How great was "752"?! I cried like a baby for most of the episode. On another note, once again I am ahead of you, Shonda! I had angry Mellie a week ahead of schedule. ;) I hope you enjoy this chapter. Reviews are very much appreciated.

"Hi."

"I asked Mellie for a divorce."

Olivia raised her eyes to the ceiling and sighed into the phone. She'd been in bed for a little over 20 minutes now, reading over files and waiting for Fitz to call her. This was not the kind of greeting Olivia had expected when she'd picked up the phone after the first ring.

"Fitz, you know that's not a good idea. At least not right now, while you are President with a good chance of winning the next election."

"I know.", he agreed. "That's why I didn't ask for an immediate divorce."

"What does that mean?"

"If she signs the papers, Mellie would agree to a divorce at the end of my first term."

"What about a second term, Fitz? What about your political future?"

Contrary to what he had expected, Olivia did not sound mad or panicked at his plan. She was calm, and there was no accusation in her questions. For the first time since he had talked to Mellie, Fitz could feel himself relax. If he was completely honest with himself, the thought of how his wife would react had scared him a lot less than Olivia's possible reaction to the news.

"I would like to run for a second term, very much so, but only if the American people can accept a divorced Commander in Chief.", Fitz explained. "If that isn't something people can come to terms with, then I will accept that and move on."

"Why now?", Olivia asked, and he thought she sounded a little hesitant.

"Do you even have to ask, Liv?"

"I thought you might say that. Fitz, are you sure this is the right thing to do? What if Mellie doesn't sign the papers and things get ugly? I don't know if you can trust her to keep a divorce as clean as you would like it to be."

"You're right about that – we won't know what she will do until she actually does it, but I can't let that stop me, Livy. I want us to have that future we promised each other, but that will never be possible as long as I am married. Because as much as I want to convince myself otherwise, you are a secret and that needs to stop. I need it to stop, Liv."

His honesty shook Olivia to the core, and she turned onto her side, snuggling into the pillow and wishing Fitz could be there right now. A single tear slipped down her cheek and left a tiny, wet spot on the white pillow case. She pressed her phone closer to her ear, wishing to absorb his every breath, sigh, and word.

"Okay.", she whispered. "Do it."

"Are you sure?", Fitz breathed. "Because, Livy, as much as I want to divorce her, I won't do it if you're not ready to deal with the aftermath. It will affect you just as much as me."

Olivia realized that he was right. Even though it was his divorce and his career on the line, once they started the proceedings, there would be no turning back. For as long as they had been in love, Fitz' marriage had always hung over their heads like a dark cloud, but it had also been Olivia's way out when she felt overwhelmed or scared. A divorce would take that twisted version of a security blanket away from her. Olivia realized that she wanted that. She was ready for it.

"I know. It's going to be a long and very difficult road, but it always has been for us. I think… I think it will be worth it in the end."

"Yeah?", he asked and Olivia could sense his smile through the phone. "I think so too."

There was a moment of comfortable silence between them, before Olivia realized that they were not the only people that would be directly affected by a divorce.

"What about your kids, Fitz? This is going to be so difficult for them."

"I know, but I really think they will be okay. Teddy barely knows his mother as it is. She rarely spends quality time with him and he's literally in the next room. He doesn't know us together. As for Gerry and Karen, I think they understand that their parents' marriage isn't a happy one. Maybe, given time, they will actually realize that spending time with their mother or father will be so much less tense if Mellie and I aren't pretending to be happy."

"Once things actually happen, I want to talk to them if that's okay with you."

"Of course, Livy.", he agreed quickly. "They adore you, and they will be the first ones to know how important you are to me."

"I didn't mean it like that.", Olivia corrected him, sounding almost nervous now.

"I do, though. I mean it, Liv. One of the most difficult things about keeping this relationship a secret is having to keep it away from my kids. I want them to know you as more than just 'Olivia that worked for dad'."

"It sounds like you have been thinking about this for a while.", Olivia smiled, wishing for the hundredth time that he were in bed with her right now.

"Since the moment you told me I'd be lucky to have you."

She didn't reply, because his words simply didn't need a response. Olivia knew they were both allowing themselves a moment to picture the future, so she didn't stop her mind from drifting to a place where her love for the President was no longer a secret. A smile found its way to her lips when she imagined them years from now – happy, content, together. She wondered where they would live, and how often Fitz' children would come to stay with them. Picturing Gerry and Karen with them was easy, because she knew them and had such a soft spot for the two. Teddy, however, she had never even met and Olivia realized that she really wanted to make him a part of her life with Fitz as well.

"I want to meet Teddy.", she whispered, interrupting Fitz' own silent musings.

"Really?", Fitz asked, sounding so surprised and happy that it warmed Olivia's heart.

"Really.", she replied. "He must be so big by now."

"He's amazing."

There was so much love in the way Fitz talked about his son, that Olivia wanted to meet the little guy even more. They had never really talked about the youngest Grant, because of the way he had been conceived. Teddy was not an accident, but not a child conceived out of love either. He was the result of a calculated political move, and it pained Olivia that she'd had any part in that. However, today the little boy was the reason Fitz smiled a little every day, and Olivia knew that Fitz would not trade him for the world.

"What do you think is going to happen now, Fitz? Do you really believe Mellie will actually sign that agreement?"

"I honestly don't know at this point. The ball is in her court now, and knowing Mellie she will spend a lot of time thinking about this and considering her options.", Fitz explained. "I will give her some time, a few days maybe, but if she doesn't sign it I'm going to have to talk to her again."

"And if she never agrees?", Olivia asked, because it was something they'd have to be prepared for.

"Then there are things I could do."

"Fitz.", she warned. "Don't do anything you will regret later."

"Don't worry about that, Liv. I want this to be a clean, no-nonsense divorce, but Mellie isn't as squeaky clean as she seems and if it comes to it, I will use her shortcomings against her."

Olivia didn't argue, because she knew that at some point down the road, they might run out of options. She was not surprised to hear that Mellie had a few skeletons in the closet herself, but she hoped that Fitz wouldn't have to dig them up and use them against his wife. Olivia certainly wasn't against utilizing this method – she'd made a living out of it – but she wanted this divorce to be as simple as possible for the sake of Fitz and his children.

"You know what I am really worried about?"

"What is it, Fitz?", Olivia asked nervously.

"Cyrus. He scares me more than Mellie. When it comes down to it, you'll be in charge of handling him."

Olivia's genuine laugh made his heart feel lighter, and he relaxed back into his chair, smiling. He heard the sound of fabric shifting and pictured her getting more comfortable under the cover. Not for the first time, Fitz wished to be there with her, not just for the night, but for good. He had to remind himself that they'd have to take things one day at a time, because that was all they could ever expect from one another. An idea formed in his mind and he smiled into the phone.

"I'm planning on spending my afternoon with Teddy tomorrow. Do you want to join us?"

Surprised, Olivia giggled nervously: "You don't think it's too soon?"

"You said you'd like to meet him, so…"

"I know, I know. And I definitely do. Don't ever doubt that, Fitz. I just don't want to cause any more trouble between you and Mellie. She is his mother, after all."

"You wouldn't know sometimes.", Fitz mumbled. "Look, it's up to you, but Teddy will be in the Oval with me tomorrow afternoon, and if you want, I would love for you to come meet him. Mellie won't be anywhere near, she never is because that's my time with my son, so you don't have to worry about her."

Allowing herself a moment to think about it, Olivia considered her options. The moment she'd enter the White House she would make herself vulnerable. There was a chance she's run into Mellie, or Cyrus, or someone that knew about her accident and felt the need to engage her in a conversation. But that was not what she ultimately based her decision on.

"Okay. I'll be there."

His sigh of relief was audible even through the phone, and it made Olivia happy to know that he truly wanted her to meet his little boy.

"I love you."

"I love you, too, Fitz.", she smiled. "I'll see you both tomorrow then?"

"I can't wait."