After turning 40, Liv experiences various feelings about her age. Relating, Elliot helps her to cope by buying her a motorcycle. As they usually do, things between them get a little hot and they confront these feelings.
The bike mentioned is my dream bike, fyi. If anyone wants to lend me a couple $$ (ok $25,000) that'd be gucci. :) (lol)
Takes place in season 9. Creds. go to Dick Wolf, I own nothing.
Thanks and enjoy!
Forty years of life is quite an accomplishment, to most. And for Olivia it was, no doubt, but she wasn't feeling as glamorous as she thought she should feel. She had managed to slide by without being noticed too much on December 13th. She made sure to keep conversations short and strictly professional, in hopes of avoiding any possibility of someone bringing her birthday up. She knew Elliot was aware of the special day but could also tell he was conscious of her efforts, which she was grateful for.
He didn't wish her a happy birthday, not verbally anyways, but was especially nice to her-opening doors, paying for her lunch, bringing her coffee and favorite snacks, etc. They were all silent gestures but did not go unnoticed by his partner. When the day finally came to a close and the two were leaving the precinct, she took the time to thank him.
"Thanks for not being an ass, El." They both walked out of the building.
"No problem." He smiled knowingly. "I know this one can be a little harder than the rest. I'll give you a while before I start rubbing it in." She laughed lightly, knowing he would keep his word.
She had never thought too much about getting older until now. Numerically, 40 is quite a large number; whether it's 40 cats, 40 bucks or 40 years. It wasn't that she felt old-she was still proud of her body, no matter what seemed to ache and/or sag a little more than previous years. What scared her was the new feeling of suddenly having so much to do and feeling like time had cheated her 40 years.
It was this urgency that she lay awake over for months after turning 40. Urgency turned into mild depression over the fact that she may never do all of the things she wanted to do. By April, the depression had turned into a feeling of giving zero fucks.
She found herself taking more risks, both in and out of work. She would say more of what was on her mind to people, flirt a little more with Elliot (and others), dress a little more risky than usual, etc. She even found herself going to bars with the sole purpose of being a tease-she hadn't done that since she was in her 20s. Maybe that was the appeal, the fact that doing all of this made her feel young again.
Elliot definitely noticed a change in her over the months. He remembered a couple years back when he turned 40 and reacted similarly, taking unusual risks like buying useless and purely vanity items. In his opinion, midlife crises looked much better on Olivia than it did on him. He loved this version of his partner and best friend. She was almost reckless, which he found sexy af.
One morning in April, he decided that he had given her enough time to cope with her age; he remembered that it took him about four months to get over it as well. Seeing as he had yet to give her a present, he headed out early to pick it up.
Meanwhile, Olivia arrived outside of the precinct 5 minutes later than usual. It was a beautiful day in the city so she decided to take a bit of a risk and wore a pair of shorts and tank top for the walk there and planned to change once inside. She also decided to keep her hair in waves and toss some red lip gloss on for added risk.
As she crossed the street to enter the building, she heard the buzz of, what she assumed to be, a motorcycle approaching. She had expected the rider to zoom past and was taken back when they pulled up next to her.
She immediately noticed the Ninja H2 that the man was straddling and envied him. She was no expert on motorcycles but had an appreciation for them and could remember her grandfather loving them. He had given her an old Indian for her high school graduation years ago. She rode that damn thing all over the city, into the surrounding states and back again, until it finally broke down one final time.
She had a couple motorcycle magazine subscriptions and had recently seen the H2 in one of them, but the one next to her was custom and the most gorgeous bike she had seen. Completely jet black except for one sparling blue pinstripe on the side and its sparkling silver rims.
After ogling the bike for a second, her attention was grabbed by the rider's built chest and biceps. As the man dismounted, she couldn't help but to appreciate his back side.
Double damn. She thought to herself before acting like she hadn't just visually assaulted both bike and rider and continued towards the precinct.
"You have good taste." The familiar voice sent a shiver down her spine. She spun around to see Elliot remove the helmet and put the kickstand down before getting off the bike and grinning.
"She's yours?" She asked incredulously, which just made him smirk even more.
"No, actually. She's yours." She stood with her mouth ajar, so he placed the helmet in her hands and moved behind her to give her a push towards the bike. Laying his hands gently on her waist, he pushed a very stunned Olivia towards her new toy.
"Happy 40th, Liv." His whisper barely registered because of how shocked she was. Her mouth hung open and she looked down at the helmet in her hands, running her fingers over the 4 numbers stenciled on the back: "4015". At the sight of her badge number she felt the tears start to build. She ran her hand along the Ninja, feeling the slickness but not letting herself get too attached.
"Elliot. I can't-" He stopped her, knowing she would be stubborn.
"You can and you will. You deserve it...If it makes you feel any better, I got a great deal on it." He offered as reassurance, knowing his efforts were futile and she would still feel guilty.
She couldn't comprehend how thankful, angry and excited she was. She wanted to cry because he was so thoughtful and sweet; yell because he didn't need to give her anything, let alone a really expensive bike; and scream because she now had a really expensive bike.
"How the hell did you know?" Is all she managed to ask, still in shock, while she further examined the custom bike.
"I do enough snooping through your mail to know you have a weak spot for Kawasaki's and Ducati's." He smirked as she straddled the bike that seemed to fit her body perfectly. The sight of Olivia Benson in tight jean shorts, straddling a sport bike, was making his life very difficult.
"I cannot believe you actually got be a custom Ninja H2. And the helmet…" The tears threatened to stain her cheeks once again.
"Yeah, well, your partner doesn't turn 40 every day…Plus, I figured you'd rather pick up your social security benefit check in style." She wasn't even angry at him for that wise crack and even laughed.
He sensed she was feeling obligated to hug him or pat him on the back or thank him in some impersonal and awkward manner…so, he diverted.
"You know how to ride that thing?" She tossed him an obvious look that turned to worry.
"But what about work…"
"I took care of it. Cragen sends his congratulations." And with that, he threw her the keys.
The moment he flung the keys over to her was the moment he would remember forever. He saw her eyes dilate slightly, felt like he could see her heart beat quicken as she took on this persona of a badass sex goddess.
She tossed him the helmet and mounted the bike while simultaneously starting it, the engine growling to life and purring between her legs. She kicked the stand back into place and steadied herself before racing off down the unusually empty road. Even though it had been years since she had actually ridden, the task was as familiar as brushing her teeth.
She rode about a block, dodging a few cabs along the way, before braking and swinging around expertly and heading back to where her partner waited. They both had huge grins plastered all over their faces.
She was different, yet all the same-wild, passionate, reckless-but in a completely different way. For the first time in a while she was feeling like she could say that she had accomplished something exciting, like she was living for her and not just living.
"Hop on." Her sure words took him by surprise, especially because it wasn't a question but more of a command. He hesitated for a moment, fear and uncertainty were to blame for that, but then said fuck it.
"Throw that inside, I won't kill ya." Hesitantly, he threw the helmet to a nearby officer who was walking into the precinct and told him to put it on his desk for him.
Elliot hopped on the back, realizing how close he was to her now. He didn't know whether to try to keep as much physical distance as possible or to just go with what seemed natural. Fortunately for him, the need for safety trumped his decisions as she revved the engine. He pressed his body against hers and wrapped his arms around her middle as they raced off.
It wasn't that her driving scared him…okay, her driving scared him. In his defense, this was completely uncharacteristic of her! He was supposed to be the reckless and impulsive one, yet here he was on the back of a motorcycle, clutching Olivia Benson for dear life as her hair whipped in the wind and a throaty laugh escaped her.
When he noticed that they were approaching the city limits, he expected her to turn around. He didn't want this to end and even said a short prayer that this wouldn't end. Elliot grinned and thanked the Man upstairs as Olivia flew past the limits sign and turned down a different road.
By now, he was much more relaxed and had caught on to their rhythm of riding- she would lean left, he would follow, almost like dancing. Because the back seat was higher, the back of her head came between his shoulder and chest and he rested his hands on her full hips.
They drove miles into the countryside, the scenes now turning to rows of green trees and the roads becoming empty. The distinct and unnatural smell of the city faded as pollen and dirt filled their senses. There was something intoxicating about what was happening and both detectives soon found themselves a little more aroused with each bend in the road.
Elliot found himself beginning to stroke her hips with his thumbs, keeping the rest of his hands still and waiting to see if she would protest. When she didn't, he widened his area of stroking and traced his hands to the front of her abdomen.
The warmth of his hands sent shivers coursing through her body and a smile played on her lips as he continued to feel his way under her tank top. She was sure that his touch was leaving trails of scorch marks and she felt the fire where his fingers once lay.
She was having difficulty concentrating on the road and not on her partners growing arousal, but managed to focus just enough to manage to not kill them both. However, the moment she felt him placing warm kisses on her neck and nibbling on her ear lobe was when she knew they needed to pull over soon.
She was left to search for a secluded spot in the woods while Elliot was getting cockier with every moan. He had moved his touch to her beautiful thighs, pulling at the hem of her shorts and stroking the insides of her thighs. She felt him cup her center and she couldn't take it any longer.
The bike came to a halt on the right shoulder of the road and, before he had a chance to react, he was being pulled off the bike and pushed towards the guard rail. Her hair was tousled from the wind, eyes full of lust and cheeks flushed as she pushed her partner hard up against the rail. Their bodies and faces were so close, her remaining ounce of will power acting as a barrier.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Trying to sound angry, but failing and sounding desperate, she took a small step away from him. She needed to get a grip-he was a married man, after all! Then again, that had always been part of the lure for her. She never wanted to be the other woman, but at the same time, she did. To think that he would leave his faithful wife for her was flattering, not to mention risky.
"This…we…you're married, Elliot." He watched her struggle for words as his senses flooded back to him and reality threatened to suffocate him once again. She had pulled the marriage card, again. He hated when that happened.
"Liv," He took a step closer to her, hoping she wouldn't run. "It's over. I filed for divorce last week."
She wasn't sure how to take this news. She wanted to be relieved and fuck him right then and there…but, didn't want to be a bitch.
"I'm so sorry, El." She laid a comforting hand on his arm but was confused when she saw him smiling amused at her. He had just been the one to announce his divorce, why was he smiling like an idiot?
"I'm not. Do you think I would be doing all this if I was sorry about it?" His intentions were clear, now, and he closed the distance between them, making her walk backwards until she felt the seat of the motorcycle.
"How do I know you're not just on the rebound?" Strength had become a figment of her imagination, so her words were whispered. She felt his warmth radiating off his body as he began to pull her by the hips, closer to him.
"Nine years of these feelings is a little more than a rebound, Liv." His face was close to hers, now and, though her eyes were closed, she could tell he was smiling as he spoke. She had longed to hear him say things like that, and now the he was actually saying them, she felt like a fool for ever doubting him.
She needn't think too long or hard on the subject before she felt his hand in her hair, leading his lips to hers. The kiss was raw and unadulterated as they released all of their pent up feelings towards each other. It was angry, desperate and deep but full of adoration, care and peace at the same time. Their tongues fought for dominance, teeth clashing as their hands roamed the other's body. They finally broke for air, breathing heavy and keeping their eyes closed, hoping the moment would be engraved in their minds forever.
When she did open her eyes, he was staring back into hers and smiling. Like a flashflood, the tears stung her eyes and she needed to feel his warmth against her again. They came together again, this time in a hug. She wrapped her arms tightly around his chest and fit her head snuggly in the crook of his neck.
They were squeezing so tightly that it hurt and were so close that if they had been any closer, they would likely meld together permanently. None of that mattered, though. They were together and they were facing their feelings, finally- that mattered.
This was new for him (and for her). He had never paused in the middle of foreplay to hug it out with Kathy. Maybe that's why this moment with Olivia felt so natural and so right-the way her body felt against his, the new found freedom to touch her, to breathe in the scent of her hair-it all felt so right.
There they stood on some back road, just being, and life had never felt so perfect. They only separated to look into each other's eyes before engaging in another passionate kiss. They had the rest of their lives to be sweet and gently, but for now, they wanted to experience the rush of riding together.
Elliot drove back to the city, Olivia clinging to him from behind, occasionally running her hands along his abs or leaning to peck him on the lips. Buildings passed them by, the city lights becoming blurs and other cars on the road blending into an analogous mass. Neither could tell you in which borough they had just been in or where they even were, because it was just them, together in their own little bubble.
Their eyes caught at a stop light and both stared deeply, their souls greeting, recognizing each other and vowing to never let go. This had been the best birthday for Olivia, and she was sure that as long as he was by her side, there would be plenty of best birthdays to come.