Sorry it's been a while since I updated this one. Hopefully I can get back into the rhythm. Enjoy!
Chapter 4: Revelations
They decided to settle at a sandwich place that wasn't busy at that time of the day and thus gave them the quietness and privacy to talk. They spent a good two or three hours talking about everything and nothing—books, shows, movies, school, the future, and anything that came to mind. He was starting to get to know her beyond the pretty face and he was liking what he was discovering. But with the interaction he saw between Olivia and Jason, he had questions, not particularly intrusive questions, but ones he thought he should know and didn't think she'd have a problem giving him the answers to.
"So, how do you know Jason?" He asks, trying to hold back any uneasy curiosity in his voice.
She shrugs. "Everyone kind of knows him. He deals with so many different people and things, you just end up meeting him one way or another."
Fitz nods, not really sure what that means but he lets it go. "And, who's that MJ guy he thought you were looking for?"
She lets out a soft, lighthearted laugh. "That question never gets old."
Fitz furrows his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"
She sighs and then subtly looks around the room before leaning in and lowly asking him, "Can you keep a secret?"
"I don't have anyone to go blabbing off to."
"So, you promise to keep that smart mouth of yours shut?"
He frowns. "Yes, I promise. Tell me," he urges her.
"Okay, well, the simple way to put this is that MJ isn't really a person…MJ makes you feel like you're floating on clouds, like the happiest person on Earth, and it's complementary with reggae music. Are you getting my drift?" She asks with a smirk.
Fitz nods slowly as the realization hits him. "MJ is marijuana. Wait, so when Jason asked you earlier if you were looking for MJ, he meant…you smoke?"
"Not that much anymore. I kind of stopped when I felt like my parents were starting to get suspicious."
"So, the dictator still doesn't know? I can just imagine the look on his face if he caught you mid-puff," Fitz says with a chuckle.
"He would have a heart attack," Olivia jokes, laughing and causing Fitz to do the same.
"Wow, I never expected you of all people to be into that."
She shrugs. "You can't judge people by their cover, especially the one they put on to satisfy their tyrannical fathers. And by the way, just beware of Jason. It's only a matter of time before he starts pushing his crap on you, I mean, I'm not saying you shouldn't if you want to, but just be careful."
Fitz nods. So he had been right about there being something off with Jason. He spent his days working at an auto repair shop as a façade but made the real money mooching off the kids in town and preying on them in exchange for drugs. Fitz hoped that's all he did but he still didn't like the way Jason had looked at Olivia and he wondered if there was more to that.
"So, Jason just sold you MJ? Were you guys ever a thing?"
She cringes and vigorously shakes her head. "Hell, no, he's like thirty years old and a total scumbag. Why are you so interested in my love life, anyway?" She asks with a curious smirk.
He chuckles. "It's nothing. I was just wondering…" He mutters, reaching for his drink and taking a nervous sip.
"I don't have a boyfriend. It's kind of awkward to even think of dating some of the guys around here since I've known a lot of them since pre-school. They're like brothers to me. But how about you? Do you have a hot girlfriend waiting for you back in New Jersey?"
He shakes his head. "No, I was never really big on dating…but that could change."
"Why, are there any girls you like?" She asks, looking closely at him. "You seemed really into Mellie that other day."
He cringes and shakes his head, making her laugh at his expression. "That's never going to happen."
She smiles. "Good. She's a shallow bitch, anyway, and you can definitely do better."
"I intend to," he says slowly, staring deeply into her eyes and for a moment, he's pretty sure she gets his message as her grin decreases to a small, nervous smile and she looks away from him shyly, reaching for a French fry to focus on something else.
He does the same, knowing his cheeks are probably turning a rosy red and reaches for his phone. "Well, this was nice but it's like almost nine o' clock. You should probably get back home before your dad starts to worry."
She nods. "I should. I can't believe we've been here for three hours, but it was fun."
"Yeah? I had fun, too. Maybe we could do this again sometime," Fitz suggests subtly. Was he asking her out on another date?
She smiles. "I'd like that."
"She kissed you?" Huck asks with raised eyebrows the next day as he and Fitz are tidying up the auto-repair shop before they close up.
Fitz shrugs it off. "It was just a simple kiss on the cheek, you know, like goodbye gesture."
"I've known Olivia for a while and I know she doesn't just go around kissing anyone on the cheek as a goodbye gesture. I think she likes you, like for real."
"Oh, Fitzy has a townie girlfriend now?" Jason asks teasingly as he walks into the front office.
Fitz glares at him and shakes his head.
"Apparently Olivia Pope," Huck tells Jason.
"Damn, Huck, when'd you become so talkative?" Fitz groans.
Huck shrugs as he continues to wipe the counter.
"Wow, Olivia Pope…how'd you manage that?"
"Look, guys, it's none of your business. And she's not my girlfriend. I don't do girlfriends," Fitz asserts. Although he had stronger feelings for Olivia than other girls he had been with in the past, the thought of being someone's boyfriend, the thought of actually belonging to someone and having them trust you to make the relationship work scared the crap out of him. He had only let people down his entire life, and he certainly didn't and didn't ever want to belong to anyone. He wanted her but he wasn't sure how far the attraction would go both ways if they weren't on the same page.
Jason smirks. "Right…"
Suddenly Fitz remembers Nancy told him to pick up Sarah from swim practice. He was already now ten minutes late and he knew that Nancy was going to kill him. "Shoot, guys! I have to go pick up my little cousin from swim practice. Is it okay if I wrap up here early?" Fitz asks Jason.
"Sure. Wouldn't want to keep the little munchkin waiting."
Fitz can't decide on whether Jason was being sarcastically upset or trying to crack a joke so he just gives a small chuckle, thanks Jason for understanding, and hightails his way out of there.
He feels guilty as he imagines little Sarah sitting all by herself waiting for him but as he pulls up to the rec center, he sees both his cousin and Olivia of all people sitting on the bench in front of the building.
"Finally someone decided to show up…" Olivia says with an expectant gaze.
"I was working," he explains.
"If you don't want me to tell my mom, you're going to have to buy me ice cream on our way home," Sarah tells him, looking as serious as a five year old can get.
"Okay, whatever," Fitz agrees hastily. "Just get in the car."
She beams and turns to Olivia. "Bye, Olivia. See you next time!" And then she skips to the truck.
"Thanks for staying here with her," Fitz says apologetically.
"It was no problem. I definitely wasn't going to let my five year old student sit out here by herself, even if this is a pretty safe area."
"Student?"
"I teach swim lessons," she clarifies.
"Oh, that's nice." She nods and for a long moment there's an awkward silence between them as the both remember the night before. It had been a simple goodbye kiss on the cheek but it had been so unexpected. If it meant that she was into him, he still wanted and needed to know how much.
"So, my dad's having this get-together at our house tomorrow. Some of us kids are basically being forced to go but we like to make some fun out of it, so I was wondering if you maybe wanted to tag along."
"At your house? Wouldn't I be noticed by your parents?" Fitz asks.
She shakes her head. "No, not if you keep a low profile. There's going to be a bunch of people and he's going to be busy playing hostess for most of the night so you should be good."
"Hmm…alright. Stephen, Charlie, and all them will be there, too?" He asks, wondering if she would be the only person there he knew.
"Um, yeah, you hang out with Stephen and Charlie ?" She asks, looking a little surprised.
"Yeah, sometimes we shoot hoops at Stephen's," he says with a shrug.
She nods. "Oh, cool…well, let me give you my number and give me yours," she says then lists it off as he adds it to his contacts and they do the same thin vice versa. He had done outrageous things in the past to get a cute girl's number, and now, the girl that was on his mind nearly all the time was just giving it to him casually. It was an understatement to say he was thrilled.
"I'll text you all the details," she says, slinging her bag across her shoulder. He watches as her luscious, silky hair settles on shoulders and admires how perfectly it scalps her face.
"Fitzy, let's go!" He hears Sarah yell from the truck.
"Fitzy?" Olivia questions with a beautiful laugh. "Oh, that's gold."
He rolls his eyes and hollers back, "I'm coming, Sarah! And stop calling me that."
He turns back to Olivia and says, "The princess awaits. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Bye, Fitz," she says back with a sweet smile and starts towards the parking lot.
"I'll call you whatever I want," Sarah challenges.
"Oh, not if you want to ride in my car. And you know the rules, get in the backseat," he tells her, opening the front passenger door and waiting for her to hop out.
"You're no fun," she grumbles, buckling herself into the back.
He smiles and says sardonically, "Neither are you."
He didn't notice Olivia had heard their whole conversation until he catches her smiling at them about to sit in her car. He winks at her and then heads over to the driver's side.
Olivia got dressed in her Sunday-best, like her mom had instructed her to do and after a full-on inspection by Mama Pope, which included hair and make-up, she was good to go. She was in a navy blue short, flowing dress. It was modest and casual but the open back gave it a little sexiness and it fit her like a glove.
Once downstairs, she goes outside to where the finishing touches are being made in preparation for the evening event. She had reminded Fitz that this was a suit and tie event over and over because as much as she was looking forward to him coming, she knew he wouldn't get to stay for long if he didn't blend in with everyone. For a moment she just stands there, staring into space and wondering how he good he would look in a suit and tie—that is until she feels sudden jabs to the sides of her abdomen.
She spins around, startled but quickly relaxes and glares at Harrison who's cracking up. "That never gets old, O," he exclaims, using her nickname he had used since they were kids.
"You're such a dumbass," she says, shoving him back. A look of surprise and then subtle guilt registers on his face which she considered odd since Harrison never felt guilty for anything he did.
He straightens up and grows a little more serious as he asks, "So are you ready for tonight?"
"Ready as I'll ever be," she says dryly, then adds, "I invited Fitz."
"You did? Why?" He asks, trying to sound casual but his tone sounds a little accusatory.
She shrugs. "Because I wanted to. He's not bad at all." She was playing him down because since the time they spent at the restaurant yesterday, her interest in him had only increased. She had never gelled so well with anyone. He was intelligent, hilarious, entertaining, and overall captivating to her. She knew she was crushing on him but this felt different. It wasn't petty and vapid like the many celebrity or outside-of-town-boy crushes she had. This felt more real and deeper, like she was just scratching the surface of something big.
"Well, yeah, I mean he's cool and all but he's not exactly from our side of town. He's going to stand out like a sore thumb."
"I'll told him it was a suit and tie event. He'll be fine."
"If you say so…" Harrison says not sounding too convinced.
It didn't take long for people to start showing up little by little, and by 7:30 the front yard was bustling with all of her father's work associates and other important colleagues. The night had hardly started and she already knew it was going to be a long one—but in more ways than she imagined.
Fitz hadn't taken any really formal clothes with him from New Jersey. He didn't even have any slacks or a suit jacket, so his only choice was to go with his nicest pair of jeans, a white long-sleeved shirt, and an old vest that barely fit him anymore. His aunt had said he looked nice so that boosted his confidence a bit but by the time he arrived at Olivia's house, it was immediately shot down.
He took pride in his truck—he maintained it and kept it looking as good as he could but as he was searching for parking on the street, all the work he had put in and all that pride was shot to crap. Olivia had told him this was a formal event but she had failed to mention that it was actually a gathering of the elite. The lowest status car there was a Mercedes and as he finally found parking he was again reminded of how out of place he was when a family walking from their Porsche to the Pope's, cringed their faces in his direction.
He couldn't even get out of the car after that, so he just sat there for however long, sulking and growing angry at himself for even thinking he could pull this off—for believing that he had even the smallest chance with her.
"Gosh, Liv, you've been on that phone all evening, what are you even doing?" Quinn asks as she and all their other friends stand in a circle trying to make the best of things, none of them could deny that this was the most boring gathering ever.
"She's texting the handsome new fuckboy. What's his name again?" Abby says teasingly.
Olivia gives her a look that could kill. "It's Fitz and I'm just being nice. He should've been here a while ago," Olivia says, starting to worry a bit. She had already texted him three times asking if he was still coming and she was going to send a fourth but she thought that would come off as needy or irritating so she just decided to wait for his reply. Maybe he was still getting ready, she thought hopefully.
"He probably just skipped out. I told him this thing was going to hella boring anyway," Charlie says with a shrug.
"Wait, you talked to him. He told you he wasn't coming?" Olivia asks.
"Not really. He said he would try and make it if he could or if he felt like it, but if he decided not to, I get it. He's honestly not missing anything."
Olivia nods slowly but on the inside she was disappointed and a little pissed. She had gone out of her way to invite him and include him and here he was probably blowing her off, being the asshole that she had originally met.
"Well, it's not like he would've exactly fit in here. With that rickety ass truck of his and having a job at the auto-repair shop. That's like as low as you get," Harrison jokes, but he only gets awkward stares and a few uneasy smiles.
"Gosh, when did you turn into such a little arrogant prick, Harrison?" Olivia mutters.
"What, O, I was just joking, come on..."
"I don't know, I kind of like the truck. It has this old country feel to it. And being able to fix cars is pretty impressive, dude," Stephen chimes in. "So, he may not come from money or at least middle class but I think he's pretty cool and he fits in fine."
"Yeah, and the dude's got skills with the ladies, regardless. Hey, Harry, maybe you should stop trying so hard to be a mean girl and actually try and get a girl," Charlie says lightheartedly but by the furious look on Harrison's face, it strikes a nerve.
"I'm going to go get another drink," he grumbles and then walks away.
"Oh, come on, what did I do wrong this time," Charlie exclaims, making them all laugh as Harrison flips him off.
"Nothing. This is why I love you guys," Olivia says, feeling content for the first time that evening.
"Well, I think we've hang around here long enough. I say we go up to the treehouse because I have some coco for us!" Charlie says in a sing-song tone with a mischievous smile, patting his jacket pocket.
"Damn, you're the man, Charlie!" Stephen exclaims.
"Are you guys serious? We're so gonna get caught…" Quinn scolds them.
"We'll be in the treehouse, they won't smell a thing from that far away. And I just want to kick back and relax for a while. It's not like this is much of a party, anyway," Olivia rationalizes, knowing she's close to persuading her friend.
"I'm in," Abby says giddily.
With Quinn being the odd one out, she sighs and eventually gives in, "Whatever, guys."
"Yes, les go!" Charlie hollers. "So are we just ditching Harrison or what?"
"Yes, please, he's acting like such a bitch baby right now," Olivia mumbles. She wasn't particularly happy with Fitz at the moment but Harrison was also being a straight up jackass and she wasn't ready to deal with him again either. She knew that he had a major crush on her—she'd known it for years, but the fact that she was paying Fitz more attention than him didn't justify his snobbish jealousy in her eyes.
The group heads for an old treehouse that Olivia's father had built years and years ago for her to play in whenever she had friends over. She and her friends still hang out there, mostly when they were up to shady activities like what they were about to do at the moment, but to her it was still a reminder of her childhood and all her friendships.
Stephen and Charlie start rolling blunts for everyone while Abby fishes through her music playlist for something to match the mood and within minutes, they're all higher than the moon.
About an hour later, Olivia is leaning against the wooden wall of the treehouse, dangling her legs over the ledge above the ladder, feeling serene as ever when she feels her phone buzz in her hand and when she checks it she sees a text message from Fitz. It reads: I'm outside. In my car.
Olivia scoffs at this and furiously types back: Thanks for not texting me back for the past 2 hours.
A minute later he replies: I'm sorry. I wanted to come. I've actually been here for the past 2 hours but I couldn't get out of my car.
Olivia: Why?
Fitz: Can you come out here? I'm parked out on the street.
She shakes her head, thinking he was out of his damn mind. If he thinks I'm coming out there he has another thing coming, she thought at first but as the weed wore off and her mind became less foggy she grew more curious and worried. What if there was something wrong?
"Hey, guys, I'm going to go get a drink. I'll be back," she tells her friends, swinging her legs off of the ledge and leaving her friends who at the moment were way loopier than her as they laughed hysterically and probably hadn't heard a word she said. She rolls her eyes and heads for the ladder, beginning the descent to the ground.
She takes a five minute walk out to the street and is able to spot Fitz sitting in his truck, sitting in the darkness. She knocks on his window, making him flinch, likely because she kind of came out of his line of vision.
He rolls down the window and scans her body slowly with his eyes, giving her goosebumps. She's annoyed by the effect he has on her, especially when she was upset with him. He attempts a smile. "Hey. You look nice"
"'Hey'? Fitz, why am I out here?"
"I just wanted to talk," he tells her. "I'm sorry I ignored you. I meant to come in but I just couldn't bring myself to do it because…" He stops and sniffs the air and then leans in towards her. "Have you been smoking weed?"
She glances away, prompting him to ask, "Are you high right now?"
"No, I'm not. The weed wasn't all that great and I didn't have too much. My mind is fairly clear right now," she tells him matter-of-factly .
"Well, you should know that there's a cop that does a sweep of this street like every ten minutes. It's been nine minutes since he last came," Fitz warns her, looking at his car's clock.
"Shit…" mutters under her breath, beginning to regret giving into Charlie's bait. Was the smell really that abundant?
Fitz shakes his head, smiling smugly. "Just get in," Fitz says, unlocking the car.
Olivia reluctantly walks over to the other side of the car and gets in and not even moments after, she sees a cop casually but alertly walking down the street. He nods his head at Fitz and Fitz does the same, like they have some kind of understanding and then continues past them.
"What, so now your besties with the cop?" She taunts.
"Not really, but he knows I'm not up to anything troublesome or stupid and honestly, I think he also looks forward to seeing me every ten minutes. His job must be boring af."
"Alright, Fitz, so what's up with you? The reason I invited you was because I wanted you to feel included since your new to town and you just blew me off. I mean, yeah, it was pretty boring, but you could've still said something."
He nods and grips the steering wheel, frustrated. "I know, I should've said something. I-I'm sorry. I just…I don't belong in a place like this…with all these people I'm not rich or fancy, I spent half my life living in a trailer park and the other half in a New Jersey ghetto, so excuse me if I feel like a fish out of water with all these sophisticated people around. I try to fit in here but I know I don't. It's embarrassing. And…you've been one of the realest girls I've ever met and I didn't want to disappoint you but now I have and I've wasted your time, so I'm sorry. I know I screwed up. You don't ever have to see me again if you don't want to after this."
Her heart breaks at hearing and seeing him like this. Right now he looked so vulnerable and she knew it was killing him to let down his tough guy façade and actually open up but for some reason he trusted her enough, and she wouldn't betray that. She lets out a big sigh and faces him, placing her hand lightly over his on the console. "I'm sorry. I never meant to make you feel bad. I wish you had just told me something."
"Told you that I'm an embarrassed to be poor?"
"Yeah, why do you have to have such a big ego all the time? It's okay to be vulnerable sometimes," she assures him.
He scoffs. "I doubt you'd think the same if you were in my shoes. You get to march around everywhere on a high horse like your dad owns the place because he actually does own the place. Your whole life you've had everything handed to you, you haven't had to struggle."
"So, you're saying that I'm basically stuck up and entitled. Thanks a lot, Fitz. Yeah, my parents have money and I didn't go through a lot of the same crap that you did but it hasn't always been a walk in the park, either. Since day one, I've been constantly pushed to be number one and reminded that anything less than that is unacceptable—that I'm unacceptable unless I'm absolutely perfect."
"Well, at least, you have parents that care about what you do with your life. My dad told me on a regular basis that I was a piece of shit son and that I shouldn't even try to go to college or amount to any respectable position. The whole reason I'm here is because he didn't want to have anything to do with me anymore, because he gave up on me. But you're good enough, you're always going to be good enough because your parents won't give up on you. So, stop being a big baby about it. Since when is basically being a princess such a crappy thing?"
He strikes a nerve in her and for a moment she gets really pissed. "Screw you, Fitz," she grumbles, opening the car and getting out.
He follows suit, opening his door and following her as she heads back for her house. "Really, Olivia? So, you didn't like what I had to say and you're just going to walk away. That's mature."
She spins on her heel, her blood boiling even more. "Shut up, Fitz! You know, I came out here because I was concerned about you and I wanted to know what was going on so that I could maybe help, not so that you could start accusing me of being a stuck up brat. I believe in hard work to get what you want in life, I've always been a hard worker—"
"I know," he grunts, slowly walking towards her in a way that was giving her goosebumps like before.
"You don't know shit…you…" she stops her tirade as he stops just a foot in front of her, staring down at her with a desirous look in his eyes. She opens her mouth but no sound comes out as she's stunted by his beautiful luminous blue eyes and his Greek godlike features and how it felt like every inch of her body was drawn to his in this moment. She places her hands on his chest and pushes against him, wanting him to go away and so that she could regain control of her brain, but instead she clasps his shirt and pulls him closer while he simultaneously grips her face and presses his lips to hers. She lets out a delighted moan at the taste of his warm, soft lips and breathes him in, wanting more. She allows his tongue to make contact with hers as all her anger and frustration melts away and she's just left with just desire. His hands fall down to her hips, his fingertips only inches from her ass as he pushes her back onto a car, disregarding the fact that an alarm could go off. All they were focused on was each other.
He holds her confidently and possessively, like he would never let her go, pressing their bodies closer together as their tongues and mouths engage in a fiery dance. When he pulls away, leaving her mouth with a sudden gust of cool air, she gasps for his lips to return to her, like she was suffocating and he was the air that she needed. But she quickly calms down when he presses his forehead to hers and breathes her in until their panting matches.
He makes eye contact with her. "You are sexy as hell when you're pissed," he whispers, biting down on her lip and letting it slip through his teeth. By now her panties were soaked and she could hardly help how much she wanted him but something told her this wasn't the time and it definitely wasn't the place.
"Hey, what are you two doing by that car?" Olivia and Fitz glance to their left and right respectively and see the patrolling officer approaching them, shining a flashlight in their direction.
"Sorry, sir, we're going. It's all good," Fitz says, taking Olivia's hand and heading back for the truck. He opens the door to the backseat and pulls her in with him. She shuts the door once they're in and waves at the officer with a mischievous grin on her face. The officer frowns at them, shines his light on the car they had their make-out session on and heads back down the street.
Olivia and Fitz both let go of the breaths they didn't know they were holding in and that's when Olivia realizes she's pressed up against Fitz's chest and he's rigidly holding her at the waist, hugging her to him. She never thought she could feel so at peace and content in someone's arms, especially in the arms of the very person she was about to cuss out only a few minutes ago, but it was unlike anything she'd ever experienced. For a while they just sit there like that in silence, listening to each other's breathing and the sound of their matching heartbeats. Fitz eventually breaks the quiet, whispering, "I'm sorry."
"For what?" She breathes.
"For saying you were stuck up. I know you're a hard worker. I can just tell from your personality," he says, brushing his lips over her temple, almost like a kiss. "You fight hard for what you earn and you deserve every bit of it."
Guilt creeps its way into her conscious as well and after a bit of hesitation, she apologizes, "I'm sorry for almost going ham on you earlier. You didn't deserve that. You were just trying to give it to me straight. I guess sometimes I can be ungrateful."
"You're forgiven," he tells her with a smile. She returns the gesture but they're interrupted a second time, again with a bright light shining in their faces.
"Okay, this cop needs to get a new hobby," Fitz mutters as they both shield their eyes against.
"I found her—or should I say them," hollers a voice that Olivia would know anywhere.
"Oh, my gosh…shit!"
"What?" Fitz asks, equally panicked, but his question is answered when the bright light, this time not from a flashlight but from a smartphone, vanishes and Olivia and Fitz see Abby along with all of her other friends staring them down with big goofy grins on their faces.
"Shit," Olivia and Fitz say together.
