Disclaimer: Scandal belongs to ABC & Shonda Rhimes

May 16th

2:30 am

Liv sat at the island in her pitch black kitchen with only the light from her iPad illuminating her face. Her latest episode of The Walking Dead had her on the edge of her seat. Just as the eyes of a recently reanimated corpse sprang open, the kitchen light popped on.

"Oh my God!" she shrieked "Karen?"

"Jesus, Liv. You scared the crap out of me! What are you doing down here so late?" Karen said clutching a hand to her chest.

"I scared you? I thought you were a zombie or worse, your father coming to chastise me for watching episodes ahead of him again."

Karen laughed and walked over to the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of water "Sorry, I didn't think anyone would be up. Do you want some water too?" she said motioning to her bottle

"Oh no I've got my milk and other snacks." Liv answered, pausing the iPad and turning to take in the young woman's looks. Karen was tall and willowy with all of Fitz's features. Staring at the kids had become a recent bad habit of hers- she would sit and stare at Karen, Gerry, and Teddy trying her hardest to pull out Fitz's dominant features, extract any obvious ones from Mellie, and add in her own. Fitz assumed it was just pregnancy brain but she knew she was just trying to figure out what a child of their own would look like.

Tonight however, Karen looked nothing like the prim and proper eldest child of Fitz and Mellie the world had come to know her as. Her dark wavy hair was sporting red streaks tonight and thrown up into a messy top-knot. Her make-up was darker and much heavier than normal. Barley covering her body was an outfit they had bought last weekend on their 'girls' day' at the mall. Of course, when Liv had bought it with her, the Guns n Roses top wasn't sliced up with a plunging neckline low enough to reveal her neon bikini top underneath and the shorts went much further down her model length legs. Fitz was going to have a stroke if he saw her.

"So little munchkin is still into dairy products, huh?" Karen asked hopping up on a stool next to her.

"Yeah," Liv exhaled, "Amongst other things." She finished waving a hand over her night time snack.

"Eww gross, Liv! Are you eating Sriracha on Oreos?" Karen said turning her face up in disgust.

"I know, I know! It looks so nasty but it tastes so good."

"Are those Dad's Oreos?"

Liv nervously tapped her thumbnail against her teeth "Yes. But you can't tell your Dad! You know how he gets about these cookies…"

Karen pondered a moment and tapped her chin as a mischievous grin spread across her face "Okay, Liv. I won't tell about the Oreos if you promise not to tell Dad about me coming in so late?"

"Karen, deal or no deal, I wouldn't rat you out to your Dad like that. You're 19." Liv paused to push a stray curl from her face. "You're practically a grown up. And you're one of the smartest almost grown-ups I know. As long as you're being safe, I say have a good time and enjoy your youth."

"Thanks, Liv."

"And I know it's not my place, but you are being careful right? I mean with boys… and sex?"

Karen threw her head back and let out a hearty laugh that reminded Liv of Fitz. "Don't worry. I'm not stupid enough to get knocked up before I'm married!" and with that comment Liv suddenly felt like Mellie was in the room.

Karen caught herself as soon as the words left her mouth "Shit!" she gasped covering her reddening face. "Liv, I'm so so SO sorry! I swear I didn't mean that about you! I wasn't thinking and-"

"Karen." Liv smiled and gave her a gentle pat on her knee. "Calm down. It's okay. I know you didn't mean that about me."

Karen groaned "I still shouldn't have said it. Sometimes it feels like you and Dad have been together for so long, I always forget you're not married yet."

"Sweetie, It's okay. Enough about my postponed nuptials," Liv said eager to change the subject. "How was your date with Brandon, tonight?"

Karen ducked her head sheepishly, "Actually, it's Trevor now. And we had a good time. We went to a house party that one of his friends was throwing."

"Hmm," Liv pondered while dragging another Oreo through the Sriracha on her plate. "I wasn't aware the secret service liked going to teen parties." She finished.

"They don't. Which is why…I ditched them?" She said timidly picking at the label on her bottle.

"Karen! That is not being safe! What if something had happened to you? None of us knew you were out. You're Dad's only rule for you this summer was to make sure you took your detail with you! This is the third time, Karen."

"Okay, Liv. Sorry!" She said cowering away. Liv was a tiny thing but her scary side made her seem like she was ten feet tall. "Honestly, the party was really tame. It was a bunch of lacrosse douchebags and girls that seemed to hate me as soon I walked in. What were they going to do? Bore me death with team stats and shoot figurative daggers of bitchy-ness at me?"

Liv crossed her arms in disapproval "Lacrosse teams at parties have been known to do a lot worse and it only takes one wrong word from some jealous girl and I'm waddling into a police station with your father in tow to get you out of jail. Nobody wants that right?"

Karen looked remorsefully at Liv "No." she sighed, "I guess you're right."

A few moments of silence passed between them.

"Okay then. I should be heading back to bed before your Dad gets up and catches both of us red handed." Liv carefully slid down off her stool and began to put her snacks away. She made a point to tuck Fitz's cookies back into their hiding spot behind his obnoxiously huge container of whey protein.

On her way out of the kitchen, she stopped next to Karen who was occupying herself with Facebook alerts on her phone and pulled her body down to so she could hug her. "I know I shouldn't be yelling at you- I'm not your Mom," she said softly "but I love you, Gerry, and Teddy. It would break my heart and kill your father if anything happened to you guys. So if you're mad, that's ok-"

Karen pulled away quickly and Liv noticed the tears pooling in her cerulean eyes "Liv, I'm not mad. I actually think it's kinda cool that you did that." She paused to laugh at Liv's puzzled look, "It's just when I visit Mom in California, she never says stuff like that. If I mess up, she usually tells me how bad it could make her look. I know she cares in her own way, but it makes me feel like crap."

Liv felt a flash of anger at Mellie. One would have thought that after making out like a bandit in her divorce from Fitz, jump starting her own political career, and finding 'love' with an aging California real estate developer, that Mellie would have softened up and devoted more time to her kids. But no, not the former Mrs. Grant, she was still dedicated to photo- ops and perfect public image. Liv had half a mind to call her up and curse her out…

Karen took note of the fiery look passing over Liv's face and smiled, "I'm happy you and Dad are finally together."

Liv tensed up at that mention. She and Fitz had decided that when it came to the kids, they would stick to the story the kids would be able to find in the news if they ever went looking; Fitz had affairs, Mellie told the world, and Liv had been accused but was later proven to have not been his mistress. Fitz hated it and Liv wasn't particularly proud about the lying either, but it had been deemed necessary since Fitz and Mellie were going through a nasty divorce behind the scenes.

"I think I first knew when you came on the trail- the first time. When we got to come along, I would look over and Dad would be looking at you like people do in the movies when they first fall in love. I swear I'd never seen him look at Mom like that. He still looks at you that way. I'm only saying this because, you were always really cool to Gerry and I when we were kids and you make Dad insanely happy. I'm happy that you're going to be the mother to my little sister in there and I'm thrilled that you're going to be my stepmom after the munchkin is born." Karen finished with a caress to Liv's protruding baby bump.

"Thank you, Karen. That means the world to me." Liv said smiling down at her belly.

"No worries. We love you, Liv. You're our family. Now, you and munchkin should go get some sleep." She said turning back to her phone.

"Yeah. You should too. I'm sure people will be here long before the baby shower is supposed to start." She said turning to leave.

"Okay. Night, Liv."

"Night, Karen." Liv smiled and paused in the kitchen entryway "Oh and don't for one second think I missed you calling the baby a girl. You and your Dad are going to lose this bet. I'm one hundred percent sure this is a boy."

Karen laughed at her retreating back and called out, "Totally a girl!"

"You okay, baby?" Fitz mumbled barely lifting his head off his pillow. He laid spread eagle on his stomach, taking up most of the bed in her absence.

"Yeah I'm fine. Our little one is tap dancing on my bladder and got hungry for snacks." She answered pulling back the covers to crawl in next to him.

Fitz turned on his side and Liv tucked herself into his chest and draped his arm across the space between her belly and breasts.

"What time is it?" he asked pressing a kiss into her hair.

"After three."

"Wow. She's not letting you get any sleep these days."

Even in the dark he could sense the bothered look she leveled him with. "No he isn't letting me sleep. He's kicking up a storm since Karen and I talked." Liv mentally kicked herself for blurting out too much.

"Karen was downstairs?" Fitz asked moving his hand lower to feel the quick kicks of the restless baby.

"Yeah she was thirsty and came down for some water."

"Yeah. Okay, Livvie. More like she just strolled in from her date with that Trevor kid." Fitz countered matter-of-factly.

Liv stared up at him in shock. "How did you-?"

"I'm still former President Grant. The secret service reports everything to me. Karen thinks that I don't know about her sneaking out and trying to ditch her detail? Please. I figured that out before she gave us that bogus goodnight after movie night last night."

"Close your mouth, Livvie, you'll catch flies." He said chuckling at her awed expression.

"Can I just say," she smiled caressing his face, "I'm absurdly happy that you're the father of my child."

"Damn straight." He said kissing her quickly "I know everything I need to know about my kids, Livvie. I even know that you're the one who's been stealing my Oreos."

"Now there is just no way Secret Service told you all that!"

"Of course not, you've been burping in your sleep and it smells like my Oreos and that Sriracha you like on everything."

"You jerk! I have not!" she chuckled playfully smacking at his shoulder

"You have, but I think it's cute. Smelly… but cute." He smiled placing a kiss to her forehead before he reached down to press a kiss to her swollen tummy.

"Let Mommy get some sleep little one," he whispered before receiving a slight thump through her belly to his chin. "Daddy loves you too."

Settling back down next to Liv, Fitz intertwined their fingers resting at the top of her bump and they quickly fell asleep snuggled closely together.

A/N- First off, I can't thank you guys enough for your reviews, follows, and favs of Soft & Domesticated. It was amazing to know that you all liked it so much. I have to say, I never intended to write a follow up and I certainly never intended to post it a year later (Sorry 'bout that)! I hope this is a cute follow up to it and I hope to have some first chapters of other stuff I've been working on up soon! Thanks again! Happy Reading!