It was the very next morning and Olivia was meeting Cyrus and Mellie in a conference room at the hotel Mellie were staying in. Olivia brought her team with her. Huck, Harrison, and Abby. Her gladiators. Harrison had come up with the name six years ago when they had all come together. Huck said it was the dumbest thing he had ever heard.
Olivia had saved Abby first. They had met her senior year of college and ended up going to law school together. Abby had ended up in a bad marriage and Olivia had gotten her out of it. Olivia had saved Huck after that. He was her loyal monster. He'd do anything she asked of him. No questions asked. Harrison was the last person she saved. She had met him in prison while working on a scandal involving some corrupt politicians. She thought he was too smart and far too good-looking to spend eight years of his life behind bars, so she rescued him too. They would all go over a cliff for Olivia and although she would never admit it out loud that thought alone terrified her.
As soon as Olivia and her team entered the room an old friend greeted her with open arms.
"Olivia. I'm glad you could make it. Mellie told me that you two had drinks last night. I didn't know that you two were old friends."
"We went to college together. We actually only knew each other for a semester."
"Well, it's a small world isn't it?"
"It sure is." She says before she turns around to face her team and tells them to set up their equipment.
"Liv!" Mellie said as she entered the room with a tall man behind her. "I'm glad you're here. I'm sure you remember my husband from back in college."
"You married the All American."
He smiled widely at the nickname that the woman had given him so many years ago. "She did." He said as he came forward and hugged her. "Mellie was right. You do look amazing."
"Thank you. You look great as well. You two always did look good together." She says as she remembers the first time she met the couple.
Olivia is at a house party a couple of blocks from the university she's attending when she meets Mellie and her then boyfriend for the first time.
She's dancing with a guy she met while at the University's library. His name is Edison. He's tall, dark, and handsome. Someone her mother would approve of.
"We should get out of here. Go somewhere more quite." He says as he wraps is arms tighter around Olivia's waist.
"Why?" She asks with a risen eyebrow and a little attitude.
"Because we've been going out for weeks and we haven't gotten past first base, Olivia. I've been a very patient man."
"And now you think you deserve a treat?"
" You know exactly what I think I deserve." He responds while leaning down to give her a kiss.
"Ugh, stop." She declares as she turns her face away from him. She tries to push him away but he's much stronger than her. "Seriously, Edison stop."
"Is he bothering you?"
Olivia looks up to see a handsome man with brown hair that's perfectly combed back. He looks kind of like superman. Like an all American boy who could get by on just his good looks alone.
"No." Olivia answers, finally being able to escape Edison's grip. "He was just leaving."
Edison looks the All American over again before scoffing and walking away.
"Thank you."
"Don't thank me. Thank her." He says pointing to a woman standing in the house's kitchen doorway. She has long wavy brown hair and beautiful blue eyes. She's nursing a beer and staring directly at Olivia.
Olivia made her way over to the woman who looked oddly familiar. The woman didn't take her eyes off of Olivia her entire stroll over. "So, is the All American one of your goons or something?"
"All American." She laughs at the name. "He'll like that. And no. He's not one of my goons. His name is Fitz. He's my boyfriend."
"Well thank you for sending him over."
"No problem. I would have come over myself but I'm not nearly as subtle or nice as Fitz is."
Olivia looks into the woman's blue eyes again and it only takes a second for her to figure out where she's seen them before.
"Your name's Mellie, right?" She asks. "You're in my debate class.
"Ugh, that class." She groans while pushing her hair out of her face.
Her voice gets a couple of octaves lower and Olivia thinks it's the sexist thing she's ever heard.
"Not doing too well in the class?"
"Not as well as I had hoped."
"I can help you. If you want."
"And what's in it for you?"
"A friendship. Hopefully. My mother says I need to get out more and meet new people."
"Well you've got yourself a deal, Olivia." She says before finishing her beer and placing it on the kitchen counter. "I'm going to grab another beer. Do you want one?"
"Oh, no. I don't drink beer."
"No? Then what does Olivia Pope drink?"
"Wine. Red wine to be specific."
She half expected Mellie to laugh and ask why I girl who liked red wine was at a party like this but instead she smiled. Mellie had smiled at her like that was the best thing that she had heard all night.
"Red wine." She said as she thought out loud. "That might be hard to find in this dump, but I do love a good challenge." She said before she started raiding the entire kitchen.
And to Liv's surprise, Mellie ends up finding that bottle of wine.
They decide not to stay at the party any longer and end up at Liv's apartment.
"This is a really nice place." Mellie says as she enters Olivia's place and looks around. "You stay here by yourself?"
"Yes. My mother didn't want me to stay on campus. She thinks that the dorm life is too much of a distraction from schoolwork."
"Do you always do what your mother tells you, Olivia?"
She looks at Mellie and stops and thinks about every decision she's ever made in her life because of her mother. She didn't date in high school because her mother had told her that boys in high school only wanted one thing. She wore her hair shoulder length because her mother said it looked more professional and she went to Harvard instead of Stanford because her mother said it would look better on resumes. Her mother had threw her acceptance letter in the trash even though she knew how much Olivia liked California and adored the beach.
"Yes." She responds looking at Mellie who was now looking through Olivia's refrigerator.
"You have absolutely no food in this place." She says as she closes the fridge door with a disappointed look on her face. She makes her way over to the pantry and chuckles at what's in it. " I stand corrected. You have a large supply of red wine and popcorn."
"That's kind of all I know how to make. You should know that if we're going to be friends."
"Well lucky for you I like popcorn." She says as she puts a bag in the microwave. "And I can buy my own beer."
"What's with you and beer?"
"I didn't really drink it before I met Fitz. He has me hooked on it."
And suddenly Olivia realizes that she took Mellie away from the party.
" You know you didn't have to walk me home, right? I could have made it here fine on my own. I didn't mean to take you away from your boyfriend."
"I'm sure you could have but I wanted to come home with you, Olivia. And don't worry about Fitz. I'm sure he went home with someone too."
"And that doesn't bother you?" She asks with a hint of confusion. Mellie didn't seem like the type of woman that would let a man cheat on her and get away with it.
Mellie looks her over for a minute. Like she was trying to see if Olivia was worthy of the truth. "Can I tell you something? You have to promise not to tell anyone else though."
"Okay. I promise."
"Fitz and I aren't really dating. He's my beard."
"Beard?"
"Yeah. He's only dating me because I don't want people to know that I'm gay."
The confession hadn't surprised Olivia. Mellie had been checking her out all night. The brunette was right when she said she wasn't subtle. "And why don't you want be to know that?"
"Because I can't be the first female president of the United States if people know that I don't like cock."
That surprises Olivia. "You want to be the president of the United States?"
"More than anything."
"Liv, we've got something." Huck says snapping Olivia back into the present.
"What is it?"
"I just got an email from a woman who claims she had an affair with Fitz back in college. Says her name's Amanda Tanner."
"Is that true?" Olivia asks Fitz even though she already knows the answer.
"We slept together a few times." He responds while avoiding eye contact with his wife.
"Ok, well we can squash this easily. Men cheat all of the time. No one expects a man to keep it in his pants. It's sexist but it'll work."
"Well there might be a problem with that."
"Is there a kid?"
"No." He says and then looks over at Mellie.
"What is it, Huck?" Olivia asks impatiently making her way over to Huck.
"She says she slept with Mellie too." All eyes in the room go to Mellie. Huck looks at her too and then back at Olivia before speaking again. "And there's a video."