*This story is told from the third-person perspective of three characters: Olivia, Gage, and Fitz. This completed story will be updated weekly with three chapters at a time.*
Olivia
"Madam president." The young woman standing at the podium fought to keep from rolling her eyes as yet another reporter shouted at her. With the way the reporters were acting, someone might think a top government secret was about to be spilled - not her nod to become the director of the FBI.
"Yes?" Olivia sighed, turning toward the elderly reporter with fading, brown hair. The woman stood from her seat, straightening her lavender pant suit. Olivia had to give her due recognition for attempting that look. It was bold, that was for sure.
"You still haven't named your bid for director." The statement defied the friendly glint in the woman's eyes and Olivia fought hard to refrain from frowning - her mood instantly souring at the woman's words. Cyrus would find some creative way to torture her if she was caught frowning on camera and there were definitely enough cameras in the room to catch any frown that might cross her face.
Mustering a smile, Olivia glanced behind her. She had been hoping that Gage would have at least decided to show her face on time for once. The woman was terrible with schedules. As Olivia thought, she decided that Gage was terrible with a lot of things. Social skills, arriving on time, relationships. At least she was a hard, dedicated worker and displayed some amazing skills in the Bureau.
As Olivia tried to think of a way to stall the media, the reporters in the room had all turned to face the president, expectant looks on their faces. Olivia chewed on her bottom lip, a nervous habit that Cyrus hated, as she tried to think of something to say. Anything. She couldn't very well say:
"My nominee for Bureau Director hasn't decided to show just yet. I'm sure she'll be here, though."
That was sure to raise questions. Questions that she didn't need. Every move, every decision had been critiqued since she had become president. She blamed most of it on being the first woman to hold the office. No one knew how to react to her and a fair few were wishing her failure. This was not going to go over well in the papers.
Darting her eyes throughout the room, Olivia gripped the podium, her fingers turning white, as she noticed a reporter slowly stumble forward. No one else seemed to notice their colleague's misplaced footing. They were too busy making sure the cameras they were manning were accurately feeding the live footage back to whatever station they worked. Narrowing her eyes, she almost snorted as she noticed the trademark black and white Chuck Taylors. Too relieved to react to Gage's whitewashed jeans and plaid shirt, hadn't she told the woman to wear dress clothes?, Olivia shifted her body to the left and gestured toward Gage.
"My nominee for Bureau Director is Gage Adlee." Gage began her ascent up the steps toward the podium, stumbling on the first step and giving a cheeky smile as she regained her footing. Edging toward Olivia, she ignored the president's outstretched hand and wrapped her arm around the taller woman's shoulders. Olivia sighed as she forced a smile for the cameras that were suddenly flashing all around, rendering both women temporarily blind.
"What a lovely image for tomorrow's front covers," Olivia thought bitterly to herself. Glaring discreetly at the redhead, Olivia shrugged Gage's arm from her shoulders and took a small step toward the right, putting more space between the two.
"Madam President, why her?" That was a good question. Olivia racked her brain for the answer as the buzz in the room quieted. She had made a solid list of the pros and cons to promoting Gage before she had made the decision. Of course the biggest con, aside from Gage's unpredictable behavior, had been that the two were best friends from childhood. A con Cyrus was already working to wayside when the media reported the news.
"Do you not think I'm qualified?" Olivia was vaguely aware of Gage demanding an answer from the reporter. Chuckling nervously, Olivia stepped toward the podium. There was no way this exchange was going to end well. Gage was defensive when it came to anyone questioning how or why she was in the position she was in.
"I am far more qualified than you ever hope to be." Olivia groaned, making a mental note to never allow Gage in front of the press again. She would make the woman hire a personal press secretary. Stepping closer to Gage, Olivia grasped her forearm and leaned toward her.
"He didn't mean it like that, Gage. Apologize," Olivia forced the harsh whisper from barely moving lips as she smiled gently toward the freckled reporter.
"I am not apologizing. He just questioned my qualifications." Olivia felt her cheeks begin to burn at Gage's whispered shout. The reporter's mouth fell open and his eyes widened at the new Bureau Director's outburst. Olivia shook her head. To think that Gage had been the top of her class during her field training.
Making a quick, split-second decision, Olivia laid her hand upon Gage's shoulder, adding a small amount of pressure, and attempted to push her toward the heavy, blue-velvet curtains behind them. That, Olivia realized too late, was a horrible decision as Gage grabbed her arm, her short fingernails digging slightly into Olivia's flesh, and twisted Olivia's arm, pinning it behind her back. The action quickly caused the Secret Service to intervene.
The two agents closest to the president rushed to her side and yanked Gage away, managing to twist Olivia's arm farther in the process. Grimacing, Olivia yanked her arm in front of her and rubbed the tender flesh. The younger of the two agents, a burly blond with dark, brooding brown eyes, shoved Gage to the ground and held her hands to her side. She was all but rendered immobile. Agent Thomas, Olivia's newly appointed Secret Service Director, came to a halt by Olivia's side, placing his hand on her upper back and bending to speak in her ear:
"Madam President, are you unharmed?"
Olivia glanced in the direction of the press as a sudden bright flash of light filled the room. All twenty-eight of the reporters were snapping photographs with their various handheld devices. Olivia shut her eyes for a moment, her head pounding at the sudden, sour turn the press conference had taken.
"Get the fucking press out of here," she snapped, rolling her shoulders as she felt the tension beginning to build, "And for the love of God, the next time your agent decides to attack an assailant, make sure they're actually a fucking threat."
Agent Thomas gave a curt nod before moving toward the press, beginning the process of shooing them from the room. Olivia quickly went through a mental checklist of the things she and Cyrus were going to have to do in order to contain this mess. She still had some connections in the media from her time as a crisis manager for the high and mighty of Washington. Where she didn't have connections, Cyrus typically did. Somehow, they were going to have to spin this in their favor.
"Let her go," Olivia ordered the blond agent still holding Gage in place. The man tilted his head, looking at the president as if she had completely lost her mind. After an awkward, challenging stare-down with the president, he slowly stood, releasing Gage's arms. Gage, for her part, remained on the floor and stuck her tongue out at the agent causing Olivia to roll her eyes.
"Gage, I believe that you have done more than enough, thank you." Olivia crossed her arms, staring down at her friend as if she were dealing with one of her children. Sometimes, that's how she felt when it came to Gage.
"Oh really? 'Cause I could've done more," Gage smirked, finally moving to a sitting position and wrapping her arms around her knees. Olivia opened her mouth only to quickly clamp it shut. She had zero things to say to Gage that didn't involve cursing and a few choice insults.
Olivia glanced toward the doors to see that Agent Thomas had managed to shove the last of the reporters through them and down the hall, out of sight. The beige walls seemed to be closing in on her, mocking her ability to carry out her duties. What did it say about her that she couldn't even successfully get through one press conference? Lowering her gaze to the worn, starry carpet beneath her black pumps, Olivia contemplated her next move. It wouldn't do any good to fight with Gage. She would only get defensive and act out more than she already had. Running a hand through her curly hair, Olivia snapped her attention toward Gage when she started speaking:
"So…great conference, huh?" Olivia crossed her arms over her chest, narrowing her eyes toward her friend and tossed her hands in the air.
"You wouldn't know: you weren't here for most of it!"