, it's going to be done while I'm surrounded by blankets and ice cream is in my mouth."
He suppressed a grin that crept up on him involuntarily and nodded as solemnly as he could. "Duly noted. Nice to see you again, too, Lois," he told her with a faint smirk as he stepped inside the little apartment above the Talon. He glanced around and raised his eyebrow. "Mental health day?" he guessed, turning to look at her.
She grunted an answer back and leaned her head on the head rest. Auditions were the best part of the show, especially the failed ones. "I'm tired. I hope you don't expect me to think too much or give you any great, mindblowing thoughts."
Well, that wasn't something he wanted to hear considering the subject matter. "Maybe I should just come back later," he said uncertainly, rubbing the back of his neck. "After you've napped or something."
Lois waved a hand in the air. "You're here, I already got up to answer the door. Talk."
He looked at her for a long moment as she sat on the sofa, staring intently at the TV screen. A faint smirk touched his lips as he moved and sat down next to her. "Did you enjoy Thanksgiving dinner with the Kents'?"
She shrugged. There was no way in hell Lois was going to get into that with him. It was actually almost torture, being that close to Clark, in a setting that was nowhere near work like, and not be able to do anything. She'd have to talk to him soon about this all. "It was nice. Martha always makes the most amazing food, and you know how much I love pie. So all in all, it was fine, but that's not what you're here for. No small talk. Come on. Be a man and spit it out."
He rolled his eyes and wondered if Lois had even noticed the fact that he and Chloe had both also been at the Kents' on Thanksgiving. It was actually kind of amusing. "Yeah, the pie was good," he agreed, smirking a little more. Frankly Oliver was nervous, and Oliver Queen did not get nervous. Ever. About anything. And one thing that eased his nerves was teasing Lois because it was such a normal thing for them these days. "Though I'm surprised you remember anything about the pie, considering you looked like you wanted to devour Clark."
Eyes narrowed instantly, and Lois looked around for something, anything, to throw at his head. Unfortunately for her, but luckily for him, all she had was her ice cream, and she was not about to waste that. Digging in deeply, she extracted a large spoonful and brought it to her mouth with a 'hmph'. "I can kick you out as easily as I let you in, Queen," she warned, her words garbled by the ice cream in her mouth. "Let's not talk about Thanksgiving. I want to know why you're here. Don't you have money to be making or something?"
He chuckled, relaxing a little at her threat. "What? I can't just come by and see a friend?" He shook his head a little. "I'm deeply hurt that you think I have ulterior motives here. And also that you were clearly looking for something to either hit me with or throw at me."
She had to laugh a little at that. "If I didn't threaten you with bodily harm, how would you know you loved me?" She tried batting her eyelashes at him, but suddenly realized how stupid that looked and changed her mind. "Anyways. What's new with you? As we both know, nothing is new with me. Nothing. Nada. All the same. Life is beautiful and all that jazz."
At that he arched an eyebrow, amused. "Somehow I doubt there's nothing new with you, but...I'm actually here to talk to you about Chloe," he confessed.
That got her attention. Putting the television on mute, she turned and blinked a few times. "Now you better finish that thought quick, or else I'm going to imagine the worst."
Oliver quickly shook his head. "No, it's not bad," he said, holding his hands up and gazing at her intently. "At least I hope not. Uh, okay, so you know how Chloe moved in with me right?" Not that that really had anything to do with what he was trying to get up the nerve to say.
Lois couldn't figure out exactly where he was going with this. "You realize it's her body and her choice, so you don't get a say, right?" Unplanned pregnancy seemed to be a good guess.
He blinked, then stared at her for a moment, his mouth half-open. "Wha--no, she's not pregnant, Lois."
Crap. Well what else could he be talking about? "Look, I know she can't cook, but that's no reason to kick her out. You're rich, hire a housekeeper."
He groaned. "Lois." He shook his head. "I'm not kicking her out. And I cook anyway. I'm going to propose to her." He swallowed hard, studying her intently and waiting for some kind of reaction.
At first, she couldn't think of anything to say or do other than nod and smile. The words hadn't fully sunk in, but when they did, she blinked owlishly at him. "What?!?," she exclaimed, sitting up higher in her chair. "What do you mean you're going to propose to her? Oh my god, why are you talking to me about this? Go talk to HER. Oh my god, Ollie! Oh wow, and you guys can have babies I can spoil so I don't have to have any of my own! Oh this is fantastic! Can I wear a horrible bridesmaid dress and get drunk at the wedding? I promise not to spoil it! Oh OLLIE! WHERE'S THE RING? DID YOU BRING IT?" Her voice escalated as she get more and more excited.
Well, at least she wasn't trying to hit him with something, he thought wryly. "I'm talking to you because I need your advice," he told her. "You know Chloe better than anyone. Even better than I do. We haven't been dating that long. Going on five months. Do you think she's ready?" he asked uncertainly.
"No," Lois said bluntly. "But if you give her time, she'll never be ready. She'll always find a way to get out of it, or figure she doesn't deserve it, and that's no fun. I doubt she'll say no, she really loves you."
"I know she does," he said with a slight nod. If there was one thing he was sure about, it was that Chloe loved him. She'd proven it time and again. "But I don't want her to have doubts--about me or herself. So I just need to be really creative in order to make sure she knows I'm in this for real." He drew in a breath and let it out slowly. "I'm going to ask her on either Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve. I haven't decided which yet."
"Why can't you ask her on a Tuesday? Make it less cliche?"
His eyebrows furrowed. "Because that's less romantic."
She rolled her eyes. "Right. Ok. Well, I don't know. I think if you're going to do it, get it over with, or if you want ultimate romance, wait for New Year's. Then you can start the new year together, as a couple who have pledged their lives to each other forever and ever," she said, in a sing song voice. "Is that romantic enough for you?"
He smiled. "Midnight on New Year's Eve. Yeah. I like that," he said with a nod. "It's a good idea, Lois. Thank you."
"Whatever, Ollie," she replied, turning her attention back to the television. "The ring better be phenomenal. Like, Vicki Vale herself has to cream in her pants the minute she gets a shot of it."
Oliver shook his head a little. "I've been looking for weeks, but I haven't found one that screams Chloe yet. I want it to be just right." He glanced at her sideways.
"I wonder if there's such a thing as an orange diamond," Lois mused. "Because yeah, you'll have to find something completely original. Can't have my cousin wearing a ring that some Wal-Mart cashier can buy."
He rolled his eyes. "Like I'd get her something that's not one of a kind?"
She smiled smugly. "Good man. I knew there was a reason I kept you around." She paused for a moment, and gave a low whistle. "Wow. Chloe married. Hell, OLIVER QUEEN married. Now the papers are going to have a field day with that."
At that, he grimaced. That was the last thing he wanted to think about. "Yeah. Great."
Lois loved it when he was uncomfortable. "Great isn't the beginning. Can you imagine, people are going to have a field day with this. Chloe's past is going to be investigated like you wouldn't believe. The public will feel like they have a need to know every little thing about your new partner, since as a famous person, you don't belong to yourself anyways."
Oliver shot her a withering look, well-aware of how much she was now enjoying herself. "Don't look so happy about that, Lois. She is your cousin, remember?" He shook his head. "No doubt the first rumor that will fly is that I knocked her up and we're getting married out of obligation."
"Hey, it's what I thought first," she exlaimed, pumping one first in the air in some sort of triumph. "And I just think its funny." Funny that I managed to avoid this , she thought to herself. "But don't worry -- we'll find a way around it. Either I'll plant so many rumours, no one will know what to believe, or Chloe's own stellar background will speak for itself. No worries."
He offered her a smile at her reassurance and nodded a little. "This is all, of course, contingent upon Chloe actually saying yes in the first place." He rose to his feet and began to slowly pace the length of the floor.
Lois watched him walk for a while before answering. "What makes you think she'll say no? She moved in with you. That's a pretty big step."
He nodded a little. "Yeah, it was," he agreed quietly, thinking about what had made her decide to move in to begin with: his encounter with Doomsday. That and Davis had needed a place to stay. He wasn't entirely sure Chloe had really moved in because she wanted to, or if it was out of fear and practicality. He shook those thoughts away, telling himself Chloe Sullivan didn't do anything she didn't want to do. He drew in a breath and turned to face Lois. "I just don't want to overwhelm her."
"Chloe likes to know what's going on. I think an engagement ring would completley solidify what is going on. There will be no ambiguity, no waiting for the other shoe to drop." Her features softened slightly as she gave her friend a smile. "It's a good idea. I don't think she'll freak. At all. She'll probably turn into a gushy, romantic person who bears no resemblance to my cousin of yore."
At that, he grinned. "Well, I do plan to make it very difficult for her to say no," he confided, his eyes twinkling mischeviously.
"Oliver, witholding orgasms is never a good way to make someone say yes," she said, her face as solemn as possible.
He snorted. "Even I'm not that mean, Lois," he responded with a smirk.
"Just saying." Stretching out her spoon and her bucket, she smiled. "I think this is cause for an ice cream toast. Congrats, Ollie, for deciding my cousin is the best you'll ever get."
He smiled warmly at her, nodding. "I think I knew that a few months ago."
There was nothing more Lois could say or do other than hand him the ice cream and give him a one armed hug. She'd always known Ollie would be around in her life one way or another and she was happy to know it felt pretty good to hear he'd be part of the family now. "You realize," she murmured into his ear, "that if you hurt her, I will castrate you, slowly and painfully, then pickle said balls and present the whole deal to you as a paperweight."
He glanced at her sideways. "I'd expect nothing less," he assured her, giving her a one-armed hug in return.