Hey guys! Sorry it took me so long to post this chapter but it's been a hell of a week for me. I should be able to update regularly now. But this chapter delves into Liv's past! You get to know how she got into art and you get introduced to her sister Frankie. I hope you like it and please leave a review!

I do NOT own Scandal :)


Fire, there was always fire. Her childhood home engulfed in flames and there was chaos. Screaming, always screaming and tears, pain. Her heart, physically removed from her chest and lying on the cold sidewalk, a knife with a note on it. She always picks up the knife. Blood on her hands she reads the note that's attached. It's the same note, every time, no matter what. "Everyone you love will die a painful death. Death will always come to you." More screaming, her mother and father trapped in the house, burning alive, her sister she was never able to find her sister in the mass of people… running through a crowd, everyone looks so familiar but no one she can put a name to. "Frankie!" She yelled. Still running, she never stops. Then the woods would appear, dark and terrifying. She's always alone and afraid. Walking in the dark she comes across a cemetery, each headstone engraved with all of the people she'd loved and lost. A hooded figure appears and grabs her from behind. She screams but no one can hear her, no one can help her. Screaming, screaming, screaming…

"Liv! Liv, wake up. Please wake up. Olivia!" She awoke with a start. Her vision was blurry but she could make out a figure standing over her, her breath hitched and tears started to stream down her face as her vision focused and she realized who it was.

"Harrison." She gaspd out. He climbs into bed and takes her into his arms. He's seen her like this before. It'd been years since she'd had her recurring nightmares. She would wake up screaming and crying. Her pulse racing and her eyes dilated.

"You were screaming, I just got back and all I could hear was you screaming and I thought… you scared me." He said as he held her tightly in his arms and rubbed circles into her back. Her pulse was slowly dropping down to a normal rate and she'd stopped shaking.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize… God, why is my dream back? I can't deal with this again." She cried into Harrison's chest as he continued to hold her tightly.

"It's okay, Liv. It's just a dream. Nothing bad is going to happen to you, I'll make sure of that."


He knew something was wrong with him. He didn't know how he stopped himself from ravaging her. The taste of her still lingered on his lips, the smell of her still filled his nostrils, the feel of her warm body burned into his memory. She was like a dream and he didn't want to wake up, but he had. His mind wouldn't let him take her like she was some fling. He wanted her so badly and yet wouldn't allow himself the pleasure. He sighed as he tossed and turned in bed wishing she were there with him. It was almost five a.m. and he hadn't slept a wink because his mind continued to drift to Olivia.

After a few more moments of rambling thoughts about this addicting woman he decided he should get up. There was no real hope of sleep in the near future and the sun was slowly rising. He got up and walked downstairs into the kitchen to prepare some coffee and a light breakfast. Once he'd made some toast and scrambled eggs he shuffled over to his desk. He took a sip of his coffee and aimlessly opened his laptop and when he did the blank word document that'd been staring him in the face for the past seven years was still there. He sighed lightly and bit into a piece of toast. He tapped on the keys lightly as his thoughts continued to make their way back to Olivia. Taking a bite of his eggs and then sipping on his coffee he began to wonder what would happen if he wrote all the things he was feeling for her down. What could be the harm in that? He'd be able to get out everything he thought about her, all of his feelings, his conflicts, his yearning, and no one would know. After a moment of contemplation he slowly began typing away.

Why am I so consumed by the thought of her? I barely know her and yet everything about her seems familiar. She's like a breath of fresh air or a cold drink of water; I haven't thought about another woman in years let alone actually feel things for one. When she smiles at me my heart stops, I forget to breathe when I get close to her. She pulls me in and I can't help but hang on to every word she says. Her voice is like a whisper in the wind and her laugh. Oh, her laugh makes my soul sing. I've spent a total of, what? Four hours with this woman and I feel like I know her completely without knowing her at all.

I'd shared my inner most secret, the thing that tears me apart almost every day and she held my hand through it all. She was by my side as I told her the truth about the most difficult time in my life. She didn't have to do that. She didn't have to listen to me and she didn't have to show me her private works. The most beautiful pieces of abstract art I've ever seen and she didn't want the world to know they existed. Why? She was brilliant and she knew that much but something prevented her from sharing with the world. Something prevented her from exposing herself. Why was she so seemingly closed off from the world?

The words flowed freely from him as the thought of her filled every crevice of his mind.


She could never fall back asleep after her nightmares. It was almost five in the morning and she was wide awake but she needed to call her sister. She didn't want to wake her but she needed to hear her voice. She needed to know she was okay.

"Liv, it's five. Why are you calling me so early?" Frankie said, sleep coursing through her voice.

"I had another nightmare. I know, it's stupid but I just needed to hear your voice. Go back to sleep. I love you."

"Are you sure? I can come over if you want. But only if you make breakfast and a large pot of coffee." Olivia smiled at her sister's comment.

"No. I'm fine. I'll call you later and maybe we can grab a late lunch."

"Okay, Liv. Love you. Try to get some rest."

"Love you too. Bye."

Liv, although comforted by her sisters voice knew she wouldn't be able to sleep so she took out her sketch pad and a fresh piece of charcoal and etched out the events of her dream. She knew the root of her dreams but after years of therapy she'd finally been able to escape them.

Liv was 17 and Frankie was 15 when their parents died in a horrible house fire. Liv had been out on a date and Frankie was spending the night with a few of her girlfriends who lived down the street. It was a very cold night in Boston and Evelyn and Oliver Pope had decided to light a fire and watch a movie as they waited up for their eldest daughter to get home. They fell asleep on the couch while watching the movie and a cracking piece of wood flew out of the fireplace and onto the rug that was near it. Within a matter of seconds the flames grew and the curtains caught fire. The house was engulfed in flames by the time Mr. and Mrs. Pope realized what was happening. The wood beams that were in the house collapsed and trapped them inside the house, smoke filling their lungs as they tried and failed to escape.

Liv and her date were driving down the street and could see the commotion, all of the fire trucks and ambulances and suddenly she felt something. He gut told her something was wrong and she knew. She jumped out of the car and ran through the crowd where she saw two body bags, her house nothing but a shell, but not her sister. She ran through the crowd looking for her and then there was screaming. So much screaming that she knew it was her. She followed them to her, wrapping her arms around her sister who was still in her pajamas, not affected by the cold because she was numb.

She didn't cry that night, nor did she cry during the funeral. She had to be strong for her sister but all of that stress developed into horrible nightmares. After the death of their parents they moved in with their favorite Aunt Lisa. She loved the girls like they were her own and was more that glad to take care of them. The first month after they were there is when the dreams started. Life was moving on and Liv felt nothing but love and support from her family but she'd never open up to them. She'd never tell them how she was doing, she just kept it all bottled up and one night her dreams sent chilling screams throughout the house. She had these nightmares for almost two weeks before she went to therapy. She was going through an emotional suicide; not wanting to expose her true feelings was causing her to have these horrible dreams. She'd been able to work through her issues after almost six months but it was worth it. The dreams became less and less frequent. She'd found an outlet in her art and the dreams stopped completely.

She'd been drawing for hours, trying to work everything out in her mind. She was drawing the hooded figure, he was new to her. She'd never seen the man in her dreams before and his image stuck out in her brain. She continued to etch out his features, his nose, his lips, his hands that grabbed her, and his eyes. His eyes were familiar, very familiar.

"I know him." She continued to look at the picture, wracking her brain for a clue to who he was. She closed her eyes and tried to picture him, and then the sudden realization washed over her. She gasped as she opened her eyes.

"Fitz."


It was now almost ten in the morning, Fitz had been typing away on his computer for about five hours and his eyes were getting tired. He needed a break and after writing down all of his feelings towards Liv, how he felt about pulling away from her last night, exposing himself to her, and how frustrated he was with himself for not waiting for her to come into his life. Why did he marry Mellie and settle for a life he didn't want with a woman he didn't love. He and Mellie had been friends for years and they were both ambitious but it wasn't love. He was in love with Liv and if not love it was very strong like. He sighed as he pushed his laptop away from him. Nineteen pages of raw feelings in five hours, most of which he was sure was all very much repetitive and he would look over it later. He didn't even realize he'd written so much, that he'd actually wrote a short beautiful story, that he'd found something to write about.

Getting up from his desk, Fitz walked into his kitchen where he poured himself another cup of coffee and looked at his cell phone. He wondered if he should call Liv this early. He figured she'd either still be sleeping or working so he decided that if she didn't answer the phone he'd just leave a message. His heart sank a bit when her voicemail picked up.

"Hi. It's me, Fitz. I was just wondering if you'd like to grab lunch today? I'm sure you're busy but if you have time I would love to see you again. Okay. Bye."

He sat down his cell and took a sip of coffee. What if she didn't want to see him again because of last night? He'd pulled away from their kiss last night. It was a damn good kiss and he wanted her but he couldn't bring himself to take her. He wanted to continue, he wanted to make love to her. He was so unbelievably attracted to her, he craved her, he could still taste her on his lips but he didn't have it in him to sleep with her. He didn't want her to feel used, never that.


Liv was sitting on the counter in her kitchen talking over her dream with Harrison when he called.

"It's him." Liv said anxiously.

"Answer the phone." Harrison said has he looked over his mug at her.

"I don't know. What if…"

"Liv. Answer the phone. He likes you and you like him…"

"I just want to talk about things with Frankie before I see him again. I need to know what my dream means."

"Frankie is gonna agree with me. You know she is. So answer the phone."

"No. He'll leave a message." She said as she continued to look at her phone. They sat in silence and not ten seconds later she heard the ding of her phone. He'd left her a voicemail. She sighed and took a sip of tea.

"What are you afraid of? Just because he was in your dream doesn't mean anything. He was on your mind and from the way you described your make out session you sure as hell should have been dreaming about him. I need to use some of Fitz's skills because he has to have some serious game in order to get you."

"Harrison." Liv said as she rolled her eyes at her best friend. "I just want to know why he was in my dream. You could be right that I was just thinking about him but seriously, why him? I've dated other guys before and they have never been in my dreams let alone that particular one. He was pulling me from behind but when I turned around I saw his face. Why was he pulling me? What does he want from me?"

"Liv! You're acting like he did it in real life. He didn't do anything. Maybe that's the problem. You actually like this guy and he pulled away from you. I think your ego is getting the best of you in this situation. Did he bruise your pride a little?" He said has he ducked away from the dish rag that Liv threw at his head. Just then she got another call, this one from her sister. Frankie told her that she was heading to their favorite restaurant in the country and that she and Harrison should stop lying around and meet her for brunch. Liv agreed and they both threw on clothes and headed for the country.

45 minutes later they were sitting on the patio enjoying unlimited mimosa's at their favorite brunch spot.

"Maybe you should call your therapist?" Frankie said as she looked over her sister. Frankie was younger than Liv but she'd always been very protective of her, especially after her dreams started.

"I don't want to go through that again. She just tells me that I'm hiding my motions again and that I need to express them in my art or to the person. I know how I feel about Fitz…"

"And how do you feel about him?" Frankie said with a small smirk on her face.

"Frankie, he's beautiful and sweet and oh so very handsome and the way he kissed me just… Lets just say I like him. A lot." Liv said as she smirked to herself about the intense feelings he gave her and how much passion was in that one kiss. That smirk did not go unnoticed by her sister or Harrison.

"Damn, she's really feeling him!" Frankie said as she looked at Harrison who was laughing to himself.

"What? No. he's just…'
"Yeah, whatever. So did he call you yet?'
"He called her this morning but she didn't answer. She said she wanted to talk over her dream with you before she called him." Harrison said and Frankie gave him a side eye.

"She said that? She knows we're one in the same." She said before she cut her eyes back to her sister. "We always say the same thing when it comes to your love life and yet you used me as an excuse. Why don't you want to call him back?"
"Frankie I'm scared." Liv admitted as she downed her fourth mimosa.

"What are you scared of? He's new, and great. He's obviously attracted to you so what's the hold up? After we eat you will call him. End of story."

"Ugh, fine. I'll call him." Liv said as she turned her head and looked out over the patio at the beautiful rolling hills and the small town that was just over the hill. She continued to think about her dream and wondered what would have happened if Harrison didn't wake her up. Deep in her thoughts Liv thought back on the kiss that they shared. Her lips burned and she felt a shiver go down her spine at the thought of his hands gripping her waist. She let out a heavy sigh as she brought herself out of the memory and looked back to Frankie who was staring at her with a broad smile. Liv just looked down at her phone, staring at the blinking light that indicated she had a voicemail.

"Just think of it this way. If you do get some tonight you won't be having bad dreams, you'll be having wet dreams." Harrison ducked as Frankie threw a piece of bread at his head.

"Hey! Will you two stop throwing shit at me?" he said with a thousand watt smile plastered on his face.

They laughed and continued to chat about random things and upcoming events Liv would be attending. They ordered food drank more and then ordered dessert before Liv worked up the courage to run away from them and call Fitz.

She found a large tree at the back of the property and climbed up to one of the lower branches. She'd always loved climbing trees, it gave her a sense of freedom and reminded her of her childhood. She sat there for a moment trying to take in the beautiful view. After a moment she pulled out her phone and listened to Fitz's voicemail.

She inhaled deeply and smiled at the sound of his voice. He seemed so disheartened that she hadn't answered the phone and it made her stomach clench. She felt horrible for not answering his call but there was nothing she could do but apologize.

The message was short and sweet. She quickly dialed his number and held her breath as the phone began to ring.


It'd been about four hours since he left her that voicemail. He was starting to think he blew it with her and that was slowly eating away at him. He was sitting absentmindedly on the couch in the den flipping through an old scrapbook he had of him a Mellie. They had put this one together for the baby. It had pictures of their wedding day, pictures of him and her on his book tours, them with the sonogram and even a few of them picking out things and painting the nursery. The pictures of them before the pregnancy showed a couple that was the picture of happiness and yet they were filled with plastered smiles, cold air, and lack of intimacy. Fitz was lost in the pictures as he found himself wondering about what could have been. He wondered what his life would be like had Mellie and their daughter still been alive. He knew that his little girl would have been about eight years old and she would have been beautiful like her mother. He missed her every day and would give anything to have his family back. That's all he wanted. He'd begged Mellie for a child for years and when she finally gave in and they got pregnant he was elated. He wasn't prepared to lose them, both of them in one day. He finally had the chance at a real family but it was snatched from his grasp. He wondered if he'd ever get the chance to have a family again.

His mind drifted to Olivia and he wondered what it would be like to have her as his wife and to have beautiful babies with her. His mind drifted to a place where things could happen and life was easy. Liv was everything he wanted in a woman. She was easy to talk to and caring and so full of life. She was incredibly smart and a brilliant artist and to top it all off she was gorgeous.

He wanted kids. He wanted kids with Olivia. Beautiful babies with Grant grey-blue eyes and charm but their skin would be a light toffee color. They would have their mothers pout, big full and soft lips, and her big doe shaped eyes. Their hair would be light brown and curly. Big ringlet curls that bounced as they ran through the house and played outside. He wanted so badly to have that with her. He knew it was ridiculous, they hadn't even been on a real date and yet he was thinking about marriage and kids.

"What's wrong with me? Liv and I aren't even an "us"!" he huffed as he closed the scrapbook and placed it on the coffee table in front of him. He leaned back on the couch and stared up at the ceiling. "I need to get out of this house."

He thought a walk around town would help to clear his mind, plus he was hungry as hell and he figured Liv wouldn't call him back. He allowed himself five more minutes of self-pity and then he forced himself off of the couch and ran upstairs to get ready for the day.

He'd just jumped out of the shower when his phone rang. Wiping his hands on the towel that hung oh so low on his waist he picked up his cell phone. He smiled at the name that flashed on the screen.

"Hi." He said simply when he answered.

"Hi." He could hear her smiling into the phone and that made him smile in return.

"You know, I've been thinking about you all day. I was beginning to think I'd scared you off. I hope that isn't the case."

Liv laughed lightly at that because he had in fact scared her off, but not for the reason he thinks. "No you didn't." She paused, biting her lip. "I'm sorry I didn't call you back sooner. I'm out in the country with my sister and my best friend, we just had a very long brunch."

"Really? Well then I take it you won't be home or hungry for a while?" He said somewhat sadly.

"No I won't. I'm sorry and I have an event that my sister is forcing me to go to so tonight is a bust as well."

"Don't feel bad. I think I can manage without you. "She could hear the disappointment in his voice. She wanted to spend time with him but she didn't want to drag him to this boring event. She looked over at the patio where her sister and Harrison were sitting and noticed them staring at her. She smiled and silently thanked God that she had those two in her life. They would berate her for not inviting him so she took a deep breath and asked him.

"You know, you could come as my date. You won't have me all to yourself but we can hang out and you can meet the snobs of the art society that I just so happen to be friends with and then you can take me out for drinks after because I'm sure I'll be in dire need of something stronger than champagne by the end of the night." She said with a hint of mischievousness in her voice that didn't go faze him too much.

"Sure! It'll give me a reason to pull out my very expensive suit." He said lightly.

"Hmmm… well you can pick me up at 7:30 and we'll paint the town." He noticed the change in her voice. There was a hint of sex laced in the way she spoke that had him questioning her meaning.

"I have a feeling you're going to be a handful tonight." He said. There was a hitch in his voice, he couldn't believe he was turned on by the mere sound of her sultry voice.

"You have no idea, Dr. Grant. Just be ready my good sir." She said as she hung up the phone leaving Fitz speechless on the other end of the line.


He was on time. She'd just slipped into her custom Louboutins when she heard the knock at her door. She grabbed her clutch and sauntered up to the door; taking a deep breath she opened it to greet her handsome date.

"Wow." Was all he could muster as he took in the sight of her. She was wearing a simple white strapless gown that clung to her body like a second skin. She was glowing wearing very little makeup and her hair in a simple up-do with a few loose tendrils falling on her face. She was breathtaking.

"You don't look so bad yourself Dr. Grant." She said as she looked over him. He was wearing a classic black suit that hung on him perfectly. She had on a crisp white shirt and he had three buttons undone, just enough to show off his greying chest hair. Liv thought he looked like pure sex. She smiled as she turned to lock the door.

"Damn, Liv. You're trying to kill me, aren't you?" Fitz said as he took in the amount skin that was exposed; there was basically no back to her dress. It took all of his strength not to reach out and touch her, to pull her close to him and caress every inch of her exposed skin.

She turned around and winked at him. "I take it you approve of my dress." She smiled seductively at him.

"Yes. Yes I do. I'm just glad I'll be the one on your arm tonight or else I'd be quite jealous. Not that I'm the jealous type or anything." He said smiling down at her.

"I think you might be but we will surely find out tonight. You see this event just so happens to be hosted by my ex. His name is Joaquin." Fitz raised his eyebrow at that and rubbed his chin nervously.

"Seriously?" He asked hoping it was just a joke.

"No." She said smiling. "But it was great to see you sweat for just a moment." She giggled for a moment but was stopped abruptly when she felt a massive hand grip her by her waits and pull her into the solid mass of man that was standing in front of her. She let her eyes linger on his chest for a moment and then slowly let them drift up to his piercing eyes. Her lips were slightly parted and her breath became labored.

"I knew you were going to be a handful tonight." He said as he lowered his lips to hers, not making complete contact. He was teasing her, letting the anticipation build before he took her lips fully and forcefully .One of his hands cupped her face as the other wrapped around her waist pulling her closer to him. Livs hands drifted up his arms and into his curly brown hair, letting a small moan escape from her mouth. She felt his hand leave her face and ghost over her ass before she felt him grip her butt firmly. His touch sent a shock of electricity up her spine and she gasped into his mouth. When she did he pulled away from her slightly and stared into her eyes, still holding her close to him as they both caught their breath.

"Why don't we skip this event, open up a bottle of wine and take this party up to your bedroom." Fitz said in a raspy voice that sent chills up Livs spine and a tingle through her vagina. She wanted to stay home and continue what they had started but she made a promise to her sister and she never broke a promise.

"I wish we could. I promised my sister I'd attend and she'd kill me if I didn't. Plus she wants to meet you along with Harrison. They want to meet the man who took my breath away." She said smiling at him and he raised his eyebrow.

"So you've been talking about me, to your sister. Who's Harrison?"

"Oh, he's my best friend. The one I've been talking about."

"Ah, so I guess I have a few people to impress tonight." He said as he ran his hand over her exposed back. She leaned up and kissed him softly on the lips before running her thumb over them, removing the smudged lipstick.

"You'll be fine. Now lets go. The sooner we get this over with the sooner you can take me home." She said as she pulled away from him and headed towards his Porsche Cayenne. Fitz could only stare at her swishing backside as she walked away. He didn't want to go this event anymore but he could wait. For her, he could and would do almost anything.


So what did you think?

Poor Liv and her nightmares! Smh

Fitz finally wrote something but he doesn't even realize that it's good. Maybe Liv will read over it and give him the approval he's seeking?

I love Frankie and Harrison together. They are a dynamic duo who are very protective of Liv. I love it!

Again, please let me know what you think! Xoxo