A/N: Hey everyone! This is my first time at writing fanfiction; figured I'd give it a whirl since the writers refuse to bring our man El back. Constructive criticism is always welcome! Please leave feedback.
[ Disclaimer: I do not own any characters; if I did, this would've already happened by now. Rated M for future chapters...although I would love to skip straight to smut, it's just not ideal. I hope you enjoy! Set in season 18. ]
Collision Course
The rain was falling steadily outside on this chilly November day. Olivia sat at her desk in her office, subconsciously watching the raindrops slide methodically down herwindow. She couldn't help but think about how closely these drops of waterresembled
her life thesedays; cold and excruciatingly tedious.
Yes, she had Noah. That little boy was a blessing. He had completely turned her life around and she had never been happier; that was until Ed Tucker nudged his way into her life. If you asked her, she wouldn't lie to you; he had made her happy in the
/beginning. There was something about him that made her feel safe for the first time in years, made her feel somewhat alive again; but that all changed over the summer in Paris. He had taken her and Noah for three weeks, and it had been pure bliss...for
the firstweek. They had gone to little coffee shops, rode bikes around the city, even went to the top of the Eiffel Tower; but things started changing after that first week. At first, she didn't understand what was happening, but shesoon realizedthat
itwas extremely simple; her and Ed were just completely different. She was adventurous; a free spirit who just wanted to see everything Paris had to offer; she wanted to know about the history, the art, the fashion, the food, and he was just
notthat way, and by the end of the three weeks, they were barely talking. He understood, though; she was younger than he, she had a young child, and Noah gave her energythat he just didn't have anymore after all those years in IAB. They
broke it off notlong after they got back to New York, and ever since then, she'd beenin a slump.
Everyday was the same old drill; get up, get Noah ready, get herself ready, work for what seemed like 12 hours (and sometimes was, or more) come home to Noah asleep already, watch him sleep for a few minutes, then go to sleep herself; get up the nextday...repeat.
/It's not that Noah wasn't enough; she loved that little boy to pieces. Hewas the light of her life. Itwasn't her job; she was as invested as ever in her work. Shejust felt like life had no meaning anymore. She didn't need
a man in her life to make her happy, but, God did she wish she could meet someone who just made her feel alive again. That made her feel like the real Olivia again.
Olivia was brought back to reality by two knocks on her door and her young detective poking his head into her office, 'Hey Lieu, you got a minute?'
She quickly blinked and tucked a lose strand of hair behind her ear. She peered up at him through her black framed glasses as he quietly entered, 'Carisi, come in. What's going on?'
'Just got a call from the Chief of D's, two girls found raped and murdered in an apartment on the Upper East Side. 61st and Lexington Avenue.' He took in a deep breath, 'they were both beaten to a pulp. Barely recognizable.'
Olivia let out a slow faint sigh, 'Rollins or Fin around?'
'Nope, they're out talking to the parents of that kid, what was his name? Ah, Mitchell Shultz. The 12 year old who accused his father of molesting him.'
'Right. Give me five minutes, and we'll ride.' Great, Olivia thought. Another case that was going to add to her long list of reasons she couldn't sleep at night. She looked out her window once more, bit her lip like she always did when she was worried,
/then, like a switch flipped, took her glasses offand was out the door in a few strides.
Olivia and Carisi pulled up to the crime scene 20 minutes later; the brutal weather causing their delay in arriving. She got out of the squad car in a hurry, Carisi trailing behind her with his jacket over his head to shield the rain. Olivia didn't have
/time for that, nor did she care if her hair was dripping wet as she walked through the doors of the apartment. She flashed her badge to the officer, 'Lieutenant Benson SVU, this is Detective Carisi. What do we got?'
The middle aged cop looked Olivia up and down, not giving a rats ass if she caught him gawking at her, 'Uh, two vics; Jane Doe's. DOA. Beaten up pretty badly, panties torn off. Looks like our perp sliced em' up pretty bad. COD looks like exsanguination.'
'Thanks, we'll take it from here.' The oversized cop with a staring problem raised his eyebrows, then turned his back and walked out the front door. Oliviacould not take her eyes off these two girls. They looked like they couldn't have been morethan
/15. There whole lives ahead of them; it pained her to see this, but it was part of the job, unfortunately. Even after 18 years, it still didn't get any easier.
'Hey, Carisi. Go look around, see if you can find anything out of the ordinary while I talk to the M.E. and get a better understanding of what went down here.'
'Sounds good.' Carisi turned on his heel and walked into the kitchen, and Olivia squatted down to get a better look at the cuts and contusions on the two bodies in front of her. She was informed by one of the officers standing guard outside of the apartmentthat
/the M.E. was on his way, so this gave her a little time to herself to work her brain. How could someone do this? Why would someone do this? Was it someone they knew? Why did the perp decide to bleed them dry after beating them so bad it lookedlike
/that could've killed them?
She was shaken slightly fromher thoughts by a mans voice speaking to the officers outside of the apartment. She didn't know why, but for some reason, all of the thoughts in her head about the vics in front of her went right out of her head. She
/couldn't move, she couldn't breathe, she couldn't blink, and she had no idea why. She was in some sort of trance that she couldn't snap out of. She knew that voice. That rasp. That accent. She didn't know how she was coherent at the moment. Shewas
/still squatting down with her back facing the front door when she heard footsteps descendingtowards her. They slowed down andall she heard was the sound of this mans wet shoes squeaking to a stop a couple of feet behind her, followed by
the words that nearly made her heart cease to beat; 'Special Agent Stabler, FBI. I hope you realizethat you're interfering with a federal investigation.'
She was paralyzed. She could not move, even if she tried. And it for damn sure wasn't this weather that was making her as stiff as a board. She couldn't believe what she had just heard. She couldn't fucking BELIEVE he didn't recognize
/her; yes herhair was soaking wet, she was in her black trenchcoat which was also soaked, and she was completely hunchedover the two bodies, but still...12 years. 12 years. She could never not recognize that
body. That voice. That scent. Howcould he not knowit was her? Olivia was flooded with an array ofemotions ranging from confusion toexcitement to sadness to anger as she slowly stood up with her back facing him. She tried to
take a quiet deep breath, but that was literally impossible,as she opened her mouth, she let out ahuge gasp followed by a sharp intake of air. She closed her eyes and slowly turned around where she stood. She couldn't do it; she couldn't
bare to open her eyes. She knew all that pent up anger
would go to shit as soon as she saw his face.
She heard his breath hitch as she turned the last few inches to face him. Her heart was beating out of her chest and tears were already pooling in her eyes, which were still clenched shut, when she heard him choke out, 'Li...Olivia?'
She knew she had to open her eyes, she knew she had to face him. God damnit, why did he already have this effect on her?! She took a deep breath, her fists in balls at her sides, as she slowly opened her eyes. Her tears were blurring her vision,so
/she blinked a few times, and then it's like she was hit with a bus. There he was, her partnerof 12 years, standing five feet in front of her. After 5 fucking years. No calls, no letters, no nothing. And there he was, with those piercing blueeyes,
/that chiseled clenched jaw, that fucking body...standing mere feet from her.
They just stood there in silence, staring into each other's eyes. Brown to blue. Blue to brown. Taking each other in for the first time in half a decade. After what seemed like an hour, but was actually about 2 minutes, Olivia's eyes moved down to his
/lips, then back up to his baby blues. She took the corner of her lip into her mouth and bit, before speaking the first words to him infive years.
'Elliot...' It was the most pathetic attempt at speaking, but it was all she could manage to choke out. Her throat was dry. She couldn't breathe. She didn't understand why all she wanted to do was run over to him and throw her arms around his neck andsob.
/She wanted to feel him, God it's been so long. She wanted to feel his hard body against hers. She couldn't explain why in just a few short minutes of being in his presence, she already felt safer than she had in years. But just asquickly as
those
thoughts rushed into her mind, they were replaced by bitterness and anger. Her eyes glazed over and she stared right through him, 'it's Lieutenant Benson.' She turned on her heel and stalked into the kitchen to find Carisi.
If you asked her right then and there, she would never admit it. She would never in a million years admit to feeling her heart skip a beat at the sight of him, but she knew as soon as her brown eyesmet his mesmerizing blueeyes inthat
/apartment on the Upper East Side on that rainy November evening, that her life would never be the same again.