(A/N: I know, I know I suck. Been dealing with life lately. But I haven't forgotten about this story or any of my others. Thank you all for your exceptional patience. I hope you enjoy the chapter!)

"Back and Forth"

Olivia barely registered getting back home to the beach house. Before Fitz put the car in parkshe was out of the door. He ran in the house after her, truly concerned. She hadn't spoken aword since they left the restaurant. He knew she was upset, rightfully so. He couldn't even begin to imagine how she was feeling. Seeing that video of that asshole sexually harassing her had him wanting to beat his ass into a coma all over again. He had no reason to doubt her story before, but seeing it for his very eyes had his blood boiling over.

She ran upstairs and began packing furiously, running to their closet and tossing items out. Fitzwatched her for a moment, it seemed as if she were in a daze. He knew she must have felt highly embarrassed. Not only did that jackass harass her, but now because of the video circulating the internet, everyone in the world could see it.

"Olivia," he called out softly.

But she ignored him, and continued packing. He took a few steps towards her. She ran around him to the closet to grab some more of her things; before heading back to her suitcase and throwing things in at an unnaturally fast pace.

"Liv," he said walking up closer to her.

"Not now Fitz, not now," she pleaded. But he shook his head. She needed to stop, they had to talk about what they were going to do next.

"Livvie," he called out again.

"What!" she snapped, turning towards him.

Her eyes were blazing with fire in them. Fitz didn't even flinch. He took a step towards her, and held his arms open. She rushed to him and buried her head into his chest. Silent tears began tofall as she clung to him for dear life. He wrapped her up in his strong arms, and let her cry it out.

He felt her body start to shake as she began sobbing. He felt his heart break at the sight, but he remained silent; knowing that she needed to do this.

"It's okay baby, I'm here," he whispered, holding onto her tightly. She backed away from him slightly, but he continued to hold her in his arms.

"I can't believe this," she said sadly. "Everyone knows, everyone's gonna think I was weak," she sobbed. "Everyone…" but Fitz cut her off with a light kiss.

When he pulled back he looked her in her eyes and said.

"No one's going to think that sweet baby. Everyone is going to see how hard you fought against that asshole and that you came out the victor. Everyone is going to continue to think you're amazing, just like I do. And if they don't fuck em," he said seriously. She laughed through some of her crying. "No matter what happens Livvie. I'll be here with you every step of the way."

She gave him a watery smile. "Thank you," she whispered, hugging him close. He kissed her on her forehead. "I need to get back to L.A." she told him sadly.

Fitz frowned, but he understood. "Okay, you keep on packing and I'm going to charter us a plane."

"Us..." she shook her head. She didn't want to ruin their vacation. "Fitz baby you don't have to leave. You've still have some vacation days."

He took her face in his hands. "And I'm going to spend them with you. I told you we're in this together."

She beamed at him, he always knew exactly what to say when she needed to hear it the most.

He wiped the tears from her eyes. "I love you," she told him earnestly. He pecked her lips once more.

"I love you too, always. Now let's get ready to go."

She nodded. He let her go and pulled out his cell phone to make a call to get them a plane.

Olivia continued to pack at a much more reasonable pace this time. But she was still lost in thought. She couldn't shake the feeling that a storm was coming her way. She just hoped that they'd be able to weather it together.

Cyrus contacted her by the time they reached the tarmac about an hour later. He was happy to hear that she was on her way back. He let her know that he would schedule a live press conference for her tomorrow, and that they'd be taking questions. He asked her to prepare a statement about what happened, and to prepare herself for anything. She thanked him for scheduling the press conference to give her a platform to speak her truth, and she assured him that she'd be ready.

Fitz and Olivia settled into the plush leather seats on his private jet. Olivia was fidgeting and nervous. She had her phone in her hand and it was shaky as she tried to think of what to say.

Fitz grabbed her shaky hand hand and she looked over at him. "He's going to pay for this Livvie, we're going to make him pay no matter what. I promise you." She nodded. "I know you're upset about the video coming out, but this could work in your favor babe. Now everyone can see what a dirtbag that bastard really is. No one should question your

story after seeing that fucking video," he growled.

She nodded silently. She knew he was angry, possibly more angry than she was. But they both needed to keep level heads if they were going to get through this.

"Will you help me with my statement?" she asked quietly. He squeezed her hand and smiled at her softly.

"Of course I will."

She flashed him a grateful smile. Before she could say something else, she felt her phone vibrating. It was her mom. She sighed heavily. Fitz looked over at her phone and sighed as well.

"You should take that," he encouraged. She shook her head.

"I don't need anymore distractions right now Fitz." She remembered how their last conversation ended, and she wasn't in the mood for another explosive argument.

He rubbed her thigh trying to provide her some comfort. "You said your mom knows the industry very well right?" Olivia nodded. "Well she might be able to help you. If you let her." Fitz sat back in his chair, and looked out of the window. While Olivia finally caved in and answered the phone.

"Hello mom."

Maya let go of a breath she didn't know she was holding. "Liv, I'm so happy you answered, how are you doing?" she asked carefully.

Olivia sighed deeply. "Not too good mom."

Maya nodded; though Olivia couldn't see her. "I know baby, I know. I want to help you Livvie.

Whatever you need me to do. I'll do it." she told her sincerely.

Olivia saw the fasten seatbelt sign turn on. "Thanks mom, but I have to go. I'm on a plane

heading back to L.A."

"Okay baby, let me know when you land."

"I will." she promised, and she hung up the phone.

She leaned over, and laid her head on Fitz's shoulder. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and she snuggled into him.

"We'll get through this together Livvie, I promise you." He kissed her forehead, and she felt herself drifting off to sleep. She was clearly exhausted. Besides tomorrow would surely be a whirlwind of activity.

Once they landed and got home; Olivia took a shower while Fitz took a nap. He stayed awake for most of the flight. He was so worried about Olivia. He knew she was putting up a strong front, but he didn't know how much longer she could keep this up. She was a strong woman; that was one of the things he loved about her. But he'd done press conferences before. Mainly after his horrible behavior led to even worse headlines in the tabloids. He knew firsthand how difficult it could be making a statement, and taking questions about something so personal. He just hoped she'd continue to be strong throughout this whole situation. But even if she couldn't; he'd be strong for her.

Olivia watched Fitz slumber for a moment after she finished getting dressed. As promised she notified her mom when she landed. She also spoke with Cyrus a bit before showering. She was about to head out to meet Cyrus at the record company in a little while to go over her statement before the press conference began. She walked over to the bed where Fitz was lying down and kissed him on the cheek.

He stirred a little, and opened his eyes slowly. "Hey Livvie."

"Hey baby," she smiled at him widely as he pulled her to him. He moved over on the bed so that she could sit down next to him; while he was still lying there.

He sat up and wrapped his arms around her waist. "You ready for this babe?"

She sighed heavily and leaned into him. "As ready as I'll ever be."

He turned her to him and kissed her softly on the lips. "You're going to be great Livvie, and I'll be there with you every step of the way." She gave him a sad smile and patted his leg affectionately.

"I still don't know what I did to deserve you." He grinned at her.

"I'm the lucky one. Everyone knows it and I love you."

She kissed him passionately, deepening the kiss before he could think. He pulled her onto his lap and she straddled him. She began to grind against him, and his erection sprang to life almost instantly. She gasped into his mouth as she felt it. He placed his hands on her hips and squeezed down lightly. She broke the kiss and looked into his eyes. They were stormy with desire. She could feel herself slowly losing control.

"Mmmhh...Fitz I have to go.I'm...I'm meeting Cyrus soon…" she moaned as he kissed her neck.

"I'll be quick," he murmured against her skin.

She giggled. "No you won't." He smiled against her and rubbed her thighs.

"You're right. Guess we'll have to save this for later." He pouted and Olivia laughed. She grabbed his face in her hands and kissed him softly.

"We will pick this up when I get back."

He frowned. "Livvie I told you that I want to be there with you."

"I want you there too baby, but you need to get some rest. I'm meeting with Cyrus first anyway. The press conference doesn't start for another hour and a half. Get some sleep and meet me there later," she told him.

He sighed. He was tired but he wanted to be there for her. "I'll be fine," he said, but a yawn escaped, and betrayed him. She laughed again and got off of his lap to stand up.

"Get some rest baby, I'll see you later."

Olivia left their house a few minutes later. Once she arrived at the record company she went to meet Cyrus in his office. After getting past the paparazzi camped outside she went to the elevator to go to his floor. He was waiting for her at the elevator as she arrived. She stepped off and gave him a hug.

"How you holding up kiddo?" he asked as they pulled apart.

She shrugged. "Okay I guess." He nodded in understanding, and motioned for her to walk to his office. She began walking and he followed beside her.

"Where's that superstar boyfriend of yours? I thought you two were joined at the hip," he joked. She smiled brightly.

"He's getting some rest. He'll be here later," she told him.

Cyrus nodded. He was glad she had someone in her corner. Of course he was always team Liv; had been since before they signed her. But he had to at least appear to remain neutral. He knew that she and her mom had a falling out. So having Fitz by her side and publically in her corner would be good for her. He'd done press conferences before and even when you thought you were most prepared, the slightest thing could catch you off guard.

Once they got to his office; he took a seat behind his desk and she took a seat in front of him.

He stared at her for a moment and sat back in his chair. "Look Liv, I'm gonna be straight with you. Even with the video evidence coming out you're going to be fighting an uphill battle. Jake Ballard is a well known, and well respected artist here and in the industry. Some people stillwon't believe your story no matter what."

Olivia scowled deeply. "So what do I do? I mean, what can I do? If people won't believe me regardless of what they see and hear what's the point?"

Cyrus sat up straight and said "The point is that your story needs to be heard. You deserve to be heard. You may have not been in the business as long as Jake Ballard, but you're almost just as popular as he is. People love you Olivia, you reach people in a special way. And you're not the only person this has happened too."

Olivia looked over at him curiously. "What do you mean?"

Cyrus sat back again, and chose his words carefully before he spoke again. "I mean that

women across America, and even some men go through similar situations like this. Hell all over the world people are sexually harassed every day. Women across this country will sympathize and empathize with you, trust me on this Liv."

Olivia nodded, but she couldn't help but feel like there was more he wanted to say. Before she could dwell on it for too long, he said.

"Jake Ballard has been on defense since the video came out."

Olivia looked Cyrus straight in the eyes. "What!"

Cyrus sighed. "He's put videos and post messages on his instagram, twitter and facebook page claiming innocence."

Olivia's eyes narrowed as she spoke. "How the fuck could be defending his actions, when the video has made it very clear what happened."

Cyrus pulled out his phone and scrolled to something, then he handed her the phone and she pushed play. Jake Ballard's face came on the screen. It was a video from his Instagram page. He looked to be at home sitting on the couch as he recorded this live video.

"What's up guys, Jake Ballard here." He paused for dramatic effect. "Look I know there've been rumors going around about me and Olivia Pope, but I'm here to let you guys know that none of that BS is true." He took a sip of beer before he continued. "I won't go into detail because I don't want to disrespect my fellow label mate. But Jake Ballard does not... I repeat does NOT pursue romantic advances on someone that doesn't want it." He sighed and took another sip. "I don't know maybe she's doing all of this because she doesn't want to ruin her relationship with her little boyfriend ," he said sarcastically, smirking as he did so. "But that's got nothing to do with me" He looked away from the camera and yelled to someone in the background.

"Johnny do me a favor and grab me another beer dude." The person's response was muffled. Jake rolled his eyes at the guy. "Come on bro! I'm shooting a fucking live here," he argued. He looked back into the camera smiling and said. "You see what I have to deal with here. As I was saying; I know what it looks like in that video, but the feelings were mutual." He finished off his beer. "I'm Jake Ballard, I don't have to force myself on any girl no matter who they are," he said arrogantly. "Anyway thanks for the support. I love you guys and don't forget my new single Lovestoned is streaming on all platforms."

Olivia glared at his face the whole time she watched the video. Once it ended she felt like

throwing Cyrus's phone across the room. She couldn't believe the audacity of this asshole to sit on Instagram Live and blatantly lie like that, was unbelievable. He didn't apologize. It didn't even seem like he took the situation seriously. It was all a joke to him, and that made Olivia even more upset.

"Are you fucking serious Cyrus? I can't let him get away with this. Anyone with eyes can see what that bastard did and tried to do to me. It's on camera for fucks sake!" she yelled in outraged.

Cyrus frowned. "I know and that's the reason why I scheduled this press conference for you.

Your story needs to be heard directly from you. I know you've been strong in dealing with this situation. But I need you to be absolutely resolute in this press conference today. He's a giant in the industry, he has a lot of notable people at this company backing him. I need you prepared for this."

Olivia nodded feeling more determined now than ever. "I will be."

Cyrus clapped his hands together and said. "Good, now let's hear this statement of yours."

Once Olivia left the house. Fitz took a forty-five minute nap; then he got up, and got ready to head to the press conference. Once he arrived at the record company, the valet parked his car and he made his way through the paparazzi to head inside the building. They were all shouting questions at him as they always did. But one question in particular got his attention.

"Fitz...Fitz...over here! Is the video of Olivia Pope being harrassed by Jake Ballard the reason for the brawl you had with him a while back?"

Fitz walked over closer to the guy that asked him that question and said. "Jake Ballard is a perverted son of a bitch, and I'll break his fucking face if he comes near me or my girlfriend ever again!"

After saying this Fitz continued to walk into the building. The paparazzi were still yelling

out questions to him, but he ignored them and kept on going.

Olivia and Cyrus were heading to the third level of the building where the press conference was being held. They'd gone over her statement a few times now and even did some tweaking to it to make it perfect. Olivia read over it a few times and thought it was as good as it was going to get. She was nervous, very nervous. But Cyrus was right. Her side of the story deserved to be heard. She hadn't said a word about the incident since the video surfaced. Now that was about to change. Fitz texted her to let her know that he'd arrived and she told him to meet them on the third floor.

Cyrus could sense her nervousness and looked over at her as they got to the elevator. "Don'tworry kid, you'll do great." She flashed him a nervous smile but nodded. The elevator came and they stepped inside.

She couldn't help the erie feeling she got when she stepped inside. It all came down to this. Would the public believe her? She knew the odds were stacked against her as a woman. Even with the video coming out people still believed Jake Ballard. Most of the comments on his video were showing support for that asshole. How was she supposed to compete with that. She felt anxiety coming over her as her nerves started going into overdrive. What if they didn't believe her? What if nothing happened to Jake Ballard? What if...Well she didn't have time to contemplate the what if's anymore.

The elevator dinged signalling that they had reached their floor. Cyrus stepped off first and she followed. Fitz was there to greet her once she stepped off the elevator. She smiled happily at him, feeling some of her nerves begin to fade. He really was her safe place.

"Hey sweet baby, how are you holding up?" he asked as he pulled her into an embrace. She melted into him and held on for a long time.

"Better now that you're here." She mumbled into his shirt. He kissed her forehead.

"No place I'd rather be," he told her honestly.

Cyrus cleared his throat. "Do you guys want me to leave?" he asked smiling brightly. Young love was beautiful. Olivia laughed and Fitz rolled his eyes as she stepped out of his embrace.

"Good to see you Cyrus." Fitz shook his hand and Cyrus nodded.

"Nice to see you as well Fitz. Thank you for being here today."

Fitz wrapped his arm around Olivia's shoulder, and pulled her closer. "Always."

She looked up at him with so much love, and admiration in her eyes it made Cyrus want to puke, but in a good way. Everyone deserved to have the kind of love these two had for each other. He was about to comment on it, when he felt his phone vibrating. He looked down at it to press ignore; but when he saw who was calling, he knew that he needed to answer it immediately.

"Will you two excuse me for a moment, I have to take this," he said. They both nodded, and he walked off a bit to take the call.

Once Cyrus left, Fitz looked down at Olivia taking her in. "How are you feeling; really?" he asked knowing that she was probably putting up a tough front for Cyrus.

"Nervous, anxious. I just really want to get this over with," she told him, staring down at her feet. He put his finger underneath her chin and gently moved her head upward towards his. He placed a soft kiss on her lips. "I'm so proud of you Livvie," he whispered.

"I have no idea what you're going through, but to see you persevere anyway is inspiring. And no matter what happens today, I want you to know that I'm proud of you and I'll always be here for you no matter what."

She smiled at him sadly, unshed tears in her eyes. Blue gazing into brown, lost in that moment, she knew that she could make it through anything as long as she had him by her side. She wanted to convey her feelings to him at that very moment. But Cyrus came back looking a little unhinged.

He walked over towards them muttering angrily under his breath. He huffed as he got in front of them, placing his hands on his waist. He looked around at everything but them, before zeroing in on them. Whatever he was about to say, was something he was dreading.

Not being one to beat around the bush Cryus just decided to blurt it out. "They've cancelled the press conference!" he hissed.

Olivia's eyes went wide as saucers. Whatever she thought he was going to say, it wasn't that. She'd lost her ability to speak it seemed, because she'd stayed quiet for a full five minutes after Cyrus broke the news to her. Fitz however, had plenty to say.

"What the fuck do you mean they've cancelled the press conference!" He moved closer to Cyrus in a menacing way and Cyrus took a step back. "That fucking bastard sexually harrassed her! It's all over social media and all the blogs! It's every fucking where and they just cancelled!" He yelled.

Cyrus kept about as calm a head as he could, considering the fact that he was just as angry as Fitz. "Yes, they cancelled it. Something about not being able to get into contact with Jake Ballard for a statement. They said it wouldn't be fair to him to let Olivia speak first without hearing his side of the story." Even as Cyrus said this he struggled to get past the bullshit he was relaying to them.

"You've got to be kidding me! Call them back, call them back right fucking now! They're going to uncancel this press conference and that prick is going down for what he fucking did! Call them Cyrus!" yelled Fitz again. Cyrus shook his head.

"It's no use. Jake Ballard has Samuel Reston in his pocket. And Mr. Reston is the Vice

President here at the company."

Fitz glared at him and threw his hands up in disbelief. "I don't give a fuck who this asshole is! Where's his office I'll go talk to him myself!" he insisted.

Cyrus sighed heavily. "He's not here Fitz. He's in Prague on vacation."

"Well isn't that fucking convienent!" hissed Fitz. "To hell with that guy, let's do the press

conference anyway." Cyrus gave out an frustrated sigh, and shook his head again.

"We can't. If we do the press conference against the wishes of the company, we risk drawing legal action. Olivia will lose millions. She's still under contract here for her next three albums. Anything we do in spite of the company will affect her in a very negative way."

Fitz couldn't believe this shit. These fucking cowards were just going to let this jackass get away with this! He wasn't going to stand for that! Not in a million years! Before he could speak up Olivia interrupted him.

"Let's go." She spoke so quietly that he almost didn't hear her. Fitz looked down at her shocked.

"What? No Olivia that asshole needs to pay! We need to…." she cut him off.

"We need to what Fitz!" she asked her voice getting a little louder than she wanted it too.

"You heard Cyrus...There's nothing we can do! Our hands are tied and I want to leave. I'm tired of being here; thinking about this shit. I just…." she stopped speaking as she felt her emotions began to take over. Fitz rushed to her side quickly, wrapping her up in his strong arms as she shed a few tears. He comforted her.

"It's okay Livvie, we can go. We can go," he repeated, rubbing her back in soothingly.

Through all of his anger and rage, he quickly forgot that she was the sole reason for him being here. He needed to be there for her. He swallowed all of his angry thoughts and focused on just her alone.

She pulled back away from him and got herself together, before she turned and faced Cyrus.

Without looking at him, she said. "Thanks for trying to help Cyrus," her voice was devoid of emotion. She walked past him without saying another word. Fitz followed behind her and nodded at Cyrus politely as they got to the elevator. Olivia pushed the button and as they stepped on Cyrus called out to her.

"Use your voice! Don't take this as a lost Liv. Use your voice!" he repeated. Olivia didn't know what he meant by that; but the his words wouldn't stop ringing in her ears. She had to find a way to use her voice.

Once they got home, Fitz decided to try and make them something to eat while Olivia took a shower. Cyrus's words were still stuck in her mind. Use your voice. She wanted too, but she just didn't know how.

After getting dressed, she was going to head back downstairs to see if he'd managed to

successfully make them something without burning it. But her cell phone was ringing. She looked down at it to see that her mother was calling. She had a silent debate in her head, before finally answering. On the one hand, she didn't really feel like talking to anyone except for Fitz. But on the other hand, maybe her mom could help her figure out what Cyrus meant.

"Hey mom."

"Hey Livvie, I've been waiting to hear from you all day. How was the press conference? When will it air?" she fired off questions so fast Olivia's head felt like it would spin.

"They cancelled the press conference before we got started."

Maya had a feeling that would happen. As she looked further into Jake Ballard she found out who he was connected too at the record label. Samuel Reston had been in an off again on again fling with Jake Ballard's mother for over twenty-five years. There was a huge possibility that Jake Ballard was his biological son. For that reason Reston along with the help of some of the other people on the board, covered up every dirty little detail of Jake Ballard's inappropriate behavior with women in the past. Well she was not going to let that happen with her daughter.

She dropped the ball once, which was a regret she was going to have to live with until the end of her days. But not this time around, she swore to herself. First she needed to see where Olivia's head was at.

"Oh baby, I'm so sorry," said Maya sympathetically. "Well what are you going to do about it?" she asked.

Olivia sighed heavily. "I don't know that there's anything that I can do about it mom. Cyrus

already said that we can't release any type of statement through the record company. Without them backing me, do I really even have a chance at taking this bastard down."

Her daughter sounded dejected and hopeless, this was certainly not the strong young woman she raised. "Of course you do. You're Olivia Pope. Two years ago you didn't have a record deal, or the number one album in country. There's nothing you can't do baby," she encouraged. Olivia smiled softly, even though they didn't see eye to eye all the time. In her own crazy way, she knew her mom loved her very much.

"Thanks mom."

"Don't mention it, and baby, there are other ways that you can speak out. Ways that will have nothing to do with the record company you are signed too." Olivia felt confused.

"How mom?" she asked again.

"How'd Jake Ballard speak out?" Maya asked knowingly. Olivia thought about going that route. But it seemed like it wasn't big enough, plus the label was not behind her. She felt like she needed them for validity.

"He went on instagram; but I wanted to do this with the record label backing me," she told her.

"You don't need them Livvie. You've got your phone, and you've got your story baby. All you need is YOU." Maya stated as a matter of fact. Olivia considered her words as Maya continued on. "They're trying to cover this up and sweep it under the rug because a no good man's career will be threatened. They're trying to take your voice. They want to control the situation. But this situation isn't there's to control. This happened to you. And you need to stand firm in your beliefs. You need to speak your truth Livvie. Don't let them take that away from you."

Olivia thought it over, and her mother was right. The big wigs at the record company would continue to let Jake get away with this crude behavior if someone didn't stand up, and speak out. The next girl might not be able to get away like she did. And Olivia was not going to stand for that!

"You're right. Thanks mom."

Maya smiled on the other side of the phone as she heard the focus and determination find it's way back into her daugthers voice. There was the young woman she raised. These record label fools didn't know what they were in for. "Of course baby. Make them listen."

Fitz had been in the kitchen since they'd gotten home. He was going to try and make a fancy dinner for Olivia to help her feel better. Today had definitely not gone as planned and he knew that she wasn't ready to talk about it right now. But he thought that maybe she'd want to talk about it over dinner. But he was failing miserably at every dish he attempted to make.

He burned the chicken twice, over cooked the rice, and undercooked the vegetables. He truly was a hopeless case when it came to culinary arts. It was a good thing she loved him anyway. He thought with a small smile. He quickly pulled out a menu from their favorite Thai place and ordered them a meal for delievery. Once he was done ordering he hung up the phone and was getting ready to check on Olivia, when he heard her voice behind him.

"Thanks for getting the extra Sweet Chilli sauce babe." He turned to face her, and she had a wide smile on her face as she noticed the diaster that was their kitchen.

"So you're not dissapointed that you won't be getting the honey baked chicken I promised you," he asked nervously. She shook her head and walked over to him. She took his face in her hands and kissed him softly.

"I'm in the mood for Thai anyway." He smiled and pecked her on the lips again.

"How are you feeling." she sighed and shrugged.

"I just got off the phone with my mom." He raised a curious eyebrow.

"Oh."

"Yeah. I wanna ask you something," she said brushing over her previous statement. Fitz decided to let it go for now. She obviously had a lot on her mind right now.

"Ok shoot."

"What do you think about me taking my story to instagram. I mean I know it's kind of cheesy seeing as that's exactly what that jerk did. But I really want my side of the story to be heard."

She gazed up at him anxiously. Olivia knew her mom thought it was a good idea, and she was halfway on board herself. But making her statement this way could have negative consequences as well. Especially once the record label got wind of it. But she needed to get her story out somehow and this seemed like a good way to do it. Still she wanted Fitz's support above anyone else. He was her rock, her partner. His opinion mattered the most.

"I think it's a great idea Livvie." She shook her head, doubt creeping into her mind. He took her face in his hands, and she looked up at him shyly. "Your side of the story is the only side that matters because it's the truth," he said confidently. "Everyone who's seen that video, everyone who's doubted you, anybody that might come into contact with that bastard in the future deserves to know what kind of sick person he truly is. I think...No I know you should do it."

She nodded feeling like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. "Okay." He gazed into her eyes to make sure that he heard her right. She nodded.

"Okay." He repeated.

Olivia decided to film her statement in the living room. She tried to get as comfortable as she could before she began. She didn't write anything down because she remembered everything that happened that night. She just hoped that she could keep her emotions in check as she recalled one of the worst nights of her life. She saw Fitz sit down on the arm chair facing her. He insisted on being there for moral support, but she needed him to keep his emotions in check as well.

"Promise me that you'll stay in your seat babe. I'm about to go live and I have to be able to focus on this fully."

He frowned but nodded in understanding. Fitz was still very upset, but he didn't want to be a distraction to her while she relived this terrible incident. "I won't move Livvie. I promise." She nodded gratefully, and took a deep breath. "You've got this," he whispered.

She blew out another nervous breath before pressing record. Her instagram lit up with thousands of views before she even spoke a word. Her fans were writing messages of love and wishing her well. She decided to speak up before she lost her nerve.

"Hi everyone." She managed a small smile. "First I want to start by thanking everyone that has reached out to me with messages of support and love while I'm dealing with everything that has transpired these past few days. My fans truly mean the world to me, and I want you all to know that I appreciate each and everyone of you." Her views were now close to one million, she felt her nerves going haywire, but she pressed on anyway.

"A few months ago, I was overseas on tour. My record label mate Jake Ballard joined me for the last part of my tour in Germany. While I was out celebrating the end of my tour with my band and dance crew at a popular nightclub in Berlin; Jake Ballard and his entourage showed up to the club. They came unannounced and univited. Still my party allowed them to join us at our VIP tables in the club. Shortly after they arrived I decided that I'd had enough partying. I was going to use the restroom and turn in for the night."

She paused shortly before continuing on with the hardest part of her story. Fitz sat back and nodded at her encouragingly. He knew that he would have a hard time listening to this next part. But the truth had to be told. She closed her eyes briefly willing herself to get through this. When she opened her eyes again, she took a deep breath and continued on.

"Once I came out of the restroom Jake Ballard was standing there, and after startling me; he grabbed me by my arm, and forced me towards him. He was drunk, obnoxious and very arrogant. I did not feel safe in his presence. I let him know this and asked him to let go of my arm. But he did not. He pulled me up against him and tried to force himself on me. Despite my protest he continued trying to force himself on me, while saying some very vulgar things to me. He refused to let go of me. The music in the club was very loud drowning out my shouts of discomfort, which terrified me. I had no idea what he would try to do, or if anyone would ever hear me calling out for help."

A stray tear escaped as she said this, and Fitz fought the urge to go to Olivia, and pull her in his arms. He wanted to murder that asshole for what he did. Not to mention, those stupid fucks at the record label for trying to let him get away with this.

Olivia wiped the tear from her eye before continuing. She now had about 1.5 million views, and the views were still climbing. "Sorry," she apologized to her audience and cleared her throat; then she continued. "Finally after struggling against him for some time, I was able to catch him off guard, and get myself free from his hold. But not without having to physically injure him first. Since then I've obtained a restraining order against him." She showed a copy of the restraining order to her instagram audience. And watched as they took this in. The comment section was overflowing with messages of outrage, support and even some of indifference.

"He has not apologized or even acknowlegded his actions. But I don't want an apology. I want to expose him for who and what he is. Jake Ballard sexually harrassed me!" She said that statement with conviction. Her words were not to be doubted, and her instagram audience stood behind her. Most of them had words of encouragment for her, others couldn't believe what they were hearing. But still she continued.

"He made me feel unsafe, and scared. And he should not get away with that just because of who he is! I know he's not the only person who's ever done something like this before. But I'm pleading with anyone who's listening to stand with me. We need to start holding these people accountable. If it happened to me it can happen to anyone. And the next person they come into contact with might not be so lucky as I was, to get away. We need to force people like him to take responsibility for their actions. Only then will we truly see change."

She ended her Instagram Live by thanking all of her fans for their support once more, and she promised that she would see this thing through until Jake Ballard faced the consequences for his actions.

Fitz sat quietly in his seat as she finished up. She told him briefly about her encounter with Ballard briefly when it first happened; but to hear every detail from start to finish really shook him. Jake Ballard deserved every punch he'd landed that day at the record company and more for what he'd done. And if Fitz had anything to say about it, his fist would have another meeting with Jake Ballard's face very soon.

But as he looked at Olivia all he felt was pride swelling up in his chest. She was so brave from start to finish. Retelling that story so vividly had to be incredibly hard. Yet she did it anyway; regardless of how she felt because she wanted everyone to know her truth. Not only did he love this girl something fierce but he also respected the hell out of her. He hoped that people would listen to her story and hear the truth as it was. But even if they didn't he'd always be on her side.

He was so lost in thought that he didn't see her standing in front of him. "Well, how'd I do?" she asked nervously.

He stood up and pulled her into his arms, holding her in a tight embrace. "You were amazing sweet baby. And I don't care who believes you we're gonna take this bastard down." He promised.

She held onto him tightly wanting to believe what he said with everything in her. But she knew that she was facing major opposition. Jake was the bigger star, he quietly had the big wigs at the record label backing him, even though she knew they'd never admit it. But still she hoped her message got through to someone; anyone that wanted to see perverts face justice just as much as she did. Little did she know her prayer would be answered a lot sooner than she thought.

That night Fitz held her until she fell asleep. She woke up very late in the afternoon, but she felt well rested and lighter than she had in days. No matter who believed her she got to say her piece, and in the end that was one of the things that mattered most. Fitz was sitting up in bed next to her scrolling through his timeline, grinning like a chesire cat. She turned over to him sleepily wiping her eyes and said.

"What has you so chipper this morning?" He turned to look at her grinning still.

"You." She raised a confused eyebrow. "And this." He passed her his phone, and she saw that she was trending at number three. The number one trend was a hash tag that had become popular over night called #ItHappenedToMe.

"What is this?" she asked him, sitting up as she scrolled through his twitter feed.

"Some other celebrities, and women around the world were inspired by your video yesterday. They all started sharing similar stories of facing harassment, whether it be in their workplace, or just walking down the street. It sparked this hashtag," he told her proudly.

Olivia read a few tweets, still in slight disbelief; that she helped to start off such an inspiring movement.

A man once grabbed my behind on the subway. It was crowded, and I was on my way to work. I didn't say anything to him because I was ashamed, and scared. But not anymore. #ItHappenedToMe.

I went out to a club with some friends one night, and a man bought me a drink. He slipped something into it without me noticing. He followed me into the bathroom, and the details are fuzzy. I've never told anyone because I blamed myself for accepting his drink. #ItHappenedToMe.

A supervisor at my office stares at my chest every time we have a conversation or a meeting. I've never told anyone because I just got this job and need it to pay my bills. But he makes me feel uncomfortable and dirty. #ItHappenedToMe

The tweets she read both angered, and moved her. There were thousands of them all sharing similar stories of harassment under the hashtag #ItHappenedToMe. But the tweets that surprised her the most were of fellow celebrites sharing their stories. Her new friend Actress Alyssa Wong tweeted.

On set one day during a kissing scene my costar forced his tongue inside my mouth and groped me during rehearsal. Everyone acted like it was normal, but I felt disgusted and embarassed. #ItHappenedToMe.

Even Abby took to her twitter and wrote to her ever growing following from her modelling career.

During the very early days of my modeling career, I played the love interest in one of Jake Ballard's music video. He put his hand down my shirt and rubbed himself against me inappropriately during a filming break. I never said anything because I was scared and didn't want to lose my first modeling job. Or be labeled difficult. #ItHappenedToMe.

Olivia felt her heart break at that. She'd seen Abby shortly after her music video shoot, and Abby hadn't said anything about it to her then. She was all smiles; putting on a front. She felt the sudden urge to reach out to her former best friend, and thank her for sharing her story. But then she noticed an even more high profile star who tweeted about Jake Ballard, and his harassment. Country Singer, and five time grammy award winning artist Jeanine Locke.

At the beginning of my career I went on tour with Jake Ballard, and a few other artist. We stopped at a hotel in Dallas, Texas to stay while we performed out there. One night he followed me to my room demanding entry. He then proceeded to try and sexually assault me, but my bodyguard burst into the room once he heard me screaming. #ItHappenedToMe #JakeTheHarasser

Jeanine Locke had #JakeTheHarasser trending at number five. While #ItHappenedToMe trended at number one and #CancelJakeBallard trended at number two. Olivia Pope herself, remained the number three trend.

"Oh my God!" exclaimed Olivia in shock. This was just unbelievable so many women coming forward with their stories. It truly made her feel like she wasn't alone.

Fitz grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "I know baby, I know." He knew how much it meant that she had this huge amount of support. Not only did people believe her. They stood with her by sharing their own hurtful stories. This meant the world to Olivia. Fitz was just happy that she could finally see how brave she was, and that other people saw it too.

She looked over at him unshed tears shining in her eyes. But these weren't tears of sadness. These were tears of admiration, and relief. He held onto her hand as she continued to scroll through his twitter app.

Turns out there were several hundred women that Jake Ballard had come into contact with, and harassed over the years. Some women even claimed that he raped them. Olivia felt sick to her stomach, and disgusted by these revelations. She didn't even have to wonder why none of their stories were ever told. Enterprise records cleaned it up for him. Well no longer would he be able to hide behind their shady record label. It was time he started paying for his crimes!

(A/N: Aww shucks I went and started my own version of the MeToo movement. LOL. But no seriously I've been leading my story into this direction for a while now. Some reviewers even caught onto it way early one and let me just be the first to say that Jake Ballard won't be the only one taken down by this movement! Much respect to all the women and men who deal with sexual harassment on a daily basis it is not and should never be considered the norm. Anyway enough of my rant. Next up support for Olivia continues to flood in, she has another meeting with the record label, this time it's with the direct head of the company and the meeting doesn't go as she expected. We find out who exactly was behind the release of the clear version of the video and Fitz has another run in with angry Ex Adnan! Uh oh LOL. I promise not to stay away too long this time. As always R&R and let me know what you all thought about the chapter. Till next time...)