So, as you probably gathered by now, I quite like Jake. Not for Olivia, but as a character, and as someone that Olivia should love, even though I know she cannot love him as much as she loves Fitz. So If you hate Jake, I'm not sure how you will feel about this chapter. I hope you all like it, please let me know.
The next six months, the the first half of Fitz' last year as President, were hectic to say the least. He was working to have the last of the troops pulled out of Iran. NATO had taken up the tough task of educating the locals and was putting together a team of skilled troops and leaders from all sorts of fields to go in. It was about two weeks before they were being deployed that Fitz was given the list of the members of those teams. One name stuck out in particular. Cpt. Jacob Ballard.
Fitz frowned when he read the name. He wondered if Liv knew anything of this. He imagined she would tell him if she had heard from Jake. If she didn't, was it his place to say anthing?
He left it for another week and when he didn't hear anything from her with regards to Jake he decided he should probably tell her. He invited her over for dinner, which was not unusual.
She met him in the Oval office and she sat on the couch until he was finished and they walked up to the residence together, not holding hands or anything, just together, even though it was very public knowledge that they were a couple.
They had a casual dinner on the couch, Olivia's bare feet sitting under his thigh. Once they had eated Fitz put both their plates on the table. The way he did so told Olivia that there was something he wanted to talk about.
"Liv. There's something I need to tell you." He said grabbing her hand as he leant back onto the couch.
"Ok…" She said.
"Have you spoken to Jake recently?" He asked, thinking she might open up to him with prompt.
"Not recently no." She said thinking about the last time she spoke to Jake, which would have been his birthday at the end of February, so about a month. "Why?" She asked.
"He signed up for the NATO forces going over to Iraq." He said. Her reaction was much the same as his, a frown. "I have known for a week, but I thought he might want to tell you himself, but he is cutting it a bit fine, so I thought you would want to know." He watched as she stared off across the room with the same frown. But when he finished speaking she refocused on him and cuddled into his side.
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A week late, the day Jake was scheduled to fly out, Olivia got up particularly early and drove over to his place. As she pulled into his driveway she couldn't help but feel sad about his departure. She had been wondering if he was leaving because of her. She sat in the car for a couple more minutes before she got out and walked up to the front door. She knocked. She heard Jake call that he was coming.
He opened the door and was clearly expecting someone else.
"Liv. What are you doing here?" he asked surprised.
"Thought you were getting away without saying goodbye did you?" She said putting her hands on her hips and raising her eyebrows.
"How did you know?" He asked. She only further raised his eyebrows as if to say Really? "Fitz. Of course." He smiled slightly but looked at the floor.
"I thought maybe I could drive you over, or we could grab a coffee or something to eat beforehand?" She asked.
"Ahh, sure thing. I just have to lock up. Give me a few minutes." He said turning back to the house and going to lock up. All his possessions were in boxes near the front door, the rest of the house was bare. It was an eerie feeling. In their time together she had spent so much time in this house. She felt guilty as she remembered their first proper date and stumbling in the garage door and upstairs, or the many other whole nights she had stayed there after Lilly and Franklin had gone to college, the dinners he had cooked in the kitchen, the movies they watched in the loungeroom. The last time she was there though was the night she broke up with him for good. All those memories flooded back to her and she became slightly glassy eyed.
"You ok?" He asked walking up to her when he had finished, finding her mid thought. She shook her head and the thoughts and smiled at him.
"Fine, just a lot of memories." He nodded sadly. They jumped in the car and Olivia headed for Dulles International airport. They got a coffee and a quick breakfast before Jake had to catch his plane. Olivia didn't know what was appropriate to say as they stopped where only passengers could proceed beyond.
"So…" He said. She mimicked him.
"Promise me you will be safe." She said grabbing his face between her hands.
"I promise." He said with a smile.
"If I hear you are being reckless, I will personally come over there and kick your butt alright."
"Got it." He confirmed. She leaned as far onto her tip toes as she could in her heels and turned his head and kissed his cheek. His eyes closed and his heart soared at the feeling. When he opened them again she was looking into his green eyes.
"I'll see you soon." She smiled and dropped her hands from his face. He smiled before boarding the plane.
She walked back through the airport and went back to OPA. She spent the day there before texting Fitz to say she was coming over. He hugged her as soon as she arrived knowing that she would be upset about Jake leaving, even if she didn't want to admit it. She clung to him tightly and he didn't let go until she did.
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Three months later Olivia was at her office, considering heading off early when she got a call from Fitz.
"I am having Tom and Hall bring you over right now." He said, no hello, nothing. She could tell he was stressed. "Ok. I'll see you then." And he hung up. She frowned, that was odd for him. Something must be wrong she thought. She packed up her things and told everyone she was leaving and headed down to the parking lot where she waited for Tom and Hall. They arrived there as she did. She wondered how they got there so quickly.
The car raced back to the white house and was there in 2 minutes. It must be serious. Tom and Hall briskly escorted her to the West Wing where Fitz met her. Her feeling was confirmed by the look on his face when she saw him. He wanted nothing more than to hug her, but that would come later. He just walked quicky to the sit room. She almost had to run to keep up with him. He was about to open the door when he turned around. She almost ran into him but he grabbed her shoulders.
"It's Jake." He said and she searched his eyes for more information. "They found a toddler with a bomb, on a landmine so he has saved the kid but they don't know what will happen when he moves off it." He said quickly, not wanting to be technical, just needing to get out the esentials. He took a deep breath opened the door to the sit room and put a finger to his lips to signal to her to be quiet.
"The kids are great. The school is amazing. I can't wait till I am a teacher." Olivia heard Lilly's voice fill the room as they entered. On the screen was a helmet cam perspective shot being broadcast. Olivia assumed it was Jake holding the bomb. He was very silent.
"That's great Lil. I am so proud of you, your mother would be too." He said, not showing any signs of distress.
"Thanks Dad. How are things with you anyways?" She asked casually.
"Things are good, going to plan, so that's good. Probably going to be over here for a while longer."
"You better be back for Christmas." She said lightly.
"I'll try." His voice faltered this time.
"Dad. Are you ok?" Lilly asked.
"Fine. I just miss you so much." Once again, you could sense his emotion.
"Naw, you big softy." She joked. "Look Dad, I have to head to class now, but it was really nice to talk to you."
"You too baby. You know I love you right. More than anything in this whole world, and I always will." He said.
"I love you too Dad." She said sincerely. "Ok. I will talk to you later." She said before the call was disconnected.
"Jake." Fitz spoke once the call was disconnected. Jake sniffled before responding.
"Yes Sir."
"I have Olivia here." He said.
"Jake." Olivia said softly.
"Hey." He said, relief washing over him at hearing her voice.
"I hear you got yourself into some trouble." She said leaning onto the table close to the microphone.
"You could say that." He said a hint of a smile in his voice.
"You had to be the hero didn't you." Olivia said with a small chuckle. "Hey, you promised me you would be safe." She said sadly.
"I'm sorry, and I know I can't break my promise to you and ask you to promise me something but, but Liv, promise me you will take care of Lilly."
"Jake, I don't need to promise you, because you are going to be able to take care of her yourself." She said confidently, if not for herself, but for Jake.
"Liv. Please just promise me." He said sadly. She couldn't respond as she tried to keep the emotion out of her voice.
"I promise."
"Thank you. And thank you for showing me how to love again. I never thought that I would until you came along. I just wanted to tell you that I love you."
"I love you too Jake." She said back without hesitation.
"Alright. I think I am ready." He said.
"Liv. I don't think you want to be here for this Liv." He said grabbing her by the waist. She stood up and followed him out the door. He was about to close the door when an explosion echoed through the room. Olivia pushed the door back open and rushed through. Fitz was not quick enough to stop her but he grabbed her by the waist as quickly as he could, but she already saw the black screen.
"No. NO! Jake!" Olivia yelled. She tried to wriggle out of his grasp but he had her tightly. A ragged breath could be heard but before it stopped Jake could be heard gasping.
"Sarah." And then the line was cut off.
Olivia turned around in his arms and tears were falling from her face. Her lip dropped as she looked at him and her heart ached. He pulled her closer and she settled against his chest, her cries becoming audible. He patted her hair as she cried. He felt her slowly slide down his body and knew her legs were failing her. He picked her up, one arm under her knees, the other behind her back and she wrapped her arms around his neck. He walked out the open door and headed to his office. He would have taken her to the residence but his office was closer.
He walked briskly to his office and once he arrived he sat down on the couch and just held her while she cried. She felt comforted by his arms wrapped around her. She couldn't help but feel that Jake going over there in the first place was because she had chosen Fitz and she was struggling with the insurmountable guilt.
"Its my fault." She whispered.
"This is not your fault Liv." He responded rubbing her back. She looked up at him.
"He went over there because there was nothing keeping here, because Lilly went to college and I left him."
"It doesn't make it your fault." He tried to comfort her. She didn't want to argue so she just let him hold her.
"I need to go see Lilly." Olivia said evenly after a few minutes. She removed herself from his lap.
"Livvie." He said reaching for her hand. "You don't need to do it."
"Yes I do. I promised him I would take care of her." She said looking at him. He nodded acknowledging that it was something she felt she need to do.
"Do you want me to take you? We could take Air Force 1." He suggested, but she gave him a look that said don't you dare. He held up his hands in defeat. "Will you please call me when you can." He said to her as she stood up.
"I will." She said as he stood up too. They shared a brief kiss before Olivia left. She caught a cab to her apartment, packed an overnight bag and called a cab to take her to the airport. She called Franklin from the airport telling him she was coming and asking him to pick her up from the airport. She didn't want to tell him before she told Lilly so she remained vauge.
When she arrived he greeted her warmly but could tell there was something she wasn't saying. They jumped in the car. "We need to go see Lilly." She said as Franklin buckled up.
"Liv. Is everything ok."
"I'll tell you everything when we get there I promise." She said squeezing his hand.
When they arrived at Lilly's dorm it was almost dinner time but Lilly was in her room. Her room-mate was down at dinner conveniently though. Franklin walked in first and Lilly greeted him warmly. When Olivia followed behind she frowned.
"Is something wrong?" She asked, perhaps sensing there was, merely by Olivia's presence.
"Why don't you two take a seat." She said. Lilly looked at Franklin who only shrugged. They sat on Lilly's bed while Olivia pulled up the desk chair in front of them.
"This morning, your Dad's plotoon found a child strapped to a bomb ontop of a landmine." Lilly's eyes watered immediately. She clutched Franklin's hand. "He was able to save the child, but your Dad was holding the bomb when it went off. I'm so sorry Lilly. He didn't make it."
"No, I spoke to him this morning." She said. Olivia nodded.
"I know. He called you just beforehand to make sure you knew how much he loved you." She said becoming emotional herself.
"No. He would have told me. He would have let me say goodbye, he knew how important that was with mum."
"What would you have said differently?" Olivia asked. She only shrugged. "He loved you so much. He was so proud of you." Olivia put her hand on Lilly's leg. She began sobbing. She leaned onto Franklin who wrapped her in his arms. She cried and cried and cried. Franklin eventually laid down with her and she fell asleep.
Olivia left them like that. She went and found a hotel and returned the next morning. When Olivia arrived at her dorm she was sitting on her bed alone. Olivia came in and sat next to her on her bed and wrapped an arm around her. Lilly rested her head on Olivia's shoulder.
"At least they are together again." Lilly whispered. Olivia stroked her hair.
"That was the last thing he said, Sarah."
"Really?" She asked moving to look at Olivia properly. Olivia nodded with a smile. Lilly reciprocated the smile. "Well I suppose that's something." She said putting her head back on Olivia's shoulder.
Lilly decided to fly back to D.C. with Olivia until Jake was repatriated and a funeral was held.
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It wasn't until they arrived back in D.C. that Olivia contacted Fitz. He had been worried sick about her. He understood that she was upset, and she was trying to make good on her promise to Jake, but he also felt uncomoftable with her declaration of love to him. So when she called he felt a weight lift from his shoulders.
"Hi." She said first, which he reciprocated.
"How is Lilly?"Fitz asked.
"She is managing." Olivia sighed.
"How are you?" He asked.
"I'm ok. Still in shock I think." Olivia said but Fitz didn't respond, not really knowing what to say.
"Do you know if Lilly wants his name kept as a secret? NATO gave me a call earlier."
"Yeah, I asked her. She said she didn't mind."
"Ok good. Means it shouldn't be a problem getting him into Arlington, full military honor." Fitz said. Olivia cleared her throat.
"I was actually thinking that he would probably want to be buried with Sarah."
"That's a great idea Liv. I think he would like that."
"I need to speak to Lilly about it, but it was just a thought." Fitz nodded, not that she could see.
"So can I come over tonight?"
"I have Lilly and Franklin here. I don't think it would be a good idea."
"Ok. I understand. Do you want to come here?" he asked.
"I think we need to be together at the moment. I'm sorry."
"Liv, it's fine. But I do want to see you sooner rather than later."
"You will. How about lunch tomorrow?" Olivia asked.
"I would love to but I have a meeting. Dinner?" He countered.
"Should be fine, but I will let you know if that is ok?" She asked.
"That's fine." He said trying to be convincing.
"Ok, well I should go. I'll speak to you soon. I love you." Olivia said.
"I love you too." He said before hanging up. He felt a little better having talked to her, especially her saying she loved him, which she didn't often come out with herself.
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The next morning Fitz spoke to Olivia sooner than he had anticipated because he got a call to say that Jake's body would be arriving at Dover in the afternoon. She thanked him but it was a quick conversation before they had to say goodbye again.
Fitz was tossing up between whether or not he should go. He wanted to go as President, to see that one of our citizens arrived home safely. He wanted to go as the ex commander of the fallen soldier in question. He wanted to go to support Olivia, but he wasn't sure if she wanted him there. He thought about it all morning, and by the time the afternoon came around he had decided that all the reasons he wanted to go outweighed the possibility that Olivia didn't want him. So he had his agents escort him over.
When he arrived Olivia, Lilly and Franklin were already there. He didn't want to intrude so he stayed back for a while, until the plane pulled up into the hanger. He moved forward but stayed a couple of steps away from Olivia. She didn't notice at first because their focus was on the plane in the opposite direction.
As the flag covered coffin was carried off the plane Franklin held Lilly upright as she wept and Olivia shed silent tears on the other side of Lilly. She saw movement in her peripherals as the bearers reached the ground and she turned to see Fitz saluting the coffin as it approached. She was slightly stunned by his presence, but also grateful. She reached out her hand to grab his as it rested by his side and she pulled him over to her. She intertwined their fingers and held their linked hands with her other hand as he continued to salute. The bearers placed the coffin on a stand with wheels and they saluted. As they lowered their hands so did Fitz and he turned to kiss her temple briefly.
The coffin was shortly after placed into a hearse to be taken to a commeriaal airport and flown to Illinois where he would be buried with Sarah. Olivia had spent all morning making arrangements and planning the funeral which would be held in 2 days.
When the hearse drove out of the hanger Fitz was the first to speak.
"Do you guys need a ride anywhere?"
"I think Lil and I are just going to go back to the apartment." He said looking at Lilly who nodded slightly. "But I can drive the car back if you want Liv?" He asked. Olivia looked to Fitz and he was pleading with his eyes for her to come with him, and she knew he wanted to spend some time with her.
"If you guys are sure you will be ok?" She asked.
"We will be fine." Franklin confirmed. Olivia pulled her keys from her bag and handed them to him.
"Ok, well I'll see you guys a little later on. Let me know if you need anything." Franklin smiled weakly at her before they headed for the car. Fitz and Olivia headed off a few seconds later. They didn't speak until they were in his limo.
"Thank you for coming. It meant a lot to me."
"Of course."
"The funeral will be in Illinois in two days, so we will fly over tomorrow."
"We can take Air Force One." He said casually.
"You don't have to come if you don't want to."
"You know even after everything, I did consider him a friend, and a comrade. Not to mention he is an American soldier who died overseas in peace keeping efforts. I want to go." He said with conviction.
"Ok."
"So we will take Air Force One?"
"That would make life easier."
"Great. I'll arrange it."
"Thank you."
"My pleasure." He said bringing his lips to hers for a gentle kiss. She rested her head on his shoulder for the rest of the drive and ended up drifting off to sleep. He woke her just before they re-etered D.C.
"Are you going home, work or are you coming to the White House with me?" He asked hopeful that she would come back with him.
"I should probably head to OPA, finalise everything for the funeral." She said. She saw Fitz nod sadly. "What?" She asked.
"I just miss you." He shrugged. She grabbed his hand.
"We have a four hour flight tomorrow, and if you play your cards right I might just sneak into your room at the hotel too." She said with a wink. He smiled and kissed her gently before advising the driver they were going to drop Olivia at work. When they arrived Fitz kissed her once again and told her he would have a car pick them up at 1pm tomorrow. She thanked him before she got out of the car and headed in to work.
At work Olivia made the necessary accommodation arrangements. She had to speak to Secret Service first to see if they had a preferred location in Illinois and they gave her the name of three hotels across the state and Olivia picked the one closest to the cemetery, which was about half an hour away. She would have preferred something closer, but she could live with that. She booked two rooms one for Fitz and one that appeared to be for her and Franklin and Lilly. Even though they were a public couple, she didn't want to publically show everyone just how connected they were.
Later she rang the funeral home to make sure the coffin had arrived, which it had and everything from there end was fine.
So she checked on her team, who were working on a case, but they seemed fine so Olivia headed home. When she arrived the house was quiet. She found Franklin and Lilly laying in Franklin's bed. Lilly was asleep, tucked into Franklin's side. Franklin smiled at her weakly.
"She ok?" She whispered.
"Yeah, just tired." He said.
"Ok. Well Fitz has offered for us to fly with him on AF1 over to Illinois so he will pick us up at 1pm tomorrow. You guys should probably think about whether you are coming back here afterwards, or whether you are going back to college." Franklin nodded.
"Do you want something to eat?" Olivia asked.
"Maybe later." Olivia nodded and closed the door. But she didn't see either of them until the next morning. Lilly was up before both Olivia and Franklin and made them both breakfast, and it was quite delicious. She seemed to be feeling better which Olivia was happy about. As the morning went by they told Olivia that they were going to fly back to college the afternoon of the funeral to save a flight. Olivia had packed her bag the night before so decided to spend the morning at OPA with her team.
At lunch time she headed home and they had a quick bite to eat before their ride arrived. Their bags were placed in one car and they hoped in another. Olivia was pleased to find Fitz waiting for her. She quickly sat next to him and grabbed his hand, kissing his cheek. Frankin and Lilly slid in behind her.
When they arrived at the airport Fitz let Olivia climb the stairs first, which he instantly regretted because it gave him a great view of her ass. Once they were in the aircraft Olivia stopped walking. He bumped into her and wrapped his arms around her waist and pushed his hips into her bum letting her know just how good the view was.
"Where are we sitting?" She asked trying not to be distracted.
"I don't care, as long as I am next to you." He said as he grabbed one of her breasts. She pulled his hands off her body and led him down the plane to the staff section where there were tables with the chairs. Olivia sat down on one side, Fitz sat down next to her. Franklin and Lilly followed and sat at the table next to them on the opposite side.
Fitz and Olivia pulled out work to be completed, while Lilly and Franklin pulled out a computer to watch a movie. Shortly after takeoff Olivia looked over to see Lilly asleep on Franklin's shoulder, Franklin leaning on her head his eyes almost closed but not quite. Another half an hour and she was sure they were both asleep. She nudged Fitz and smiled at him. He looked at them and back at her and she could read his expression easily. Lust. He stood up and pulled her out of her seat and down to the front of the plane. She only didn't protest because she didn't want to wake Lilly and Franklin.
He pulled her into his private room and slammed her against the door, not so hard that it hurt, but so she knew exactly what he wanted.
"Fitz we cant."
"We can." He moved from kissing her neck to kissing her mouth. She pushed him off.
"We can't. We have to bury Jake tomorrow." She said.
"I know that. But why does that mean I can't make love to you?" She crossed her arms.
"You were planning on making love to me against the door?" She asked.
"No, on the bed, I just got a little carried away."
"Fitz, I wouldn't feel right." She said pushing off the door and walking further into the room, siting on the bed.
"Why not?" He asked. She didn't answer for a while.
"Because I feel guilty."
"About what?" He dug.
"About the fact that he wouldn't have gone if we were still together." She said looking at her knees.
"You don't know that."
"I do know that. When Lilly and Franklin went off to college he said he always thought he would sign up for another tour when she went to college, but he didn't because he had me."
"Liv, if men didn't join the army because of women we wouldn't have any soldiers. If Jake wanted to go he would have."
"He had a year when we were together and he didn't sign up, we break up and six months later he is gone."
"Liv, it has been almost a year. And this is not your fault. Jake knew what he was doing when he saved that child."
"It is just how I feel ok. You aren't going to be able to change it." She said and he knew she was right.
"You really loved him didn't you?" He asked and Olivia looked at him sadly before she nodded.
"Do you regret breaking up with him?" She shook her head no.
"I just wish I could have made him stay." She said a tear escaping her eye. He wiped it away.
"Can I just hold you then? I just want to be close to you." She wrapped her arms around his waist and he pulled her back onto the bed with him. They lay there wrapped up in each other, legs intertwined, arms around each other.
They separated when they were advised they were about to decend, so they packed up their things and buckled up.
They arrived at the hotel half an hour later and were pleased that there wasn't too much press about. They checked in and as they rode the elevator up, Olivia handed their room key to Franklin and Lilly.
"Oh, and order some food from room service, on me." Fitz said. Franklin thanked him as they walked down the hall.
Fitz and Olivia went into one room and Franklin and Lilly were in one down the hall a little further. Fitz opened the door for them and they walked in. Oliva left her bag near the door and headed straight to the couch. She plonked down and turned on the news.
Fitz picked up Olivia's bag and his own and took them to the bedroom before returning to Olivia and pulling her onto his lap where they continued to watch the news.
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The next morning they all were dressed and ready to head out on time and they all walked silently to the car. They piled in and half an hour later they were at the cemetery and to everyones surprise there was already a few people there. Olivia had put a notice in the obituaries of the local paper, thinking that people who knew he and Sarah when they lived here may like to attend, and while there were only 10 or so people Olivia saw a small smile on Lilly's face.
Once secret service had secured the area they got out of the car and walked across the grass to where Jake's coffin would be lowered into the ground. A large photo of Jake stood mounted on an easle surrounded by flowers. Olivia had picked this particular photo because he was dressed in his Navy blues, but mainly because his smile was so characteristically Jake. The size almost made the picture life size.
Lilly sat down in one of the five chairs that sat closest to the coffin. Franklin sat next to her. Lilly looked at her expectantly so Olivia sat down next to her. Fitz however decided to stand behind Olivia. She turned to look at him and he gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze.
They were waiting on the coffin to be delivered when another two limos pulled up behind the limo that Olivia, Fitz, Lilly and Franklin had arrived in. Out of one piled a number of men in Navy blues and from the other Karen, Andre, Jerry, May, Cyrus, James, Ella, Mellie, Teddy and Andrew. Olivia spun around again to look at Fitz with tears in her eyes. He smiled weakly at her.
As they group arrived Olivia noticed one man had a prosthetic leg, and another was limping. Fitz shook both their hands before they sat down next to Olivia. He greeted the other men as they joined the crowd, he did so with a sense of familiarity that made Olivia assume that these were their old navy buddies. Ella climbed up onto Olivia's lap and hugged her before making herself comfortable on her lap. Olivia wrapped her arms around her little waist and kissed the back of her head.
Soon after everyone became silent as the clip clop of horses hooves could be heard. A horse drawn carriage with a coffin on slowly approached. When they were at the closest point to the burial site the horse drawn cart stopped. Olivia felt Fitz move from behind her and she saw him and three of the navy men walk towards the carriage. A few other younger looking naval officers joined them (eight in total) and together they pulled the coffin off the cart and walked towards the gathering. They placed him down above the hole and Fitz and the other three returned to the crowd, as the others moved a little further away.
When everyone was silent the minister began. He welcomed everyone and they said a prayer. Then he asked if anyone wanted to say a few words. He saw Lilly look at Olivia who had her face buried in Ella's hair to hide the fact that she was crying, she hated people seeing her cry, especially such a large group. Fitz couldn't recall whether or not Olivia had mentioned anything about a eulogy and he realised that she was probably too consumed by everything else that she hadn't prepared a speech. Fitz waited a few more moments before he moved out of the crowd again to stand next to Jake's portrait.
"They say character is determined by our behavior not in the good times, but in the rough times, and there is no denying that Capt. Ballard proved his bravery, his loyalty, and his compassion again and again. I was fortunate enough to be privy to these traits as his Naval commander in combat. He was always the last out, making sure everyone else was ok, he would give his food to women or children that had none, but was always there for a good laugh when you needed one too. When he lost his wife he took an administrative job so that he could be present for his daughter Lilly, an admirable decision in my books. And if we needed further proof, he ultimately gave his life for that of a stranger, a child, an act worthy of a Medal of Honour."
Fitz pulled out a box from his pocket and opened it to reveal the medal of honour. He walked over to Lilly and presented it to her before returning to where he stood.
"The hole that Jake leaves behind in so many hearts…" He looked at Olivia and Lilly "Is by no means small. Nor should be the pride they feel. Our country lost a great soldier, but this world lost a great soul, one capable of deep and true love. He will be missed by many, but I hope he is remembered by many more." Fitz finished before turning to the coffin and saluting. The other men in naval blues in the audience saluted (and those sitting stood to do so).
The minister lead them in another prayer before people were offered to say their personal goodbyes. Olivia couldn't move. She wanted to, she wanted to go say her final goodbyes, but she couldn't move.
Fitz looked down and saw that she hadn't moved to get up and thought it might just be because Ella was on her lap, but Ella quickly hopped up and went to Teddy. She still didn't stand up. He walked around so he was standing in front of her. As he came into her view she looked up at him. He held out a hand for her and she took it. She stood up slowly and together they walked over to the coffin. She held his hand and placed one on Jake's coffin. She slowly leant forward and whispered to the coffin.
"I'm sorry Jake. I'm so sorry, but I promise I will take care of her." She said before quickly kissing the flag covered coffin. As she straightened up she leaned on Fitz and he wrapped an arm around her and helped her back to her chair.
About 5 minutes later when everyone who wanted to had said their goodbyes and were relatively quiet the officers approached the casket and began folding the flag. The naval representative approached Lilly and knelt before her and presented her with the folded flag. Then there was a 3 volley salute, and Taps played as Jake decended. Fitz and the navy personel saluted for the entirety of the descent.
The minister finished with another prayer and the official military personnelle began to depart. A soft sound of waves began to fill the air and nobody really knew what it was for a few seconds, until Fitz and the remaining navy men(and Jake's comrades) began walking towards the grave. Then a beat started and they all began softly singing "sitting on the dock of the bay". They were clicking, patting their legs, and humming in tune. It sounded incredible.
The remainder of the party was standing in awe at the spectacle. At some point Ella walked up to Olivia and she picked her up putting her on her hip. She leaned her head against Ella's as they continued to watch.
As the song came to a close broad smiles spread across all the mens faces. Fitz turned to look at them as whistling could be heard on the speaker. "This was Jake's part." He said and they all smiled as the song died out.
Shortly after James walked up to Olivia. "Ella, give Aunty Liv a break Ok, it is a hard day today." He said putting his hands on his hips.
"James, it is ok, having her close by makes things a little better." Olivia said kissing Ella's cheek, who in return wrapped her arms around Olivia's neck. Olivia squeezed her tight in return and closed her eyes, letting her little boy's presence comfort her. When Ella pulled away Olivia opened her eyes.
"Don't worry Aunty Liv, Jakey is in heaven with Sarah now and he looks really happy." She said pointing to his portrait.
"How do you know about Sarah?" Olivia asked.
"One day when I was at your house and I asked if you were Lilly's mum. He said no, that Lilly's mums name was Sarah and that she was in heaven now." And Olivia had to cuddle her again as she let a few tears from her eyes fall again. That was when she felt a tug on her leg. She looked down to see Teddy. Olivia took a seat and pulled Teddy onto her lap next to Ella.
"Are you ok?" Teddy asked.
"I'm very sad, but I will be ok." She said honestly, another tear falling. Teddy reached up and wiped it away.
"Please don't cry Livvie. I don't like it when you cry." He said.
"Me either." Added Ella.
"Neither do I." Fitz said as he sat down next to her. He put a hand on her shoulder. She looked at him and smiled at him broadly, trying to show all of her gratitude in one smile.
"Now that's better." He said rubbing her cheek and kissing her quickly.
"Hey Daddy." Teddy said jumping onto his dad.
"Hey Teds. I missed you so much." He said hugging him tightly.
"I missed you too." He said back.
"So shall we head back?" Franklin asked to everyone who was remaining. Everyone nodded or vocalized agreement and so they walked back to the cars. Jerry, May and Karen and Andre went with Franklin and Lilly because Teddy and Ella had asked Fitz and Olivia if they could go with them, but they didn't want them to be allover Franklin and Lilly, so they went with everyone else.
They all headed back to the hotel and Fitz had arranged a small wake for their group aswell as their comrades. They all had some food and some alcohol and had a pleasant day. An hour or so in Fitz and his navy buddies were laughing hysterically and drawing everyone's attention. Fitz spoke to clarify.
"When we loose someone, we try to share a memory about the person, funny, sad, whatever, it helps." He said. Lilly stood up and walked over to the group and listened in to the conversation. She was laughing soon after. Eventually the whole party had gathered and were each telling stories about Jake. Everyone was in stitches. They told the story behind the song. In their spare time they used to sit on the back of the aircraft carrier and sing that song.
"Anyone else got any stories?" Fitz asked. "Lilly?" He suggested, knowing it would probably do her the most good.
"Umm, there are so many. Like one time, after mum died, I remember he tried to help me with my hair for school photos cause I was upset I didn't have mum to do it for me. He put two lop sided pigtails in my hair, but I didn't have the heart to take them out because I knew he would see the photo. Needless to say that photo is stashed somewhere very secret."
"What about the time we went to South Africa and Jake accidently told some guy he was sexy. The guy was about to punch him until Liv stepped in and told him what he meant to say. I have never seen Jake that scared before." They all laughed.
Jerry piped in with a story about one of Liv's birthdays, Mellie spoke about he and his wife and how happy they were. Ella asked James to say that Jake had given her an iPad for her birthday and that it was the best present, which was just adorable.
The whole time Olivia had been racking her brain trying to think of an appropriate/happy/funny story but none of them seemed perfect. The first time he had said he loved her, the time he almost burnt his house down because they got a little too carried away in the middle of cooking, when Ella would stay over and he would give her horsey rides, or run around with her on his shoulders, when Franklin and Lilly had set them up, the time in Mexico he got food poisoning, or their last conversation.
"Liv?" Lilly asked. She smiled.
"There are so many good memories, it is hard to pick just one." She thought of one quickly.
"Probably my fondest memory with Jake is when we drove up to take the two of you to college, we were playing eye spy, and listening to music and Jake started busting out. What song was it?" She asked Lilly and Franklin.
"Baby got back!" they said in rhythm and in sync with one another with big smiles.
XXXX
They headed off a couple of hours later, all to the airport, but all on different planes. Only James, Ella, Cyrus, Andre and Karen were going back on AF1. Andrew, Mellie and Teddy were flying back to California, Franklin, May and Jerry were headed back to New York and Lilly back to Pennsylvania.
When AF1 took off Olivia was next to Fitz, holding his hand. She looked at him.
"Thank you for today. You did…It was perfect." She said and he shrugged his shoulders.
"He deserved it." He said before kissing her head. "but maybe you can think of someway to repay me?" He asked seductively.
"Wait till that seatbelt light goes off, I might just have my way with you good sir." She said.
"On this plane those lights are just precautionary." He said honestly.
"In that case." Said Olivia unbuckling her seatbelt, and his before standing up and pulling him down to the nose of the plane. Fitz was so shocked by her actions that he had just followed but when they walked into the room with the bed he had to halt things.
"Liv. You said you feel guilty." He said as she started unbuttoning his shirt.
"Hmmmm." She said as she continued.
"Liv." He said grabbing her hands. "talk to me."
"Yes, I felt guilty yesterday, but I think the funeral has helped, and talking and thinking about him. And I really do want to thank you." She said moving back to his buttons once his grasp loosened.
"You ready to join the mile high club then?" he asked ripping his shirt of as she reached the last button. She licked her lips
"Who says I'm not already?" She asked with a smirk.
"Because commercial plane toilets are way too small." He said as he picked her up and gently lay her down on the bed and hovered over her. They began kissing passionately.
So I am just waiting for Fitz or Olivia to pick up the phone to call the other. Also, how did she not see the similarities of Jake's meeting with Vanessa when she told him, that was my first though, and surely Jake is not stupid enough to play the same card on Vanessa as he did on Liv. Maybe he was giving her a sign. Glad Liv addressed her kidnapping, but she needs to pull herself together.
PLEASE REVIEW :D