AN: I know it's been a hot minute since I updated this story. Been busy with work and school. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy this update and please review at the end. I don't like to sound like a broken record but I implore you all to review. If you enjoy the update or not just let me know, it let's me know that you're still here, and the reviews make me feel appreciated for my work so thank you. Enjoy!
One Week ago
He hated this part of his job, paperwork. He sat behind his desk as he went through the mountain of reports, thinking about all of the things he would rather be doing instead. The phone on his desk startled him with its loud ringing. "Hello," Fitz answered.
"She's calling again," Lauren's impatient voice rang through. Every day at the same time she called the firehouse.
Fitz sighed. "Send her through."
"Ok," he could hear the relief in Lauren's tone.
A second later the call came through to him.
"Hello, Lieutenant Grant," he greeted.
"Hello," the coarse but feminine voice returned.
"How may I help you?"
"I would like to get in touch with Olivia Pope," she said melancholy.
Fitz decided to be frank with her. "Claris," he paused when he heard her sharp intake of air. " I know who you are. You're speaking to Fitzgerald…Fitz, Olivia's husband we met a while back. I'm sorry but my wife doesn't want to speak to you."
Claris cleared her throat before responding. "Fitz, I remember you too and first of all I would like to apologize for the way I treated you."
He was taken aback by her apology and the fact that it actually sounded sincere.
"Ok," was all he said.
He heard her sigh through the phone. "Fitz, I know I have no right to ask you this but I really need to talk to Olivia. I really need to undo the wrongs in my life and it starts with her. I really need your help. Please help me get into contact with her. I would forever be indebted to you."
Fitz shook his head. "I don't know about this, Claris."
"Livvie… do I have to?" Fitz complained as he claimed his spot on the yoga mat next to his wife.
"Hush it! I'm pregnant with your babies and you don't see me complaining." She sharply quipped.
Fitz shut it right away and slightly lifted his shoulder to show obedience.
From the corner of her eyes Olivia saw his submission and smirked. Every time she used that line she always got her way. It was evil to use her unborn children? Yes, but it got her her way every single time. And for the past 3 months she was able to command and demand him politely and sometimes impolitely to do her biddings.
The YouTube video came alive on the flat screen TV, ushering in soothing waterfall sounds.
The first position they were commanded in was the Cobbler's pose. This sitting pose helped open the pelvis. Since she was in her second trimester of pregnancy she had to modify the pose. Olivia sat with her back resting solidly on the front of the couch while she brought the soles of her feet together. Fitz on the other hand had to do the Cobbler pose without any modifications. Olivia snickered under her breath when she peeked at his hunkered over form in something barely resembling the pose. She had to admit that one of the reasons she bullied him into doing yoga with her was to laugh at his inflexibility. The man was hardly flexible, which was odd for someone who could contort his body in positions when having sex. Guess that's another kind of motivation, she mused.
They held the pose for a few minutes. Olivia took deep breaths to allow her mind and body to fully relax. It'd been three months since she started practicing yoga and found it very cathartic for her body and mind. It wasn't easy carrying twins and she was constantly with back pains. Every morning she tried incorporating at least 15 minutes of yoga before she started her day. It wasn't anything complicated, simple stretches that relaxed her muscles. And the mornings when Fitz wasn't working she always implored him to join her and he always begrudgingly agree.
"How much longer?" Fitz' exasperated voice asked, perspiration covering his brows.
"No talking during yoga." She smirked when he rolled his eyes at her. He was such a baby sometimes.
Eventually, she had mercy on him and they moved into the pelvic tilt. This was her favorite position because it helped with back pains. She got on her hands and knees, arms shoulder-width apart and knees hip-width apart, keeping her arms straight, but not locking the elbows. She breathed in deeply and exhaled slowly. Over and over she did this, feeling tranquil. She could feel the babies in her belly and she smiled softly at the reminder of the miracle she was carrying. They did ten more minutes of stretching and deep-breathing exercises before calling it quits.
Olivia was on her knees rolling up her yoga mat while Fitz did the same with his. She tilted her head over to him and asked, "still think yoga is a chick exercise?"
Fitz gave her a look of disgust and she burst into laughter. "What? Cat got your tongue?"
His lips formed a smirk then. "Does it?" He gave her a knowing look.
It was Olivia's turn to roll her eyes. "You have no shame, Sir." She clipped the straps of the yoga mat into place.
Licking his pink lips he returned, "Not when it comes to you."
She smiled widely, shaking her head. It was no denying that she loved this man, quirks and all.
"Help me up, please…" She batted her eyelashes playfully and stretched one of her hands towards him. He got up without hesitation and gently guided her to her feet. Both standing now he rested his hands on her ever-burgeoning belly, planting a chaste kiss on her lips.
"Just get the bigger one," Fitz said as a suggestion for the jar of jalapenos pepper his wife was rushing to. All throughout her pregnancy the spicy pickled pepper was her go to snack. She ate it with everything… and he wasn't exaggerating. Not only did she eat it, she drank the pickle juice when the pepper was long gone, which was weird as hell to him but ok...
It was a little after lunch and they were doing some grocery shopping, trying to combat the evening rush hour time. It was two weeks before Christmas and the shops were always crowded. They definitely weren't a part of the Christmas shoppers this year as they were taking it easy and not splurging excessively just because… they had babies coming at the end of March and needed to be ready for them – financially, emotionally, physically and mentally.
Olivia carefully dropped the 3 lbs. jar of pickled jalapeno with a triumph into the shopping cart. "What's next?" she asked more to herself as she looked down at the list she compiled on her phone.
"We need bread and milk," she said, returning her focus on him. Fitz nodded before resume pushing the quarter full cart while Olivia held onto its side for the stability. Within ten minutes they got the rest of the items on their list and made their way to the cashier.
While they were in the checkout line Olivia perused the magazine rack, rolling her eyes at the over embellished headlines – a cheap attempt to sell their crap. Shaking her head from the tawdry news reporting she turned her attention on her husband who was standing behind the cart. She couldn't help but noticed how hot he looked. She always liked seeing men in winter fashion and he was no difference. He had on a thick sports jacket with a navy and blue striped beanie that covered his dark chocolate locks. His face was covered in scruff, which was quite delectable if you asked her. His long lean legs were covered in fitted dark denim jeans and his moderately fashionable snow boots finished the outfit. The way he looked so manly and also so boyish at the same time always left her amazed. It probably had to do with the kindness in his eyes. He stood oblivious to her appreciative glances, as he was too busy scanning the ESPN magazine in his hand. Standing in the checkout line at Costco made her fall more in love with him. It was the simple things she observed about him that made her heart beat frantically.
When it was their turn to cash out, together they emptied their cart on the conveyer belt while the cashier began ringing up their purchase.
"Congratulations on the baby," the bright-eyed old woman with the nametag Linda said, when Olivia and Fitz moved closer to the credit card machine.
"Thanks," they said in unison, smiling. Olivia absentmindedly patted her big belly.
"He or she will be gorgeous," the old lady continued as she rang up their items.
Olivia chuckled and Fitz grinned before politely saying thanks. After the cashier read them their total Olivia collected the debit card from Fitz and swiped it before entering the pin number on the keypad.
"Have a good guys!"
"Thanks, you too!" they bid before walking away.
On their way out Olivia led the way while Fitz trailed behind pushing the cart of groceries.
"Excuse me," Fitz heard and at the same time someone patted his shoulder. He stopped walking and turned to see a tall brunette woman flashing him a smile.
Before he could ask her what she wanted, she said, "you forgot something." She shoved her hand into his, passing on a piece of paper. He was confused and before he could ask her what it was the brunette quickly retreated, rejoining a group of snickering girls.
"Fitz!" He heard Olivia's voice in the distance calling him. Without thinking he shoved the paper in the front pocket of his jeans before moving forward to his wife.
"What happened? I look back and you were gone," she asked when he caught up to her outside of the store.
"This girl stopped me, saying that I forgot something." He reached his hand inside his pocket and retrieved the white piece of paper while brisk walking to the parking lot.
"What's that?" Olivia asked, noticing the paper in his hand.
"I don't know it's blank. The girl gave it to me."
"Can I see?" she requested, and he handed it over to her. Olivia examined the crumble white paper and said, "hmm... Strange."
"Yep," Fitz agreed.
"Toss it," he said when Olivia was handing him back the piece of paper, and she did at the next trashcan. Reaching for the hand sanitizer attached to her bag strap she squirted some in her hands before asking Fitz if he needed some and he did. The whole paper thing was weird and they didn't want to take any chances with germs. They shrugged it off as nothing and continued their way.
Later that day when Olivia had napped and awoken they moved to the nursery, a room next to theirs. It was already painted in a warm yellow color with gray accents. Olivia just loved the color yellow and it didn't matter that they didn't know the sex of the babies. Yellow was a good match either way. Fitz did all of the painting and he was going to build them a bookshelf that would separate the cribs but for right now the room was empty. Contents only existed in their visions for the room. Presently they were sitting side by side with their backs against the wall and a blanket spread across their legs as they made plans for the future.
"I was thinking about the question you asked me the other day about whether or not I want to go back to work after the babies are born." She paused to look at him.
Fitz inhaled, bringing his hand to rest on her stomach. "And what did you come up with?" he queried softly.
"I don't know if both of us being firefighters is a good fit for our children. It's a dangerous job and God forbids something should happen to one of us or both, then where would that leave them?"
She did have a point, he mused. He nodded in acknowledgement.
"I just want them to always have someone to love and take care of them, you know? It's just the two of us and them in this world." Olivia became teary eyed when she thought about her mother and how she would never see her grandchildren.
Fitz wrapped an arm around her shoulder, bringing her into him and she rested her head on his chest. "Sometimes I get so worried about it. Think about it Fitz, if something should happen to us then our children will be sent into foster care because there's no other family member that could care for them." Olivia tried not to cry but how could she not cry when she thought about her children and the loneliness they could possibly feel. It was something that gnawed at her conscience because she was orphaned at age 10. Luckily, she got spared from the foster care system because of her grandmother, albeit she was a pessimist.
Fitz soothed her physically but it did nothing to negate her mental worries, no one could love her babies as she much as she did. And all she wanted is for them to be properly cared and loved.
"We may not have blood relatives, but we have friends that are like family to us. Would it ease your mind if we ask Stephen and Tina to sign legal documents saying they'll care for our children in the event something should happen to us?"
Olivia looked at him with wide, shiny, doe eyes. She never thought about it before but the more she did the more she liked it. "Maybe we can ask them over Christmas dinner?" she proposed.
"Mmmhmmm."
"I hope they say yes. It would relieve me, honestly."
"I know," Fitz kissed her temple gently. "I know you have a lot of worries and I love you for thinking about things that some people won't even think about, this is what makes you an already great mother. But I want you to not worry so much, baby." He kissed her temple again, pressing his lips softly against her flesh. "I want you to believe that nothing will go wrong and that we will grow old to see our babies grow up and our grandchildren. Ok?"
She smiled, thinking about how much she was the realist and he the idealist. Nevertheless, they balanced each other perfectly.
"Ok." She tilted her face upwards and he planted a soft kiss on her lips.
The following morning Fitz got ready for work then kissed her good bye and headed out the door. Olivia mumbled an "I love you" while still heavy with sleep. She snuggled into his pillow, burrowing her face deeply in it to capture his smell. She stayed asleep for another two hours before the incessant urge to the use the bathroom awoke her. After she'd finished her morning business she waddled back to bed and climbed underneath the covers. She was going to occupy that position for a long time but her body had different plans. Five minutes later her belly growled and she rolled her eyes. Nowadays she was always hungry and thankfully the excessive morning sickness had receded greatly so she could tolerate food again. Only certain foods would trigger her nausea so she avoided them at all costs.
She slipped into her robe and winter booties and retrieved her phone from its charger before making her way downstairs to start breakfast. First she filled the kettle with water before putting it on the lit stovetop and then moved to the fridge to retrieve eggs and veggies to make an omelet. She hummed a nameless tune while going about her morning, occasionally talking to the babies.
Fifteen minutes later she moved to the living room with her breakfast in hand. She carefully sat down on the couch before turning on the TV to CBS. She had a line up for daytime TV. Price Is Right was about to be on and then the Young & the Restless, she would never admit that she'd become that stereotypical housewife who watched soaps during the day. But what else was she to do? It kept her company and from succumbing into boredom.
After breakfast Olivia retrieved her phone from her pocket and was scrolling through any missed notifications. She saw a message from Fitz telling her he got into work and that he loved her. Tina also sent a message asking if they were still on for Friday. She also noticed two missed calls from a strange number. She replied to the text messages first before studying the number. She knew it was a local number based off of the area code but she wondered whom? She debated several seconds with herself before succumbing to call. Curiosity got the better of her.
The phone rang two times before a familiar voice greeted, "hello Olivia."
Meanwhile at Firehouse 51 the dispatcher announced, Truck 81, Squad 3, Ambulance 61. Accident, 2599 W. 24th Street. 24th Street.
"Here we go. Let's go, people!" Fitz shouted loud enough for everyone to hear. Immediately they all rushed to get suited up before piling into their respective trucks, sirens wailing as they blared out of the firehouse. They drove the icy streets of Chicago for ten minutes until coming to a stop in a residential area.
Fitz and his squad were the first ones on the scene. He dismounted the large truck and immediately addressed the onlookers, "Okay, people, back away from the scene. Back away." He yelled.
He spoke into his radio, relaying information to the rest of the team as he walked closer to the scene. He found a man groaning on the ground with his legs pinned under a moving truck pod.
"Oh, thank God," a middle aged woman in a gray sweater rushed from the man's side to Fitz.
"Talk to me."
"My husband... he was unloading the thing. It just fell."
"What's your name?" Fitz asked, at the same time the paramedics rushed to the man's side.
"Tricia," the woman answered.
"Okay, Tricia, let's take a look," Fitz signaled her to stand back, giving the paramedics room to work.
The man continued to groan in pain. Fitz glanced at his leg and internally cringed at the blood forming at the point of pressure. Fitz moved to the man and said, "I'm Lieutenant Grant. What's your name?"
The man groaned, "Steve."
"What happened here, Steve?"
"Cable... snapped," he answered, his breathing labored.
"Doesn't hurt as much as you'd think. Where are you guys moving, Steve? Hey, hey, stay with me." Fitz tried talking to him to keep his mind off the pain while the paramedics did their thing. Luckily, the weather wasn't that catastrophic today so he was in a bit of comfort.
"Oh, my God, what's happening to him?" Tricia came up behind Fitz to get a better look at her husband.
"Breathing's agonal. Looks like an arterial bleed in the leg. Irregular heartbeat. Possibly A-fib. I'm really worried about Crush Syndrome." Lisa, the lead paramedic rambled over her radio.
Fitz got up from his crouched position next to Steve and walked Tricia away from the scene.
"What does that mean?" Tricia asked as she was being led away. In the distance she could hear the paramedic shouting, "secure an airway and intubate. I'll get the tourniquet and IV going."
When her steps faltered Fitz gently urged, "All right, let's move over here. Let them do their job. Tricia, this here is Jimmy." He beckoned Jimmy, a third paramedic over. "He's gonna keep you updated on the situation. You've got the best people in the city working on this. I promise you that."
Fitz moved back over to where Steve was and ordered some of his men to start digging a hole underneath the truck. They made a big enough gap to lift up the pod and slide his leg out. At least that was the plan…
"Let's go, let's go," Fitz called, positioning himself at one corner of the pod while Harrison and Stephen positioned themselves at the other end.
Lisa grabbed some air bags and positioned them around Steve's pinned leg. "Okay, on my count, we're gonna raise the bags. One, two... Stop, stop!"
"Tell them to stop. You can't lift that off of him!" She exclaimed.
"What?" Fitz asked confused.
"He's going into Crush Syndrome. As soon as we release the limb, he's going into cardiac arrest. If we're going to save this guy, we're going to have to leave the leg behind. Okay, call Chicago Med. Tell them to send a trauma surgeon. We're going to have to amputate," Lisa relayed hastily.
"I got it," Chief Beene said, walking on the scene. He radioed the hospital, relaying the information. In return he was told that a trauma surgeon would be there as soon as possible.
"Did you give him anything?" Cyrus asked.
Lisa answered, "A liter of fluids and an amp of bi-carb. Are we in contact with the family? I'll need consent."
"Yeah, just give me a sec," Fitz said, moving towards the house where Tricia was standing in front and Harrison followed behind.
As soon as Tricia saw them her hands immediately flew to her mouth. "Oh, God, Steve, is he okay?"
Fitz nodded firmly. "Don't worry, he's stable, but we've called in a trauma surgeon from Chicago Med."
"A surgeon? For what?"
"Your husband has a condition called Crush Syndrome. If we lift the pod off of his leg, he'll go into cardiac arrest.
"No."
"If there were any other option, we'd take it. I just want to see your husband out of here alive." Fitz relayed earnestly and Harrison came to stop next to him.
"No, I'm sorry, but no," Tricia shook her head.
Harrison seeing the older woman's fear decided to step in and help her make the right decision that will save her husband's life. "Tricia, look at me. You and Steve, you've been saving up for this new place, what, five years?"
"Eight," she corrected.
"You have a nice house, kids. That is the dream. You guys have a long life ahead of you. I don't want you to lose all that." Harrison looked her straight in the eye, letting her know that it's better for him to lose a limb than his entire life.
Tricia sobered up and found reason. Instead of denying them she asked, "Can I hold his hand?"
Fitz sighed in relief and said, "Come on."
Shortly after the surgeon arrived the firefighters took off their jackets and shielded Steve's body from public's view while they worked on him. As promised they allowed Tricia to hold onto his hand through the makeshift curtain of jackets. She cringed as she heard the saw blade slicing through her husband's flesh. But even through the horrific ordeal she felt a sense of peace enveloping her, knowing that he was going to be fine.
As soon as Steve was cut free he was immediately placed on a gurney and his amputee leg was tied to stop bleeding. He was then rushed into the back of the ambulance. Tricia got in with him and they made their way off to the hospital.
The rest of the crew on site sighed in relief that they were able to save another life.
Back at the firehouse, Fitz checked his phone and saw that he had over 5 missed calls from Olivia and an impatient message text to call her. Immediately, he was alarmed and relocated to the privacy of his office before calling her back.
"What." she answered.
Ok… He didn't expect the attitude. "You called me?"
"I did."
"And?" And what do you want? He wanted to ask instead.
"Why did you give my new number to my grandmother?"
Shit… "I can explain."
"Explain what! You violated my wishes and overstepped your bounds! Which part of I don't want anything to do with that woman don't you understand?"
"Liv, calm down. It's not like what you're thinking," he spoke calmly, counteracting her explosive tone.
"Don't dare tell me to calm down! You had no right, Fitz! None!"
"Liv-"
"I had to endure an hour long phone call that I didn't want to have because you couldn't keep my wishes. I don't care if she had a gun to your head Fitz, you shouldn't have given her my number. You're supposed to be on my side." And before he knew it Olivia was sobbing on the phone line. He felt like shit. He rather she cussed and yelled at him all day than cry. He hated when she cried. He didn't mean to hurt her like this.
Fitz closed his eyes tightly and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Livvie, I'm sorry. She kept calling the firehouse for you and eventually when they told her you weren't working here any longer, Lauren thought it best to transfer the call to me. I just felt really bad for her, Liv. You could hear how sorry and desperate she was to get in contact with you. And I wasn't going to do it at first, but something inside of me told me to give her a second chance."
In a calm tone Olivia said, "That's where you're wrong, Fitz. You can't give her a second chance when you're not the one she hurt. She hurt me and I want nothing to do with her. I'm angry that you tried fixing something that I didn't ask you to fix."
Fitz sighed. "I just want you to be happy."
"I am happy! I don't need her to be happy, I'm fine without her."
Fitz sighed again, this time louder. "Olivia, I know you're mad but I did this with the best intentions at heart. I just don't want you to wake up with regrets when it's too late. Trust me, I know all too well about that." He paused to take control of his emotions. "I hated my mother for 15 years. 15 years I hated her and when I finally got over it ,I barely got to spend a couple of months with her before she died. I regretted hating her for so many years because I'd rather spend that time getting to know her." He pinched his nose harder to stop himself from tearing up. His words were getting caught in his throat as he spoke.
"Sometimes in life bad things happens to us and we have all rights to remove ourselves from hurtful situations. But, sometimes we must go a step further than that and forgive the person who hurt us. I know it's painful Livvie, but it's for our own good. I know you've been hurt baby, but I just want you to forgive her. Give her another chance."
Olivia sniffled. "I forgive her but I don't think I can give her another chance," she told him truthfully.
Fitz sighed, running his hand over his face. "I understand."
Silence fell on the line for several seconds.
"Livvie?" Fitz called her name softly.
"Yea?"
"I'm sorry…"
AN: So what you thought? Does Claris deserve another chance? Did Fitz do the right thing or good intentions but still wrong? Should Fitz and Liv ask Stephen and Tina to sign legal guardianship documents for their kids should something happen to them? Let me know if you enjoyed the scene with the Steve guy. That part came from Chicago Fire :). What was your favorite part of the update? Anyways, let me know what you think. Thank!
Until next time,
XOXO
PS: checkout my other story Life Happens, plus Family First has been updated. :)