Liv woke up to the sun's blinding rays beaming down on her face. As much as she loved snow, Liv hated the way it made the suns light even brighter. Normally she would have drawn the curtains, but she and Fitz were a more than a little preoccupied to care.
Liv turned and smiled as she saw Fitz still asleep next to her. They had come a long way, and at one point, a life like this was something Liv never believed to be possible. Nevertheless, here they were, married with twins and one on the way, in their home, in Vermont. They were living their dream.
Liv crept out of bed and slipped on her slippers and her robe. She headed to the bathroom to perform her morning routine, before setting out to make breakfast for the kids. Liv poked her head in Four's room and found his bed empty. She closed the door and made her way to Dani's room which was also empty. Figuring the kids were watching tv, Liv made her way downstairs.
Liv pulled out the skillet and ingredients to make omelets before making her way into the family room. The kids weren't there either. Liv called for Tom and asked if he had seen the children and was surprised when he responded no.
Liv returned to her bedroom and woke up Fitz, alerting him that the children were nowhere to be found. Fitz jumped out of bed and threw on his sweatpants and turned to Liv.
"You sit and try to relax, I'll find them." Fitz said as he kissed Liv's forehead and left the room.
Fitz checked every room on the first and second floor of the house and came up empty. He returned to the bedroom, figuring the kids may have gone to Liv by now.
"Well?" Liv asked nervously the moment Fitz entered the room. Liv didn't care what the children were doing, she just wanted them to be safe.
"Livvie, calm down. I'm sure there just hiding. I've checked every single room in this house except..."
"The attic" The spoke in unison.
Neither of them had ever thought of checking the attic. It was after all mainly furniture from Liv's old apartment. When they made the move to Vermont, Liv wasn't ready to let go of her furniture just yet as it was it was a symbol of her independence from boarding schools and her fathers overbearing ways. So when they moved, they decided to turn the attic into another room. They used the room sometimes, but not so much since Liv had progressed in the pregnancy. The steps were too much for Liv to endure all the time given the added weight on her body.
They didn't mind the kids being up there, as long as they didn't spill anything on the creme sofas. Besides, there wasn't really anything up there for them to get into anyways... Right? The thought to check the attic seriously never crossed Fitz's mind. The kids always seemed afraid of the attic although they had never been up there. Because of that, there was no initial reason to suspect they'd be there.
Liv stood and followed Fitz to the door that led to the attic. They began to make their way up the steps, hoping they'd find the children there.
Four was the first to wake up as the sun came pouring in through the window. He looked around and realized they had fallen asleep in the attic. Four quickly picked up the photo albums and put them neatly into the box before shoving the box back into the corner.
He returned to the sofa and tried to wake Dani. The task proved to be nearly impossible as she was clearly tired.
"Dani, we have to get downstairs before mom and dad wake up." Four said as the panic filled his body. The last thing he wanted was to be in trouble because he allowed his sister to talk him into doing something so stupid.
Dani sat up just as they heard the door to the attic creep open. Four acted quickly and reached foe the remote.
"What are you two doing up here?" Liv asked as she reached the top of the stairs and saw the children watching cartoons. Dani turned to her mother and smiled.
"Are we not allowed to be up here mommy?" Dani asked sweetly, not showing any signs of fear. Four looked at his sister and realized she could have a future in Hollywood.
"Um, yes, you are allowed up here. We just thought you two didn't like attics, that's all." Fitz responded wondering what the twins were really up to. They had never visited the attic before, and both of them would usually run past the door to get down the hall. Now they were sitting here as if it was the most normal thing in the world.
"We wanted to conquer our fear daddy." Four replied. It was true after all, that was the reason they ventured up there in the first place a week ago. It just wasn't why they were there in that moment.
Liv looked around, sure the kids were up to more than what she let on, but found nothing out of place.
These kids are good...
"Ok, well your father and I are going to go make breakfast, we'll call for you when it's ready. The two of you have fun." Liv said as she turned and walked down the steps.
"Ok!" The kids yelled after her together.
Liv and Fitz went downstairs and began making breakfast. There was an unnerving silence between them as neither could understand exactly what their children were up to. Fitz deciding the silence was enough began to speak.
"So, any ideas of what they may be up to?" Fitz asked, trying to see if Liv would have some insight into what the two were up to.
"I'm not sure exactly, but we know it has something to do with us. Fitz, do think maybe some of the kids parents are talking, about how we got together?" Liv asked.
Although the timeline of their involvement was a mystery, it wasn't a secret that Liv and Fitz began seeing one another very soon after he and Mellie had divorced. It took a lot of hard work within the Grant administration to boost his approval ratings before the reelection began. Even so, doubt over how long the two had been involved still lingered and was brought up from time to time.
"Livvie, what does your gut tell you." Fitz asked as he stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Liv relaxed a little in his arms as Fitz began rubbing soothing circles on her belly.
"My gut tells me no. The kids may be finding out some other way. Have we said anything to make them raise questions? Have they heard us talking in the bedroom? Whatever it is, we need to get a hold of this now so we can put our own spin on this.
"You're right. For now, let's finish making breakfast."
Once breakfast was finished, Liv and Fitz got the kids dressed and ready for their day. They were set to go to the movies, something that wasn't an easy feat considering Fitz's former position. Tonight they would be leaving and spending the weekend with Eli who since becoming a grandfather, has shown a much softer side of himself. A side Liv hadn't seen since she was a little girl.
"Livvie, why don't you go take a nap? You've had a long morning." Fitz suggested as the kids were packing the last of their items into their suitcase.
"That sounds ideal. If I'm still asleep when you get back from the movies, can you wake me up so I'll be alert when my father gets here?"
"Of course." Fitz replied. He tucked Liv into bed, and headed downstairs with the kids to so they could leave out for the movies.
Even though they had a in home theater and had access to any and every movie, released or scheduled, Fitz loved being able to get out with his children like normal a normal family.
They had chosen Transformers 4, and despite his protests, Tom had the theater emptied for their viewing.
"Tom, I don't think anyone will try to shoot me in a theater." Fitz said slightly annoyed.
"Tell that to President Lincoln... Sir." Tom said with a cold finality in his voice. Fitz took his seat with the children and waited foe the movie to begin. He couldn't however shake his being annoyed at the situation.
It wasn't the fact that they had to purchase the extra tickets to make up for the companies loss, it was the fact that the movie had just been released, and the fact they held the entire theater meant others had to wait.
The movie went by quickly and Fitz was surprised to see that Dani loved the movie just as much as Four did. When they left, they made their way to a nearby ice cream parlor and grabbed cones to go. They made sure they brought home black cherry for Liv as that was what she had been craving as of late.
When they entered the house, Fitz went upstairs to check on Liv. He entered the room to find her still asleep. Fitz smiled at the love of his life as she lay on her side embracing the sleep she was often robbed of. The baby was moving and kicking more and there were nights Liv was lucky to get an hour or two of sleep.
"How are you feeling sleepy head?" Fitz asked as he began nuzzling Liv's neck.
"Hmmm good as long as you keep going." Liv replied as she hooked her arm around Fitz's neck.
"I think that could be arranged." Fitz replied as Liv turned in Fitz's arms.
Fitz began slowly kissing and nibbling on Liv's neck as his hands roamed her body. He slid one hand inside the waistband of her pants and was disappointed when he heard the children storming towards the door.
"Mom! Dad! Grandpa's here!" Four announced as he ran into his parents room.
"Four, what did we tell you about knocking?" Fitz asked his son rather sternly.
Four looked at his father and walked out of the room and closed the door. A few seconds later, there was a knock.
"Come in." Liv laughed at her son's antics. He was so much like his father.
Four re entered the room with a smile as he saw the look of disbelief on his father's face.
"Ok, mom, dad, grandpa is here!" Four repeated once again.
"Ok, go tell him we're coming." Liv responded as she fought to sit up.
Liv and Fitz made their way out of the room and Liv went to go check the attic to make sure everything had been turned off before heading downstairs. Much to Liv's delight, the kids had actually turned everything off. Liv smiled as they made their way in the other direction. They were almost to the steps when Liv remembered something.
"Fitz honey, it's laundry day. Could you go grab the sheets off of the kids beds and ours?" Liv asked as she placed a chaste kiss on Fitz's lips.
"Sure honey." Fitz replied before making his way into Four's room which was the closest.
Fitz stripped his bed and pillows, and shoved the sheets into the pillow case before heading to their bedroom to do the same. Once he finished with their bed, Fitz made his way into Dani's room and began to strip her bed as well.
When he removed the pillow from her bed, Fitz's breathing hitched as he noticed the book that had been laying underneath. The book was a decent size and was white with purple flowers printed on it. Fitz knew that book anywhere. He had seen it in Liv's nightstand many times when he frequented her apartment.
It was a book that Cyrus had given to everyone who had worked on the campaign when they first joined. Fitz thought it would be good for everyone to deal with the copious amounts of stress they all endured by keeping a journal to vent their feelings and frustrations. They all had one, even Fitz had one. If what was on her book was even close to what he had written in his...
Fitz reached for the book and jumped back like he had touched hot coals when his fingers graced the cover. He took a deep breath and picked up the book. He flipped it over and sure enough, his suspicions were confirmed. He read the cover. On the top there was a Grant for the People 2010 logo etched into it in purple. "Diary of Olivia Pope" was written at the bottom.
Fitz stood there for a moment with the book in his hand. Part of him wanted to discipline the children for going through their mother's private belongings. The other half secretly wondered what all was written inside.
Fitzbrillator thought back to how the children had been acting the past few days and wondered if what they were asking had come from this book. If it had, what exactly had Liv been writing about? If it had anything to do with him, with them, it would be ok if he peaked, right?
"Fitz come down, my father wants to say hello." Fitz took the book and placed it in his nightstand before grabbing the sheets and making his way downstairs.
The look on Dani and Four's now drained faces when they saw their father holding the sheets that were previously on their beds told Fitz he needed to know what was inside. Fitz shook Eli's hand and they spoke for a few moments before he and the children were ready to go.
Fitz knelt down and gave the kids a group hug. When he saw that Liv's attention was diverted, Fitz leaned in and whispered in their ears.
"We'll talk about the book later." he said causing both children to tense up in his arms.
Fitz sent everyone on their way, and he and Liv stood in the doorway until Eli's car was out of sight. Fitz knew he had to tell Liv what the children had found. The question was, would he do it before or after he read what was inside?
