AN: HEY! Sorry it has taken me so long to update! Life has a way of just…happening. ANYWHO, without further ado, here's chapter 5!
Happy reading!
XOXO
TBS
CH 5
"Mooooommmm!?" Olivia knew this call very well. Either something was missing, something was broken, something didn't go right, or all of the above. The sound she heard escape her daughter's lips meant only one thing. Trouble.
Olivia walked to the edge of the staircase.
"What, Harp?" she called up.
She heard small mumbling as she began to see her daughter descend the staircase. Harper wore a pair of nice fitting torn jeans, a Beatles T-shirt, and her hair was in a messy bun on top of her head. She had on a pair of classic white and black converse (which was the only thing she wore that actually looked new), a hit of lip gloss, a few white and black bracelets, and smelled of thousand wishes from bath and body works. Olivia knew something was up. She stood at the bottom of the staircase as Harper grew closer and waited for the shit to hit the fan.
Harper stopped about 4 steps from her mother.
"Mom, I can't find my-"Harper's voice halted when she noticed the hot pink phone charger in her mother's hand. Olivia kept her other hand behind her back.
"Uh, thanks. You didn't happen to see my-"Harper once again halted when she saw her mother wave her phone in her face. She felt her cheeks grow crimson and gave her mother a genuine smile as she took her phone. She was at a loss. Olivia had done it again…fix the issue before it became an issue.
Harper stared at her mother expectantly.
"THANK YOU MAMA would be nice, Harp."
Harper stuttered as she began to feel guilty for being ten seconds from throwing a hissy fit.
"Thank you, Mama." She descended the rest of the stairs and hugged her mother.
"I was hoping you would fix that tone before I had to come show you what a tone sounded like. I better not hear you calling your mother like she owes you anything, young lady. Understood?" Abby asked from the kitchen. Abby, or Auntie A to Harper, was known for her smart mouth and wit. Olivia felt deep down that even though Abby was of no blood relation to them, Abby's personality DEFINITELY showed in Harper.
"No, Auntie A. I corrected myself. My bad, Mom." Harper slumped down on the couch, followed by Abby with a bowl of pretzels and a water bottle. Olivia walked behind the couch, shaking Harper's bun on her head before finally sitting down near the other ladies.
Abby picked up a pretzel and went to take a bite, but froze.
"Ok, I'll give you credit for pulling off the grunge look, Harp. It's working for you. I'll even give you SOME credit on that semi-ok fragrance….but what on earth is on your lips? Clear lip gloss? Clean pair of Chuck Taylors?" Abby confronted Harper.
Harper found a spot on her jeans and began to pick at it.
Olivia smiled, knowing Abby was about to bring out the truth-the truth she hadn't been able to coerce from her daughter since she agreed to let her hang out with her new found friends from the awards ceremony last month.
"What's his name?"
Harper took a deep breath and finally slouched down into the couch cushions.
"Nick."
Abby gave Olivia a knowing look and continued.
"And all of this-"Abby waved her hand signaling Harper's appearance,"Is for him, I assume?"
"Auntie A, he's a really sweet boy. He loves the Beatles just as much as I do. We really connected that night at the party. We are just friends, but he is really cute." It wasn't lost on Olivia how Harper and Abby were ALWAYS honest with each other. Abby was the aunt Harper didn't have. Olivia loved it.
"Just remember what I say, Harps. My hair isn't red for no reason. I get angry FAST when it comes to the ones I love, honey, and I would hate for something to happen to 'Nick' and his little musical crew." Abby was very protective of Harper.
"OH, GOSH! It's not like that! I promise!" harper's cheeks began to burn and she looked to Olivia for help. Olivia gave her a look that said Abby's right. Harper knew she was loved and protected and she was grateful. She only wished her aunt would show her softer side a little more.
Abby went on for a few more minutes, making sure Harper remembered all the warning signs of something going wrong. Harper's bodyguard and driver arrived to take her to the location her and her friends would be- the band member's home, fully secured, several bodyguards of their own, their parents, and other neighborhood celebrity kids.
After Harper said her goodbyes and Abby was sure she was gone, she began to lay into Olivia.
"SO, how did it go?"
Olivia sat back on the chair she was in and crossed her legs at the ankles, stretching them out in front of her and taking a deep breath.
"Better than I could have hoped for actually. He said he already knew."
Abby's ears perked up at this. Olivia knew she better put that fire out before it grew.
Olivia continued, "He said when he took one look at Harper, he could just….tell."
Abby was inwardly proud of the douche bag she had come to know as Fitz. She knew what had happened between the two ways back when, and had been there to pick up the pieces of Olivia and put them back together after they split. She remembered how broken Olivia had felt when she found out she was pregnant by the fly-boy player and how she had tried to convince her friend to tell the man she fell in love with after one night about their child. Abby had expected the same jerkoff Fitz to be present, but instead she was surprised when Olivia called her after the party and explained the situation to her, mentioning how she felt like Fitz had changed.
Abby was still on guard.
"Well, thank God for that. When are you guys gonna tell Harps? How do you think she will react?"
Olivia took another deep breath. "We are gonna tell her soon. Fitz wants to be a part of her life as soon as she will allow it, and it's gonna take some time. I'm kind of hoping it doesn't take Harper long to come to terms and that she takes after him on that accord."
"Liv, did you see how the child acted over a misplaced device and charger? She thought the world was gonna end if I read the Mickey Mouse club texts between her and her beloved Nick." Abby chuckled at Olivia's reaction. She guessed Olivia didn't know she had snuck a peek at her niece's text history.
"Abby! Really? Isn't that my place?" Olivia laughed, but was party serious.
"Maybe so, but if you want a boyband frat boy to lay the moves on Harper and get something from her she isn't ready to give, then you let me know." Abby said as she shoved another pretzel in her mouth. Olivia had to admit that Abby's watchful eye made her feel more comfortable.
Abby continued, "Harper is bright, beautiful, and very smart. I don't doubt for a minute anyone could pull some quick in-your-panties bullshit on her, but I can't help but-"
Olivia cut her off. "I know. Me either."
The women finished their conversation and said their goodbyes. Olivia hadn't told Abby, but part of the reason she let her daughter go with her new friends is so that she was in a guaranteed good mood when she and Fitz broke the news to her later that evening. Fitz had been by a few more times, a couple of which he and Harper had hung together like Christmas decorations. Harper's hidden talent was that she was an intense gamer and Fitz fell into stride with her. They often discussed books, school, music and theatre, and anything else Harper felt comfortable with sharing with Fitz. She loved to hear his input and he loved giving it just as much.
The pair had grown attached at the hip, and Harper even made a few comments when she noticed how her mother and Fitz would lock eyes and stare at each other as if no one else was in the room. Harper had no idea that Fitz was her father. She only thought it was good for her mother to finally have a crush on someone and act on it.
Olivia poured herself a glass of red wine and stood at the kitchen. She knew this had to be done and as she glanced over at the picture of her daughter on the wall, she couldn't help but think about how she didn't want to hurt her daughter. She was terrified of Harper's response, and prayed to God that things went smoothly.
/
Across town, Fitz was currently nursing his second glass of scotch in 20 minutes.
"Fitz, you good?"
Fitz turned to see Tom sitting with one foot crossed on the other knee sipping his own liquid courage. He was somewhat afraid of the outcome of tonight and was trying to drink away his nervousness and in some courage.
"Yeah, I'm alright. I thought it was crazy impossible to fall for someone at first glance until I met Liv. I didn't think it would happen again so strong until Harper floated into my life. I just worry her will take off on me and the progress we have made…" Fitz trailed off. Tom finished his sentence.
"Will have been in vain."
Fitz eyed his friend.
/
At a quarter to seven, Fitz knocked on Olivia's door. After she let him in, they exchanged hugs and a few kisses on the cheeks. They sat in kitchen again, this time the air already being clear and the plan was in place.
"SO, what do you think she will say?" Fitz asked.
Olivia looked him in his eyes and he could tell she was a ball of nerves. "I have no idea. I hope this isn't too much for her."
Fitz took this as an opportunity to open another conversation up.
"What do you think about me helping out more with her music?"
Olivia stared at him as if he had two heads.
"Like?"
"Like, maybe helping write a few songs or giving my input on her instrumentals. I think I want to be more hands on with her. After all, I've missed so much already, I don't wanna miss much else." Fitz hadn't meant for that to come out as strained as it did. Olivia immediately picked up on his tone and began to use a tone herself.
"And what is that supposed to mean?"
"Really, Liv? You need me to spell it out for you?"
Olivia rose from the table and walked towards her sink. She didn't want to argue with Fitz in anyway, but he was sure as hell pushing her buttons.
"Look, she already has a great group of people that-"
"Olivia, you don't seem to be listening to what I am saying. I want to be in a few of those roles. I want to try to make up for lost time. I want to be right there alongside her because it scares me half to death thinking there might be someone out there attempting music when they are no good and messing with her career and reputation." Fitz was now standing right behind Olivia.
"I just want her to be happy. I want her to be successful and I've noticed how she responds to what I say. I have a song and it's really good, Livvie. I want harper to sing it. I want us to sing it-together. As Father and Daughter.
Olivia had turned to face Fitz and was lost in his eyes. Neither noticed the patio door being slid open, Harper wandering inside and following voices, or her standing now in the doorway of the kitchen until she dropped both her phone and keys.
When their eyes met hers, everyone in the room froze.
Olivia felt her stomach doing cartwheels as she stood there thinking Harper was not supposed to be home yet.
Fitz felt his mouth go dry.
Harper felt her legs beginning to grow weak. Her mouth made the perfect "O" shape as she stared at her mother and who she was beginning to think of as her mother's boyfriend and a really good friend of hers.
Did he just say….Father?
"Harper?" Fitz attempted to step forward after what seemed like a good silent 5 minutes. To his surprise, Harper held her hands up almost in defeat and took a step backward. Olivia finally snapped back into reality and prayed for God to put the right words in her mouth.
"Munchkin, why don't you come and sit down with us?"
Harper felt herself shaking. She was such a calm collected person that being angry was almost a foreign concept to her.
"Us? US!? How about I don't."
Harper turned on her heels to leave the kitchen when she heard her mother's voice.
"Harper. Come sit down so we can discuss this as a family."
"A family? I don't have a family with EITHER of you because YOU ignored me for 13 years and YOU LIED TO ME. Families don't do that type shit to each other." Harper had NEVER in her life cursed. She had also NEVER met her birth father until now. Guess today is full of firsts, she thought.
"Harper! Apologize to- "Before Olivia could finish her sentence, her once innocent sweet caring daughter was leaving the kitchen. Fitz stepped up toward Olivia. He linked his fingers with hers and pulled her into the Den of the house. They sat side by side waiting on Harper to return from upstairs.
"She's never like this. I'm sorry, Fitz."
"Its fine, Liv. She needs time. We just need to sit here and wait for her to come to us."
Fifteen minutes.
Thirty minutes.
Forty-five minutes had passed Olivia convinced Fitz that she should go check on her?
"Harp, open up. It's me and we need to talk." Olivia did get an answer. Fitz stood halfway up the stairs listening to what he hoped would be a fair confrontation.
"FITZ!" Fitz was up the remaining steps and into Harper's room before he knew it.
The look on Olivia's face was all he needed to know.
"She's gone! My baby's gone!"
Sorry so short! To be clear, the time jump is about 1 month. Hopefully I'll have a bit more time to write next time. Until then, happy reading!
XOXO
