Author: I know I am repeating myself, but thanks again for your reviews and to all the others as well who favourited or just read this story. I hope you´ll continue having fun with it.

So, the reviews I got went into a similar direction of mainly being …annoyed with Jake which was maaaaybe what my intention was. ;) But anyways, here´s a few words to you:

AuntDee: Let´s see then if I stay in character here… ;) Thanks for reading and reviewing

LoreneMichelle41: Her reaction to this was planned before your review already, but you´ll find a few of your suggestions and another few things that are different. Hope you don´t mind. :)

Guest: I agree to some extent, they´re both frustrating characters at times and not always very reasonable or logical in how they act, but then again they're both very strong personalities, bound to clash. I am pretty sure she loves him, she is just not capable of handling everything that comes with it at times and I do think her leaving the States was an act of love in a way, to protect him, little sense as this may make to some.

Cleo: Much of your feelings there mirror mine. ;)

Umusarah: A nice summary of things, thank you for that. Hope you´ll read on and enjoy. In particular thanks for commenting on the reality of things, I always try to achieve realism and seeing a reader think I do is a special compliment for me. :)

Guest: No, he doesn´t need to, but things are sometimes a little less what needs to happen and a bit more what should not…

Rachgreengeller: Yes, I would think so too. And by the way, hello to a fellow Friends fan. :)

Chapter 7 - Hurt

"Livvie, are you okay?" Fitz was sitting on the floor of the Oval Office, his feet touching the large presidential seal on the carpet before him that he had been absent mindedly staring at throughout the conversation, his leather shoes just touching the bird´s talons, his back was leant against the Resolute Desk. He had taken off his jacket before he made the call, could feel the engravings of the massive piece of furniture uncomfortably probing his back. But until a moment ago he had not even noticed the discomfort, entirely occupied by the sweet, sad experience of talking to her, thousands of miles away but talking to her. Now, however, for some reason, she had fallen silent. Was it something he said, he wondered? He couldn't think of anything.

"Livvie?"

Again, nothing but he could hear her breathing against the speaker phone. Then there was another voice.

"I made you some coffee, Liv, just how you like it."

The voice was distinct and he knew it too well to be fooled about who it was that was with her. It sent an icy chill of disappointment down his back, just as if someone had flung a bucket of ice water right at his face.

"I see…" he said, sounding choked but trying desperately to hold on to the last fragment of dignity that was threatening to drown in his anger. She ran from him when he most needed her? With him?

When he moved the phone away from his ear, closing his eyes, trying to gather his wits, he could hear her words, pleading, just before he broke the connection and in a fit of rage threw the phone against the wall, nearly toppling over the basalt statue of a rider atop a bucking wild horse. "Fitz, please…"

He wanted to scream, maybe he should, maybe that was the sanest thing to do but what was this thing called sanity anyways? He leaned forward, buried his hands in his hair, suppressing a groan and trying to master his rage. His disappointment. Why would she do that to him? Call him but obviously she didn´t care any more. To torment him?

The phone had splattered into a few dozen pieces, the clatter had obviously been heard outside. Either that or it was time because after all there were other matters at hand, a world to run, funny enough, he thought sarcastically, the love life of him and her was not the only thing of concern, because in that moment the door opened. Cyrus´ face changed from a rather neutral yet determined look to almost despair. Without saying a word he was by his side in a few swift steps and without asking permission, without observing any kind of protocol he reached down and pulled Fitz to his feet, immediately piecing together what must have happened (at least to some extent), improvising the rest. "Mr President, the Secretary of Defence and the Secretary of State will be here in two minutes along with the interpreter for the phone call." He kept his voice low, but other man´s words sounded urgent, hurried. Knowing he was mastering, had to master, a crisis right now. "Whatever just happened, it´s for later, we have set up the call with the Iraqi president in ten minutes, Sir."

Following an impulse, Fitz shook off the other man´s arm as soon as he was on his feet, maybe also to take the shock out of his friend´s face letting the other realize he was not drunk. "To hell with that." He muttered through pressed teeth.

"No, to hell with her, if she leaves you in such a state." Cyrus gave back, growling, those few occasions where he was actually challenging his authority. "This is about war and peace, about national security."

"I want to make another phonecall first, Cy. Tell them to wait." His heart was pounding as he made eye contact, determination and pain on his face. "Mr President…"

"I want. To make another call first, Cy." His voice was not louder but had a dangerous quality to it. "What just happened is none of your concern, Cy, I need a minutes, and in these few minutes I need to make a call." He was enunciating every word, partly to get a grip on his raging emotions, partly because he wanted to make sure there was to be nothing else before that.

Cy made a step back. "A secure line, Cy. Alone."

Cyrus gave him another long look before raising his hands and shrugging in defeat. "Five minutes, Sir. And after that I expect to see a president fit to lead."

It was luck for both of them, Fitz knew, that he was too upset to react to that blatant stressing of the boundaries of their roles, but for now he let it happen. When Cy closed the door, and Fitz guessed it took the other man some restraint to not slam it, he leant against the desk and closed his eyes for a moment. Tried to focus.

Why would she do this, he thought? Run…. With him…only to call him with him around? It angered him, hurt him…he didn´t know what to think of it. And before he could sort his thoughts, his intercom buzzed. He walked around his desk, feeling faint as he pressed the button.

"The line has been established on 2, Sir." His secretary sounded stressed, probably because Cy was menacingly breathing down her neck. "Thank you."

He took the receiver, an old fashioned thing in the age of smartphones but more secure than anything and dialed the number. Waited. It didn´t take long until a male voice responded.

"What an honour, Mr President."

"I need a favour." he said.

"I´m all ears."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

She had jumped up already but it was too late. Olivia had a few good theories about why Jake had said this, she didn´t know which one came closest to the truth but she surely could rule out that his remark had been uttered not knowing who was on the end and would overhear and know who was with her. Jake knew perfectly well that it wasn´t necessary to speak overly loudly. The room was rather small and the two men had known each other for long enough for Fitz to be able to recognize his voice in an instant.

She wanted to push him out of the room, slam the door in his face but before she even got there, just when she grabbed Jake by the collar, she got the confirmation that Fitz had connected the dots. "I see." The hurt was evident in his voice, stabbed right through her.

Her intended push, further fuelled by the fake innocence on Jake´s face as if he wanted to claim he had merely been concerned and wanted to care for her with a thing as simple as coffee, was not delivered. Not then. She whirled around, started pacing. "Fitz, please!" Too late… The click in the line was obvious. She spun back.

"What the hell were you thinking!?"

He indeed had the nerve to play innocent for a moment.

"I was worried, I thought you´d like some…"

"Don´t fucking play with me Jake, you knew perfectly well what was going on here."

"Oh you mean that you were calling him?"

"He was calling me!" That was not even anything of his business.

"Still you answered the phone. Liv, I told you earlier…"

"You just keep telling me things, I am a grown up person, Jake." Her voice was raised, shaking.

"You are not exactly acting like one, Liv." His brow was creased in annoyance but he did not raise his voice much. Which only made her angrier, his fake attempt as she saw it right now, to act as the only adult in the room. She threw up her hands, paced towards the closet.

"And what is this about now?" He was still standing in the door frame, watching her, his arms now lightly crossed in front of his chest, but his jaw clenched.

She didn´t reply.

"Liv. Let´s sit down and talk this through."

"I´m done talking. I´m done sitting tight …" She dragged her suitcase out of the closet, flipped it open on the bed.

"You´re not thinking straight, Liv. One call and you flip like this."

She paused abruptly. "No Jake, right now I AM thinking straight."

"Really?" Now there was an annoyed pitch in his voice. "It was you who ran, remember? It was you getting on that plane, it was you not answering the phone back then."

Again, it all made such perfect sense. And if one considered it, it made far less sense for her to make this, right now, such a big deal. His remark might have been careless but it might have been just that. So what was it then that made her so angry, that made her rethink in a whirlwind the shaky reality she had started to build up here? She knew the answer the moment she asked it to herself. Her gut. She knew, suddenly, in her gut, that his acting was pretense. Whatever reason he had to act like this, he had made Fitz aware of his presence deliberately. He had wanted to hurt. He had risked hurting her feelings only to have his cheap feeling of triump. To make Fitz think she was lost to him. And that and Jake withholding the pictures from him earlier (whoever had sent them) was just enough, yet showing her with a startling clarity how fragile her own sanity was with…him. And without Fitz there was Jake, pretending to be the anchor of that sanity while in reality he was only poisoning it more.

She had her back to him, then moved on to throw her clothes into the suitcase, wordlessly as he watched, no attempt to stop her, before he spoke again. "We actually have a chance at a decent life here, Liv. A chance we don´t have over there. You know why. We´re both broken."

She faced him, shook her head, feeling how her heart was beating wildly against her chest. "If you really loved me." she said, shakily. "you would not tell me I´m broken. You´d try to fix me."

She snapped the suitcase shut, grabbed it off the bed, snatched her handbag. Good thing that she had never really unpacked much as if she had known…

He stepped in her way.

"Liv…"

"Let me pass, Jake."

"You and I know this is not a good idea. Think about it. Think reasonably for just one minute."

She shook her head.

"Let me pass." She pushed past him, tried. He grabbed her arm with a sudden vicious strength she didn´t know from him and that made her yelp more in terror than in pain. Suddenly she was very afraid. "Jake." His eyes were hard all of a sudden, his jaw set as he reached out with a second hand, tried to slowly but determinedly wrestle the suitcase from her hand. The determination in his eyes and something else mixed there scared her.

"I swear." she said, her voice coarse with anger and fear. "I swear if you don´t let go of me right now I will make a few phone calls, Jake." He just stared at her. "We both know you didn´t come with me just for pity or for….love." she nearly spat the last word. "You are running from people too. People you don't want to know you´re here. I happen to know just a few, Jake."

Her hear was drumming almost painfully, she could almost feel her blood pulse in her ear as the seconds stretched endlessly. "Let. Me go."

And after a long, long moment, he did.

She left the apartment with her heels clicking against the cobblestones, once more, running. She hailed a taxi, breathing a sigh of relief at the fact there was actually one around after the night had fallen. Thanks to the big city life. Until it stopped, right until she had hurried inside, drawing a bewildered look from the driver, she noticed she didn´t feel safe. Only when the taxi gathered speed she was feeling her heart beat return to a somewhat more normal rate.