𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐘 - the gossip girl

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𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐕𝐈𝐀 𝐖𝐎𝐊𝐄 𝐔𝐏 earlier than usual the next morning, most likely because of the amount of sleep she had the previous day.

Her eyes stayed shut, not willing to burn out her retinas from the sunlight just yet. Her brows furrowed as she registered the heat radiating from beside her. Her hand splayed out, feeling a fabric that certainly didn't belong to the bed or its sheets.

With a small exhale of air, she opened her eyes and slowly she registered the murky green material that was beneath her head and hand. Apparently at some point through the night both she and Matthew had shifted closer together; her head was resting on the man's chest alongside one of her hands that was clutching at the sweater he wore.

One of Matthew's arms was wrapped around her, keeping her close and their legs were in a tangled mess. She stayed silent and still, it didn't bother her at all, in fact, she was rather warm and comfortable.

Her head did twitch however when she heard voices that filtered in from outside the building and they definitely were not voices she had heard whilst staying in the apartment at all.

"Alpha Team on approach."

"Matt?" Olivia whispered as she tapped on his chest, pushing herself to sit up.

Matthew groaned as his eyes opened, he was still aching from the past couple of days and the moment Olivia had moved, the lack of heat had woken him. "What?"

"Listen."

Matt did as the woman said, he pushed himself up as his head tilted to the side as he focused his hearing.

"FBI. Get back in your apartment and close the door."

"We have to go," he muttered as he silently jumped out of the bed and threw Olivia her jacket which she promptly caught and slid on without hesitation before slipping on her shoes.

She quickly met Matt at the window he had opened; the pair of them climbing out as quietly as possible. Olivia pushed off of the fire escape they had landed on and latched onto the top of the building, she pulled herself up and leaned over, reaching down to grab Matt's hand before pulling him up.

"Stack up. Breach." The man on the other side of Matt's apartment door commanded and within a second the front door had been smashed open, at least five members of the FBI filing inside.

The pair on the roof listened and waited as they heard the FBI rifling through the apartment, yells echoing out as they slowly cleared the rooms.

Olivia let out a silent breath, inwardly thanking herself that the only thing she had left behind was one of Matt's jumpers.

"Murdock's been home. Recently." The person who had commanded the men spoke. "Command post, we're clear. Suspect's not here."

"NYPD had been advised. Citywide BOLO." A woman over the police radio spoke.

At this Matthew perked his head up, brows furrowed whilst Olivia looked towards him. Yes, she had spent a lot of time with Jessica, who had spent a lot of time with the police... So had Derek if truth be told, but Olivia herself wasn't entirely clued in with the whole police lingo.

"Suspect Matthew Murdock to be considered armed and dangerous."

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Olivia couldn't quite believe what had been said, of course to people who actually knew Matthew, he was always armed and dangerous. But to the average and normal eye, he was just a blind man who happened to have far too many accidents.

But that was exactly the influence and hold that Wilson Fisk had over the FBI.

After the whole ordeal at the apartment, the two had waited in silence as the FBI slowly trickled out of the complex. The second they believed it was safe enough, they went on their way and returned to the church.

The wolf took some time to change and freshen herself up whilst Matt changed into his makeshift daredevil outfit; all black with a mask ready to be tired around his face.

When Olivia had finished dressing in all black, which was actually coincidental, she wasn't one for vibrant yellows and pinks; don't get her wrong, those were two of her favorite colors, but never would she wear them.

Luckily enough, the woman had a plethora of turtlenecks in the rucksack Jessica had dropped off if she needed to cover her face like Matt? Well, let's just say that the roll neck was long enough for her to cover her entire head if needed.

"Hey." She spoke, the bed creaking beneath her weight as she sat down next to Matt. His head turned towards her as her hand settled on his knee.

"You said that Fisk was the one to plan the attack on himself, right?"

"Yeah?"

"And that the guy who did it, Japer, is now out of jail and free?

Matthew nodded as his brows furrowed, wondering where the woman was going.

"Well... then we need to find him." Olivia chewed on her lip for a second. Karen. They could find the man, introduce him to Karen, and therefore The Bulletin; they could publish a story with all the details that Jasper knew of and done; the story would be out there.

People would know that Fisk planned the attack just so that he would be moved out of the prison and somewhere else, somewhere better and where people would turn a blind eye. People would know that the FBI were involved.

Olivia relayed her idea to Matt, speaking quickly and yet without a stutter as she rattled off the plan she had been thinking of since the moment Matthew had told her the details of what had happened. She knew that he didn't want Karen or Foggy involved, but he needed them and this was the perfect way to not only bring them together but to take down Fisk. "What do you think?"

"I-" He paused, mulling the idea over. All in all, it was almost perfect. They still needed to find out where Jasper Evans was and get the information out of him, and convince him to speak with The Bulletin. But if they could? Fisk would be done. A small smile crossed his lips, prompting one out of Olivia, knowing that the man agreed. "I think it'll work."

"I told you." She grinned, leaning closer, "I'm a genius."

"I'm slowly beginning to believe that."

"Slowly?"

He smiled, placing one of his hands on top of the one Olivia had resting on his knee, giving it a small squeeze.

Olivia paused, her eyes falling to his bruised and split hand as she took a moment to register the small action that had passed between them in all honesty, she hadn't even realized that her hand had fallen where it did and she wasn't quite sure that Matt had put too much thought in his own response.

In fact, the Olivia furrowed her brows as she thought about all of the moments, she had either caught herself or Matt doing something that wasn't quite normal or something a friend or partner in vigilante-ism would do.

Hell, all they did was flirt with one another, a lot of the times on purpose. Including the previous night at Matt's apartment; she couldn't deny that the jokes she had made were only partially jokes, and she knew that if anything had been initiated, she wouldn't have stopped it.

She knew she felt something for the vigilante opposite her and she wanted to pursue it; she wasn't one to dance around another person, shy and infatuated. If she wanted something, she'd go for it, at least, she normally would.

The thing that had been stopping her from moving over the blurred line of their friendship was the fact that the pair were in a pretty shitty situation; first, it was recovering from Midland Circle, Matthew questioning his faith and now Wilson Fisk was back. It didn't feel like the time, it didn't feel appropriate.

But then again, when was Olivia Hale ever appropriate? And it wasn't quite like Matthew was pushing her away if the way they woke up was any indication, he was the one pulling her closer.

Now, Matthew's head was swimming with a thousand thoughts, what he would do about Fisk was one of his priorities. Keeping his friends safe was another. But Olivia was another.

Matthew Murdock had been with his fair share of women, though only ever in one proper relationship, if you could call it that; with Elektra.

And even then, it was mildly sour from the start, it was derived by lust that he mistook for love. There would never be a day that passed where Matt wouldn't love Elektra, but he had meant it when he said that he was no longer in love with her.

It was odd to Matt; Olivia and Elektra were similar in so many ways; they were two of the strongest women he had ever met, two women who took no shit, and yet they were so different. Elektra had hurt people; tortured them and tried to get Matt to join, to kill them, and whilst Olivia had killed someone, she did it to keep others safe and she understood that what she did was wrong. It was something that she would never forget and would always carry with her.

Matt couldn't quite remember when things had shifted between the two, perhaps they never did; their friendship had quickly developed from mutual acknowledgment to working together with a few arguments here and there to teasing and flirting with each other.

It wasn't something the vigilante felt all too often. People in his life were prone to leaving him and yet Olivia stayed. She stayed to help him heal, stayed to help him with Fisk, and stayed because she cared.

That was something he wasn't used to.

But it wasn't just the fact that Olivia's heartbeat stayed steady as she confessed that she cared for the man, but it was also the fact that somehow, even as he was stuck in a dark, black hole she had managed to get him to laugh, to joke.

In all honesty, she made him second guess himself. Something he didn't do. Back at his apartment when her fingers had undone the buttons to his shirt and her breath had landed on his bare chest, well let's just say that he was ready to throw caution to the wind and yet he didn't.

Olivia's lip twitched, her eyes still on his hand. She turned her hand underneath his and intertwined their fingers, Matt's clasping onto hers before she stood and pulled him up, "I think it's time we go see Karen, hm?"

"She's going to kill me."

"Well she slapped me, so you deserve it."

Matthew choked as a laugh bubbled in his throat, "Karen slapped you?"

"If I didn't have my healing, I think I'd have a handprint on my face."

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The pair of vigilantes had trekked their way to Karen's, jumping from rooftops as they did. It had taken the duo less than fifteen minutes to make their way to the blonde reporter's home. Olivia had taken the normal route; she entered the building and knocked on the door. Matt, however, did not, instead he decided to vault his way up Karen's fire escape and slide in the window.

When Karen had caught sight of Matt -for the first time since he had left the precinct to fight The Hand- she had rolled her eyes and told the man that he owed her money for the rent she had paid for him and walked off to make herself and Olivia a cup of bitter coffee.

As Olivia sat at the kitchen table she sipped on the steaming brew whilst Karen had cut Matt's excuses off with an eye roll and a turned back.

Eventually, Karen grew tired of the conversation and looked towards Matt, she knew that Matt had stolen Foggy's wallet for a reason; Olivia had told her, why wouldn't she? She had scoffed at the man as he repeated the story -though she, of course, couldn't see that Matt did, in fact, feel guilt towards his own actions- and rolled her eyes as Matthew asked for her help.

Karen's eyes flickered towards Olivia who offered a tense smile, hoping that the blonde would help them. Karen had dropped her line of sight towards the kitchen floor before uttering a simple 'No' and walking away.

Olivia sighed deeply before taking a large gulp of the coffee before sliding the chipped mug over to Matt, who had originally refused Karens offer but Olivia could tell that the man needed caffeine, well, he needed alcohol, but caffeine would have to do.

The wolf watched for a second as he brought the mug to the frown on his face, "Hey, you go on, I'm gonna try and talk to her."

Matthew cocked his head as he swallowed the mouthful of coffee, "You sure?"

"Yeah, I uh, it was my idea so I'll try and get her on board."

"Okay." Matt sighed as he stood from the chair, his shoulders slightly slouched. He pulled the black mask back over his face and without much thought, one of his hands reached out to squeeze one of Olivia's that had been resting on the table. "See you later."

Olivia kept her eyes on their hands; that gesture wasn't something she had expected; it was, well, more intimate than the flirts and touches they had exchanged, and it whilst she was in the other room, Karen was still in proximity.

The corners of her lips twitched as she gave a light squeeze back, "Bye."

Karen had poked her head around the door of the room she had disappeared into, checking to see if she still had her uninvited guests tapping on her table. Her eyes swept over the kitchen before they landed on Olivia who stood at the Microwave, making each of them a cup of coffee.

Olivia held out one of the mugs towards the blonde who took it with a smile. "Sorry for coming uninvited."

"No, it's okay. I just can't believe he's only coming to us when he needs something."

Olivia cleared her throat as the microwave let out a shrill beep, she pulled it open and grabbed her mug of dark liquid, "Well, it was actually my idea."

"But we've spoken, gotten over it. Matt hasn't bothered and the thing is; you and I, we haven't exactly known each other long. This is what? The fourth time we've seen each other? Matt is my friend, one of my best friends, he doesn't get to treat me like that."

Olivia sighed as she brought the piping mug to her lips, taking a long sip. Karen was right; she didn't deserve to be treated that way, but Matthew was slowly changing; Olivia could see it. In the beginning, he moped, sulked and was angry, constantly. But now, whilst he still did those things it was certainly to a lesser extent and the real difference in his attitude was the fact that he had let Olivia in.

He had let Olivia get close, to a point where their relationship was relatively confusing and the line between them was beyond blurred.

"I know. You don't deserve it and I'm not going to stand here and preach that he's doing it to protect you because that's not a good enough reason." Olivia spoke as Karen took a seat at the table.

Karen let out a deep sigh, her tense shoulders slowly slouching as she drummed her fingers on the wooden table, "I have to get to work... will you uh, will you meet me and Foggy later?"

"Yeah, of course. Email me when."

"I will."

Olivia smiled as she quickly rinsed out her mug and walked over to the reporter, "See you later."

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Olivia had left Karen's apartment with her turtleneck covering her face; after all, Matthew wanted her safe, and if her identity was discovered and she was seen with Karen? Well, it probably wouldn't end well. So why not take some precautions?

She scaled a building and took her time jumping from roof to roof until her heeled boots made an indent in the mud that had turned swampy from the rain.

She wasn't entirely sure what to do for the few hours Karen would be at work for, she could have visited Jess but she knew the P.I was working a case with Malcome, she could have called her brother and uncle but they had talked almost twice a day for the past few weeks so she thought she'd give them the day off.

She headed into the church, taking her muddy boots off before they could make a mess on the pristine floors and padded her way to the laundry room that she called 'home'. The wolf quickly got cleaned up and threw on a jumper Matt had left on the foot of his bed as a cold breeze filtered through the room.

Once she was finished, Olivia sought out Sister Maggie, the pair sat inside the women's office having a pleasantly calm conversation until the MacBook resting on her lap let out a 'ping' as an email came through.

Olivia apologized to the Sister and swiped her finger across the mousepad, clicking on the email. It was from Karen asking if she was available to meet in ten minutes with a location attached.

"Something come up?" Sister Maggie questioned the wolf as she leaned back in her chair.

Olivia closed the laptop and placed it on the desk, knowing the Sister would keep it safe for her, "I'm actually meeting up with Matt's friends."

Sister Maggie nodded with a smile. She had seen how the wolf and the devil's relationship had been changing and knew that if anyone could reintroduce Matthew to back into his old life, it would be Olivia.

Walking. Being pushed by strangers. God awful smells. To summarize; Olivia did not enjoy actually walking through the streets instead of throwing herself over buildings, it took the fun away.

After a rather tedious ten minutes, Olivia eventually spotted the car that Karen had told her to find. She crossed the street, rolling her eyes as a horn was honked at her; she paused in the middle of the road as she waited for the car to be close enough and put on a honeyed smile.

Karen twisted in her seat and Foggy looked into his side mirror as they watched the woman cock her head before giving the driver a middle finger. "She was built for New York." Foggy chuckled as he shook his head.

Olivia grinned as her ears caught wind of his comment and pulled open one of the car doors, sliding herself to the center of the back seats and poked her head forward, "Thank you."

"Karen told me that you and Matt showed up earlier."

"We did." Olivia nodded as she leaned an elbow on the top of Karen's seat, "And I explained that it was my idea."

Karen scoffed as she tucked her hair behind her ears, anger still swimming in her ocean blue eyes, "But you weren't the one to ask, Matt did."

"Well I still think you should do it." Foggy piped up, gaining the attention of the woman as he faced them.

Karen scoffed, "Oh, come on."

"Just hear me out." Foggy spoke as the gears whirred inside of his head causing Olivia to raise her brows as if to say 'go on', "You agree to write the article on one condition. Matt turns himself into the FBI."

"Excuse me?" Olivia frowned. She honestly couldn't think of one good reason for matt to turn himself in, they had already been chased from his apartment and the FBI considered him 'armed and dangerous'

"They're only up in our chili because they're looking for Matt. Once they have him..."

Olivia sighed as she wiped her hand down her face, "I'm sure I can talk some sense into him... or scare it into him."

"Or flirt?" Foggy muttered with a chuckle; Olivia being the only one to properly hear him reached a hand out and lightly smacked him upside the head. "There's no reason to think the FBI knows anything about Matt's other life. But if he can give 'em that witness, Matt's in the clear." Foggy explained, catching Olivia nodding her head in thought.

"So, we all are. I could reach out as Matt's attorney and negotiate his surrender." The lawyer finished, a proud look on his face. Olivia had to give it to him; it was a plan and a half.

"Okay" Karen relented, pulling the thumb that she had been chewing away from her lips, "But I'm not ready to forgive him."

"I get it."

"You know, you shouldn't be either. I mean, he... he stole your identity, he made you a target."

"Has Matt been a shitty friend lately? Without a doubt. But, deep down, I think it's hurting him as much as it's hurting us."

"You're right," Olivia spoke as she leaned back and stared out the window. "I bring you up and he gets... he gets quiet, sad. I can see it and I can, well, I can feel it. He's coming around."

"But even if he isn't," Foggy spoke as he tore his eyes away from the woman to focus back on Karen, "The way he's been treating him lately is on him. Us turning our backs would be on us. People have bailed on Matt his whole life," He let out a deep and saddened sigh as he recalled all of the people that had walked into his friend's life, only to leave again. "And I'm not gonna be one of them. You do what you want, but... That's not the kind of friend I wanna be."

Olivia couldn't fight the fond smile that pulled at her carmex covered lips. Foggy stuck around for the exact reasons Olivia had been; they both cared about the man and they both knew that far too many people had turned their backs on him. They wouldn't be one of them.

Karen breathed a small laugh, "It's like you argue for a living or something."

"Was it too much? It felt like too much."

Olivia grinned as she popped her head forward once again, "It was perfect, I know who I'm choosing if I ever need a lawyer."

"Thank you, Olivia. See Karen?" Foggy bragged jokingly before his raised brows settled, "Liv?"

"Yeah?"

"I just wanna say; thank you, for staying with him. I know he's probably being the biggest asshole and..." A defeated sigh left him, "Just... stay with him, please?"

Olivia shook her head as she looked between the two, a warm smile on her face that made even her sharpest features soften, "You don't even have to ask. I want to stay with him, Fog. I care about him too."

"I know you do." Foggy spoke with sincerity. Olivia watched him with narrowed eyes as the serious expression on his rounded face shifted, his eyes had a glint and his lips stretched into a teasing smile. "So, the conversation at the bar, any progress on that?"

Karen's eyes flickered between the two, from Foggy's face full of mirth to Olivia's rolling eyes, "What are you two talking about?"

Olivia chuckled, "well, when I met with Foggy, one of the first questions he asked was 'Have you slept with Matt?'"

Olivia laughed as she watched Karen stammer for a moment, eyes blown wide before the reporter settles on a hearty chortle, "Oh, my God!"

"I would just like to confirm, that no, I have not slept with him, got it Fog?"

"I got it." Foggy chuckled, "But... that's not what I asked, I asked if there was any progress. What's going on between you two?"

"I can't believe you're asking."

Karen leaned back with her mouth agape, "Wait, so there is something going on?"

Olivia licked her lips as she pushed her hair over her shoulder, a breath of a laugh escaping her, "I don't know, we flirt and..."

"And?" Foggy urged like a giddy teenager who was just dying for the gossip.

"Okay, Gossip Girl, calm down." She chuckled, "The thing is, I'm not sure where we stand with each other, it used to be clear you know? It was just flirting and joking, but now..." Olivia sighed as she bit her lip; she really wasn't sure what they were. "I don't know."

Foggy studied her for a moment before reaching out a comforting hand to place on her knee, patting it lightly, "Well I can tell you that with Matt, it's normally clear. You know, one-nighters there's not much to it; but you're with him, all the time and you saved him. Honestly? Matthew Murdock is a cocky bastard-"

Olivia let out a laugh as she nodded to the man's words.

"-and he needs someone who will put him in his place and challenge him and if that isn't you? Hell, he's got no hope."

"He's right." Karen spoke with a smile, "Matt is, he's not one for letting people know what he's feeling or even letting people in, especially right now, but here you are, by his side. I think- I think he needs that."

Olivia digested their words, they were the two people in this world that knew him, the real him, and both sides of him; especially Foggy who had been there for years. Here they both were, telling her that she was someone who should be in his life. "Is this you two giving me permission?"

The blonde duo grinned at one another before Foggy opened his mouth, the corners of his lips tugged upwards, "Hell yeah."

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27-08-2020