#arroweverse

He knows better than to show it off. He’s pretending to be the incompetent rich boy that drowned all those years ago, he doesn’t need people to think of him as capable, that would only put him under scrutiny. Some habits are just too ingrained.

Staying inside, though, makes him feel cooped up and he has escaped his house for the yard. The greenery is real, yet strangely artificial, but Oliver can live with it, because it’s better than the stuffy halls of his childhood home.

Diggle is a few steps behind him. His presence should bother Oliver, but it doesn’t. Diggle has been brought in on the secret and it’s nice to have company without feeling the need to pretend. For all his lies about the island, he was never lonely there and pretending he wants to be, does start to suck after a while.

Therefore, he allows himself to indulge in the companionship and the silence, as well as the sounds of the outdoors – however tainted they might be.

Their estate borders on a forest, domesticated slightly, but comforting. It’s where he’s headed, having wandered about for long enough that his mom has stopped following him with her eyes from the window.

Oliver isn’t sure Diggle will follow him, but the man does so without comment. It’s the discretion that he had first observed that he appreciates about him. That silence that might not always be without judgment, but is always open minded.

Without conscious thought, his eyes scan the ground and the plants, looking to see if he recognizes anything and if he can find something edible.

As they come across them, Oliver picks up the acorns, filling his pockets with the nuts as natural as breathing. He might have been back on Lian Yu for a mere two days before they came, but before that it was three years and his body still remembers to not pass up on food.

They come across stinging nettle that he harvests skillfully without touching the prickly bits, as well as some wild leeks, wild onion and some Hen of the Woods mushrooms. Before leaving, he never appreciated just what nature had to offer, but now his eyes can’t unsee the abundance, even in his own backyard.

He’s squatting down next to an oak tree to get a few more acorns and Hen of the Woods when he is pulled out of his meditative state by Diggle, who finally tries to satiate his own curiosity by asking: “Is there a reason for the collection, Oliver?”

Surprised Oliver blinks, looking down at his hands as he realizes what he’s doing. Embarrassment floods across the back of his neck, but his face remains neutral. He replies: “Let me soak these acorns for a few days, and I can serve you some island cuisine.”

“Those are all edible?” Diggle asks.

Oliver nods.

He knows he’s safe, but his shoulders are still tense. He’s supposed to be more in control of himself, he’s more than this. He shouldn’t have slipped up.

Diggle still hasn’t asked further, but he’s dreading whatever the man might ask. He doesn’t like talking about his time away, nothing good happened and as he makes up lies, he’s only reminded of what truly happened. Besides, he already feels different enough, like a freak, which is only marginally better than a monster.

His knuckles whiten when Diggle starts talking again: “I suppose I should be glad no wild chili peppers grow here, I’m not good with spicy food.”

A surprised bark of laughter his ripped from his throat. Diggle’s voice is dry, calling back to their conversation in the car after stopping by the Chinese restaurant. Now that Diggle has seen him lie to Felicity, he’s sure the man believes it even less than he did then.