AN: SURPRISE! Another chapter in 1 day! What can I say? I'm in the writing mood…don't be surprised if I have an update for TFTH tonight too! You guys are SOOOOO supportive of my writing and I really appreciate it. I love to write and sometimes I make mistakes too even though I read and reread my stuff before I post it. Thanks for those of you who corrected me in my errors….I will also try making these next few chapters a bit longer than usual. Some of you have figured out how Harper will find this out…but how will she react?
SIDE NOTE: What about scandal Thursday though? THANK GOD Olivia figured Russell out! (HINT: if you don't know by now, never trust Brian White in a movie! Usually, he's the villain. SEXY? YES! But BAD? YEP.
Happy reading!
XOXO
Breathe.
Just Breathe.
Fitz tried to tell himself this as he paced back and forth thru the waiting room of the emergency room. About 20 minutes ago, Harper had been rolled back to the imaging center of the hospital to take an MRI and CAT scan of her head since she took a pretty nasty clunk to the skull. Fitz tried his best to stay calm. After all, Olivia had remained calm. She was now in the bathroom as he just paced back and forth in the waiting area, waiting for news he hoped wouldn't rock him to the Core.
Down the hall in the bathroom, Olivia had barricaded herself in the handicapped stall of the ladies' restroom. She was crouched down with her knees to her chest, breathing hard as all types of awful scenarios went through her head.
What could it be? Maybe exhaustion? Maybe she's just stressed? Maybe she has the congenital heart defect that runs in our family….maybe there's something that runs in Fitz' family that I don't know about because I was TOO STUPID TO…Olivia's thoughts and panic attack were interrupted by a young dark haired woman knocking on the door.
"Excuse me, Ma'am? Are you alright?"
SILENCE.
Olivia didn't want anyone hearing her this way. She surely didn't want Fitz finding her this way because truth be told, she hadn't quite forgiven herself for what she had done to him. She deep down still felt like she needed to hurt to even the score between them.
Fitz continued pacing, ignoring the few passing people who seemed to notice who he was, but didn't have the guts to walk up to him upset and speak to him. Just as his mind was about to go into overdrive, the same dark haired woman from the hospital came walking up to him. He recognized her. She wore pale pink scrubs and her hair was the color of oak. Her name tag read Quinn, and Fitz remembered how rude he was to her as they exited the ambulance. She was trying to separate him from his-
"SIR!? HELLO?" Quinn said with a bit of force behind it.
Fitz stopped pacing and locked eyes with the young lady. She looked every bit as irritated as she probably was and he thought at first she was coming to lay into his ass again. Great….
"Sir, I don't mean to startle you, but-"
"What do you want? Do you have any news about the person I came in with? Otherwise, I don't have time for-"
"I don't want your autograph. Matter of fact, I don't really care for your music, but I am at WORK. This is my JOB. I am trying to bring attention to the female who escorted you in here. I believe she is in the bathroom having a panic attack. She needs assistance and I don't want to have to call security and have two patients on a table for you to worry about!" Quinn was talking so fast, Fitz had no choice but to listen to what she said.
About 30 seconds later, Fitz entered the bathroom. He followed Quinn's gaze to the larger stall and stooped down to speak to Olivia under the door.
"Livvie? Liv, open the door, sweet baby."
Quinn's eyes perked up and she reached into her scrub top pocket…
Olivia was quiet as a mouse. Any given day she would have been utterly disgusted to be sitting on the bathroom floor, but when Fitz took a seat beside her on the floor, she forgot all that. She reached under the door grabbing his hand and he began to draw lazy circles into her wrist.
"Liv, we need to go out and wait for the doctor or someone with some word on Harper."
Fitz could hear her breathing become calmer and he figured he was doing the right thing. He continued.
"Livvie, we have to talk to Harper. We have to tell her the truth about who she is. We have to be strong for her because if the last hour and a half has taught me anything, it's time waits for no one. So get up, Liv. Get up and come with me. I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere.
Olivia slowly let go of Fitz hand and opened the stall door. She looked a complete mess to the outside world but to Fitz she still looked dazzling.
They embraced for a moment, neither noticing the sneaky oak head leaving the bathroom.
/
They sat.
And waited.
And sat.
And waited.
Hand in hand, not saying much to each other, and the only thing keeping them both calm was the touch and breathing of the one sitting next to them. A dark haired doctor emerged from the double doors, looking for the parents of Miss Harper Pope. Both Olivia and Fitz stood up.
"Hello, I'm Dr. David Rosen. Nice to meet you. Please, sit down."
As the pair began to sit, Olivia heard the unparalleled screams of her angry haired best friend coming from down the hall.
"Dammit, I asked you a question. What the fuck do you mean you can't tell me? DO I NEED TO COME BACK THERE AND-"
"Abby!" Olivia's voice scared even herself. She didn't think she was going to yell like that.
Abby's green eyes shot around and found Olivia and she bolted away from the robust nurse she was about to beat the brakes off of.
"Abby, sit. The doctor just came out."
David continued, "Harper has a pretty sever concussion. I'm afraid if you hadn't caught her head when you had, the injury could have been worse. Also, among further testing, Harper seems to have an internal bleed in her kidney. We are currently prepping her for surgery, but she has a very rare type of blood. Rh-Negative is the hardest blood to match and we can never really keep it in stock. I will need to test the parents and see which of them is a match."
Fitz didn't hesitate. Rumors and media be damned… "Where do I go to donate?"
/
Olivia wasn't a match. Fitz knew he would be as he had been told the same story all his life about having rare blood. His mother used to joke that this was the reason he was so talented at almost everything he did. As Fitz exited the phlebotomy room, he made his way to the seat near Olivia and took his post against her once again. She leaned her head on his shoulder, and Fitz wondered if she was still in her right mind since she hadn't said a word. The Phlebotomist had given him a pack of crackers since he hadn't eaten that day and he attempted to give Olivia one of them.
She refused.
Olivia couldn't fathom what was going on. She knew her family tree like the back of her hand, but she also couldn't bring herself to ask Fitz if this ran in his family.
Fitz must have read her mind.
"Livvie, kidney issues run in my family. My mother has been living with only one kidney for as long as I can remember. This is a HUGE deal and I know this is not the time to give you this information, but I just wanted to ease your mind a little. The wheels in your head are starting to smoke."
Olivia looked into the only pair of eyes on earth that matched her daughter's and for the first time in hours, she smiled. Abby witnessed the exchange and rolled her eyes, turning her attention back to her phone. That's when she found out.
"HOLY FUCK!"
Both Fitz and Olivia looked at Abby like she had 3 heads.
"Oh my damn, Liv. Fitz…uh…Oh God." Abby stood to go to the window of the waiting room and peered down to the ground. Her green eyes growing larger as she watched the scene begin to unfold outside.
Fitz stood to walk toward Abby, but his eyes caught the television in the waiting room.
This is Alexa Calhoun with BREAKING NEWS. Harper Pope apparently has been hospitalized following an episode at her home in Vermont. Sources say Pope was transported in an ambulance and was brought to an unnamed facility. The source of this information was not forthcoming with details of what hospital, but this source DID provide us video proof. What you are about to see is raw footage from the scene.
A video of Harper being unloaded from the ambulance appeared on the screen. Olivia was next to her holding her hand, and Fitz' back was to the camera.
Wondering who the mystery man is? The source says its-GET THIS- Fitzgerald Grant! That's right, folks, Fitzgerald Grant III or FTG3 to his fans was seen hovering over Harper Pope along with her mother, Olivia, as she was wheeled into the hospital's emergency room. Grant appeared upset according to our source, which is a very reliable one. At this time, no further information has been provided but the source did say they had access to more proof and would provide as time allowed. We will continue to keep you informed on this breaking news and please, let's keep Harper and her family in our prayers.
Before the news bulletin could finish, Fitz could feel his blood begin to boil. Apparently, Olivia could too as she let go of his hand and went to the window beside Abby. Olivia peered out to the growing crowd forming in front of the hospital. They were equipped with signs that read "Get well, Harper" and pictures of her posted to boards waiving about. Before she knew what was happening, she was being escorted into a private waiting room with Fitz and Abby and a freakishly tall and large man was standing guard of the door. Olivia immediately recognized the man as Tom, Fitz' bodyguard.
"Sir, things are getting quite hellish outside-if I might say. For all of your safety, its best if you remain in this room until the doctor comes to update you."
Fitz hadn't been paying much attention. Instead, he was racking his brain trying to figure out who could have leaked the information to the press. As if a light bulb went off in his head, Nurse Quinn peeked her head into the door and asked if anyone needed anything. Olivia was about to smile and give the younger woman a kind no, but Fitz was like a dog being released off his chain.
"Five, videotaping patients has to be against some king of morale code or oath you took to become a nurse. Four, you can DENY doing this all you want, but the angle of that awful recording comes from where you were standing in beside me outside. Three, if you are going to try to remain anonymous and send information to the press, you should do a better job of hiding the name tag of your fellow coworkers that CLEARLY displays the name of this hospital. Two, my attorney will be contacting you and this hospital about my rights being violated, so this will be the LAST time we communicate-which brings me to ONE: IF I CATCH YOU ANYWHERE NEAR MY FAMILY AGAIN, THERE WILL BE HELL TO PAY. DO YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT THE FUCK I AM TELLING YOU!?"
By this time, Olivia was standing stock still with her arms around her torso, watching this unfold in front of her. Abby was the exact replica of Olivia as she stood in amazement. She didn't think Fitz had it in him. Fitz was now standing directly in front of Quinn, his face and ears a shade of red Olivia could only compare to a tomato, and Tom stood by but not in the way of his best friend and boss as he tore this ordinary looking nurse a new asshole.
"Ye-yes sir." Quinn managed to get out.
As she left, Quinn ducked into a utility closet. She immediately opened her phone, clicked send on the last bit of evidence and video, and quickly sent a text message to her buyer that she needed her pay ASAP.
Fitz was running on adrenaline, and when Dr. Rosen came back to inform them that Harper made it through her surgery ok but that she was still unconscious, he finally felt himself begin to calm down. The donation of blood and the rise of his blood pressure had taken a toll on him, and Olivia linked her arm with his as they followed the doctor to their daughter's room. Abby agreed to stay behind since only 2 people could be present in the ICU at a time.
Neither said a word. Both silently prayed….
/
It's quiet. There's a beep. What the heck is that beeping noise? I already have a splitting headache. I can't wake up. I can't open my eyes. What is going on? AM I DEAD!? Ok, the beeping is getting louder and faster. I'm can't swallow, I can barely breathe. WHAT IS HAPPENING!? Calm down, Harp. Breathe. You're not dead unless Heaven has a heart monitor.
Yeah, that's it. It's a heart monitor.
…."Harp, Mommy's here, ok"
I can hear you, mom! I can feel you kiss me and run your hands through my hair. Please help me open my eyes! I can't talk….I can't-
"Harp, I'm here too, trooper. You did wonderful in your surgery-"
SURGERY!?
"You are going to pull through this just fine, sweetie. Rest up. Your mother and I will be right here when you wake up."
Really now….Why is that? Who cares…Fitz! Fitz, please help me! I want to open my eyes so bad, but I feel like I'm floating or something….
"Oh, Fitz! We should have told her. Now we HAVE to tell her. But in a hospital? This is a disaster!"
"Livvie, sweetie, she is a very level headed young lady. We will tell her. She will understand, and we will be ok."
Tell me what?
"Fitz, she has to be alright. Why hasn't she woken up yet?"
CLICK, CLICK, CLICK, harper imagines they are both on one side of her bed now.
"Livvie, Come here."
"Fitz…"Harper can hear her mother's sobs and she gives it her last shot to wake up.
"Livvie, we are ok. We are right here, and Harper will hear the truth from us. Screw the world and what they say. I am NOT letting anyone or anything hurt you or my daughter ever again. Do you understand me...?"
Say WHAT?
Harper's eyes shot open to this confession and she witnessed through hooded tear filled eyes her mother and who she was just informed is her father embrace.
My…My DAD?
AN: AHHHHH! 2 chapters, 2 cliffhangers! DON'T KILL ME!
You're welcome.
I might update again before the night is over…who knows? I'm a homebody and don't have anything else to do tonight.
Love you all! Review away! Your reviews give me ideas and juice to continue.
XOXO
