One Month Later
Mellie barely speaks to me and she spends most of her time holed up in the residence. We have not made any headway in our relationship. She still looks at me skeptically. I have not seen Olivia in months and I am committed to saving my marriage. I walk into the residence and Mellie is curled up on the bed reading. She keeps her back to me and doesn't acknowledge my presence. She has accepted us sleeping in the same room, I think she was just tired of fighting me, but she won't let me touch her and she doesn't talk to me.
"How long is this going to go on?" I stand before her she does not look up from her book and does not answer me. I stand quietly for a few seconds waiting. "Mellie I'm speaking to you." Mellie takes a deep breath before looking up at me blue eyes blazing.
"I'm here Fitzgerald albeit against my will." She doesn't say anything else as she looks back down at her book.
"We should go to counseling. We have a lot to work on and I don't think we can do it alone."
She takes a deep breath before rolling into a sitting position. Mellie swings her legs around and onto the floor before standing. I look at her curiously. She steps around me and heads toward the bedroom door.
"Where are you going?"
"Any place where you aren't." She states without ever turning to look at me. Mellie walks out of the room and I'm left feeling stupid and probably looking equally as stupid.
I can't believe his nerve to show up and think I need to talk to him. I don't owe him anything he should be thankful I haven't made a big stink about the fact that he basically kidnapped me and is holding me against my will. I can't go anywhere outside the White House without him having a full report of where I'm going, who I will be seeing and when I'll be back. I feel like a prisoner.
No matter how much he tries to make me stay, I'm not staying. As soon as I can figure a way out I will be gone. Of course there are extenuating circumstances that I had not counted on, but as usual I can figure out my way around those things.
I decide to head down to my office. It's late and there won't be many people around. I am acutely aware that I have agents trailing my every move. I'm rounding the corner to my office when I nearly run smack into Andrew.
"Mellie so sorry?" He starts to walk away but I grab his hand.
"Don't go so fast." I notice out the corner of my eye one of my agents staring at me intently.
"I really should be going Mellie."
"We can still be friends Andrew. I think we both could use a friend in this situation."
"We are friends that won't change." He looks down at his watch, I know at this time of night he doesn't really need to be anywhere pressing.
"OK well I'll see you around." He nods before walking away quickly. Fitzgerald really does take everything from me. Andrew and I were friendly before our affair and now that has been taken away because of him. I continue to my office, I ask the agents to remain outside. I don't need them standing over me watching me read.
I find that I am reading the same sentences over and over. The exhaustion falls on me like a ton of bricks. I decide to lay my head back and rest my eyes.
I look at the clock and notice it's well past midnight. Mellie has not come back to bed and I begin to worry. I throw on my robe and go in search for her. When I reach her office I see her agents posted outside her door.
"Is she in there?"
"Yes sir." I go to move past the agent, but he stops me. "Sir can I speak with you?" I nod yes. "Mrs. Grant was…." He hesitates.
"She was what?"
"She was being very friendly with Vice President Nichols." I feel the fury rise within my body.
"Thank you." I move past him and enter her office. I stop short when I see Mellie in her office chair sleeping. "Wake up!" I yell. She jumps up.
"What…what's going on?"
"What did you say to Andrew?" I know she is disoriented but I need answers and I need them now.
"I have no clue what you are talking about Fitzgerald." She stands and tries to walk past me, but I block her movement.
"Answer my question." I sigh knowing that I won't be able to leave if I don't answer him.
"I just spoke to him it's not a big deal."
"What did you speak to him about?"
"God damn it Fitz I said hi to the man is that against the fucking law?"
"You're getting very defensive."
"Because I'm tired of your shit. You are the one that's fucked anything with a skirt on. I was only with Andrew after dealing with your infidelity for so many years. I had the opportunity years ago to cheat with and I didn't. I decided to be a loyal and faithful wife because my marriage vows meant something to me. I can't say the same for you."
"Ok fine let's not argue about this."
"We aren't arguing I'm just stating some facts." I stand and walk around him and out of my office.
Three Weeks Later
I may be delusional, but I think Mellie is starting to come around. She seems to not be as hostile toward me as she was before. I've relaxed some of the surveillance I have on her, I don't think she is going to try to leave again.
I'm going over my overnight briefs when I hear a phone ringing. I reach into my desk and pull out a phone that I haven't heard ring in a long time.
"Hello." Olivia is on the other line and she asks me to come to her place. I hesitate, but I can hear in her voice that she needs me. "I'll be there."
"Where have you been?" She's sitting in her favorite chair staring into the fire. She does not look my way when she speaks.
"I had some business to attend to." She scoffs and shakes her head.
"Just when I was starting to stupidly believe that you would be faithful to me you go and pull this shit."
"What are you talking about?" She jumps up and stands in my face.
"You were with her!" Her teeth is clinched and there is fire in her eyes. I know that she is angry, but I feel a small amount of joy that she is angry. It means that she still cares about me.
"Mellie it's not what you think." She walks away from me, shaking her head.
"I can't believe I was starting to think you were sincere." My heart melts and I walk closer to her.
"You should believe me Mels I haven't done anything."
"Were you with her tonight?" I hear the soft sigh and I know that he was with her. I had began to feel that Fitz was being sincere about trying to make our marriage work and with the news that I received it was imperative that we did try. I finally decided I needed to come clean. I went looking for him to tell him and found that he was nowhere to be found. His schedule was clear for the evening and I couldn't get a straight answer from anyone and that was when I knew.
"Yes I was, but not for what you are thinking." I turn around a look at him.
"What am I thinking?"
"That I was having sex with Olivia. That's not what I was doing, she needed my help."
"With?"
"I can't Mels I'm sorry but I can't tell you." I laugh but I'm not joyful.
"Of course you can't. Same ol Fitz and same ol gullible Mellie. Well no more I'm done you can keep me hostage in this White House for the remainder of your term, but we will never be together and I will be divorcing you."
"There are things that I do as the president that I cannot share with you, you know that. Why is this any different?"
"What could you have possibly needed to do for Olivia Pope your mistress…"
"Former mistress." He cuts me off.
"Olivia Pope your mistress that you cannot tell your wife about and was in the formal capacity as President of the United States?" He just stands and stares at me with a blank expression on his face.
"Have you stopped playing stupid games and unlocked the other bedrooms, because I'm not sleeping in here with you."
"You're not going to hear me out?"
"For what? So you can lie to me again?"
"I'm not lying! I didn't go there as her lover I went as her friend, a friend who is very powerful and could help her." I can't stand the sight of him any longer. Just standing here with him is making me sick to my stomach. I turn and walk out of the bedroom, he's hot on my heels.
"Why do you run? Every time things get rough you run." She whips around to face me.
"Are you describing yourself right now? I don't run I dig in the trenches and I fight. I hold up the walls of our home with one hand and you with the other all the while juggling kids and career. What do you do Fitz when it gets rough?" I know it's a rhetorical question, but I feel compelled to respond.
"I'm not running. I'm right here. I'm fighting for our marriage, our family. You want to run, you want to give in."
"Because I'm tired. Can't you see that or are you so selfish and self centered that all you see is what you want? And I'm not entirely convinced that I am what you want. You just want to prove a point."
"I am, that I love you and I want our marriage to work, that I believe our marriage can work."
"It's over just accept it and move on." She goes to walk way but I reach out and grab her arm pulling her back to me.
"If we were over you wouldn't be as upset with me as you are right now. Apathy is the opposite of love not hate. You still have feelings enough for me to be angry, there is still hope for us and I'm not giving up." She snatches her arm away and looks at me one last time before walking away. I don't go after her I know she needs some time to think and I will allow her that, but this thing between Mellie and I isn't over ,it will never be over as long as we are both still breathing.