She heard him pounding at the door. The pounding stopped, and a second later her phone rang. She knew it was him. The phone stopped. She felt the burning of unshed tears in her eyes. The pounding started again. After a few seconds, it faded away. She heard his footsteps start to walk away.
In an instant she was at the door… out the door. The cold concrete of the hallway stung her bare feet. "El…" It was hardly more than a whisper, but he heard her. He stopped, and turned. He walked slowly back to her, his eyes never leaving hers. He stopped in front of her, so close their bodies were almost touching. The burning in her eyes stopped as the tears broke free and fell down her cheeks. She felt her knees go weak as she said the hardest words she had ever spoken. "Help me." Surprise, shock and fear all registered on Elliot's face as his partner and best friend broke down in front of him. He caught her gently as she started to collapse. He helped her back into her apartment, closing the door behind him.
He led her to the sofa and sat her down. He quickly shrugged out of his coat and sat next to her. She turned towards him, her eyes red and haunted. "Liv…" He opened his arms, and she fell into them, sobbing uncontrollably. He held her silently. He felt her hot tears soak through his shirt. His heart pounded, half in fear that Liv would lose herself in her pain, half from holding her so close. He lowered his face to her hair, closing his eyes as he inhaled her scent. Resting his head on hers, he held her tight and let her cry.