Author's Note: Hey, everybody. I needed a bit of a break from writing but I'm back and I'm ready to party. Updates for the WIPs will be up soon!
(CMW2/Trumpetnista: Draftbook Drabble #17-(Fitz, Olivia, Edison, Huck, martial arts instructor/student AU, mentioned past Edison/Olivia and Mellitz Zombie, pre-Olitz becoming Olitz, first kiss))
Words from the Gladiator in a Hoodie: And now for something completely different. I'll certainly be revisiting my other D.D. AUs, especially The Trail and The Stripper Sting one but this idea has bitten me in the neck and won't let go until I see it through. Updates for the WIPs will resume soon and I hope you guys enjoy the latest! Mad Love, Jam, and Power Drills, ~*Trump*~
Disclaimer: "Honestly, it's not mine!"
"I ran into my ex today."
"You did?"
"I did. His law firm is about to be audited by the IRS and his bosses sent him to my accounting firm who promptly assigned the case to their top CPA team."
"Namely you and your Gladiators."
"Namely me and my Gladiators."
"Are you okay?"
"Do I look okay?"
"No. You look pissed."
"Exactly."
As soon as the bag was anchored securely, 28 year old Olivia Pope's left foot slammed hard into the middle of it, followed by a rapid succession of blows, alternating between hands and feet. Thankfully, they were covered by white boxing tape and white ankle protectors were on her feet. A black tank top and dark gray sweats finished the look and her onyx hair was up in a top knot, tendrils already loosening. Finished with a combo set on the bag, she started shadowboxing around the semi circular room, bobbing and weaving as if she were facing a giant. Picking up a large rectangular mat, 38 year old Fitz Grant III, clad in all black, stood in her path and she transitioned to knee strikes smoothly, again alternating between the left and right.
"Can you excuse yourself from the case? Cite a conflict of interest?"
"Cyrus offered me the out but I said no. Plus, Edison's refusing to work with any of my team without me present. He says that his bosses want me and him to do the lion's share of the work. It's a delicate situation since one of their own was just nailed for embezzling. There can't be too many fingers in the pot."
"That makes sense but it also reeks of bullshit on his part."
"It is. Apparently, the grass wasn't greener on the other side and now, he wants back in my heart and my bed. It's not going to happen. He lied to me, Fitz. He lied straight to my face for months about Jeannine and god knows who else. If he wanted to end things with me, then he should've been a man and said so before he got in someone else's bed. He acted like a teenage boy and a cowardly bitch baby and he…he hurt me. What's really pissing me off, other than the fact that I have to look at him for 8 hours a day, is that he's just happily disregarding the fact that he hurt me, glossing it over like it didn't mean anything. If he really loved me, then he wouldn't do that. If he really loved me, then he would've kept it in his goddamned pants, the son of a bitch!"
Fitz felt a twinge in his chest at the crack in her voice and she sat down on the mats, resting on her elbows on her knees. Olivia had come into the Capital City Gym 6 months before when they had done a series of self defense seminars. She had signed up for kickboxing and MMA classes, putting her directly in his orbit. Over the months, he had gotten to know her and had grown very fond of her, a fondness that was mutual. They trained together 3 nights a week and had a standing date for pho and spring rolls at Nai's Noodles every Sunday afternoon. She came to the gym after work for other classes and for weight training. She also swam but in a facility about a mile from her K Street apartment. Sometimes, they'd end up texting back and forth late at night, FaceTiming too. Both of them were night owls with a love of classic movies, a trait picked up in college by both and in the military for him.
She was very dear to him. She kept him grounded and for the first time in a long time, genuinely happy.
"I'm sorry…I shouldn't have…"
"Don't ever apologize for how you feel or for opening up to me."
"I don't want him back. I truly don't but I just…an acknowledgment would be nice. I don't want an apology because I'd tell him to shove it up his ass but him owning his part in our breakup would be nice. I'm certainly not blameless in the situation. It takes two people to make a relationship work and it also takes two people to make it fall apart. I was distant from him. I never felt comfortable in talking to him about how I was feeling and I just…this sucks, Fitz."
"I understand. I felt the same way when I saw my ex again after our breakup."
"Mellie Vaughn, right?"
"Yeah."
"She really did a number on you, didn't she?"
That was putting it mildly. He had come to her penthouse to bring her soup (she had said that she had the flu) and found her in the shower with Andrew Nichols. Ignoring Andrew's excuses and Mellie's begging, Fitz had simply removed the engagement ring from her finger and walked out the door. The hurt had been two-fold, his fiancee and his best friend, but it had been a teachable moment for him. Looking back on things, Fitz could see that even if he and Mellie had made it down the aisle, they would've ended up in divorce court before they could celebrate their first anniversary. They were just too different in their personalities, in their ambitions to make it work for good. Everyone had been expecting him to marry her and he had allowed a twisted sense of duty to override his instincts.
Finding Mellie and Andrew together had been painful but it had also been liberating. It had provided her with a man who truly loved her to be with her and it had prompted Fitz to take firm control of his life. After weeks of arguing and posturing with her and Big Jerry Grant, he had been able to leave California with his trust funds and he had settled in DC. He had taken the job at the gym and the rest was history…
"What are you going to do about Edison?"
"My job. And if he tries something, I'll use him to practice that arm bar you showed me a couple of weeks ago."
/
"Going up?" Edison Davis greeted her cheerfully.
"I'm taking the stairs." she replied flatly.
Olivia walked away from the bank of elevators and suppressed the urge to lash out as Edison followed her back to the main lobby. While the main HQ of the firm was near the Capital building, her team was based out of an old clothing factory about 20 minutes from 1600 Penn. She could see the White House from her office, along with the bustling traffic in the capital.
"Olivia, I just…don't you miss me at all?"
"Absolutely not…you're a mistake to me, one that I have no intention of ever making again."
"How can you say that?!"
"I don't know, maybe because you cheated on me with the Company Xerox Machine and I didn't find out about it until I got infectious mononucleosis?! Then, there's the fact that you felt the need to cheat on me to begin with! If we had a good relationship, then you wouldn't have cheated or you would've had the common courtesy to break up with me before you jumped into bed with someone else! Do you know just how humiliating it was to have explain to my superiors that I'd have to work from home for a month because my boyfriend, my boyfriend who always stressed the importance of trust and communication in the relationship, lied to me, went out in the streets and came back with mono?! Although, knowing Jeannine Locke and her ways, I should be thankful that it wasn't herpes or HIV!"
Edison caught the stairwell door before it slammed in his face and Olivia bristled as his hand latched onto her jacket sleeve.
She moved on instinct.
"What did you do to her?!"
The snarled demand from a rapidly approaching Huck broke through her red haze. Edison was slumped against the wall by the elevator, wheezing for air and looking at her with panicked eyes. The panic only grew as Huck lunged forward and grabbed him by the lapels of his Armani suit, pinning him against the wall with a forearm to the neck.
"What did you do to her?! Why did she just knee you in the gut? What. Did. You. Do?!" Huck snarled again as Edison sputtered frantically for air and for calming words.
Although it would be grimly satisfying to see her ex's blood on the walls, the trouble that Huck would get into, the trouble that her whole team would get into was not worth it.
Plus, if anyone was going to make Edison Davis bleed profusely, it was going to be her…
"Let him go, Huck."
"What did he do to you?!"
"Let him go, Huck. Now."
"Did he hurt you? Did he touch you? Did you touch her, you son of a bitch?!"
"Just my sleeve. We were arguing. He caught me off guard and I reacted. You know I've been taking combat classes and…let him go, Huck. He's not worth it and he'll keep his hands to himself from now on. I know he will."
"…if he doesn't, I'll disembowel him."
Edison was unceremoniously released and Huck retreated back to his Domain, closing the door behind him with a pointed, warning bang. Olivia knew that it was mean and immature but the sight of her ex slumped against the wall with wobbling knees was an immensely satisfying one.
The most satisfying sight would be the back of him, her professional services no longer required so it was time to get ready for more spreadsheets, triplicate, and bureaucratic bullshit.
Just another day at the office…
"Once you pull yourself together, wait in the conference room for everyone else. Huck found something on the servers that you'll have to explain…and the next time you put your hands on me, I'll break them."
/
"…it was actually kind of anticlimactic. I mean, I got to say my piece and to give him a swift knee but really…it was an overall 'eh' ending to a shitty situation, which is better than a disaster, I suppose. I finally got closure, Evans and Bell won't be shut down for tax evasion, my crew got a huge cut of the commission, and now, instead of trying to get back in my heart and pants, Edison Davis is utterly terrified of me. You should've seen him during the wrap meeting. He looked like he was going to shit his pants the whole time all because of little ol' me, can you believe it?"
"I most certainly can. I'm more than a little scared of you myself, Livvie."
"Fitzgerald, I am half your size! I am less than half of your size."
"A stick of dynamite can fit in someone's pants pocket and it still does a lot of damage."
"So, I'm a stick of dynamite?"
"More like C4…you blow me away, Ms. Pope…"
Her full blown laughter was hearty and always a treat to hear, even if it was at his expense. After leaving Nai's, Fitz had suggested that they spend the rest of the day together and she had eagerly agreed. They were at the Lincoln Memorial and he smiled at the sight of her on the stairs, her hair blowing in the warm breeze. She was in an ankle length pink and red printed maxi skirt along with a mid sleeved white lace v-neck top. Instead of ankle protectors or mile high heels, she had on black canvas sneakers, putting her just at chest height. Her amber eyes went to him and he cocked his head curiously at the gleam within them.
"What's wrong?"
"May I try something? It won't hurt you."
"Sure."
Olivia ascended to him and Fitz's brows raised as she matter of factly settled onto his denim clad lap, hooking her ankles at the small of his back. Her hands braced on his shoulders and she raised herself fully, putting their face and more importantly, their lips mere inches apart.
"I would like to kiss you. Will you let-"
Her lips were plush and silky soft, tasting of Vietnamese tea and her cherry lip balm. She fit in the cradle of his arms with room to spare and her hands cupped his face tenderly, her fingertips playing with his thick brown waves. Olivia moaned into his mouth as the kiss deepened, sending molten heat and electricity through his veins. Fitz was no stranger to the pleasures of the flesh nor was he a stranger to the attentions of a beautiful woman but this…this was a game changer.
They broke for air and Olivia's right hand pressed against his dark gray thermal top where his heart pounded. Fitz shuddered as she captured his left earlobe between her lips, suckling at the cherry red flesh and his hands spanned her waist in response, cradling her.
"That was…"
"That felt…right. You feel right, Fitz."
He nodded in agreement and gently urged her off of his lap so he could stand up.
"Can we…I'm not Edison, Olivia."
"Thank God. I'm not Mellie."
"Thank God…I…can we…I'd like to take you on a date. A real date."
"With a meal and dancing?"
"I can attempt to dance for you but a meal would work. Dinner."
"Dinner. I'd like that. I'd like that a lot, especially if we happen to have sex afterwards."
