AN: I do not own Scandal, it all belongs to Shonda Rhimes and ABC.

She got off the plane.

Olivia knew she couldn't just leave like that, Fitz was going through the worst thing that can happen to a parent. There was also the fact that she couldn't trust the man sitting next to her as far as she could throw him, but she did need him to go away. Olivia was well aware that Jake had spilled some files to Rosen before he left, thinking he would be gone for good, far from Rowan's hands, he knew Olivia wanted to stay off his radar so they would not be going where Rowan had planned for her to go. She knew he couldn't come back to chase after her, so she told the pilot to stop and go back, the only thing he could do was to take that plane as far as it could go to save his ass.

Olivia saw the missed calls from Mellie on her phone; she figured Fitz was in trouble, enough for Mellie to make the call herself. When her phone started ringing again, she finally picked up, the First Lady told her Fitz was doing really bad, she couldn't even get him off the floor in his office. She got to the white house in record time, she ran to his office to find him just like his wife said, on his knees in the middle of the oval crying quietly. Mellie was next to him trying to make him feel better, Andrew was there too, looking desperate to help them both, but seeing there was nothing for him to do he just stood on the other side of the office trying not to disturb anyone. When Olivia walked in, Mellie looked up and stood away from Fitz.

"Thanks for coming" She said to Olivia

"I'm sorry I took so long to get here, I got caught up on something" She answered apologetically.

When Fitz heard her voice, he finally looked up, the broken shell of a man that once was Fitzgerald Thomas Grant III looked at her with desperation and grief written all over his face. She slowly walked towards him and kneeled next to him. "Fitz, sweetheart, I'm here, please talk to me" she whispered to his ear. In that moment he lost the little bit of control he had left in him.

He started sobbing uncontrollably. Liv couldn't stop herself from crying too, seeing the love of her life so utterly heartbroken.

"He's gone liv, my baby boy, he's gone" he said between sobs.

Mellie had gone to stand next to Andrew, she had never seen Fitz like that, she was grieving too, and seeing him like that only made her feel worse. Andrew could see how much she was suffering too, he wanted to hold her and make her feel better but at that moment all he could do was reach for her hand.

Fitz sobs started to subside while Olivia stroked his hair and held him as tight as she could. After what seemed like ages he seemed to have calmed down so she decided to try and get him off the floor.

"Honey, can you stand up, to the couch at least, please" she whispered again. He started moving so she took that as a yes. He was shaking as he tried to get up, and Olivia slowly guided him to the couch. Fitz just sat there staring at nothing, she told him she'd be right back, and walked to where Mellie and Andrew were standing.

"I am going to go out briefly and get Cyrus to make the announcement that Fitz won't be addressing the nation today, I know this is far from ideal, but I think I should stay with him tonight" The First Lady simply nodded in agreement. With that she finished her short conversation with them and walked out to take care of things.

She came back shortly after, and told Mellie and Andrew it was all taken care of, Fitz wouldn't have to do his speech until he was ready. They both thanked her and left the office together. They would be staying at the blair house. Liv walked over to Fitz, and sat next to him.
"Fitz, I think you need to get some rest, lets go up to the residence, it's far more comfortable than this" she said sweetly. Again without answer he started moving, he was still shaking, Liv had managed to get him to the couch, but getting him to the residence all by herself would be a lot harder to accomplish.

"Tom, could you please come in here" She spoke loudly enough for him to hear her. He rushed inside the office.

"Could you help me get the President to his room?"
"Yes ma'am"

They both held to one of his arms, Tom was carrying most of his weight, they walked slowly until they reached his bed. He sat down and Tom left them alone. Olivia took his clothes off and got him under the covers. She shut the curtains and turned off the lights. After that, she got undressed too and got in next to him. He held her tight and after a while they both dozed off.

The next morning he woke up alone, and almost panicked, until he heard the water running in the bathroom. She came out of the bathroom, the light was coming in from the windows and Fitz thought it made her look like an angel. She walked back to the bed when she saw he was awake.

"Hi" he said in a low voice. "I thought for a moment I had dreamt the whole thing" he continued.

"Well you didn't, I'm right here" she spoke softly as she sat on the bed and stroked his face "how are you feeling?"

"Better I guess, yesterday was just too much of everything, but having you here helps a lot" he said before grabbing her hand away from his face and placing soft kisses on it.

"How about you take a shower and I get us some breakfast, you need to eat something"

"Ok, I'm not really hungry but I guess I have to eat at some point" He was still holding her hand; he had moved it to rest on top of his heart. She gave him one of those smiles he loved so much, and he found the strength to get up from the bed and go shower.

Once she heard the water running she got her phone and called Huck, one of the few people she could trust.

"Huck, how are things going, is everything working as it should"

"Yes liv, everything is going according to plan" he answered

"Ok, I will try to work things out here as fast as I can"

With that he hung up and she moved on to getting dressed and ordering food.

After a few days Fitz was doing much better, he and Mellie were getting counseling and Olivia was doing her best to comfort him. He was well enough to make his speech and the initial shock was finally passing. She was waiting for him on the dining room for lunch when her main cell phone rang. She knew who it was.

"Dad"

"Olivia" He answered coldly

"I know, what you are thinking, I will leave ok, I just couldn't do it at that moment. Also I wanted Jake to go ahead and get everything ready for my arrival. I had a few things I had to fix before leaving, but don't sweat it Father I'm not staying much longer." She told him firmly, leaving no room for argument. It wasn't exactly what he wanted but he could live with it as long as she left some time soon.

"Ok, just know what we've talked bout, it's for the best, just don't take too long" with that Rowan Pope ended the call and went back to business, he really liked being the boss again.
When Fitz finally arrived he knew something was not ok, he could just feel it. Olivia looked at him and half smiled.

"Fitz we need to talk"

He sat next to her at the table, he knew it was coming, everything was too good to be true, he needed her, but also knew if her mind was made up it would be near impossible to change it. Also it didn't help that Fitz felt he didn't deserve her and thought that he was doing more harm that good to her by having her there in the middle of his messed up life.

"You are leaving me" he said, as a fact not a question. She noticed the tone in his voice, his eyes beginning to water, piercing right through her, but she had to be strong. Everything she was doing was for everyone's best interest.

"I am" she said, barely a whisper. She took a breath to compose herself before she continued. "I have to Fitz, you have to understand, there are so many things that have gone wrong for you, or that have caused you pain that were my fault" she spoke evenly trying to avoid her emotions getting in the way. "But liv," he tried to interrupt, but she held up one hand to stop him and kept going.

"If I stay, all I'd be doing is putting your life, and the lives of everyone you care about, at risk" she continued "Also, you need to fix your family, you have to make things right with your wife, and your daughter so you can get through what happened, and you can't do that properly if I'm here hovering around and clouding your judgment"

She did her best to keep it together but it was not possible, tears were falling down her cheeks already. Fitz reached for her face to wipe the tears away, he knew he had to let her go, but it was too painful.

"Please, one minute" he whispered as he wiped away her tears and felt his own falling freely on his face. Olivia held his gaze and took his hands in hers, she held them for a little while. She finally got up, she stood there in front of him and bent down slightly to kiss his forehead.

"Good bye Fitz" She said, her voice breaking. He just sat there unable to move while the love of his life walked away, and not knowing if she would ever come spent the rest of the afternoon sitting on the same spot, a part of him knew it was coming, but it just hurt too much. He only reacted when Karen walked in the room holding Teddy in her arms.

"Dad, are you ok?" She asked, her voice full of concern. He turned to look at her, and tried to smile.

"Yes, sweetheart, it's just been a long day" he answered. "Would you and Teddy like something to eat?" he asked his daughter hoping to clear the air.

"Sure, you want me to ask the cook?"

"Nope, tonight I'm cooking, lets go to the kitchen, and hope I don't break anything" he said with a smirk.

Karen thought her dad was acting odd, but how could he not after Jerry's death. She just figured he was making an effort to be there for her and Teddy, and she liked the new attitude, she just wished her brother could be there to see it too.

Olivia left the White House to run errands and get some food. A few hours later she drove into a shady area outside of DC, it was getting dark already, she parked behind black Malibu with tinted windows. She got out of her car and got into the other one. Huck was waiting for her inside.

"Huck, I don't mean to question your methods, but did you steal this car?"

"More like I borrowed" he answered trying to lighten things up.

Olivia's moral compass was going a bit crazy with the execution of her plan but it was necessary.

"Anyway, lets get going, we need to move fast, what will you do with my car?"

"Did you remove any personal items of it?" She nodded "then don't worry, in this place, there will be nothing left of it in a few hours. They spent most of the ride in silence; both preoccupied with their own problems as well as the one they shared.