She stared at the test once more. Positive. How was this possible? Well, she knew how. She just couldn't believe it. She just wouldn't.
At first, she had just thought that the splitting headaches, sudden dizziness, and vomiting were signs of weakness and sickness caused by a common flu that she caught once a year. And as for her abnormal craving for Lime Soda, she blamed that on her lack of sleep. She originally dismissed all the symptoms and carried on with her work as if nothing was wrong, all the time knowing deep down that something very different was going on. But when she missed her period, she couldn't deny the facts any longer.
Letting out a long sigh, she placed the test on the sink counter. It was the fourth one she had to take before she was sure. And she still wasn't very convinced. Or at least, her heart wouldn't believe it.
This wasn't supposed to happen. It was just one night. They were working fairly late on a case, and he brought over a bottle of scotch to keep them going. They finished that and a bottle of rum she found in one of her desk drawers. Before she knew it his lips were upon hers and she was up against her desk, their hands all over each other.
They agreed after that it was just a mistake- that they were not thinking straight that night and should just forget about the whole incident like any other thing that happened between them. And they did, going back to just being friends and partners. Until now.
Ever since that day she had wondered if that night was caused by more than just their state of drunkenness. That they actually felt things for each other.
They had been partners and friends for many years, and sometimes things happened between them that shouldn't between co-workers. But never anything like what they did that night. Sure, she thought of him as a handsome, well-defined man. She sometimes even had fantasises about him. And she supposed her feelings were more than just 'her hormones talking'. She sometimes thought about if he felt the same way.
There was no other way. She had to tell him. He would have found out eventually, and she couldn't imagine taking on the challenge of being a single mother. But what would happen to their relationship afterword? She sure didn't want to wreck the great bond that they shared, their friendship.
So the next morning, a bottle of Lime Soda in hand, she worked up the courage to talk to him. She passed through the doors as usual, nodded to Fin as she passed his desk, and stopped to chat briefly with Casey. Then she saw him.
"Hey, Liv." He strode over to her and began to walk beside her, matching her pace. A burning feeling rose from the pit of her stomach to her chest. She just had to keep saying to herself 'I can do this. I can do this'. So she took a deep breath and tried to mask her nervousness as best she could.
"Hey." She smiled slightly and took a sip of her soda. His attention immediately turned to the bottle of fizzy green liquid, and he let out a chuckle.
"Still drinking that Lime Soda? Ya know, I remember you once saying that you hated the stuff."
When she didn't answer, he stopped her by grabbing onto her shoulders. His touch was light, caring. She found that she couldn't look at him, and instead focussed on her boots.
"Tell me what's wrong, Liv. You've been acting so strange lately and I'm starting to worry about you! Please."
She felt the tears coming but tried her hardest to suppress them. He led them into a corner of the office where the shadows covered them completely so no one could see them. Grinding her teeth, she prepared herself to speak. Her voice was barely a whisper, fraught with a cover of emotions she couldn't even begin to describe.
"El, I'm pregnant."
Author's Note: This was written in respose to a drawing over at DeviantART. My first Law and Order: SVU fic, so don't judge! Elliot Stabler, Olivia Benson, and all that's related doesn't belong to me, it belongs to Dick Wolf.