Christmas was a crazy season. From the shoppers bustling about in search of the perfect gift for everyone from their mother to their first grade teacher, to the constant holiday music blaring from every speaker, to the political correctness of having to refer to it as the holidays, rather than Christmas, life was perhaps never more insane. It seemed, too, that crime seemed to spike around the holidays. Minor thieves and embezzlers, and even angry gift recipients appeared to crawl out of the woodwork.

This meant, of course, that overtime was practically guaranteed, especially for those in law enforcement. Everyone from the lowliest intern to the highest ranking government officials felt the heat. The Manhattan district attorney's office was no exception. And one ADA in particular was beyond exhausted.

Casey had worked for thirty six of the last seventy two hours. Her schedule was packed with arraignments, hearings, and meetings, and free time was nill. She didn't have time to contemplate, much less be sad about, the fact that she didn't have anyone to spend her holidays with. She could have spent it with her parents in their lush Upper East Side home, but she wasn't in the mood to deal with her mother's insistence that she "find a good man and bear many grandchildren."

It wasn't that she hadn't been asked. In fact, her apartment was full of flowers and offers from various men. But Casey wasn't interested. None of them appeared to have any desire to engage in anything beyond a one night stand, and she was positive that at least two of them already had wives. She would spend her Christmas as she always did- with her law books as her dates. They were at least partially intelligent.

By the time Christmas Eve rolled around, Casey, knowing she could use a brief escape from the office, accepted her invitation to the District Attorney's annual holiday party. Everyone in the office was invited, down to the lowliest intern, and everyone was given one extra invite. Casey briefly contemplated going by herself, but then realized how embarrassing that would be. She relaxed on her sofa, scrolling through the many offers on her phone. Still, not one man interested her, not even for a few hours.

Just when she was about to give up, Casey noticed another contact in her phone. She smiled softly to herself, holding her breath and dialing the number. Maybe this night could be salvaged, after all.

Olivia picked up on the second ring. "Benson."

Casey smiled to herself, then, realizing how deranged it was to smile because someone answered the phone, took a small sip of her scotch and returned it to its coaster. "Is the great Sergeant Benson actually home for an evening?" she asked. She had purposely dialed Olivia's house phone number to see if she was there.

Olivia chuckled on the other end. "For now," she answered. "I was about to head out."

"Oh." Casey heard the disappointment in her voice, and quickly squashed it. "I will leave you be, then," she said carefully. It took everything she had to not inquire further.

"I was planning on spending my evening at the grocery store, then that diner a few blocks from the precinct," Olivia responded. "Casey, why are you calling my house phone? I have a cell phone, you realize. For that matter, why are you home? I thought the DA's party started in an hour."

Casey sighed. "It does," she confessed. "But I've been oscillating between two choices: getting dressed and flying solo, or accepting the invitation of someone who only wants to add my name to his little black book...or worse." She shook her head, shifting the phone on her ear. "Neither choice sounded particularly appealing..."

"Oh?" Casey could practically hear Olivia's smirk on the other end. "Well, I don't know about adding your name to my little black book, but since I have nothing better to do, and you couldn't possibly attend this soiree alone, why don't you let me attend with you? I can keep all of those grabby hands off of you."

Casey laughed at the visual, then paused, pretending to contemplate the offer. Olivia was well known around the DA's office, and they could attend as mere best friends. And it would keep her away from "grabby hands" as the older woman had so eloquently put it. It would certainly be entertaining, if for the wrong reasons. Wondering why she was so eager all of a sudden, Casey found herself quickly accepting. Olivia promised to pick her up in an hour, ignoring Casey's protestations that she had her own car. Realizing Olivia had hung up, the redhead walked into her bedroom, placing her phone on the charger and staring into her closet in an effort to choose the perfect dress.

"That was one of the worst parties I've been to," Casey murmured. She and Olivia were alone in the older woman's car. The party had ended a few minutes before, and the steady throng of departing guests snaked around the building, leading down the street in both directions. She had been talking for several minutes, but when she looked up, she realized Olivia wasn't listening. Instead, the brunette was staring out her window, her fingers gripping the steering wheel so tightly that Casey wondered if her knuckles had lost feeling yet. "Olivia?" the attorney questioned. "What the hell? I don't believe I said anything particularly offensive."

Olivia sighed deeply, shaking her head. "You didn't," she answered quietly. "I'm the idiot here. I knew this was a mistake."

Confused, Casey sat up in her seat, facing Olivia, even though the other woman wasn't looking at her. In fact, it seemed she was doing everything in her power to avoid doing so. "If coming here was a mistake, you shouldn't have offered," she replied. "You've been acting very strange for the past two hours, ever since that guy by the buffet table mistook us for a couple. He was drunk, Olivia. He wasn't thinking clearly. Anyone in their right mind can clearly see that we are not a couple." Her hand on the door handle, the redhead shook her head, scoffing in disgust. "I'm the stupid one. Now, if you'll excuse me, maybe one of those fine gentlemen is still interested in spending the night with me."

She had just opened the door when she felt a hand on her arm. "Casey, stop," Olivia instructed. "You know that's not what I meant. And I have not been acting strange."

Casey rolled her eyes, turning to face her. For the first time in hours, Olivia was actually looking at her, or, at least, in her general direction. She could feel her heart in her throat, and her heartbeat in her brain. It was a sign that she was about to cry. What the hell? She must have had too many martinis. "So refusing to look at me, answering my questions and statements with single word answers, and barely reacting when that man called you a grandma are all normal behaviors for you? That's bullshit, Olivia, and you know it. When you're ready to tell me what I did to piss you off so much, feel free to call me." Casey threw the car door open and stood up, the cold air rushing to her face and fingertips. Then it dawned on her.

She whirled around, bending down so she could see into the car. "This isn't just about that drunken partier's assumption," she realized. "You're upset because of what happened at the bar, when that handsome stranger walked over and kissed me. I saw you roll your eyes. Sorry. I didn't realize one night stands were so beneath you."

"Now you're being ridiculous." Olivia released her grip on the steering wheel. "Casey, get in the car."

"Excuse me?"
"Get in the car so we can talk about this. Unless you want to wait in the rain for a cab on Christmas Eve, I suggest you get your ass in the car and let me take you home. Maybe some sleep will awaken your sense."

Casey shifted her weight, contemplating her choices. She wanted to walk away, just to prove a point, but Olivia was right. The rain had stopped for now, but if the grumbling were any indication, a downpour was imminent. "Fine," she conceded. "But only because it's...cold..out here." She returned to her seat, slammed the door, and buckled her seatbelt.

Neither of them said a word on the way back to Casey's apartment. By the time Olivia had pulled the car up to the curb in front of her building, Casey knew what had started as a promising night was ending in flames, though she still could not decipher Olivia's anger with her. "Thank you for the ride, and for coming to the party," she murmured, unbuckling her seat belt and reaching for her purse on the floor.

"Casey..we need to talk."

"We just did," Casey snapped. "Now, if you don't mind.."

Olivia again placed her hand on the attorney's arm, this time gripping it gently. "I don't care who you sleep with. Although, that isn't entirely true. I care, but not for the reasons you think. I could lie and say it's only because I don't want to see you get hurt, but that's not the whole truth, either. Casey, I've been dancing around the subjects for weeks. Years, truthfully. Tonight only made things worse."

"Olivia, what the hell are you talking about?" Casey didn't want to admit that she was completely lost.

"Let me finish, please." Something in Olivia's voice made Casey shut up. "Look at you, Casey. You're successful and come from a great family. I was a mistake, and spent most of my life with a mother who hated me and a father whose name I never knew. At least, not until much later, and only because of an illegal search. You're much younger than me. You can still get married and have children, and you have your whole life ahead of you. And whether you realize it or not, you're beautiful. Men flock to you because you have an amazing body and a gorgeous face. Just look at that dress. That would turn anyone on, male or female."

Casey blushed in the darkness. She had chosen a simple sweater dress for the night. It was black, with a hem that rode high on her thigh, and a dipping neckline that accentuated her cleavage. She needed a break from her usual suits, despite it being the DA's party. "Thanks," she mumbled, unsure of what else to say. "Olivia, you're not old...and if this is what's wrong, you're beautiful. You say I have a great body, but I wasn't blessed with great breasts or naturally tanned skin. Those are the things the men seem to love."

Olivia shook her head. "Not always. And believe me when I say, I wish my problems were that simple." She faced Casey, taking the other woman's hands in hers. "There are many things you don't know about me, Casey. Things no one but myself and my reflection know. Pass tonight off as unexplained weirdness, if you want to. But you need to know, at the risk of losing everything, that you're the cause of the weirdness. When I saw you tonight, something snapped. I've spent years watching you with man after man, never able to convince myself that I was truly happy for you. I wasn't. I never have been. Maybe it's the champagne talking, but you're too beautiful and sweet to objectify yourself like that. When that idiot referred to us as a couple, I didn't get mad because he was wrong. I was upset because I wanted him to be right. And when that creep kissed you later, at the bar, all I could imagine was him throwing you down on his bed and using you. You don't deserve that. You deserve everything.." Trailing off, Olivia brushed a stray red hair from Casey's eyes, tucking a lock behind the younger woman's ear. And before Casey could react, Olivia had pulled her in for a passionate kiss.