Title: Easy Solution

Spoilers: For the 8/28/09 Guiding Light Episode. Takes place in it, sort of.

Summary: Natalia goes to Olivia for help.

Natalia and Olivia stood there in front of Olivia's door. Neither spoke. Natalia had just begged for help, for understanding, for Olivia's shoulder.

Everything in every fiber of Olivia's being screamed run, run, run, run. Run to Josh, to Matt, to Phillip (now that he was as sane as he used to be again). Call up Sam, beg him to come get her, take her away. Or Holly, hell, she'd run to Reva.

And then she blinked and it was as if a video player turned on in her mind. There she was, more than a year before, Dinah was there, darker, shorter hair, calling her Ollie. Idly Olivia wondered how Dinah was doing, getting involved with the Lewises was never a good idea.

And then Olivia saw herself speaking words that rang in her head. "Well, without getting into any detail, if I'm ever lucky enough to fall in love again I'm going to do the opposite of everything I've ever done in my past."

Olivia blinked and swallowed. She put a hand on the door jamb and Natalia immediately leaned forward. Without thinking the younger woman put a hand on Olivia's chest and after a beat realized what she had just done. They froze and stared up into Olivia's face. Olivia didn't meet her gaze, but was staring down at the hand.

Natalia had been about to ask if Olivia was all right, if her heart was all right. They always seemed to come back to the heart, Gus' former heart.

Finally Olivia jerkily raised her hand and removed Natalia's from her chest. She cleared her throat, once, twice, then spoke, with much more of a growl than she'd meant to. "Phone."

Natalia frowned, "We can go into..."

"No..." Olivia cleared her throat and held out her hand. "Phone..." Natalia still didn't move and Olivia added, "Please."

Natalia took her cell phone out of her purse and handed it to Olivia. She closed her eyes for a moment and then typed in a number she waited. "Lids, it's Olivia." A smile came to Olivia's face which only made the sadness on Natalia's deepen. "Oh, don't start. I need a favor." Olivia paused again and Natalia could see that she was resisting the urge to roll her eyes. "No, I do not need any Chicago tickets taken care of, I haven't... haven't gotten there recently. Yes, I will remedy that. You still in contact with... Lieutenant Tom or whatever his name was? Ah, Major now, I guess it has been awhile. He's army?" Olivia seemed to have gotten an affirmative from the other side of the phone. "I have a friend who's son thinks that he's going to enlist in the Army. No, no, I know that once he signs and everything there's nothing even the great and mighty Major Tom can do, I doubt that he has though... doubt they've done the physical yet. He has Type 1 Diabetes."

Natalia's face seemed to lose all of its wrinkles and tension all at once as Olivia was silent. "Thanks Lids... yes, yes, and bring Toby. I will. Thanks."

Olivia carefully closed the phone and handed it back to Natalia. "It's done."

Natalia put a hand over her eyes, "I can't believe that I didn't even..." She nearly jumped as Olivia gripped her hand and pulled it down.

"Don't do that. You can't know everything. Rafe will be angry, still angry, but he'll be angry here."

Natalia let go of Olivia's hand and stared down for a moment before she shook her head, "I should go. I won't..."

Olivia interrupted Natalia, "I would do it anyway, love or not, even... even if you hated me, I can't... you... I love you so much sometimes it hurts so much."

"Then why... You don't even want me in your rooms, you..."

Olivia pulled Natalia to her, she brushed a lock of Natalia's hair from her forehead. "On the contrary." She leaned even farther into Natalia and caught the younger woman's lips in her own. It was nothing like their 'first kiss' where that had been rushed this was slow, that had been full of explosive passion, but this, this had been simmering in every look, every touch, and every conversation they had had since the first kiss.

It was Natalia who finally had to pull away, but only a bit. "Oliv..."

Olivia put two fingers on Natalia's lips. "You do not get to visit my rooms because then we might wind up where you do not feel comfortable yet. No, first, we talk with your son, we pick up Emma from school and tell her, then we buy her a pony or some other extravagant thing, maybe a small island to rule over." Olivia smiled when Natalia chuckled, "We'll see if the one in the oven is okay, and..."

It was Natalia's turn to cut off Olivia with a quick kiss. She pulled away, though she let her hand slip down to Olivia's and their hands clasped tightly. "Yet. I'm not scared anymore, I'm not wary or undecided. You are my future, you, Rafe, Emma, Ava and Rebecca."

Olivia blinked and looked over at Natalia. "Nat..."

"It's a beautiful name, maybe Emma can pick the middle name? Now, why are you stalling, we need to go get yelled at by my son properly."

Fin ~ September 2, 2009