Chapter 57
By the time Fitz leaned over to pick up the two albums that fell, Maya was already there to collect them. She slowly took them from Fitz, had all three in her hands, and rubbed his shoulder.
"Stay with the boys, I'll handle this. I have let it go too long. Give us some time, handsome, ok.?" She gave a weak smile and walked towards the room.
Without even a knock, Maya opened the door and sat on the side of the bed next to Liv who was lying on her back. Maya took a deep breath and gave a sigh. "You're going to hear me out, Baby Girl. I know this should have been done years ago, but it wasn't. It's time now, because you deserve happiness with your husband. You're going to be a mom, and you will understand one day why I did what I did, just hoping it's not with the same circumstances."
Liv turned her head, still heated from the revelation and looked coldly at Maya. "You could have told me he survived."
"And what, what then. What would you have done? You were up for a month straight Olivia, one month after that brutal hospital stay, screaming with nightmares. God, Olivia, those demons were part of your soul, and I wasn't going to damage it more than it was."
Liv folded her hands over her pregnant belly and sat up on the bed. She shrugged, genuinely feeling for Maya, but still having anger in her. "He was drunk, he killed dad, he scarred me, he shouldn't be a free man."
"He was a free man no matter what. He was 17, he would have been charged as a minor and served less than three months. Trust me, it wasn't worth it, your life was much more important to me." Maya looked down, rubbing the cover of the top album she had and took a deep breath.
There were about three minutes of silence before Liv said, "Fine," tossing her hands in the air. "So why did you come from Vermont?"
"I knew you would eventually go back to the scene of the accident. That plaque, that traffic light, I fought for months, almost a year. Those council members didn't give one damn about the life taken or the one scarred, but I did, and I was a one woman coalition. No one else was going to die at that intersection."
Liv finally let all the anger go. Her forehead rested on Maya's shoulder. "I'm sorry mom, I can't imagine what your mental state was, your emotions, and all the sadness." She looked down at the album Maya was holding.
It was opened to the first page of the picture Fitz had just shown her not too long ago. Liv's hand rubbed down the picture. "That must have been brutal for you to witness."
"Not as brutal as what you were feeling." Maya took Liv's hand. "This picture was the night of the accident. Your father was gone, I had to get to the morgue for funeral arrangements. You had just come out of a four hour surgery. The doctor looked at me and said to take as much time as I needed, because you probably wouldn't be alive in twenty four hours."
Liv bit her bottom lip. She rubbed Maya's back. "Mom, I."
"No, Liv, please, let me go on. I thought this would be the last time I saw you alive. My strong girl, always a smile on her face and this. All the tubes, the IV's, the blood soaked clothes." Maya paused. "It was so much." She finally turned and her head fell to Liv's shoulder.
Liv hugged her tight, holding her. "I'm ok mom, because of you, I survived." She didn't know if that was true, but it was all she had as far as words.
Maya and Liv continued through the pictures and the writings. It was a cleansing talk and when Maya finally closed the last album she turned to Liv. "It was just the beginning though. The therapy sessions, the nightmares, and the burying you did of yourself at work. It all came down to this. You've lived with these scars." She lifted Liv's shirt to expose her pregnancy.
Rubbing her cute little belly, Maya laughed. "All that heartache and look at this. A life inside you. Created by you and a man who loves you beyond measure. Fitz has been through the unspeakable and there is nothing in my heart that would ever convince me this wasn't destiny." She leaned in and gave Liv's belly a kiss.
"Mom," the words barely came out. Maya took her daughter in her arms, as Olivia sobbed. God, how she loved her mother, and could never express how thankful she was to have her.
"The nightmares never went away." Olivia was finally able to speak. "I just learned how to cope with them. I remember I had one in the car when I first met Fitz. I think I knew once he stayed with me after that, I had to love him." She smiled.
Maya's hand went onto Liv's cheek. "Knowing that scum was alive." Maya shook her head. "It wouldn't have changed anything, and it would have broken you more." She shrugged, "at least I think it would have. It was selfish of me to want Fitz to tell you."
"You're here now, that's what matters." Liv looked at the albums. "I have those, to help me cope, and when this guy is old enough, he'll know the story. He has a grandma as tough as nails."
"Hey, his mama is pretty tough as well."
"It's in my genes." Liv nodded. "I need to put this all behind, both Fitz and I, we have to go forward. I'm glad we came here, but I am even happier that you are here."
"Oh shoot, we better get back out there." Maya remembered the three of them. "You hungry?"
"I'm starving. Hey, let's go to the burger place in the old neighborhood."
"The one you used to hang out in all night during college."
"That's the one. I was afraid to go to sleep and it was the only place open. I didn't want to bother you studying."
"I remember going in there sometimes to check on you. You know your friend, Lynette, she bought it, owns it now."
"Get out, then yeah, definitely let's go. Could I have some time, though, about a half hour with Fitz?"
Maya rubbed her tear soaked eyes. "Of course." She stood from the bed leaving the albums.
"Mom." Olivia called out to her before she left the room. "Tell Huck no revenge."
Maya finally gave a smile. "I already did, but you know, he's Huck."
After the door closed, Liv sat up more on the bed. Her back against the headboard and her hands rubbing her stomach. She looked at the albums now sitting on her end table. She was about to grab one when the door slowly opened.
"Hey." That low baritone voice that made everything in life better echoed in the room. "You ok?" Fitz sat next to her and put his hand on top of both of hers.
She nodded, not saying anything, blinking back the tears. This man sat in a dirt cell in hundred degree weather being deprived of water, being beaten, and heard horrible things around him. What could he possibly think of her outcry before?
"You've been through so much worse, yet here I am acting like…."
"Like what? We've been through this. Our pains, our scars both hit us differently. We are together, right." He bowed his head, his eyes looking up at her.
Her hands went around him in a hug. Her head into the crook of his neck and she cried. She sobbed, her body shaking, as he wrapped his arms around her and let her take her time. When she finally stopped crying, she took a deep breath and shook it off.
Fitz took a deep breath and rubbed her shoulders. 'Hey, I hear someone is hungry for burgers." His forehead connected with hers. "Need a few minutes to get refreshed?"
Liv bit her bottom lip. "Yeah, I'll be out in few." She looked back at him his eyes glistening in the light. "I love you," she whispered.
He kissed her cheek, kissed her belly, "I love both of you, more than anything." He left her to get ready. As Fitz walked towards the kitchen, it was just Huck there, his computer opened. Fitz noticed Huck staring at the screen and he walked over quickly.
"No, Huck, Liv doesn't want it, absolutely not." Fitz went to close the computer, but Huck stopped him.
He squinted at the man he admired most in his life. "Look at him Fitz, just look, ok. I'm not going to do anything, but one day Liv may want to know. She isn't one to let things bother her right away. She stores it here." Fitz watched as Huck pointed to his temple.
"When you least expect it, it comes out. Nightmares, working, anger, cleaning, you name it, I've seen it." Huck watched Fitz remove his hand from the computer. "So, when it does happen, you can be ready with facts."
"Where's Jumbo and Maya?" Fitz looked around.
"They went ahead to the restaurant. They are going to meet us there."
"When Olivia told me about the scars, she was fine explaining the accident. She was almost too calm. But right at the very end, when she knew there was no hope for her father, she broke down into pieces. I couldn't let her go on with the story anymore. If I could explain it, I would say someone pulled her out of the water just before she drowned. All of the water inside her was suffocating her, and when she finally let it out, it all exited her." Fitz was telling Huck about the night Liv finally showed her scars to him in the cabin.
"I understand. She bottles it up. Maya told her the truth and she'll be ok for a bit, but trust it'll come out." Huck looked back at the computer screen. "You found out about Logan, let Liv know her truth." Huck turned the computer screen towards Fitz.
There was a timeline of pictures. A blonde haired blue eyed young face stared at him from the first one. Fitz looked as Huck explained. "His name is Craig Sarkowski Jr. He's named after his father, NYC Police Commissioner from the time Craig was 12 until his retirement when Craig was 32."
"So, Liv didn't have a chance to see this kid ever serve time."
"No, she wouldn't have. He was 17 and his daddy wouldn't let his boy pay for what he'd done."
The next picture was Craig's college graduation picture. Huck continued, "Craig went to Boston College, got a degree in prelaw, then onto University of Pennsylvania for his law degree."
"Don't tell me." Fitz interrupted. "He represents scumbags like himself."
"He does. He has four private firms on the east coast, none in NY though. He's in Boston, Philly, Baltimore, and Charleston. His firms specialize in defending the worst scum, murderers, child molesters, rapists, he's a disgrace, but he's one of the best according to records."
The final picture Fitz looked at was his ad for his law firm. Sarkowski and Associates, You're Innocent Until Proven Guilty."
Fitz saw the bedroom door open, and Huck immediately shut the computer. He turned in his chair. "Feeling better."
"Yes, I am, thank you. I'm sorry for my outburst."
"No, don't apologize, it's a lot." Huck said to her understanding.
"Huck, you have to let it go, don't go digging, ok."
"I know, I won't."
"Ok, let's eat, we're starving."
"We?" Fitz looked at her.
"Yes, we, your son and his mother."
The old neighborhood was not as Liv had remembered it. Maybe so much had happened since then that it became a cloud in her memory. She never did visit much despite living a few miles away.
The fresh smell of burgers and fries hit her as they entered the small eatery in the middle of the block. This hadn't changed and Liv remembered always sitting at the back, one table there, and studying all through the night. The place used to be open 24 hours, but then the neighborhood became a bit too dangerous for that.
Many a nights Lynette's father, who worked the night shift, sent his daughter home and looked sternly at Olivia. "You have to get home; your momma is worried, and you are going to lose yourself in all the work you do."
Liv would pick up a fry, made to the desired crispness she loved, and took a bite. She shrugged. "I know, but it's hard to sleep. Besides I want to be a millionaire before I'm 30. How can I do that if I sleep?"
He shook his head at her, knowing how stubborn she could be. "Ten more minutes and I'm calling your momma myself; you hear me?" He picked up the check ticket that was left and tossed it in the trash.
Lost in the moment, staring at the back table, she felt her shoulder get rubbed. "Liv, someone is waving to you." Fitz said, breaking her out of her daydream.
Looking across the crowded diners, Liv saw her friend Lynette, who hadn't changed a bit. "Oh my Goooooooooddd" Liv heard her squeal as she nearly bolted across the room. "Olivia Pope!" Her arms wrapped around her and before Liv could breathe, she was wrapped in a hug with her friend from so many years ago.
Lynette pulled back and just stared at Liv, studied her body up and down and her mouth went open in happy, pure, excitement. "You're expecting! You're having a baby?" Lynette looked over Liv's shoulder.
"Lynette, this is my husband, Fitzgerald Grant, you know my mother, her boyfriend Jumbo, and this is my very good friend Huck. We're in the city finishing out our honeymoon and well we had to come here because where else can we get the best burger and fries?"
Maya gave Lynette a hug as she began to lead them to a big table in the back. Liv noticed a sign on the table she always sat at and read it aloud. "Reserved for RSC members only."
Liv's head did a spin, and she squinted at Lynette, "no you didn't."
"Oh, I sure did." She covered her mouth and giggled. "I was just explaining the rules of the club to someone." She reached over to a pile behind the condiments. "Here's the whole contract for their reading pleasure."
"RSC?" Fitz looked over curiously as Liv sat down with the paper. Lynette sat in the empty chair between them. "What's it mean?" His eyebrows went up with a smirk. "Anything like FTG that I got punished for." His eyes went to Liv who felt it and immediately looked away.
"Well," Lynette began, her hands clapped together. "Liv and I never had any luck in college with men. What happened to Tyler was tragic enough for Liv to think she would never find someone, but here she is breaking all the rules she made up for our club."
"What does RSC stand for baby girl?" Maya asked looking at pages of the contract.
"Relationships Suck Club." Liv whispered. She could feel how flushed her face was getting.
"Come again?" Fitz leaned his head closer and cupped his ear. "Louder for the people in the back." He bit the corner of his lip.
"Relationships Suck Club," Liv said through grinding teeth.
"Yes they do, but look at you girlfriend, married, kid on the way. You gone and broke them all. Look at number 1 on there Mrs. Pope." Lynette said all happy as Fitz kept eyeing Olivia.
"All married people are banned, happily married are double banned."
Liv cupped her mouth with both her hands and looked over at Huck. Huck contained his laugh and looked down at his menu. Jumbo was over Maya's arm looking for more.
"Oh, can I read number 2." Jumbo said as Liv's mouth went open in surprise.
"No lip kissing with any boy. If you kiss on the lips, your membership is revoked as you have started a relationship." Jumbo looked at Fitz. "It must have been boring when you two dated." He laughed.
"Number 3." Maya began.
"Mom, I'm super starving, can we just order and stop…"
"Oh no, do tell number three, Maya, I would love to hear this." Fitz crossed his arms now interested and Lynette thought this was the best thing ever. Liv stepped on her foot.
"Ow, Liv my foot, careful," she said without taking the hint.
"Falling in love is the ultimate sin," Maya went on, and Liv buried her face in her hands.
Finally, Fitz reached over, smirking from ear to ear. He took the paper from Maya and began to read out loud. "Numbers 4 and 5," by this time the whole table was intrigued, all except for Liv, as Fitz read the last two rules. His voice sounded in a way that Liv was so going to get it at some point.
"Number 4. Any member who makes the mistake of falling in love will have their membership revoked immediately."
"Number 5. The male species is not to be trusted, so no satisfying them in any way. The last thing any member of this club would like to do is give or receive pleasure." Fitz looked up with his sneaky blue eyes. "This concludes the rules, the bottom of the page has the signatures of all the founding members. Olivia Pope is the president."
He put the packet down and gave Lynette a rub on the back. "You don't know how much this means to me to know how I've changed Olivia's outlook on relationships."
Lynette smiled. "She found the perfect man, there's no doubting that." Lynette looked up to see Sylvie there to take their orders. "Sylvie this is on the house, whatever they want." Lynette hugged Liv.
"It's so good to see you so happy. There was a time I never thought you would let yourself be happy. Please let me know when the baby is born and congratulations on your wedding. Love you Livs." Lynette walked away and when she left the table was in complete silence.
"Oh, stop it, it was a silly high school thing, Lynette always took things too far." Liv waved her hand. Looking up at Sylvie, she placed her order and folded her hands together. Fitz moved over a chair and put his hands on hers. He leaned in and whispered in his deepest baritone voice; "I cannot wait to get back home."
Liv took a deep breath, as the chill shook her body and finally some normal conversation began. Throughout the dinner though, Liv was desperately thinking of ways for Fitz to forget the payback he would give her for her club.
"Wait, you guys aren't staying here?" Liv asked as Maya got out of the car to hug her.
"No, baby girl, we are helping Huck pack some things from his place then heading back up to Rutland. You have a honeymoon to finish." She gave Liv a kiss on the cheek, 'see you soon, I love you."
"Love you too," She watched as they drove off and felt Fitz's hand wrap around her waist.
Finally, down after a very long, exhausting day, Liv faced her husband. Her hand caressing his gorgeous face, thumb rubbing on his cheek bone. Tears filled her eyes as she looked at him.
"What's wrong Liv?" The back of his finger went down her cute little nose.
"I want to go home. I want to walk with Daisy along the creek and watch the sunset in the final days of summer." She leaned in and gave him a gentle kiss. "I want to get ready to push a baby stroller along the mountain backdrop. I want to hold little Ezzy and feel what it's like to cradle a baby."
Fitz gave her a weak smile and began to rub her bare back. "You want to be a Rutland girl."
"I want to be a Rutland girl. Quiet, dark winter nights by the crackling fireplace. Our son quietly sleeping in his cradle next to us as we make love by the fire." Her hand went to his curls as she pulled him to her and began to kiss him, him so tenderly kissing her back.
"Are you sure you're ok leaving here, I mean are the wounds healed?" Fitz looked at her.
She sighed. "I don't know if they will ever heal completely, but I have the albums to help me through. You may know who the driver was, I think I could sense it by what I walked into when you and Huck were talking, but none of that matters now."
"You sure about that?"
"I am sure about that." Her hand now went down his chest, her face just a bit closer to his now. "I just want to move forward, tomorrow, head home tomorrow and begin our forever, leaving our dreadful pasts in the past." She grew quiet.
"Playoffs are a month away, the baby's due date is four months away, we have so much to do, and I am ready to do it all with you by my side Mrs. Grant." He pushed her to her back and his face was above hers, their lips barely touching.
"I love you so much, Mr. Grant." She gave a deep breath and slight moan when his hands wrapped her wrists and he held them next to her, slightly pinning her. She began to wiggle under him, feeling her core start to ache.
"Easy there, wouldn't want to give too much pleasure to the man, correct? I wouldn't want you banned from your own club now would I?" His lips barely grazed hers and she couldn't catch his in time.
Using his breath as a weapon, he went to her neck, his lips barely touched there when he went down further. He was just above her nipple on her tender breast and if her hands weren't pinned she would have pushed his mouth down on it, but she couldn't.
For now, she was going to let him have her fun, she deserved it, and she knew the explosion would be worth it in the end, so she let him play his game.
"Nothing to say Mrs. Grant?" He watched her closed eyes, her helplessness of not being able to touch him, and she just shook her head.
His lips now went just above her baby bump and his warm breath was doing things to her. God, she wanted to scream his name, but she couldn't, wouldn't, give him the satisfaction, not yet. As much as she tried to hide her want for him, her body wasn't cooperating. Her chest was rising rapidly, her heart pounding, and he wasn't going to let that go unnoticed.
"Everything alright Liv, you seem…flustered." Looking at her, he didn't know how much longer he could hold out from devouring her every ounce of flesh. His erection was beginning to ache him. She had much more self control than he did.
"Just fine," she whispered, lying heavily in that statement.
"Good, then I'll just." His head went down, just above her clit, his lips gently touching her, she could feel his warm breath there, and it was almost her breaking point.
Eyes closed tightly, trying to internally talk herself down from having the pending orgasm, she wriggled her wrists a bit, hoping to break free. They didn't and Liv wanted so much to have him taste her, get her in his mouth, God, she was going to….
He lifted his head, took his hands from her, and just watched her, his hand holding up her head now. His other hand, he used his finger, and went down her chest, in between her breasts, and rubbed down her belly. He was just about to rub that soaking wet clit but stopped.
Liv's head turned, and she moaned. "Baby, please."
"Hmm, no pleasure for any founding members, correct. You're not being pleasured at all are you, Madam President?"
"No, no, not at all." Her hand cupped his cheek, and she devoured his lips, her head spinning as she felt her wetness, along with his erection, and she pulled back.
She turned to her side and put her hands under her cheek, her back to him. "Liv," she heard it as a question.
"I'm tired, Fitz. I'm going to close my eyes." She couldn't help but smile, because she had him just where she wanted.
"Oh, are you now?" His hand went around her, and his finger immediately rubbed up her clit. "What about this?" He rubbed around, and he saw her body slump.
As his finger entered her, she turned, and took his mouth again, moaning, wanting, and he couldn't stop even if he tried. His finger so easily in and out of her, as her hand anchored on the back of his neck and her body shook with orgasm.
Her forehead rested on his as she came down, slowly from the needed explosion. "More please, my membership has been revoked. I fell in love, I will love you forever, and I so want you in all the ways tonight. Finger, tongue, cock," she squeezed it just before his tongue circled her nipple and she guided his head down to her awaiting entrance.
When his tongue entered her, her body arched. He went in, out, up, down, and Liv's body crashed back down to the bed. He was relentless, repeating the process over again, and Liv could swear under oath he had her come twice by doing that. She felt her body grow so weak, sweat beginning to take over her chest, but Fitz wasn't near done.
He gave her a few moments to calm down. 'You are the strongest woman I know." He gently kissed each one of her scars, as he felt her body calming under him, and just when she thought she had fully come down, his cock was inside her.
She opened her eyes, his body above hers, and she just saw him come down and take her lips to his. All while going in, pumping deeper and deeper, his hand wrapped with hers, as he used that for strength.
He kept kissing her, hearing him moan, pump, moan, pump, and Liv lost control again, as he emptied himself inside her. His head rested on her chest, and she caressed his wet hair, they were both sweating.
Leaving his head right where it was, but his body off to the side, he fell asleep to the caressing of his hair, not even realizing Liv was already soundly sleeping.
One Month later (Rutland)
The big screen television was on, glaring as the final inning of the Lake Monsters game was being played. This was do or die for the team, win and they are in the playoffs, lose and they go home for the winter.
Liv sat with her feet up, crossed along Fitz's lap, as he rubbed up and down her legs. She had been having a hard time as the third trimester just hit, and she tried to stay off her feet as much as she could.
"You should be there with the team Mister." She watched him. Her Yankees already won the division, so they were in, this game meant everything to her, although she would never admit it.
"I should be, you're right, but Sparks and Sammy deserve their celebration. They built this team." Fitz took a deep breath. "Here we go. Jordan Lewis is leading off."
"Storybook ending, Fitz. Hometown boy is going to hit a game winning bottom of the ninth homerun to put the Lake Monsters into their very first playoffs." Liv sat up and rested her head now on Fitz's shoulder.
The television went to the suite where Sammy and Sparks were sitting with the rest of the ownership. Little Ezzy with headphones on, bigger than her head, sound asleep on her father's shoulder as his sat in his wheelchair.
Liv looked up at Fitz, his eyes glued to the television. "0 and 2 count, not looking good, come on Jordan."
"If he throws Jordan a curve, it's over, Jordan's specialty is hitting curve balls out of the park. 23 of his 42 homeruns this year came off of curve balls."
No sooner did Liv say it, there it went, and the celebration could be heard all over Rutland. Lake Monsters won, and are in the playoffs, thanks to the rookie shortstop that Fitz believed in.
Fitz's phone rang and they were celebrating with them from the suite box while Liv and Fitz were in Rutland. As much as Liv bleeds Yankee blue, she couldn't be happier for Fitz and the town. He scooped her up, kissing her and then just looked into her eyes.
"I never would have done this, become this involved if it wasn't for you. I owe everything to you, Livvie." Her head went to the crook of his neck as she held back tears.
"You and your buddies did some building of the team; I'm not taking any of the credit." Fitz pulled something from behind his back and put the Lake Monsters hat on Liv.
"Hey", she went to take it off, but Fitz stopped her. "No, not yet, you look, well, hot." He kissed her, and Liv didn't care what was on her head. She was in his arms, and for the first time in a long time, they were celebrating true happiness.
Daisy jumped up in her Lake Monsters jersey and followed them as they went to the bedroom to celebrate their victory, together, as Rutland's power couple.
Without letting her take a single step, Fitz put Liv down on the bed, kissing her. Daisy placed herself in her own bed in the corner of the room, and drifted off to sleep. She felt the happiness coming from the humans she loved, and her sleep would be peaceful.
There had been no nightmares from Liv, no PTSD attacks from Fitz, and for a month, Liv and Fitz finally felt their lives had taken a turn for the best, but still, the best is yet to come. Or is it?