Disclaimer- I own nothing :)
As I walk through the wide halls of the 1-6, I cant help but feel more at home than I had in weeks. My hairs grown out, so most of the people I pass on the way to the elevator pay no attention to me, something I'm thankful for. My hair is passed my shoulders now, and I've grown used to wearing it down since I went to Oregon. I'm growing more anxious as I step into the small, empty elevator and press the button for my intended floor. Taking a deep breath, I begin to fidget a bit with the hem of my blouse before running a hand through my hair. I should have called someone. Let them know I was back. I think to myself as I pass another floor. I soon hear the soft 'ding' letting me know I had arrived on the right level, and the doors in front of me open.
As I walk towards that familiar squad room, I can already hear familiar voices arguing, along with one I do not recognize. Letting out another deep breath, I take the last few steps towards the doorway, not quite in the room yet.
"Since the evidence was our case, he threw out the inditment." Casey, along with most of the others, is standing with her back to me as she speaks to the only one facing my direction. The only one I dont know. She speaks to the woman with such conviction, clearly not very fond of the new girl.
"How could you let that happen?" The stranger retorts, crossing her arms over her chest. I can practically hear the sarcastic remark forming in Casey's, also one on my best friends, head before the words even escape her.
"I guess I suck" She replied, shrugging her shoulders simply.
"I can second that" I say with a small smirk as I finally enter the room. Just as Casey was about to say something back, she turned and soon stopped in her tracks when she saw it was me.
"Liv?!" She asked, a huge smile stretching across her face as everyone else turned to look at me, causing blush to rise to my cheeks.
"Olivia?" Whispered a voice that was all too familiar. I couldn't take that just yet, couldn't face him right now. Before I knew it, Casey was practically tackling me to the ground. I hugged her back with all the strength I could manage as I began to grin widely myself, and I was soon unable to breathe.
"Case! Case, sweetie. Cant breathe" I half-whispered, laughing softly. I heard the others around me start to chuckle as well once she finally let me go. Tears I hadn't been expecting began to spill over as I was passed along to each of them, making me realize just how much I missed them in a matter of a few short weeks. As I was saying my 'Hello's to Munch, Fin, and Casey, I noticed the new girl go to stand beside Elliot, too close for my comfort.
"So, who is she?" She asked, not thinking I would hear it.
"This is the famous Olivia Benson, the one that kept us all sane around here. Shes also the one that kept that partner of yours in check for so long." John introduced me, throwing his arm around me. There was a small silence in the room following his remark, causing Fin to hit John in the shoulder. I was obviously missing something,
"Jackass" he muttered to him while John looked momentarily lost. I could still feel Elliot's eyes on me, but I couldn't meet them. I wouldn't let myself go there yet.
"Oh, so your Olivia. Your not really what I imagined." The frizzy blonde said as she looked me up and down. "Well, I'm Dani Beck. Elliots' new partner" She added, not even trying to hide the ice in her tone.
Biting my tongue, I hold back a remark I know I'd regret. Before I'm able to respond, I hear Casey mutter something to Fin, causing him to laugh. "Not for much longer, hopefully" she says with a small smirk.
"Well its about time we started headed out anyway. Lets all go for some drinks" Munch suggests, prompting Fin to respond.
"You sure its not past your bedtime old man?" He asks with a smirk, grabbing his coat from the back of his chair. "Either way, I'm in as long as Liv's comin'." Fin added with a playful wink, causing me to laugh. Casey throws in a cheerful "Me too!" as she waits by the threshold for the rest of us.
"Yeah, sounds great. I'm just going to go say 'Hi' to Cragen first. I'll meet you guys at the elevator" I say simply, unable to stop smiling as I walk back to my old bosses office. "Knock knock" I say upon entering.
"Olivia? What are you doing back here?" He asks, surprise and joy evident in his voice. "1-PP didn't notify me that you had returned. Its good to see you, detective" As he spoke, I was hit once again with the realization of just how much I missed him. Don has been the only father figure I've ever had in my life. The tears that brimmed my eyes told me I missed him more than I had realized.
"The investigation got a little messy, so they just..sent me back. Told me they didn't need me anymore" I explain with a small shrug, wiping the tears from my eyes before he has a chance to see them. We chat a bit more about my return before I mention that I have to go. "I'll stop by tomorrow, I promise" I says with a small laugh before exiting the office and heading back to the elevator.
"Sorry," I say as they hold the elevator for me, "Got caught up"
"No worries" Casey says, waving it off as nothing.
"So, where to?" John asks, leaning against the back wall of the elevator. Everyone thinks for a minute before making the obvious decision.
"O'Reilys" We say in unison, laughing at ourselves afterwards.
"Stabler? Your comin' with us, right?" Fin asks him quietly, hoping I wouldn't hear. His eyes are still on me, burning into my skin as he contemplates his decision.
After a moment, I hear him speak again. "No. Not tonight, sorry" His voice is soft, yet somehow raw. His 'no' cuts me, burns me. I had hurt him, and he hadn't yet forgiven me. We soon get to the ground level and separate, most of us planning to go straight to the bar.
Laughter fills the air once again as we enter, each of us telling stories about the things we've missed while I was away. They tell me about how Dani cant relate to the victims, and has only made Elliots' anger problems worse. I cant stop myself from rolling my eyes at the thought. Countless laughs and several drinks later, I'm saying goodbye to them with promises to be back tomorrow as I hail a cab. Its good to be home.
"This is it, thanks" I say to the cab driver as I toss him the money and begin to step out. Once I step onto the curb, I begin to fish in my bag for the keys to my apartment, hoping I still had them with me. Upon finding them, I continue to walk to the door but soon stop dead in my tracks at the sight in front of me. Elliot Stabler is sitting on the front steps of my apartment building, his knuckles bloody and bruised with his head in his hands. With a soft sigh, I take a few steps closer and find myself unable to stop untill I'm right in front of him.
"El" I say softly, my voice barely above a whisper. We lock eyes for the first time that night as he looks up at me.
"Liv" he whispers back quietly, pain mixed with relief cloud his eyes as he looks back at me. I'm at a loss for words. Finally, I sit down next to him, our shoulders touching. I don't know how much time passes before either of us speak.
"I'm sorry" I whisper, emotions getting the better of me. My voice cracks the slightest bit, but I know he can tell.
"I just have one question." He starts softly, his voice barely faltering. After a moment, he turns his head my way slightly, but doesn't face me all the way. "Why did you leave?"
With a soft sigh, I briefly shut my eyes and let a single tear run down my cheek. "Remember back on the Gitano case? You said that we could never let personal feelings get in the way of our job. That we couldn't choose saving each other over the victims, otherwise we couldn't be partners." I begin to explain."I knew it would be impossible for me to promise and agree to that. Subconsciously, I new I didn't have a choice. In the end, I would always end up trying to save you. So I left, to make it easier on both of us."
His eyes are on me as I speak, and I can see that what I'm saying is bringing back painful memories on both of our parts, but I can also see that he understands it needs to be said. "You should have talked to me, Olivia. We could have figured something out. When I didn't know where you were, I imagined the worst. You have no idea what it did to me, Liv" He says softly, shaking his head lightly.
"I know. But I didn't know what else to do. I wanted to call you, to talk things out. But they wouldn't let me, not while I was undercover. I was scared too, and I'm so sorry, Elliot" I add, my voice barely above a whisper as more tears escape me.
"So, are you coming back? To work, I mean." He asks after a moment of silence, a hint of hopefulness appearing in his voice.
"I'm not sure." I respond, shrugging while shaking my head. "I don't really fit in anywhere. I mean, you have Dani now. Where does that leave me?"
Rubbing his hand slowly down his face, I see the cuts on his knuckles more clearly and shake my head, wondering what poor object had to suffer through that beat down.
"This is your home Liv, you fit in anywhere. I'm sure Cragen will find a spot open for you. Besides, I'm not really sure how well things with Dani are working out anyway." He encourages, nudging me lightly with his shoulder as he gives me a small smile.
"Alright, I'll think about it" I promise, "On one condition"
"What?"
"You hit pillows for now on" I joke as I grab his hand and closely examine the cuts.
"Deal" He agrees, shaking his head as a soft laugh escapes him.
After another minute, I take a wild guess as to what it was. "Lockers, again?" I ask with a smirk. He winces as I graze one of the cuts with my thumb, and nods sheepishly. "Figures" I mutter, still smirking to myself as I gently try to clean out the wounds.
"So, we're good?" He asks, almost shyly, after another moment passes. Looking back up at him, I dont even try to surpress a smile.
"Yeah, we're good" I promise. Everything else can wait untill the morning. All that matters that this moment is the simple fact that I'm home. Nothing and no one can change that now.
AN- So thats the first one-shot for this collection. Tell me what you think? Kind of sucks, I know. Reviews are like the E/O relationship..Hot and get me excited x) Kidding! But seriously, drop a review and let me know what other kind of one-shots you guys want to read about. It can be any pairing, it can be a song-fic, whatever you want. The sky is the limit. Just let me know, give me about a day or two to write it, and it'll be posted as soon as possible :)