A/N: Thank you to the fabulous Lani for betaing this story!

Disclaimer: I do not own SVU, or it's characters. I am just borrowing them for the afternoon.

This is a slightly non-canon post-ep on Signature.

Elliot was just leaving the place he'd called home for 20 years. This was it. Kathy had told him she was leaving.

"You stay here. It'll be easier on the kids, Kathy," Elliot said kindly.

"Thanks, Elliot. I'm sorry. I just can't take it any more. The job, the man it's made you. It's just all too much," she told him as he left. This time it was for good.

The Captain gave him a week off to find a new place, move and adjust to the idea of being alone again. On Thursday he found an apartment. The rest was reasonable, the place was well maintained and it was only a block away from Olivia's place. He tried to convince himself that had nothing to do with his decision, but the truth was, he was glad for the close proximity. She was his best friend. He'd missed her, and not just this week. Ever since he'd moved back in with Kathy he had felt like there was something standing between them. Without a wife and children to look after, he mused, maybe I'll have a chance to straighten this whole thing out.

On Friday evening Fin called.

"Hey, man! How ya' been?" Elliot asked.

"I'm okay," Fin replied, "It's Olivia you need to be worrying about."

Elliot froze. No! No! Please don't let anything happen to her!

"Liv? What's – " Elliot panicked.

"Hey, calm down, Elliot," Fin said, "She's fine, just had a rough case. Won't talk to anyone about it. I know it's a rough time for you, too, but I though you might want to talk to her."

"Thanks, Fin," Elliot replied, clearly relieved it wasn't as bad as he had feared. "You know where she went?"

"After shift she said she was going to go home," Fin informed him.

"Thanks. Owe ya' one," El said as he grabbed his keys and headed for the door.

"Nah," Fin assured him, "Just go take care of her for us."

Elliot had to force himself to drive carefully. He knew his chances of driving recklessly increased when he was upset, and causing an accident wouldn't do Liv any good.

It didn't take him long to get there. He knocked. No answer. Again. Nothing. He looked at his key. Liv had given it to him years ago, just in case of emergency. He knocked once more and then, after receiving no response, unlocked the door.

Liv heard the door open. She didn't know who it was, but she really didn't want to see anyone right now. It didn't occur to her than only El and Casey had keys to her apartment. "Go away." She sobbed. She just wanted to cry in peace. She'd managed alone her whole life. Why stop now?

"Liv?" Elliot called.

He walked into the living room, and what he saw broke his heart. She was just sitting there in the corner, hugging a couch pillow and sobbing.

"Oh, Liv, Honey, what's wrong?" he asked as he knelt beside her.

Liv just started to cry harder. The emotions she had bottled up for so long just wouldn't be restrained anymore.

"El," she managed through her tears.

He sat down next to her and pulled her into his shoulder.

"It's going to be okay. I'm here, baby. Just let it all out," he said gently as he stroked her hair.

She clung to him as she continued to weep, thankful for his comforting presence. He knew how to make everything in the world, no matter how bleak, look a little bit brighter.

After about 20 minutes Olivia began to calm down.

"You wanna tell me what's going on?" Elliot asked.

Olivia nodded. "I – " she began. She took a deep breath and tried again. "I was working a case with Lake and the FBI. Serial killer. Rapes and tortures his victims before killing them and dumping their bodies in the woods." She paused. "24 girls. The victim we had was number 23. Along with this body, we found a man. We found out later that he was the killer. Agent Cooper had killed him. After we gathered enough evidence to force a deal, Lake and I went to talk to her. Found her at a table with her badge and gun lying there. She wouldn't take the deal we offered." Liv took a deep, cleansing breath and continued. "She said she'd become a monster, and before we could stop her, she'd drawn a gun from behind her back and – " Olivia's voice broke.

"It's okay, Liv. Take your time." Elliot told her gently. "I'm not going anywhere, just take a deep breath." He hugged her closer to his chest.

"She – She shot herself in the head. Dead before we could even move." She started to cry again. "It was horrible. What drives a woman so far that she'd be that desperate? Killing a man and then killing herself. I just don't get it, El."

Elliot just kept stroking her hair.

"I'm sorry, Liv," he said as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "So sorry," he murmured.

They just sat there for a while. Finally Olivia looked at the clock. 8 PM. She looked up at Elliot.

"Hungry?" she asked?

"Now that you mention it, I am starting to feel a little bit hungry." he said.

"What do you feel like? Pizza? Chinese?"

"Chinese sounds good to me." he decided.

"Chinese it is."

Olivia wiped her face and walked over to the cabinet. She opened a drawer and pulled out a take out menu.

"Anything in particular you want, El?" she asked.

He smiled at her.

"Nah, whatever you feel like is fine with me," he said.

Olivia smirked at him.

"What?" he asked. "You planning on getting the strangest dishes you can find?"

Olivia laughed. "I hadn't thought of that."

"You have to eat it, too, ya' know."

"Actually, El, my choices tend to be pretty boring. Chicken chow mien, sweet 'n' sour pork, hot 'n' spicy chicken in garlic sauce, maybe some fried rice or wantons. It's good, but some people like more of a variety."

"Sounds perfect, sweetheart." Elliot said.

Olivia froze.

"What?" he asked.

Olivia chuckled. He didn't even realize what he'd said. She just headed to the kitchen to place the order.

After she finished placing the order, Olivia went to the bathroom to freshen up. She touched up her make up and did her best to hide any evidence of the tears. She wasn't quite sure why, Elliot had already seen her crying, but she wanted to look a bit more presentable for him.

Elliot looked around the room at the pictures. Liv with her brother, with Casey, with her mother, with Eli … He paused at that one. Olivia was going to make a great mother someday. He would love to father those children. However, he decided it would probably be in his best interest to direct his thoughts elsewhere before he got too uncomfortable or embarrassed himself and Liv.

Elliot noticed a small stack of pictures lying on top of the mantle. He picked them up. They were pictures of him and his beautiful partner. He didn't remember having the pictures taken. Most of them looked like crime scene photos. Some were of him; some were of both of them. He paused at the last one. It was a party they had gone to last year. Attendance had been mandatory. He and Olivia had both come alone and spent most of the evening together. It had been one of the best nights he'd had in a long time. She'd been wearing a deep red dress. He loved the way she looked in that dress. It had a low back, a conservative neckline, and the dress fell to a spot just below her knees on one side, and tapered across to cover mid-calf on the other. Olivia rarely wore dresses, but he certainly wouldn't mind enjoying the sight more often. She had looked really sexy that night.

"Want a beer?" Olivia offered as she stepped into the living room. She stopped short at the sight of Elliot looking through her pictures. She had forgotten to put them back in their drawer last time she had enjoyed them. She hadn't meant for him to see them, but what's done is done.

Elliot looked up, clearly startled.

"Yeah, thanks," he said as he put the pictures down. He looked at her carefully. "You alright?" he asked kindly.

"Yeah, I'll be okay, El. Thanks."

He stepped closer.

Their eyes locked.

"Liv," he said softly as he reached out and brushed her cheek.

"El," she whispered.

He leaned closer. Her eyes fluttered closed as his lips brushed hers. She had wanted this for so long. Her hands came up to his chest.

The doorbell rang.

Elliot groaned as he pulled away.

He pressed a quick kiss to her lips before he answered the door.

Olivia shook her head in a futile attempt to regain some measure of clarity. She picked up her purse and went to the door. Elliot already had his wallet out.

"Don't worry about it, Liv. I got it," he said.

"C'mon, El, you already made me feel better. Let me get it."

Elliot handed the money to the delivery boy.

"Keep the change," Elliot told him.

He turned to Liv.

"Too late," he smirked.

Olivia grabbed plates and napkins while Elliot got the beers they'd forgotten on the coffee table. The restaurant had provided them with chopsticks. They opened the boxes and dug in. Elliot picked up the hot 'n' spicy chicken with garlic, while Olivia chose the chow mien.

"This is really good," Elliot said. "How come you never told me about this place before?"

"You never needed take out. Kathy's a great cook," she said. She instantly realized her mistake. "I'm sorry, El."

"Don't worry about it. It's been over for a long time," he assured her. "You gotta try some of this, Liv. It's really good." He picked up a piece of the chicken and held it out to her. She opened her mouth and let him feed it to her.

"Mmm!" she moaned. "You're right. That is good."

He held out another piece for her.

"You gonna feed me all night, Stabler?" she teased.

"Hey, you don't want it, all you gotta do is say so." He started to pull back. She grabbed his wrist.

"I didn't say that," she said.

Dinner was finished with the same lighthearted banter it had begun with. It had been so long since either of them had been able to enjoy an evening this much. It was the simple pleasures of love and friendship that made life worth living. They would have to sort through everything else later, but for now there were together, and somehow in that moment, that was all that mattered.

Please let me know what you think. This is my first try at SVU fiction, so if I really missed the mark, feel free to constructively criticize. Thanks!