A/N: Hi! So it's no secret that I love period pieces. There's something incredibly fascinating about Olitz in another time and place to me. I can't really explain it. Well, this one is set in the 1970s in a small Texas town. I really hope y'all like it!
December 1977
The honking horn snapped Fitz's attention away from the television. He went to the front window, pushing the Christmas tree aside to look through his mother's red "Christmas only" curtains. His best friend Stephen sat in his blue El Camino in the driveway. Fitz turned from the window and headed into the kitchen where his mother was slicing brownies.
"Stephen's here. I'm going."
Theresa Grant looked away from the sugar cookies she was frosting to her son. "Where are you all going?"
Fitz shrugged. "Don't know. Roller rink probably."
Theresa nodded. "Be careful. And have fun. It is your birthday after all."
Fitz smirked at his mother. It was his seventeenth birthday and he had refused to have a party. He was an adult, and seventeen wasn't even one of the big birthdays. Plus, it was the day before Christmas Eve and she and his father were having a party for that. But she was disappointed just the same. Fitz was her baby, and an end to his birthday parties meant her nest was emptying. "Okay mom. Love you."
He grabbed his jacket and headed out the door. He smirked at his friend Harrison as the tall young man climbed out of the front seat. "Happy birthday dumbass."
"Thanks asshole," Fitz replied as he climbed into the backseat. "I wanna call bullshit on having to sit in the backseat when I'm the oldest, and the birthday boy."
"You wanna sit in the front seat? Break out the Cruiser," Stephen replied. The Vista Cruiser was the station wagon given to Fitz by his parents for his 16th birthday. It had been their ride for a whole year until Stephen turned 16 and his stepfather gifted him with the El Camino to mend fences. They still took the Cruiser when they were up to no good and needed an unnoticeable car.
"I don't have the cash to gas up that boat every time you assholes wanna go across town to hit on skating rink trash."
Stephen smirked at him in the rearview mirror. "We're going to celebrate your birthday, you bastard."
He backed out of the driveway and turned onto the street. Fitz smirked as he jostled Stephen and Harrison's backpacks onto the other side of the backseat so he'd have leg room. "Where's Liv supposed to sit?"
"Back there," Stephen replied as they came to a stop in front of Olivia's house a few houses down from Fitz's. Stephen honked twice and Fitz smiled a moment later when the door opened and Olivia walked out with her knapsack on her back. She wore a blue v-neck sweater tucked into a dark red skirt that stopped mid-thigh. A red headband held her bone straight hair back from her face. Looking at her shapely legs, especially the sliver of her thighs showing between her skirt's hem and her navy knee socks. Fitz wondered when she'd grown up, when she'd stopped being one of the guys.
"Have you guys noticed how hot Liv's gotten since the summer?" Stephen asked as they watched Olivia talk to her mother for a moment.
"It's made me a little uncomfortable to be honest," Harrison replied.
Fitz didn't comment. He was just looking at her. She'd always been pretty, but now she was so much more than that. The sweater hugged her breasts, breasts that hadn't been there in the summer. Or had they? They had spent so much of the summer getting high in Fitz's basement that he hadn't really been aware of anything. Apparently he'd missed quite a bit. Harrison climbed out of the car and let the seat up so Olivia could climb in.
"You'd think I'd get frontsies once in a while," she said as she tossed her knapsack atop their backpacks and climbed into the car. "Where the hell am I even supposed to sit?"
Stephen turned to smirk at her. "You could take the hump if you'd like."
Olivia smirked back. "You're so damn funny."
Fitz would have moved to give her space but there wasn't any. He smiled at her. "Hey Liv."
"Hey birthday boy." She smiled back as she situated herself on his lap. Fitz stiffened, unsure of what to do with his hands. He let them lay at his sides, wishing Olivia wasn't sitting directly on his groin. He also wished she didn't smell so good, like lavender. She gathered her hair and let it fall on her back. Fitz breathed in the scent: vanilla.
Stephen backed out of the driveway and headed for the exit of the cul-de-sac in which they lived. Stephen turned up the radio, filling the room with the sounds of Styx. Olivia turned to frown at Fitz. "No way. Not doing it."
She stood as best she could and leaned over the front seat, inadvertently putting her butt in Fitz's face. Fitz wondered why God was torturing him. She fiddled with the radio dial for a moment. Jimi Hendrix's "Foxy Lady" filled the car. Olivia bobbed her head as she leaned back against Fitz. He smiled at the back of her head as she jammed to the music, making her sweet-smelling hair whip around and gently brush his face. But his smile faded, replaced by the befuddled expression of him biting the inside of his cheek to keep from reacting to her wiggling body on his lap. He was almost sure she could feel his rigidness and was just being polite by not mentioning it. When the song ended, she turned back to him. "So your mom isn't throwing a party this year?"
"Nah. We decided I'm too old for that," he replied.
Olivia laughed, reaching out and scratching his scruffy almost-beard. "A few new hairs and now we don't get birthday cake? Way to ruin a good time, Fitz."
He smirked and pinched her cheek. "She's making Christmas cookies that I'm guessing are for us so we'll stay out of the party tomorrow."
"Sweet!" Harrison whooped. "Your mom's the best, Opie."
Fitz reached around Olivia and smacked the back of Harrison's head. "I told you to stop calling me that."
Harrison turned and attempted to hit Fitz which jostled Olivia around on his lap. "Hey! Fight when I'm not in the middle."
Fitz laughed as he righted her on his lap. "Sorry, short rib."
She punched his shoulder, which might have hurt if her hands hadn't been so little. "I told you to stop calling me that."
She had been "short rib" since she was 4, nicknamed by Fitz's father Big Gerry. The nickname had stuck long past Olivia's liking. Only Fitz could get away with using it.
XXXXX
Fitz laced up his skates, looking around the rink to see who was there. He immediately spotted Jake Ballard, a guy who was a grade above them in school and who was very interested in Olivia. Fitz suspected he would loathe Jake even if he wasn't so aggressive with Olivia, but that had a lot to do with his dislike for him. There were a few other people from their school there: Huck and Quinn, two very serious stoners; andSally Langston, leader of their high school's chapter of the Young Republicans of America, with her boyfriend Daniel Douglass; James Novak, editor of the school's newspaper for which Olivia wrote. He smirked at Stephen and Harrison, already hitting on a couple of cheerleaders, Amanda Tanner and Abby Whelan.
He finished lacing his skates and sat upright. Olivia placed something atop his head and he immediately removed it. He could only laugh at the "Birthday Boy" paper crown as he looked up at her. "Cute."
"Cute? That's all you've got to say when I bought you a Birthday Surprise?" She placed the little round white cake in front of him. The Birthday Surprise was Cascade's birthday package for kids. It contained a cake and a crown and a surprise gift that would wow any ten year old. Fitz smirked as Olivia stuck a blue number one candle and a green number seven candle atop the cake. She rummaged in her tan knapsack for a lighter then lit them.
"Are you serious Liv?"
She laughed. "Yes. Now blow out your candles so you can open your surprise."
Fitz smirked then leaned over and blew out his candles, laughing when Olivia whooped and clapped for him. She pushed the silver gift box across the table and Fitz smirked at it. Olivia smirked at him. "Stop being so cool and get excited for your surprise."
Fitz gave her a clownish grin as he opened the box. He laughed as he pulled out slinky and a Rubik's cube. "Hot damn! Just what I've always wanted!"
Olivia smirked. "You're welcome."
Fitz looked up at her and his smile softened. He reached across the small round plastic table and pinched her cheek. "Thanks Liv."
"All right! All right! All right! It's time for couples' skate!" boomed the DJ's voice over the loud speaker. "Grab that special somebody and give 'em a twirl to this tune!"
Before Fitz could ask her if she wanted to skate with him, Jake rolled over and cut him off. "Hey Liv, wanna skate?"
Olivia looked up at him with a lopsided smile. "No thanks. I hate this song."
The song was Todd Rundgren's "Hello It's Me." Fitz knew Olivia loved the song, which meant she just didn't want to skate with Jake. He felt better then. But the feeling was short lived because a moment later, Olivia said, "I do need to talk to you though."
Jake smiled as he stepped back from the table to let Olivia stand. Fitz frowned at his birthday cake as he watched them skate away to the quiet foyer where the bathrooms and pay phones were. He had made out there enough times to have a pretty good idea of what their "talk" would consist of. He was still frowning when Harrison and Stephen joined him at the table, both grinning as they waved their written-on hands in his face.
"We got dates with those cheerleaders!" Harrison whooped.
"I'm brimming with excitement," Fitz deadpanned. He wasn't necessarily jealous of Jake, but he wondered what someone like Olivia could see in someone like him.
Stephen smirked. "Now how can you be so sad with a birthday surprise in front of you?"
"Maybe the crown is too heavy." Harrison laughed. Fitz smirked at them. Harrison looked around. "Where's Liv?"
Fitz frowned. "She's talking to Jake."
"I hate that guy," Stephen said, reaching over to grab the cake so he could cut it.
"Doesn't everyone?" Harrison asked.
Fitz smirked. "Apparently not."
Olivia reappeared, holding a large Styrofoam cup. She sat next to Fitz on the table's small curved bench and waved her cup at him. "Want some of my Coke?"
"No," he replied, not looking at her. He wouldn't drink from her cup after she'd swapped spit with Jake. He'd have sooner licked a urinal drain. He reached across the table and took his cake back to cut a piece for himself. He stabbed hunks and shoveled them in his mouth. It was rare that she made him angry but he couldn't believe she'd fallen for Jake of all people. It was so unlike her.
"Birthday boy or not, you can't hog the cake," she teased. He passed her the cake without comment and she looked at him for a moment then cut a piece of the cake.
"I'm gonna go get a Coke," he announced as he stood.
"You can just have some of mine," Olivia offered, again holding the cup out to him.
"No thanks." He skated away to the concession counter and Olivia frowned at Harrison and Stephen.
"What's wrong with him?"
Stephen shrugged. He had a pretty good idea of what was bothering Fitz but he didn't want to say anything. It wasn't his business. "Don't know."
Harrison just shrugged. Olivia frowned at her lap as Fitz returned with his own Styrofoam cup. He didn't say anything as he sat down, radiating so much tension that Stephen squirmed in his seat, looking for a getaway. He smiled when he spotted Abby and Amanda sitting at a table not too far from theirs. He looked at Harrison. "Wanna ask Abby and Amanda to skate?"
"Yeah." They couldn't get away from the table fast enough, leaving Olivia and Fitz alone again. She glanced at him, not sure what to say. She didn't know what to make of his suddenly chilly attitude. She fumbled for something to say to him. "Jake said they opened a disco club in Royal."
"Cool," Fitz replied, still looking at his cake.
Olivia blinked. "We should go next weekend."
"Maybe."
"We should take the Cruiser so we can sit in the front seat for once."
"Hmmm."
Olivia blinked at him. "Fitz."
"What?" He looked at her blankly.
"Nothing. Nothing at all." She frowned.
"I'm gonna go skate." He stood and skated away, leaving her alone at the table. Olivia frowned harder as she watched him. She hadn't said anything to offend him, and she knew he'd liked the Birthday Surprise. And he had been fine in the car. So what had changed so suddenly? She skated to the bathroom, wondering how to fix things between her and Fitz, especially when she didn't know what was wrong. When she came out of the bathroom, Harrison was hanging up the payphone. He looked up at her.
"What's with Fitz?" she asked.
Harrison smirked. "I think he's jealous of you and Jake."
"Jealous of what? I didn't skate with him. I just…" It suddenly occurred to her that Fitz had misinterpreted what had gone on between her and Jake. She skated away from Harrison and found Fitz at the table. He was frowning as he solved the Rubik's Cube. Olivia sat down and didn't say anything to him. She dug in the pocket of her knapsack and placed a perfectly rolled joint in front of him.
He looked up at her. "Where'd you get that?"
"Jake."
He resumed his frowning. "You shouldn't take stuff from him…or maybe you should if you two are that close."
Olivia smirked. "I bought it from him for you."
She watched realization fill his eyes. He looked at her dolefully. "Sorry."
"You should be." She looked at him with serious eyes. "I don't like Jake."
Fitz nodded, a glimmer of a smile on his face.
"It's that time again!" the DJ announced. "Couples skate! All couples to the floor! Grab somebody special cause this tune is guaranteed to get the mood going!"
Rose Royce's "I Wanna Get Next to You" boomed over the loud speakers. Fitz looked up at Olivia. "Wanna skate?"
Olivia pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, looking at him shyly. "Yeah."
Fitz stood and offered his hand. He led her out onto the floor. For a while, he was content holding her hand but he soon grew bored of it. He couldn't see her face. He pulled her in front of him, making her skate backwards. Olivia placed her hands on his shoulders, blushing when he placed his hands on her waist. He hadn't held her that way since cotillion.
"Did I tell you how nice you look?" he asked. He tried desperately for something smoother to say but that was all he came up with.
Olivia blushed. "Thanks. My mom made this skirt."
"It's really pretty. I mean, you always look pretty, but you look especially pretty today." He hoped he wasn't blushing. "You should wear that skirt to the disco club next week."
She smiled. "I think I'll wear something a little more disco to that."
"I don't have anything particularly disco. I guess I'm just not that cool." He smiled at making her laugh. "I can't dance either, so I'm pretty much out of the disco game."
"You can dance…kind of. You're not as bad as Stephen." Fitz wasn't as bad a dancer as he thought. Olivia was much better, but he could keep up if he tried.
"That's not really a compliment. That's like saying I run better than a guy with one leg because I have two." He smiled at making her laugh. The song ended and Fitz looked down at her, not quite ready to let her go. But he couldn't hold onto her without some kind of explanation, and he didn't have the vocabulary to express his complicated feelings just yet, so he just let her waist go. He smiled when she moved back to hold his hand so they could continue skating.
XXXXX
Fitz smiled at Olivia as they lay on the hood of the Vista Cruiser in the Grants' back driveway. Stephen had dropped them off about a half hour earlier and Fitz had asked her to stay behind and "hang." He looked at his watch. It was ten o'clock. They still had two hours before curfew and Fitz wanted to do…something. He didn't really know what, but he was feeling stir crazy. He looked over at her. "Let's go somewhere."
"Where?" She turned on her side to look at him.
Fitz had to pull his eyes away from her chest before his mouth dried up completely. "I don't know. Let's just ride."
They got into the car and rode around their small Texas hometown for a little while, their fingers tentatively intertwined between them on the long seat. Olivia fiddled with the radio before Todd Rundgren's "Hello It's Me" filled the car. Fitz smirked at her. "I thought you hated this song."
Olivia smiled at him. "I love this song. I just really don't like Jake."
Fitz let go of her hand and draped his arm over the back of the seat. Olivia scooted closer and his fingers clasped her shoulder gently. He looked down at her. "You changed your hair."
"Yeah. I got a permanent. Do you like it?" She ran her fingers through her bone-straight hair.
"It's pretty. I mean, it was pretty before too. I'm just saying…" He stopped talking and collected himself. "I should really get better at complimenting you."
Olivia laughed. "Why are you so nervous?"
"Why aren't you nervous?"
"Cause it's just us. You and me have been peas in a pod since first grade." She smiled at him softly.
They ended up in the parking lot of The Hub, the local fast food restaurant. Fitz watched as Olivia daintily ate her bacon cheeseburger. It was so big that she had to hold it with both hands, whereas Fitz could hold his in one hand, leaving his other one free to eat his fries and smoke his birthday joint simultaneously.
"Give me a fry." Olivia took a bite of her burger and Fitz held a fry to her lips. She smiled as she took it, chewing it up with her burger. When she swallowed her food, he held the joint to her lips and she took a hit. Olivia didn't smoke as much as the guys, but she enjoyed the occasional spliff. They ate and shared the joint, getting pretty buzzed. "Turn up the radio."
Fitz obliged, filling the car with the Eagles' "Hotel California." Olivia looked at him with serious but glazed eyes. "This song kicks ass."
"Whoever wrote this had to be tripping the fuck out," Fitz replied. Olivia nodded. By the time the song was over, they had finished the joint. Olivia finished her burger and picked up her strawberry milkshake. She dipped a French fry in the shake then held it out to Fitz. He ate it and smiled at her. "This is nice. We should hang out by ourselves more often."
"All this front seat space and control of the radio? We've got it made when it's just us." She hoped he couldn't see her blushing in the semi-darkness of the car, and that he understood what she meant. Alice Cooper's "You and Me" came on the radio and she smiled. "I wanna take you to heaven/ That would make my day complete/ But you and me ain't no movie stars/ What we are is what we are/ We share a bed, some lovin' and TV, yeah."
Fitz smiled at her. "And that's enough for a workin' man/ What I am is what I am/ And I tell you, babe/ Well, that's enough for me."
"Sometimes when you're asleep/ And I'm just starin' at the ceiling/ I wanna reach out and touch you/ But you just go on dreamin'." She dipped another fry in her milkshake and ate it then offered him one.
He ate the fry, smiling as he leaned closer to her. "If I could take you to heaven/ That would make my day complete/ 'Cause you and me ain't no movie stars/ What we are is what we are/ I tell you sweetheart that's just enough for me."
"You and me ain't no super stars/ What we are is what we are/ We share a bed, popcorn and TV, yeah." Olivia brushed his hair back from his face, smiling at him. "It's so weird that tomorrow's Christmas Eve. It doesn't feel like Christmastime."
"I think it's cause we're grownups now, Liv." He laughed a little.
"Well this sucks," she replied.
Fitz popped the tip of her nose with his index finger. "Baby life sucks."
XXXXX
Fitz frowned at Olivia as they stood on her front porch. "I missed the chance to kiss you in the car, didn't I?"
"Completely." She laughed and leaned against the garland-wrapped stair rail. She looked down at his hand clutched in her smaller one and rubbed the back of it with her thumb. "But something tells me it won't be your last."
"What makes you say that?"
She smiled and pointed at the front door. "Mistletoe."
Fitz looked too and grinned as he stepped back, pulling her along with him. The stood directly under the mistletoe and just smiled at each other for a moment before Fitz took a step closer and closed the small space between them. Olivia leaned on her toes, her spine tingling with the frisson of anticipation. She closed her eyes just as he touched his lips to hers. Fitz wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer, pressing her chest into his. Her hands found his shoulders and she held them lightly. He tasted like cherry Coke and his tongue was delightfully cool from finishing her milkshake.
Just as Fitz tilted her head sideways so he could deepen their kiss, the Popes' front door opened and the two snapped apart, both blushing. Eli Pope stood before them in his pajamas. "It's midnight. Visiting hours are over."
Fitz smiled shyly at her father. "Goodnight Mr. Pope."
"Goodnight." Eli looked at Olivia for a moment then shut the door.
Fitz turned his smile back on Olivia. "I guess this is goodnight. Are you still coming over to hang during my parents' party?"
She smiled, tucking a curl behind her ear. "Yeah. I'll be there."
He pulled her close and kissed her again, his left hand cradling the back of her head. Eli's voice rang out from the other side of the door, "Take it home, son."
Fitz pulled away and they both laughed shyly. "Goodnight, Liv."
"Goodnight Fitz." She watched him walk to his car and waved at him one last time before going inside.
Eli smirked at his daughter. "I always thought you'd end up with Harrison."
Olivia mirrored his expression. "Because he's black and I am too?"
"Well…"
"Goodnight Dad." Olivia went up to her room and lay on her bed, staring up at the ceiling. The butterflies were still scraping her ribcage. She got up and put on Axis: Bold as Love, her favorite Jimi Hendrix album. She knew Jimi was way before her time, but his smoky voice touched her in a way she couldn't really articulate. She only wished he'd lived long enough for her to see him live. But she understood that the good died young. She skipped to Little Wing" then resumed lying on the bed and staring at the ceiling. She could see the winter moon, so clear and white, through her skylight and wondered if not so far away, Fitz was doing the same thing.
In his basement bedroom, Fitz lay on his futon, staring blankly at the television. He wasn't sure what was going on on Gilligan's Island because he couldn't stop thinking about how Olivia's lips tasted like strawberry milkshake and salty fries. He finally turned the television off and turned on the radio. Atlanta Rhythm Section's "I'm Into You" filled the room and he smiled. Olivia loved that song and would sing it any time she heard it. He wondered when things between them had shifted. He had always thought she was beautiful and amazing, but he'd never imagined a girl like her could even be remotely interested in him when there was so much more out there for her. But she looked at him like he'd lit the stars just for her. And if he had the power, he would have. It baffled him how he'd waited so long without knowing what her lips tasted like when he'd been thinking about since she had braces. He smiled, remembering when he used to kiss her just because she hated it, how she would run from him, screaming and laughing, and he'd catch her and hold her down to kiss her cheeks. And when the tables turned and he was the one running from the kisses. He'd always liked them but he couldn't publicly admit to liking them, not in front of Stephen and Harrison.
XXXXX
*Christmas Eve*
Olivia knocked softly on Fitz's basement back door and he rolled off the bed to answer it. He ran his hand through his hair then opened the door. A smile immediately spread across his face when he saw her. She wore gray long-sleeved blouse with a white Peter Pan collar tucked into a burgundy pleated skirt with gray knee socks and light brown high-heeled oxfords. Fitz felt incredibly underdressed in his red Coca-Cola Christmas t-shirt and sweatpants.
"Wow. I didn't think you'd look so fancy," he said as he stepped back to let her in.
Olivia blushed. "I just threw on some clothes."
It was a lie, a damnable lie. She'd obsessed over her outfit for nearly two hours, trying on everything in her closet at least twice until her mother intervened and picked out her outfit.
"Well you look really good." He watched as she walked to the futon and sat it up so she could sit down. He sat next to her, closer than he normally would have, and draped his arm over the back of the futon. Olivia turned to smile at him. He grinned back. "Hi."
"Hi," she replied, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth. She couldn't pinpoint when they'd gone from "just friends" to "not just friends" but she wished with all her heart that she could so she could cherish the moment forever. She had always liked Fitz more than Harrison and Stephen, but she had never really thought of him romantically until that hazy summer. Locked in his basement, getting baked to Jimi Hendrix, she had fallen in love with the light in his eyes and the way he always slouched a little. She loved the curl that always flopped on his forehead and the way he could laugh at anything. "I got you something."
"You didn't have to. You got me a birthday present," he replied.
Olivia smiled as she dug around in her knapsack. "It's nothing big. Just something I made for you."
She pulled out a cassette tape and handed it to him. He smiled as he read the label written in her neat, girlish handwriting: For Infinite Nights. He asked, "What does that mean?"
"Haven't you ever been riding down the highway with the windows down, and that perfect song comes on, and suddenly you realize you've never lived a moment so right? You feel like all the pieces have fallen into place and nothing is impossible. You feel…infinite."
He smiled at her. "Are you stoned?"
She laughed. "No. I only do that with you. You're a bad influence."
Fitz smirked and bumped her shoulder with his. "And yet here you are."
He took the tape and put it in his tape player then went back to the couch. He smiled when Van Morrison's "Crazy Love" started playing. Olivia pushed on his futon until it laid out flat and they both lay back.
"I didn't know you liked Van Morrison," he said, rolling onto his side and looking at her.
Olivia smiled. "I love Van Morrison. It's my personal opinion that "Tupelo Honey" is about me."
Fitz laughed. "I could see that."
"Thank you. My mom just looked at me like I'd gone crazy." She giggled in the sweet way she did and he reached out to brush her hair back from her face. His hand lingered on her cheek and he turned her face toward his. He wouldn't miss this chance. He sat up on his elbow and leaned over to press his lips to hers, but before he could make contact, the sound of raucous footsteps on the stairs jolted them apart. A moment later, Harrison and Stephen appeared in the dimly lit basement.
"We come bearing gifts! Your mom sent brownies and egg nog!" Stephen announced. He smirked as Olivia sat up and Fitz rolled onto his back, frowning at the ceiling. "Did we interrupt something?"
"Judging from the mood music and the dim lights, I think we did," Harrison agreed, sneering.
Fitz sat up. "Shut up. We were just talking."
"Talking about making out?" Stephen plopped onto the futon and smiled at his friends. "Hiya Liv."
Olivia smirked at him. "Hi."
"You're certainly all dressed up for a night with the gang," Harrison commented as he lay on the other side of the futon next to her.
"This is literally how I always look."
"Since when?" Stephen asked as he took a bite of a brownie then passed Fitz the plate.
"Since forever. You guys are the only ones just noticing," Olivia answered.
They got off the bed and went to sit on the couch in front of the TV. Harrison lit a joint and they passed it around as they watched the Charlie Brown Christmas special. Fitz's hand found Olivia's in the semi-darkness and he interlaced his fingers with hers. Olivia shifted so she could lean her head against his shoulder.
Harrison smirked at them as he took the joint. "Okay that has to stop."
"We're not doing anything," Olivia replied. Fitz's index finger made circles on her palm.
"You're cuddling and I don't approve." Harrison passed Stephen the joint.
Stephen turned to look at them. "We are not cuddlers. We're socially awkward semi-regular stoners, and I'll not have you two ruin what little image we've got."
Fitz laughed. "So we can't be together because you two are alone?"
"Not just you two. None of us can be together. There will be no love." Stephen snickered at his own inebriated rhetoric.
"None at all?" Olivia asked.
"Not in this house," Harrison commanded.
Fitz laughed as he took the joint. "This isn't even your house."
"Well shit." Harrison cracked up and so did Stephen.
Olivia looked at Fitz. "These are the people we associate with on a daily basis. People know we know them. Just let that sink in."
Fitz blinked at him then laughed too, his head falling back on the couch. Olivia smirked. "When did I become the grown up of the group?"
Fitz smiled at her, leaning over to pop a wet kiss on her cheek. "Come on. We're funny."
Olivia smirked at him for a moment then started laughing. "You're ridiculous."
"Yeah I am," he replied, still laughing.
XXXXX
*later that night*
Olivia lingered on Fitz's back steps leading up from his basement, watching as Harrison and Stephen headed for the driveway. When they were out of sight, she turned back to Fitz then went back into the basement. She rewound the tape then resumed lying on his futon the way she had been before they were interrupted. Jimi Hendrix's "Gypsy Eyes" filled the quiet air.
She watched Fitz walk into the back part of the basement where his bathroom and closet were. He returned a moment later with a little gift bag. Olivia smiled as he sat on the bed and held it out to her. "Merry Christmas, Liv."
Olivia took the bag with a smile. "It better not be weed."
Fitz laughed. "It's not. Open it."
She emptied the bag's contents onto her lap and smiled as she picked up a mixed tape. "You made me a mixed tape too?"
Fitz shrugged with a smile. "It's probably not as cool as yours, but it's just a few songs that make me think of you."
Olivia blushed, wondering what songs were on the tape. "Thanks Fitz."
He popped the tip of her nose with his index finger. "You're welcome."
She looked down at the tape and smiled at his label: Songs about Liv". "This is the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me. My tape's not even about you. It's just really cool music."
Fitz smiled. "That's okay. I wanted to get you something really expensive but my mom said it should be special if I wanted you to really know what I meant. And what's more special than songs about you? "Tupelo Honey" is even on there."
Olivia leaned over and kissed his cheek, light and gentle. She smiled and did it again, this one lingering. Fitz cradled her face in his hands and kissed her lips. She smiled against his mouth. "This is nice. We should keep doing it."
"I can do that." He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer. Olivia placed her legs over his and ran her fingers through his hair, holding onto the back of his neck. Upstairs the clock chimed midnight and Olivia paused, knowing she had to get home. But she couldn't care about a curfew when she was finally getting the kiss she'd been waiting for since summer. Fitz caressed her cheek. "Merry Christmas, Liv."
"Merry Christmas, Fitz," she replied before she resumed kissing him.
A/N: So this will definitely have more chapters because y'all know I'm crazy about teen Olitz. Don't forget to review!