Prologue
August 12th, 1987
When she first opened her eyes, confusion immediately set in. Her ears were clogged, and of her surroundings, her blurry vision was only able to make out a dense orange glow off in the distance. Thick, dark storm clouds hung heavy in the midnight sky. The wind howled an ear piercing, vengeful cry and thunder shook through the trees.
An eleven-year-old Olivia Pope laid half face in a puddle of mud paralyzed with fear. Her head throbbed unbearably, making it impossible to lift the side of her face out of the mud. Her memory was hazy, but she still thought long and hard to remember the events that took place before she found herself shivering to death in a pile of mud. Nothing came to her, which only scared her more.
Her body felt fragile and broken. The pain she felt in her head only continued to grow as she attempted to move. Her legs were completely numb and lifeless. Where were her parents? What happened to her sister? Nothing made sense. Mud spilled into her mouth, and she spit the brown muck back out.
The howling wind continued to violently crash against the trees. The black sky that cloaked over Olivia enabled her to distinguish any figures besides what was exactly in front of her. A rising growl roared through the clouds soon followed by a bolt of lightening that cracked through the sky and lit up the earth. The rain began to come down in thick dark sheets.
Nausea sweeps through her and her heart stopped in her chest. Where was she? With every bolt of lightening, Olivia darted her eyes around to see if she could recognized anything around her. A broken flashlight - an item she recognized as hers- laid a few inches to her left. To her right, a shredded overnight bag. Next to the bag, a book - her book- laid torn to pieces, partly burned, but she was still able to identify it as the book she was reading only hours before.
Things were suddenly beginning to click, and events were being replayed in her head. The last thing she could remember was being in the family car with her parents and younger sister reading a book, anything after that was washed away with the rain.
Another flash of lightening and Olivia quickly looked around to see to what else she could find. About ten feet in front of her she noticed a hand. A small brown hand covered in dirt, surrounded by twigs and broken glass. A heavy knot of tension formed deep inside of her gut and made her stomach turn. She held her breath waiting for the sky to light up again.
"Kim Kim?" Her hoarse voice was barely above a whisper and her throat burn when she spoke. Spitting out another mouthful of dirt, Olivia cleared her throat as best as she could and spoke up. "Kim Kim, is that you?"
A muffled cry, barely audible slipped from the nine-year-old lips. "Libbie?" The sky was still too dark for them to see each other, but Olivia knew which direction her sister's voice was coming from.
"It's me, Kim Kim." Olivia sighed relieved. "Are you okay?" She asked, searching for any clues on her sister's condition. "I can't move, Kim." Olivia heard her sisters gruff cough, which sounded painful. "Can you come to me? I can't move my legs."
"No." Another weak whisper. Olivia could hear the pain in her voice and could tell her sister was worse off than she was. Without a second thought, she gathered all of the strength in her petite body, and made the decision to go to her sister instead.
Pain shot through her arms, and down her chest. Her ribs ached, but Olivia pushed through it. Feeling lightheaded, she kept her head only an inch or two away from the ground as she stretched her arms out in front of her and slowly dragged herself towards Kim Kim.
She could feel blood streaming down her arms. Cuts were being sliced open on broken glass and bruises were forming. As she grew closer, Olivia could see the pool of blood her sister laid in. Her face was badly bruised, her eyes only half opened. Her lips were the kind of pale blue that made Olivia fear the worst.
She inhales a painful gush of air, her throat closing up as her body rejected the idea of her sister facing impending death. While Olivia thought of herself as a mature eleven, Kim Kim was just an innocent nine. She was still a baby in her eyes. She was too young to die. Memories of them smiling together, playing hide and go seek in the front yard or with their Barbie dolls on the living room floor flood through her mind, and Olivia finds the strength to continue pulling herself along, mustering up the last bit of energy her body had to reach her sister.
She was almost there when exhaustion caught up with her sooner than she expected, and she struggled to move her arms forward. "Give me your hand, Kim Kim." Olivia pleads, wincing when she extends her arm towards her. They were so close, yet so far apart. "Please, Kimmm." Olivia begged, crying for her sister to at least try to extend her arm.
Kim Kim slowly moved her fingers, enough to show Olivia that she was indeed trying. Their fingers were mere inches apart. The wind ripped around them, and they both shivered away from the cold. The rain had finally let up a bit, but the earth still roared in anger.
Olivia stretched her arm out until she was able to securely grab the tip of her Kim Kim's fingers. Her hand was icy and cold, sending shivers down Olivia's spine. She was not prepared for this. Her heart was too heavy to hold in her chest. Her world was tumbling down around her, and it all felt so surreal. Everything she loved was being washed away and all she could do was sit back hopelessly and watch.
"Listen to me, Kim Kim." Olivia said with tears in her throat. "Please hold on, okay? Someone is coming to help us, please don't let go."
"Do-n't…let- go, Lib." Kim Kim gargled as blood filled her mouth.
"No, you don't let go. You promise me you won't let go." Olivia begged. "Kim Kim-" Olivia cried harder when she did not receive an answer. Squeezing Kim's fingertips, a jolt of pain that felt like nothing she'd ever experience before shot through her. The pain she felt in her ribs, the throbs she felt in her head, the cuts and bruises they were nothing compared to the heartache she felt at the thought of losing her only sister.
"Promise me, Kim, promise me you won't let go." Olivia wailed, begging her sister to fight to stay alive. To want to live, she needed her sister to hold on for just a few more minutes. Someone was coming; she could feel it in her gut. Help was on the way. "I need you. I need you to stay alive. You are all I have, Kim. Mommy and Daddy, they're both gone. You're all I have. We are all we have."
Kim Kim cracked open her eyes enough to look at her sister. Olivia saw the pain in her bloodshot eyes. Their eyes latched together, reading the other's fear of their sudden reality. "I'll be all alone." She whispered hopeful that her sister would understand how much she needed her to fight.
Kim nodded her head slightly, a small smirk on her small lips. Her fingers grew weaker in Olivia's grip, until they were numb and she felt no more pain. Her features settled, and her face looked at ease, completely peaceful as Olivia watched her come close to drawing her last breath.
The rain had let up completely. Only little droplets that dripped from the trees fell over them. Olivia felt empty and time stood still. She fought back the overwhelming rush of emotion she felt gathering inside of her. She felt guilty; begging her sister to hold on when she was clearly already gone.
Stretching her right arm from her side, Olivia clasped both her hands around Kim Kim's fingers. "It's okay." She finally whispered, her voice betraying her and cracking. "Its okay, Kim, you can let go."
"You'll- be all- alone."
Olivia shook her head, and inhaled as best as she could, ignoring the twinge of pain she felt in her side. "No I won't. I'll be fine, Kim Kim, you can let go." She assured her with a broken smile.
"I'm - sowwy-, Libbie." Kim Kim apologized closing her eyes.
"Its okay, Kim Kim. I'll be fine. We'll both be fine, okay. You can let go, and I'll be right here. I am going to hold your hand and be right here, Kim Kim. I promise to stay right here and hold your hand." Olivia voice cracked completely and she closed her mouth to muffle her cries.
Kim moved her index finger slightly, stroking Olivia's hand lightly to comfort her. Olivia tried to contain her frustration. Anxiety, confusion, pain, and hopelessness pumps through her veins.
"I love you, Kim Kim, okay? I love you forever, and don't you ever forget."
Kim Kim opened her mouth slightly to speak, but Olivia shhh her so she instead smile gently. Her body relaxed as a serene numbness and fate took over completely. After awhile, she looked as if she were simply sleeping. Her hand, while ice cold, was beginning to burn a hole in Olivia's. The lifeless limb suddenly weighed a ton, but Olivia refused to let go. She wasn't ready to do so, neither physically or emotionally. She turned her head away from her sister, but never let go. Repeating over and over, until it was embedded deep into her mind, until her tongue knew how to speak nothing else. Until she was sure her sister knew she would never let go.
"It's okay, you can let go. I promise you I won't."
Thank you for reading :)