Olivia stood in the doctor's lounge mentally preparing herself for the surgery. She had a severe headache the night leading up to the surgery so she was confident that she wouldn't have an episode during the surgery although she could never be too sure.
She sat on the sofa with her legs folded and her eyes closed. She often meditated before surgery to calm herself until Harrison came to collect her for the surgery.
Around five years ago, she took a trip to India to see if she could find a cure for her headaches. She had been researching herbs and ancient remedies that were particularly useful for dulling pain and calming the mind. When those didn't work, she visited a buddhist temple where she met a monk name Jai that suggested meditation. She was skeptical at first but after some convincing on his part, she tried it. She ended up staying at the temple for two whole days, learning the ways of meditation. It didn't help with her headaches but it helped calm her anxiety throughout the day and that went a long way for her.
She walked with Harrison down the hall into the procedure room. Once she was inside she took a deep breath and began. She worked on Sarah for 14 and a half hours uninterrupted before she was able to sew her up and leave the other doctors and nurses to clean her up.
It was success, her body immediately reacted to the transplant and when the surgery was done, they gave her another CT scan and the results were positive. All she needed now was to allow time to the transplant to work it's magic.
Dr. Manu brought her out the family that had been anxiously waiting in the hospital waiting room for word on what was going on. They all stood up as the saw her enter the waiting room. They all stood as Olivia entered the room.
"The surgery was a success,"
They all let out a breath and rejoiced by hugging and embracing each other.
"What happened?" Sarah's father asked.
"Well, it took me hours to remove all the debris from the chip in her brain but once I was able to implant the stem cells into her brain, they immediately began to amalgamate with her brain. The CT scans show significantly less brain activity. Right now, it just about time, she needs to time heal and let the transplant fully integrate into her body."
"How long do you think that will take?" her mother asked.
"My scientific guess would be in about 4-5 days before she wakes up but 2-3 weeks for full recovery. I will be here for a few more days, checking her brain wave patterns and chemical activity in the brain but once she's up, Dr. Manu will run cognitive test and evaluate her mental awareness, as well as the state of her schizophrenia, which I believe will be cured as a side effect of the transplant but only time will tell for sure."
For the second time, Sarah's mother hugged Olivia, tightly and then the father joined in on the hugged then Olivia felt Sarah's little brother join in as well.
"Thank you so much, Dr. Pope. I can't tell you how grateful we all are," Sarah's mother said with tears in her eyes.
Olivia returned the hug, it was moment like this that made her glad that she chose the profession she did. Her number one priority was to help anyone she could, in any way that she could.
"You guys are all very welcome and please, while I'm here please feel free to ask me any questions you have about the procedure and Sarah's condition."
"Thank you so much."
Olivia finished up at the hospital and then went back to her hotel. She was exhausted and hungry. She had a rule about eating late but she would have to make an exception after a surgery that lasted nearly 15 hours. She ordered room service and tried to stay up afterwards to give herself time to digest the food but she fell asleep.
Fitz paced back and forth in the oval office.
"Why does she make me so crazy," he thought to himself.
He had one of his agents parked outside of her apartment waiting on word of when she arrived from the airport. It was 3 pm and after not having heard from her in almost a week, his patience was running thin. He paced back and forth in the oval. Not in an angry way but in an anxious way, like a high schooler about to ask their crush out on a date.
Olivia landed at the washington at 5:30 pm, she jumped in a cab to her apartment as quickly as she could. Once she got to her apartment, she grabbed her car keys from the doorman and dropped off her bags and rushed out. She knew Fitz would know when she was back and she wanted to get everything done before he came to her apartment. She made a phone order at a local bakery a couple days earlier. She parked right in front of the bakery and went inside.
"Hi, I'm Olivia, I ordered a cake a few days ago, my order number is 2745" she said to the barista.
"Sure, give me one moment."
Olivia looked around at all the different snacks and treat that were beautifully displayed. When the barista came back around, she had Olivia's full order neatly packaged with her receipt.
"We have one french vanilla, whipped icing cake with white chocolate covered strawberries."
"Yes, that is my order," Olivia said with a smile.
She collected the package and dropped a $10 bill in the tip jar then went back to her car and carefully placed the cake in the back seat. Next on her list was the party store, she ran in really quickly and grabbed everything on her mental list then headed to the market, which conveniently was right next door to the party store. She grabbed all the ingredients she needed to make her dish and then headed back to her apartment.
Fitz got word from Hal that Olivia was back in D.C. around 7 pm. Hal snapped a picture of her driving out of the apartment underground parking garage. He chuckled at the picture of Olivia in in her tiny silver convertible. She had on a pair of ray bans and her hair was thrown up in a messy bun. She couldn't help but smile at the picture, she looked so beautiful and unsuspecting carrying out everyday tasks.
"Lauren?" Fitz called loudly.
Within seconds Lauren was in the oval.
"Sir?"
"Did you get what I asked you to get?"
"Yes sir, Tom has it."
"Great."
Fitz checked the time, it was almost 8pm. He wrapped up what he was doing in the oval and headed to the residence to take a quick shower before heading over to Olivia's.
Olivia had to make a couple trips to get apartment to get everything upstairs. Once she had everything laid out, she put the cake, ice cream and strawberries in the refrigerator. It was getting late and she knew Fitz would be showing up any minute. She ran to the bathroom and grabbed a quick shower. By the time she was out and got dressed in her pajamas, she heard a knock at her door. She ran to the refrigerator and took the cake out and placed it on the coffee table and put the candles on top.
"Coming?" She called loudly as she finished setting everything up. When she finished she turned off all the lights and opened the door to let him in.
Fitz couldn't see anything as he entered the apartment.
"Liv why haven't you been answering my calls, I know you're doing it on purpose and it's not funny and why is it so dark in here?"
"I have a surprise for you."
"You do?"
"Yes."
"Well I have a surprise for you too."
"Really?" she asked with a smile even though Fitz couldn't see it.
"Yep."
Olivia reached over to the light switch.
"Okay close your eyes, I'm going to turn on the lights."
Fitz did as he was told and held his surprise behind his back.
"My eyes are closed," he replied.
"Okay 3...2...1."
She flicked the lights on.
"Open your eyes.
Fitz opened his eyes and his mouth dropped open.
"Happy belated birthday!" She screamed.
Fitz smiled widely.
"You did this for me?"
"Of course I did, I figured with everything that happened on your birthday, you didn't really get a chance to celebrate it and I think you deserve to be celebrated."
Olivia looked down, she could partially see what Fitz was holding behind his back but she wasn't sure. She looked back up at Fitz who was quietly staring at her and if he was thoroughly thinking something through.
"Fitz?" she said snapping him out of his haze.
He looked up at her and smiled then pulled the bouquet of red roses from behind his back.
Olivia Gasped.
"They're beautiful. I love them. Thank you."
She took them from him and headed to the kitchen.
"I'm gonna put them in some water."
Fitz was still shocked she would put so much effort into doing something for him. He stood frozen in the foyer waiting for her to come back.
Olivia put the roses on water and then came back to find Fitz standing in the same spot she left him.
"Fitz, what's wrong? You don't like it?"
He chuckled.
"I absolutely love it."
"Alright then come on, I've got big plans for tonight."
She took him by the hand and pulled him over to the couch.
She put the 'happy birthday' crown and sash on him.
Fitz laughed so hard she could see tears in his eyes.
"What? I'm giving you the whole experience."
He wiped his eyes.
"No, it's the fact that it says birthday princess that's killing me."
"Shut up! Equality for all and also this was all they had," she said laughing.
"So what exactly do you have planned for me?" Fitz asked.
"Well first, I'm am going to teach you how to make my world famous 'everything but the kitchen sink sundae' which is so good I only make it twice a year my birthday and then literally any other day."
Fitz chuckled.
"Alright chef. Teach me."
Olivia pulled him up and he followed her to the kitchen. She took everything out of the refrigerator and laid them on the kitchen island.
"So the secret is that we put every sweet, salty, crunchy, chewy thing we can find into the sundae."
Olivia got two bowls and laid them on the table.
"Get creative," she teased.
Fitz chuckled.
"I will."
Fitz watched as Olivia took two huge scoops of ice cream and put them in the bowl. She looked up at him, wide eyed.
"What? There is never too much ice-cream in my sundae."
She stopped and Fitz could see her thinking over her statement almost as if she knew what she triggered in his mind.
"Get your mind out of the gutter Fitz."
He laughed.
"You put it there."
She nudged him with her elbow playfully and Fitz chuckled.
Fitz put every sweet thing he could find in his sundae and watched Olivia as she did the same. Olivia took one of the gummy worms and fed it to Fitz, who ate it willingly. Olivia danced and sang and poked and prodded Fitz as they stood in the kitchen fixing their creations. They were almost done when Fitz took the can of whipped cream and sprayed it on top of his sundae.
"Any whipped cream for you Livie?"
"Are you kidding me, it wouldn't be complete without whipped cream."
"Are you sure?" he asked playfully.
"Yep."
"Okay."
He took the can of whipped cream and sprayed it on her nose.
Olivia gasped.
"It is so on."
Fitz took off and she chased him all the way to the living room and tackled him to the floor and got on top of him. The whipped cream slid down the her mouth and chin.
Fitz laughed and kissed it off. A soft kiss, nothing too explicit, he was saving that for later. Olivia blushed and smiled lovingly at him.
"Happy birthday Mr. President."
Fitz smiled.
"Say Mr. President again."
"Mr. President."
He tickled her sides.
"What was that?"
She was laughing so hard, she couldn't form a coherent sentence.
"Stoppppp," she tried to say as she laughed uncontrollably.
"Say Mr. President."
She laughed harder.
"Mr. President," she said breathlessly.
Fitz let her go and she dropped to the side and let on the carpet, trying to catch her breath.
Fitz got up and then helped her up as well.
"Come on, our ice cream is melting."
She smiled and followed him to the kitchen. Once she added whipped cream to her sundae, they took their bowls to the couch and sat down.
"Let play a game…"
"Ohh no, is it that crazy karaoke game again."
"No, it called 21 questions…"
Fitz sat up.
"Now this game, I like."
She laughed.
"Of course you do."
"Can I ask anything I want?"
"It's your belated birthday right?"
Fitz chuckled mischievously.
"Yes it is."
"Okay, you first," Olivia suggested.
Fitz rubbed his palms together and placed his ice cream on the coffee table.
"Favorite band, artist, song, movie, tv show, go."
She smiled.
"I didn't expect you to be so well behaved."
"I can't start r rated, I have to build up to it plus I want to know all the little details that make you who you are even things as simple as your favorite song."
She blushed.
"My favorite band is the strokes but I also love the arctic monkeys, foster the people and the sex pistols. My favorite artists have to be Lana del Rey, Nina simone and Bob Marley. My favorite song is gods and monster by Lana Del Rey. I love Star Wars and Star Trek and every Harry Potter movie ever. I'm a game of thrones cult member. I go to comic con every year and I dress up. My favorite tv show is Spartacus and Martin."
"Like I said, you are a total geek."
"My turn."
She said with a laugh.
"What's the most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to you during sex?"
Fitz smiled.
"You wasted no time."
He forehead creased as he tried to think.
"One time this girl tried put her finger in my butt."
"What?" Olivia said as she laughed.
"What did you do?" She asked.
"What do you think I did? I told her to do it again."
Olivia covered her mouth to stifle her laughs.
"You are disgusting."
"I'm kidding, I kicked her out of my dorm room but honestly it was more funny than it was embarrassing. She was my roommate's sister so imagine how awkward things were after that."
"What the most embarrassing thing that happened to you?"
"During sex?" She asked.
"Yea."
"I fell asleep and the guy got so mad he woke me up and stared at me for like 5 minutes then stormed out."
Fitz laughed.
"That's more embarrassing for him than it is for you, what was he doing so bad that made you fall asleep."
"Everything… okay my turn again. Have you ever been heartbroken?"
"No but I have been disappointed before. You?"
"I've never been emotionally invested in someone to get heartbroken or disappointed. My turn - how often do you masterbate?"
Fitz laughed.
"Too much."
It was Fitz's turn to ask a question.
"What was your first time like?"
"Well, it wasn't romantic or anything. I really just wanted to get it over with so I did it with Daniel one drunken night."
"Does being drunk make your memory falter?"
"No, when I'm drunk I'll remember everything but in a hazy looking through a keyhole kind of way, not crystal clear the way I would when I'm sober."
"When you say you remember everything, how much do you remember?"
"I count in my head, inadvertently but I do. It count time, how many steps I take etc. it's a habit I picked up to sort of keep my mind in check, if not I'll wonder and be reticent and enveloped in my own thoughts but to get back your question yes, I remember everything, distinctly how they happened. The time it happened, exact words, exact facial expression, exact emotion I was feeling. If I think hard enough on a memory, it's like it's happening all over again. It's kind of a curse."
"Are you kidding me, be able to remember everything sound pretty awesome."
Olivia scooted closer and folded her legs and faced him.
"Think about it this way, when you forget something, what's the worse that happens? You fail a test if you can't remember the answer, you get in an argument if you forget an anniversary. If you forget something you can always remember but if you always remember you can never forget. Remembering every single moment of your life in gross detail would be great if you had a perfect like but when bad things happen, the really bad things that you remember in so much detail that if you think about it too hard, you feel like it's happening all over again then it becomes a curse. I wish I could forget things, more than anything maybe I'd get decent sleep."
"You have trouble sleeping Livie?"
"Sometimes, most times it's just the nightmares but I'm used to it."
"What keeps you up?"
"It's your birthday, I don't want to depress you with my life stories."
Fitz pulled her closer and nestled her in his arms.
"The best gift you could give me it to let me get to know you better."
"At least let me sing you happy birthday so you can cut your cake and make a wish," she said with a smile.
"Let's do it."
Olivia jumped up.
"Let me go get the candles and your gift."
She ran to the kitchen and grabbed a lighter and then went to closet and to get his gift.
"Close your eyes," she said with the widest grin possible.
Fitz closed them.
She lit the dainty silver happy birthday candlesticks planted atop the cake.
"Open."
Fitz opened his eyes and smile. She placed his gift on the table beside the cake. He was about to take the gift when she pinched his arm.
"You have to open the gift after you blow out your candles."
Fitz smiled.
"Alright."
Olivia smiled and began singing.
"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday Mr. President, happy birthday to you."
She picked up his cake and held it up.
"Make a wish."
Fitz closed his eyes.
"I wish for a quick divorce so that I can be with Olivia because I love her," he said to himself and then opened his eyes and met her brown for eyes, staring intently at him.
He never admitted his love for her until that moment, not even to himself but it made him happy. His feelings for Olivia were so intense that he couldn't imagine it being anything other than love.
She could tell he was deeply thinking about something. She took her index finger and swiped some icing off the cake then rubbed it on his face.
"Whipped icing, my favorite," she said as she licked her finger.
Fitz laughed and wiped the icing of his face and tasted it.
"That's really good and I didn't know you could sing."
"Yeah right, I would like a dying walrus."
Fitz laughed
She placed the cake back on the table and handed him his gift.
"Open it."
He ripped off the wrapping paper and opened the tiny box. There was a flag pin in it.
"I won it at auction just for you, it has 48 stars on it, Eisenhower wore it and I -"
Olivia didn't get to finish her sentence before she felt Fitz's hands on her cheeks and his lips on her lips. He pulled her up from off the floor and sat her on his lap. She cupped his face and closed her eyes as she deepened the kiss. Fitz was ravaging her mouth, it was turning her on so much that she had to break the kiss because she was losing herself in it.
Fitz watched her as she panted softly and tried to catch her breath. He held her face as showered her with kisses. Olivia giggled wildly and buried her face in his chest.
"Thank you for this," Fitz whispered softly in her ear.
She looked up and smiled.
"You deserve a whole lot more."
Fitz chuckled.
"And you deserve the world."
Fitz remembered the conversation they were having before she distracted him with the cake cutting.
"So if I recall, we were in the middle of a conversation before you distracted me."
"Distracted you, I did no such thing."
"I'm learning all your little tricks Livie."
"Okay since it's still your birthday, sort of, I'll humor you, what do you want to know?"
"What's keeping you up at night?"
She palmed her face shyly.
"It's not that it keeps me up, I fall asleep I just have nightmares."
"About what?"
"Hey, do you think your agents what cake. Let me go ask them? Except for Tom, he doesn't get any cake."
"Quit changing the subject."
She rolled her eyes.
"Okay fine. It's just that I've been through some pretty messed up situations that's all."
"Like what?"
"Well…"
Fitz realized she was having a hard time talking about it.
"I don't mean to pressure you into saying anything you don't feel comfortable talking about."
"No it's uhm - hard to talk about but I want to tell you. I feel like I can tell you anything and you won't think any differently of me."
"You're right, I won't."
She smiled.
"Okay here goes. I kinda saw my mom die, well she was killed."
"She was killed?"
"Yea, some men broke into our house when my dad was out of town on a business trip. The robbery went bad and they killed her although I don't think it was a robbery, I think they came with the intention of killing her,"
"Why did you think that?"
"They knew too much, they knew our names, they knew when my dad was gonna be out of town, they even knew where I went to school. They were going to kill me too but the cops showed up. Evidently the neighbors heard the gunshots and called the cops and they showed up just in time."
Fitz listened intently.
"And then there's what happened in Africa…"
"What happened in Africa?"
"I...I almost got raped?"
"What?"
"Yeah."
"And your going back?" He asked shocked.
"Well you shot because you are the president but that doesn't mean you quit being president. I can't quit helping people who need help because of one unfortunate incident."
"That's hardly unfortunate, it's rape."
"Well they didn't actually get to do anything. I was in Sudan, working with children injured from the Sudan rebel wars. I was in Nyala, this rural town that was mostly sand and stone, anyways I was leaving the medical center one night, I ended up staying late because there was an attack on a nearby school and we had 47 kindergarteners and 1st graders that were badly injured come in all at the same time. It wasn't a far walk back to the our camp, but as I was walking with Abby and her boyfriend at the time but they didn't want a third wheel so they walked ahead. Out of nowhere three guys popped up out of a dark alley. They trailed me and I got so scared that I ran. They chased me and dragged me in the woods. One of them held a knife to my throat and held my hands, the other held my legs and the other began to undress himself. I'd never felt so helpless in my life, it was the worst feeling ever."
"How did you escape?"
"My dad is kind of in security, I didn't know it at the time but he had some of his guys watching me and they stopped it."
"I'm sorry that happened to you, I can't imagine how scary that must've been for you and I'm sorry about your mom, I know what it feels like to lose your mother and it's one of the worst feeling imaginable."
She kissed him on the cheek.
"I'm really sorry about your mom too."
He laid flat on the couch and pulled her into his side.
"Thanks for sharing that with me."
"Thanks for listening, I feel better getting that off my chest, you're the first person I've told about those things, not even Abby knows and she's like my sister."
"I'm grateful that you told me, now I feel like I understand you a little better."
She looked up at him and tried to change the subject.
"Are you sure we shouldn't offer your agents some cake, it's really good cake."
Fitz sat up.
"I have barely tasted my cake. I'll call them, why don't you cut it in slices."
Olivia took the cake to the kitchen and cut it into slices as she waited for Fitz to return with his agents. A couple minutes later, Fitz came back with 6 guards and Tom in tow. Fitz heard a chuckle behind him and turned around to see Tom laughing quietly, so were a few of the other guards. He remembered that he still had in the birthday sash and crown Olivia put on him.
"Not funny guys."
He slipped them off and placed them on the couch.
"Liv, they're here."
She brought like plates with cake to the living room and gave everyone except Tom.
"Tom, you don't get any cake, don't think I've forgotten how you handcuffed me in the hospital," she scolded.
"I was just following orders ma'am."
"You know some of the most atrocious acts of violence committed throughout history were done by men just following orders, care to comment Tom?"
Fitz started laughing, he couldn't help it, so did some of the other guards. Tom stood still, not moving or answering like a child being scolded. Olivia walked over and patted him on the arm.
"Loosen up Tom, I did cut you a slice."
She walked over to the kitchen island and grabbed Tom's slice.
"Does anyone want anything to drink? I have beer?"
Olivia thought about it for a second.
"Okay maybe not beer, how about water? Water sounds good, yeah?"
She answered her own question and walked away to grab bottles of water.
She handed the bottles of water around and then sat in the couch beside Fitz. The agents stood and ate the cake but they didn't speak.
"So do you guys ever speak?"
They all looked at her confused.
"I'm just saying that you guys don't have to be all stoic all the time, having a personality doesn't make you any less capable."
She looked at Tom.
"How was your day Tom?"
"Good ma'am," he answered, he didn't feel comfortable speaking to her.
"My name is Olivia."
"Olivia," Tom replied.
Olivia made her way around the room questioning all the guards until they loosened up and actually began having decent conversations with her. Fitz was surprised, his agents didn't speak unless spoken to, he really didn't expect them to converse so well with Olivia but they did and it made him happy.