A/N: So I guess it's actually not a one-shot…please review and tell me what you think and if you want more!

Xx Kate

The choice between Mellie and Cyrus was possibly one of the hardest decisions Fitz had ever truly had to make in his life and the discussion with his ex-wife on the balcony hadn't made it any easier. On one hand, he had no doubt in Mellie's ability to run the country effectively – she was smart as a whip, confident under pressure, and was so diligent and detail-oriented that there was no way her agenda would fall to the wayside during her term. And then there was Cyrus – equally as intelligent, strong-willed, and persistent. Both Mellie and Cyrus were hungry for this position, but who deserved it more? Probably Mellie, she had been through so much…. But who was the best for the job – the best for the country? It seemed like an impossible choice and Fitz was running out of time. The time he had most certainly couldn't be spent sleeping. So he wasn't and he hadn't since…well, now he couldn't remember the last time he had gotten a full night's rest.

He was into writing lists now. Lists at the kitchen table. Just scribbling down words, crossing them off, tapping his slipper against the base of the marble island to the beat of whatever music he had playing on the sound system – tonight (this morning?) it was Michael Bublé – the guy could seriously sing.

He glanced down at the paper in front of him. It was split down the middle with a hard drawn line – one side had "Mel" and the other "Cy." Each with an equal number of attributes listed underneath that made them absolutely perfect for the job. Or not perfect in some cases…he underlined a specific word in each of their categories – in Mellie's, "Teddy" and in Cyrus', "Ella." It made it hard to run a country while raising small children. He knew from experience – he had practically missed the first four years of Teddy's life and he knew that's what was truthfully at the base of Mellie's hesitance. Part of him wanted to choose Cyrus just so that he and Mellie could finally truly raise a child together without any distractions. Teddy deserved that – two loving parents' undivided attention. Something Jerry and Karen certainly never got.

Fitz leaned forward and let his forehead rest against the cold marble of the table. "Just a moment of rest," he mumbled to himself.

Two minutes, two hours, he wasn't sure, but the next thing he knew he waking up to a gentle tug on his bathrobe lapel. "Daddy," came a small voice.

He jerked up suddenly and met eyes with his ex-wife, who was smirking and holding a grinning, sleepy looking boy on her hip. "Good morning," she said brightly. Fitz took a moment to realize Mellie was now also in his sweatpants as well as his sweatshirt that she had been wearing last night. Her dark hair was pulled into a messy bun and she had no make-up on but was somehow glowing.

"What are you doing sleeping down here in the kitchen? I hope it wasn't because I was sleeping in the bed, because that was just out of habit I swear…" Mellie blushed.

Fitz tried to hide his shock, "No, that's not why…I just fell asleep while thinking about things…" He said, casually folding the note sheet he had made in half so that Mellie couldn't see it.

Mellie chuckled and continued as if he hadn't responded, "It would have been the same thing as when we were married anyhow, wouldn't it have?"

"Well – "
"We didn't do anything then and we wouldn't have done anything now," she continued to giggle. Fitz failed to see what was so funny; Mellie was way too chipper for so early in the morning.

"I wouldn't say we never did anything," he deadpanned, gesturing with his eyes towards the small boy who was still clinging to Mellie's hip, his face nudged in the crook her neck. Teddy was living proof the couple had done something.

Mellie smoothed down Teddy's rumpled hair and kissed his pudgy cheek, "I don't really count that, do you?" Mellie gave him a knowing glance, but still had that impenetrable smile lurking at the corner of her lips.

Fitz cleared his throat uncomfortably, his eyebrows knit together in confusion, "Well, there were other times, Mellie…"

Mellie clucked, "Hmm… I guess I don't really count those either," she shrugged.

Fitz crossed his arms in frustration and grinned awkwardly, "Oh you don't, do you? Well then, Mellie what do you count? I didn't realize you had such specific parameters for S-E-X," he whisper-spelled.

Mellie rolled her eyes, still smiling. It was playful banter but as was always the case with the couple, there was so much under the surface of their conversation. They just had too much tumultuous history to say what they actually meant.

"I didn't used to, I suppose. But things are different now, I am different now," she clarified, distracting herself with the hem of Teddy's pajama top while her face flushed furiously.

Fitz scoffed lightly, "What's so different, Mel?" He was genuinely curious because something was definitely different.

Mellie looked up hesitantly, her face still beet red, "You probably don't remember, but years ago, you asked me if I was tired of all the pretending…"
"Yes, I remember," Fitz recalled, sadly.

"Recently, I finally realized what you meant by that," she paused and made direct eye contact with him. Fitz noticed her demeanor change; he had never seen his ex-wife so wary to say something. She continued after a moment and smiled shyly, "This is going to sound silly… but I finally realized that… love does exist…or maybe I knew it existed but I finally realized that it was possible for me; that it's possible and that I deserve it, you know…?"

Fitz nodded but honestly had no idea what to say; luckily, Teddy filled the silence. He reached up to his mother's face and flattened his little palm against her red cheek and then turned to his father, "Did you know that mama is magic?" he asked innocently, his eyes widening and his mouth breaking out into a toothy grin. Fitz and Mellie looked at each other and just couldn't contain their laughter.

Fitz held out his arms and Teddy slid from one parent's hip to the other, "I did know that, actually," he told his son and winked at Mellie, "Way before you were born, or before even Karen and Jerry were born, your mama used to perform her magic on me all the time!" He laughed.

Fitz didn't think it was possible for Mellie to be redder than she had been, but when he glanced over at her, her cheeks were the color of a cherry tomato.

"Fitzgerald!" Mellie huffed.

Fitz' laughed warmly and pulled Mellie into his side. He kissed the top of her head and whispered into her ear, "You do deserve it and I'm glad you're happy, Mel."