Disclaimer: I must not tell lies… I must not tell lies… I must not tell lies… I DON'T OWN IT!

Timeframe: Season Six

Summary: Elliot blows up at Olivia, hurting her both emotionally and physically, and before he can fully explain himself, and old enemy returns. Can he fix things between them before it's too late?

A/N: FINALLY not a one shot! The world's gonna end…
-Elliot is divorced
-~…~indicate thoughts.
-this indicates memory or emphasis
-A word in normal text surrounded by italics indicates emphasis in an already italicized phrase.
(Didn't wanna confuse anybody.)
-Also, what I know about medical treatment, etc. is learned from TV, personal experience, and having an ER doctor for a mother. I did a little research to see what treatment is used, but if you see any errors, feel free to point them out!

Enough small talk, on with the story!

June 7, 2005
12:01 am

Olivia Benson turned over in her bed, trying to get comfortable. Her back was one massive bruise, her shoulder felt like her arm had been forcibly ripped out of its socket, her head had a bump the size of a baseball on it, and she had cuts all over. In short, she felt like she had run through hell in stilettos during a thunderstorm with a metal rod tied to her back and then gotten beat up by Elliot. After running through the fire. Well, the last part was true. Bastard.

May 23, 2005
11:32 pm

The view outside the interrogation room window was beautiful, the millions of lighted windows making the Manhattan skyline look like a field full of fireflies. The bluish summer night was completely cloud free, allowing a few odd stars to show through the blanket the city held above itself to hide from the light of night. Inside the interrogation room, the dim light was on to illuminate two detectives embraced in a passionate kiss, though no one was around to see.

If one were to walk by however, they would see the sort of kiss one saw in a romance film, the blue eyed detective pushing his copper headed significant other against the table inside, each one fighting for control. The copper headed woman paused for breath and looked up at the blue eyed man, smiling. Then they were kissing again.

Of course, no one walked by, and no one ever knew for a fact that Elliot Stabler and Olivia Benson had admitted their true feelings for each other, had, in fact, made out in an interrogation room. Munch and Fin suspected, but Casey Novak was the only one whose suspicions were ever confirmed.

Olivia could almost have smiled at the memory of that first kiss. Almost, but only almost, because she doubted she'd ever be able to smile again.

This had continued for a while, about two weeks, to be exact. Forbidden kisses, stolen in empty elevators or interrogation rooms or deserted sidewalks while Elliot walked Olivia home (as if she couldn't take care of herself. The escorts to her apartment had been an annoyance that Olivia only put up with for the kisses). On one occasion, they had even been in the car. Tailing a suspect.

And then, today, everything had changed.

June 6, 2005
9:25 am

They had been interrogating a suspect, in the same room, in fact, where their first kiss had taken place. The room held no beauty now; now it was just a small, square room equipped with a dim light bulb and a one way mirror. Outside the sky was gray and heavy, the air humid, and the feel of things just overall forbidding. The scene inside was of the same man and woman who had been passionately kissing just two weeks earlier, but now they stood apart. A dark haired man with dark brown, almost black, eyes sat at the table. He would've been handsome if it weren't for the smug smirk on his face and the evil in his heart.

All of a sudden, though the viewers outside couldn't hear why, Elliot had the suspect pinned in a corner, blow after blow falling on him. Olivia pulled him off the man, who now sported a bloody nose and no smirk, and held him against herself, struggling to restrain him.

Before she knew what was happening, Elliot had turned on her, thrown her. She was flying through the air, and then there was a loud crash, and a flash of pain, and then her vision was blurry. She dimly heard someone yelling, and then her vision faded completely and she heard no more.

June 6, 2005
2:37 pm

Olivia woke to find herself in what was undoubtedly a hospital. She always recognized hospitals almost immediately after waking up in one, due to their extremely unpleasant and unique smell. She hated hospitals. Unfortunately, it was just her luck to choose a profession where she frequently became admitted to them.

But, back to the matter at hand, why was she here? Olivia pondered over the question for a while. She remembered brining Dan Walker in to be questioned, then… what? She remembered glass shattering, pain, yelling… oh yeah.

Her bastard, no-good, son-of-a-bitch, pus-sucking, gangrenous malignancy of a mental amoeba, lousy excuse for a partner had thrown her through the one way mirror.

Through the one way mirror.

The suspect must have been pretty happy to have the attention off of himself for a while.

Olivia sat up, hating how helpless she felt swaddled up in the starched hospital sheets. The movement hurt her extremely sore muscles. Just in time to interrupt her self-pitying thoughts, the door opened, and a kindly looking woman in scrubs walked in.

"You feel okay honey?"

And even though she didn't, Olivia wanted out of there. "Yeah."

"Okay, we just got back the results on your cat scan, and there's no bleeding, which is good. Do you remember why you're here?"

Olivia nodded vigorously, then winced almost imperceptibly at the dagger it sent shooting through her head.

"Umm. Yeah. My partner threw me through a one way mirror."

The nurse chuckled at her tone. "That's good. You'll need to put ice on your head if it starts swelling or hurting and you can take two acetaminophen pills every four to six hours as needed."

Olivia nodded again, more gently this time. "Can I go now?"

The nurse chuckled again. "Sure. You'll need to come back in a month or so for a check up, just to make sure you don't have any later effects. You know, you're really lucky you had only a mild concussion. Most people would've been out for at least a day with a bump that size."

Olivia smirked. "I've always had a hard head."

"Well then, you just need to sign the discharge papers at the front desk and then you can go."

Olivia ripped off the sheets and stood up, swaying unsteadily for a moment before noticing her shoes were gone. She opened her mouth to inquire as to why her shoes were missing without her permission, then the nurse handed them to her.

"Thanks."

"No problem sweetie."

Olivia signed the papers at the front desk, then continued on her way. She stopped dead when she entered the waiting room to see the entire squad staring at her, except for Elliot, who was staring at his feet.

Munch was the first to speak. His eyes lit up gleefully.

"Fin? Twenty five dollars."

Olivia felt like rolling her eyes, but, wary of the pain it might cause her, refrained. She watched as Fin grudgingly took the cash out of his pocket and slapped it into his partner's hand, mumbling about "miraculous recoveries" and "kicking your bony ass." Olivia, unable to stop herself, felt her lip curl into a half smile. Casey was next.

She rushed up, pulling Olivia over to sit down. "You okay Liv?"

"Of course. Only way they ever let me leave this place."

Casey chuckled, and Olivia was surprised. She didn't recall ever hearing Casey chuckle. Maybe it was built up tension. She then guiltily noticed a cut running down the right side of her friend's face.

"Did I do that?"

Casey shifted, suddenly uncomfortable. She searched for an answer, finally settling on an, "it's nothing."

Olivia immediately felt guilty, but then remembered her partner. ~He better have a damn good explanation for this!~

Cragen finally said something, "Well I, for one, am glad you're okay. If you need some time off, take it."

"Of course I don't want time off!"

Fin smirked and turned to his partner. "You owe me ten bucks."

Munch groaned. "That's not fair," he grumbled, handing over the money. Olivia sighed. ~Glad to see they care about my well-being.~

"Well," said Cragen, "I expected you'd say that, but you're still home for at least a day or two. If you're sure you're okay, then back to work everyone! Except for you Elliot, you're home until I say otherwise." He stood up and turned to face them all, waiting expectantly for them to follow. They did, filing out of the hospital like a line of schoolchildren.

As she was leaving the precinct after gathering her things, Olivia walked out the door to realize that Elliot had driven her to work that day. She was half tempted to ask Munch or Fin to drive her home, but when she turned around to walk straight into him. Of course.

Elliot shuffled his feet. "Olivia."

She matched his cool tone. "Elliot."

"Umm… well, do you need a ride home?"

Olivia ground her teeth. "Yeah, thanks," she said stiffly.

It was on the way back to her apartment that he said it. Those words, the words that cut Olivia to her core. Made her realize that she's just been a distraction, that he just wanted to get into her pants, and when she didn't immediately invite him to stay the night, he left. She realized that the man that she's loved for years will never feel anything for her.

"I can't do this anymore."

"But-"

"Our feelings don't matter."

She jumped out of the car a full block from her apartment building, sprinting blindly the whole way, ignoring the hot tears that flowed down her face.

June 7, 2005
12:02 am

Which brought her back to the present. Lying on her bed, staring up at the ceiling, wishing she had never left it this morning. Yesterday morning, whatever. Because if she hadn't, if she had never left her bed, never kissed Elliot, never taken his car to work, this wouldn't be happening. She wouldn't be miserable. She wouldn't be suffering from a case of depression-induced insomnia. She wouldn't have gotten her heart and body broken by the only man she's ever managed to trust.

And on that cheerful note… TBC.