I am writing this story at the request of a good friend. She's given me some freedom with regards to the plot and I'm going to see what I can make of it. The beginning and the end are fixed but everything in between is still somewhat fluent, so feel free to offer some input in reviews or DM's. Alright. Here we go …

…

1.

"Yes El. I'm just going out for a run and then I'll pick up something on the way over …. Yeah …. Alright. … Yeah, I'll be careful. I'm a big girl, El. See you later. Bye."

Olivia Benson sighed after ending the call. Her partner Elliot Stabler had recently divorced his wife and was having some trouble adjusting to life as a bachelor. They kept busy on the job, but at night, he sometimes felt lonely, saying it was too quiet in his new apartment in Midtown Manhattan. While Olivia didn't feel like filling in for his ex, she had agreed to come over to his house later and bring takeout. But first, she was going for a run.

As always, when she got home at a decent hour on Friday, she would run. Basically, it was the only scheduled activity she had all week, and she couldn't even do that every week. Oftentimes, she'd still be at work after dinner. But this week, they had closed two cases and she'd actually gotten home early after their Captain had sent them home around three with orders to enjoy their weekend and not come back until Monday morning.

She tied her shoelaces and plugged in her MP3 player. She checked the time before heading out. It was 5 PM now. She should be able to make it to Elliot's place by 7.

She turned right after leaving her building and waved at a neighbor who was coming home just as she dashed off.

Olivia's thoughts wandered back to Elliot. They'd been partners for 7 years now and had become a tight unit. They didn't always see eye to eye on cases but they always had each others' backs. There was a rare kind of trust between them and she knew without a doubt that Elliot would die to save her if he had to. She felt the same way. Over time, she'd wondered if there was more between them, especially since they were so dedicated to protecting each other, but Elliot had never given her any indication that he was interested in being more than friends and partners with her. He'd been married most of the time of course, so she had tried not to think about him like that, but since he'd told her that he and Kathy were over for good, her mind had started wandering again. But Elliot's behavior towards her hadn't changed in any way, so she was trying not to think about it. He needed a friend right now, and being a friend was something she could do.

She turned up the volume of her music a little and picked up some speed. She liked to push herself, to test her limits, and clear her mind at the same time.

…

Elliot Stabler checked the clock for the umpteenth time. She should have been here by now, he kept thinking. She told him she'd go out for a run at five. It was 7.30 now. He knew she didn't answer her phone while she was running but after another 10 minutes had gone by, he decided to call her anyway. She couldn't still be running so she was either still at home or on her way, picking up their food. Surely, she'd answer her phone now.

Only she didn't. It went to voicemail and Elliot hung up. Maybe she was downstairs, rolling her eyes because he was calling her again.

Another ten minutes went by and Elliot was getting restless. He was pacing his apartment and rubbing his neck with one hand. This wasn't like Olivia. Something was wrong. He called her number again. It went to voicemail again and this time, he left a message.

"Liv, where are you? Please call me back."

Olivia was his best friend. That might sound strange, for a man to have a woman as a best friend, but it was the truth. They were as close as any two partners could be. Maybe even a little too close. They entrusted each other with their lives on a daily basis. Their unit hunted down dangerous criminals and they needed to be able to rely on each other, always. It was what partners were supposed to do, but he couldn't deny that his bond with Olivia was special. It had been from day one and his wife - no, ex-wife - had commented on it a few times. Not overtly, but Elliot had received her message loud and clear. Kathy had wondered if he had feelings for his partner that were of a non-partnerly kind. He had always denied it but he wondered if Kathy believed him. He even wondered if he believed himself at times.

And now Olivia wasn't answering her phone and she should have been here by now. They should have been eating and relaxing together, her sitting on his couch, her legs tucked underneath her and him facing her and cracking silly jokes just to see her smile … Yeah. Maybe he did have some unpartnerly feelings hidden away somewhere. But he was sure Olivia wasn't interested in him that way. She'd never shown any signs of wanting more of him than friendship. And right now, it looked like she was standing him up.

Only she wouldn't do that. She would have at least sent him a text. Telling him she'd sprained her ankle or something. He'd come and get her and they would still spend the evening together. But there was no text and no phone call. And no answer when he called her again. This time it went straight to voicemail. Had she shut her phone off?

"Liv, I'm getting worried. Please call me back. Where are you?"

But she didn't call. By 8.30 Elliot was in a frenzy and called Captain Cragen. He knew Olivia had only been out of touch for a few hours but he couldn't sit here and wait any longer. Something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong.

…

"Elliot, there's probably a logical explanation. Maybe you misunderstood."

"Cap, she was coming over with food. We were going to have dinner at my place. How can I misunderstand that?!"

Elliot was getting more and more agitated. Every minute that passed without any word from Olivia made him more certain that something had happened to her.

"Alright, I'll send a patrol car over to her place but you know I can't report someone missing after just three hours."

"Almost four," Elliot barked.

Four hours. He knew only too well what could happen to a person in four hours and he had to stay focused and not dwell on all the horror scenarios that were popping up in his head.

Sending a squad car over to Olivia's place wasn't enough. He was going himself. He left a note for Olivia on his coffee table just in case she'd go there after all, but something told him she wouldn't. This wasn't like Olivia at all. She would have been in touch one way or another if she could. The only logical conclusion was, that she couldn't. Something had happened to her.

Elliot ran down the stairs of his building and down to the parking garage. Within minutes he was on 8th Avenue, heading for the Upper West Side. He tried to drive safely but once he was on Broadway, he hit the gas and didn't slow down unless he had to stop for a red light. Most of the lights were in his favor and he rounded the corner fast once he got to West 89th street. Olivia's street.

He stopped next to the patrol car that was parked across the street and rolled down his window.

"Olivia Benson?" he asked the officer curtly.

"We just checked. She's not here. I was about to call it in," the officer explained.

"Did you go inside?"

The officer frowned.

"You want us to break down the door? She isn't home."

"I have a key."

The officer put away his phone and sighed. He didn't seem very excited to go up to Olivia's apartment again but Elliot could care less. He parked his car on the sidewalk in front of the entrance to the building and went in, not even waiting for the officer and his partner.

It didn't take them long to ascertain that Olivia was, indeed, not home. Nothing seemed to be out of place. Olivia's work clothes were in a pile next to her bed, where she'd changed into her running gear. Elliot called her number again but he already knew they wouldn't find her phone. She never left home without it.

"Dammit," he muttered under his breath.

"Nothing we can do here, Detective," the officer said. "Do you know where she might go? A friend or relative maybe?"

"She was coming over to my place. That's why I'm so worried," Elliot told both men.

The officers exchanged a look and Elliot wanted to roll his eyes. He didn't have time to explain to them why his partner had been on her way to see him on a Friday night off the clock.

"I'm going to knock on some doors. Care to help me?" he said tersely.

He walked out of the apartment without waiting for an answer and knocked on the door of Olivia's next door neighbor.

After half an hour one of the officers came up with one solid result. A neighbor had seen Olivia outside, in her running gear, and had told him which way she'd gone. The officers explained to Elliot that they really didn't have time to continue looking for Olivia, reminding him that she still wasn't missing officially. Elliot understood and did his best to sound grateful when he thanked them for their efforts so far. After the squad car took off, Elliot started walking in the direction that the neighbor said Olivia had gone. He knew he'd be looking for a needle in a haystack but what else could he do?

…

Elliot was desperate. There was nowhere left to look. He could walk into any alley or street but he didn't have a clue where Olivia could have gone. Nobody had seen her. It was pointless to keep wandering the streets. He kept calling her number, hoping she'd pick up but she never did. After finally walking back to his car, he decided not to go home but to see if anyone at TARU would be willing to help him by tracing Olivia's phone. He called them and a groggy security guard picked up, letting him know that, naturally, nobody was in at the moment. Elliot ended the call and racked his brain, trying to figure out what to do. He decided to head over to the station and find Ruben Morales' phone number. He couldn't just do nothing while Olivia was missing!

Ruben wasn't very happy to be called at home but once Elliot convinced him that it was urgent, he promised him he'd be right over. Each passing minute was killing Elliot inside but he had to be patient. He was glad Ruben was willing to come in at all at 10.30 PM.

Ruben was worried about Olivia too, and easily traced her phone right up to the moment it had been turned off.

"Right … there," Ruben told Elliot, placing his finger on the map on his computer screen. Corner of Amsterdam Avenue and West 79th street."

Elliot frowned.

"So she turned right, taking West End, and then she took another right and then another and went all the way here, way past her apartment? That doesn't make sense."

"She disappeared. The whole thing doesn't make any sense, Elliot," Ruben stressed. "I don't think she took that route willingly. Judging by the timeline, she couldn't have been running the last part. I think she was in a car or another motor vehicle."

Ruben was confirming Elliot's worst fear. Someone had taken Olivia. But who? Where? And why? He thanked Ruben for his help and decided to drive through those streets one more time, just to look at where she had last been. Or where her phone had last been. His stomach clenched. They couldn't even be sure that Olivia had been in the same place as her phone. He tried to breathe through the panic that was constantly bubbling just beneath the surface. He was going to find her. He had to find her. And she'd be alive and well. There were no other options. Not for him. It was going to be alright.

Elliot decided to crash at Olivia's place for the remainder of the night. Not that he expected to sleep, but he'd feel closer to her in her apartment. He found himself smelling her towel after brushing his teeth in her bathroom and he wanted to cry. He was literally sick with worry. His partner had vanished from the face of the earth and there was nothing he could do. He grabbed Olivia's robe and took it with him to her couch. He wasn't going to sleep in her bed. He just couldn't. If he was ever going to sleep in that bed, it would be with her, he decided.

He was less shocked at that thought than he'd expected. Realizing that he felt as if half his body and soul had been amputated because Olivia was gone, was an eye-opener. Once he found her, he wouldn't waste any more time. He would tell her that he couldn't live without her and let the chips fall where they may. She couldn't die without knowing how much she meant to him. She just couldn't.

…

Oh Elliot …

Where is Olivia? What happened to her? Will they find her and if so, in what shape?
So many questions!