Chapter 9: Candy
Summary: Addison picks Olivia up early due to some emergency at the school, leaving Olivia to wait around the office impatiently to go trick-or-treating.
The following week brought them closer to Halloween. Olivia's complaints about school picked up more, but Addison chose to ignore them. She figured Olivia was just testing to see how far she could go with it.
"Mommy! Am I going to Daddy's this weekend?!" Olivia asked excitedly, circling her mom's office.
"Liv, can you sit still? You're making me dizzy," Addison asked, putting her pen down.
It was a Thursday afternoon, two days before Halloween. Olivia's school got out at noon because of some emergency, so Addison brought her back to the office. Addison hoped she'd be able to stay calm for the afternoon. Worst of all, Amelia was at the hospital, so she couldn't pawn Olivia off on her to get some paperwork done.
Thankfully, the practice loved Olivia and usually agreed to have holidays a little earlier or a little later to accommodate her traveling. So, tonight, they'd be trick or treating between the two floors. The other kids loved it, too, because it usually meant they'd get to celebrate twice, which made it a lot easier for the parents.
"Mommy!" Olivia huffed.
"Can I change into my Ariel costume now?! So we can go trick or treating?!" Olivia asked, practically jumping.
"It's not time yet," Addison replied, giving up on her work temporarily.
"When will it be time?" Olivia whined, leaning against the desk, pouting.
"Not until it's usually time for us to go home," Addison explained again for at least the tenth time that day.
"Mommy? Can I walk around the office? I'll be good, I promise," Olivia asked.
"What are the rules?" Addison asked sternly. Maybe if Olivia was gone for a few minutes, she could get something done. Then she could take her outside for a break.
"Stay on this floor, don't go in the elevator or the stairs, don't go into people's offices if I'm not invited, and don't bother other people while they're working," Olivia recited the rules, word for word.
Mommy had drilled it into her head that she had to follow those rules. Especially after that one time when she went upstairs just to see where the stairs would go. Mommy panicked a lot when that happened and made her repeat the rules over and over and over after that.
Olivia danced as she wandered around, keeping her promise to stay on the floor. On her third loop around, she accidentally bumped into her favorite nurse on the entire planet, Stephanie Kemp. She originally was working full-time at St. Ambrose, but after much convincing, they got her to work at both the practice and the hospital. Olivia apologized right away, hoping she wouldn't get in trouble. She was just so bored and wanted to do something exciting that dancing around was all she could do that wouldn't bore her as much.
"No worries, Liv. Whatcha doing?" Stephanie asked.
"Walking. I'm bored but Mommy says she has to work," Oliva sighed.
"Well, I was about to take an ice cream break. Wanna come with?" Stephanie asked teasingly.
She wasn't really planning on taking a break yet, let alone getting ice cream, but she felt like the girl needed a break. So why not offer her one? Plus, ice cream sounded like a good idea.
Olivia's face lit up at the offer. Finally, something exciting!
"Yeah!" Olivia exclaimed.
"Let's go ask your mom then," Stephanie suggested with a smile, offering her hand so they could go talk to Addison.
She took her hand, skipping happily alongside her favorite nurse.
Addison was grateful for the offer presented by everyone's favorite nurse. She didn't even care that Olivia would be coming back with a sugar high. Anything to get at least 30 minutes of paperwork done.
"Here, let me pay for it," Addison told the nurse, reaching for her purse and handing over some cash.
"Oh, you don't have to do that, Dr. Montgomery," Stephanie tried to refuse.
"You offered to take my kid out during work hours. Let me pay you," Addison insisted. Stephanie caved, mostly because she wouldn't take her money, and off the two went.
About a half hour later, Amelia knocked on her door, poking her head in.
"I heard there was a little redheaded monster running around here," Amelia joked, looking around for her niece.
"She was, but I sold her," Addison commented, not looking up, knowing her sister's games by now.
"Cool," Amelia replied, making herself at home on the couch.
"So, where is she?" Amelia asked, wondering where, in fact, her favorite niece was.
"She went out for ice cream with Stephanie, so she'll be back soon on a sugar high. She probably won't nap because she's so excited about trick-or-treating tonight. Maybe I should've sent her to your brother early," Addison chuckled.
"Yeah, but then her favorite doctor wouldn't get to see her in her Halloween costume," Amelia teased, referring to Jake.
"Yeah, yeah," Addison threw a ball of paper at her head.
"Hey!" Amelia exclaimed.
"That's offensive!" Amelia added.
"Who exactly am I offending?" Addison asked, laughing.
"Me, myself and I. Thank you very much," Amelia replied, pretending to be offended.
"So, did you come here just to bother me?" Addison asked, changing the subject.
"No, I came looking for the monster to keep her entertained. You are somehow always bogged down with more paperwork than literally anyone else I know. And I have three jobs," Amelia remarked.
"You only have one specialty. I have two. Plus a few fellowships under my belt," Addison pointed out.
"Smarty pants," Amelia stuck her tongue out.
"Real mature," Addison commented. Amelia smiled mischievously.
"I also own this place now, so that also means literal piles of paperwork," Addison added. Amelia shrugged. She had a point.
"And that's why you make the big bucks," Amelia joked, making Addison laugh before she got back to work.
"Lia!" Olivia squealed, running in, ready to attack her aunt. She wasn't at home when she got up for school like she normally was.
Amelia grabbed her before she could launch herself at her. She knew her niece well by now.
"No way, José. Mommy told me you have to read for homework, so let's grab your book and we can read together," Amelia suggested. Olivia pouted.
"Come on," Amelia grabbed the girl's bag and pulled the school library book. It was hard to get her to read.
"But it's French," Olivia whined.
"I'm learning French with you, remember?" Amelia reminded her.
"I don't wanna," Olivia protested.
"Mommy and Daddy speak French," Amelia tried.
"I don't care," Olivia pouted, moving to wiggle away.
"You need to do it even if you don't like it," Amelia said sternly.
Olivia looked over at Mommy for help, somehow thinking she'd get her out of this.
"Say thank you to Auntie for offering to help with your homework, so you don't have to do it later," Addison replied, not looking up. She'd have to thank Amelia later somehow for helping out so much.
"Thank you, Auntie," Liv said begrudgingly. Amelia smiled and held out her hand for her to follow her into her own office.
She took her aunt's hand under protest and the two headed out, leaving Addison in silence.
After six pages into the book, Olivia's speech became slurred as she started getting sleepy. Amelia smiled, slipping the book from her niece's hands, and moving to lay her down. She grabbed the blanket and covered the girl up, combing through her hair with her fingers as she fell into a deep sleep, not even bothering to protest her nap.
Amelia made sure the girl was fast asleep before tip-toeing out to update Addison. After knocking on her door, she opened Addison's office door and found Jake with her, standing beside her as she sat behind her desk.
"So much for quiet time to get your paperwork done," Amelia quipped, seeing Jake.
Addison rolled her eyes.
"It's nice to see you, too, Amelia," Jake chuckled.
"I thought you were reading with Liv. Did you give up because you can't understand first-grade French?" Addison asked jokingly.
"Very funny. We got about six pages in and she started falling asleep. She's sleeping in my office, so I just thought you'd like the update," Amelia said before she looked between the two lovers for a moment.
"Were you guys getting all hot and heavy before I knocked?" Amelia asked excitedly.
"No!" Addison exclaimed.
"We were just discussing a case," Addison said, hoping it sounded believable, despite knowing Jake was fighting a smile.
"Was it the case of let's make out while we're alone?" Amelia asked playfully. She saw Jake look down, trying to hide his smile. And she knew Addison knew she wasn't going to just let it go. Addison rolled her eyes and looked over at Jake, embarrassed.
"Tell me why I kept you in the divorce again?" Addison asked her former sister-in-law.
"Because you love me," Amelia practically sang out her reply.
"Even if you won't admit it," Amelia added playfully.
"I do love you, Amelia. Even when you scare off my boyfriends," Addison chuckled.
"Hey, I don't scare that easily," Jake said, smiling back at Addison.
"And what do you mean by boyfriends? Because, uh, Mark and Derek are both still around. Unfortunately," Amelia commented.
"Derek's Olivia's dad and he and Mark come as a package deal," Addison said. Amelia had to admit she had a point there.
"You're in an awfully good mood today," Addison noted after a minute.
"Does that mean you've made a decision?" Addison asked lightly, knowing she was treading into dangerous waters.
"You don't exactly have much time left to decide," Addison added.
"I should get back to Liv," Amelia said, walking away quickly to avoid a conversation.
"Well, that went well," Addison commented, staring at the door that Amelia had just walked through.
"She'll come around," Jake said softly, rubbing circles on Addison's back.
"I'm worried about her," Addison replied sadly, looking up at him.
"She'll be okay," Jake reassured her.
"How do you know that? She only has two weeks before…," Addison stopped mid-sentence, knowing he'd understand.
"I know, but she'll be okay," Jake said calmly.
"She's running out of time," Addison said sternly, getting out of her seat to pace slightly.
"I know. But she's got you. So, I know she'll be okay," Jake reassured her.
Addison stopped in her tracks and turned, giving him a face. It was cheesy. So cheesy. And yet, she was falling for it. She laughed slightly, embarrassed that this sappy line was working on her. Jake's smile widened when he saw her crack a smile.
"I hate you," Addison joked. What she really hated was how he could say something so sweet yet so cheesy and make it work. Jake chuckled and moved over to wrap his arms around her.
"She's going to be okay," Jake said again, with her closer to him now.
"That's not gonna stop me from being crazy," Addison said half-jokingly.
"I like your crazy," Jake said, pulling her in closer. She giggled before leaning in to kiss him.
Eventually, Addison went back to finishing up her paperwork, with Jake serving as a distraction and an overall sounding board.
Meanwhile, Amelia got started on some charting while Olivia napped in her office.
Just over an hour later, Olivia rubbed her eyes sleepily, waking up slowly while Amelia worked.
"Mommy?" Olivia asked softly, still waking up from her slumber.
"Your mom's in her office, Livvy," Amelia said gently, getting up from her seat to join her on the couch.
"Why didn't you wake me to go trick-or-treating?" Olivia asked, sitting up.
"Because you had to take your nap first. Plus, it's not even dark yet, so don't worry. The other kids haven't even changed into their costumes yet," Amelia reassured the little girl.
"Well, when can we go trick-or-treating, then?" Olivia asked.
"What about this? Let's go home and grab something to eat for dinner, grab your costume, and then we can go trick-or-treating," Amelia suggested.
"But Mommy already brought my costume!" Olivia exclaimed.
"Oh, right. Well, we still need to eat dinner first. So do the other kids. What do you think we should get for dinner?" Amelia asked. Olivia thought about it, tilting her head up as she did.
"Do we have to go home to eat?" Olivia asked, still considering.
"Well, since your costume's here, I guess not," Amelia said. She thought about what food was currently in the fridge. There wasn't much other than a few freezer meals the housekeeper left for them.
"Can we go get burritos?" Olivia asked.
"I could go for a burrito," Amelia said, agreeing. Now that she said something, a burrito sounded like a great idea.
"Yay! What about Mommy?" Olivia asked.
"Why don't we go ask her?" Amelia suggested playfully.
Amelia got up from her seat and held out her hand for Olivia. Together, they walked over to Addison's office and Amelia opened the door. When it opened, they found Jake, Addison, and Angela talking.
"Angie!" Olivia exclaimed, running in.
"Hey, kid," Angela greeted, crouching down to hug her.
"What are you doing here?" Olivia asked, her eyes widening.
"I just got here. My friends dropped me off after studying at the library," Angela explained.
"Do you wanna get burritos for dinner, too?" Olivia asked, getting ahead of herself.
"Burritos?" Addison asked.
"I figured we'd feed your kid more than just ice cream before she goes to get yet another sugar high," Amelia commented. Addison chuckled.
"So, what do you think? You guys wanna go out for dinner?" Amelia asked.
"Only if we go to the truck on Pico. The one on Park sucks," Angela said. Jake glared at her.
"Ange," Jake scolded her for her language.
"Sorry, sorry. I mean, it's…not good. Is that better?" Angela asked sarcastically.
"I'm sorry about her. But she makes a point. The truck is much better," Jake commented.
"I guess you would know," Amelia muttered. Jake chuckled, unbothered. As did Angela.
"Amelia!" Addison scolded. Amelia brushed it off.
"We're gonna eat dinner in a truck?" Olivia asked, confused.
"No, we're gonna eat food from a truck," Addison clarified.
"Oh," Olivia said, still confused, but she trusted the other adults, so she wasn't worried.
"Should we get going?" Addison asked, looking at Jake and Angela. Angela looked at Jake as if silently asking for permission to go with them.
"Let's go," Jake agreed, smiling back at Angela.
The five headed to the food truck, chatting about their day. Or at least Olivia was. She always needed everyone to know what was going on. Including her complaints about school.
"Do you like school, Angela?" Addison asked, hoping that if Angela said yes, maybe Olivia would learn school was fun.
"It's fine," Angela shrugged.
"I like my school and I have some good friends, but it's school," Angela said nonchalantly.
"What kinds of classes are you taking?" Amelia wondered. She'd been looking into schools, wondering what kind of life her baby would have if she decided to keep it, and stumbled across some interesting schools.
"I think my favorite class is fitness. It's different from a normal gym class, so we do a bunch of different stuff instead of just sports. We're doing track, which I like. I like relay racing, too. But swimming's my favorite. My swim team made it to regionals," Angela explained proudly.
"Your dad didn't mention that," Addison noted.
"He said you were an excellent swimmer, but he didn't tell me that much," Addison added.
"Hey!" Jake responded playfully.
"Ange doesn't usually let me watch because she says I embarrass her, so I didn't think to tell you," Jake chuckled.
Angela rolled her eyes at her dad.
"If you guys want, you can come watch next time, but it's not that exciting," Angela informed them.
"Short course season just started, so you haven't missed much. The long course starts in April, but Dad won't let me do the long course, though. He said I do too much as it is," Angela rolled her eyes.
"In my defense, those swim moms are in a league of their own. I just don't want to put that kind of pressure on you," Jake said, feeling the need to explain to Addison.
"Well, who says I can't take it?" Angela quipped.
"I'm not saying you can't; I'm sure you can. You're 15, Ange. I want you to have a life, too," Jake replied. Angela sighed.
"I guess it's better than ending up like Ivy," Angela commented.
Jake made a face, signaling he agreed with her point. Ivy was an older girl on the varsity team who did long-course swimming, and she was intense to the point of being scary when it came to swimming. Her mom was just as scary. Maybe her dad had a point.
"I'd like to see you compete if you wouldn't mind," Addison said, trying to break the tension between the two. She felt like she hogged Jake enough, and she'd really like to get to know Angela better.
"Only if you keep Dad from yelling and cheering. It's not that kind of sport," Angela said with a smile.
"I will do my best," Addison laughed.
Angela giggled. She really liked Addison; she was good for her dad, and even though she got a little jealous hearing and seeing her dad put Olivia to bed sometimes, she had to admit it was cute. Secretly, Angela wanted them to become a family. Maybe one day, she supposed. She wouldn't mind a cool stepmom like Addison and Olivia as her sister.
A/N: Chapter title inspired by the song, Candy by Iggy Pop. Next chapter, Olivia gets to go trick-or-treating with the other kids at the office before Addison sends her off to Derek's. We hope you enjoyed this chapter and appreciate everyone reading along. Comments highly encouraged ?.
