Olivia slammed the car door as hard as she could and stormed into the cabin. She knew he wasn't there because she didn't see his cars parked anywhere. She sat on the couch with her arms folded. A few minutes after she entered the cabin, Tom entered carrying an ice pack. He walked out on her and held it out for her to take. "For your hand. You have a nice form, you just couldn't reach."
Olivia snatched it from him, "don't fucking patronize me, Tom."
"I'm sorry, that wasn't my intention," he said.
"Burn in hell," she screamed.
He didn't respond as he left.
An hour passed before she heard the sound of cars outside and she knew it was him. The ice pack had melted and now she was playing with the watery fluid inside while it was still pressed against her knuckles. She heard footsteps approaching then the door slid open. She could feel his presence in the room but didn't look. Her heart began to thump violently in her chest and it was as if her fingertips went numb.
"Livie," he said softly.
She didn't reply and had no intention of doing so. It was hard to do because he was using that voice. Not the cold, cruel one she last heard but the enchanting one she fell in love with. She hadn't heard it in so long that the sound of it brought tears to her eyes. She promised herself she would never speak a word to him again. She would never look in his eyes again. She would never let herself fall for him again and it seemed so much easier before when she had no contact with him but now he was standing just a few feet away from her and the urge to throw herself in his arms was hard to bite back and the fact that he had that effect on her made her furious.
He walked over to her and sat beside her on the couch then faced her. "Tom told me what happened to your hand. I'm sorry- can I look at it?"
He waited for an answer but there was none as she stared down at her hands, intentionally ignoring him. She was stiff with anger.
"Livie?"
He waited for her to respond but she didn't so he reached out and touched her hand but she moved away.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry and so ashamed of what I did to you. I was wrong and I'm sorry. I know it's not enough but I still have to say it."
He watched her jaw tighten but still she wouldn't say a word. He swallowed hard and continued. "I know you're angry and you're right to be angry. And I know this is extreme but I needed to get some time alone with you so we could talk."
He waited some more but still, there was no response. There was only anger, radiating from her like heat radiated from a fire. "I know I took it too far. All the things I said to you and all the things I did. It was cruel and you didn't deserve it. I'm sorry Livie, please forgive me."
He waited for a reaction or response and still, she was deadly silent. "Olivia, I'm trying here," he said softly. "Say something. Tell me you hate me. Tell me fucking anything."
She needed to get away from him so she stood and headed to the clear glass wall but Fitz followed. She turned her back to him and steeled her resolve but he got frustrated with her silence and grabbed her face between his hands and gently pulled it towards him so he could see her eyes. "I fucking love you. I'm sorry-look at me."
Olivia angrily pushed him away and struggled to get free of him but he wouldn't let her go from his grip. "Look at me," Fitz said. "I love you. Why won't you talk to me?"
"Get away from me," Olivia screamed. She tried to push him away but he had her locked in his arms. It was finally enough to bring her to tears as she tried to fight her way to get out of his grip. Fitz finally let her go and in an overwhelming rush of anger and emotion she punched the glass window as hard as she could. The pain momentarily stunned her and she rocked backward. Fitz was stunned and before he could stop her she punched it again and this time blood from her knuckles smeared against the glass. She cried out in pain and made a fist to punch the glass again but Fitz grabbed her and pulled her from the wall just in time for Tom and another few guards to rush in.
Tom ran over. He'd seen the entire ordeal through the glass wall.
She held her bruised hand and cried as she tried to free herself from Fitz's grip but his grip only tightened. "No more," Fitz said, still unable to believe what just happened.
Her hand was wet with blood and she felt it running down her forearm.
"Tom," Fitz said.
Tom turned and signaled one of the agents to radio the physician and ambulance over.
She tried to breath deep to calm herself while furiously wiping her tears away as they fell. She couldn't help the sniffle that would escape as she tried to stop her nose from running all the while Fitz never let her out of his grip and he pulled her away from the window. Just moments later a medical team from the ambulance that followed in his motorcade rushed in. Tom directed them over to Fitz and Olivia. Fitz finally let her go as the medical team took her hand and sat her on the steps leading up to the glass wall. The head doctor took her hand and inspected it. As he moved in she winced from the pain and let out a small cry. He held her by the wrist and moved her knuckles up and down.
More tears drained down her face.
"How bad is the pain on a scale from 1-10?" The doctor asked.
He waited for a response but Olivia never answered.
"I don't believe it's broken, just sprained and bruised. I'm going to wrap it up and I need you to ice it until we can get you an x-ray to ensure that there are no fractures."
Fitz stood back trying to process what just happened and trying to understand the gravity of her emotions. He'd never seen her like that nor did he know she was capable of that. He was still stunned as he watched the physician clean the blood from her hand and then wrap her wrist and break a few ice packs to activate them. He placed them around her wrist and secured it with cloth gauze.
Olivia had calmed down a bit and her labored breathing returned to normal but her eyes were still wet with a constant flow of tears.
It took him a moment before he could find his voice."I'll take you back to your car," he said, defeated.
Olivia stood and grabbed her purse from the coffee table in front of the sofa then walked to the door. He was already there holding it open for her and she walked outside and headed towards the motorcade. She was hoping he wouldn't ride back with her but as she suspected he got in the back of the SUV beside her. Once they were both seated, Tom opened the door on Olivia's side and handed her her car keys and phone then closed the door.
Fitz reached in his pocket and handed her a handkerchief. "There's blood on your face," he said, holding out the cloth to her. She didn't take it and didn't respond to him. He shoved it back in his pocket.
The moment the van pulled off, her phone began to ring. She looked down and it was Abby. It was now hours after she promised she would be back. She hesitated for a moment before she answered. She cleared her throat and wiped her eyes with her unharmed hand then tried her best to sound okay.
"I know I'm really late. I'm sorry but I'll be there as soon as I can-"
"You're not okay," Abby said immediately. "What happened?"
"I'm fine," Olivia said but her runny nose betrayed her with a sniffle. "I'll let you know when I'm close."
She leaned back and took a breath, hoping the ride would be quick. Fitz watched her the entire time, wondering who she had spoken to.
Fitz looked down at her bandaged, bruised hand and sighed because he couldn't believe they were over. He'd been hopeful up until that point but Olivia's reaction was not something he imagined and he wasn't sure how he would be able to fix it. He stared through the window as they drove back from camp David and never bothered to try speaking to her again until they reached the parking lot by the church.
"I'll make it up to you. Even if you don't want me. It can't be like this between us." As he expected she didn't respond.
Olivia let herself out immediately and walked to her Mercedes which was only 15 feet away but there was an agent waiting at the door.
"I can drive you home if you are unable to drive with your hand," he said.
"I'm fine," Olivia responded.
He backed away from her door and she got inside and inside and drove off.
When she walked into her apartment, the girls were sleeping and it was the first time she was thankful they were.
"Olivia, what happened? Why did it take you so long to get back?" Abby said but then she saw her blood stained dress and bandaged hand. "Oh my god. What the fuck happened? Are you okay?" She ran over to her quickly.
Olivia nodded and walked to the sofa to sit. The blood had dried on her dress.
"Who did this to you? Did he do this? Did he hurt you?" Abby asked in a panic.
Olivia shook her head. Her eyes were dry now but they were still swollen. "I did it to myself."
"What? How?"
"I punched a glass wall like a fucking doofus."
Abby gasped. "Why?- wait, where have you been?"
"He had his agents kidnap me and stranded me up at camp David."
Abby's mouth dropped open."You're kidding?"
"No."
Abby looked down at her knuckles.
"Why did you hurt your hand?"
"I got angry and overwhelmed so I punched the glass and I kept punching it until I got pulled away."
Abby was quiet for a moment, "Olivia you can't do that. You can't hurt yourself like that anymore."
"I know," she said with a sigh. "I punched one of his guards…tried to punch him."
Abby nodded, "you haven't done anything like this since back in undergrad."
"I know," she said as she drew in a breath, "I haven't felt anything like this since undergrad."
"What did he do that made you do that?"
"He said he wanted to talk."
"Well, what did he say?"
Olivia chuckled humorlessly, "he's sorry, he loves me, he was wrong."
Abby frowned, "what did you say?"
"Nothing."
"At all?"
"I never said a word except to tell him to get away from me when he touched me."
"Why?"
"When I called him in the hospital after our talk I promised myself I'd never speak to him or look at him again," Oliva said, "I was so fucking angry Abby-he's so consuming and it's like he doesn't realize it. As soon as I'm getting over him, as soon as I'm moving on he comes back ready to wrap me around his fingers."
"Okay but if he told you he loves you, why did you get angry?"
"Because that's not love. I was prepared for him to ignore me or to be an asshole but I never really prepared myself for this. Cyrus told me but I didn't believe him. I didn't think he'd be selfish enough or cruel enough to hate me the way he did- so viscerally- for almost a year and then just change his mind."
"So you're not thinking about getting back with him?"
"No."
"And you didn't tell him about them?"
"No," Olivia said with an exasperated sigh.
"What?"
She shook her head, "I think I was wrong," she said softly.
"About what?"
"He would have wanted them. The way he spoke to me today- he would have wanted them but it's not like I didn't try, you saw me call me week after week. I tried to tell him and now it's too late."
"It's not too late."
"They're already here and now my heart is so blocked that I don't know if I can even get the words out. I know I have to think about them and I know I have to put my feelings aside but I did. When I was pregnat and calling him every week to tell him, I put my feelings aside and I fucking did it even though I was mortified of what he might say or do when I told him. And what if I'm wrong, what if he doesn't want them, what if he gets angry with me for not telling him sooner and then we're back at fucking square one-what if-"
"Olivia you're siking yourself out-, " Abby said, "just take a breath."
"Abby, I'm just a toy to him. The fact that he can go from swearing his love for me to saying those things to me and then ignoring me for a year to swearing his love for me again- how can you do that to someone?"
"Liv-"
"And now Cyrus knows they're his and eventually he'll tell him if I don't-"
"He knows," Abby said, "you told him?"
"He figured it out the second he looked at Luna. He said she has his eyes."
Olivia sighed, "this is what I was afraid of-" the sound of light fussing became audible on the baby monitor sitting on the coffee table. "-I'll be right back." Olivia said as she stood and headed to the bathroom to wash her unharmed hand and then to the nursery. She walked over to Lana and she was fast asleep in her crib then she walked over to Luna and she was laying quietly awake in her crib.
She smiled at her and suddenly the heaviness of the day wasn't so heavy anymore. "Oh my sugar plum, did you want mommy to know you were awake?." She picked her up and kissed her cheek then brought her back to the living room.
"She was up?" Abby asked.
"Yeah, she was just laying there," Olivia replied as she sat across from Abby with Luna leaning on her stomach. She had removed the ice from her hand and the pain was much less severe but it still hurt.
"Can you tell them apart yet because I still have to use the bracelets?" Abby decided to change the subject since Olivia's mood seemed different now that she had Luna.
"No, I can tell them apart without it. Luna's very calm and laid back and Lana is very energetic and always busy making noise, that's how I tell them apart."
"By their personalities?"
"Yep."
"You're such a mom," Abby teased with a smile.
Fitz in his private office by the fireplace. Richard was sitting opposite him. He was still stunned. Her reaction was so visceral. She barely said a word to him but still he understood the gravity of the day.
"So what happened man?" Richard asked for the third time.
Fitz took a breath and leaned back against the couch. He looked up at the ceiling and felt his eyes begin to burn.
"Russia doesn't keep me up at night, not China, not North Korea or Iran. For the last two years I can fucking count on my hands how many times I've gotten a decent night of sleep because of Olivia Pope."
"You still aren't telling me what happened?"
"You were right," Fitz said and then he smiled as his eyes burned with tears once again. "And now I don't know what I'm gonna do," he sighed, "I deserve this by the way, which is the funny part of all of this."
"You still aren't fucking telling me what happened?" Richard said frustrated.
"She wouldn't talk to me, wouldn't look at me and she got so angry that I touched her the punched a glass wall until her hand bled and if I hadn't pulled her away she probably would've kept punching it until she broke her fucking hand."
Richard's mouth fell open.
"I've never seen her like that…I didn't even know she was capable of that and the entire time she was radiating so much anger…"
"So what are you gonna do?"
"I don't know."
"Are you giving up?"
"You mean leave her alone like she obviously wants me to…yeah I..I think I should," Fitz said.
"I didn't think you'd give up so easily," Richard said with a shrug. "I mean you knew she was gonna fucking hate you so now you just have to soften her up and try to talk to her again."
"I don't know if that's best anymore," he said. "I've never seen her like that so I'm still fucking processing it. I don't know if she just mad and wants me to try harder or if she really fucking wants me to leave her alone. You don't just hate someone after you've loved them. I tried to hate her and I couldn't."
"Please if she hated you she would have ignored Karen, she didn't."
"She tried to but Karen is very persistent."
"And Olivia could have persisted and ignored her. That's what she did to you. She sat with Karen and hugged her and kissed her. That's a start."
Fitz chuckled and sighed, "I'll have to figure out what I'm gonna do next. I spent almost a year breaking her fucking heart so I didn't think she'd fold the first time I tried to make up with her. She's stubborn so even if she wanted to she wouldn't. I just have to be careful because if she really wants me to leave her alone then I'll have to."
The following Monday when she arrived back at her office after lunch it was filled to the brim with flowers and bags and bags of gifts. She had about a dozen bouquets of all types of flowers. There were boxes from Hermes and Cartier, Dior, Chanel and Van Cleef that were stacked across the room.
"What the fuck?" She said,
"I told you," Stephen said.
"Who sent these?" She asked and worried about what the answer was.
"It's from the president."
"Who told you that?" Olivia asked.
"There was a secret service agent from the whitehouse with the delivery men. He said his name was Tom and he told us to tell you these are from the president."
Olivia sighed.
"Okay, thanks Stephen."
He nodded and walked away.
"Don't tell anyone," Olivia said softly.
"I kept my mouth shut since I saw you two at your birthday on the campaign," he said.
Olivia's mouth fell open, "were we that obvious?"
Stephen nodded."He couldn't keep his eyes off you and didn't seem to worry that you'd know he was staring."
She groaned and shook her head. Abby came back from lunch a short time later and was flabbergasted by all the gifts in Olivia's office. Olivia debated sending them back but Abby convinced her not to. Huck and Harrison offered to take them to her apartment and she agreed after giving Abby a few boxes of the diamonds Fitz sent.
The gifts continued everyday for two weeks when a Mercedes Maybach was delivered to her apartment with a bow on top.
She wanted to call him, to tell him to stop but she knew that was what he wanted. He wanted to get her on the phone talking to him and she couldn't give it to him. Besides, his gifts weren't her main concern, she still hadn't told him about the twins and everyday that passed it became a larger burden to bear.
1 week later.
It was early Sunday morning when Olivia got a call from one of her clients about an emergency. She was strict with her no work on the weekends policy. Weekends were solely dedicated to the girls, she had mommy and me class on Saturdays and on Sundays she loved spending the entire day at home or taking them out to the park if it wasn't too cold.
This, she'd decided, was a dire emergency and she made an exception.
She didn't want to call Bonnie, she had worked so much overtime because the cases had kept Olivia at the office late. She wanted her to enjoy her weekend off. She called her backup babysitter and she was unavailable. She needed her team with her to handle the case because it was an all-hands-on-deck emergency. In her desperation, she decided to call Cyrus, since he didn't work on Sunday and would be home. He already knew about them and since he had a toddler at home he knew how to care for infants.
"Cy, I sort of need a favor," she said through the phone. "A big one."
"I don't work on Sundays Liv."
"I don't either but sometimes I have to make an exception but that isn't about work, I need you and James to babysit the girls for a few hours. It's really important and I wouldn't call you if I had another choice."
"What happened to your nanny?"
"Bonnie has been working literally all day because I've been so busy with work, I can't call her on her day off, it's unfair and she goes to church so I'm sure she's there right now."
"Fine, just a few hours. They are like little nuclear bombs and I want to stay as far away from them as possible…especially when he finds out."
Olivia rolled her eyes but he was doing her a favor so she let his comment go without a huff."Thank you. I'll be there soon."
"Alright Liv, I'll see ya."
She hung up. "Okay girls, let's get your coats on. Lulu you first."
She quickly dressed Luna in her coat, hat, and shoes. She noticed a small bruise on her hand but thought nothing of it since Luna had the habit of chewing on her hands and feet. When she was finished with Luna, she grabbed Lana. Lana squirmed and wiggled and laughed as she readied her. At over 3 months, Lana was much more active than Luna and was begging to try to sit up with support from either Olivia holding her or her boppy pillow, Luna had a much harder time. She was able to hold her head up and shake her toys and met all the milestones of an infant her age. The doctor said Lana was just more advanced.
Olivia drove to Cyrus in 15 minutes. She'd become very skilled at carrying two car seats and walked quickly to the door. She rang the bell and waited. After about 30 seconds there was no answer.
"Come on Cy, it's cold out here," she yelled.
"Hold on, I'm coming."
He opened the door for her.
"Sorry."
"It's okay," she picked up the car seats and walked in.
"How can you carry them in heels? I can barely carry Ella," Cyrus said, motioning to Olivia's black crocodile skin knee-high pointed-toe stiletto boots. It was one of the 50 pairs of shoes Fitz sent her. She wasn't sure how he found out her shoe size but he did and now she had to turn her guest room into a closet to store all the gifts he'd sent. She had been annoyed initially but as the days passed she could only be flattered though the Maybach was over the top.
She rolled her eyes playfully, "I'm not like the other moms, I'm a hot mom," she teased.
Cyrus rolled his eyes as well.
"I fed them about an hour ago. Luna is very quiet, she likes to observe so you can just lay her on her back on a pillow so she can look around. Lana likes to move so take her out of the car seat and put her on her stomach so she can wiggle around and try to roll over or else she'll cry but be careful, she's very grabby. I have a typed list of instructions in their bag for if you need to know how to make their bottle and how to heat it and all that, it's on the sheet. Uhm - I put breastmilk in there. It's frozen so put them in the fridge until it's time to heat them. They have diapers and I also added formulas just in case. Um…I think that's it, everything you need to know is on the sheet. I'll be back in a few hours. Thanks a lot, Cy, tell James I said thanks too. Call me if anything, okay?"
Cyrus nodded and brought the milk to the fridge immediately then returned to the girls.
Olivia rushed out to meet with the team and her clients.
James came into the foyer."Where's Olivia?" he asked.
"You just missed her."
"Aww well, I'll see her later. Are these her girls?"
"Yep."
"Oh wow, they're gorgeous. At least I finally get to meet them. Which one is Lana and which one is Luna?"
Cyrus scratched his temple. "I don't know."
"Okay, let's get all these clothes off them so I can see them."
Cyrus took one car seat and James took the other. They undressed them down to their pink onesies and pink socks then spread a blanket on the carpet and laid them there.
"Olivia has very pretty girls, I wonder who the donor is? Do you think she did it anonymously or she used someone she knew? I, personally, don't know why she even used a donor. She's gorgeous, I can't imagine her having a hard time finding a man."
"She doesn't have a hard time finding a man, if anything she has it too easy," Cyrus griped. "Why don't you just ask Olivia these questions when she gets here?"
"Because they're personal questions and it's much more fun to gossip about them," James chuckled.
Just as Olivia said, Lana scooted and squirmed and rolled while Luna was content to lay and chew on her fingers and pacifier. Ella ignored them and played with her toys. After about an hour later Cyrus heard a knock on the door and thought it was odd that Olivia came back so soon.
"I didn't think Olivia would come back so soon," Cyrus said as she got up to answer the door.
"Oh no Cy, it's Fitzgerald. He called earlier and said he and Karen were coming over to see Ella."
"What? Why didn't you tell me?" Cyrus said in a panic.
"Calm down Cy, he's just here to see Ella. Go get the door, he's waiting."
There was a knock again. "Listen to me, James. Olivia does not want anyone to know about her children so don't say anything. If he asks, tell him it's a friend of mine, I'll do all the talking."
"Okay fine but I don't know why Olivia would want to hide them. They are gorgeous children."
"James, do you understand?"
"Yes, Cy. now open the door," James snapped.
Cyrus ran to the door and opened it for Fitz and Karen.
"Fitz, I didn't know you were stopping by. Hey Karen."
"I called James."
"Hey uncle Cy," Karen said as she walked past Cyrus to the foyer.
"It's a little bit of a full house today," Cyrus began, "maybe you can come back later?"
"Cyrus, I called and I can't bother to go all the way back to the whitehouse. I'm fine if it's a little cramped."
They both took their coats and shoes off and headed to the living room.
"Hi James," Karen greeted.
"Hi Karen, I told Ella you were coming and she got all excited." Karen clapped excitedly in response as she headed to Ella.
Fitz walked into the living room behind Cyrus who was suddenly sulking.
"Hey, James."
He looked down on the carpet and saw Lana and Luna.
"Woah. Cyrus, don't tell me you got more kids. You can barely manage Ella," He chuckled.
"No, we're babysitting for a friend of ours," Cyrus said quickly.
Fitz knelt down beside them and took a closer look then smiled." A friend of yours?"
"Yeah, you don't know her."
"They're twins?"
"Yes."
"You are a changed man Cyrus. I never thought you were the babysitting type."
Cyrus shrugged in response. "Old age."
"Well, what are their names?" Fitz asked.
Cyrus was about to make up names but James interjected.
"Lana and Luna although I'm not sure who is Lana and who is Luna," James chuckled."But I think their mom gave them bracelets to tell them apart."
"Oh okay. Well, I'm gonna hold one of them."
Fitz stretched for Luna, who was closest to him.
"No, I don't think that's a good idea. Their mom doesn't really want anyone holding them. She's very uptight and she'll bitch at me if a stranger holds them," Cyrus objected. "They're so young-"
"-Well then it's a good thing she's not here," Fitz said as he held Luna in his arms. A wide smile spread across Luna's face causing her pacifier to fall.
She had wisps of blonde hair on her head. Her skin was light golden brown. She had a heart-shaped face with big expressive eyes, long eyelashes, and full pouty lips and her cheeks were slightly dimpled. She resembled a porcelain doll and so did her sister who looked identical to her.
"Look, Cyrus, she likes me," Fitz chuckled. "I think these are two of the most beautiful little babies I've ever seen. Who the hell are their parents? They're like little cherub angels."
"Daddy, hey!" Karen interjected.
"I said two of the most, not the most, little missy."
Karen laughed and then returned to play with Ella.
"Well Olivia's gorgeous so of course she has gorgeous kids," James blurted out.
Cyrus froze.
Fitz picked up Luna's pacifier and gave it back to her.
"What did you just say, James?" Fitz asked.
Cyrus interjected, "he just-"
"Is your name James?" Fitz interjected calmly.
James stood and walked over to Fitz so Karen wouldn't hear, "my mouth slipped so you can't tell anyone but these are Olivia's daughters. She doesn't want anyone to know so don't say a word."
Fitz felt dizzy and swayed with Luna in his hand and Cyrus grabbed his arm.
"Fitz, are you okay?"
Fitz cleared his throat, "did she adopt?"
James was confused by Fitz's reaction but answered his question. "Uh…no."
"Do you know who the father is?"
"She used a donor which as I said to Cyrus, I can't imagine a woman like Olivia is having a hard time finding a husband but I guess she didn't want the husband, just the babies."
"How old are they?" Fitz asked.
"That I don't know," said James. "Can I get you something? Like a drink or anything?"
"No," Fitz said as he stared down at Luna.
Lana who was still on the carpet began to fuss and Fitz sat on the blanket and picked her up too. He had them both in his lap and stared at them, inspecting every feature as they stared back at him, cooing and smiling.
It was so obvious now that he knew.
Cyrus was in a panic and stood frozen as he tried to decide what to do. He attempted to sneak away but Fitz called him the moment he tried. Cyrus realized that Fitz had been watching him peripherally the entire time.
"Where are you going?" Fitz asked.
"To the kitchen, to pour myself a drink."
"And to call Olivia," Fitz said.
James had stepped away to supervise Karen and Ella in the playroom.
"No-"
"You will not call her. Do you understand?" Fitz said.
Cyrus nodded and walked to the kitchen. He pulled out his phone and checked if there were any messages from Olivia and there were none. He took a swig of whiskey and then returned to the living room for what had predictably turned into a disastrous day. Cyrus went back to the living room and sat on the couch. Fitz was still on the floor with the twins and Cyrus had a really hard time reading his body language as he observed him playing with them. Almost an hour later, Cyrus stood once again. "I think I have to feed them now," he said and walked to the kitchen to warm the semi-frozen breast milk in hot water. He returned with two bottles.
"What's that?" Fitz asked.
"It's their breast milk."
The moment Lana saw the bottle coming toward her she spat out her pacifier. Fitz smiled and watched as she panted excitedly for her milk. He laid them both against the pillow and took both bottles from Cyrus and fed them at the same time. Luna fell asleep shortly after being burped and changed followed by Lana. Even as they slept in their car seats, Fitz observed them keenly. Karen and Ella returned to play in the living room. Fitz told her she'd have to go back to the white house and that Ella and James could go with her to continue their playing.
It had been approximately 4 hours after Olivia dropped them off that she returned to pick them up. There was one SUV in front of Cyrus' house when Olivia pulled up. It wasn't enough to draw her attention as unusual. She'd texted Cyrus and told him she was on her way.
She rushed from her car to his door and knocked quickly and lightly. She waited long enough to knock again and on the second knock, Cyrus opened the door. She noticed he looked worried, like something was troubling him, and immediately panicked.
"Are my daughters okay;?" she asked quickly.
Cyrus nodded and opened the door wider so she could step in.
"Are you okay?" Olivia asked. "Is Ella okay? What's going on?"
Cyrus didn't answer as he walked from the foyer to the living room. When Olivia reached the living room, she saw Fitz sitting on the sofa beside Lana and Luna who were sleeping in their car seats resting on the floor.
Cyrus turned to Olivia and saw the look of disgust and betrayal spread across her face. She quickly tried to collect herself. "Did they have a feeding?" she asked Cyrus, trying to sound as calm and even as possible.
He nodded, "yes, one drank 7 ounces of breastmilk and the other drank 2.5 ounces. I put all their stuff in their bag."
She grabbed the Goyard tote that doubled as her diaper bag and walked over to the girls and lifted both car seats from beside him. She could feel Fitz's stare on her and the moment she lifted the car seat from beside him he stood.
"Cyrus, can you walk me out?" Olivia said.
"No. Leave us."
"Cyrus, can you walk me out?" She asked again.
That was exactly what Cyrus had been trying to avoid, being caught in between Fitz and Olivia.
Olivia turned to head to the door but felt Fitz hold on to Luna's carseat in her hands. "You're not leaving until you talk to me," he said.
Cyrus stepped away.
"Let go of my daughter," Olivia said angrily.
"Am I their father?"
"Let go of my daughter," she said again.
Fitz let go and she headed to the door. When she got to the foyer, Tom was standing in front of the front door.
It was the christening all over again.
"Tom, I need to take my daughters to my car," Olivia said.
"I can't let you leave," Tom said. "I'm sorry."
"You are quickly becoming my least favorite person, Tom. The top spot is hard to beat but you're a close second," Olivia said. He fought off a smile and turned his face away.
She rested the car seats gently on the floor and then sat with her back against the wall in the foyer. She folded her legs and slipped off her coat and let it lay behind her against the wall. She heard heavy footsteps approaching and then Fitz appeared. He stood directly in front of her, against the wall but said nothing. She saw Tom turn and step outside then close the door behind him.
They had only been sitting for a few moments when Lana began to fuss in her car seat. She spat out her pacifier and began to kick her feet. Olivia leaned over and locked back the handle of the car seat and then unlocked the straps around her tiny body, unzipped her winter puff onesie, and lifted her out.
"Hi Lana," Olivia said softly then held her up and kissed her belly. Lana giggled and kicked her feet. "Are you hungry?" Lana began panting. "Are you hungry, my girl?" Olivia kissed her chin and Lana screamed. It was her most ticklish spot.
"I fed her a couple of hours ago," Fitz said.
Olivia had been ignoring Fitz until he broke her attention from Lana. She propped up her legs and leaned Lana against her thighs. She chewed on her fingers and cooed as Olivia pulled down the sleeve of her square neck shirt and brought Lana to her breast before she unclipped the fabric of her nursing bra and slipped her nipple in Lana's mouth and began nursing her. She brought her close and cradled her as she stroked her hair softly to comfort her as she fed. Lana drank hungrily and when she finished Olivia closed her bra and held Lana against her shoulder and lightly tapped her back until she burped. She laid her against her thighs once again and gently stroked her belly as she sucked on her pacifier.
Fitz finally spoke.
"Am I their father?"
Olivia didn't answer.
"You were calling me," Fitz said, "at one point it was once a week. Was it to tell me about them?"
Olivia slipped her index finger into Lana's tiny hand and kissed it. "Should we wake your sister and see if she wants some of mommy's milk?" She asked Lana. "If I do that will you be a good girl or will you be a fussy pants because you have to share me?"
"Olivia, I'm speaking to you. If they're mine you need to let me know," Fitz said, growing more frustrated by the one-sided conversation. He stepped closer and sat beside her. "I feel sick thinking you were pregnant alone. You have to tell me-"
He watched her close her eyes and take a deep breath. When she opened her eyes they were wet but she wiped them away quickly. Suddenly his eyes were stinging with tears too.
"Tell me how to fix this-"
"You won't let me fucking leave," She said angrily as more tears fell. "May I go? Is it okay with you that I take my fucking babies home? Do I have your permission?"
Fitz leaned back, realizing she was still too angry to have a conversation but it was too important a question. He needed to know.
"Olivia, don't let me find out-please tell me if these are my daughters. I know they are but I need you to tell me," he begged.
"You know they are?" She said with a dry sardonic chuckle.
Fitz felt a sudden burst of jealousy and rage as her insinuation. They had to be his, he couldn't bear it if they were someone else's. "Who else were you fucking without a condom then if they aren't mine," he said angrily.
"You might not like the answer to that question," she retorted and it was only his entitlement that caused her to suddenly become dead set on convincing him they weren't his.
Fitz shook his head, "I know you're only saying that to hurt me and I don't blame you. I hurt you more than I thought I was capable of but once I got in my head it was just hard to pull back. I don't even think it was about the election that was just my excuse. I'd made you out to be this utterly perfect person at a standard so high that it was almost impossible to meet it but you did, for such a long time and the moment you did something that deviated from that I reacted badly. It was just an excuse, I would be divorced from Mellie and thinking of a future with you was terrifying because I knew how good it could be but I fucking loved you so much that I thought it would be better to leave you alone than to pursue you because I was sure I'd fuck us up at some point. That's why I didn't tell you when I started filing but Cyrus took care of that and once I knew he talked to you I had to see you.
"The things I said when I was angry, I said them because I wanted you to hate me too."
Another stream of tears rolled down her cheek. He took Lana's tiny hand and kissed it softly.
"You don't want to tell me because you're angry and I get that but I will find out and when I do I'll want to be a part of their lives. I've lost too much time already."
Fitz stood and tried to regain his composure and walked out.
The first thing he did was ask Tom to get Sanders Black to meet him at the White House as soon as possible. When Fitz got to the White House he immediately went to his private office and waited for Sanders. He waited just under half an hour before Tom knocked on his office door, announcing Sanders. First stood and walked to the couch and gestured for Sanders to join him there.
"Good night Mr. President, I was surprised when I got your call."
"This is important. It couldn't wait," Fitz said. "I need you to look into Olivia Pope. Do you know her?"
"I think I remember she'd done some work on your campaign…"
"I need you to look very thoroughly into everything she's done since last December. I want to know who she's dated, I want to know everyone that's visited her apartment. She has two daughters. I need to know who her Ob/Gyn was. I need to know who their father is if it's a boyfriend or a donor. I want to know when they were born and if they were premature or late. I need every facet of information on her you can find."
He nodded, "it will be difficult to get medical records."
"Get them. I don't care how but it needs to be fast."
Christmas Day.
Olivia woke up early to prepare for the day. It had been just a week since her encounter with Fitz and she still couldn't sleep after listening to what he said. Now that she had an explanation of what happened she had softened a bit but she was still hurt and angry because too much time had passed. He hadn't reached out again and as the days passed she became more and more racked with guilt. He needed to know but to get the words out and have a conversation with him especially when he kept engineering situations where she was being held against her will made it even more difficult.
He'd put her mind at ease to know that his reaction wouldn't be explosive but still it was hard to know what would happen the next time they spoke.
It was Christmas, the first Christmas with her daughters. She tried to push her issues with Fitz from the forefront of her mind and focus on the girls. It was hard because she knew that he should have the opportunity to share their first Christmas together but that was another thing that she tried not to focus on.
It was just her and the twins celebrating Christmas. Abby flew out to visit her family and so did Stephen and Harrison. She placed all the gifts under the tree for them from the night before. Gift buying was tricky for her, she wasn't sure if she was supposed to buy two of every gift or buy them individual gifts so she did a mix of both. She tidied up and made breakfast for herself before she went to wake up the girls.
"Good morning girls. Merry Christmas, it's time to wake up."
Lana was easier to wake up, Luna got cranky and kept falling asleep on Olivia's shoulder. After she fed them, she brought them to the Christmas tree and opened their gifts with them on the floor. She snapped a couple of pictures and videos of them and then fed and bathed them. The day was calm, she spent most of her time laying on the floor and playing with them or waiting for them to wake from their naps. By late evening, they all fell asleep for the night. Olivia made herself something quick to eat and then she went to bed.
It was a few days after New Year when Sanders returned to Fitz. They met in the oval after most of the west wing had gone for the day. He was ushered in by Tom as usual. He had an enveloped folder with him as he sat on the couch opposite Fitz.
"Good night sir-"
"What do you have?" Fitz asked, getting straight to the point. He had even less sleep during the nights since his encounter with Olivia,
"I'm going to construct a narrative for you to summarize the information that I have collected," Sander began.
Fitz nodded.
"I started my investigation on December 1st of the year before last. I got access to the security cameras in her building to compile a list of visitors for the last year." Sanders said as he opened his folder. "To sort the list I excluded food delivery men, mail men, her cleaning staff, etc. The people who don't really tell us much about anything. In December, the visitors she had were her employees Abigail Whelan, Stephan Finch, and Harrison Wright. There was also one other man that I haven't been able to figure out who he is. He's not an official employee at her firm but he's there every day."
"Do you have a picture?" Fitz asked.
Sanders flipped through the folder and handed Fitz a picture. He recognized Huck.
"He's not a concern," Fitz said.
Sanders nodded and continued.
"Her employees were the only people that visited her in December, mostly Ms. Whelan who from what I gather is her best friend. In January the same group of people visited frequently and from the security camera I see that you visited as well."
"I was the only person outside of her employees to visit her?" Fitz asked.
Sanders nodded, "with the exceptions of cleaners, delivery people, yes sir."
"Do you know if she ever left, late at night?"
"No, I made note of that, and no, there was never a night where she left her apartment late and came back or never came back at all."
"Were there any days that she spent a significant amount of time away from her apartment?"
"No."
"Okay," Fitz said, trying to keep calm and not get too excited by the news. "Continue."
"In February, again, you were the only visitor outside of that group but there was a period in late February, the last time you visited actually, where she didn't leave her apartment for about a week."
Fitz swallowed hard and nodded. It was when he broke her heart.
"In March, it was only that visited her. The same for April, May, and June. In July the other three began visiting again. She was visibly pregnant in April. In August, she moved to a 3-bedroom unit on the 2nd floor of her building, and ms. Whelan stayed several days a week. She gave birth in September and still it was the same group that visited her along with what I found out to be a baby nurse who was later replaced by a nanny. In November, the only other guest to visit her apartment was your chief of staff, Cyrus Beene. There was no one outside of the group I mentioned before in December."
Sanders cleared his throat.
"Her usual schedule seems to be that her nanny comes to the apartment at 8am, on some days she leaves immediately after to go to the gym and returns then leaves for work on other days she leaves around 9am for work. She comes home around 6pm but sometimes later and never leaves after that. There was one Sunday in November when she left with Mr. Beene in the morning and didn't return to the apartment until evening. She didn't have her daughters with her."
Fitz nodded.
"Now to the girls, they were born on September 1st at the George Washington University hospital, there is no father listed on their birth certificate. They spend their days mostly at home. The nanny takes them to the park once a day. Ms. Pope takes them to mommy and me class on Saturdays and usually to the park on Sundays. I haven't been able to confirm that there was a donor based on her credit and debit records; there was nothing that could be traced to one. If it was, it had to be a friend and she was never alone with anyone in her apartment except for you during those key months."
Fitz nodded. "Do you have the medical records of the twins?"
Sanders flipped through the folder and then handed him several sheets of paper. "This was just what I was able to get? Also, the cameras at her office have layers of encryption, I've hardly seen anything like it, I couldn't get through to access any footage."
Fitz looked through the papers. "Thank you, Sanders. You can leave the folder."
"Thank you, Mr. President."
Fitz walked to his desk as Sanders left and immediately called the white house physician to his office. It took him 10 minutes to arrive from his office to Fitz's.
"Mr. President, is everything alright?"
"Can you come and have a seat with me?" Fitz said. He was on the couch. The doctor sat opposite Fitz and Fitz slid him a chart across the coffee table with the girls' information. "Can you take a look at that?
"Of course Mr. President," he said as he took them and read through them.
"When would twin girls born on September 1st be conceived?"
The doctor took a moment before he answered. "This is tricky but my rough guess would be early December," he said.
Fitz felt his heart skip a beat and it took him a minute to get over the news. "Why is it tricky?"
"Well, twins, especially monozygotic twins like the ones on this document that share a placenta often can't make it to a full gestation period."
"Why?" Fitz said, suddenly feeling hopeful again.
"They run out of space in the womb and so it's actually dangerous for them to stay in the womb through 40 weeks like a single fetus. About 75 percent of identical twins are born 37 weeks or earlier."
"What are you saying?" Fitz asked.
"Well, for twins like this, it's much more likely they were delivered around 34-37 weeks in fact 37 weeks is the full gestation period for twins so that would be normal for them. If they were born in early September then I'd bet money they were conceived around early to mid-January. If I had information on the pregnancy, I could give you a definitive answer."
Fitz stood, overjoyed. "Don't worry about it," he said, then yelled "TOM!"
Tom rushed in, "Sir?"
"Bring the car around, now."
Olivia sat on the couch with both girls against her chest. They just turned 4 months old and although Lana was progressing more than Luna, the doctor assured her that sometimes one sibling is just a little more motivated than the other and it was completely normal but she was beginning to get worried. Abby came over earlier in the evening to see the girls and vent about her breakup with David but she left when the girls had fallen asleep a little after 7. It was almost 9pm when she stood from the couch and brought them to their cribs. As she left their nursery, she heard a knock on the door. She began walking to the door and stopped. There was only one person that visited her late at night. Abby had a key if she decided to turn back and come to her apartment she could let herself in.
There was another knock. She took a breath and continued walking then looked through the security window. Fitz was standing there. She closed the security window and stood behind the door. Her heart began to race and her palms began to sweat.
"Olivia," she heard him say, as if she knew she was standing behind the door.
She let out a long breath and slowly unlocked the locks behind the door then she cracked it open and peeked out at him. She looked at him and saw his eyes for the first time since he was last at her apartment. He was tieless with no jacket.
"Look, I realize that the last two times I've tried to talk to you have been against your will. I'm sorry and I won't do that again. I need to talk to you, I'd like you to let me in."
Olivia took a deep breath and stepped back from behind the door and opened it wider to let him in. Fitz stepped inside and kicked off his shoes. She closed the door behind him. Fitz looked around her apartment and it had completely changed. Apart from her obvious move to a larger place, it was crawling with signs of the twins. Right on the wall by the door was a chart with Lana and Luna's name tracking their age and weight and milestones. There was also a candid picture of Olivia pregnant framed beside the chart. She was in the kitchen with what looked like flour on her face. Olivia watched him smile at it briefly before he turned to her, seemingly waiting for her to lead him to where they would talk. She walked him to the living room and they sat on the couch. Fitz could see a baby gym for twins on the floor along with a small play area with toys and a few story books.
There was a section of the wall dedicated to framed pictures of the twins from birth and the most recent ones seemed to be Christmas. Olivia allowed him a chance to look around and observe and when he was finished he turned to her.
"I-" Fitz began, "I know they're mine. I'm sure of it but I can't process it...I can't do anything about it because it's not real until I hear you say it."
"Why do you care?"
"What do you mean why do I care? If I'm their father I need to know so I can take care of them?"
"I mean you knew we had sex unprotected and you knew I wasn't on birth control. I took the plan b but you never check to see if it actually worked."
"It never occurred to me that it wouldn't."
"Either way, you made sure I couldn't tell you."
They were silent for a moment before Fitz spoke again.
"Olivia, you need to tell me," he said.
"They're your daughters," Olivia finally admitted after taking a moment to build the courage.
She watched as his eyes filled with water and tears trickled down his face.
Olivia suddenly felt swallowed with guilt and began trying to explain herself, "I tried to call you-I tried to tell-"
Fitz shook his head and reached for her but she pushed him away but her rejection didn't deter him. He needed to hold her. She tried to back away but he pulled her into his arms despite her resistance and held her tightly. She was tense in his arms and refused to return his embrace. She refused to let him pull her in again.
"Please stop," she cried as she tried to fight her way out of his grip but still he held her until she couldn't resist him anymore and melted in his embrace, sobbing against his chest.
"I'm so sorry for what I did to you," he said tearfully. "I'm so sorry." She felt him hold her tighter as he stroked her hair gently and kissed the crown of her head. "Thank you for having deserve so much more than I've given you and I'll make it up to you somehow, I promise."
Olivia nodded and leaned up and wiped her eyes, "you can't ever hurt me like this again. You fucking broke me. This was too much."
"I know it was and I'm sorry. I'll never do it again," Fitz promised, "I swear it." Olivia sniffled and wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her sweater then felt Fitz pull her into his embrace once again. "God, two at once," he said, "I can't believe you gave me two perfect little girls at once. I couldn't get their little faces out of my head -and I didn't want to. Can I see them?"
She nodded and stood, "they're in the nursery." She walked ahead and Fitz followed her. When they got to the nursery she flipped on the light so he could see the room.
The nursery had cream walls and furniture with baby pink accents all over. There were large child-size plush animals in one corner, a giraffe, a lion, an elephant, and a horse. There was a bookshelf, two cribs, a changing table, a rocking chair, an ottoman, and a large dresser.
Fitz walked over to the crib closest to him. The name Lana was engraved against the wood in light pink letters. He looked down and Lana was sleeping on her back with a pink pacifier in her mouth. Then he walked over and looked at Luna and she was in the exact same position.
"How can you tell them apart?" Fitz asked. "At Cyrus' house I feel like they were different, Luna would just smile and stare at me, Lana grabbed my hair and laughed like it was the funniest thing she'd seen."
"Luna's really quiet and Lana's the opposite," Olivia said, "even in my belly Lana would kick around alot. For a while, I used their personalities but now I can tell them apart even when they're sleeping. There are really subtle differences between their faces that you'll pick up on once you spend long enough staring at them."
Fitz reached down and slid his index fingers into Luna's tiny hand.
"They're more beautiful than I've ever imagined them."
Olivia shook her head and smiled. "I can't take them out of the stroller outside, I made that mistake once and a little old lady literally tried to take Luna out of my arms and got offended I wouldn't let her hold her."
He smiled then suddenly he was overcome with emotion again. "You went through an entire pregnancy and gave birth to two daughters and up until a few weeks ago, I had no idea."
"I should've tried harder to tell you-"
"No. This isn't your fault. Don't you dare try to take the blame for it. Every single time you called me, I knew it but I was so stubborn and stupid. If I'd just answered once, I would've known."
Fitz gently slipped his finger from Lana's hand. Olivia walked back through the door and Fitz followed after she turned off the lights. They returned to the couch in the living room.
"Why didn't you?" Olivia asked.
"I wanted to stay angry at you and I wasn't strong enough to do that while speaking to you or seeing you so I didn't."
Olivia shook her head, "you didn't even give me a chance to explain, you didn't want to work it out. Your instinct was just to utterly destroy me and you did."
"Olivia-"
"That's not love, that's not even like. My instinct is never to hurt you. I never would have said the things you said to me and so now it's hard for me to believe that's not the way you've always thought about me."
"I don't think those things about you Olivia-"
"A manipulative cunt is what you called me. You told me I fucking disgusted you and that you were distracted by my face and tits." Tears came to her eyes as she recalled the words. "You told me you regretted being inside me which probably hurt the most."
She wiped her eyes and Fitz reached for her but she resisted him.
"I wish I could take it back."
"I know I should have told you but I didn't do what you accused me of. I was sick when Cyrus asked me to join him in a meeting and I walked in and saw Gerry. I couldn't stay after that but Cyrus convinced me to listen. They told me that they could fix it and that they wanted everyone to agree and I told them no, that they shouldn't do it. I told them I didn't want to hear details and that if I found out they did anything I would tell you."
"Why didn't you tell me?"Fitz asked.
Olivia shook her head, "look at how angry you were when you found out? I didn't tell you because I didn't want to hurt you. I knew you could win on your own, that's what I told them but I felt like if you knew you wouldn't believe you could win."
"I don't believe I won," Fitz said. "How could I? Cyrus said they didn't do it but I don't believe that."
"He told me the same thing but it wasn't until after the election." Olivia wiped her eyes and tried to take a deep breath to settle herself. "We should just agree to move on and figure out how to parent the girls together."
Fitz was silent for a moment before he spoke. "Was it hard for you to decide to keep them?"
She smiled humorlessly, "I don't know how to answer that. When I missed my period and took the test it was during that month between the first time you visited me and the last. I couldn't be angry when I found out. I loved you so much at the time that I was happy but I was also terrified of everyone finding out. You'd told me not to be scared and I tried to remember that for those few weeks before I saw you again. I was so nervous to tell you because I felt like that was gonna be the true test of our relationship. Up until that point it had been alot of passionate fucking and cuddles and it's easy to be happy with that but children usually make or break a relationship."
"What happened after?"
"When you came over our talk didn't go as expected obviously. I still planned to tell you because at the time I was still hoping it was just a big fight and not the end of things. A couple weeks later I went to the doctor and got an ultrasound and found out they were twins and I freaked out but I recovered because at that point I was so attached to my pregnancy that I couldn't do anything but have them."
"Do you still love me?"
"It doesn't matter."
"Why doesn't it matter?"
"Because…it just doesn't."
"I don't want to co-parent, I don't want to figure out custody and make schedules for drop off and pick up, I want us to be together in one house with our girls. Like we always said we would. I want us to be a family."
Olivia shook her head, "it's not that easy."
"I know it'll take some time."
"I don't know if that's what's best anymore."
"Why-" Fitz pressed.
"Because I don't trust you anymore, Fitz. I'm terrified about what will happen if I get myself wrapped up in you again and then I do something to piss you off. So no, it's not easy." She said with tears in her eyes. "I'm really angry with you and I don't know when I'll stop, I don't know when I'll trust you again."
Fitz reached for her and cupped her face between his hands. "Olivia, look at me."
She resisted, "No."
"Olivia, look at me," Fitz said again. She finally turned her eyes to him and looked. "If there's one thing the last year taught me, it's that I can't live without. Even when I'm trying to hate you-I'm constantly dreaming of you, I'm constantly thinking about you and missing you. I love you Olivia-I love you so fucking much and I can't lose you so I need you to trust me one more time. I need one more chance…not because we have beautiful daughters together but because you want me just as much as I want you."
Olivia nodded with her cheek still cupped between his hands.
Fitz smiled, "are we gonna give it another shot?"
Olivia nodded again and wiped her eyes and smiled. "Yes."
He immediately pulled her into a soft, longing kiss. He relished in how much he felt at home when he was with her. Fitz lifted her on top of him so she straddled him as they kissed. Olivia wrapped her hands tightly around his waist and eagerly plunged her tongue further into Fitz's mouth. They both lost themselves in the kiss until somehow they both broke for air at the same moment.
"I missed you so much," Olivia said as she hugged him tightly. "I can't believe I folded immediately. I swore I was gonna put up a fight."
He laughed,"you did put up a fight, Ella christening was almost two months ago." Fitz said. He ran his hands down her back and then pulled her hair from her face. "I still can't believe you gave me daughters!" Fitz breathed out.
Olivia laughed, "they're amazing. You're gonna love them."
"I already love them," he said as he kissed her again. "I love them so much and I can't wait until I can show them off to everyone-" Fitz watched Olivia stiffen and smiled. "-don't worry, it won't be right now. I know we'll have to ease into it."
Olivia nodded, "I know."
"Can I take you on a date?"
"A date?" she said, blushing.
"Yes. I want to take you to dinner. If you feel more comfortable with it being private we can do that, I'll have the secret service shut down the restaurant and it'll be just us, or we can do it publicly."
Olivia took a deep breath, "can I think about it? Of course, I'd love to go with you but can I just think about whether it should be in private or not?"
"Of course," he said. "I have to take a trip so you'll have a little time."
"Where are you going?" Olivia asked.
"One week tour of Israel, Turkey, Greece then India. Which of course is exactly how I want to spend my new year when we finally get together and I find out I have two amazing daughters."
"Sounds like a lot of fun," she teased.
"It's been on the books for a year but I'm about 75% of a mind to cancel it."
"We'll be here when you get back. Don't cancel it," Olivia said.
They sat in silence for a moment as Fitz watched her. There was something somber about her, Fitz couldn't figure out why she looked so sad. He thought that maybe she had doubts.
"I know we'll find a way to make this work. I love you, I know I haven't always made you feel that way, but I do."
She nodded and smiled."I love you too." Then she leaned in and kissed him softly.
Fitz was ecstatic that she initiated a kiss until he heard a knock on the door.
"Fuck-" he mumbled.
"What?"
"Tom told me he'd come to get me when it was time to go. Air force one is waiting."
Olivia leaned up and stood, "go. We'll see you when I get back."
Fitz stood and wrapped her in his arms then lifted her and threw her over his shoulder. She yelped and laughed as he walked back to his shoes and stepped into them then he walked to the door and opened it then carried her down the hall to the elevator and finally let her down. She was grinning from ear to ear as he leaned in and kissed her.
"Did you like the gifts I sent?" He asked.
"I didn't send them back, did I?"
He smiled.
"The car was a bit much…"
"I thought you'd look good driving it."
"I do! But you know I'm still a shitty driver right?"
Fitz laughed, "I said you'd look good in it not that it'd make you a better driver."
Olivia chuckled.
"One week?" Fitz said with a smile. "When I get back, I want to talk about putting a detail on you and the girls."
"Okay, I'll see you in one week," Olivia said.
Olivia waited for him to leave and then went back to the apartment.
The next morning Olivia got ready for work full of energy and bouncing on her heels after her talk with Fitz. She was distracted all day trying to decide if she should have dinner with him in private or if they should go in public. She was so used to hiding with him that now it felt daunting to be seen with him, still, things were different and he was no longer married so she knew that eventually, they would have to take their relationship to the next step.
She barely made it through an unusually mundane day at work but she couldn't wait to get out of O.P.A. and go home to the girls. She walked into the apartment to find Bonnie standing by the kitchen island with Luna.
"Evening Bon Bon. I'm on time today."
"Hey Olivia, how was your day at work today?"
"Terrible, how were the girls?"
"Good but I just wanted to show you something. I didn't text you because I didn't want you to get worried.
Olivia walked over quickly to her.
"What's going on?"
"This morning when I was giving Lulu a bath, her skin was clear but about an hour ago, I saw this bruise on her back. She didn't fall or get hurt so I'm not sure how she got it. I've been watching her all day."
Olivia inspected the bruise on Luna's back, it was a dark red patch, close to her spine.
"She got one like this in her hand a few weeks ago but it went away. I'm gonna call her doctor tomorrow and schedule an appointment because this is pretty weird. Lana doesn't get these."
"Yes, I think that's best."
Olivia washed her hands and took Luna. she could hear Lana in the living room cooing loudly.
"Okay, thanks Bonbon, I'll see you tomorrow."
Bonnie headed out shortly after.
"Oh pumpkin, can you tell mommy what's going on with you?" she asked Luna softly as she kissed her forehead. She took her jacket off and walked over to the play area where Lana was playing.
"Hey Lana, mommy's home," she walked over and kissed her on the stomach, which caused her to giggle and kick her feet in the air.
"Okay girls, let's watch some mickey mouse, I know how much you guys love that."
Olivia sat with them for a while as they watched t.v. and played with anything in sight. After an hour she prepared a bath for them. She stripped them down and brought them to the bathroom for bath time. She laid them both in their little tub and lathered them with bubble bath soap.
She washed their hair and sat at the side of the tub as they played.
"Okay sugar plums, it's time to dry off, who's first? Lana, let's take you out first."
She wrapped Lana up and laid her on her lap and then wrapped Luna up and laid her on her lap as well. She brought them to the nursery and laid them on the changing table and grabbed two long-sleeve onesies to dress them. She dressed Lana first and laid her in her crib and then she grabbed the onesie to dress Luna but then she noticed another bruise on her thigh.
"When did this get there? What the hell is going on?"
She inspected the bruise, it was small but very visible.
"I have to take you to the doctor first thing tomorrow."
She finished dressing her and then fed them. After she finished feeding them she read them a story and put them to sleep and then went back to the living room to call Abby. She answered on the second ring.
"Hey Abby, What are you doing?"
"Baking, what's going on?"
"Luna keeps getting these weird bruises, she got a small one on her hand a few weeks ago but it went away and then Bonnie showed me one on her back that showed up today, and just now, I gave her a bath and another one popped up."
"That's weird. Just random bruises?"
"They're small but yeah, I'm gonna come in late tomorrow, I have to take her to the doctor first because I have no idea what's going on. I don't think they hurt though, I was inspecting it earlier and when I touched it, it didn't seem to bother her."
"Do you want me to come with you?"
Olivia pondered for a moment.
"Uhm no, Bonnie's coming and honestly, she seems fine apart from the bruising. I mean she has been sleeping a lot but she's growing - that's normal right?"
"I mean yeah, I think so?" Abby said hesitantly "Lana sleeps a lot too but Luna sleeps even more."
"Well, I'll find out tomorrow. I'm gonna go shower, I'll call you tomorrow."
"Alright, talk to you later Liv."
She hung up and went to shower. After her shower, she grabbed some leftovers from when Abby cooked and went to bed shortly after.
In the middle of the night, she heard crying and coughing on the baby monitor and got up to see what was going on. She walked quickly to the nursery, they were both crying. Luna was coughing and crying so she walked over to her crib first. She froze for about three seconds before she reacted. Luna was bleeding from her nose, but it wasn't a regular nosebleed, it was an excessive amount of blood. She grabbed her up quickly and tapped on her back to help her with her breathing. She ran to her bedroom to get her phone and call 911. They answered immediately.
"911, what's your emergency?"
"My name is Olivia and my 4-month-old baby is having a severe nosebleed. It's a lot of blood and she needs an ambulance right away. My address is 1499 Massachusetts Ave 20005 my apartment is 201."
"Okay Ma'am we are sending someone right away."
She grabbed frozen peas from the freezer and wrapped them in a towel and placed it on her nose. She dressed them as quickly as she could, grabbed her purse and keys, and ran down to the lobby to meet the ambulance.
After waiting for about a couple minutes, when they didn't come she decided to drive to the hospital instead. She strapped them in the car seat and drove as quickly as she could.
"It's okay my girl, I'm gonna get you to the hospital. You're gonna be okay," she said nervously.
She didn't realize she was going over the speed limit until she heard a siren and the cop signaled for her to stop. She pulled over quickly and jumped out of the car.
"Officer, my daughter is really sick and I'm trying to get her to the hospital. The ambulance didn't come."
The officer was a young African American gentleman, in his mid-thirties. He looked into the back of the car and saw the blood all over Luna's coat. Luna was lying limp in her car seat. She stopped crying and was just in a haze.
"Okay, ma'am - let me escort you to the hospital."
He ran to his car and blared the siren as he drove in front of her, clearing the path for her to get there as quickly as possible. When she pulled up in front of the hospital she practically jumped out of the car and unstrapped Luna from her car seat as quickly as possible. She ran around the other side to grab Lana but Officer Alexander stopped her.
"It's okay, I'll get her - just go."
She ran into the emergency room with a limp Luna in her hands and called for help. Immediately the emergency workers came running to her.
