#arrowverse imagines

It was a strange reality for her to deal with, but nevertheless, she dealt with it. The two of you still shared the same bed from time to time, but the tension was still there. Granted that tension mainly came from Lena as opposed to you. But with time, Lena found herself slowly, but surely getting used to this new life. She learned not to blame this version of you for an event you were never even aware of. At the same time, she got used to you calling her ‘honey’ or ‘sweetie,’ a habit that you couldn’t get yourself out of. 

Despite Lena adjusting, what she didn’t know was your slowly crumbling mental health. Ever since you discovered Lena’s doubt of her love towards you, you couldn’t but feel as if this new Lena felt stuck with you. You started to believe that your presence was making Lena more unhappy by the second. You know yourself and Lena has reassured you time and time again that she doesn’t blame this version of you for lying to her because truthfully, you didn’t even lie with her, to begin with. 

Lena was at work one day and she had been specifically looking for you for a referral over a trustworthy recruit who would oversee the security department. Since you knew the people better than her at the moment, she always asked you for opinions. She manages to find you in Alex’s office accompanied by J’onn.

“Y/N, I don’t think you would understand what will happen if I do it,” J’onn warns. 

“I don’t think you understand either. She is hurting, J’onn, and I know she’s still carrying that burden whenever wherever go. She isn’t happy where she is.”

Alex shakes her head in disbelief. “And how would you know that? You should know that woman hated your guts when she found out the other version of you was hiding Kara’s secret; as in neither of you spoke to each other in months because of it. Would you really jeopardize your relationship like that?”

“I think my relationship with Lena died when she woke up.”

J’onn points at you angrily, “no it didn’t. She is still there. She’s starting to love you all over again. Lena isn’t blaming you for something a different version of you had done. You can’t just impulsively throw your happiness away like this.”

“If she’s not happy, I’m not happy. You’re giving me my memories back and that’s final.” You put your foot down sternly, your eyes cold and unchanged.

J’onn sighs heavily, eventually nodding in defeat. “Fine,”

Crossing her expression in disbelief, Alex does her best to try to contradict you, “J’onn, no!” Yet, it seems that J’onn had ignored Alex’s plea.

“Meet me here by tomorrow if you’re still willing to do it.”

You smile in victory. Thanking the both of them, you leave with a smile on your face, not noticing Lena who hid behind the door, listening to your conversation.

________________________________________

You finally arrive home, sighing heavily. Yet the moment you saw Lena standing by the door, the corners of your lips draw up to a force smile. “You’re home early,” you comment.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Lena’s voice was as cold as ice, and the arctic tone was enough to numb a piece of your heart. Shit, she found out.

“Lena-“

She recoils when you try to take a step towards her. “How could you do this?”

“I-I just thought-“ The words could barely come out of your mouth.

“You thought what?” She asks impatiently. “Tell me, Y/N!” Lena’s eyes burn from the pain, from the feeling of betrayal. For a moment, it was as if she was reliving the moment all over again with you and the memories were only beginning to flood Lena’s mind. 

You throw your hands up exasperated and somewhat desperate as you try to maintain your composure. “Because I thought this was what you needed.”

Lena shakes her head in denial. “No, that isn’t true.”

“Things aren’t the same as it was between us and it’s clear that you don’t love me or want me. It would make things easier for the both of us if I just forgot this world existed and you have the right Y/N in front of you.”

“You are the right Y/N. You weren’t the one that betrayed me to Lex. Stop trying to associate yourself with someone that isn’t you.”

“But when you look at me, all you see is that version of me. I know you front and back, Lena. When there’s something wrong, I’m the first one to notice, and I know you aren’t happy with where you are.”

“You can’t just make that call yourself. I’m not happy because I’m trying to figure out this new world that we’re all living in and why Lex is still alive. I’m not happy because I’m frustrated with Supergirl and the DEO and how they handled the Crisis. The only reason why I haven’t broken down yet is because I have someone who is always there to help me, who is always trying to do what’s best for me. That’s you, Y/N, it has always been.”

You avert your eyes from her, unable to look. If you stay any longer, the small voice in the back of your head would start growing and your mind was going to change. You can’t, you have to suppress it. She approaches you, placing both her hands on your shoulders which causes your muscles to tense where the warmth from her hands makes contact. “Lena-“

“I need you Y/N. If you follow through with this tomorrow, I won’t know who I can turn to. You make this reality less daunting and more bearable than the last. Please,” she pleads. “Please don’t leave me.”

You finally go to look at her, staring deeply into her eyes, seeing them water at the brim. She was threatening to cry, she was about to cry. You bite your lip as the tears in your eyes were ready to pool over, too. In those moments, you wish that things were back to normal again and you curse whoever gave you this fate. 

“Say something, Y/N.”

You place your hand on your shoulder, on top of her hand, squeezing it gently, rubbing her knuckles in your best attempt to comfort her. The voice in your head was blaring in your ears, deafening you from your old intentions. Stay. That’s what you want. She still waits for your response. From Lena’s eyes, she could see a shift in your eyes as the walls of your feelings start to crumble down. That’s when she knew, you didn’t want to do what you were going to do tomorrow. 

“Is this what you want?” You ask her.

“This is what I need,” she corrects. “I can’t do this without you. Maybe you don’t want to hear it now, but I just want you to know that I love you. I fell in love with you, all over again. Ever since I had woke until now, all I think about is you and how lucky I am to have you. I wouldn’t have this if you go to J’onn tomorrow. You've made me happy, Y/N.”

You couldn’t help but laugh a little which causes some concern to rise in Lena’s eyes. Yet, you were quick to reassure her. “It’s like you recited our wedding day vows,” you joke. The joke was enough to have the corner of Lena’s lips curl into a smile, and in return, you smile a little too. She squeezes your hand back, which causes you to only her hand back, too. “I love you, too, Lena. I haven’t stopped loving you.”

She sighs in relief. Suddenly, you feel your lips occupied. Lena’s arms wrap around your frame and you instantly feel your body relax under the hold. It felt forever and another eternity since the last time you had felt the feeling of warmth touch your lips. Deepening the kiss, you hadn’t realized how much you had been longing for Lena’s loving touch. Lena, on the other hand, was absorbing the moment once more. For her, she hasn’t been able to do this to you since forever and eternity. The passion burns between the both of you, and finally, you both realize that this is what you two need. Love. You needed each other. 

When the two of you pull away, the tears that have been waiting to fall finally fall on both of your cheeks. The emotions were too overbearing. “Please stay,” she pleads.

You only wrap your arms around her to pull her closer to you, “For you, always.”

________________________________________________________

You had believed so deeply the whispered secrets you had accidentally overheard Moira and Frank say in the entry hall of your family’s mansion, there had never been a reason not to believe your dead father’s wife, and that belief had led you to Malcolm’s office. That belief led you to drive your knee into his chest after realizing how big his hands were compared to your own, after realizing that Malcolm wasn’t a man to mess with, after realizing that...that for once in your life you had been rash and let your emotions cloud your better judgement.

You had sworn not to regret it, he argued otherwise as his hand wrapped tightly around your throat.

You still believed that he had done something to your father’s yacht.

Malcolm swore otherwise. He had been oh, so convincing.

Even now, that moment between the two of you - the first ever kiss you had shared - was cloaked in confusion for you. Why had it happened? It came out of nowhere. Had he said something else before his lips were pressed to your own? Was it really just you staring up at him like an injured animal, confused and hopeless, that pulled him forward and led to that kiss?

Was there another moment you weren’t aware of? Something that even now was out of place, hidden in plain sight?

You were left so confused after that. Every time you saw him, for months after, all you could do was fight against whatever pull he had suddenly gained on you. Breathless with your thoughts always racing, you had sworn to yourself that Malcolm hadn’t killed your father and brother, but you had already placed yourself in Malcolm’s radar and even if you had truly wanted nothing to do with him, there was no way he would have allowed it until he was done.

Confused or not. Understanding what you were getting yourself into or not.

You chose Malcolm Merlyn to be your one selfish thing in life after spending your entire life being the good girl. The Golden Queen Child. The one who never stepped a single toe out of line.

Whether it ended badly or not...whether Malcolm turned out to be the bad guy or not...you chose him and all the pain that came with him.

You may have underestimated how much pain that was.

And what that pain could cause when left to fester and spill over.

*

“...believed to have died five years ago when his family’s yacht went down during a storm, Starling City’s Oliver Queen - of Queen’s Consolidated - has been found alive...”

On television sets across the country this broadcast was being shown. For complete strangers, it meant nothing to them. Wow. A billionaire playboy had been found after his family’s boat was lost at sea. Cool. For those in Starling City who knew of the Queen family, of Oliver in particular, there was a mixed reaction. Some were excited to have the well-known party boy back in town; the city was never dull with Oliver Queen around. For others, there was apprehension and sadness. If Oliver was alive, what about the others who had been on that yacht with him? Why did Oliver get to live, and the others didn’t?

And you?

For you it meant everything.

You were alone in the home you shared with Malcolm; he was overseas on a business trip and you had just returned from a very long day at Queen’s Consolidated when your late-father’s wife had called in a rush, ordering you to turn on the nearest television.

Whatever you had expected it to be, it certainly wasn’t a news broadcast reporting your baby brother to still be alive. Reporting that Oliver had survived the Gambit going down, reporting that Oliver had been shipwrecked for the last five years, and reporting that your father’s only son was on his way home.

Shock wasn’t a strong enough word to describe the feeling that immediately settled in your stomach when realization of what the news broadcast was reporting finally registered.

You could hear Moira saying something on the other end just before the call ended, your step mother having hung up.

Your cell was abandoned on the coffee table as you sat on the couch, watching the broadcast over and over. At one point, there was a far away live feed showing an airstrip and a crowd of people screaming as a dozen people descended from the single airplane that sat on the runway.

You couldn’t make out which was your brother; all of them kept their heads down and hurried to the awaiting cars.

Was it really him? Was he truly alive?

How long had you prayed for this? How long had you asked God for a miracle and to bring back Oliver? You had even offered up your own life if it meant your stepmother and Thea would have Oliver back.

And now it’s happening. And instead of taking his place, we’re both alive. We’re both here...neither of us will be taken away from Moira and Thea.

There was no thought then about the changes that happened in your family; there was no thought about things that rock Oliver’s world, about the things that were going to be a shock - things that could upset him.

Moira and Walter.

Malcolm and I.

Thea’s attitude.

Tommy and Laurel...whatever is happening between the two of them even if Tommy tries to hide it.

You wondered if your father had had any last words. You wondered if Oliver had been there with him if Robert Queen had lived long enough to say goodbye to his middle child.

And you wondered what kind of person Oliver was returning to Starling City as. Was he a playboy still? What horrors had he been forced to live through on that island?

Are you still my baby brother, Ollie?

Please. Please still be my baby brother.

*

How is one meant to act as they stand in their family’s home, waiting for a long-believed dead family member to be brought home?

You wished you had the answer as you stood in the living room, heart racing, and waited for Moira to return home. Nervously, you played with the ring on your left hand and hoped that everything went alright at the hospital.

“...your room is exactly as you left it...”

You met Walter’s gaze only briefly before he was heading into the entrance hall to greet your stepmother and brother.

You followed, remaining in the doorway - taking a moment to take Oliver in.

He looked the same. And the smile he gave your family’s maid, Raisa, melted your heart. There he was. Your sweet, baby brother.

A door shut from upstairs, drawing Oliver’s attention just as Raisa informed Moira that “Mr. Merlyn” would be joining the family for dinner.

Tommy, of course, as Malcolm was still away on business.

You barely acknowledged that small exchange, honestly, as you watched Oliver focus entirely on the stairs. On Thea.

Your heart broke all over again at their reunion; tears streaming down your cheeks as you watched your baby brother and baby sister interact after the tragedy that had fallen your family that fateful night when the Gambit went down during that storm.

Look at them dad. Look at us.

You weren't sure where the thought came from; it had been so long since you had thought about what your father would think if he could see the family he left behind. It reminded you of the pain and the sadness you had felt when you realized that only Oliver had returned, that Robert Queen was truly gone forever.

“Y/n,” Oliver’s voice saying your name pulled you from your thoughts before you could spiral down any further.

At first it didn't even register that he had spoken, and then you lifted your gaze and met his, stared back at your brother who looked so happy after reuniting with Thea. Happy, but with a darkened undertone that later you would wonder how much Oliver had gone through while he was shipwrecked?

Still, even with the onslaught of curiosity and thought...a sob ripped its way from your chest as you rushed forward and finally hugged your brother, holding Oliver for the first time in five years (but oh lord did it feel like so much longer).

"Oh Oliver. Olive." Thea and others referred to him with the nickname Ollie, but he had always been Olive to you. Since the day five year old you so proudly and confidently held newborn Oliver Queen for the very first time and swore to protect him with your own life.

As the two of you got older, your use of the nickname had faded; Oliver got older and became embarrassed by it, but as it slipped from your lips then your brother didn't cringe away from you as he would have years earlier, instead, Oliver's arms tightened around you and softly whispered the nickname he had childishly given you when he was a baby just learning to talk. A nickname he hadn't used since he became a teenager.

There was so much you wanted to tell him; so much you just wanted to start catching him up on. You wanted to apologize for being a bitch toward him the last time you saw him; for treating him like he was a mistake and worthless, useless to the Queen family name...

He knew. You knew that your baby brother knew how sorry you were and how grateful you were to have him back by that bright, Oliver Queen smile he gave you when the two of you finally ended your hug.

“Y/n/n,” your nickname, again, fell from Oliver’s mouth and you wanted to start breathing all over again. “You still look bossy.”

“Yeah well...” you cleared your throat and laughed shortly, “I have two younger siblings who need a bossy older sister. They’re always getting into trouble, you know.”

Oliver just chuckled and whispered, “Don’t I know it.”

You smiled, at the time oblivious to the hidden something in his words.

*

A/N3: I hope you all enjoyed it and that it’s a worthy addition to the series! Apologies for it taking a while to get typed out and posted! Please consider liking, reblogging, leaving a comment, and donating to my Kofi! Thank you so much! Please stay safe and healthy!

"Everyone has already gone home, I thought I would keep you company in case you wake up in a panic seeing that the place was emptied out for the day."

"Oh," you looked at him unblinkingly.

"How about I get you some tea or maybe coffee then I walk you home? Unless you do plan on sleeping on the desk all night, though I do not recommend it," He said standing off from the seat.

"Yeah, yeah, I’ll take that coffee," You huffed out amused still a bit dazed from your sleep.

You pause, staring down at your files then at his retreating figure as he went off to fetch a drink. You called out to him and he paused turning back to you. You stared at him for a moment then smiled thanking him.

“I don’t know if it’s such a good idea to drop it like a bomb... shouldn’t we just wait a bit?”

“Babe, don’t worry. All that matters to him is if i’m happy, and, well, you make me the happiest girl...so I think he’ll take it well.” Laurel tightened her grip on Y/N’s arm and squeezed her girlfriend’s hand, leaning into her. “And wait for what? Till he finds out himself? I don’t think he’d appreciate that very much.”

Y/N sighed, forgetting how close she was with her father. No matter the respect she held for Quentin Lance, he could still scare her to death whenever he was in ‘papa bear’ mode. “Yeah, but Laurel— are you sure? I don’t want to ruin-” 

Laurel shrugged and knocked on the door of her father’s apartment, “You aren’t just a temporary thing, Y/N. I am one hundred percent sure.” She sent Y/N one of her heartwarming smiles, making Y/N’s stomach fill with joy and love.

Quentin Lance opened the door and smiled widely and planted a kiss on his daughter’s head as she passed him to walk inside. His smile wavered a bit when he looked at Y/N. Her face resembled that of one of the Queen’s and thus of the man that indirectly took his other daughter from him. 

He forced a smile and quickly looked away from her, which didn’t go unnoticed by the two women. Laurel bit her lip, not knowing how to stop his hatred towards the Queen family. Sure, they hadn’t always done the right things, especially not when it came to the Lance family, but Y/N had never been a part of any of that. She didn’t deserve to be seen like one of them.

He quickly glanced between the two, curious as to why Y/N was here too but he decided to keep quiet. 

“Everything going alright with the case?” 

Laurel gave him a tight-lipped smile and put her hands in her pockets, “Yeah, don’t worry about it, dad.”

“Oh! I just thought you might’ve needed some insight on a case... or that you got some news...since...” He gestured to Y/N, in his eyes Laurel’s coworker, who was still standing awkwardly by the door. 

“Actually...” Before she continued, her eyes met Y/N’s to see if she still felt comfortable enough. When Y/N nodded softly, she walked over to her, grabbed her hand to lead her over to the living room and then motioned her dad to do the same. “We do have some news.”

Quentin raised his eyebrows in surprise and slowly sat down on the couch. 

“You got the judges on your side already?” 

He looked at the two women in expectation. 

“Well? What is it?”

Laurel looked at the woman next to her and immediately smiled at how one look into her girlfriend’s eyes could calm her down. She felt Y/N slowly trail her hand down her underarm before their fingers tangled together. Laurel sighed in content as she looked at their intertwined hands and brought them to her lips to plant a soft kiss on the back of Y/N’s hand. 

Quentin furrowed his eyebrows, putting two and two together— the lovestruck look on his daughter’s face confirming his presumption. He opened and closed his mouth, looking away.

“Wait, so- you two...” He gestured between the two women, earning two nods in return. He rubbed his chin, taking his time to let this sink in. 

Laurel’s previous calm state turned to one of worry when she saw the scowl form on her father’s face. 

“Laurel, I love you, but the choices you make in your dating life are awful.” He rubbed his temples and stood up. 

Laurel shared a worried look with Y/N before stepping up to him. “Dad! She treats me so well and no one has ever made me feel this happy, why should it matter if she’s a guy or a girl I-”

“Oh, for God’s sake, Laurel, I don’t care that she’s a girl. You could date a frog and I’d still be accepting of it but...” He took a deep breath, took a few steps through the living room before turning back around. “...a Queen?!”

Laurel crossed her arms and scoffed, “So that’s what this is about? I should’ve known you would never let your vendetta against them go.”

“That family has caused us so much harm. Did you forget that she shares the same DNA of the same guy who broke your heart... what? How many times? You finally dodged a bullet with Oliver...You never learn, do you?” He cocked his head to the side. Even though his words were harsh, his eyes were soft and filled with worry.

“Y/N isn’t anything like Oliver. You’ll see soon, if you just give her a chance.”

“Every Queen in that family has been involved with some really questionable stuff, Laurel. Oliver lied to your face so whose to say she isn’t as well?” He pointed a finger at the girl standing behind Laurel but Laurel immediately slapped it away. Her eyebrows now furrowed in anger instead of worry.

“Swallow your pride for once... if not for her... do it for me!”

Y/N slowly grabbed onto the fabric of Laurel’s sweater, nudging her backwards. She hated to see the two fight, especially over her. But Laurel didn’t move a muscle and kept staring into the eyes of her father, trying to get through his head. 

Quentin slowly looked at the woman behind his daughter— Y/N’s gaze fixed on her shoes. His face softened a bit at the sight as he immediately thought back of all the times he had seen her. Laurel was right— he hadn’t really ever heard any bad news of this Queen family member. Then he recalled the many hours Laurel had spent cooped up in her bedroom, crying over whatever had happened all those times with Oliver and all the danger they indirectly put his daughters through— and his expression hardened again. 

“Laurel- I-I’m sorry... That’s an unreasonable thing to ask of me. I want the best for you and I.... just don’t see her being that for you.”

Laurel widened her eyes and let out a shaky breath before a sneer appeared on her face. 

“I don’t know what you expected to happen but if you thought I would leave her because you don’t like her, you couldn’t be more wrong.” She started softly, “I’ve never...ever, been so disappointed by someone in my whole life, and that says a lot.” Her voice was slow and soft but her tone sent a shiver down Quentin’s spine.