#’we know each other don’t we.’ and cho-won gets so excited and maybe even calls them sisters but then she realises what she’s doing and is

[pufflyhallows]

Gravity

gif not mine

Pairing: George Weasley x reader

Request: Hi! I love your blog and your writings!! They’re so amazing and I love your wiring style!!! Anyway, I was hoping you could do a soulmate!George Weasley x Hufflepuff!reader if your requests are open/if you want to. If not just ignore this please. If you decide to do it, could it maybe be a matching tattoo one where they both have a flower on their wrist and the reader always tries to hide it and keep it covered but then maybe one day something happens and he or Fred sees her tattoo?

a/n: I AM BACK! This is my very first soulmate!AU, so I hope I did okay :) thanks again to the sweet anon who sent the request, I loved it. Also, there is no war.

Warnings: language, as usual.

Word count: 3,623

********

Pulling down the long sleeve of your school robe to cover your wrist had become a habit. Closing your hand tightly to hold the fabric in place only added to your obsessive manner, something that your friends had noticed already.

Inconvenient questions had been asked, but you flawlessly dodged them every time. You were used to it, although it bothered you.

It bothered you for many reasons: the fact that people cared about it so much and often asked to see it, making you sound like a jerk when you didn’t let them; the fact that apparently you were the only one uncomfortable with your soulmate tattoo, everyone else showing them off proudly and excitedly; the fact that you had seen with your own eyes people finding their match and you thought it wouldn’t happen to you because you just couldn’t bring yourself to be more open with it.

But there you were – walking down the corridor with your hand squeezed tightly, the long sleeve in its right place, keeping your tattoo perfectly covered.

You were headed to the common room, where you would meet your friends to play Exploding Snap, a typical Friday night. It was rare to have a homework-free weekend, though. So this time was different – many Hufflepuffs were going to stay up late down there, which was the closest you could get to a big slumber party. The thought of it excited you.

Once you reached the corridor to the kitchens, you saw two tall boys wearing Gryffindor robes at the end, coming your way. You knew they shouldn’t be there, but Hufflepuffs were used to seeing students from the other houses sneaking out of the kitchens, usually with hands full of snacks. You couldn’t judge though, you did the same with your friends – it was one of the perks of being a Hufflepuff and having the common room so strategically located.

You chuckled quietly to yourself when you noted that the boys – twins – were, in fact, carrying snacks.

“Good evening,” you greeted once you walked past them, a cheeky smile on the corner of your lips.

“Good evening,” they replied in the same tone.

“You didn’t see us here,” one of them added.

You stopped walking, realizing the opportunity that was being presented, and looked back, trying to hide a wicked grin. “I think I did, actually.”

They stopped as well, turning back to you.

“Are you sure?” the other one asked. He had a small bundle in his hand, which you quickly glanced at before meeting his eyes again, “I could swear we weren’t here.”

“Maybe I’m confused,” you said, frowning, “I might need something to clear my mind.”

The twins, who you knew by sight, looked at each other and smirked, both very amused by the girl in front of them. The one holding the bundle glanced at it too, pondering whether or not he was willing to give it up for a silence deal.

Such deal might not be worth a slice of the profit from their visit to the kitchens, but a possible friendship with a clever girl certainly is.

“Very well, then,” he handed it to you, a very business-man manner adding to the contract-being-sealed atmosphere.

You intended to look cool, but you were sure the look on your face was giving away the surprise you felt for being successful at the disguised blackmail.

You grabbed the bundle and looked at it for a few seconds. “Yeah... I guess I didn’t see you here.”

The boy smirked and stepped back, joining his brother as he left with the rest of their stuff.

You walked fast towards the barrels, tapping the right rhythm to open the passage and getting in as soon as it did.

“Hey, guys,” you greeted your friends, “I brought snacks.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The sun was shining bright in the sky, the wind alleviating the increasing heat coming from it. It was the perfect day for the last match of the Quidditch cup, with summer right around the corner.

You weren’t really excited, though. Hufflepuff was in third place, which meant that the results of the Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw match wouldn’t change anything for the better. If Gryffindor won, Hufflepuff would remain in third place, but if Ravenclaw won, Hufflepuff would go down to fourth.

Cedric had put a poster on the notice board with the cup ranking. He wasn’t happy either, everyone could tell, but he tried to stay positive and cheer his housemates up.

1. Slytherin

2. Gryffindor

3. Hufflepuff

4. Ravenclaw

The Slytherins should be the ones feeling worried, that’s for sure. They were in first place and they intended to stay in first place. So, if Gryffindor won, they would probably lose their shit.

You walked out of the common room with your friends, heading for the pitch. The only excited one among you all was Hannah, who rambled on and on about how everyone should be rooting for Gryffindor because their victory would mean Hufflepuff wouldn’t end up in last place and it would also mean the Slytherins wouldn’t win the cup which was good because they were responsible for the defeat that threw Hufflepuff to third place and Flint had called Cedric names and etc etc… You sighed. She had a point, sure. But third place?! That was so disappointing compared to last year’s cup. And a feeling of fulfilled revenge wasn’t going to change that nor make you feel better.

But if the Hufflepuffs were down and the Slytherins were worried, the Gryffindors and the Ravenclaws were the complete opposite. The extremely loud cheering gave it away as soon as you stepped in the pitch – the chanting of the houses’ names took over the entire crowd.

“Gryffindor! Gryffindor! Gryffindor!”

“Ravenclaw! Ravenclaw! Ravenclaw!”

You could spot several Slytherin students screaming the eagle house’s name, though. Perhaps they didn’t believe Ravenclaw could surpass them on points in this match and win the cup, otherwise they wouldn’t be cheering so loud. Instead, they would wear stern faces like their worried housemates.

Hannah was already conjuring a red headband with the words Go Potter! on it.

“Really?” Susan asked.

“Why not?” Hannah replied, following the Gryffindor crowd on the chanting.

You exchanged a look with Susan, both of you finding it amusing how she could be enjoying this so much. You wished you could too.

“Try seeing it this way,” Susan said as she conjured two red headbands, “It’s not really rooting for Gryffindor. It’s more like rooting against Slytherin.”

She handed you one of the headbands and smiled encouragingly, putting on the other one.

You looked at it, reading the words Go Gryffs. This time, you smiled too, even if resignedly.

“I don’t like house rivalries,” you explained to her, “I feel like wanting Slytherin to lose the cup is just… bitter. Like a sore loser thing.”

“Ignore what I said and see it as rooting for Gryffindor, then,” she shrugged, “I don’t know, Y/N. Just have fun.”

Just have fun. Well, she was right. You were over-thinking. Again.

You put on the Gryffindor-themed headband and waited as Madam Hooch entered the field, being followed by the Ravenclaw team not long after, with Gryffindor right behind them.

Lee Jordan greeted the crowd, narrating what was going on down there while Madam Hooch talked to the captains. You looked at both teams, recognizing most of those faces, until your eyes fell on two ginger heads – twin ginger heads.

“Oh, that’s right!” you thought out loud, “They play for Gryffindor!”

“Who?” Susan asked.

“The twins.”

“Um… Yeah,” she chuckled.

Madam Hooch blew her whistle and several brooms lifted off the ground, flying high above all the other students and the few teachers – the match had begun.

With every tight turn Harry Potter took, Hannah gasped. In a minute, it looked like he had seen the snitch. In the other, he seemed as lost as Cho Chang. And between those moments, both teams scored.

Right now, Ravenclaw had the lead, and your friend Hannah looked like she could explode at any moment. She had bitten her nails to nubs, complaining loudly when Ravenclaw scored a goal.

“Come on!” she yelled, placing her hands around her mouth to amplify her words. The movement made her long sleeves slide on her arms until they reached her elbows, revealing her tattoo. Before you could tell what it was, you looked away, pulling down your sleeve and squeezing your hand shut tighter than ever.

You always felt weird when that happened, like you had just seen something very personal, a complete invasion of privacy.

You trailed off in thoughts, distracted by your own insecurity when you heard the people around you cheer the loudest in that morning. Even Susan, who had been rather discreet throughout the game, was now jumping and chanting with the others.

Confused, you looked at the field, realizing a few Ravenclaw players had come down and gotten off their brooms already. All the Gryffindors were still up, flying around each other, raising theirs fists and smiling/laughing.

“Gryffindor is the winner!” Lee Jordan’s words finally made sense to you, “Gryffindor surpasses Slytherin and is the winner! Gryffindor is the Quidditch cup winner! Gryffindor!”

“Gryffindor! Gryffindor! Gryffindor!”

You were taken aback. You didn’t know what to think of it, really.

“They won!” Susan cheered, throwing an arm around your shoulders, “We’re not in last!”

“Great,” you tried to smile.

“Ravenclaw got so close to surpassing us!” Hannah placed a hand on her chest, “I almost died, I swear to God.”

“A difference of five points, Y/N! That’s why we’re celebrating,” Susan explained, “If they had scored another goal, we would be in last right now. It wouldn’t matter if Gryffindor won.”

“Yeah, I know how Quidditch works,” you said, regretting it the second after, “Sorry. I just wish it was Cedric.”

You pointed at the field and Susan saw the Gryffindor team carrying Oliver Wood, their captain and Keeper, as he raised the silver Quidditch cup trophy above his head. You looked for Cedric, finding him a bit far from you, and noticed the polite smile on his face as he congratulated the Gryffindors around him, but that smile didn’t reach his eyes.

“Five points!” Ernie yelled next to your ear, startling you, “One more goal and we were down!”

“Oh my God, where were you?” Hannah asked.

The two of them quickly started recounting their favorite moments of the match, while you watched as the Gryffindors went nuts. You were pretty sure you had seen Professor McGonagall announcing a detention to a student who had ripped his shirt open and spilled Butterbeer on himself.

“Room of Requirement, right now,” Ernie replied to whatever Hannah had said.

“We’ll be there,” she nodded and he left, joining the Gryffindors as they jumped and sang.

“We’ll be there for what?” you asked.

“Celebration party!” she smiled.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You knew about the Room of Requirement, but you had never been there.

It was said it only revealed itself when a student was in need. You didn’t think of partying as a need, but… well, you weren’t complaining.

You followed Hannah and Susan to the middle of a corridor on the seventh-floor. You had no idea of how you were going to get in and it looked like neither did Susan, but, once the three of you reached a tapestry showing Barnabas the Barmy trying to teach trolls to dance the ballet, Hannah went to the opposite wall and started pacing in front of it. Slowly, a big door appeared on the wall, and Susan smiled excitedly at you.

Hannah stopped and reached for the doorknob, not before motioning for you two to follow her inside.

As soon as you stepped in the room, the words seemed to have left your brain – you were completely speechless.

You were expecting an old, dusty room full of old furniture, or at least an old classroom, or, God, even an empty room. But boy, were you wrong.

Behind that big door was a big room, with Gryffindor-themed decorations, cool furniture – like comfy armchairs, couches, round tables – dim lighting that made you forget the sun was shining bright outside, snacks and drinks of all kinds and music!

You looked at Susan and realized she was just as surprised as you. Hannah, on the other hand, looked totally unimpressed, as if none of that was new for her.

The people in there were mostly Gryffindors, but you recognized fellow Hufflepuffs and a few Ravenclaws. No Slytherins in sight. No one there looked younger than a fifth-year. No teachers, obviously.

There couldn’t be more than fifty people in that place. You started to think that was a rather exclusive party.

How did you get there?

“C’mon, there’s Ernie,” Hannah said, motioning for you and Susan to follow her once again.

Your friend was chatting with a Gryffindor girl, next to the snacks table. When he saw the three of you, he smiled, opening his arms.

“There they are! Emma, this is Hannah, Susan and Y/N. Girls, this is Emma.”

Greetings were said and polite smiles were exchanged.

“Where’s the team?” Hannah asked.

“They’re coming,” Emma answered, “They stop by the locker-room first, which is good ‘cause we can prepare all this for them before they get here.”

“That’s so nice of you,” Susan replied.

“It’s a way of thanking them, I guess. I mean, they worked so hard for this.”

“They deserve it,” Hannah nodded, “And thank you for having us, by the way.”

“Ernie’s friends are my friends,” she smiled, “Have fun!”

“We will. Thank you,” you smiled back at the girl and she left to talk to a group of Gryffindors, probably the people who organized the party with her.

“So…” Hannah smiled mischievously at Ernie, “Ernie’s friends are my friends, huh?”

“Yeah...” the boy looked down, blushing, “Did you see her tattoo?”

Your heart stopped.

“Oh! I didn’t!” Hannah gaped, “Is she…?”

Ernie nodded, making Hannah gasp dramatically.

“Oh my God, congratulations!” Susan smiled and gave your friend a hug.

“I’m so happy right now,” Hannah covered her mouth with one hand.

“Please, don’t cry,” he chuckled nervously as she hugged him tightly.

“Congrats, Ernie,” you managed to say with a smile.

“Thank you, Y/N.”

“I’m gonna go grab something to drink,” you excused yourself and headed for the drinks table, feeling your breathing get a bit irregular. Instinctively, you pulled the long sleeve down and covered your wrist – not that it was showing before, you just wanted to be sure.

You examined the various drinks on the table, realizing there was more than five bottles of Firewhiskey. You shook your head internally, grabbing a bottle of Butterbeer instead.

As you opened it and took a sip, you noticed a boy coming in the room and going straight to Emma. He said something in her ear and she nodded, quickly motioning to someone else you couldn’t see. Suddenly, the music stopped.

“Listen, everybody!” she called, “The team is almost here. I want every single one of you to cheer as loud as you can when they come inside, okay? Let’s show them how special they are! And don’t worry about the noise, there’s a sound-proofing spell for a reason.”

Mumbling of agreement could be heard from the entire room and Emma nodded satisfied.

You decided to go back to your friends, bottle of Butterbeer in hand. The four of you managed to talk for a little bit before someone asked for silence and everyone looked at the door expectantly.

The big door swung open and the face of Oliver Wood was the first one to be seen. Just like Emma had asked, every single person in the room cheered loudly as the captain came inside with the rest of the team close behind. Sparkly confetti fell from the roof, showering everyone inside.

“Gryffindor! Gryffindor! Gryffindor!”

Oliver Wood, Harry Potter, Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, Katie Bell, Fred Weasley and George Weasley. You learned the names with Ernie, feeling your chest slightly warm when you realized ‘George’ was the one who had given you the bundle of snacks the night before.

After a short ‘thank you’ speech by Oliver Wood and a round of applause and more cheering, the music was back on and the party had officially started.

Ernie left your group to join Emma once again, not before repeating her words and telling you to have fun.

“Y/N, would you be the best friend in the entire world and get us some snacks?” Hannah asked.

“Why me?”

“Because you’re the youngest.”

“Yeah, like two months younger than you.”

“Exactly!”

You looked at Susan, who shrugged. “I’m good.”

You looked back at Hannah, meeting her puppy eyes. “Please?”

Sighing, you gave in. “Fine. What do you want?”

“Chips!”

You headed for the snacks table, realizing a very familiar tall figure was there, back facing you. You approached the table, placing the empty bottle of Butterbeer on it.

“Hey,” you said, catching the boy’s attention.

“Oh, hi,” he replied, a cheeky smile forming on his lips, “There’s plenty of food here, okay? You don’t need to take mine again.”

“When did I ever take your food?” you frowned, pretending to think.

“Last- Oh. Never,” he shook his head, “Did I say you did?”

You exchanged a smile, both of you amused with the little inside joke that had been born. You quickly looked down at the table, though – he was really handsome and way too cool to be talking to you, that’s for sure.

“I’m George, by the way.”

“Y/N,” you said as you grabbed a little bowl and started adding chips to it, “Congrats on the win, George. It’s the second consecutive, isn’t it?”

“Thank you. And yeah, it is.”

“Must feel great,” you replied, not taking your eyes off of the bowl and chips.

“It does,” he nodded.

The boy opened his mouth a few times, trying to think of something else to say, but the words escaped him. Instead, he watched as you grabbed another small bowl and added chips to that one as well. He looked at your hands, noticing their careful movement, as if you were performing a highly important task. Why he was paying attention to such a random thing was unknown to him, though.

Something about you caught his attention. Something about you attracted him, in the most literal meaning of the word. He knew it wasn’t just the fact that he thought you were really clever for what you had done the night before, although that was something that had made him think about you more than someone normally would after a quick chat with a stranger in a corridor. He also knew it wasn’t just what Fred had said.

She’s the type of person I would want around when planning the next move, if you know what I mean.

Oh, George knew what he meant. You were clever. And cleverness was important when planning a prank that you didn’t want to get caught for.

He studied your face and noticed how calm and friendly you looked, which made him feel lame for not being able to hold a conversation with you.

One single chip fell from your grasp on the way to the bowl, and George found himself feeling flustered by the view of you biting your lip as you put the fallen chip back in its place.

His trance was interrupted when you asked about his brother. Seconds had gone by, but it felt so much longer.

“Fred? He’s uh… around,” the boy shrugged, not putting much thought into it.

He gulped, feeling very awkward and completely out of character – George Weasley had never had trouble to talk to people, ever.

You, to his entire ignorance, were not feeling very different.

“Enjoying the party, I’m assuming,” you said as you finished fixing snacks for you and Hannah, “Well, I’ll let you do the same now. See you around.”

“See you,” he replied, cursing at himself internally when you walked away – he should’ve said something! ‘I’m enjoying it right now’, ‘let me get you another drink’, anything.

He sighed, walking away from the table as well.

Hannah clapped her hands quietly when you approached her, a fake impressed look on her face.

“That’s a true friend,” she said to Susan, “Learn, Bones.”

Susan rolled her eyes, shaking her head.

“Take it before I regret bringing it to you, Abbott,” you joked, offering one of the bowls. She quickly took it, thanking you.

The music playing switched between The Weird Sisters and some very famous muggle songs. Soon, Hannah was rocking her body back and fourth while chewing on the chips.

“Ernie looks so happy,” Susan said to you, pointing discretely at the other side of the room, where Ernie stood with Emma, his soulmate.

“Yeah,” you nodded.

“Emma seems nice, right? I like her.”

“She does,” you nodded again, feeling slightly uncomfortable with the subject.

“Hey, this is my favorite song!” Hannah gasped, catching Susan’s attention – you mentally thanked whoever was the person responsible for the music. “Let’s dance!”

“I don’t really dance, but you two can go. It’s no problem,” you replied.

“You sure?” Susan asked.

“Yeah, go ahead. I’ll stay here with my chips,” you raised your bowl at them.

“In that case, can you hold mine? I’ll be right back,” Hannah promised.

“Okay,” you agreed, taking her bowl in your hand.

“Thanks! C’mon,” she held Susan’s hand and took her to the back of the room, where people were dancing.

You sighed, realizing both your hands were busy and now you couldn’t ‘stay with your chips’ while they were gone. Well, it was just a few minutes, you could wait.

********

Part 2

[olicitysecretsanta]

Better with you

Dear Emma @bitchwhwifi

I wish you and your family a beautiful holiday season. May it be filled with love, laughter and peace.

Leona @lgtwinkie99

Chapter 1

“Cooper, I just got your text. What do you mean with you think we are done?”

“Lissy..”

“You know I don’t like it when you call me that.”

“Lissy calm down. You knew that this was going to happen at some point in our relationship. I mean I think we have really exhausted our relationship.”

“So you wake up one morning and decide this doesn’t work for you anymore and that the past three years meant nothing?”

“They meant something Lissy. I mean the sex isn’t bad but I think our relationship has become predictable and I want excitement. I can’t be in a relationship like this for the rest of my life. I will die of boredom.”

“And you couldn’t have spoken to me about all of this? Instead you break up with me over a text message?”

“Lissy you can’t change even if you want to. Look at it this way, we are still young and can still move on.”

“Cooper I know our relationship wasn’t perfect but I thought we were committed to each other. I never expected this from you. You are so not who I thought you were. It just goes to show, you think you know someone. But let this boring person not hold you up Cooper Seldon. I for one will not lose tears over this relationship. I am thankful this has happened now rather than later. I suppose you just did me a huge favour. I am finally free from someone who couldn’t appreciate me, who didn’t value me and who doesn’t see me as enough. Bye Cooper.”

Felicity hangs up and gives a frustrated shout!

“Urgh!!!”

To think I have been so patient with him, putting up with all his dishonesty and constantly insulting my character, just never being enough for him.

30 minutes later while preparing supper

*knock on the door*

Felicity goes to open the door and finds her best friend John Diggle on her doorstep.

“Diggle! You are back!”

“Woman come here and give me a hug.”

Diggle grabs Felicity into a bear hug.

“I swear it feels like you have gotten smaller since the last time I saw you.” Diggle moves back from Felicity to get a better look at her.

“Has it really been six months?”

“It has been way too long! But I am here now so what have you been up to shorty?”

“Nope! There is no way I am telling you about my boring life first. Tell me what has the past 6 months been like?”

“I always tell you it is what you make of it Lis. If I could understand half of the things you do, I would probably be very enthusiastic about your job.”

Felicity rolls her eyes at Diggle.

“Okay if you say so. Can I dish for you?” Diggle follows Felicity to the kitchen.

“Always a yes! Ooh this looks yummy!”

Diggle looks at the feast Felicity has prepared for them. Whenever he comes back home from one of his long expeditions he can be sure that he will find something special prepared for him by Felicity.

“I missed your cooking! I wish I could pack up all this food and take it with me when I am on those long trips. Oliver really saves our butts when we are out there.  I don’t know how that guy makes a meal out of nothing but he does. But this shorty beats his hands down! Just don’t tell him I said that.”

“I am happy you are enjoying it. So tell me what you guys have been up to these past few months.”

“It has been a crazy couple of months. I was finished with my first 26 day expedition to the Three Peaks of Nepal and just got back to base when we received news that there was a landslide on one of the tours and Oliver and I literally only had time to pack a new bag and equipment before we were flown out to Cho Oyu. It was one exhausting trip. Tony, one of the guides, was seriously injured and we had to airlift him out. The guy was in bad shape, still in recovery. Bill is also off sick so that leaves us seriously understaffed. Oliver and I were booked back to back. We were so relieved when we were shipped out. It can get rough out there.”

“But you still love what you are doing?” Felicity rests her chin on her hands, so relaxed now that Diggle is back.

“Crazy enough? I wouldn’t change one thing about it.”

“I am really really happy for you Diggle.”

“So where is Cooper? Is he working late again?”

“Mmm Cooper isn’t coming anymore. We broke up.”

“You did? Wait a minute. Who did the breaking up Lis?”

Felicity looks down at her hands and starts fidgeting with her fingers.

“He did, over text.”

“He did what? I never liked that guy but now? I could choke him with my bare hands.”

“I might not stop you the way I am feeling right now.”

“When did it happen?”

“Today, just before you came actually. I should thank him for his timing because at least I don’t have to be alone. I have my best friend back.”

Diggle gets up, walks to Felicity, takes her hand and gently pulls her to her feet.

Without a word he wraps Felicity in a bear hug. Diggle’s tenderness causes Felicity to let go of her emotions and she starts to cry silent tears on her friends shoulder.

They are not sure how long they are standing there in embrace but Felicity feels lighter afterwards.

They ended up watching a marathon of their favourite movies, laughing and making silly jokes like old times until Felicity falls asleep on Diggle’s shoulder.

^^^^^^^^^^

The next morning Felicity finds herself in her bed not very unusual after a hang out with Diggle that normally lasts until she falls asleep.

Felicity cannot help but smile thinking about her closest friend. They have been best friends for the past five years and Felicity wishes that she felt more for her bestie than friendship. They actually joke about how they would make the perfect couple if only they could get to feeling more than just friendship for each other. They have been in each other’s corner through good and bad times, success and losses. One thing she could always count on over the years has been Diggle. Constant, faithful, cuddly Diggle. He always knows what to say and do to make her feel better. This morning feels a whole lot more hopeful than she could have imagined and she knows it is thanks to her bestie who is snoring on her couch. She gets up and decides to prepare breakfast  for them.

She starts breakfast and cannot help but feel relieved that she no longer has to deal with Cooper and his issues. She can now live her life the way she wants and do what she has always wanted to do. He has always laughed at her dreams and criticised her. She isn’t even sure why she has been with him this long or why she has put up with him.

The first thing that pops into Felicity’s mind is to get a Bike. Not your normal bicycle but a motorbike with roaring engine and all. Bet Cooper wouldn’t think me boring now. Last she mentioned that they could get one together he laughed at her saying that her feet won’t ever reach the pedals. How was she going to drive one? Maybe Diggle would be up to it.

Felicity carries a tray with their breakfast to the sitting room and wakes Diggle up with a chirpy, “Wakey Wakey! Breakfast is ready.”

Diggle moans and groans but moves to a sitting position and takes his breakfast from Felicity.

“You know if you weren’t such an excellent cook I would not be getting up right now. Feels like I have jetlag.”

Diggle gives a yawn and looks at his friend noticing her chirpy mood.

“And why are you sitting there like someone who won the jackpot instead of someone who just went through a break up? Even though I have to say good riddance.”

“Diggle you and I both know my relationship with Cooper wasn’t good for me. I always felt like I was being dominated, always doing what he wanted, going where he wanted to go and then he has the audacity to tell me I am boring! Phew okay let me just calm down.”

Felicity takes a breath: ‘So I was thinking, I want to get a bike.’

“A bike? You have never been the sporty type shorty but we can go get you a bicycle. I am all yours today so why not go after breakfast?”

“No not a bicycle, I want a motorbike.”

“Felicity you do know a motorbike is a motorbike? Very dangerous and very fast and can be quite expensive.”

“I have a lot in my savings at the moment and why not use it for this? Come on! For someone who is so adventurous you can be a drip.”

“Felicity you are my best friend and I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

“That is why we can ask your friend Oliver to give me some lessons before I take it on the road myself. He does still have the bike shop right?”

“Yes he does.”

Diggle looks at Felicity’s determined expression and knows that this is one fight he will not win.

“Okay let me call him and see if he is available today.”

“Call him now while I clean up the dishes.”

He hasn’t seen Felicity this excited since she got her job at Queen Consolidated. Maybe this will be good for her.

“Oliver, hi man.  What are you up to today?”

“John! Miss me already? Thought you are spending the day with Felicity?”

“I am but she wants a bike?”

“Whoa from what you have told me about her, she doesn’t sound like the bike type at all.”

“She isn’t but long story short, she has made up her mind and well I need your help to get her the perfect one and then give her some lessons.”

“Sure, I can help out. I am at the shop, so you guys can come by anytime.”

“See you in an hour.”

He looks up to see Felicity looking at him like a teenage girl expectantly waiting, “And?”

“Let’s go get you a bike!”

“Yis!”

Felicity fist bumps the air and turns with a skip in her step to get ready.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Chapter 2

“Oliver!”

“Hey John!” Oliver and Diggle exchange a bro hug and then he turns to Felicity.

“Hey Felicity, nice to see you again.”

Oliver cannot help but look at Felicity a bit longer than is necessary as she replies.

“Same here.”

Felicity cannot help but feel awkward, not sure if she should hug Oliver or just shake his hand, so instead she shoves her hands in her jean pocket.

“So, I hear you are shopping for a bike? Anything specific in mind?”

Both Diggle and Oliver turn to Felicity and she feels completely silly that she is so unprepared. She was in such a hurry to buy a bike that she never took the time to do her research. This is so unlike her.

“I honestly haven’t had time to think about it really”, Felicity says blushing slightly.

“That won’t be a problem. That is where my expertise comes in.” Oliver says trying to put her at ease.

“I have a few here at my shop but anything I don’t have we can order for you and get it delivered. So, looking at your build…I mean the structure of your body, I mean the shape of…sorry I am really messing this up.”

Diggle and Felicity look at each other and start bursting out with laughter.

“I have never seen you this red Oliver. Seems you had a bit of a tongue twister. This is a really nice side to you Ollie.” Diggle cannot help but enjoy seeing Oliver so uncomfortable.

“Sorry I am not used to stumbling all over myself, but you do know what I mean right?”

Felicity and Diggle clearly together in making Oliver feel uncomfortable shake their heads innocently to say no.

“What I meant to say was that we will need to find a bike suitable for your build. Because you are quite small.”

“I’m pretty strong for my 5-foot-5 average height.”

“I don’t doubt that one bit. But your bike must suit you like a glove. We want you to have the best possible experience, so we want to make sure you get the perfect one. Let me show you the ones I think might work for you.”

Diggle casually throws his arm around Felicity as they follow Oliver.

“Here we have the Kawasaki Ninja 250R. It sports a lateral aluminium frame, a different fairing designed to make it look sportier, 17-inch wheels, an adjustable rear shock absorber, adjustable brake and clutch levers, a small drive sprocket, computer-controlled timing advance, and a revised electrical system. It also has a smaller carburettor, & slightly different compression ratio, both of which were designed for quicker revving and slightly higher top end power.”

Oliver turns to look at Diggle and Felicity to see what they thought of the bike and realised he completely lost them.

“Oliver remember Felicity doesn’t know anything about bikes so can you turn it down a notch?”

“Sorry, I get carried away sometimes. What I meant was that it is small and not too heavy and would still give you enough speed to give you an adrenalin rush.”

“Okay that I can process. And this one? Really beautiful. I always thought bikes were these big ugly machines that just made a lot of noise. I know, I know. I was wrong.”

“This beauty is the Harley-Davidson Sportster XL883L. A bit pricey but worth every cent.”

“So how do you know which one is the right one?”

“It would help test driving them. That is the best way to decide. Since you have never driven one, I can take you out on the road a bit.”

“Can we go now?”

Oliver looks at Diggle as if needing permission and to see if Diggle trusts him enough to take his best friend on a bike ride.

Diggle gives Oliver a nod and a huge smile spreads across Oliver’s face.

“Okay let’s go. Let’s take the Ninja for a spin and then work our way through the list.”

Oliver hands Felicity her helmet and helps her tie the strap.

He has known of Felicity for some time and they would meet on certain occasions where Diggle would invite both, but he has never been this close to her. Being this close to her makes him notice her blue eyes and freckles across her nose. She is one beautiful woman.

Oliver clears his throat.

“Tight enough?”

Felicity nods and instead of looking dorky with the helmet on, she manages to look even more adorable.

Before Oliver can stop himself, he hears himself remark, “Really cute.”

Oliver gets on the bike and moves up to make space for Felicity.

Oliver looks ahead trying to keep busy with the gadgets on the bike to not focus on how close she is to him.

Oliver starts the bike and can feel Felicity startle when the bike comes alive.

“Sorry, it can be very noisy.”

“I will have to get used to it. Now is as good a time as any.”

“Okay you might want to put your arms around me and hold on tight.”

“I imagined you saying that under different circumstances, very platonic circumstances.

Oliver feels Felicity’s hands on his side holding on to him in a very subtle way. Until the bike pulls off and her arms go completely around his middle squeezing his lower abdomen.

Oliver turns his head and asks, “You okay?”, to which Felicity nods yes.

They pull out of the shop slowly and come to a halt when Oliver turns slightly. He was so close to her that he can see the speckles in her eyes but refused to put some distance between them.

“I will start out slowly and build up speed gradually. You can squeeze me or nudge me with your leg if I should slow down or stop. I should tell you that I have been doing this for a while and I will never be irresponsible with someone’s life. So, try to relax and enjoy the ride.”

With a nod from Felicity, Oliver turns around and starts to pull off again.

Felicity has nervousness starting in the pit of her stomach all the way down to her toes. She cannot believe she is finally doing this, she must be crazy, but she must find out if she can really do this. As they cruise along the anxiousness starts fading and gives way to an excitement that she has only felt a few times in her life. She knows she doesn’t have to hold on as tight as she is but she loves the feel of Oliver’s abs underneath her fingers. He feels so solid.

Oliver picks up the pace and starts speeding up. Felicity can’t help but let out an excited “yee-haw”!

Oliver smiles as he thinks to himself, another one bites the dust, she is hooked.

Oliver increases the speed to see how far she is willing to go when Felicity surprises him by hugging him even tighter and pressing her cheek against his back.

Fifteen minutes later Oliver pulls into the shop and finds Diggle waiting for them.

He walks toward them with a concerned expression until Felicity removes her helmet with the biggest smile he has ever seen.

“I want to do that again!”

Oliver laughs, “You either love it or you hate it.”

“That was so amazing! That was so emancipating! How fast did we go?”

“At one point 111.85 mph.”

“Really? I felt the speed, but I would never have imagined we drove that fast.”

“So you were not afraid?” Diggle asks curiously.

“Not one bit. I know you trust Oliver and if you trust him with me on a bike then he must be worth trusting.”

Oliver is completely caught off guard at Felicity’s comment and not sure of what to say. No one has ever said anything so nice about him, especially not someone who didn’t know him personally.

He clears his throat and busies himself with the pedal of the bike.

“So, I suggest we take each of these bikes on the road over the next few days and then you should be able to decide which one you like. For the next week I am available early morning and late afternoon. I am babysitting for Thea during the day. Roxy can keep me very busy and I will prefer to not bring her along with me to the shop, at least not yet.”

“How is Thea coping with being back at work? I haven’t seen her in so long.”

“I think surprisingly well. Her and Alex really have the parenting thing down. I could never imagine my younger sister as a mother, but she is doing an awesome job with Roxy. She asked me to tell you to come by for dinner tonight, she really misses you John.”

“I miss her too. I will be there.”

“Felicity why don’t you come join us?

“That would be really nice.”

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Chapter 3

Later that afternoon Felicity finds herself unable to decide what to wear. She is normally not one to worry much about what people think but for some unexplainable reason she does wonder what Oliver thinks of her.

She finds him intriguing and exhilarating and loves how he is with her. And yes, he might have treated her like he would any other woman looking for a bike, but she would like to think that there was something between them.  For a handsomely well-built guy he has been very quirky around her making him even more attractive. He was pleasantly refreshing, unlike what she has been experiencing from the male population the past few years, Diggle obviously being an exception.

She opts for a floral tank top and a blue skirt, modest but beautiful.

Diggle picks her up at seven and they drive to Thea’s place recalling what they have been up to that day.

“Digg I am telling you that manager at the coffee shop was checking you out. Did you not notice how she completely ignored me and zoned in on your lips?”

“Felicity I never knew you to exaggerate.”

“That is true, so it must tell you that it is all true. We will have to go back there just so I can prove you wrong.”

“Doesn’t seem like I am the only one getting attention today from the opposite sex.”

Felicity gives Diggle a coy look.

“Don’t you even pretend you don’t know what I am talking about? My boy Oliver was completely tripping over himself today. Didn’t know what got into him and then I saw the way he looked at you.”

“I will not deny that Oliver is good looking and very hot, but I am on the rebound and I don’t know what the rules are about that, but I am sure it doesn’t say that you should jump a guy the next day.”

“Who said anything about jumping him? All I am saying is don’t go drooling all over him and try to behave yourself. I know how you get around handsome guys. Look at how you jumped my bones when I got to your place last night. You should be lucky there is no Mrs Diggle, she would have been very jealous!”

Felicity laughs at their bantering and wonders if things will change when a Mrs Diggle does come along. She won’t have her bestie all to herself anymore.

“Hey where did you go to shorty?”

Diggle reaches across to take her hand and gives it a squeeze.

“Just thinking how lucky I am to have a friend like you. You have been godsend, and really so much more than a girl could ask for.”

“Hey, I will always be here for you. No matter what.”

They pull into a drive way of a quaint house, when Diggle switches off the car and turns to Felicity.

“Lis, you haven’t had the best experiences with guys, apart from me.”

Felicity playfully slaps Diggle on the shoulder.

“But Oliver is one of the good guys and you were right about me trusting him. I am not forcing you into anything, I’m just saying that you can be yourself with him.”

“Thanks Digg. I will remember that.”

^^^^^^^^^^

“John! It has been way too long! Why you and my brother enjoy these long trips away from home I will never understand.”

“Keeps us out of trouble.” Diggle gives Thea one of his famous bear hugs and then turns to introduce Felicity.

“Thea this is a very close friend of mine, Felicity Smoak, Thea Queen.”

“So nice to meet you Felicity. Please feel at home and mind the obstacles. Roxy thinks the house is more hers than ours. Suppose that is how it is with children.”

“Definitely makes it homier,” Felicity remarks.

“Oliver says the same thing.”

“Gossiping about me little sis? Don’t believe anything she tells you Felicity.”

Oliver walks into the foyer with Roxy in his arms. If Felicity thought Oliver looked good before then he looks even better with a toddler in his arms. Oliver could be wearing a black bag and would still look handsome. He walks directly to her and surprises her by giving her a hug with Roxy in his arms.

In that moment Roxy takes a piece of Felicity’s hair and rubs it between her fingers and then she reaches out her arms to Felicity to take her from Oliver.

Felicity not sure how to handle the situation looks at Oliver and then Thea then back again.

When Thea smiles and says: “It’s okay, she must really like you, she normally takes time to warm up to strangers.”

Felicity reaches for her and little Roxy immediately starts playing with her hair saying “pletty”.

Felicity is completely captivated by Roxy and how warm she makes her feel, smiles and whispers, “so are you Roxy. I love your dress.”

“Let’s move to the patio, it is such beautiful night.” Thea leads the way but Oliver stays behind to wait for Felicity, still holding Roxy.

“Should I take her? She can get heavy.”

“No, I don’t mind. I always thought children didn’t like me and I think I have always been a bit scared of the tiny creatures but this…this feels so good.”

“It is pretty amazing. Roxy why don’t we show aunty Felicity your drawing?”

Roxy immediately slides down and runs toward her play area to show Felicity her drawing of a bike.

“Unc Ollie bike.”

Felicity can see that Oliver is extremely proud of her.

“Wow now this is a beautiful bike. You did a very good job Roxy. Maybe you can draw one for me?”

“A red one!”

Felicity and Oliver play with Roxy a few more minutes before moving to the patio to join the others when Thea says to Alex, “I think I have found us another babysitter babe.”

Felicity finds everyone sitting outside, Thea sitting on her husband Alex’s lap, with Diggle across from her leaving the couch open to Oliver and Felicity.

“Nice to meet you Felicity and thank you in advance for babysitting.” Alex says.

Felicity takes a seat and Oliver joins her, then Oliver remarks, “Felicity hasn’t even been here an hour and I already lost my job.”

He playfully winks at Felicity who shifts uncomfortably under the attention of everyone around her.

^^^^^^^^^^

After dinner Thea leaves to put Roxy to bed and Diggle joins Alex to see his collection of music records.

“Oh, that was subtle.” Oliver smiles sitting forward and resting his arms on his knees.

“So subtle.”

“So, Felicity have you changed your mind about the bike?”

“No not one bit. I want one now even more than before. It was the most amazing feeling to glide across the road. I wish I tried it sooner, fear can hold you back from living you know? Really living.”

“Wait until you can drive on your own. When I am on the open road it feels like I am fearless and free. Or maybe I’m just an adrenaline junky.”

“I can’t imagine you being afraid of anything. You and Diggle put your lives on the line constantly.”

“The thing about fear is that it cripples you. But yesterday you reminded me that fear is what you make of it. If you give it power it will have that over you but if you take power over it, there is just no limits to what you are able to do. I know you were not completely sure about getting on that bike, but you did, and you overcame that fear. I think that is why I do what I do. If something scares me, I get in its face and show it whose boss. Sometimes though, it is just not that easy.”

“I on the other hand have always lived it safe. There is so much that I would like to do but never do. When I was younger my mother used to say that I was a nerdy child on steroids. I would do everything and anything, not always thinking about the consequences.  And then somewhere along the way I started listening to other voices and started doubting myself.”

 “I am sorry if I am forward but does this voice belong to your ex? John told me you went through a break up not long ago. He must be a fool.”

“Thank you but why would you say that? It’s not like you know me that well.”

Oliver clears his throat realising that he might have said more than he should have.

“John talks about you a lot and I know that he thinks you are a pretty amazing person. He always says that he wants his wife to be just like you, maybe just a bit taller.”

They both smile at each other.

“John is really protective of you. When we are on those long excursions he often worries that you are not okay on your own. He is one of the good guys.”

“Yes, he is.” Felicity agrees as Diggle and Alex return, with Thea not far behind them.

“Guys I am so sorry, but I have to go, I just got a call that I have to attend to. Oliver can I ask you to take Felicity home?”

“Sure.”

Felicity gets up with a worried expression. “Everything okay?”

“Yes, don’t worry, will call you tomorrow.”

Diggle gives Felicity a hug greets the rest and leaves with Oliver, walking him out.

Alex increases the volume of the music and turns to Thea, reaches for her hand and they start swaying romantically to the music almost lost in their own world when Oliver walks in.

“Do you want me to take you home now or can we stay a bit longer?”

“No rush, I have really enjoyed your company tonight.  I mean everyone’s company.”

Felicity stumbles over her words when she realises how intimate the setting is and how awkward the moment is, until Oliver stretches out his hand to her requesting a dance with Felicity.

Without a second thought Felicity takes his hand and realises for the second time that day that she is not afraid at all about being with Oliver. He makes it so easy to be herself around him and that makes her trust him even more.

Felicity places her left hand in Oliver’s right hand while Oliver places his other hand on her lower back and draws her in gently. He makes sure to leave enough space between them, so Felicity doesn’t feel uncomfortable.

They start swaying in silence and gradually move closer to each other without realising it; felicity is close enough to Oliver to put her chin against his chest.

There is something so sure about this guy. The way he makes her feel is like heaven and Felicity can feel his strong palm splayed on her lower back, causing heat to travel all the way through her, making her blush a bit. She rests her cheek on his chest, so he wouldn’t see the effect he has on her.

Then Oliver whispers in her ear, “You smell really nice Felicity.” Oliver turns his head so slightly into her hair in a way that is so enduring that Felicity has to bite on her lower lip to keep from sighing out loud. Felicity whispers softly into his shirt, “so do you”. Then she feels the nicest sensation. A beautiful rumble, like thunder as Oliver’s laughter vibrates through his body.

Not even aware that Thea and Alex stopped dancing, Alex clears his throat, “we are heading to bed, Oliver just lock up when you guys leave, no rush. Felicity it was nice meeting you.”

Felicity can only smile at them as they leave afraid her voice will betray how much she is enjoying dancing with Oliver.

A few songs later Oliver and Felicity sit on the couch talking about anything and everything. Felicity feels like she can tell Oliver anything and almost did. The guy must think she is a nutcase, but she hasn’t had that with another man besides Diggle and it feels so good to have someone who listens to you and who is genuinely interested in what you are saying. She catches Oliver once or twice staring at her lips and she almost reaches out to give him a kiss. But her sanity prevails.

Oliver finds Felicity captivating and the more time he spends with her the more time he wants to spend with her. After midnight they realise that they should probably get going when Oliver drives Felicity to her place.

“So home sweet home.” Felicity remarks not sure if she should say goodbye and leave or stay. She really, really wants to stay with him a bit longer.

Oliver seems to also delay in saying goodbye when he eventually breaks the silence, “Do you think I can get your number? Just so we can stay in touch about the bike lessons.”

“Of course.”

They exchange numbers and before the awkward silence settles again Felicity thanks Oliver for the evening.

“I really enjoyed myself tonight. I can’t remember when last I had such a wonderful time.”

“Trust me Felicity I am not known for being talkative, but you managed to bring that out of me. Thank you. Would you want to start your lesson tomorrow or wait for Monday morning?”

“No tomorrow will be perfect.”

“Should I pick you up? It would be on my way.”

“That would be really nice Oliver. So tomorrow at 5:30am?”

“See you then.”

Felicity doesn’t sleep much that night. Thoughts of Oliver keeps floating through her mind. The way he held her, the way he looked at her, the way he made her feel. And then she chastises herself that she needs to take her time and not rush it. She is still on the rebound after all.

Not far away Oliver is lying in bed trying his best to forget about Diggle’s Felicity. Felicity who is so intoxicating, Felicity who smells so warm and inviting, and Felicity who is so honest and open. Tomorrow cannot come soon enough.

^^^^^^^^^^

The next day when Oliver stops at Felicity’s place he realises she got as little sleep as he did judging by the dark circles under her eyes, not that it made her look any less gorgeous.

“Sleep well?” Oliver asks.

“Not really, really excited about today.”

“You are going to do really well. We will take it slow and see where it takes us.”

Felicity isn’t sure if she is imagining it but seems there is a double meaning in Oliver’s statement. Slow she can do. She is just not sure for how long.

When Oliver and Felicity arrive at Oliver’s shop, he takes her immediately to the next bike on their list, the Suzuki Marauder GZ125.

“So instead of me rambling on about what this beauty can do, let’s take her for a spin and you decide.”

This time Felicity is a lot surer of herself and feels a lot more comfortable on the bike. The sun is just about to come up when Oliver pulls into an off-road diner thirty minutes out of town.

He parks the bike, takes their helmets and leads her to a bench on the outside of the restaurant.

“How did you find this place? This view is incredible!”

Oliver is staring at Felicity not even caring if she catches him. He whispers, “yes it is,” while not paying much attention to his surrounding.

“Just give it a few minutes…..Don’t miss this one Felicity.”

And just then the sun breaks through and makes its appearance for the first time that day, a brand-new day.

Felicity turns to Oliver; “Wow” is all she gets out.

“I will go get us a coffee.”

When Oliver returns he finds her right where he left her. Still staring at the sunrise.

“Seems I have some competition.”

“Cute. This is really incredible Oliver, I feel like you just shared with me your secret hiding place.”

“Something like that but I won’t exaggerate.”

“This here reminds me that I have a chance each new day to live and really live. And then I try to do exactly that. Do what makes me happy and hopefully those around me as well.”

“You make it sound so simple. I can see that by looking at your family and friends. You have a beautiful life Oliver.”

“I do. There was a time though when I didn’t appreciate it and the people in it. And then I met John at Adventure Consultants and he really became a mentor to me. I was very reckless when I started out, not my proudest moment. But since then things changed for me.

“Diggle does that to a person. When I met Diggle, I was just a crazy nerdy girl who was influenced to do some stupid things. I saw Diggle just being Diggle, so sure and strong and I wanted that, I wanted to be like that. Since then he has been such a pillar in my life. I sometimes wonder what I would have done without him. Seems we both needed him in our lives.”

“I think you would have still come out of it strong. I know beyond a doubt that you have spunk and you are determined. You would have made it just fine on your own. Diggle is a bonus.”

As if Felicity’s heart couldn’t swell more, Oliver winks at her and causes her legs to go limp.

Felicity decides to be bold and suggests breakfast and for the next couple of hours they enjoy each other’s company and the view.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Chapter 4

Later that day Felicity and her girlfriend are at the movies when she gets a text from Oliver.

Hey, Felicity. Hope I’m not bothering. I was thinking about you, what are you up to?

Before Felicity can reply she receives another text from Oliver.

“And not in any creepy kind of way.

Felicity replies, I am happy to hear from you. What are you and Roxy up to?

We are cooking lunch. Would you like to come over and join us? That is if you are not busy?

I would have loved to but I am at the movies with my friend Caitlin.

Oliver asks disappointedly, Maybe next time?

Definitely.

Caitlin leans over and whispers to Felicity, “Why the big smile? Who was that?”

“Oliver, the bike guy.”

“Oh, that hottie? Some kind of friend you are. You have not taken one picture of him yet.”

“And when exactly am I supposed to do that with being on the bike with him? A selfie?”

“See now that’s my girl. You will find a way if you want to.”

“shhh and watch the movie.”

^^^^^^^^^^

Felicity is in bed still thinking about the morning ride with Oliver when she decides to text him.

Hey You, how did lunch go?

Really good, just messy. Cleaning up afterward while Roxy took a nap wasn’t as much fun.

I can imagine. So when will you give me those bike lessons?

I was thinking tomorrow actually. There is one more bike we can test drive and then you can make your choice.

Okay, now I am really nervous.

You are going to do great. We will take it slow and until you’re ready.

See you tomorrow?

^^^^^^^^^^

The next morning Felicity meets Oliver at his shop for their morning drive. This time they get on the

Harley-Davidson Sportster XL883L.

This bike feels a lot to felicity like a cruise bike, comfortable and light.

The minute she gets on she remembers Caitlin’s remark so before Oliver can start the bike she blurts out.

“Can we take a pic together? If you don’t mind. I just thought it would be a nice to have seeing as this is the day when I choose my bike. A momentous occasion and all.”

“Okay.”

Felicity takes out her phone and Oliver has to lean back so her short arms can reach in front of him.

Oliver’s smell is so intoxicating that Felicity almost drops her phone. This man is a serious hottie. She hopes everything she is feeling is not obvious to Oliver. And just before she takes the selfie she looks at him and finds him looking at her. She realises then that this is so much more than just a bike ride. She has been getting to know Oliver these past few days and she has shared a lot more about herself than she would normally after just meeting someone.

“Ready?” Oliver asks.

“So ready!”

This time feels so different to Felicity. She can feel Oliver lean into her a bit more. His abdomen doesn’t feel as tense as if he is afraid she might fall or get hurt. His body language is speaking silent messages to hers to relax. And she finds herself leaning into him a bit more. Instead of gripping his side she relaxes her hands a bit more and holds him more firmly.

“This I can get used to. Anytime, every day, if it is Oliver.” Felicity thinks to herself.

Twenty minutes later they arrive at the shop and Oliver leads Felicity inside.

“These are the three bikes we rode, and I would highly recommend any of them. The choice however is up to you.”

Felicity looks from one bike to the other and can’t seem to decide. They all felt incredible to her but when it comes to what is important in terms of technicality, she is still clueless.

“I have enjoyed each of them and would love all three but can only afford one. You know a lot more about bikes than I do Oliver. Why don’t you choose one for me?”

Oliver stunned at Felicity’s request, shakes his head.

“No, I can’t possibly. I mean this is a lot of money we are talking about. I can only advise.”

“That is why I trust you to make the decision for me. You would know what is best. So, is that a yes?”

As unsure as Oliver is he says yes.

“Okay so that is sorted. When can I come and get it?”

“Give it three days. I will call you when it arrives.”

The next three days Oliver and Felicity don’t see each other. Felicity misses Oliver a lot and realises she has never missed Cooper this much. They have been speaking over text a lot, but she has only known Oliver for a week.  How can you miss someone so much? She finds herself daydreaming about him and cannot wait to see him again. She doesn’t want to come across as a love sick teenager but she really wants to see him again.

Just then Oliver calls her, for the first time in three days.

“Just checking if you have changed your mind because there is no going back now.”

“Hell no. I don’t know how I am going to sleep tonight.”

“I have to say the past three days have been very quiet for me. I missed your company.”

“Me to, made me realise how much fun we have been having.”

“Your bike arrived late this afternoon so how about coming over tomorrow morning at 8?”

“Don’t you have to babysit?”

“No, I am available. They decided to put Roxy into a day - care, or let me say Roxy has decided it was time to go to a day-care.”

Felicity laughs remembering how tenacious the little girl was on her last visit.

“Then I will see you tomorrow, but can we make it at 7? I will bring coffee?”

“In that case I can’t refuse you.”

“I would love it if you don’t,” Felicity thinks to herself.

“Okay till tomorrow.”

The next day felicity arrives at seven in the morning with coffee as promised.

Oliver greets her and without thinking takes her hand and leads her inside to a bike covered under a cloth.

“Seeing as this huge decision was left up to me, I decided to get you the Suzuki Marauder GZ125 but I had some extra work done on it. I hope you like it but no pressure.”

“Felicity please brace yourself for your first wheels.”

Oliver pulls off the cloth and Felicity cannot believe her eyes.

In front of her is a much more beautiful version of the Suzuki Marauder they rode earlier on.

“I thought of getting it sprayed a light purple metallic colour. I thought the colour would look great against you. Also, it is light and agile and it is long and low to provide you with a spacious seating position. This and the deeply padded and well contoured saddle ensure a comfortable ride for you and your passenger, especially on the long road.”

“Wow Oliver.” Felicity throws herself into Oliver’s arms.

“This is way better than I could have chosen for myself. I love it! Thank you so much.”

Oliver wraps his arms around Felicity and loves her smell. He has gotten used to having her smell on him long after she has left and he wouldn’t want it any other way.

Neither of them break the contact when Felicity decides to not be inappropriate and instead says,

“you are a really good hugger Oliver, Diggle has some serious competition.”

Oliver cannot help but feel so good at her remark. She likes his hugs!

“You should definitely tell John that.”

“I have something else for you.”

Oliver leaves the room leaving Felicity to get onto her new bike.

When Oliver walks in he carries a leather jacket with “SMOAK” embroided on the back.

Felicity who is overwhelmed cannot help it when a tear escapes. And before she can wipe it away Oliver raises his hand and does it for her.

“I hope it doesn’t look that bad or do you have a thing against leather?” Oliver says trying to make her smile.

“No, it’s not that. This is so much more than I could have asked for. You haven’t known me for long, but you have made so much effort with me and now the bike and the jacket. It’s just more than I expected. You believe in me. You don’t even know if I will get this bike thing right or not but you supported me and got me this unbelievable bike. You must believe in me.”

Oliver raises his palm to Felicity’s cheek.

“Why wouldn’t I? You are determined, and you are not alone. You can do anything.”

“Thank you, Oliver.”

 Felicity cannot help but close her eyes trying to savour Oliver’s palm against her cheek.

“Are you ready to take your bike on the road? Get that jacket on Smoak.”

Oliver pushes the bike outside and parks it for Felicity.

Oliver tries not to stare at Felicity, but she looks so hot with the leather jacket. It is a sin for a woman to look this good. Today he will work up the guts to ask her on a real date.

The leather feel gives Felicity the confidence and when she gets onto the bike, she feels invincible.

“I am going to sit behind you and then guide your hands and then we will see if we can pull off slowly.”

“You will be with me the whole time right?”

“I will be right here with you. Trust yourself, you’ve got this.”

 “Ooh this is heavier than I thought it would be.”

Oliver moves in behind Felicity and for the first time feels her small frame and realises as spunky as Felicity is she is also fragile and small and he instinctively wants to protect her and keep her safe. Suppose that is too late with him teaching her how to ride a bike.

“Nah you’ve got this.” Felicity cannot focus on anything but Oliver’s hands on her waist. Too soon he removes it and places it on Felicity’s hands on the bar.

“So, you keep the clutch in.” Oliver says while showing Felicity.

“That’s the clutch.” Felicity echoes.

“Brake here on your right and the gears are on the left, one down,” Oliver demonstrates by pressing on the lever with his foot.

He puts his chin on her shoulder causing whatever space that was left between them to no longer exist.

“Breathe Felicity, don’t pass out now. Give a little with the clutch and let go a little over here.”

The next moment felicity let’s go too much of the clutch and pulls away causing Oliver to slip of the bike. Oliver runs after her and jumps back on while saying “a little clutch a little break”, trying to talk her through it.

“Okay, okay I can do this.” Felicity says out loud more to herself than to Oliver.

Felicity pulls off again and this time a lot smoother and Oliver slowly let’s go of the handles as Felicity moves forward.

When Felicity gets it right Oliver lets out a loud whoo behind her. She cannot help but be proud of herself.

They drive like that for another few minutes when Felicity brings the bike to a stop.

“Wow that was my first Bike ride. I drove on my own.” she jumps off the bike without putting the lever of the bike out when Oliver does it for her.

Felicity can’t contain her excitement and the minute Oliver gets off the bike she throws herself into his arms.

“Thank you. I did it Oliver.  I did it. I am brave and not scared anymore.”

Oliver looks at Felicity and completely happy for her and before he can think twice he moves in to kiss her.

The softest, most intimate kiss and without a doubt one of the best kisses she has ever had.

Oliver pulls away and Felicity wishes she could have paused the moment for so much longer.

“I’m sorry Felicity. I shouldn’t have done that. I just…”

Before he could finish his sentence, Felicity moves in and kisses him back.

This time Oliver leaves no room for regret and savours every moment. He holds her face and deepens the kiss. And then for a moment pulls away and just stares at her, smiles and kisses her again.

They are not sure how long they stand like that, but Felicity doesn’t mind one bit.

“So that happened.” Oliver says and still holding Felicity’s face. Slowly he removes his hands from her face.

“Yes, I am happy it did.”

“Me too. I have been wanting to do that for a while now,” Oliver confesses.

He takes Felicity’s hand; “would you go on a real date with me?”

“And here I thought the time I was spending with you was like a date,” Felicity says coy.

“Oh trust me if I could it would have been. But now it is voiced.”

“Will you?”

“Of course. I just have to make sure. The Cooper guy?”

“Oliver for the three days I didn’t see you I realised how much I wanted to be with you. The one person I thought about was you, not Cooper. I think that says a lot.”

Oliver cannot help smiling.

“I was hoping you would say something like that. I want to get to know you Felicity. I have always been alone on my bike rides but the past three days when I went riding alone just felt empty without you. With you it has become so much better, and I don’t want to go back to that. Would you want to see where this thing between us goes?”

 “I would like nothing more Oliver.”

6 months later

Felicity and Oliver are cruising on her bike. Felicity driving while Oliver is holding onto her waist. Not because he must but because he loves how she feels. The past six months they have been spending almost every waking moment together and he just seems to want more. He spoke with John earlier to get his permission to propose to Felicity. Diggle has been the biggest support in their relationship and it felt only right to speak to him before he pops the question to Felicity.  He is proposing to Felicity today. His family loves her, he loves her and do not want to spend another day without her being his, completely.

Felicity pulls off to what has become their spot and they get off the bike.

“Babe you are taking your bends so much smoother now, nice control.”

“What can I say? I have an amazing instructor.”

Felicity moves closer to kiss him.

“And he is handsome, and strong, and loving, and perfect.” Felicity whispers against Oliver’s lips.

“Smoak, we might get fined for public indecency.”

“Nothing about this is indecent Oliver. So, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?”

“I have another excursion coming up and it will last for two months but after that I am thinking about focusing solely on the bike shop. I don’t want to be away from you longer than I must be. I am thoroughly Smoaked.”

I don’t anything else but your happiness. I know I can’t ask you to leave your job, as dangerous as it is. I know you enjoy what you do.”

“I did. What makes me happier is being with you. I want to build on our relationship because I am in it for the long haul.”

Oliver goes down on his one knee in front of Felicity and holds in his hand a beautiful ring that can only mean a proposal.

“Felicity since I met you, my life has changed for better. I know happiness now that I have never known before. I cannot even remember what my life was like before I met you. And I don’t want to imagine what it would be like without you. Felicity make me the happiest man alive and marry me?”

Felicity goes down on her knees in front of Oliver and places both hands on each side of his face.

“Oliver, you have taught me to be fearless and bold. When I am with you I want to live and live large. I cannot imagine tomorrow without you. Yes Oliver, a thousand times yes.”

“One day you will kiss a man you can’t breathe without and find that breath is of little consequence.” ― Karen Marie Moning

[eliasbookshelf]

Elias’ Book Review #1: The Weight of Our Sky

In an attempt to be more diverse in my reading, I’ve dedicated this year, 2019, to reading more books written by local Malaysian writers or, at the least, Asian writers. 

So my first local author read this year was a debut novel by a new novelist, Hanna Alkaf, The Weight of Our Sky. Being Malaysian, I was ecstatic to see another local author having their book published internationally (along with Zen Cho, Felicia Yap, Tan Twan Eng, and Yangsze Choo, among others). I found out about the book on Twitter, and got a copy of it as soon as I found it at the bookstore. 

**SPOILERS**

The book starts with an author’s note, introducing the story, and potentially triggering factors for readers. I find that interesting; not every author would put a disclaimer in the very beginning talking about triggers. There’s OCD and racism, among others. I don’t really understand OCD (because society overuse it out-of-context) but racism is something very current in the local society. It’s also interesting, that racism is still somewhat an issue now as it was in 1969 (the story’s setting), but it’s very much less violent now than it is then. 

We get to the main character, Melati, who has visions of her mother dying due to images triggered by a djinn in her head. She also counts to calm herself down. This is interesting; is this how a person with OCD thinks and feels? Like, a constant flash of imagery in the mind of things which didn’t even happen but simply a running thought triggered by somebody or something? Because I have to be honest, I find myself having the same thought patterns some times.  Do I have OCD? Maybe??? IDK. 

Then we meet her friend, Saf. Oh, Saf. She’s so adorable, like Mel’s personal portable sunshine. She sounds like a very cool friend. They decided to watch a movie, when all hell breaks loose (which actually happened! OMG!)

At this point, the story picked up, and it very rarely drops in terms of action and motion. The story moves so much, with so many things happening, that it’s all very tiring to read but also very exciting, and also triggered my anxiety a bit. So many nail-biting sequences, many close calls, and a few shocking moments here and there along the plot. 

We get to know a few other endearing characters, like Aunty Bee (my heart goes out to her), Uncle Chong (he’s very dad), Vince (who is a total hero, and won my heart), Frankie (a rebel heart but has a true heart still), and Jay (a minor character, but plays a significant role).  Dynamic characters who are not there just to move the plot, but to have a role is how things play out. I love the interaction between Vince and Mel, I thought it was cute. I was certain they had a crush on each other. The scene where they listen to records in Vince’s room is quite a memorable scene. 

I think that was perhaps only the few light points in the story. There’s also a funny scene when they try to get a man pass through security. Most of the story is quite intense. Riots, hospitals, curses, yelling. The curses and name-callings were definitely triggers, I would say. I did unconsciously flinched once or twice when some words were thrown around.  There’s also one part when Mel was shamed in public by Saf’s father, which broke my heart; I was definitely taken aback by that. 

Although, at some points in the story, I did get annoyed by Mel’s incessant need to count to appease the djinn in her head, but at the same time I feel bad for her for going through that. It must be so hard back then to live like that, without any resources to turn to, to know what is going on in your head.  

As the story draws to a close, Mel’s mission met a satisfying end. I was getting anxious that she may never end her quest to find her mother, but she did. Naturally, I cried too. Even after than sweet moment, the story didn’t let go of its intensity in one final hurdle to end the book. Just, wow.  

Then comes the epilogue. So here’s the thing: I know what the epilogue would be, but it still shook me that after the first line, I left the book for about a week before I finished the last four pages. Again, it was expected, but I was not ready for it. Why? I don’t know. 

In short, I love this book. The real-life incident? No. But the writing, the main characters, the emotion, the intensity? All very good. Definitely one of the most memorable reads ever, and in my top 10 list of favourite books ever. 

Stars: 4 1/2 Recommended: YES, highly. 

[beatyroseflower]

8 tố chất mà bất kỳ người thành công nào cũng có

Con đường đến thành công của mỗi người là khác nhau, nhưng giữa họ có nhiều điểm chung. Trong cuốn sách “8 điều bất cứ người thành công nào cũng có”, tác giả Richard St. John đã phỏng vấn hơn 500 người thành công trên thế giới, từ những doanh nhân công nghệ như Richard Branson cho đến Martha Stewart hay Ben Cohen – đồng sáng lập của công ty kem Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream.

St. John nhận thấy có 8 điều mà bất cứ nhân vật hàng đầu nào cũng sở hữu, và gọi chúng là “8 chìa khóa dẫn đến sự vĩ đại trong mọi lĩnh vực”.

[videoplayer id=“9d62eccab”]

Now, my subject is success, so people sometimes call me a “motivational speaker.” But I want you to know right up front, I’m not a motivational speaker. I couldn’t pass the height requirement. And I couldn’t motivate anybody, my employees actually call me a de-motivational speaker. What I try to be is an informational speaker. I went out and found out some information about success, and I’m just here to pass it on.

Giờ chủ đề của tôi là thành công, nên mọi người gọi tôi là “người truyền động lực”. Nhưng tôi muốn bạn biết rằng tôi không phải người truyền động lực. Tôi không đạt những tiêu chuẩn cao ngất đó. Và tôi không thể thúc đẩy mọi người, thật ra nhân viên tôi còn bảo tôi là người diệt động lực thì đúng hơn. Điều tôi cố gắng là trở thành người truyền thông tin. Tôi ra ngoài và thu thập các thông tin về thành công, và tôi ở đây để truyền tải nó.

And my story started over 10 years ago, on a plane. I was on my way to the TED Conference in California, and in the seat next to me was a teenage girl, and she came from a really poor family, but she wanted to get somewhere in life. And as I tapped away on my computer, she kept asking me questions, and then out of the blue, she asked, “Are you successful?”

Và tôi câu chuyện của tôi bắt đầu 10 trước, trên máy bay. Tôi đang trên đường đến hội nghị TED ở California, và ngồi bên cạnh một cô bé tuổi teen, và gia đình cô bé rất nghèo, nhưng cô ấy muốn đạt được cái gì đó. Và khi tôi liên tục gõ máy tính, cô ấy liên tục hỏi tôi, và điều tôi nhớ nhất là cô bé hỏi: Ông có thành công không?

[caption id=“attachment_980532” align=“alignnone” width=“552”] Cuộc trò chuyện thú vị diễn ra trên máy bay (Ảnh: pixabay)[/caption]

I said, “No, I’m not successful.” Terry Fox, my hero, now there’s a big success. He lost a leg to cancer, then ran thousands of miles and raised millions for cancer research. Or Bill Gates, a guy who owns his own plane and doesn’t have to sit next to some kid asking him questions. But then I told her about some of the stuff I’d done. I love communications, and I’ve won lots of awards in marketing.

Tôi bảo: Không, tôi không thành công. Terry Fox, người tôi hâm mộ, là một thành công lớn. Anh ta mất 1 chân vì ung thư, nhưng anh đã chạy hàng ngàn dặm và gây quỹ hàng triệu đô cho nghiên cứu ung thư. Hay Bill Gates, ông ta có hẳn máy bay riêng và sẽ không có một một cô bé hay hỏi đủ thứ chuyện. Nhưng rồi tôi kể cho cô bé vài việc tôi đã làm. Tôi thích giao tiếp, và đã đạt nhiều giải thưởng marketing.

I love running, and I still sometimes win my age group, old farts over 60. My fastest marathon is two hours and 43 minutes to run the 26 miles, or 42 kilometers. I’ve run over 50 marathons, in all seven continents. This was a run my wife and I did up the Inca trail to Machu Picchu in Peru. And to qualify for the seven continents, we had to run a marathon in Antarctica.

Tôi thích chạy bộ, và tôi thỉnh thoảng vẫn thắng giải dành cho tuổi của tôi, đám bạn già trên 60. Cuộc marathon nhanh nhất của tôi là 2 giờ 43 phút với đoạn đường 26 dặm, hay 42 km. Tôi đã chạy hơn 50 cuộc marathon trên cả 7 lục địa. Đây một chuyến chạy mà vợ chồng tôi thực hiện từ Inca tới Machu Picchu ở Peru. Và để đi đủ 7 lục địa, chúng tôi đã chạy cả ở Nam Cực. 

But when we got there, it didn’t look nice and calm like this, it looked like this. The waves were so high we couldn’t get to shore. So we sailed 200 miles farther south to where the seas were calm, and ran the entire 26-mile marathon on the boat. Four hundred and twenty-two laps around the deck of that little boat. My wife and I have also climbed two of the world’s seven summits, the highest mountains on each continent.

Nhưng khi đến đó, nó trông không đẹp đẽ và bình yên như thế này, mà trông thế này, sóng cao đến nỗi không thể nhìn thấy thềm băng. Nên chúng tôi cho thuyền đi thêm 200 dặm về phía nam, nơi biển yên ả hơn, và chạy tổng cộng 26 dặm trên thuyền. Tổng cộng 422 vòng quanh boong chiếc tàu đó. Vợ chồng tôi cũng đã chinh phục 2 trong 7 đỉnh lục địa, những ngọn núi cao nhất của các lục địa. 

We climbed Aconcagua, the highest mountain on the American continent, and Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa. Well, to be honest, I puked my way to the top of Kilimanjaro, I got altitude sickness. I got no sympathy from my wife; she passed me and did a lap around the top while I was still struggling up there. In spite of that, we’re still together, and have been for over 35 years.

Chúng tôi đã leo Aconcagua, ngọn núi cao nhất châu Mỹ, và Kilimanjaro, núi cao nhất châu Phi. Thành thật mà nói, tôi nôn mửa suốt chặng leo lên đỉnh Kilimanjaro, tôi bị choáng độ cao. Vợ tôi thì chả chút thông cảm, cô ta vượt qua tôi và đã đi 1 vòng trên đó trong khi tôi khổ sở trèo lên. Mặc dù vậy, chúng tôi vẫn bên nhau, đến nay đã hơn 35 năm.

I’d say that’s a success these days. So I said to the girl, “Well, you know, I guess I have had some success.” And then she said, “Okay, so are you a millionaire?” Now, I didn’t know what to say, because when I grew up, it was bad manners to talk about money. But I figured I’d better be honest, and I said, Yeah. I’m a millionaire. But I don’t know how it happened.

Ngày nay thì đó là một thành công. Nên tôi bảo cô bé, ừm, thật ra, tôi nghĩ tôi cũng có vài thành công. Rồi cô bé hỏi: Okay, vậy ông là triệu phú à? Giờ thì tôi chả biết nói gì, vì khi thấy rằng, nói về tiền bạc có vẻ là cách cư xử không tốt. Nhưng tôi thấy nên thành thật, và nói: Vâng, tôi là triệu phú. Nhưng tôi không biết cách nào.

I never went after the money, and it’s not that important to me. She said, “Maybe not to you, but it is to me. I don’t want to be poor all my life. I want to get somewhere, but it’s never going to happen.” I said, “Well, why not?” She said, “Well, you know, I’m not very smart. I’m not doing great in school.” I said, “So what? I’m not smart.

Tôi không theo đuổi tiền bạc, và nó cũng không quan trọng với tôi. Cô bé bảo: Với ông thì không, nhưng với tôi thì có. Tôi không muốn nghèo suốt đời. Tôi muốn đạt được cái gì đó, nhưng sẽ chẳng làm được gì hết.” Tôi bảo: Tại sao không? Cô bé bảo: Ông thấy đấy, tôi không được thông minh. 

I barely passed high school. I had absolutely nothing going for me. I was never voted most popular or most likely to succeed. I started a whole new category – most likely to fail. But in the end, I did okay. So if I can do it, you can do it.“ And then she asked me the big question: "Okay, so what really leads to success?” I said, “Jeez, sorry.

Và cũng chẳng giỏi ở trường. Tôi bảo: Vậy thì sao? Tôi cũng không thông minh. Chỉ vừa đủ tốt nghiệp phổ thông. Tôi tuyệt đối chẳng có tài năng gì đặc biệt. Chẳng ai thấy tôi có khả năng hay tiềm năng thành công. Tôi đã bắt đầu từ tay trắng, và gần như thất bại. Nhưng cuối cùng thì cũng ổn. Vậy nếu tôi làm được, cô bé cũng làm được. Và rồi cô bé đặt một câu hỏi lớn: Okay, vậy thật ra cái gì dẫn đến thành công? Tôi bảo: Trời đất.

[caption id="attachment_980576” align=“alignnone” width=“500”] Cô bé thắc mắc về thành công của người đàn ông (Ảnh: unsplash.com)[/caption]

I don’t know. I guess somehow I did it. I don’t know how I did it.“ So I get off the plane and go to the TED Conference, and I’m standing in a room full of extraordinarily successful people in many fields – business, science, arts, health, technology, the environment - when it hit me: Why don’t I ask them what helped them succeed, and find out what really leads to success for everyone?

Tôi cũng không biết. Cách nào đó tôi thành công. Nhưng tôi không biết đó là gì. Và tôi xuống máy bay để đến hội nghị TED và tôi đang đứng đây với toàn những người thành công phi thường ở nhiều lĩnh vực kinh doanh, khoa học, nghệ thuật, y tế, công nghệ, môi trường,…tôi chợt nhận ra: Tại sao không hỏi họ điều gì đã giúp họ thành công và tìm ra công thức thành công cho tất cả mọi người? 

So I was all excited to get out there and start talking to these great people, when the self-doubt set in. I mean, why would people want to talk to me? I’m not a famous journalist. I’m not even a journalist. So I was ready to stop the project before it even began, when who comes walking towards me but Ben Cohen, the famous co-founder of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream.

Và tôi rất hảo hứng gặp gỡ và bắt chuyện với những người vĩ đại đó, nhưng chợt tự nghi ngờ bản thân, Ý tôi là, tại sao họ lại muốn nói chuyện với tôi? Tôi không phải là phóng viên nổi tiếng. Thậm chí còn chẳng phải phóng viên. Nên tôi gần như ngừng dự án này trước khi nó kịp bắt đầu, rồi một người bước đến phía tôi, là Ben Cohen, đồng sáng lập nổi tiếng của hãng kem Ben and Jerry.

I figured it was now or never. I pushed through the self-doubt, jumped out in front of him, and said, "Ben, I’m working on this project. I don’t even know what to ask you, but can you tell me what helped you succeed?” He said, “Yeah, sure, come on. Let’s go for a coffee.” And over coffee and ice cream, Ben told me his story. Now here we are over 10 years later, and I’ve interviewed over 500 successful people face-to-face, and collected thousands of other success stories.

Bây giờ hoặc không bây giờ. Tôi dẹp bỏ sự nghi ngờ, nhảy đến trước mặt ông ta và nói: Ben này, tôi đang thực hiện dự án tôi không biết nói gì với ông, nhưng xin hãy nói tôi biết cái gì giúp ông thành công? Ông ta bảo: Chắc chắn rồi. Hãy đi uống chút cà-phê nào. Và khi dùng cà-phê và kem, Ben kể tôi nghe chuyện anh ấy. Đó là chuyện cách đây hơn 10 năm, và tôi đã phỏng vấn hơn 500 người thành công, mặt đối mặt, thu thập hàng ngàn câu chuyện thành công.

I wanted to find the common factors for success in all fields, so I had to interview people in careers ranging from A to Z. These are just the careers I interviewed beginning with the letter A, and in most cases more than one person. I interviewed six successful accountants, five corporate auditors, five astronauts who had been into space, four actors who had won the Academy Award for Best Actor, three of the world’s top astrophysicists, six of the world’s leading architects and, oh yeah, four Nobel Prize winners.

Tôi muốn tìm ra những điểm chung của họ trong mọi lĩnh vực, nên tôi đã phải phỏng vấn mọi ngành nghề từ A tới Z. Đây là những nghề mà tên tiếng Anh bắt đầu bằng chữ A, và thường nhiều hơn một người. Tôi đã phỏng vấn 6 kế toán, 5 kiểm toán viên, 5 phi hành gia đã từng ra không gian, 4 diễn viên từng đoạt giải Oscar hạng mục Diễn viên xuất sắc nhất, 3 nhà thiên văn học hàng đầu thế giới, 6 kiến trúc sư hàng đầu thế giới, và vâng, 4 người đạt giải Nobel.

Yeah, I know it doesn’t start with A, but it’s kind of cool. And I want to say a sincere thanks to all the great people that I’ve interviewed over the years. This really is their story; I’m just the messenger. The really big job was taking all the interviews and analyzing them, word by word, line by line, and sorting them into all the factors that people said helped them succeed.

Vâng, không bắt đầu bằng chữ A, nhưng rất thú vị. Và tôi muốn chân thành cảm ơn để tất cả những người tuyệt vời mà tôi đã từng phỏng vấn. Đây là câu chuyện của họ, còn tôi chỉ là người đưa tin. Công việc nặng nhọc là lấy tất cả dữ liệu phân tích chúng, từng chữ một, từng dòng một, và phân loại theo các yếu tố mà mọi người bảo đã giúp họ thành công.

And then you start to see the big factors that are common to most people’s success. Altogether, I analyzed and sorted millions of words. Do you know how much work that is? That’s all I do, day and night – sort and analyze. I’ll tell you, if I ever get my hands on that kid on the plane … Actually, if I do, I’ll thank her. Because I’ve never had so much fun and met so many interesting people.

Vâng, không bắt đầu bằng chữ A, nhưng rất thú vị. Và tôi muốn chân thành cảm ơn để tất cả những người tuyệt vời mà tôi đã từng phỏng vấn. Đây là câu chuyện của họ, còn tôi chỉ là người đưa tin. Công việc nặng nhọc là lấy tất cả dữ liệu phân tích chúng, từng chữ một, từng dòng một, và phân loại theo các yếu tố mà mọi người bảo đã giúp họ thành công.

And now I can answer her question. I discovered the eight traits successful people have in common, or the eight to be great. Love what you do; work really hard; focus on one thing, not everything; keep pushing yourself; come up with good ideas; keep improving yourself and what you do; serve others something of value, because success isn’t just about me, me, me; and persist, because there’s no overnight success.

Và giờ tôi có thể trả lời cô ấy. Tôi đã khám phá ra 8 điểm chung ở những người thành đạt, hay 8 yếu tố để trở nên vĩ đại. (1) Yêu việc mà bạn làm (2) Làm thật chăm chỉ (3) Tập trung vào một việc, không phải mọi việc. (4) Liên tục thúc đẩy bản thân. (5) Có ý tưởng tốt. (6) Liên tục hoàn thiện bản thân và công việc. (7) Đem đến giá trị cho người khác, vì thành công không chỉ là “tôi, tôi và tôi”. (8) Kiên trì, vì không có thành công nào nhanh chóng cả. 

[caption id=“” align=“alignnone” width=“601”] 8 tố chất của người thành công. (Ảnh: youtube)[/caption]

Why did I pick these? Because when I added up all the comments in my interviews, more people said those eight things helped them than anything else. The eight traits are really the heart of success, the foundation, and then on top we build the specific skills that we need for our particular field or career. Technical skills, analytical skills, people skills, creative skills – lots of other skills we can add on top, depending on our field.

Tại sao tôi chọn chúng? Vì khi tôi phân tích tất cả những nhận xét trong phỏng vấn, mọi người nói 8 thứ này giúp họ nhiều hơn bất kỳ điều gì khác. 8 yếu tố này chính là trái tim của thành công, là nền tảng, và ở trên đó, ta sẽ xây dựng những kỹ năng đặc biệt mà ta cần đến trong lĩnh vực hay nghề nghiệp cụ thể. Kỹ năng kỹ thuật, phân tích, nhân văn, kỹ năng sáng tạo,… ta xây dựng các kỹ năng này bên trên, tùy vào lĩnh vực ta làm. 

But no matter what field we’re in, these eight traits will be at the heart of our success.

Nhưng dù lĩnh vực nào đi nữa, 8 yếu tố này luôn là trái tim của sự thành công.

Thiện Nhân

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[daikynguyen]

8 tố chất mà bất kỳ người thành công nào cũng có

Con đường đến thành công của mỗi người là khác nhau, nhưng giữa họ có nhiều điểm chung. Trong cuốn sách “8 điều bất cứ người thành công nào cũng có”, tác giả Richard St. John đã phỏng vấn hơn 500 người thành công trên thế giới, từ những doanh nhân công nghệ như Richard Branson cho đến Martha Stewart hay Ben Cohen – đồng sáng lập của công ty kem Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream.

St. John nhận thấy có 8 điều mà bất cứ nhân vật hàng đầu nào cũng sở hữu, và gọi chúng là “8 chìa khóa dẫn đến sự vĩ đại trong mọi lĩnh vực”.

[videoplayer id="9d62eccab"]

Now, my subject is success, so people sometimes call me a "motivational speaker." But I want you to know right up front, I'm not a motivational speaker. I couldn't pass the height requirement. And I couldn't motivate anybody, my employees actually call me a de-motivational speaker. What I try to be is an informational speaker. I went out and found out some information about success, and I'm just here to pass it on.

Giờ chủ đề của tôi là thành công, nên mọi người gọi tôi là "người truyền động lực". Nhưng tôi muốn bạn biết rằng tôi không phải người truyền động lực. Tôi không đạt những tiêu chuẩn cao ngất đó. Và tôi không thể thúc đẩy mọi người, thật ra nhân viên tôi còn bảo tôi là người diệt động lực thì đúng hơn. Điều tôi cố gắng là trở thành người truyền thông tin. Tôi ra ngoài và thu thập các thông tin về thành công, và tôi ở đây để truyền tải nó.

And my story started over 10 years ago, on a plane. I was on my way to the TED Conference in California, and in the seat next to me was a teenage girl, and she came from a really poor family, but she wanted to get somewhere in life. And as I tapped away on my computer, she kept asking me questions, and then out of the blue, she asked, "Are you successful?"

Và tôi câu chuyện của tôi bắt đầu 10 trước, trên máy bay. Tôi đang trên đường đến hội nghị TED ở California, và ngồi bên cạnh một cô bé tuổi teen, và gia đình cô bé rất nghèo, nhưng cô ấy muốn đạt được cái gì đó. Và khi tôi liên tục gõ máy tính, cô ấy liên tục hỏi tôi, và điều tôi nhớ nhất là cô bé hỏi: Ông có thành công không?

[caption id="attachment_980532" align="alignnone" width="552"] Cuộc trò chuyện thú vị diễn ra trên máy bay (Ảnh: pixabay)[/caption]

I said, "No, I'm not successful." Terry Fox, my hero, now there's a big success. He lost a leg to cancer, then ran thousands of miles and raised millions for cancer research. Or Bill Gates, a guy who owns his own plane and doesn't have to sit next to some kid asking him questions. But then I told her about some of the stuff I'd done. I love communications, and I've won lots of awards in marketing.

Tôi bảo: Không, tôi không thành công. Terry Fox, người tôi hâm mộ, là một thành công lớn. Anh ta mất 1 chân vì ung thư, nhưng anh đã chạy hàng ngàn dặm và gây quỹ hàng triệu đô cho nghiên cứu ung thư. Hay Bill Gates, ông ta có hẳn máy bay riêng và sẽ không có một một cô bé hay hỏi đủ thứ chuyện. Nhưng rồi tôi kể cho cô bé vài việc tôi đã làm. Tôi thích giao tiếp, và đã đạt nhiều giải thưởng marketing.

I love running, and I still sometimes win my age group, old farts over 60. My fastest marathon is two hours and 43 minutes to run the 26 miles, or 42 kilometers. I've run over 50 marathons, in all seven continents. This was a run my wife and I did up the Inca trail to Machu Picchu in Peru. And to qualify for the seven continents, we had to run a marathon in Antarctica.

Tôi thích chạy bộ, và tôi thỉnh thoảng vẫn thắng giải dành cho tuổi của tôi, đám bạn già trên 60. Cuộc marathon nhanh nhất của tôi là 2 giờ 43 phút với đoạn đường 26 dặm, hay 42 km. Tôi đã chạy hơn 50 cuộc marathon trên cả 7 lục địa. Đây một chuyến chạy mà vợ chồng tôi thực hiện từ Inca tới Machu Picchu ở Peru. Và để đi đủ 7 lục địa, chúng tôi đã chạy cả ở Nam Cực. 

But when we got there, it didn't look nice and calm like this, it looked like this. The waves were so high we couldn't get to shore. So we sailed 200 miles farther south to where the seas were calm, and ran the entire 26-mile marathon on the boat. Four hundred and twenty-two laps around the deck of that little boat. My wife and I have also climbed two of the world's seven summits, the highest mountains on each continent.

Nhưng khi đến đó, nó trông không đẹp đẽ và bình yên như thế này, mà trông thế này, sóng cao đến nỗi không thể nhìn thấy thềm băng. Nên chúng tôi cho thuyền đi thêm 200 dặm về phía nam, nơi biển yên ả hơn, và chạy tổng cộng 26 dặm trên thuyền. Tổng cộng 422 vòng quanh boong chiếc tàu đó. Vợ chồng tôi cũng đã chinh phục 2 trong 7 đỉnh lục địa, những ngọn núi cao nhất của các lục địa. 

We climbed Aconcagua, the highest mountain on the American continent, and Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa. Well, to be honest, I puked my way to the top of Kilimanjaro, I got altitude sickness. I got no sympathy from my wife; she passed me and did a lap around the top while I was still struggling up there. In spite of that, we're still together, and have been for over 35 years.

Chúng tôi đã leo Aconcagua, ngọn núi cao nhất châu Mỹ, và Kilimanjaro, núi cao nhất châu Phi. Thành thật mà nói, tôi nôn mửa suốt chặng leo lên đỉnh Kilimanjaro, tôi bị choáng độ cao. Vợ tôi thì chả chút thông cảm, cô ta vượt qua tôi và đã đi 1 vòng trên đó trong khi tôi khổ sở trèo lên. Mặc dù vậy, chúng tôi vẫn bên nhau, đến nay đã hơn 35 năm.

I'd say that's a success these days. So I said to the girl, "Well, you know, I guess I have had some success." And then she said, "Okay, so are you a millionaire?" Now, I didn't know what to say, because when I grew up, it was bad manners to talk about money. But I figured I'd better be honest, and I said, Yeah. I'm a millionaire. But I don't know how it happened.

Ngày nay thì đó là một thành công. Nên tôi bảo cô bé, ừm, thật ra, tôi nghĩ tôi cũng có vài thành công. Rồi cô bé hỏi: Okay, vậy ông là triệu phú à? Giờ thì tôi chả biết nói gì, vì khi thấy rằng, nói về tiền bạc có vẻ là cách cư xử không tốt. Nhưng tôi thấy nên thành thật, và nói: Vâng, tôi là triệu phú. Nhưng tôi không biết cách nào.

I never went after the money, and it's not that important to me. She said, "Maybe not to you, but it is to me. I don't want to be poor all my life. I want to get somewhere, but it's never going to happen." I said, "Well, why not?" She said, "Well, you know, I'm not very smart. I'm not doing great in school." I said, "So what? I'm not smart.

Tôi không theo đuổi tiền bạc, và nó cũng không quan trọng với tôi. Cô bé bảo: Với ông thì không, nhưng với tôi thì có. Tôi không muốn nghèo suốt đời. Tôi muốn đạt được cái gì đó, nhưng sẽ chẳng làm được gì hết." Tôi bảo: Tại sao không? Cô bé bảo: Ông thấy đấy, tôi không được thông minh. 

I barely passed high school. I had absolutely nothing going for me. I was never voted most popular or most likely to succeed. I started a whole new category -- most likely to fail. But in the end, I did okay. So if I can do it, you can do it." And then she asked me the big question: "Okay, so what really leads to success?" I said, "Jeez, sorry.

Và cũng chẳng giỏi ở trường. Tôi bảo: Vậy thì sao? Tôi cũng không thông minh. Chỉ vừa đủ tốt nghiệp phổ thông. Tôi tuyệt đối chẳng có tài năng gì đặc biệt. Chẳng ai thấy tôi có khả năng hay tiềm năng thành công. Tôi đã bắt đầu từ tay trắng, và gần như thất bại. Nhưng cuối cùng thì cũng ổn. Vậy nếu tôi làm được, cô bé cũng làm được. Và rồi cô bé đặt một câu hỏi lớn: Okay, vậy thật ra cái gì dẫn đến thành công? Tôi bảo: Trời đất.

[caption id="attachment_980576" align="alignnone" width="500"] Cô bé thắc mắc về thành công của người đàn ông (Ảnh: unsplash.com)[/caption]

I don't know. I guess somehow I did it. I don't know how I did it." So I get off the plane and go to the TED Conference, and I'm standing in a room full of extraordinarily successful people in many fields -- business, science, arts, health, technology, the environment - when it hit me: Why don't I ask them what helped them succeed, and find out what really leads to success for everyone?

Tôi cũng không biết. Cách nào đó tôi thành công. Nhưng tôi không biết đó là gì. Và tôi xuống máy bay để đến hội nghị TED và tôi đang đứng đây với toàn những người thành công phi thường ở nhiều lĩnh vực kinh doanh, khoa học, nghệ thuật, y tế, công nghệ, môi trường,...tôi chợt nhận ra: Tại sao không hỏi họ điều gì đã giúp họ thành công và tìm ra công thức thành công cho tất cả mọi người? 

So I was all excited to get out there and start talking to these great people, when the self-doubt set in. I mean, why would people want to talk to me? I'm not a famous journalist. I'm not even a journalist. So I was ready to stop the project before it even began, when who comes walking towards me but Ben Cohen, the famous co-founder of Ben and Jerry's ice cream.

Và tôi rất hảo hứng gặp gỡ và bắt chuyện với những người vĩ đại đó, nhưng chợt tự nghi ngờ bản thân, Ý tôi là, tại sao họ lại muốn nói chuyện với tôi? Tôi không phải là phóng viên nổi tiếng. Thậm chí còn chẳng phải phóng viên. Nên tôi gần như ngừng dự án này trước khi nó kịp bắt đầu, rồi một người bước đến phía tôi, là Ben Cohen, đồng sáng lập nổi tiếng của hãng kem Ben and Jerry.

I figured it was now or never. I pushed through the self-doubt, jumped out in front of him, and said, "Ben, I'm working on this project. I don't even know what to ask you, but can you tell me what helped you succeed?" He said, "Yeah, sure, come on. Let's go for a coffee." And over coffee and ice cream, Ben told me his story. Now here we are over 10 years later, and I've interviewed over 500 successful people face-to-face, and collected thousands of other success stories.

Bây giờ hoặc không bây giờ. Tôi dẹp bỏ sự nghi ngờ, nhảy đến trước mặt ông ta và nói: Ben này, tôi đang thực hiện dự án tôi không biết nói gì với ông, nhưng xin hãy nói tôi biết cái gì giúp ông thành công? Ông ta bảo: Chắc chắn rồi. Hãy đi uống chút cà-phê nào. Và khi dùng cà-phê và kem, Ben kể tôi nghe chuyện anh ấy. Đó là chuyện cách đây hơn 10 năm, và tôi đã phỏng vấn hơn 500 người thành công, mặt đối mặt, thu thập hàng ngàn câu chuyện thành công.

I wanted to find the common factors for success in all fields, so I had to interview people in careers ranging from A to Z. These are just the careers I interviewed beginning with the letter A, and in most cases more than one person. I interviewed six successful accountants, five corporate auditors, five astronauts who had been into space, four actors who had won the Academy Award for Best Actor, three of the world's top astrophysicists, six of the world's leading architects and, oh yeah, four Nobel Prize winners.

Tôi muốn tìm ra những điểm chung của họ trong mọi lĩnh vực, nên tôi đã phải phỏng vấn mọi ngành nghề từ A tới Z. Đây là những nghề mà tên tiếng Anh bắt đầu bằng chữ A, và thường nhiều hơn một người. Tôi đã phỏng vấn 6 kế toán, 5 kiểm toán viên, 5 phi hành gia đã từng ra không gian, 4 diễn viên từng đoạt giải Oscar hạng mục Diễn viên xuất sắc nhất, 3 nhà thiên văn học hàng đầu thế giới, 6 kiến trúc sư hàng đầu thế giới, và vâng, 4 người đạt giải Nobel.

Yeah, I know it doesn't start with A, but it's kind of cool. And I want to say a sincere thanks to all the great people that I've interviewed over the years. This really is their story; I'm just the messenger. The really big job was taking all the interviews and analyzing them, word by word, line by line, and sorting them into all the factors that people said helped them succeed.

Vâng, không bắt đầu bằng chữ A, nhưng rất thú vị. Và tôi muốn chân thành cảm ơn để tất cả những người tuyệt vời mà tôi đã từng phỏng vấn. Đây là câu chuyện của họ, còn tôi chỉ là người đưa tin. Công việc nặng nhọc là lấy tất cả dữ liệu phân tích chúng, từng chữ một, từng dòng một, và phân loại theo các yếu tố mà mọi người bảo đã giúp họ thành công.

And then you start to see the big factors that are common to most people's success. Altogether, I analyzed and sorted millions of words. Do you know how much work that is? That's all I do, day and night -- sort and analyze. I'll tell you, if I ever get my hands on that kid on the plane ... Actually, if I do, I'll thank her. Because I've never had so much fun and met so many interesting people.

Vâng, không bắt đầu bằng chữ A, nhưng rất thú vị. Và tôi muốn chân thành cảm ơn để tất cả những người tuyệt vời mà tôi đã từng phỏng vấn. Đây là câu chuyện của họ, còn tôi chỉ là người đưa tin. Công việc nặng nhọc là lấy tất cả dữ liệu phân tích chúng, từng chữ một, từng dòng một, và phân loại theo các yếu tố mà mọi người bảo đã giúp họ thành công.

And now I can answer her question. I discovered the eight traits successful people have in common, or the eight to be great. Love what you do; work really hard; focus on one thing, not everything; keep pushing yourself; come up with good ideas; keep improving yourself and what you do; serve others something of value, because success isn't just about me, me, me; and persist, because there's no overnight success.

Và giờ tôi có thể trả lời cô ấy. Tôi đã khám phá ra 8 điểm chung ở những người thành đạt, hay 8 yếu tố để trở nên vĩ đại. (1) Yêu việc mà bạn làm (2) Làm thật chăm chỉ (3) Tập trung vào một việc, không phải mọi việc. (4) Liên tục thúc đẩy bản thân. (5) Có ý tưởng tốt. (6) Liên tục hoàn thiện bản thân và công việc. (7) Đem đến giá trị cho người khác, vì thành công không chỉ là "tôi, tôi và tôi". (8) Kiên trì, vì không có thành công nào nhanh chóng cả. 

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="601"] 8 tố chất của người thành công. (Ảnh: youtube)[/caption]

Why did I pick these? Because when I added up all the comments in my interviews, more people said those eight things helped them than anything else. The eight traits are really the heart of success, the foundation, and then on top we build the specific skills that we need for our particular field or career. Technical skills, analytical skills, people skills, creative skills -- lots of other skills we can add on top, depending on our field.

Tại sao tôi chọn chúng? Vì khi tôi phân tích tất cả những nhận xét trong phỏng vấn, mọi người nói 8 thứ này giúp họ nhiều hơn bất kỳ điều gì khác. 8 yếu tố này chính là trái tim của thành công, là nền tảng, và ở trên đó, ta sẽ xây dựng những kỹ năng đặc biệt mà ta cần đến trong lĩnh vực hay nghề nghiệp cụ thể. Kỹ năng kỹ thuật, phân tích, nhân văn, kỹ năng sáng tạo,... ta xây dựng các kỹ năng này bên trên, tùy vào lĩnh vực ta làm. 

But no matter what field we're in, these eight traits will be at the heart of our success.

Nhưng dù lĩnh vực nào đi nữa, 8 yếu tố này luôn là trái tim của sự thành công.

Thiện Nhân

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