She lays in bed, feels his presence beside her but he's not the man she loves. She's lost in a world that's not her own, stuck with reddish brown hair that every time she glances at herself in the mirror, makes her sick. The tattoo on the back of her neck is a reminder of what they've done to her, what he's done to her. She hates him, more than she hated her own version of Walter for doing tests on her as a kid.
She feels Franks hand move towards her hip and she knows she can't push him away forever. He believes she's Olivia and she is except she's the wrong one. Her stomach aches as his fingers graze her skin and she wants nothing more than to lock herself in the bathroom again. She can't do that. She knows he's watching her, they all are. Waiting to see her breakdown or worse. She pretends she's the Other Olivia because that's how she stays alive, how she fits in and they think nothing of her strange or awkward behaviors. She still has remnants of the Other's memories but they've been fading faster with time. Soon she'll just be herself, stuck in the wrong world, a dying world where she herself feels like that some days.
"Not tonight," she tells him, feeling him stirring behind her. It's a mantra she repeats every night and she knows eventually she'll have to cave in. Make this life her own because that's all she has left. She's almost lost count of the days she's been here. Ninety something and that thought saddens her with the realization they are never coming back.
He doesn't answer her, she realizes he's still asleep and she's silently grateful what she feels is just him dreaming of her. Probably of the other her.
Her eyes close and she feels a slight tremor on the bed. She assumes it's an earthquake or another Fringe event and they'll be called in soon enough. It's just after two in the morning so she refrains from actually getting up out of bed. If she could bury herself further beneath the covers but away from Frank, she would. This is not her home, this is not her life but she's stuck here and has to make it hers. She hates that thought.
She doesn't hear the footsteps or the creak of the door. She does feel the cold metal of the gun suddenly pressed against her temple.
"Don't move," she hears the voice, it's her own voice but darker and filled with more than just a threat. Olivia opens her mouth to speak as she's still lying on the bed but the blonde shakes her head, "what did I tell you?"
She doesn't point out she wasn't going to move, just talk but instead closes her mouth. Clearly she doesn't have the upper hand and she could fight off the intruder but she knows it would wake Frank and she'd in the end be fucked.
"I want my life back," Alter Liv tells her, the gun still pressed tight against Olivia's forehead, "yours is too fucking complicated. Now get out of my bed."
She willingly obliges, this isn't the life she wants but she's felt stuck in it for far too long. "I don't know how to get home." It's a simple request, the clicking of heels would be too easy and she's yet to find a doorway that will take her back.
"You could try the same way I got here." She's snippy and short and Olivia wonders why suddenly the change of heart.
Olivia sighs, it's a simple request and she finally just comes out and asks it. This Other Olivia is the biggest pain in the ass. "How do I get home?"
"Through that door, the window won't be open long. Another two minutes." Alt Olivia tells her.
"Why are you doing this?" It's another question and though she doesn't hold the gun she also feels compelled to ask.
"I'm tired of living your life. Peter loves you and I," she pauses with a heavy sigh glancing at Frank, "this is where I belong. I'll deal with the man you all call Walternate." She tells Olivia. She almost seems sincere and Olivia can't help but wonder what her motivation and real agenda is.
"Why now? Why after ninety-seven days?" Olivia finally asks.
"Let's just say I see things differently." Alt-Olivia answers. There is truth to that but there's more than she's letting on. "Walternate had no intention of ever letting me return home. He intended on destroying me along with your world." She sighs, "yes I have my own agenda but you can't blame me for that. Besides I'm letting you go home. You should get going, there isn't much time and I'm not sure you'll get another opportunity."
Olivia nodded heading for the doorway out of the bedroom. She had so many questions but if she got home, it didn't matter. She stepped out into the living room, surprised to see an eerie blue glow. She took the chance, stepped through and found herself swaying as she nearly fell. He caught her in his arms and she glanced back, having to be certain it was Peter and she was really home.
"I never thought I'd see you again," Olivia confessed, her voice a mere whisper as she reached out, her thumb stroking his cheek feeling the stubble knowing he was real. She was finally home.
A/N: Thanks for reading and supporting my writing! I've now writing full time and have published a novel Aberrant, a Young Adult Romantic Dystopian Adventure. Be sure to check it out at