Olivia was still wrapped securely in her sister's arms when she heard her brother's voice change from serious back to his normal jovial baritone,
"Kay so now that we've cleared up the family drama, can we party?" Everyone in the room laughed at his ability to immediately shift the mood. Olivia looked at Fitz, who was beaming, she new he was happy that she had her families support. She nodded and dethatched herself from Claudia.
"Come on Cam I got your outfit in the closet, CeeCee I grabbed something for you too, if you're interested."
All three girls got up and headed to get dressed, the boys sat waiting, knowing it would be a while. Huck excused himself to go back to the room, while Fitz and Michael sat in comfortable silence watching ESPN. Fitz wasn't a huge sports fan, but he knew enough to keep up and occasionally make a comment. Michael on the other hand was clearly enthralled; he showed the same excitement that Olivia got reading a book. It was the first time Fitz really saw a resemblance between the two; he was so amused he wasn't paying much attention to what was going on around him or how much time had passed. Sooner than he expected Olivia was calling him in to get changed out of his basketball shorts and into something a little more presentable.
When he walked into the bedroom he saw Cammie and Claudia, but Olivia was nowhere to be found. Fitz gave them both a questioning look,
"She wants to surprise you," Claudia explained. She had noticed over the last two days that anytime Olivia and Fitz were separated, she caught them both looking for the other.
"And she said make sure you don't wear white, she doesn't want you two to look like the bopsie twins," added Cammie with a smirk. She loved seeing the change in Olivia, with Fitz she has become a more relaxed version of herself, both Claudia and Cammie could see that she was less anxious and intense than she used to be.
Fitz nodded in understanding and chuckled,
"Got it." The girls were finishing putting on their shoes and final touches on their hair while Fitz grabbed his jeans and a plain black t-shirt. He saw that the girls were more dressed up, but he also knew that Olivia loved it when wore a t-shirt under his leather jacket so he figured if he put on a nice pair of shoes it would look good. By time he got out of the bathroom Claudia and Cammie weren't in the room anymore, but Olivia was sitting with her legs crossed on the bed waiting patiently for him with a seductive smile on her face.
His eyes trailed from the smile on her face down her body. She was wearing a simple white a line dress, but it was short. It stopped well above the middle of her thigh, had it been any shorter it would have been a shirt. It had beading on it so that it sparkled a bit when she moved, but not enough to be ostentatious. He noticed it came up a little higher than she normally would have worn something but when he got closer he noticed the back had two thin straps across the back and nothing else until her lower back where the back of the dress met the front. Her hair was in its naturally curly state and was hanging down her back and framing her face.
Olivia was small, only five four, but in that dress and those heels, her legs appeared to go on forever. They were toned and tanned from swimming, but it was especially clear when she was in those shoes. She was wearing black boots with a peep toe and a four-inch heel. He wanted to reach out grab her and lock the door, make sure no one interrupted them for the rest of the night, not giving up until she had screamed his name several times over. His jaw was open as he took her all in and her smirk got wider.
"You… Livvie, oh… wow! I mean you're always beautiful, but holy my God! How exactly did you think you would get me to leave this room looking like that?"
She took him in while he was watching her. He was wearing her favorite pair of jeans, they're seven for all man kind, she had made fun of him for being so into clothes, but after seeing his ass in them she quickly regretted mocking him. With it he wore a plain black crew neck t-shirt that hugged his biceps and pectorals, but not in an obnoxious way. He had on black socks and had a pair of black Prada dress shoes in his hand, but when he saw her he dropped them on the ground.
"I was wondering the same thing," she looked him up and down, seriously reconsidering their plans. If her family wasn't right outside the door she would have jumped him right away. Especially after she spent the last half hour telling her sister and cousin how good he is in bed. After taking a deep, regretful breath she held out her hand to him, without hesitation he grabbed it.
"Oh wait!" he turned back towards the closet excitedly and pulled out his own leather jacket and the new one he bought for her. He held it one for her to put on, she hesitated.
"Bee I cannot wear that where we are going! By time the night is over it will have smoke, booze, and god knows what else spilled all over it!" He looked disappointed by accepted that she was probably right.
"Livvie you don't have a jacket here, its freezing outside." When she realized he was right she worried until she realized she could probably just borrow something from her sister, before she got the chance to tell him she felt his leather jacket wrap around her arms. It was still warm from being on him and it smelled like his cologne, she felt comforted immediately.
"What are you going to wear?" she asked as she pulled it tighter on herself. It was the same length as her dress and she had to pull up the sleeves to use her hands, but she loved it.
"Navy men don't get cold!" he informed her proudly. She laughed as he took her hand and walked her out the door to the rest of her family.
They walked into the living room to find Cammie sitting alone playing on her phone. She looked up when she heard them walk in. Olivia immediately asked where everyone went.
"Well after about five minutes of waiting Claudia said she was going to the bar before the moaning started, Michael yelled at her than they both went to get drinks, my brother hasn't taken his eyes off of his computer so I assume that's what he's still doing, and apparently I'm the designated driver so pre-gaming is out for me." She barely looked up from her phone as she spoke plainly but than Cammie noticed the dirty look Olivia was giving her, "Oh Olly don't give me that look, our family is literally in charge of most of the criminal activity in town and I seem to remember a fifteen year old you that passed out at church so…" Fitz's eyebrows shot to his hairline,
"I definitely need to hear the rest of that story!" he told Cammie excitedly.
"Havent we had enough wild child Olivia stories yet!?" Olivia groaned at the both of them, neither took her seriously and Cammie immediately broke into the story of the first time Olivia got drunk.
It was Christmas Eve and Grams had given her some champagne throughout the day, by time midnight mass rolled around her eyes were rolling in the back of her head and Michael had to carry her out of the church before services were even over. Everyone except Cammie and Grams just thought she was tired from such a long day. Olivia blushed at Fitz and Cammie shared a laugh at her expense, but laughed too at the memory of her Grandmother yelling at her the next morning for not knowing how to handle her booze and nearly getting them both in trouble. Most times her and her Grandmother were partners in crime, but after seeing her Granddaughter pass out in church she felt guilty at having let her drink so much and in typical Pope fashion took it out on the next available person.
"Okay now that you know one more of my embarrassing secrets can we go eat?" Cammie and Fitz both nodded following Olivia out the door and towards Huck's room, picking him up before heading off towards the bar. Cammie noticed Fitz never let go of Olivia, even when he didn't have one of her hands he was playing with her hair in the elevator or helping her with his hand on the small of her back, almost as if it were instinct. Olivia was always a very tactile person within the family often cuddling up into the nearest relative and immediately falling asleep, but outside of the family she tended to get uncomfortable at contact, usually preferring a handshake or a polite smile to a hug, but not with Fitz.
They waited as Michael and Claudia finished their drinks as they headed into Michael's Navigator.
"God this thing is massive!" Cammie complained, "how am I supposed to park it downtown?"
"One of us can park for you if you cant find a spot in one of the garages," Michael shut her down knowing that Cammie could whine for a while, she was very much the baby of the family, "now lets get to what's important! What are we going to eat?"
"I want a chocolate coke! And Fitz has never had one. We need to go to Winstead's!" If there was one thing Olivia missed about Kansas aside from her family it was Winstead's chocolate coke and fifty-fifty. There was so much good food on the East coast, but Winstead's was the one thing they don't have. Michael and Huck seemed fine with the plan.
"I am too old to go for fast food dressed like this Olivia, at least not sober. I vote we go for sushi now and get Winstead's on the way home."
"Yes to Winstead's after, no to sushi, CeeCee I live near the ocean now I can't eat raw fish in Kansas!" Both girls went back and fourth for a while as the Michael and Huck ignored them and Fitz watched with wonder. Ten minutes in Cammie interrupted telling them to give her a direction, in the end they let her chose and ended up at a new Mexican restaurant near where the concert would be.
They each had a margarita with their salsa and chips. Olivia loved having dinner with her family again, there was just something about sitting down together and eating, it must have been something that her Grandmother instilled in her without her noticing. Olivia was stealing jalapeños off of Fitz and Huck's plate, who were both sitting on either side of her, they both made noises of protest, but neither was truly bothered, both happy to see her relaxed. Cammie was trying and failing to explain to Michael and Claudia about the bands they would be seeing tonight, but both were equal parts confused and disinterested. Michael, like Fitz preferred classic rock, and Claudia listened to top forty music.
"No Mike! MisterWives and Megan Myers are two different performers!" she was getting irritated and Michael and Claudia both wanted to push her further, loving to tease her and Olivia.
"I thought Barcelona is who were going to see?" Claudia asked lamely.
"Ugh no they're playing too, all three of them are performing, but the Mowgli's are headlining!"
"And they are the ones you hate?" Michael asked throwing Olivia a wink as she rolled her eyes. Cammie didn't notice.
"No! They're my favorite! Oh my god they're so good their song San Francisco is like my anthem!" Claudia and Michael had finally given up and busted out laughing, Olivia, Fitz and Huck joined in, loving seeing her act like a teenager.