Olivia had successfully dodged both Fitz and Cyrus for an entire month after her yelling match with Fitz at the diner. Both in school and out, she didn't speak to either of them. Liv turned in her assignments to Fitz's desk with a sticky note attached and left before he returned. She skipped her lunches with Cyrus and debate practice choosing to debate by herself using a pros and cons list she would make for each subject.

Fitz had tried many times to reach out to her and help her with anything she needed, as did Cyrus. Neither of them could reach her. She refused to answer the door when they came over, ignored their calls and texts, deleted the emails without reading them. Anything to avoid them at all costs.

"You ladies have a good night," Olivia told her customers one night. As they left, Fitz held the door open them wishing them a safe drive home. "Lauren, will you get that customer," she asked when she heard his voice. Olivia decided to hide out in the back of the restraunt for a few minutes gathering her thoughts. She didn't want to face him now. She'd been going strong about not telling him how she felt about him all month and now he was here causing her to crumble. She heard Lauren ask for his order and then silence.

"Sorry, Liv. He says he will only have you as the waitress."

"Did you tell him I'm not here?"

"He saw you. You have to think quicker than him. I'm out now, I'll stay if you want though."

"No, it's alright, you go home and put Tommy to bed. I'll be fine."

"Okay, call me if you need anything."

"Will do." She went out the seating area and went towards Fitz keeping plenty of distance between them. "Cheeseburger, fries, coke, apple pie. I'll get it going," she said and turned back to towards the kitchen.

"Thanks but I didn't really come to eat."

She took a deep breath in and held it as she turned back to face him. "I figured. I take it Cyrus is on his way here now then?"

"Cyrus doesn't know I'm here. He says you'll come around eventually but I think you've had plenty of time to wallow."

"Wallow? I'm wallowing? For what exactly?"

"In your own self-pity. It's time to get back up and join the rest of the world."

"Sorry, I didn't realize I was lying in bed, crying over every little detail in my life. I thought I was moving on and finishing what I needed to do. In my life, there is no time for self-pity or wallowing. I guess I didn't realize what wallowing was."

"You are, in your own way. You're cutting people out of your life when they only want to help you. You didn't just cut me and Cyrus out of your life, you did it to Harrison and Abby too. I talked to them. You haven't spent any time with them since school started. They don't even know that you were raped."

"I don't ever want to hear that word again. I've moved on. I did what I had to do to get on with my life so that wouldn't drag me down."

"You went to therapy then."

"Therapy doesn't work. I'm not built to sit there and talk about feelings like James and you. I'm made to handle the situation, come up with a solution and contain the issue. That's exactly what I did."

"How do you know if you aren't built for therapy if you haven't tried it?"

"I did try it. For two weeks I gave it a shot. Just to get yours and Cyrus's voices out of my damn head. It didn't do a damn thing to make it better. I've moved past the whole situation that happened and I'm back to being myself. I'm not afraid when someone puts their hand on my shoulder or when someone comes towards me. I'm back to me!"

"That's great, Liv. But you aren't really back to you. The you that I know would be talking to Cyrus. The Olivia I know would be having lunch with Cyrus every day in his office and showing up late to my class every other day. She would also be going to debate practice and not ignoring people. She'd be talking to her friends and coming to my class to be the smart ass I know she is. So, you may think that you are back to being yourself but you aren't really."

Olivia threw her pen down on the table. "That's what you want from me? To have lunch with Cyrus and show up late?"

"Yeah, is that a problem?"

"No, but there's another motive behind that. You want something more but you won't say what it is."

"I want you back to yourself. I want you to go back to the smart ass you are that pissed me off at the first debate we had against each other and I called you a fucking bitch. That's the Olivia Pope that I like. Whatever this Olivia has, is nothing compared to her."

"I haven't changed! I didn't leave to turn into someone else. I just got tired of you and Cyrus hovering. I'm not a kid on the first time bike ride or a new dog that has to be housebroken. I'm me. I'll go back to having lunch with Cyrus and go back to debate practice. I'll do it. I just don't need you to worry about me and ask if I'm doing okay and how I feel about shit. You shouldn't care that much to begin with."

"So you want me to stop caring? Because that isn't going to happen."

"Why not? I'm just your student. There isn't anything special about me."

"There is though. I don't know why but I feel the need to protect you just like Cyrus does."

"I don't need protection."