The Best Medicine

Chapter Eight:

Tread Softly on my Dreams

"I think that's the last of it." Fitz sat the heavy box he had lugged up the stairs on the floor, looking around the now crowded spare bedroom. Olivia poked her head around a tall stack of boxes, frowning at the state of the room.

"Thank you for helping me."

"I wouldn't expect you to do it alone," he winked, wading a path through the wreckage to where she stood, "I'll get started on taking the bed apart."

"We probably should have done that before moving everything up here," she sighed, fiddling with the flap of one of the cardboard boxes, "I don't even know why I had you carry this stuff up here. I'm getting rid of most of it."

"I'll just have to spend another day helping you get rid of it when you're ready," he smirked, placing a hand on her hip and leaning forward for a chaste kiss before pulling away, making his path through the stacks toward the large bed.

Olivia brought a hand to her lips, grinning at the tingling feel his lips had left behind. She knew she should be sorting through things - organising what she wished to donate, keep, or throw away, but the sight of Fitz kneeling by the bed, his muscles rippling as he worked on taking the wooden headboard apart, was too good to pass. His Mariners jersey hugged his biceps in all the right spots. She averted her gaze quickly when he turned his head. A bemused smile crossed his face as he raised his arms above his head, stretching.

"Pictures last longer," he joked, using the bed to support himself as he stood.

"I…um…," she blushed, twisting around to bury herself in one of the boxes.

"Olivia," he chuckled, coming up behind her, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her cheek, "I didn't know my girlfriend was such a peeping Jane."

"Is that really what it is when you're in my house?" she giggled, tilting her head to the side.

"What else would you call it?" he asked, placing another kiss on her cheek before releasing her. "I'm going to carry the headboard downstairs."

"Do you need help?"

"I've got it."

Later, after he had successfully moved the entire bed to the guest room downstairs and reassembled it, the couple sat at the island in the kitchen sharing a meal of cold-cut sandwiches.

"I don't know if you noticed or not, but there's a new bowling alley on third street," he casually mentioned, shuddering and scrunching his face as she dipped a pickle in ranch.

"I heard something about it," she replied, sticking her tongue out in his direction before biting into the concoction that he had deemed 'toxic' when she had forced him to try it several dates ago.

"It's pretty kid friendly."

"You want to take the kids there?" she raised a brow, looking at him as if he had just grown another head.

"All of our kids…or just you, me, and Bekah if you aren't ready for her to meet mine."

"I think it'll be alright for her to meet your kids - they don't act too much like you," she winked, giggling at the look he threw her way.

"Friday night work for you?"

She nodded - it was her weekend off. She bit her lip, trying to form the words for her next statement. He had asked her on plenty of dates, but she had never asked him:

"I have plans for us Saturday. It's a surprise." Karen had given her the heads-up that his birthday was that weekend and had even helped her plan the perfect birthday surprise for him. She didn't talk much with Jerry - he was a busy, teenage boy who didn't have time for his family let alone his father's girlfriend. She and Karen spoke almost daily, though.

"I'm looking forward to it."

/

"Good morning, sunshine," Maiya barrelled past Olivia, grinning and calling over her shoulder.

"Good morning to you, too?" Olivia sipped at her coffee, mildly surprised when Maiya called over her shoulder:

"I'd stay and chat, but we're getting ready to do a transplant."

Olivia nodded, waving the blonde off and stopping at the nurse's station. Setting her coffee on the wooden counter, she grabbed a tablet, turning the slim device on and quickly logging in. Frowning to herself, she scrolled through the charts on her screen. She had a couple post-ops, but nothing else. It would be a boring day if she didn't find something.

"Doctor Pope!"

She turned at the sound of her name, watching as Cristina Yang shooed interns and nurses out of her way. Leaning against the counter, she waited for the brunette to come to a halt beside her, her face flushed and her eyes shining. Her hair was falling out of her ponytail and she looked like she had just ran the length of the hospital.

"Doctor Yang, can I help you?"

"I have a fourteen year old patient in the clinic. She came in with a fever, diarrhoea, vomiting, fatigue, and confusion. Doctor Percy is trying to release her and treat for a stomach bug."

"And? It sounds like Doctor Percy is doing the right thing - although he should treat for dehydration as well." Olivia turned her back to the young doctor, gently shaking her head. She tried to avoid the drama between the residents - she knew they didn't all get along and most of that could be blamed on the Mercy West merger.

"She just got over chickenpox."

"Okay?" Olivia turned around, facing the woman once more.

"And her mother was giving her aspirin for her fever."

Olivia's mouth opened in understanding, quickly grabbing her tablet from the counter and tucking it beneath her arm. Turning on her heel, she began walking down the hall toward the elevator - gesturing for Cristina to follow her.

"You think she has Reye's Syndrome." Olivia jabbed her finger into the elevator button, tapping her heel as she waited impatiently for the elevator to arrive.

"We'll have to run tests to confirm, but her symptoms add up."

"Do you know how rare this is?" Olivia questioned, stepping into the elevator and waiting for Cristina to do the same before pressing the button for the ground floor. As the elevator slowly came to a halt on the ground floor, Cristina's pager began going off. Ripping the pager from its place on her hip, she read the message flashing across it before turning to Olivia.

"It's a 911 from the clinic."

The two doctors took off at a run toward the clinic, slinging the hospital doors open and running the short distance from the main hospital to the clinic. Inside the clinic, they found a teen girl thrashing on one of the beds, her eyes rolled behind her head and a gaggle of interns and residents standing around the bed.

Shoving past the gaggle of doctors, Olivia laid eyes on an intern: "Get her mother out of here and, you, pull the privacy curtain."

She waited for the doctors to follow her orders, crossing her arms and observing the girl on the bed - at least they had raised the railing so she couldn't roll off the bed. With all the bystanders gone, Olivia turned to Charles Percy: "What have you given her?"

"N-nothing. Cristina wouldn't - " he stumbled through his response, seeming to shrink beneath Olivia's intense gaze.

"Don't try to blame Doctor Yang - she looked at this case from every angle and may have just saved this girl's life," Olivia shook her head at the young doctor. She had heard plenty of horror stories about the kid since he had been transferred. His first day at Seattle Grace he had stolen cases from Izzy Stevens and made snide remarks about her working so soon after going through cancer treatments. Olivia didn't mind bringing the kid down a peg or two. Turning to Cristina she ordered:

"Doctor Yang, when her seizure subsides, please take her to get an MRI and page Doctor Shepherd." The younger doctor nodded as Olivia continued: "If she needs surgery, have Doctor Shepherd page me. Or you can page me. Doctor Percy, this is Yang's case now. You can come to the ER with me and practice your sutures."

She tried not to smirk too much at the bemused look on Cristina's face. She'd be lying if she said that she didn't have a special place for the original Seattle Grace interns over the new arrivals. Part of it was her bias for their teaching program - the original interns had been learning from some of the best from day one and it showed. Shooing Percy out of the room, Olivia guided the doctor in the direction of the emergency room.

/

"It seemed so straightforward," Cristina sighed, slumping against the hard, unforgiving wall and pulling her scrub cap from her head.

"Nothing's ever straightforward," Olivia observed, yanking her own scrub cap from her head and stuffing it in her pocket. Rolling her shoulders, groaning at the popping that followed, she brought a hand to her left shoulder, rubbing the tough knot there. They had spent nearly six hours in what was supposed to be a simple neuro surgery. Dropping her arm, she tilted her head at the sight of the young resident still slumped against the wall.

"We did everything we could, Cristina."

"We could have done more. I could have done more." With that, the brunette shoved herself from the wall and stalked off down the hall. Shaking her head, Olivia began the not short enough trek down the hallway toward the waiting area. This was the worst part of her job - explaining to a parent that they had lost their child. She whipped her head to the side, pausing at the heavy metallic doors, when someone placed their hand on her shoulder. Derek stood beside her, a crease along his forehead and his mouth turned downward in a harsh frown.

"I'll go out there with you," he offered, removing his hand from her shoulder and stuffing it in the pocket of his lab coat.

"You don't have -"

"She was my patient too, Liv. I'm the one who lost her - not you."

Olivia sighed, patting Derek's back before pushing the door open. The two doctors slowly made their way to the woman sitting in the stuffed, blue-leather chair in the middle of the small waiting room. They hung their heads as they inched further, observing the woman's casual conversation with the man seated beside her.

"Mrs. Morrison," Olivia cleared her throat. Years of delivering this sort of news still hadn't prepared her for the look of unbridled optimism she almost always received prior to the bad news. Even worse would be the heartbroken look of betrayal that would follow moments later - this woman had trusted her daughter to Olivia and she had let her down.

"Doctor Pope! How is -"

"Mrs. Morrison, I'm Doctor Shepherd. I was the neurosurgeon who worked on your daughter," Derek interjected, shouldering his way in-between the two women. Olivia sighed - she knew what Derek was doing. He blamed himself for what happened and he was trying to protect her from seeing the mother's reaction. Typical Derek.

"How is she?" Finally, a look of worry had crossed her face.

"Mrs. Morrison, I am so sorry…"

/

"Bad day?" Fitz wondered, walking around the vehicle to open the passenger door for Olivia. She absently slid into the leather seat, settling her purse in the floor and buckling her seatbelt whilst Fitz shut her door and reentered the vehicle on his side.

"We lost a patient today."

"I'm sorry, Liv." He reached across the console to grab her hand as he slowly eased onto the road, quickly putting the bright lights of the hospital behind them.

"I know it happens. I've seen it happen plenty of times, but I'm still never prepared for a child to die."

"I'm sorry, babe."

She had to smile at that. It was the first time he had called her anything other than some variation of her name. Taking a deep breath, she untangled her hand from his and reached for her purse, digging around the large leather bag for her ChapStick.

"Is Doctor Pope okay?"

Olivia whirled her head to the back at the little voice voicing his concern, a smile covering her face. Teddy sat in the middle row of seats in the SUV, buckled securely in a blue and black carseat. Karen and Jerry sat in the back, both focused a little too intently on their phones.

"You didn't tell me you had already picked up the kids."

"All but one."

"And I'm offering to play babysitter tomorrow night," Karen yelled from the back causing both Olivia and Fitz to laugh.

"Laci wouldn't give Bekah up?"

"I thought it would be better if we both picked her up."

Olivia nodded - he had a point. Bekah probably would feel intimated with all the other kids, anyway. Pulling into her driveway, he put the vehicle in park and slid out of the vehicle with Olivia. She dug around in her purse, producing her car keys and passing them to him.

"Her carseat's in the back."

He nodded, taking the proffered keys and moving toward her parked car while she entered her house. By the time she remerged with Bekah on her hip, he had uninstalled and reinstalled the black-purple carseat in his vehicle beside Teddy. Holding the door open for the two, he watched as she placed Bekah in the carseat and quickly fastened her in before placing a soft kiss on her daughter's curls.

"I'm Teddy."

Olivia smiled at the little boy's introduction to her daughter once they were all back in the vehicle and on their way to the bowling alley. She waited with baited breath for Bekah's response - her daughter was shy. She had tried to work on that with the child and had been making some progress before Jake's death and Bekah's subsequent drawing back into herself. It was an uphill battle.

"I'm Rebekah but my mommy calls me Bekah." And from there, the conversation between the two little ones took off. Both Olivia and Fitz exchanged a pleased glance as the chattering in the backseat continued.

"Have you decided what you're doing tomorrow?" Karen asked, sliding onto the seat beside Olivia, watching as her dad showed Bekah how to roll a ball. The little girl was grinning as she slowly eased the ball onto the bowling lane, clapping as it tumbled toward the pins. Bumpers were up on that lane - nobody wanted to listen to Teddy and Bekah's cries when they threw gutter balls.

"Dinner," Olivia responded.

"And?" Karen probed, her eyes shining with curiosity and her tone holding a hint of suggestion.

"You are too young to even be suggesting what you are," Olivia playfully scolded, laughing at the fifteen year old's face.

"I'm not that young," she giggled, "And maybe I was testing you."

"Testing me, huh?"

"I like you. I was trying to see how serious you are with my dad."

"Serious enough that you don't have to worry about me going anywhere anytime soon," Olivia shrugged, standing from her seat and heading toward the bowling lane, grabbing a ball along the way. Fitz stood to the side, leaning in to grab a quick kiss before allowing Olivia to have her turn at the lane.

"I feel like you are way better at this than you let on earlier this week," Fitz complained, laughing when Olivia turned around to stick her tongue out at him. It was her second strike of the night - after she had spent the previous day telling him that she wasn't the greatest at bowling.

"I said I was never the best bowler in my family. We went bowling every Friday night."

"You set me up for failure," he accused, his eyes twinkling. Olivia smiled at that - his daughter had the exact same mischievous twinkle to her eyes when she was joking or planning something.

"You still love me," Olivia blurted, freezing with her arms in the air, in the process of wrapping them around his neck. She hadn't meant for the "L" word to slip out of her mouth and she could feel her cheeks burning with mortification. They hadn't even said that to one another yet. She half-expected him to turn tail and run for the hills after that slip of tongue. Instead, he inched closer, wrapping his arms around her waist and placing his lips on hers, whispering:

"I do love you."

Finally, her arms began listening to her brain once more and she was able to wrap them around his neck, turning her eyes to his. Her heart beat a bit faster and her cheeks no longer felt like they were on fire. A giddy feeling of exuberance came across her and a smile, one that she couldn't wipe off her face no matter how hard she tried, quickly spread across her lips.

"That could have ended much worse than it did," she observed, pecking his lips, "I love you."

With one last, quick kiss the couple released one another, their smiles still planted across their faces. Their family night continued with many laughs and a healthy amount of teasing. By the end of the night, when they were all piled into the SUV, they had finally convinced the two youngest kids that they had won by way of a tie. Breakdown avoided, Teddy and Bekah were lulled to sleep on the way home.

"Do you want me to drop you off at your house? You and Bekah can stay the night - I have an extra guest room."

She grinned at that. Fitz was ever the gentleman - offering her a place to stay and making it known that he didn't expect anything out of the deal. Still…as much as she wanted to say yes, she needed to go home. She still had preparations to make for their date night, but if everything went well, she would be spending the night with him tomorrow.

"I have some things I have to do at home or I would."

/

"You're all smiles," Laci giggled, leaning against the doorframe that led to the yellow and red room. Olivia finished tucking the little girl in, pulling the fuzzy black and white comforter over her chest and kissing her forehead before turning the light light on and tiptoeing out of the room. Laci waited until they had entered the kitchen and each poured a glass of wine before probing:

"So?"

"Bekah loved his kids and they seemed to like her," Olivia grinned, sipping the tart liquid in her glass.

"And? That can't be the only thing that put that goofy smile on your face."

"We said 'I love you'." Olivia's grin grew wider and she tried to hide it behind her wine glass to no avail.

"Finally," Laci huffed, rounding the kitchen island to throw her arms around Olivia's shoulders.

"Finally?"

"I've known since you first introduced Bekah to him, Liv."

Olivia nodded, the excitement from the night finally wearing off and leaving her feeling exhausted. Laci had a point - she wouldn't have introduced Fitz to Bekah if she didn't love him, didn't think their relationship was serious. She had vowed that if she ever did start dating again, she wouldn't be the kind of mother to drag men in and out of her daughter's life.

"I haven't felt like this about anyone since…" Olivia's voice trailed. She still hadn't told Laci about Jake and Angela. Hadn't even mentioned Braxton. She didn't want to talk about it - didn't want to potentially ruin her relationship with Laci. The two had become more than just sister-in-laws in the years following Jake's death - Laci was her best friend. She didn't want to lose her.

"Since Jake. It's okay, Liv. You can say that and I'm not going to judge you for it. Sure he was my brother, but you're my sister. And you deserve to move on with your life. Be happy."

"Thanks, Laci."

/

"Was it okay?" Olivia wondered, wrapping her arm around Fitz's as the two walked around the Bay. Fitz stopped walking for a moment, twisting his shoulders to lean down and kiss her.

"Dinner was perfect," he stated, pulling back and resuming their leisurely pace. A smile covered her face as she clung tighter to him, moving even closer. She had hoped he would enjoy his birthday dinner.

"Karen helped me plan," she admitted, tucking her head into the crook of his shoulder.

"She likes you a lot. You know that?"

"I like her, too. She's a good kid. All of your kids are."

"Teddy keeps asking when he's going to see you again."

"Bekah keeps asking the same thing about you."

"Those two got along well. Teddy said she's his new best friend."

Olivia laughed, "Bekah asked if they can have a play date."

Suddenly, Fitz stopped their trek around the Bay once more. Untangling Olivia's arm from his, he moved in front of her, wrapping his arms around her waist and bending his head to hers. Capturing her lips in a deep kiss, he groaned as she moved her hands to his hair, pulling on the curly strands. Olivia tilted her head back, opening her mouth to his. Pulling away, he rested his forehead against hers, his breaths coming in short, uneven puffs.

"Sorry."

"You have no reason to apologise for that," Olivia grinned, resting her arms on his shoulders.

"I'll let you in on a secret. I haven't been serious with anyone since my ex. I didn't think I would ever meet a girl who would convince me to even try a relationship again."

"I didn't think I would meet anyone, either," Olivia admitted, "But I'm glad I met you."

/

"Please tell me Laci and Bekah aren't here," Fitz smirked, running his tongue over her clavicle.

"Laci took her to see her nana," Olivia moaned, arcing her back against the hard, wooden door of her bedroom. It was the first surface he found to shove her against after entering a more private part of her home. Her hands were in his hair, pulling at his thick locks, as she brought a leg up to wrap around his thigh. Moaning, she spread her legs just wide enough for him to settle into the heat radiating from under her bunched up dress.

"You had this planned," Fitz pulled back just long enough to wink before crashing his lips to hers, his hand moving from her hip to the strap of her dress. Pulling at the thin, scrappy material, he wasn't getting anywhere until Olivia leaned forward, moving his hand to the zipper at the base of her neck. He moved his talented lips to her neck as he pulled at the small, metal piece. The sound of the zipper being pulled down was all that filled the room until he hit the beginning curves of her butt - where the zipper refused to go any further having hit the end of its downward track.

"Happy birthday," Olivia giggled, allowing him to pull the top half of her dress down as he pulled his head back, observing his own actions. She helped by pulling her arms out of the straps, chuckling at his surprised expression once he realised she hadn't been wearing a bra. Shoving her dress to her waist, bunching the top portion with the bottom, he moved his lips to hers.

"Have you always gone to dinner with me braless?" he questioned, moving his lips down her neck and to the swell of her breasts. She tossed her head back, grimacing as it collided with the wooden door, and dug her nails into his shoulders at the feel of him trailing his lips down her sternum. She moaned in disappointment when he pulled away from her, helping her shove her dress from her body before leading her to her bed.

"I think the door was getting a little dangerous," he chuckled, unbuttoning his shirt before tossing it to the floor. She gasped at the feel of his cold belt buckle against her stomach, raising her arms above her head to grip the headboard. He returned his attention to her breasts, making her cry out softly, as he covered her nipple with his mouth, swirling his tongue around the sensitive tip. Removing his mouth with a loud pop, he journeyed further down her body, tossing her legs over his shoulders and giving himself just enough space to settle between them.

Giving her a mischievous grin, he reached forward, using his fingers to gently spread her labia, keeping his eyes on hers while he lowered his head, his tongue darting forward to stroke the bundle of nerves he had exposed. A ragged moan escaped her lips and she pulled at the hand that was gripping her hip, intertwining her fingers with his when he finally let go. She groaned when he nipped the tender bud with his teeth, grinning against her flesh. Over and over again, he brought her to a near release before pulling back to kiss the tender flesh of her inner thighs - only long enough for her to beg him to continue. Finally, when she could take no more, she moved her hands to his hair, holding him in place while he finally let her ride out her orgasm.

With a grin on his face, he stood from the bed. Bending over her, he kissed her slowly before pulling back and undoing his pants - quickly kicking the black nuisances from his body. She tried not to laugh at how prepared he was - he held a foil package in his hand as he returned to the bed. Taking square package from his hands, she ripped it open and pulled the rubber from inside. He inhaled sharply when she took his exposed erection into her hands, tugging at the hardened flesh for a moment before rolling the condom over his length.

Shaking his head, he gently pushed her back onto the mattress and nestled his hips between hers. She gasped at the feel of his erection against her dripping centre, spreading her legs further as he positioned himself. He captured her lips as he slowly pushed forward, his groan swallowed between them at the feel of her wet heat enveloping him.

Closing his eyes, he pulled away from her lips to bury his head in her neck as he began pumping into her. For a brief moment, she almost chuckled at the thought of the hickeys he was leaving - and the amount of teasing she was going to have to put up with at work on Monday. That thought quickly flew out of the window though when he nipped at the base of her throat - a sensitive spot even she didn't know she had, and she felt her whole world shatter around him.

"Livvie," he moaned, moving his head from her neck and capturing her lips in a heated kiss as his movements stilled.

Later, after a shower, the two laid in the large, king sized bed. The grey comforter was tossed somewhere on the floor - not that they needed it. Their bodies were still working on cooling down from their previous activities. Olivia's head rested on his bare chest - they didn't see the point in putting pyjamas on after what they had just done.

"Olivia Carolyn Pope," Fitz whispered, just as her eyes were beginning to slide shut, "I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

She allowed her eyes to flutter shut at his words, a wide grin covering her face.