I CAN NEVER HAVE AN ORIGINAL THOUGHT HUH But This This This This This This This This Thisthis This This

I CAN NEVER HAVE AN ORIGINAL THOUGHT HUH but this this this this this this this this thisthis this this this

My idea for Oliretta for seasons to come. It most definitely will not go this way in canon, but this was too little (or too much) to turn into an actual fanfic, so I’m just putting the draft out here.

Oliretta spend season 5 battling the cons of their long distance relationship (with some heart-warming moments, too, from time to time) and by the end of the season Loretta returns home. She either quits her show for Oliver (which would leave Oliver feeling guilty) or for some other reason (something unacceptable about the production, and Oliver remains guilt-free) or the show moves to New York because the algorithm has picked up that that city is hot right now.

The closer the trio get to solving Lester’s murder, the more there is half-concerned-half-joking talk about who the next body in the building will be, with Oliver getting increasingly irritated at the prospect of his wife being the one. By this time the fans would either be convinced that all this teasing could not possibly lead anywhere or that it’s a massive bad omen.

If the Arconia stalker is caught this season, too, then there should be a joke about the trio finally being able to live their lives without people watching/recording them and what would ever happen in their apartments that anyone would want to take another look at anyway. Which in hindsight is going to be poignant because, obviously, this is the murder building.

Right after the trio catches Lester’s killer, they want to retire to Oliver’s place to recap, record and celebrate, only when they get there the door is open and there’s blood. Oliver, immediately horrified and convinced that his wife has been killed, is petrified with fright while Charles and Mabel rush inside. They find Loretta all covered in blood, staggering towards them, looking equally terrified (cue a chance for Meryl to showcase her immaculate dramatic acting) but there’s another dead body behind her. (This theory does not include who the victim will be, for I haven’t decided yet. I’d like it to be someone less known this time around, because we’ve lost too many friends lately.)

Side note: This would be a great opportunity for the soundtrack to include a darker, dramatic version of Loretta’s theme, starting from the trio entering the elevator to ride to the 10th floor, so that the audience would get to experience some beforehand angst, and culminating at the end with the trio finding Loretta.

Anyway, this gruesome cliffhanger is explained at the start of season 6, after a year of fretting and frantic theorizing for the fans. Loretta found the victim dying in their apartment and tried to help them, but they died anyway. Loretta herself is physically completely unharmed, and she is not the killer either, although the trio pause on that theory for like half a minute.

Loretta spends the season battling the trauma that this experience has left her with and hiding the fact from Oliver, who she thinks has enough on his plate with the investigation. Also, she feels ridiculous for reacting so strongly when the podcast trio have seen so much more death and all seem relatively fine. She confides in Dickie, which strengthens her bond with her son, and Dickie tries relentlessly to encourage her to open up to Oliver about how much the Arconia has started to terrify her (so much so that she’s staying late at work to avoid spending time at the Arconia, which in turn unsettles Oliver). Mabel also tries to ask Loretta if she’s okay, knowing all too well what it’s like to have someone die, basically, in her arms, but Loretta easily brushes off her concern because confiding in Mabel would be guaranteed to get back to Oliver.

The trio include Loretta in the investigation as far as her moments with the victim call for and Loretta tries not to meddle too much, in the process distancing herself from Oliver, too.

By the end of the season Oliver opens up to Loretta about his concern for her safety at the Arconia and Loretta, in turn, finally reveals how much the case has been weighing on her. They end up promising each other to be more open with each other about their emotions, especially the negative ones that they have been trying to spare each other up to now.

Wholesome side detail: Loretta spends the season knitting little clothes for Oliver’s grandchildren, which helps her calm her nerves, prompts sweet family-themed conversations with Oliver and gets Loretta to bond with Mabel over their love for knitting.