‘Scandal’ Recap: Rowan Begs Fitz To Help Olivia Before She Goes Too Far

Fitz tries to move on with his life after his presidency, but Olivia’s never too far from his mind. On the Oct. 19 episode, Fitz gets a surprising visit from Rowan, who needs his help in saving Olivia.

Mellie Grant may be in the White House, but Fitz is getting far, far away from it. He arrives in Vermont after handing the reigns over to Mellie. He walks into the big house he built for Olivia and himself, but it’s completely empty. Olivia may not be there, but he’s still thinking about her constantly. However, he’s got to focus on life after being president. When he wakes up on day one, he finds a whole staff waiting for him. He’s got an aide, a cook, and more. Fitz immediately fires them all, but makes sure they have severance pay.

You see, Fitz doesn’t want to be catered to. He wants to make his own turkey sandwich, for crying out loud! Fitz wants to be in control for the first time in 8 years. But it’s not as easy as it looks. Fitz didn’t even activate his debit card before going to the grocery store. Don’t worry, we’ve allllll been there. He can’t cook. Why would he need to? He had a professional chef at his disposal! He learns how, though, with time.

Meanwhile, Marcus is on vacation in Havana. He has quite the fun time before going to Vermont to get to work on Fitz’s library. This is the next chapter for them both. Fitz and Marcus start to go through the motions. Fitz has to ask for donors, while Marcus starts planning the layout of library. He asks Fitz how much Olivia is going to be featured in the library. She played a major role in Fitz’s presidency, and she was America’s first-ever First Girlfriend. People care about her, and she deserves a special place in the library. People also care about Olitz. Same, y’all.

Fitz wants to avoid all conversations about his relationship with Olivia. He goes to a bar with Marcus to get his mind off Olivia. Fitz asks Marcus about Mellie, and Fitz opens up about Olivia. He’s had to let her go — sort of. He declares that Olivia gets the same treatment as Cyrus when it comes to the library. She was played an important part in his presidency, but she didn’t define it.

As the days go on, tension between Marcus and Fitz builds. Marcus is tired of taking care of Fitz and being his “glorified valet.” Things get heated between them. Marcus calls Fitz an “insane narcissist.” He doesn’t stop there. He goes OFF on Fitz. “Your accomplishments are Olivia’s,” Marcus says. But Fitz has some words of his own. “You’re a phony,” Fitz retorts. He makes Marcus’s blood boil when he calls him a coward. They end up coming to blows!

Marcus storms out and calls Mellie. He says he’s quitting Fitz. Mellie’s heard all of Marcus’s complaints before. She’s been there and done that. She stresses that he will get through this, because Fitz is the “golden ticket to change the world.” There’s a pause during their conversation, and the silence speaks volumes. They both want to say so much more, but they can’t.

Fitz walks into one of the many rooms in that huge house and finds Rowan waiting for him. Rowan blurts out that Olivia is the new Command of B613. Fitz doesn’t believe him at first. But he’s certain she’ll run it right. Rowan doesn’t think so. He believes that Olivia has way too much power. “You need to take care of this,” Rowan pleads. Fitz is the only one who can pull Olivia back from the darkness before she’s lose forever. Surprisingly, Rowan does seem genuinely concerned about Olivia.

Marcus comes back to the house and finds Fitz waiting for him. They agree to work things out. “Is Olivia Pope everyone’s world or just mine?” Fitz asks Marcus. Just yours, Fitz. He tells Marcus that he’s going to have to go back to Washington for a while to take care of some business. Marcus doesn’t pry. Before he goes, he helps out an activist protesting a memorial of a Revolutionary War general. Then he makes his way back to Washington wearing that incredible leather jacket. He shows up at Olivia’s door only to be a witness to her making out with another man!