A/N: This is my first posted fan-fiction story, so I'm a bit nervous. In my head this story takes place between episodes 2x06 and 2x08, though it could really fall anywhere after 2x02. Update: So (newbie alert) this is the first of several chapters.

Stuck in a Box – Chapter One

Oliver

His head hurt and his mouth felt fuzzy. He could smell something pleasant, sweet and clean, and as he struggled to pull himself into consciousness his arm moved across something warm and soft. Not something – someone.

Waking up next to an unknown woman while nursing a hangover wasn't exactly a new experience for Oliver Queen, but it was something that hadn't happened in a long time. Forcing his eyes open he winced at the light, his eyelids dry and sticky. He blinked and tried again, saw a messy but still unmistakably familiar, blond ponytail and a half circle of pale neck and shoulders above the round collar of a red dress. He was staring at the back of Felicity's head; his arm around her waist.

"What the hell?" he muttered, his voice scratching in his throat. There were a lot of things a guy might forget, but he was pretty sure climbing into bed with Felicity – even fully clothed – would have been something he remembered. He pulled back and forced himself into a sitting position. The room spun around him.

Not drunk – drugged, he realized, as the world settled back into place to reveal a long narrow cinderblock room with a high ceiling. A bank of fluorescents running down the middle of that ceiling cast the painfully bright light.

Worried, he turned back to Felicity and shook her. When there was no response, he pulled her closer to him, rolling her onto her back. Her glasses were askew, one lens cracked, and there was a bruise forming on her cheekbone. He felt a flash of anger; somebody would pay for that. His eyes searched over the rest of her, coming quickly back to her face when he realized just how much of her impressive legs were currently on display. He didn't see any other injuries and her breathing was steady. If they'd been given the same dose of the drug, it made sense she'd still be out. He brought a hand to her face, lightly tracing the bruise on her cheek, and then forced himself to his feet to look around.

Straight across from the bed was a wide metal door with no handle, with a metal panel next to it about halfway down the wall. To his left down the long room was a smaller door with a handle. Walking carefully he went toward it and opened it, revealing sink and toilet. Turning the other way he saw mostly empty industrial shelving bolted to the wall. On a single shelf sat bottles of water, boxes of protein bars, and a pile of folded fabric. There was also an envelope taped there, and even from across the room he could see his name typed on the outside.

Ignoring the dizziness, he walked over and ripped the envelope off of the shelves. Inside was a single sheet of white paper. Halfway down, typed, it said:

JUST 96 HOURS OF YOUR TIME, MR. QUEEN. THAT'S ALL WE NEED. ENJOY THE ACCOMADATIONS.

He wadded the paper into his fist. Letting out a long breath, he looked at the pile of fabric, a set of men's sweats, in exactly his size; just men's though. A suspicion formed in the back of his brain. There were four boxes of peanut-butter protein bars, 24 bottles of water, one small bed; exactly what you would leave one person to survive easily for four days. Swearing under his breath he went back and sank onto the edge of the bed. He was pretty sure they hadn't meant to take Felicity. So what had happened?

He wished she would open her eyes. With that bruise it was possible she'd hit her head and was more injured than he knew. "Felicity," he said, his throat scratching against the word. He put his hand on her shoulder and shook it gently.

"Felicity?" Still no response. What if she didn't wake up?

John

He stepped off of the executive elevator at Queen Consolidated with a bag of Chinese food under one arm. Oliver had sent him to quietly follow up a lead on the identity of the new leader of the Triad. Of course, it involved Jade Dragon restaurant and Felicity had added a lunch order to Digg's errands.

Oliver had rolled his eyes, but Digg didn't mind. Honestly, the girl didn't ask for much.

Her desk was empty as he approached, setting the bag down on the sleek glass surface. A quick look told him Oliver's office was empty as well. He frowned and reached across the desk to tap the mouse. Oliver's schedule usually came up as the default display on the monitor, often to cover up whatever Felicity was actually working on. The calendar told him that Oliver had a meeting in his office in five minutes.

Digg reached into his pocket for his phone and texted Felicity. "Lunch is here. Where are you?"

He waited for a reply, and when it still hadn't come a few minutes later he frowned. He supposed they could have been pulled into some meeting, but it was still unlike her not to respond. The three of them had grown pretty careful about keeping tabs on each other.

Feeling the first real hint of worry he sent a text to Oliver. "Everything okay?" Again, no response. He looked at Felicity's desk, but everything thing seemed fine. Pushing through the glass door into Oliver's office he looked around. Oliver's chair was pushed clear back against the wall and slightly at an angle, which was odd, but not enough to justify the growing sense in Digg's gut that something was wrong.

He scanned the rest of the office, and then saw it – something sticking out from beneath one of the couches. Without thinking he reached down and grabbed it. A strappy black high heel – one of Felicity's.

Digg turned and raced for the phone on Oliver's desk, punching in the number for security. "I need someone to meet me in the surveillance office, now."

Two minutes later, he demanded to see the footage from Oliver's office. The guard on duty looked skeptical. "So you found a woman's high heel in Mr. Queen's office?" The man tilted his head. "From what I've heard that doesn't sound so unusual for him. Are you sure there's something wrong?"

Digg considered the possibility for about three seconds. Oliver and Felicity had seemed a bit more intense around each other lately, and Oliver had been staring at the girl more than usual, but he still couldn't quite ….

"I've got the footage, what time do you need?" the guard asked.

"Eleven-thirty," Digg said, hoping he wasn't about to spy on two of his best friends making out.

The guard fast forwarded to show Oliver telling Digg good bye at 11:35. For the next five minutes nothing happened and Digg was just about to ask the guard to forward the tape when Felicity entered the frame. She placed a folder on Oliver's desk and the two of them started talking. Then the screen went fuzzy and when the image came back the time stamp indicated fifteen minutes had passed. There was no one in the picture.

"What was that?" Digg demanded.

The guard's eyes went wide. "Someone must have shut down the system for a few minutes."

Digg's heart sank. "Who could do that?"

The guard shook his head. "Only you, Mr. Collister, or Mr. Queen himself," the guard said.

"We have access to the footage, but to shut off a camera you'd have to get into main security."

Digg had vetted Collister, their head of security, himself. "No one else?"

The guard shook his head. "Not that I know of."

Digg rubbed his forehead. One thing was clear, something had happened to Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak.