CW for mentions of miscarriage. It's only briefly touched on, but if that's too heavy for you please take care of yourself and skip this chapter!

November 2019

Saturday mornings are Olivia's favorite.

Sometimes they're spent sleeping in with Fitz, ignoring the world for a while to snuggle under the covers together. Others are spent enjoying a breakfast of syrupy pancakes lovingly cooked by Fitz and fresh fruit prepared by Olivia (because in his words, "it's the only thing you can't burn"), or drinking coffee on a long, leisurely hike with Buddy when the weather's nice. And then there are days like today – her most favorite kind of all – where they both wake up feeling a sleepy hum of arousal, they're drawn together in gentle kisses that quickly turn deep and hungry, until they're both naked, indulging in the most heated, toe-curling, lazy fuck.

Fitz is buried inside her, barely moving aside from the languid, grinding circles he's making with his hips, but it's so good that it's making Olivia's head spin. It's slow and slick, and nothing else exists for a while. He's not trying to make her come already, not intentionally, but something about being freshly roused from sleep makes her pliant and responsive, and she digs her nails into his back, letting out a shaky, gasping moan. Her muscles clench around him as she floods his cock with a new rush of wetness coating him, and his breath stutters and catches in his chest.

It's so easy, so perfect making love like this. They don't need to do anything but kiss and rock together, they're entirely in sync with each other and it feels fucking incredible. The unadulterated joy that this is their life now warms her inside-out – and it never gets old. There's nothing else she'd rather be doing, nowhere else she'd rather be than here, with him capturing her lips with lazy, drawn-out, tongue-fuelled kisses, stretching her out with the fullness of his cock as he rolls his hips against hers. Her lips part on a long, feverish moan when he hooks his arms under her knees, pushing her legs up onto her chest to press even deeper into her.

"Oh – right there," Olivia gasps hotly against his lips and gazes into his intense, blue eyes, "Baby, don't stop."

Their slow pace only intensifies everything. The angle of his hips is perfect to grind against her clit. She scratches her nails over his muscled back, knowing how crazy it drives him, and she's rewarded with a deep, rumbling growl of pleasure from his throat. There's a hazy look in his eye as his wet tongue slips out of his mouth to slide over hers, and they're barely even kissing anymore, just licking and breathing together, sharing the same air. It's so heated that she moans raggedly, the muscles of her pussy tightening and pulsing around his cock. His fingers wind in her hair as her nails drag down his spine and she grabs his ass roughly, squeezing him and pulling him against her because even skin-on-skin isn't close enough.

When Olivia starts to come, she clenches so tight around Fitz that he can't hold off any longer. They're loud as they finish together, moaning and panting through their release, crying out with overwhelming relief. He slumps on top of her after, burying his face in her neck and resting all of his weight on her, but she doesn't seem to mind from the contented sigh that leaves her lips. He's heavy and boneless, solid against her as the calming wave of post-coital bliss washes over them.

"G'morning." He grins against her neck, kissing the sensitive skin there.

"Love waking up like that with you." Her breath exhales in a soft laugh against the shell of his ear.

"Me too. Wish we could start every day like that."

"Mmm," She hums in agreement and then taps his ass under the covers as she asks him, "Can you pull out?"

"Shit, sorry Livvie." He murmurs as he eases his softening cock out of her.

"S'okay."

They're both quiet for a while, just enjoying the faint sounds of rain pattering against their bedroom windows, indulging in lingering caresses and the occasional kiss. And then, with much reluctance, Olivia gently nudges Fitz off of her, onto his back, and she slides out of bed, heading into the bathroom to get ready.

"You got room for two in the shower?" He calls after her when he hears the water turn on.

"No," She says with a tiny smile, poking her head out of the door, "You'll just make me late."

"Hey, it was worth a shot." He grins, lazily stretching out his arms behind his head as he watches her disappear back into the bathroom.

Heaving a tired sigh, he reaches for his phone, idly checking his emails. When he hears the flush of the toilet and then the tap running, he asks loud enough for her to hear, "What time are you meeting Karen?"

"I'm leaving in an hour," She answers him, reappearing in the doorway and drying her hands with a towel, now wearing a shower cap, "Hey, what are you cooking tonight?"

"I was thinking of doing that creamy mushroom pasta with the silken tofu blended into it, maybe?" Fitz muses, eyes drifting to the ceiling in thought for a second, then he catches the amused smirk on Olivia's face, "What?"

"You're cute with your vegan recipes, mister," She says, biting her plush bottom lip.

"If you keep standing there all naked, calling me cute, I can't be held responsible for what'll happen..."

"Is that a threat?" Her eyes widen and she gasps, clutching a hand to her chest.

"Get your ass in the goddamn shower and stop flirting with me, or I'll make sure you find out," His grin is teasing, but she can see he means every word, "And then you'll have to explain to Karen why you're late."

It's so, so tempting, but she giggles at him, shaking her head, and closes the door behind herself.

When Olivia arrives at the café for brunch, Karen is already waiting for her outside, sipping on an iced coffee, flanked by four secret service agents (one holding an umbrella over her head) and one waiting in the driver's seat of the SUV she's casually leaning against. She tosses her glossy, golden brown locks over her shoulder and smiles warmly at Olivia as soon as she lays eyes on her.

"Liv!" Karen shoves her cup into the hands of the nearest agent and skips toward Olivia, flinging her arms around her neck in a tight hug.

It's a little surprising, but the relationship Olivia's built with Karen has steadily become one of the closest bonds in her life. Since the night she'd gotten the call and had to pick Karen up – physically pick her up – from a frat party, Olivia had remained as the person she went to for advice and support. At first, it had just been validating for Olivia, knowing she was there for Karen, and she'd been able to compartmentalize things for a while, keeping her walls up, listening to her boy problems and teenage insecurities. And then, when she'd broken up with Fitz in the White House, Karen kept calling. She was the one checking in on Olivia, making sure she was okay (she wasn't, but being asked was still a source of comfort), and she could feel the shift in their relationship. When she lost everything, when everybody she cared about turned against her, Karen stayed. She wasn't just a client or her ex's daughter, there was something deeper there, and when Olivia finally figured things out with Fitz, it just solidified her relationship with Karen further. Olivia had been the first person she'd talked to about her sexuality; she was there every step of the way when Karen decided to come out to her parents, supporting her and reassuring her that everything would be okay (which, of course, it was).

"C'mon, I got our food to go." Karen drags Olivia by the hand, walks back to the open door of the SUV, collecting her iced coffee from the Secret Service agent on her way.

When they're sitting in the back of the car and on the move, Olivia gives her a curious lift of her brow. "What happened to our brunch plans?"

"I didn't wanna sit there with an entire café of people gawking, did you?" Karen rolls her eyes in annoyance at her situation, being the daughter of not one but two Presidents. She's aware of her privilege, of course, but it's not necessarily the life she would've chosen for herself. Olivia gives Karen a sympathetic smile as she hands her the chai tea she'd left in the cup holder moments earlier.

"Anyway, we're spending the afternoon doing something much more interesting," Karen continues, sipping at her coffee before casually announcing, "I'm getting a tattoo and you're coming with me."

"Uhhh, Karen, I –" Olivia's trying to move past the stunned phase and into the responsible step-parent phase, but Karen's already ahead of her.

"You don't need to worry, I got the artist vetted, and the tattoo studio's been assessed for dangers," She reasons calmly, as if she's thought of everything, "It's all been taken care of. I promise I'll be perfectly safe."

"I'll remind you of that when your dad finds out." Olivia laughs, wincing at the thought of how Fitz will inevitably react to his baby girl permanently marking her body.

"Why do you think I'm bringing you, Liv?" A guilty smile pulls at the corners of Karen's lips, "You're not just coming along to keep me company, you're my backup, too."

The tattoo studio is nothing like what Olivia is expecting to walk into. It's a small, private room painted bubblegum pink, cluttered with framed art of various styles, a blue, pink, and white trans pride flag hangs from the back of the door, there's a rainbow one draped across one of the walls, and cut-out stencils from previous tattoos decorate every spare inch of wallpaper. Despite feeling completely out of place with her Prada purse, Saint Laurent cashmere leggings, sheer Givenchy lace blouse, and Balenciaga knee-high boots, Olivia finds the space has a surprisingly welcoming atmosphere as she takes a seat on a purple velvet couch that makes up the 'waiting area.' Beside her, Karen is perched on a leopard print armchair, reading through the paperwork she has to fill out, skimming the list of allergies and medical conditions that could affect the tattoo. She signs her signature at the bottom of the consent form, before handing over the clipboard to Emma, the artist. She's dressed casually in a distressed band t-shirt and well-loved sweatpants, covered head to toe in piercings and tattoos, with a tangle of dirty blond hair piled on top of her head in a messy bun.

"Thanks!" Emma nods, reading over the forms quickly, "Now, just checking, you're feeling good? You've eaten today?"

"Yeah, we ate on the drive over."

"Great. I'll just get everything ready and we'll be good to go." Emma's face breaks into a toothy grin as she glances between Olivia and Karen, then she walks over to her desk to print out the stencil.

"You still haven't told me what you're getting."

Karen breathes out a nervous sigh, but her lips curve into a smile and she rolls up her sleeve, pointing to the inside of her arm. "A sprig of lavender, right here."

Olivia arches her brow at the choice, but says nothing, as she takes a sip of her tea. Emma walks over, cutting out the stencil and checking with Karen that it's the right size before she preps her skin, making sure it's clean with disinfectant. She gets Karen to stand up straight and kneels down in front of her to apply the stencil, lining it up perfectly before she smooths it down, carefully peeling away the transfer paper.

"Check it, make sure you're happy with the placement."

Karen steps over to the floor-to-ceiling ornate mirror, twisting her arm in different positions to see how it looks, and she beams at the deep purple outline of wet ink from the stencil.

"I love it."

"Are you sure? We can move it, change the design, whatever you want."

"No, no," Karen's head shakes and she waves her hands dismissively, "It's perfect."

"Awesome! I'm gonna make some coffee while we wait for it to dry," Emma gives her a cheery smile and heads over to the door, pausing with her fingers on the handle, "Can I get you guys anything? It's shitty coffee but it does the job."

"We're fine, thank you," Olivia stifles a laugh at her crassness, and then when exits the room and they're finally alone, she turns to Karen, who's still admiring the stencil in the mirror, "So, lavender huh?"

"It's..." Karen turns on her heels, looking a little sheepish, "It's a symbol of queerness."

"I know," A slow smile edges onto Olivia's face, "That's pretty badass."

"Thanks," Karen lets out a chuckle, awkwardly accepting the compliment as she takes a seat beside her on the couch and then she reaches for Olivia's hand, her expression turning serious, "Hey, how've you been doing?"

"I'm – I'm fine," Olivia's eyes narrow and she shifts uncomfortably, feeling the weight of Karen's concern in her stare, "Did Fitz say something?"

"No, I mean… Nothing bad. It's actually kind of nauseating how in love with you he is," Karen half smiles, attempting to lighten the mood a little, "I'm just checking you're okay."

Olivia shrugs nonchalantly. "I am. Really."

And then, what Karen says next makes her question just how 'okay' she is.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here when you lost the baby."

The mention of her miscarriage, even whispered, brings the pain right to the surface. At the time, Karen had just begun traveling with a friend, Georgina. As soon as Fitz had broken the news to her, she'd immediately wanted to cut their three month tour of Asia short and fly back from Bali. She would've been halfway to the airport if Olivia hadn't taken the phone from Fitz, telling Karen in no uncertain terms that the last thing she wanted was for her to end her trip. What they'd lost had left them both devastated, but they had each other, and she had refused to allow it to interfere with Karen's first travel plans as an adult.

Olivia exhales a shaky breath, blinking back tears as she draws Karen into a close hug. "Don't be. I'm okay, now. I wasn't, and it was awful, but… I'm better."

"You should've let me come back," Karen sighs, looping one arm around Olivia's back, keeping the drying stencil out of the way, "I would've been here."

"Oh honey, I know." The term of endearment that Fitz had always called his daughter slips out easily, having been adopted over the years by Olivia, too.

"I was really worried about you." There's lingering concern in Karen's voice as she tightens her grip on Olivia's shoulder, squeezing her for a long moment.

"I know, but I had your dad, and he was just… He's been incredible."

"I'm glad," Karen pulls away, taking Olivia's hand into hers in a tender clasp, "You're seriously okay?"

"I am, I promise," Olivia gives a teary smile, nodding slowly, "I wouldn't lie to you."

That seems to relieve Karen and she mirrors her with a smile of her own as she simply says, "Okay."

They relax back into lighter, more casual conversation and after ten minutes, Emma returns with a steaming mug of coffee in hand. After checking the stencil's not dry yet, she pulls on a pair of surgical gloves, and then wipes down her workstation and all of her equipment. By the time she's done filling a few tiny plastic caps with the ink colors she needs, the stencil is dry.

"Come, take a seat and get yourself comfortable." Emma tilts her head with a disarming smile, gesturing toward the chair with an adjustable armrest on a stand set up beside it.

"Sure, of course." Karen tries to sound confident, but Olivia catches the way her voice wavers with nerves.

When they're both seated, Emma dips the tattoo gun in the black ink to start with the outline. "Ready?"

"...And then we got lost in this tiny village outside of Chiang Mai, nobody spoke a word of English, and Georgie –" Karen cuts off midway through her story with an infectious laugh at the memory, "Georgie's trying to use the few Thai words she learned on Duolingo to ask for directions, but they have no idea what she's trying to say. I don't even think she knew."

"So how did you manage to find your way back?" Fitz asks with an amused grin as he leans over the dining table, topping up their wine glasses.

"You know Lana? She's one of the agents who was assigned to me for the trip and thank god, she was. Anyway, she's half Laotian," Karen explains, twirling her fork to gather the remaining spaghetti on her plate, "So, even though she doesn't speak Thai, she managed to understand the locals and they were kind enough to point us in the right direction."

After their afternoon at the tattoo studio, Karen and Olivia had arrived home while Fitz was in the kitchen, preparing dinner. They'd opened a bottle of wine and spent the last couple of hours catching up. Karen is happily tipsy, telling stories from her travels over dinner, and Fitz is, of course, enjoying their evening together until she reaches for her glass and her sleeve slips a little, revealing a glimpse of the fresh tattoo, wrapped with a protective film.

"What is that?" Fitz's voice is sharp, cutting through the lighthearted laughter.

Olivia's gaze follows Fitz's, to the ink decorating his daughter's wrist, and she exhales a soft sigh, "Fitz –"

"You got a tattoo?" He's angry, raising his voice, and deliberately ignoring Olivia while Karen shrinks in her seat as he continues to berate her for her choice, "What the hell were you thinking?"

"Fitz, hey. Take a breath. We went together today and if you let Karen explain –"

His head snaps toward Olivia and he glares bitterly. "You took her? Karen, go to your room."

"Dad, I'm twenty-one," Karen objects with a humorless scoff, folding her arms across her chest defensively, "You can't send me to my room –"

"Go. Now." He looks back to Karen, his gaze unrelenting and she doesn't dare to argue further when he takes that tone with her.

Without another word, Karen gets up from the table and leaves the room. Fitz exhales an angry huff, shaking his head as his anger rises.

"I cannot believe her –"

Olivia cuts him off, "She's young, but she's an adult, Fitz. She's making her own choices."

"Well, maybe she's not smart enough to be doing that."

"You know that's not true. You can't be mad at her."

"Watch me," He continues to rant, petulant and annoyed.

"No. You can't be mad at her because then you'll have to be mad at me."

"I'm already mad at you," He throws an irritable scowl her way, "You took my daughter to some goddamn tattoo parlor and let her – let her defile herself –"

"Fitz," Olivia speaks softly but firmly enough to make him pause and listen to her, "I got a tattoo, too."

"You –" Fitz blinks and swallows, eyes raking over any patch of her exposed skin they can find, searching for the tattoo, "What? Show me."

She slides out of her seat and moves around to the other side of the table, leaning against it as she lifts her top and inches down the waistband of her leggings, revealing a small, serif 'F' in black ink on her hip, covered by the same plastic film Karen's was protected with. It's no bigger than a dime, but it's there.

"God," He whispers, awestruck as the realization that she's permanently adorned her skin with his initial hits him hard, "I can't believe you did this."

"You still mad?" Her voice is gentle as she watches him lean in close to get a better look, stroking his thumb over her hipbone.

"I'm –" With a slow shake of his head, he finally lifts his gaze to meet hers, "No. I just – what made you do this?"

"It was a spur-of-the-moment thing, I didn't plan it," She gives him a tiny smile and places her hand over his, lightly caressing her fingertips over his knuckles, "Karen was nervous, and I decided to step in."

"You didn't have to do that." His brows furrow and he heaves another sigh, glancing at the tattoo again.

"I know, but I wanted this," Olivia's lips curve with a faint smile and she stares at him, tilting her head to the side, "I'm yours. I've always been yours, always will be… This was just a way to show it."

Fitz circles his thumb around the ink, ghosting over the raised, reddened skin surrounding it. "It's kind of… sexy."

That makes her laugh. "You have such a one-track mind, mister."

"Did you really think getting my initial tattooed wouldn't be a turn on for me?" He lifts his brows and gives her a teasing smile as he slides his hand under her top, caressing the soft skin on her belly, moving up toward her bra.

She stops him before he has a chance to get too far. "Fitz, you know you have to speak to Karen and give her a chance, okay?"

"I know," With a sigh, he leans back in his chair, tucking his hands behind his head, "You're right."

"Just talk to her. Let her show you – and be nice," She pinches his chin delicately between her thumb and index finger, emphasizing the words, before nodding toward the doorway, "Go."

Fitz leaves the room – but not before stealing a kiss from Olivia – and makes his way up the stairs to find his daughter's room. The door is open and Karen's sprawled out across her bed, furiously typing on her phone.

"Honey?"

"If you've come to yell at me more –"

"No," He lifts his hands in surrender, "Can I come in?"

She shrugs, barely looking at him and he takes her nonchalant response as an invitation, walking over to join her, sitting down beside her as she sits up, setting her phone to one side.

"You wanna show me?"

Karen finally lifts her gaze, staring at him apprehensively for a long few seconds, and then she lifts her sleeve, revealing her tattoo.

"It's a sprig of lavender. It's a queer symbol, you know?" Her voice is soft as she explains, tracing her fingertips over the film-covered fresh ink.

Fitz nods slowly, "Yeah, I thought it was mostly used to describe gay men?"

"It was, but after Stonewall, there were feminists who thought lesbians would be a threat to their cause, they called them the 'lavender menace,'" She pauses, smiling a little, "And lesbian activists adopted the name as their own."

"That's kind of incredible," He grins at her and she tries to hide it, but she can't stop herself from grinning back at him. And then he looks at the tattoo again as he continues, "It's pretty."

"I'm not ready to be out to the world and have all that attention on me, so it's a subtle nod. And if anybody questions it, Liv says we can spin it by saying they're mom's favorite flowers."

"That's smart," Giving her knee a light squeeze, he begins to apologize gently, "I'm sorry. I was –"

"– an asshole?"

"I was going to say 'jerk' but sure, I deserved that," A quiet chuckle escapes his lips at her bluntness, "I freaked out because you're so independent and grown up now."

Karen's brows furrow. "Dad –"

"I know, I know. You're not a child," Fitz repeats her words from earlier, heaving a sigh, "But Karen, you're still my baby girl."

"You're not losing me, Dad." She murmurs, resting her head against his shoulder, letting him wrap his arm around her.

Their conversation is interrupted when Karen's phone buzzes on the bed. When she lifts it to look at the screen, Fitz catches a glimpse of the display and sees G (followed by a pink heart emoji) is requesting to Facetime.

"It's Georgie. She wanted to see my tattoo," She says with a smile, then rejects the video chat and tosses her phone aside, "I'll call her back later."

To his surprise, she cuddles into his side, looping her arms around him. Throughout her teens, dealing with the issues that came with her dad spending eight years in the oval, emotionally processing her parents' divorce, and worst of all, grieving for Jerry, their relationship had become strained. It had become a rarity for her to want to be anywhere near him, let alone hug him, but in this new phase of their relationship it felt like he had his little girl back again, so he'd learned to treasure moments like this.

"I went with Georgie when she got her first tattoo," Karen mumbles against his chest, laughing a little at the memory, "She was scared and wanted me to hold her hand. Now she's covered head to toe."

"Is Georgina your girlfriend?" Fitz asks quietly and he immediately feels her tense in his arms.

When she pulls away, she wonders if the sheer panic rushing through her, making her nauseous, is written all over her face. It's one thing to come out when you're sober and you've planned it, rehearsed exactly what you're going to say – another for your dad to accidentally figure out you have a girlfriend after you've had three glasses of wine.

"Um –"

"Honey, I'm not mad. If you're happy, if you're in love… That's all I want for you."

Her gaze drops to her hands resting in her lap. "How did you know?"

"C'mon, traveling for three months with a 'friend'?" He raises his brows skeptically, half-smiling at his daughter, "Besides, you talk about her all the time with the goofiest grin on your face –"

"I do not!" With a roll of her eyes, she shoves him.

"You do. You're a Grant, you take after me," His smirk widens as he enjoys teasing her, "I look at Liv the same way."

"Oh my god." Karen flops onto her back, clasping a hand over her eyes in embarrassment.

"Call your girlfriend back," Fitz chuckles when she groans audibly at the way he delights in using the word, "And come join us for dessert in a while."

He gives up torturing her and leaves the room, finally, closing the door on his way out. He finds Olivia in the kitchen, loading their dinner plates in the dishwasher. His arms loop around her waist from behind and he presses his lips to the side of her neck, humming against her skin.

"Can I help you, mister?" She lets out a giggle, tipping her head back against his shoulder with a gasp when he bites softly, "Where's Karen?"

"She's in her room, calling her girlfriend." He emphasizes the word again, smirking as he slides his palm down to rest on her stomach.

"Oh… You finally figured it out."

"You knew?" He yanks his head back, peering around to see her face.

She turns to him, leaning against the counter with a casual shrug. "She hadn't told me, but I figured it out a while ago."

"And you didn't tell me?"

"Oh please! It's not my fault it took you so long to piece it together," Her eyes narrow and she pauses for a second, "Or did she tell you?"

"No, she didn't tell me! I asked her," He glares playfully, pinching her ass to make her breath catch, "How long have you known?"

"Maybe six months?"

"Six months?" His jaw drops and she giggles, sealing his open mouth with a kiss.

"You said Karen's talking to Georgina?" She asks against his lips, running her hands up his chest to loop around his neck.

"Mmhm. She'll probably be a while," He murmurs as he squeezes her ass with both hands, kissing along her jawline, clearly wanting more, "I figure she has a lot to unpack… So we've got time to kill."

"You want to have sex right now?" She lets out an airy laugh, shaking her head at him.

"I just wanna fool around with my sexy, tattooed girlfriend, is that so wrong?" There's a goofy grin on his face – the same kind he mentioned to Karen just a few minutes ago.

"Oh my god, you are ridiculous!" Her head tips back with another delirious giggle and he takes it as an opportunity to bite her neck playfully, which of course, just makes her giggle more, "Stop!"

"You got my initial tattooed. Permanently," He gives her an obvious look, raising his eyebrows for emphasis, "You don't want me to make it up to you?"

"I did this for me," She presses her palm against his chest, pushing him back before he can kiss her again, "But if you really insist, you can save it for tomorrow, when Karen leaves."

"Deal," His teeth sink into his bottom lip as he imagines all the ways he's going to make her fall apart the moment they're alone, "In the meantime, I need a favor from you..."

The following morning, after breakfast, Fitz takes Karen out before he drives her over to the White House residence to spend the evening with Mellie. It's only when the car pulls up that she glances from her phone, looking out the window, that she realizes where they are – sitting outside the building of the tattoo studio she visited yesterday.

"Dad, why are we here? I thought you understood," The look on her face is something between embarrassment and annoyance, "Please don't tell me we're here because you're going to do something stupid, like try to get my money back?"

"Something stupid, yes. Getting your money back, no," He tries to hide his smile and casually announces, "I decided I'm getting a tattoo."

Her eyes bulge out of her head. "What?!"

"I called Emma last night – Liv gave me her card – and we had a great conversation. She agreed to clear her schedule for me."

"Why the hell are you getting a tattoo?" Karen looks at her dad strangely, like he's grown a second head.

"You and Liv both showed me tattoos can be beautiful and meaningful," With a faint smile, Fitz begins to explain, then he heaves a sigh and that smile fades as he continues, "Tomorrow it'll be seven years since we lost Jerry. And I just… I thought I could get something to memorialize him."

They haven't spoken about it, but the anniversary of Jerry's death has been in the back of their minds for the weekend. Her visit home had been planned with the date in mind; the first couple of years were particularly painful and difficult, but in time they've found comfort in just being with each other, spending time together without needing to do something specifically to commemorate the day.

"You know, Jerry and I always talked about getting our first tattoos together. He probably would've chickened out, but he knew I was going get a tattoo and he couldn't talk me out of it," A sad smile touches her lips, "He just wanted to be there as my protective big brother."

He reaches for her hand and gently squeezes her palm with his thumb. "You okay, honey?"

"Yeah," She shakes herself out of her grief, turning to look at him as she changes the subject, "You ready?"

They get out of the SUV and walk together through the entrance of the building, taking the elevator up to the third floor, Karen leading the way.

If Olivia looked out of place in the tattoo studio, Fitz looks like he's from a different planet entirely; of course, he's friendly and makes conversation easily with Emma as she sets up her workstation. When the stencil is dry and he's sitting in the chair, she dips her tattoo gun in the black ink and turns to him with a beaming smile.

"Ready?"

"Sure."

Karen smirks at her dad. "You nervous it'll hurt?"

"Please, I've been shot. I'm not afraid of a little tattoo," He scoffs as Emma pulls his skin taut and begins, dragging the needle over the purple outline, "– oh wow, that does kind of hurt, actually."

Karen laughs and he gives her a pained grin, grateful for a little joy on an otherwise heavy day, even if it's at his own expense.

Olivia's wearing one of his shirts, curled up on the couch with Buddy at her feet, and her nose buried in a book when Fitz arrives home late in the evening. He watches her, just for a moment, then Buddy notices he's standing there in the entrance and wags his tail happily.

Fitz snaps his fingers. "You, off the furniture."

"Oh c'mon, he's been keeping me company," Olivia half smiles, half pouts as Buddy gets down, looking guilty while he walks over to the rug in front of the fire, flopping down with an audible huff, "You're mean."

"And you are a bad influence on him," Fitz scolds softly and walks over, leaning in to kiss her, "Hi."

"Hi," Her eyes are warm and hazy when he pulls away, peeling back the soft blanket draped over her to lift her bare legs into his lap as he sits down, "How was the tattoo?"

"Actually, I got tattoos. Plural." He rolls his sleeves up, first showing her the one for Jerry – his birth date in Roman numerals on the inside of his forearm, next to his elbow crease – and then revealing the serif L – not O for Olivia, L for Livvie – to match her own on the side of his wrist, below his thumb.

She sits up, pulling his hand into hers to look more closely at her initial, inked on his skin. "Fitz –"

"I can hide it under my watch, so it'll be a private thing," The corners of his mouth pull into a soft smile, "Just for us."

"You didn't have to…"

"What was it you said? I wanted it for myself."

He'd always thought of matching tattoos as deeply unromantic and tacky, but something about doing it with her is different. They're irrevocably linked to each other in a very real, palpable way; he feels it, the way his heart seems to thud harder and his breathing deepens when she's in his presence, the wave of calm that hits him whenever he's around her is unlike anything he's ever experienced. And now they have a physical reminder of how undeniably entwined and tied to each other they are. The meaning behind it is the closest they've gotten to putting rings on each other's fingers, and if the engagement ring had been ready, he probably would've proposed to her right now.

Fitz watches through adoring eyes as Olivia dips her head to press the most delicate kiss against the film-covered tattoo of her initial, then trails her lips over the back of his hand, turning it over in her grip to kiss his knuckles.

"I missed you today." Her voice is soft as she threads her fingers between his. He recognizes it as her way of saying I love you and it warms him from the inside out.

"You should've come with us."

"It's okay," She shakes her head gently and cuddles into his shoulder, "You needed time with Karen, alone."

He doesn't respond to that, he just sighs quietly. "We went to visit Jerry's grave after the tattoo studio. Talked to him for a while… It was nice."

"That's good." She exhales a soft breath of relief, but doesn't push him further; it's enough to know he's okay.

"I saw Mellie."

"How's she doing?"

"You know, keeping busy. Running the country doesn't exactly allow time to mourn," His shoulders lift in a shrug and he feels her eyes on him, but he doesn't allow them to dwell on it any longer and swiftly changes the subject, "Karen totally snitched on me about the tattoo, by the way. The second Mellie saw hers, she had an even more dramatic reaction than I did –"

"Are you sure about that, mister?"

"You, shut it," Fitz fires back with a teasing, playful glare and continues, "Anyway, Karen blurted out 'But Dad got a tattoo, too!'"

"– of course, she did!"

"– and you should've seen the look Mellie gave me."

"Oh, don't worry, I can imagine." Olivia stifles a laugh, clasping a hand over her face.

"I feared for my life, Liv."

"Poor baby."

"I swear, she was going to murder me," His eyes widen dramatically and she giggles at him again, "You're loving this, aren't you?"

"Just a little." She can't hide the amused smile on her lips. They're both quiet as she traces her fingertip over the line of his tattoo, and then she lifts her gaze to meet his, "When I said you could make it up to me, this is not what I had in mind…"

"Oh, don't you dare think for a single second I've forgotten about that." There's no doubting him when he takes that tone; his low voice sends a shiver down her spine.

"So," She slicks her tongue along her bottom lip and guides their joined hands beneath the button-down shirt she'd stolen from him, "Do something about it."

"Liv…" He looks conflicted for a moment, then pulls his hand away.

"What?"

His expression transforms into a mix of guilt and embarrassment, like he's been caught. "Not in front of Buddy."

"Oh my god, really?" Her head tips back with a hysterical laugh and for a while, she can't breathe through her giggles, but then she catches the no-nonsense look on his face and her mouth falls open, "You're actually serious?"

A stern frown draws his brows together. "I am not traumatizing my poor little guy."

"Baby, he's a dog, he doesn't care!" She tries to reach for him, tries to kiss him, but he scoots out of reach.

Then he fixes her with a devilish smirk. "With what I plan to do to you, believe me, he will care when you start screaming."

"Is that a promise?" She gasps, clutching a hand to her chest, pretending to be scandalized.

"If you go up to bed now, I'll take Buddy on a W-A-L-K around the block to make sure we aren't disturbed," His eyes darken with a hazy look of desire, like he wants to devour her, "And when I'm back, I'll make good on that promise."

Olivia tosses her forgotten book on the coffee table and stands, but not before she steals a kiss and whispers 'okay' against his lips. And then, just as Fitz is about to get up, she unbuttons the stolen shirt she's wearing and drops it on the floor, leaving her just wearing a lacy pair of panties. When she glances back at him the grin on her lips is anything but innocent.

He lets out a groan because she's deliberately being mean and teasing him, and as she walks out of the room, he calls out after her, "You're a cruel woman, Olivia Pope."

"Don't be long." She calls back, giggling mercilessly at him.

I know it's not super smut heavy or anything, but I hope you liked seeing Karen visit because it felt overdue. Me and roseyinthesun apparently share a brain and both made Karen queer (I already wrote her that way in a fic years ago, I wasn't copying, I swear lmao). Anywayyyyy, I'd love to know what you think!

P.S. if anybody's curious, I'm a heavily tattooed person irl and this is 100% my experience with my tattoo artist I've been going to for 2 years lol. If your artist isn't as much of an angel as Emma, pls get a new one 3