Author's Note: This chapter… yeah, I don't know what happened. I just really felt the need for Jake and Olivia to have this full-blown conversation about Emily, because I can only imagine how hard going through this without his sister must be for Jake. I know that when I'm in this situation, the first person I'll call will be my sister, because there's something about sisters that just makes every situation better or happier. I also feel like Emily's death is never really addressed fully on the show. We know how and why she died, but Jake never really deals with that. That's why God put the idea for Fanfic in someone's head; so that I can correct the wrongdoings of professional writers. Because honestly, Jake gets far too much hate on this tv show when you actually take the time to realize that he only has a few problems after all he's been through. For someone who obviously knows a few things about PTSD because of all the times she's written about it, Shonda seems perfectly fine to just allow everyone to hate Jake without addressing the fact that he totally has all the symptoms. That is all. Oh, and I know I promised the wedding this chapter, but I don't think you'll be upset about that by the end of this.

Disclaimer: Nope.

It was well past one in the morning when Olivia and Jake finally stumbled back into their private suite in the local hotel that had come highly recommended, both of them so exhausted that their eyes were struggling to remain opened. Olivia headed immediately for her suitcase, removing a set of pajamas from the bag before heading for the bathroom. She showered quickly, removing the beauty products from her hair and face with little regret despite the knowledge that the makeup could've easily lasted through the wedding the next day and removing it had cost her at least half an hour of sleep. She then combed through her hair until it was halfway manageable and dressed in the cotton pajamas that Naomi had given her several weeks before. Shrugging at her reflection, she opened the door to the bathroom and padded towards the bed, smiling at Jake as she settled on top of the sheets next to him.

He grinned back at her. "My family wasn't awful, huh?" he asked, closing the book settled in his lap and giving her his full attention after voicing the question. "Eighty percent of the terror in your eyes before you met Mom wasn't even necessary."

Olivia scoffed. "I'm not exactly the kind of girl that goes home to meet the boy's mom," she pointed out, interlacing their fingers. "Much less the girl that goes home to meet the boy's mom while nearly four months pregnant."

"Fair point," Jake conceded. "Well, how was it? Your first experience meeting the boyfriend's mother? Did she make you want to run to Antarctica and raise our baby on a penguin herder's salary?"

"You need to stop spending so much time around Fitz and Naomi. Their corniness is rubbing off on you," Olivia teased, causing him to glare at her playfully. "No, I don't want to run off to Antarctica and become a penguin herder. I'm not completely sure that's a real profession, actually." She trailed off, smiling softly. "Your mom is great, Jake. She's kind. She's welcoming. She's… I see where you get it. When you told me about your dad, I didn't really… but I see it now. You're a Mama's boy." She grinned at him. "I am very glad that you're a Mama's boy. Your mom's kind of awesome." She sighed, her eyes clouding over. "She does make me feel like a bad person, though. Not by anything she said," she rushed to explain when Jake opened his mouth, concern in his eyes. "It's just… she's been through so much more than me, you know? She had you and your sister so young, and your father was awful to her, and she still… she smiles, and she laughs, and she welcomes people she's never met into her life with open arms. I don't think that I have that kind of trust in people anymore."

"You do. When push comes to shove, you do." Jake paused. "My mother's seen the worst of human nature, so she tries to be the best of it for other people. She loves you because I do. That's enough for her. That's all the reason that she needs." He paused once again. "Em, you know, she was quiet, and she was shy, and she was… lost, a lot of the time in her thoughts or in the moment, but she was exactly like Mom. Open, loving. She had every reason not to be, and yet…" He blinked, and Olivia reached for his other hand. He smiled at her sadly as he raised their joined hands to his lips to press a kiss to her palm. Olivia allowed her hand to remain against his cheek as he continued to speak. "I think about her all the time, you know. How she'd feel about me, who I've become. How she'd feel about you and the baby." He smiled adoringly at her. "And then I realized one day that I already knew. She would love you, Liv. She would think, like I do, that you're the best thing that ever happened to me." Jake's voice broke slightly. "Sometimes, I'm so mad at her because I know how she'd feel about you and this baby. I just want to go to her grave and yell at her, you know, ask her what the hell she thought she was doing when she did what she did. Ask her if she even thought about the people that would never get to meet her, the sister-in-law and the nieces and nephews that didn't even know she existed that got left behind because of the decision that she made. And then I feel guilty, because she was in an impossible situation, and she saw no way out of the pain, and I can't even begin to understand what she was going through, so I don't get to judge her. But I still… since the moment you told me you were pregnant, I've been trying to come to terms with the fact that Aunt Emily is never going to be anything more to this kid than pictures and memories that aren't theirs. And I don't know how to deal with that."

"You don't talk about it," Olivia murmured, her eyes wide and full of tears, her lips shaking as they formed the words. "You didn't tell me any of that."

"Because I love you, and I don't want you to think you're not enough for me," Jake replied, blinking rapidly. "You are enough for me. You… if not for you, I can guarantee that I would not be this person. I wouldn't be able to look myself in the eyes. And I don't want to weigh you down with memories that you never got to be a part of and grief that you never experienced."

"Jake," she whispered, swiping at her cheeks, "I love you, too, but don't think you have to keep this from me. I didn't know her. That's a fact. But that doesn't mean that she's not worth knowing about." She smiled slightly. "She was your mother's kid, right? She was probably as awesome as the two of you are."

"Yeah, she was," Jake replied, his eyes focusing on some point in the distance.

"Yeah," Olivia murmured. She grinned slightly. "And I think I know enough to know that she would have slapped you upside the head a second ago for referring to me as her sister-in-law."

"What?" Jake questioned, his eyes suddenly flying towards hers.

She chuckled. "I mean, you haven't even asked me. It's just a bit presumptuous, that's all."

"Liv, you're implying that you want me to ask you," Jake informed her slowly.

"Jake, we are having a baby. We practically live together. Both of those decisions were made by me. It would be great if you could do the proposing part. I mean, I can do it, but I don't know your ring size. I could have Huck make something out of a parachute cord, I mean, that's romantic. I think it is, at least."

"Olivia," Jake hissed, causing her to burst into laughter. "Don't even joke about that. My mother will kill me if I don't give you the perfect proposal."

"Well, that's the thing, though. You'll be asking, and I'll be answering, and that'll make it perfect no matter how you do it. I mean, it would be perfect even if you did it in a hotel bed while we both fight exhaustion."

"But I don't have the right with me," Jake whined.

Olivia's eyes widened. "There's a ring?"

Jake scoffed. "Of course there's a ring. I bought it before we left for Zanzibar, or, you know, wherever we were that was near Zanzibar."

"And Fitz and Naomi know about this ring? That's why Fitz brought something up about future daughter-in-law?"

"Well, Naomi knew about the ring, so yeah, it's safe to say that Fitz knows about the ring. Those two should just really put everyone out of their misery, by the way. I mean, did you notice…"

"Jake, stop rambling," Olivia ordered, causing his words to come to a sharp halt. "I want to marry you. Do you want to marry me?"

"Yes," Jake replied with no hesitation.

"And I want to marry you. And there is a ring, it's just not here."

"Yes."

"I don't need a ring to say yes," she murmured, causing him to dart a glance at her face. "I mean, I'm sure it's beautiful and I know I'll love it, but I don't need a ring to say yes. So ask. Ask so that I can say yes."

He nodded. "Olivia Pope, will you marry me?"

"Yes."