Hello! So I have to admit I experienced quite a bit of writer's block with this story. But after re-reading reviews and chapters I think I've got my groove back. This chapter could have gone in so many different ways I think I've rewritten it about 7 different times, but I finally decided on one which felt the most natural, true to the way both characters are written and the context of the story. I hope you enjoy ;)

Olivia awoke to the sound of Fitz turning on the television.

"Hello sleepy head.", he laughed.

She looked to see drool on her arm. She quickly licked it up, praying to god that he hadn't seen anything. "I thought... I thought you went on a run."

"I did." After he'd come back from his run Fitz found Olivia passed out on the couch with drool running down her face and arm. He quickly snapped a few photo's before running up the stairs and hopping into the shower. A hot and steamy shower after his tiring run did his aching body well, and as he stepped out Fitz quickly found that there were no towels. He was put in an awkward situation as he knew Olivia was downstairs, and could possibly now be awake. With a brave face he flew down the stairs naked as the day he was born and rushed into the laundry room in order to grab himself a towel.

"Oh...", she said sheepishly. "How was your run?"

"It was great, until I came home to no towels."

Olivia could have died of laughter at that very moment, but she kept tightlipped and nodded her head.

"If you're trying to start a prank war with me Liv... I'll destroy you."

She laughed comically, "do you know who you're talking to?"

"No. I think the question is do you know who you're talking to?" He teased with a smirk. Fitz was glad that after all the drama that had gone on between the short amount of time they'd known each other, that they were still able to sustain their playful and banter filled relationship.

"If you want a war just ask." Olivia smiled sweetly.

He rolled his eyes playfully. This girl was really the thorn beneath a rose— she appeared so sweet and innocent, proving to be the complete opposite. She'd sucked him into her world, he was like putty in her hands.

"You're nothing but trouble.", he got up from the couch and moved towards the fridge. "What were you thinking for dinner?"

"OH NO!" Olivia sassed running up behind him. She slammed the fridge door and stood in front of it, "you are NOT cooking dinner."

He frowned, slightly offended. "Why not? I'm a great cook."

"You can make eggs, peel some fruit and roast some chicken breasts. I'm not on one of these gym rat diets, I need proper food."

He laughed, "there's a difference between being a gym rat and taking pride in your body.", he said matter-a-factly. "And what kind of proper food are you proposing?"

Olivia smiled. She walked over to the bowl of menu's and pulled out a bright blue one, "Domino's pizza."

"Because that's real food..."

"You know for someone who says I have an attitude, you have an attitude as well.", she teased before dialling the number.

XXX

Miami was great. Hot sun, and girls in bikini's everywhere. As Harrison and Stephen walked along Ocean Dr. they were in complete awe. Miami was proving to be exactly how they'd pictured it and exactly resembling how it was shown in the movie's.

"Man Fitz should be here!" Harrison frowned.

"Yeah he should. He's been acting pretty strange lately though."

"Strange how? I don't think so."

"Like he never wants to hang out. He barely came to the club in Tampa, and now he bailed on Miami. We've been planning this summer for years and now he's just gone soft." Stephen stated. He'd been observing Fitz's odd behaviour for a while now.

"I think the whole thing with Mellie threw him off." Harrison admitted. Fitz had always been the one to get too attached too quickly when it cake to females. He'd always had a hard time separating his emotions from sex. "You know how he gets with girls."

"Yeah..." Stephen mumbled underneath his breath. "I guess..."

Harrison stopped walking. Something about Stephen's tone and facial expression did not sit well with him. Stephen was coming off as sarcastic which he rarely if ever indulged in sarcasm. "What's going on?"

"Nothing."

"That's a lie." Harrison frowned. He knew his best friend well enough to know when he was hiding something.

"Something's up with Fitz..." Stephen said with his brows practically kissing his forehead. "I don't know what, but he's strange he's not acting the same. Maybe it was Mellie, after the whole cheating thing but I don't know. He just... he doesn't seem like our buddy anymore."

Harrison nodded. He had sensed Fitz had withdrawn from the two of them, but never took it as anything serious. After all Fitz was the quietest out of the three of them. "We'll have to try harder when we get back. He's probably stressed with his P.H.D. and everything." Fitz was the only friend who wasn't being financially supported by his parents due to the disgusting relationship he had with his father.

"I guess." Stephen conceded, perhaps he was reading too far into things. He just needed to relax, get drunk and do what he did best.

"Now enough with the serious talk." Harrison smiled devilishly. "Let's find a bar."

"Come play with me.", she said bursting into his room at 8 o'clock at night.

Fitz chuckled to himself. "Do you not know what knocking is?"

"Shut up. Come play with me I'm bored."

"Olivia you're not 10 years old entertain yourself." He laughed picking up his book and resumed reading his page. Olivia huffed, flinging herself onto his bed and ripping the book out of his hands. "HEY?!", he cried. "What the hell!"

"I'm. Bored." She said in his face. "You stayed here to keep me out of trouble correct?"

He nodded his head, "but that doesn't mean I'm your nanny, go watch TV."

"You're funny.", she said hopping off his bed with his book in hand. She swayed her hips as she walked towards the door, knowing his eyes never left her body for a second. "We're going swimming so get changed and meet me downstairs in 5.", and with that Olivia Pope closed his door shut.

3 minutes later Olivia had changed into a white bikini which did little to hide her lady parts. Not she was swimming in public, so in her eyes it wasn't exactly trashy as there would only be one pair of eyes beside her own who would see it. When she saw the bikini in Victoria Secret, Olivia had hopes that perhaps maybe she'd be able to wear it for him with the privacy of just the two of them, knowing Harrison would lose it if he ever saw her in anything like that. So now that the opportunity to be alone with him had risen, Olivia planned to take full advantage.

The bikini was sexy, she picked it exactly for that reason— it fit her body like a glove. With her hair tied up into a ponytail, Olivia yelled for him as she made her way downstairs. He boomed that he'd be down in a second and a giddy smile crept across her face. She scrolled through her music selection as her iPhone sat in the docking system outside, finally after some debate Olivia decided to play The Weeknd's House of Balloons, it soon began playing throughout the speakers.

A moment later the screen door opened and Olivia smiled to herself. "What the hell are you wearing?", he asked as a pit formed in his throat.

"A bikini.", she laughed turning towards him.

Fitz took a deep breath, he could feel himself getting aroused at the sight of her which made him feel dirty and perverted. The longer he stared at her, the harder he became, "this is a bad idea.", he shook his head.

"No it's not!" She assured him.

"Yes it is.", Fitz said firmly taking a step back. "You're trouble, this is trouble."

"Don't say that.", she reached out and took hold of his arm as he began to back away. The last thing she wanted in the world was for him to leave. "We're just going swimming, it's only weird if you make it weird."

Fitz nodded, the lump in his throat thicker than ever. He watched as she walked down the pool steps and into the water as he sat by the edge, dipping his feet in.

"Are you not coming in?", she asked him, swimming to the deep end to meet him.

He shook his head, "I agreed to join you outside, I never said I'd actually come inside and swim."

"Fitz!", she frowned. A big splash of water arouse as she slammed her hand down in frustration. "You liar!"

He smirked, "beside's it's 8 o'clock."

"What on earth does that have to do with anything?"

Fitz watched as she pouted her lips, god she was gorgeous, he thought to himself. He couldn't pinpoint what exactly about her was so intoxicating, but everything about this girl was seeming to drive him wild. The fact that she was treading water a few feet from him in a itty bitty bikini did nothing to calm this raging hunger he felt festering for her. He didn't know when things changed, when suddenly he took her in for vision that she was, things changed.

"Nothing.", he said snapping out of his daze.

Olivia could tell he was staring at her body through the surface of the water, and she loved it. She could feel his eyes on her like a magnifying glass, she watched as he analyzed each and every visible part of her body. Just having him watch her so intently sent vibrations throughout her body, her eyes never leaving his. She watched him swallow, suppressing a moan at his large adam apple— a feature of his she'd always found intriguing.

They must have locked eye contact silently for a while as Olivia recognized the fourth of fifth song on the album. With false confidence, she swam over to him, positioning herself between his legs, "are you really not going to come in?", she asked him.

Fitz swallowed hard, her eyes were dark and there was certain raunchiness to her voice which unnerved him. "I shouldn't.", he tried his best to sound confident but this girl was unravelling him completely.

"Please."

"Liv...this is inappropriate."

"Then let's be inappropriate.", she looked up at him with desire and lust in her eyes, her voice low. Her words sent shivers down his spine, and Fitz was unsure of how long he could keep resisting her before he cracked. He positive it wasn't just lust at this point, he'd lusted after women before many women in fact. But nothing like this, she left a fire burning in his belly, she turned his brain to absolute mush.

"No.", he managed to choke out shaking his head, yet remaining in his place.

"Are you telling me that you don't feel it?", she asked him.

"Of course I do Liv are you crazy?" If there was one thing Fitzgerald Grant could be sure of, it was he had a hunger for Olivia Pope. "But I can't Olivia. We can't. You're his baby sister. Harrison would kill me."

"I don't give a damn about Harrison and you know that."

"I'm 25 years old."

"I don't care." Olivia said, it was bold but the truth nonetheless. She was unsure of where all this confidence had emerged from, perhaps she was finding her own sexuality or just damn frustrated with having to tread on eggshells with Fitz for Harrison's sake.

"Olivia you know this is wrong for so many reasons.", he let out a sigh, running out of excuses why he couldn't just give in and take her hard against the pool wall or the cold, hard stone floor. "He's my best friend, I can't. I can't do that to him."

"I don't care. I don't care about any of that. Why do you care so much what he thinks? He doesn't own you Fitz, you're in control of yourself.", Olivia said. She knew the use of his own words against him would really get him to listen. "Why does it have to be a choice? Because you know I want you, and I know you want me."

"It's a choice because I can't betray him like that Olivia, no matter how badly I want you." Fitz said with a sigh.

"Fine." Olivia took to the back of her neck, undoing the straps of her bikini top before removing the tie at the back. Although he couldn't see her breasts due to the water and dark sky, it was now obvious she was nude from the waist up. "Choose.", she plopped her soaking wet bikini top in the middle of his trunks, before pushing off the wall. "Me or Harrison?"

He shook his head, "I can't Olivia.", he got up from the floor to his feet, now realizing that coming outside was a mistake. "Goodnight."

She watched in awe as he turned from her and made his way back inside the house. Olivia was hurt— she wanted to scream, cry, shout, yell for him to come back, demand for him, but she didn't. She could form no words, rejection hitting her like a ton of bricks. Tears were streaming down her face as she got out of the pool. She didn't know what to say, think or feel. At this moment in time Olivia couldn't remember a time in her life where she'd felt any worse.

She slept horribly, practically crying herself to sleep the whole night. She'd never felt so rejected in her entire life. Olivia had expected to be hurt by people, after all she'd never really been accepted by them in the first place. But the one person she'd allowed herself to open up to, the one person she trusted and respected more than anyone else had shut her down in more ways that one— and that hurt more than anything.

As she managed to decrease the redness and puffiness in her eyes she made the dreaded journey down the stairs the next morning only to see him cooking breakfast for the two of them. She'd planned to stay locked away in her room for the rest of the day, probably the rest of the summer, but her throat was now dry from all of the crying and she needed something to drink. Avoiding eye contact, Olivia remained silent as she moved past him and poured herself a small glass of lemonade. She knocked it back quickly, deposited it in the sink and started to make her way back upstairs only to have him reach out and grab her arm.

"Liv.", he said almost pleading.

"Don't touch me!", she was practically screaming, her voice on the verge of cracking as she felt her eyes well up with tears. Not only was she upset, heartbroken, but she was now raging with anger.

"Olivia we can talk—

"I don't wanna talk to you!" She spat loudly. "You really think after last night that I'd ever want to talk to you again?!"

He felt helpless as she violently yanked out of his grip, "OLIVIA WAIT!", he boomed after her.

"Fuck you Fitz.", she retorted. "Seriously, fuck you."

"Olivia I understand you're upset but you have to understand."

"You're a real coward you know that.", she took a few daring steps towards him. If they were going to talk they were going to go toe to toe; she'd lay it all out there. She wanted him to know just how he made her felt, how badly she was now hurting. "You're a damned coward."

Her words were hitting home. As he went up to his room, never had Fitz regretted something so much in his life. The entire night he'd been contemplating going into her room and sorting things out, in fact he'd gotten up and gotten as far as her door. His stomach dropped at the sound of her sniffling, and he gathered that she was probably crying. He swallowed his pride and made his way back to his room with his tail between his legs.

"Olivia please just listen to me..."

"What did you tell me when you helped me with Huck?" Olivia scoffed sarcastically, her rage now blinding her completely. "You're in control of yourself. Don't ever let anyone let you feel like you have to do something, like they have power or control over you, because they don't. What about that bullshit?"

"Olivia!"

"Or does that only work with me? Because you're a damned hypocrite!", she fired at him. Her brown eyes were now full with angst as she stared him down despite their sizeable height difference. She wasn't going to back down. "You were the one person I thought I could trust. The one person I thought I could believe. The ONE person who I thought was different." Hot tears were now steaming down her cheeks uncontrollable as she managed to choke out the words she'd been fighting with all night long. "I thought you were different from everyone else. But you're not, you're a cheat, and a fraud, and fake and a phony. You're all liars and hypocrites! You used me."

"Can you just let me talk please Liv.", he begged of her.

"Did it make you feel good?", she asked him with disgust. "To see just how fucked up I am? Did it make you feel better about your perfect life? Or was it charity? Helping the poor little rich girl who no one can stand. Who's dumb enough to drive a car drunk or to hold drugs for friends who clearly couldn't give a damn about her. Tell me Fitz which one was it, because I'm interested."

"You're being disgusting."

"You told me you cared.", she wiped the mountains of tears emerging from her face, her now frail voice choking on each and every word.

"I do care.", he said bringing his hand to her face. Fitz was pleasantly surprised when she didn't swat him or push him off. She no longer looked or sounded angry, she now sounded empty; empty and broken. "I care about you Olivia, probably more than you'll ever know, and it's killing me—"

"But not in the way that I care about you.", she spat before laughing humourlessly. "Just my fucking luck, I guess I'm just that school girl with an unreciprocated crush."

"GOD OLIVIA WILL YOU JUST SHUT THE HELL UP FOR TWO MINUTES!"

She was silenced, completely taken back with the tone that he had just used with her. Her eyes widened and her mouth formed a small O. He'd only ever yelled at her once before and Olivia couldn't exactly say she enjoyed it. She nearly gasped as he cupped her face with his other hand before enclosing what small space between the two of them. A moment later his head was tilting towards her, his warm breath felt on her face. She was now visibly shaking underneath his hold, anxious and scared for what he might due.

"Fitz—"

"Be quiet.", he said firmly. His entire body was on pins and needles. Everything in his mind was telling him no, in fact his mind was screaming no. If he were to think rationally, he'd go upstairs, lock his door, pack his bags and leave. If he was to be honest with himself, he should have left after the first morning after laying eyes on her in those wild hot pink shorts. This was in fact his best friend's sister, yet there he was lowering his face to hers until they were practically touching.

They weren't yet kissing, though their faces were as close as can be without that happening. They were so close Olivia couldn't tell where in fact she ended and he began, she could feel him all over; the goosebumps on her skin due to his breath on her upper lip. He was so close she could practically taste him, she could see the sweat on his skin; she could smell his heavenly aftershave; she wanted to taste his skin. Her entire body shaking with anticipation as she tried to ever so gently to bring her hands up to his face only to be stopped by him.

"Dont. Move.", he practically snarled out due to nervousness. She gulped, wanting to nod her head but desperate to remain the close contact she'd been craving for what felt like ages. He swallowed hard and Olivia felt his face move slightly against hers. Her hairs all standing on edge, wanting for him to what she'd been dreaming of. She let out a ragged breath as their noses brushed, her body involuntarily jerking towards his. He gave her one look before closing his eyes and gently pressing his lips to hers as soft as possible.

It was slow, awfully slow as their lips finally met after such painful anticipation. Olivia practically moaned; nothing in her life had felt such so euphoric. His lips were soft; feeling absolutely perfect against hers, and a moment later he pulled away hoarsely. He breathed hard, his face now a inch or so away from hers. She began to panic as to why he pulled away, her eyes searching for answers frantically only to have him lean back in for more. He kissed her, and then she kissed him; their mouthes slowly and gently acquainting themselves. The roughed texture of his tongue swept against her mouth before he pulled away.

She examined his face for regret and found nothing. Olivia didn't bother to hide the gleeful smile now plastered on her face. She felt on top of the world; Olivia felt as if she were flying. "What are we doing?", she asked him.

"I don't know.", he breathed with a slight chuckle. She found relief in the lopsided grin that followed his words.

"What about Harrison?", her voice weak and slightly scared that he might pull away.

He stroked her face, pushing a few wispy face off her face. "I'm in control", he shrugged "and I want to take you upstairs." Olivia bit her lip slightly with a nod, and followed his lead as he took her hand and the two of them slowly made their way up the stairs. As she entered his room there was bolt of both excitement and anxiety which jolted throughout her body. He closed the door behind them before walking to her and cupping her face once again.

She grinned radiantly at him, her smile lighting up the room. "You're in control.", she smiled taking his free hand into hers.

"We're in control."

Yes I ended it like that. I HOPE the first kiss was worth the wait? Hahaha!

Does Stephen have an inkling of what's going on? Did Olivia make some valid points? Was Fitz wrong for turning her down the first time? Let me know what y'alll thinkk :))

(and no they are not going to jump into bed haha)

Until next time! x