Author's Note: Hey, everybody. Ask and ye shall receive! Enjoy the latest!
(CMW2/Trumpetnista: Draftbook Drabble #16- (Follow up to D.D.s #1, 3, 5, 8, and 14, The Trail, AU, Fitz, Olivia, Mellie, Andrew, FTGIV and Karen, OCs abound, established Olitz, Mew, and FTGIV/OC(Dexa), family dynamics, step family dynamics))
Words from the Gladiator in a Hoodie: I hate winter and winter hates me. It's cold outside, my old injuries are flaring up left and right, and I just recently twisted my ankle. Again. Same ankle, every time…ugh. But, there's a silver lining to this nonsense. Every time I'm ill, injured, or annoyed, my Muses come alive with motivation and possibilities.
I was absolutely blown away at the positive responses D.D. #14 got, both with the way I wrote FTGIV and Karen's 'Us against the Fuckers That Be' bond and the fact that not only did FTGIV get to live, he's gotten himself a girl-friend and a sista to boot! No paternity test needed there, am I right? Mm-hm… anyway, the requests for more have been heard and here's a follow up. I'm still planning to do another Defiance AU and there's a sultry idea brewing in my head, too. Knowing my Muses, the sultry idea will likely be posted first so keep on the lookout and I hope you guys enjoy the latest! Mad Love, Jam, and Power Drills, ~*Trump*~
Disclaimer: "Honestly, it's not mine!"
Excerpt from Draftbook Drabble #14
"…I'm not making the same mistakes dad did with The Incubator. It all worked out in the end because now he's got Olivia and she's made entirely of awesome but I'm not going to go through 15 years of politically sound yet emotionally toxic purgatory before I can find and be with the right woman. Fuck that shit."
"Who said anything about being a relationship? I'm talking about getting laid…"
"Well, that's what makes us different, my friend. I'm not saving it for marriage but I'm not giving it up to the first pretty girl that wants it, either. When I start having sex, I want to be attracted to all the parts of my partner, not just her ass…"
"…you're a damned fool, man and I'm gonna miss the shit outta you when you and K.G. move to D.C. with your dad and your de facto step momma. You're going with them, aren't you?"
"Not yet. We're going to wait until he's been in office a year before doing the Big Move. We'll come out to D.C. for breaks and the occasional state dinner but we'll be here mainly. Dad and Liv let us choose to stay and it's trippy as hell. I mean, for years, it was like "you two brats stay on the back shelf in the closet far, far away until it's time for the tap dance number" and now, we actually get a say in what goes on. They actually ask about what's going on with us and…and they listen! And they care and they yell and they remember shit that's important to us and it's so fucking weird but awesome."
"Holy shit…you have real parents now."
"I know."
"It's a miracle…"
…Gerry didn't really know what to make of his biological mother's relationship with his godfather. On the one hand, he was happy that Millicent had a man who truly loved her because that meant that his father was free to be with someone who truly loved him but on the other hand, there was a deep seated resentment against them both. While his father had stuck by her and endured being in a loveless political marriage, they had been sneaking around behind his back for years, lying to his face for years. His little sister who he loved dearly (despite her tendency to be an acid tongued pain in the ass sometimes…) could've easily been his half-sister, a Nichols passed off as a Grant to keep his dad underneath Millicent's thumb forever. The only reason that the truth came out was because of someone having the common sense to harvest and sequence the whole family's DNA. Who knows how long the affair with Andrew (and the other men) would've remained hidden if someone hadn't stepped up to the plate?
It was yet another thing to be grateful to Olivia Pope for…
"…so, Dexa?"
"Dexa.", he confirmed sheepishly.
"How utterly predictable. You gonna tell her?"
"Why?"
"Why not?"
"She's completely out of my league and we've got a good friendship going on, Karen. I don't want to fuck it up."
"Who says that you'd fuck it up?"
"I do."
"What if you're wrong?"
"What if I'm right? Besides, we're going to be moving away next year. It wouldn't really be fair to her for us to get something started just when I'm about to be across the country."
"Gerry, this is the golden age of Skype, Gmail, Facebook, and Tumblr. Plus, as Presidential kids, I'm sure that we'll have access to a bunch of private planes, trains, and automobiles when we want them. Long distance relationships are hard, especially for teenagers, but they're not impossible. Quit being a little bitch and put yourself out there. Even if she tells you to fuck off, then you'll know where you stand with her and it's way better than living with the what-ifs."
"…who's the older sibling here again?"
"You are but that doesn't mean that I can't be smarter than you…"
…Dexa gasped as they parted for air and looked up at him with disbelief before…
"Ow!"
"So I'm awake, then?"
Gerry chuckled and nodded, rubbing the sting from his uniform slack clad thigh. She stood up and he followed her, embracing her tenderly.
"You've got my lipstick all over your mouth and on your cheeks, too."
"Good."
"Good?"
"Fuckin' A."
"Okay. So, um…I'd really like to be your girlfriend."
"I'd really like to be your boyfriend, even after I move to D.C."
"Really? It's gonna be difficult…"
"Dexa, I'm about to be the son of the Leader of the Free World and I inherited the Grant man singlemindness. As long as you're willing to meet me halfway, then I will fight hard for us to stay together. I'll be here for another year but then…
"I'm more than willing to put the work in and you better come and visit me often, querido because there are some things you just can't do long distance…"
"Good Morning America! It's Wednesday, November 5th 2008, and we have a new President…"
"Grant took 74% of the popular vote… dominated the electoral college…even with the loss of Ohio to Governor Samuel Reston of Maryland…"
"Republican Candidate Governor Fitzgerald Thomas Grant III of California has been elected to be the 44th President of the United States of America…"
"...celebrated his win by laying a rather impressive kiss on Olivia Pope and it seems that he is not the only Grant man with…"
"…Baby Boy Grant is officially down with the swirl! That's right, ladies and gentlemen…Fitzgerald Thomas Grant IV is off of the market and not only is he with a black girl, he's with a brilliant little knockout…this picture of them was posted to his little sister's Facebook page shortly after his dad won the Election…aren't they adorable? I think they're adorable…"
"Like father, like son…"
"…Dexa Elizabeth Washington...16 year old only daughter of TruBlue Cosmetics CEO Beatrix Sanchez-Washington and Nathanial Washington VII. of the 80 year old Washington Import/Export Company based out of San Francisco…"
9 Days Later…
"Did you ask her yet?"
"No."
"For Christ's sake, Gerry!"
"Shut up, Karen!"
"Don't you tell me to shut up for calling you out on being a little bitch again! It's just dinner and a weekend at the Ranch, not a walk down the aisle! What's the big deal?"
"Karen…"
"Fitzgerald, are you serious about making this thing with Dexa work?"
"Yes."
"Has she pulled away from you since the Press and Social Media picked up on your connection? The tweeters and Tumblr are calling you two GerDex, by the way…"
"I know that and no, she hasn't…I just…The Incubator and Andrew are going to be there, too. If it was just Dad and Liv, I wouldn't be worried because I know that they'd be cool, despite Cyrus' bitching about my timing and the Optics…"
"The angry old penguin can blow it out of his ass. He's worried that the almighty Base will be pissed off that you're with Dex but meanwhile, he's not worried about being dad's CoS while rolling in the hay and between the sheets with a reporter barely half of his age…a dude reporter."
"Seriously?"
"Like the Black Plague, big brother. Do you remember James Novak?"
"Was he the nice guy from the Post with the Buddy Holly glasses and the unfortunate mouth-breathing asthma that we met in Miami?"
"That would be the one and that's who Cyrus is messing with on the down low. Well, not really because if I know, then everyone else certainly does. Don't get me wrong, Quatro. I care about Cyrus. I really do. Hell, he's practically family but he seriously needs to learn how to shut his big mouth and stay in his lane about personal Optics things that don't directly concern him. Dad and Liv are awesome, you and Dexa are awesome, and he should just come out of the closet and be done with it. It's not like Dad's gonna throw him out with the dirty dishwater and that's the only person who really matters in D.C. since he's The Big Giant Cheese now. Look, either you ask Dexa to come over and play by lunchtime or I'm gonna do it and I'll make sure that she knows that you were being a complete chickenshit about it. She's on the second level in the main gym doing her morning cardio hula hooping thing. Scram."
"…do you get some sort of sick pleasure from busting my balls all the time?"
"I'm your little sister, Numb Nuts. It's part of my job to kick you in the balls when you need it and if I didn't love your idiot ass so much, I'd keep quiet and let you fuck up all of the good things in your life because you're too busy dwelling in your own head to enjoy them fully. Introspection is good, Quatro but you can't let your brain have the wheel all the time. Let your heart and your Gut have a turn every once in a while. Now, seriously…scram. I have work to do. Go away."
Work being a large mosaic of the Great Seal that his 13 year old sister was determined to finish in time for Inauguration Day. While he had taken solace in music and his now trademark Goth/Hipster look, Karen had thrown herself into mathematics and art. She focused mainly on ceramics but there were stacks upon stacks of sketchbooks, deep wooden boxes full of various supplies. Karen was determined to be an animator if sculpting didn't work out but Gerry was sure that it would. Whatever she wanted to do with her life would not only work out, she'd be the best.
His little sister was just that good.
Pressing a kiss to the crown of her bent head and dodging the half hearted swipe at his arm, 16 year old Fitzgerald "Gerry" Thomas Grant IV left Art Room II and started downstairs. Fridays at the Academy were free days. There were a few classes offered but mostly, it was the start of the weekend and time to decide whether a student would stay on campus or go home until Monday morning. For the longest time, he and Karen were on the list to stay permanently but now…Nate's words at lunchtime still resonated with him. They had real parents, now. They had real parents who cared and who would be sad and worried if he and Karen didn't come home. Their father had always worried about them and even at the worst times, he and Karen never doubted that they were loved by him but…The Incubator.
Karen had started calling Millicent "The Incubator" from her 3rd grade science class on. There had been an Academy wide thing with baby chickens and Karen had mentioned that Millicent was just like the incubator the eggs rested in. They were in a safe, warm place to be nurtured until hatch day and then, the incubator was taken away and the babies were left pretty much on their own to survive. At first, Gerry had scolded her for doing it, trying to give Millicent the benefit of the doubt, but as time passed and the Grant marriage withered further and further towards ash…
Gerry rationally knew that his father had to have contributed to the decline of their marriage somehow. Just like it took two people to make a relationship work, it also took two people to destroy it. However, the majority of the blame, the majority of the burning resentment in his heart he felt for a stunted childhood and his father's bone deep pre-Olivia Pope misery rested squarely on his biological mother's shoulders. The blame was put on her shoulders and the shoulders of every man that she put her legs over, especially Andrew Nichols. His "Uncle Andrew" had been having a physical and emotional affair with Millicent for years and had lied to his father's face the whole time. His father had to have confided in the man about what was and wasn't going on between him and Millicent. The man had listened, became godfather to his firstborn, and the whole time, practically the whole time, had been thirsting after his wife (in name only) and drinking from her well when she permitted him to.
His little sister could've been his half sister. The fact that she wasn't, the fact that Karen Marie Grant was truly Karen Marie Grant instead of Karen Marie Nichols was one of the few things that kept him from cutting his biological mother out of his life completely.
Another thing, another surprising person in the situation, was Olivia Pope.
Why he was still surprised was anyone's guess. Olivia Pope had a way with people, particularly with Grants, that could bring them in line before they plunged over a cliff of ego driven self destruction and/or delusion. Olivia had come onto his father's campaign and it had been like airing out an old house for the first time in decades. Gerry had initially been wary of her, Karen had been disdainful, and both of them had questioned her sincerity from the start, especially when she engaged with them. What was her angle? Everyone had an angle, everyone had an agenda, and no one hesitated to leech off of their father when they could. What could a woman like her want with a RINO long shot, his dead marriage, and his children's drama?
Olivia had proven to be loyal. Olivia had proven to be genuinely interested and kind to both of them, regardless of Media cameras. Olivia had attached herself to their father, not as a leech but as someone who really wanted to help him, as a real friend, as a real protector…
Honestly, if his father and Olivia had started their romantic relationship earlier than they did, before the DNA bombshell interviews exposed Millicent for the fraudulent wife and mother she was, then Gerry would've been just fine with it, as would have Karen because the only thing Olivia Pope wanted from their father was for him to be his genuine self, Election be damned, and to be happy.
That was her angle and it was a damned good angle, one that was still paying off richly…
Entering the main gym, Gerry could see a pack of various sports players looking up at the second level and he joined them, already knowing what he'd see.
Dexa was absorbed in whatever music that was playing in her lime green ear buds and her silver sparkly hula hoop followed the slow, near hypnotic rhythm of her full hips and strong core. What gave him pause (other than the soft smile playing at her cranberry red lips) was the fact that she was wearing one of his lacrosse jerseys over her black leggings. The navy blue and silver shirt was tied to expose her diamond studded innie navel and the fact she had 'GRANT' emblazoned on her back made Gerry's blood run hot in all the best ways.
"I still don't how the fuck you did it, Quatro. You caught Dexa Washington…" Nate Overton greeted him at the bottom of the left stairs with their usual fist bump.
"She caught me, not the other way around. I didn't do shit."
"Still…no wonder you turned Amber down. Good thing you did, too. She's absolutely horrible in bed…"
"Oh, like you're Don Juan de fucking Marco around here? Get over yourself, moron. Did you at least use protection?"
"Of course. I'm not ready to be somebody's baby daddy, especially Amber's. She's nuts and you were right about her ass. It's as fake as the cheese on Cheetos."
"I could've told you that and saved you the disappointment, Nathan…show's over, pendejos!"
Gerry laughed at the way the pack of horny toads quickly got back to whatever they were doing and Dexa rested her hula hoop on the bottom bleacher bench. She had taken her braids out of the top knot and he tenderly brushed a few out of her cat like sienna eyes before accepting her greeting kiss on the lips.
"It's all right if I borrowed your shirt?"
"It's all right if you keep my shirt. What are you doing this weekend?"
"Nothing. Mami and Papi are in Guadalajara visiting my abuelita so I was going to chill here with my Netflix."
"Do you want to come to the Ranch for the weekend?"
"Will I be meeting your parents during this weekend?"
"Yeah…Dad and Liv are really cool, Dex. They won't cause any trouble and The Incubator already knows that she's on very thin ice with me and K.G. If she's smart, she'll keep her mouth shut or at least attach it to Andrew's the whole time. Look, dinner is likely going to be an awkward as shit mess but I'm not going to hide you from anyone. I'm not ashamed of you or us and I want you to meet my family, as fucked up as it is. Will you come?"
"Yes."
"Yes?"
"Fuckin' A. I'll even bring my guacamole and some empanadas."
"Good."
/
"She's definitely sleeping in Karen's room."
"Oh, I know that! Dad, we're not… I'm not…we're not…Dad, we just got together like 5 minutes ago and I'm not…I…we…no, not yet…we…we…we're not having…yet. Dex and I want to wait. Well, more like I want to wait. Is that bad?"
"Absolutely not."
"I get a lot of shit for it…"
"Language. Gerry, it's okay if you're not ready. It really is. There's nothing weird about it."
"I know that but everyone's so shocked when I mention that I'm not having sex yet. They're all like, "…but you're a Grant man!" and I get it. We're known for politics and horniness but…I just…I don't know. I just want it to be…special. I want it to be with the right woman at the right time. Somehow, I've managed to find the right woman but the right time hasn't come yet. How'd you know that it was the right time with Liv?"
"I didn't know, not really but she did know and then she proceeded to let me know that she knew in the middle of a Georgia hotel corridor."
"That's disgusting, Dad…that image…"
"You asked…son, I know that this is cliché but the only advice I can give you is that when you know, you know. Just follow her lead and don't be afraid to be honest with her."
"Even if I sound lame, stupid, or weird?"
"Especially if you sound lame, stupid, or weird. Women appreciate honesty. She has to be able to trust you and you have to be able to trust her. Without trust, there's no relationship."
"Speaking of relationships, I've yet to hear Big Jerry weigh in on me and Dexa…did the shock and horror of having not one but two viable interracial relationships in the family finally plunge him into the Grant Man Heart Attack?"
"Your grandfather and Liv have an understanding. He keeps his mouth shut about anything having to do with you, me, and Karen unless prompted and he gets to keep his little black book out of the hands of TMZ."
"Thank God she's on our side…don't screw it up, Old Man. You'll never do any better."
"I know. So, tell me about Dexa. What's she like?"
/
"What are you doing?"
"I am hiding my face in your neck and chastely cuddling you on my little sister's pull out bed."
"Why?"
"I missed you, you're nice and soft, and you smell really good."
"Dinner will be done soon."
"I know. Liv's finishing up the turkey meatloaf and Dad made Angel Food cake."
"Your mother is here."
"I know."
"She's already caught up with K.G. She's going to want to see you, too and meet me."
"I know."
"…Fitzgerald, you can't hide up here forever."
"Why not?"
"Other than the fact that it's your house and you shouldn't feel like you have to hide in your own house?"
"Other than that."
"Querido, you said that you wanted me to meet your whole fucked up family and to eat dinner."
"You already met my family. You met Dad and Liv and you already know Karen. That's the family that matters."
"Fitzgerald…"
"You don't understand…"
"Enlighten me, then."
"…she ruins things. Millicent ruins things. She makes people uncomfortable and unhappy and she ruins things."
"She is still your biological mother and I want to meet her. No one will ruin us except for us. It's our relationship, not hers or anyone else's. There's more to it. Tell me. Tell me all of what's troubling you, Fitzgerald."
With a jagged sigh, Gerry raised his head from her neck and looked at her head on.
"…every time I see Andrew, I want to fucking punch him. Dad may not be mad at him anymore but I am. I really am. He was my father's best friend. They go way back, like Pre-K back and he just…how could he do that to him? How could fuck his best friend and brother's wife off and on for 12 years and stay quiet about it? He could've…he should've said something. Dexa, it was…everything was so hollow before. Everyone was so unhappy. I can't even remember a time when Dad and Millicent were happy together and she…Andrew just…it's not fair. How can she claim that she sacrificed everything and then go out and fuck another man, fuck his best friend at that? How could she sit there and make Dad feel like he was the one ruining their marriage when she was the one who threw it away first? How am I supposed to look at her and not resent her for the fucked up childhood Karen and I had to go through? It's just…she ruins things. I know she won't ruin us but I…she doesn't deserve to know anything about who I am now. She wasn't around for the bad times so she shouldn't get to be around for the good. It's not fair."
Gentle fingertips wiped his frustrated tears away and Gerry sighed as she ran her fingers tenderly through his plum purple highlighted brown mop top. Bending down, he captured her strawberry red lips in a tender kiss and Dexa let her free hand stroke his side, wrinkling the material of his dark gray Rage Against the Machine t-shirt. Tentatively, he let his hands span her waist and he squeezed her tenderly, accepting her tongue into his mouth. She was in a coral and white polka dotted tank top and a black maxi skirt, a skirt that rode up slightly as she reversed their positions…
"Gerry, Dexa…dinner's ready!"
Slowly, he broke the kiss and called back, "On our way, Dad!"
Dexa climbed out of the pull out bed and extended a hand to him.
He accepted it immediately and led her to the balcony doors, following the sound of everyone settling in the outdoor dining area. Looking at her, Gerry was fortified by his Dexa's reassuring smile and he pushed open the sliding French doors.
He could do this.
They could do this.
Together.