**Update information: I did re-upload this chapter because I know that Fanfiction isn't sending out all the alerts they usually do about new chapters, but I just wanted to make sure everyone on the following list was notified about this chapter, sorry about any confusion! Chapter 5 will be coming out in the next couple of days though, so stayed tuned and check back, even if you don't get an email, please.
AN: Woo, okay so this is chapter number 3! Like I said before, I'm super excited about this story and I've had a lot of ideas recently, so I'm just trying to write and update as quickly as I can. Right now, I think I have a good idea of how I want Olivia and Elliot to end up together, but I don't plan on it happening super soon because I do want this to be kind of a slow burn. This chapter includes a little twist that I think will surprise you guys, but I hope you enjoy! Please continue to leave reviews, and thanks so much for the positive feedback I've received thus far.
Chapter 3: Elliot's Birthday
At 2 pm on October 20th, Olivia approaches the front door of the Stabler house, or what she guessed was now really Kathy's house. She shifts her daughter in her arms, who's still tired from the car ride and presses the doorbell. Next to her, Luke stands, bobbing excitedly in place, holding Elliot's birthday present.
Elliot is the one who comes to the door, dressed in light-wash jeans and a long-sleeved Marines tee. He smiles when he sees Olivia and her children, stepping aside to let them in.
"Hey," he says, pulling Olivia into a quick hug. This surprises her, but she hugs him back gently, motioning to her son, her cheeks pink. The house is warm and noisy, and there's music playing from somewhere. Olivia's glad that there seem to be other friends here, she hadn't wanted to cut in on a family event.
"Hi," she says, smiling back. "And happy birthday. I haven't seen you in jeans in a long time. It's a good look for you."
"Thank you," Elliot says, tucking his hands in his pockets a little nervously. He looks at Olivia for a moment before nodding back towards the living room. "Everyone's watching the game or in the kitchen, there's lots of food out, the cake will come out later. I think Dickie's up in his room…"
He turns back to yell up the stairs.
"Dickie, Luke is here!"
There's a bump and a quick shuffle, and then Dickie is hurrying down the steps.
"Finally," he says, skipping the last two steps and jumping onto the landing. Elliot's clicks his tongue in disapproval but lets it go. "The game on right now is terrible. C'mon, we can play football outside."
"Okay," Luke says. He hands Elliot his present before running back through the kitchen with Dickie. "Happy birthday Mr. Stabler!"
"Walk, please!" Olivia calls, offering Elliot an apologetic smile. She nods to the gift. "That's just something small for you."
"Yeah?" Elliot says, looking excited. He begins to walk back into the kitchen, which is empty, aside from the finger foods that have been laid out on the table and counter, and Olivia follows. Grace shifts, raising her head from her mother's shoulder to watch Elliot. "Can I open it now?"
"Sure," Olivia says, smiling and smoothing her daughter's hair down before pecking her forehead gently. Grace grips onto her shirt. Since about her first birthday, Grace had been increasingly clingy, and wary of strangers. Elliot is a familiar face, but Olivia knows it'll take her some time to get used to everyone else. She sits down at the kitchen island, Elliot standing in front of her as he peers into the bag.
"You didn't," he gushes animatedly, and Olivia chuckles, rolling her eyes playfully as he pulls out two items. The first is a bottle of raspberry vinaigrette and the second is a handmade cookbook, the cover drawn by Luke. It features drawings of what Olivia thinks is supposed to be spaghetti, pizza, chili, all things Luke enjoys eating.
"I just wrote down a few of the recipes I usually cook," Olivia says. "All things I know Dickie eats, so don't let him pull one over on you."
"Dickie eats zucchini?" Elliot says, flipping through the book. "My son?"
"He loves it," Olivia assures. "Squash too, when I make it the right way. I promise."
"This was really thoughtful," Elliot says, looking up at Olivia, a small smile on his face. "Thank you so much. I mean, I'm sure I'll butcher every single one of these recipes, but I really appreciate it."
Olivia laughs, nodding her head slightly.
"Of course, it's no problem."
Elliot stands smiling at her for a second, and she feels her cheeks begin to heat a little again. Eventually, he coughs, rubbing the back of his neck nervously and offering a sheepish smile.
"Can I get you anything?" he offers, motioning to the food. "We've got vegetables, fruit, pigs in a blanket, my wings – which I've been told by certain nine-year-old are very good – and lots more. Then for drinks, we've got water, Capri suns, I could grab you a beer…"
"I'll take a water," Olivia says, chuckling. "And I will try one wing, just because I want to see what makes them so special."
"Got it," Elliot says, his smile widening. He grabs a plate and puts two wings on it before picking up a water and sliding them both over to Olivia. She raises her eyebrows.
"I said one," she reminds, picking up a wing carefully and taking a bite.
"I know," Elliot says, watching for her reaction. "But they're just so good, I know you're going to want another one." Olivia chuckles through her bite before nodding slightly. To be fair, the wing is actually very good.
"This is delicious," she mumbles, taking another bite. Elliot grins, watching as she does her best to eat with one hand, her other holding her daughter steady in her lap.
"You know, not all women eat wings with their hands," Elliot says. "It's nice to see that you know the correct technique."
"Well, how else are you supposed to eat them?" Olivia asks, smiling through another small bite. She has to shift a little to break the wing, needing her other hand. Elliot raises an eyebrow.
"I can take Grace while you eat," he offers. "You think she'll let me hold her?" Olivia glances down at her daughter.
"You're welcome to try," she says to Elliot, who holds his arms out to Grace, asking for her permission. To he and Olivia's mutual surprise, Grace reaches back out and lets him take her.
"Such a good judge of character," Elliot says, grinning and rubbing her back gently. "Do you want some fruit, Grace?"
"Yes," Grace whispers, looking back at Elliot. He grins and grabs a banana from the fruit dish on the kitchen table, as well as a plate and a plastic knife. Afterwards, he sits next to Olivia at the island and starts to cut the banana up, handing Grace small pieces to eat.
"She's being really good about this," Olivia says, flicking in her eyes from Elliot to her daughter, who has now laid her head on Elliot's chest. "You're amazing."
Elliot grins, hoping that his cheeks haven't reddened. He looks back up at Olivia as she starts on her second wing, chuckling when he notices a smudge of sauce on her chin.
"You've got a little sauce on your chin," he says, nodding at the spot. Olivia grabs a napkin and swipes at the wrong side, and he shakes his head, teasing. "No, god, you're messier than the baby."
"Okay, okay," Olivia says, laughing and shaking her head. She wipes again, getting the spot this time. "Did I get it?"
"No," Elliot says, trying to suppress his smile. "It's everywhere now, you're a complete mess."
"Wow, really?" Olivia says, moving her hand up to cover her mouth. Elliot laughs finally, shaking his head and hands Grace another piece of banana.
"No, you got it," he admits, and Olivia rolls her eyes again, but she's laughing now. She reaches over and pushes him lightly.
"Jesus, Elliot," she says, starting on her second wing, "You're insufferable."
"But your daughter likes me," Elliot says, smiling down at Grace. "Right, Grace? Say Elliot?"
"Elyot," Grace tries, and Elliot's smile widens.
"That was actually pretty good," he says, tickling her side gently. Grace giggles and reaches for another banana piece.
Three men enter the kitchen at this point. Elliot looks up and nudges Olivia, standing carefully.
"Hey, these are actually some people I want you to meet," he says, looking back at Olivia, who's wiping her hands. He motions to her mouth, his eyes glinting playfully. "Come on, clean yourself up."
Olivia scoffs and wipes her mouth quickly – just in case – and stands up, smiling at the three men who stand next to Elliot.
"Alright, this is John Munch, Fin Tutuola, and Brian Cassidy," he says, nodding at each man. Olivia shakes each one's hand, but Brain's eyes linger on her afterward, making her chuckle softly. "Guys, this is Olivia. She's Dickie's best friend's mom."
"We know who she is," John says, making Olivia raise her eyebrows at Elliot.
"Oh?" she asks.
"Nice to meet you," Fin says, offering a small smile. "Elliot told us last week that he had to run out early to make it to a PTA meeting. He said the PTA president, Olivia, would kill him if he was late."
"Now that's funny because I remember telling you that it was perfectly okay for you to leave, after work," Olivia says, making Elliot cough. He quickly decides to change the subject.
"I work in the special victims' unit with John and Fin," he says. "Brain used to work with us, but he's in narcotics now.
"You could say we're members of an elite squad," Fin says and Elliot snorts. In his arms, Grace grips onto his t-shirt and hides her face. Fin smiles a little, nodding at the baby. "Who's this?"
"This is my daughter, Grace," Olivia says, rubbing her daughter's back gently and smiling. "And it seems that she's best friends with Elliot now."
"Come on, you know that's you," Elliot croons and Olivia chuckles, rolling her eyes for the millionth time that afternoon.
"Hey, what about me?" John protests. Elliot mouths a small "I'm sorry," and pats John's shoulder lightly and the thin man huffs. Brian coughs, looking back at Olivia.
"So, you've got two kids then," he says, a little awkwardly. Fin flicks his eyes at John, but Olivia just chuckles nodding.
"Yeah," she says. "Two kids. Do you have any?"
"Uh, no," Brian asks. John nudges Fin now, and they step away, going to get plates. "So, um, what do you do? Besides run the PTA."
"I'm a program manager at Planned Parenthood," Olivia says, smiling briefly at Elliot. "It's nothing like being a cop, but I like it."
"Yeah, that sounds, cool," Brian says, his voice dying off a little awkwardly. Olivia chuckles slightly, tilting her head as Brian looks down at his cup, his cheeks pink. She looks back at Elliot, touching his arm lightly.
"I'm going to go say hi to Kathy," she says. "Do you want me to take Grace, or are you okay?"
"I think we're okay," Elliot says, glancing down at Grace, who has laid her head on his shoulder comfortably. I'll pass her back when I get ready to eat." Olivia laughs softly and nods, grabbing her plate and water from the island and heading out into the living room.
"Jesus, man, what was that?" Fin says to Cassidy, walking back over to the group. Brian sighs. "That was painful to watch."
"That was bad, wasn't it?" he asks. John speaks up, putting a few deviled eggs on his plate.
"No, that was a wreck," he says. "Completely awful. Impossible to recover from." Brian groans now, looking at Elliot, who's a bit confused.
"Man, you've got to help me," he pleads. "Do you think you can set me up with her?"
"Who, Olivia?" Elliot asks, darting his eyes over at Olivia, who's now in the living room sitting next to Kathy on the couch. They're laughing, probably at something Olivia had said. Her sense of humor was unmatched. "I mean, why?"
"Did you see her?" Brian asks incredulously. He looks back at Olivia now too before flicking his eyes at Elliot uncertainly. "She's gorgeous. And funny enough to hold her own against you. I mean unless you guys have something going…"
"Olivia and I? No, no," Elliot says, shaking his head quickly and bouncing Grace a little in his arms. "Um, you just want me to talk you up to her a little?"
"That'd be great," Brian says, nodding. "And I'll try to talk to her again later. Maybe I'll have gotten my foot out of my mouth by then."
"Yeah sure," Elliot says, flicking his eyes at the widely smiling brunette in the other room. "No problem."
•
It's not until an hour later that Elliot's able to get another chance to talk to Olivia. She's talking to his oldest daughter Maureen and Kathy about Maureen's college choices when he walks up, but when she sees him her eyebrows go up and she stands from her seat to take her sleeping daughter.
"Elliot, I'm so sorry," she says apologetically, guiding Grace to lay against her chest. "Have you been waiting to eat this whole time?"
"No, it was fine," he says. "She was out in 10 minutes honestly, and then I got a chance to snack on some chips."
"I see," Olivia says, swiping a smudge of salsa off of the corner of Elliot's mouth. "And you called me a messy eater."
"Okay, okay," Elliot says, chuckling and slipping an arm around her shoulder. Olivia smiles at him shyly and he smiles back before flicking his eyes over at his ex-wife and daughter. "I was hoping I could steal you away to work on those ideas for a little while, is that okay?"
Olivia nods, having nearly forgotten her original reason for coming over.
"Yeah, of course," she says, looking back at Maureen and Kathy, who is looking at her a bit strangely. "It was really great to see you guys again. Maureen, if you have any questions about U Albany, I'm sure your dad can give you my number."
"I have it," Kathy says, smiling tightly. "Thanks again."
Elliot nods at the back hallway, where he heads with Olivia. As she starts to go into the wrong room, he places a hand on the small of her back, steering her in the direction of the office.
After they step in, Olivia lays her daughter down on the couch, rubbing her back gently before sitting next to her. Elliot pulls up the desk chair and a notebook, grabbing a pen as well.
"Okay," Olivia says. "So, we were still working on fundraising ideas, right?"
"Right," Elliot says, tapping the pen a few times before looking back up at Oliva. She looks so pleasant, so kind, sitting there on the couch in a white blouse and dark wash jeans. Her disposition is so sunny that everyone she talks to notices it, even if the conversation is only a couple of sentences. She was funny, hilarious when she wanted to be. And, like his friend has said earlier, she was gorgeous, he supposed. It makes sense for Brian to be interested in her. "I actually had something else to ask you about, before we start."
"Oh," Olivia says, raising her eyebrows and crossing her legs. "Okay, shoot."
"You know my friend, Brian?"
Olivia chuckles, nodding slightly.
"Yes," she says. She tilts her head, watching Elliot. "What about him?"
"He asked me to set him up with you," Elliot says slowly. Olivia's eyes sparkle a little and she grins, looking amused.
"Really?" she asks, chuckling softly and running a hand through her hair.
"I mean, I didn't know if you were dating right now, or if you were open to the idea or anything, but I told him I'd at least try," Elliot says, trying to gauge her reaction.
"Oh, this is so high school," Olivia muses. "I haven't been dating, to be fair, but I guess I'm open to the idea. Is he a nice guy?"
"Yeah, of course," Elliot says, trying his hardest to ignore the funny feeling in his stomach. "All my friends are nice guys. So, are you interested then?"
Olivia chuckles, moving her head in a motion that Elliot guesses is a small nod. She almost looks a bit bashful.
"Yeah, I guess I am," she says. "I'll talk to him before I leave, alright?"
"Alright, that's great," Elliot says, looking back down at the notebook. For some reason, he feels a little sick. "So, fundraising ideas?"
"Right," Olivia says, brightening up a little. "So, okay, imagine one, glorious fancy night, just for parents. A chance to get out of the house, get dressed up, and dance a little…"
•
Olivia and Elliot work on PTA ideas for a while. Eventually, deciding that their best fundraising ideas are the haunted house, the bake sale, the field day, a silent auction/ball idea that Olivia had thought up. Elliot doesn't even know that they've been away from the party for so long until Dickie sticks his head into the room and says that Kathy had sent him to find the guest of honor so that he could blow out his birthday candles.
Elliot and Olivia step out of the office together. Grace, having just woken up from her short nap, is in a good mood and had chosen to go back into Elliot's arms.
"So I'll start looking for decorations, maybe we can get some donations or something, Halloween is really only a week away," Olivia says, her mind working. She glances at her daughter, snuggling up to Elliot. "You know, she can walk. I know she's getting kind of heavy." But Grace only tucks her head back into the crook of Elliot's neck and he smiles, shrugging.
"It's alright," he says. "I don't mind."
When they make it back to the dining room, Kathy is lighting the final candle.
"There you two are," she says, her voice a bit flat. "Come on, we'll sing, and you can make your wish, Elliot."
Elliot moves to the head of the table and Kathy flicks the lights off so that the candlelight is the only source of light in the room. Olivia stands at the other end of the table, and he can just make out the outline of her smile.
His friends and family start singing, and he thinks he even hears a few words coming from Grace's mouth. But he's in his own head, trying to think of the perfect wish. By the time, the room finishes the last verse, he has it. He smiles and leans down a little, blowing all of his candles out in one go.
Then the lights come on and cake is distributed by Kathy and Maureen. On the other side of the room, Olivia is approaching Brian.
"Hi," she says, sitting down in a chair next to him. He smiles when he sees her.
"Hi," he says, trying his hardest to be as smooth as possible. "I'm guessing Elliot told you that I very lamely asked to be set up with you."
"He did," Olivia says, chuckling softly and taking a small bite of her cake. "I don't know if I necessarily thought of it as lame though."
"No?" Brian says. "Well just wait until you hear what I've been practicing for the past 30 minutes. You ready?"
Olivia, grinning, nods.
"Yeah, go ahead."
"So, um, do you mind if we just start over? Like, can I just get to know you a little?" Brian asks and the corners of her mouth twitch.
"Of course."
"Alright, well for starters, what's your favorite color?"
"Blue," Olivia says. Brian's eyebrows raise, and he nods slightly.
"Wow," he says. "Would you believe that's my favorite color too? How about your favorite TV show?"
"I don't really have a chance to watch much TV," Olivia says, tilting her head slightly.
"Me either!" Brian says, and Olivia has to stifle a giggle. "We're so similar. Now, here's the really important question: Do you have plans on Friday night?"
"I don't believe I do," Olivia muses. Brian is starting to smile now, shedding his nerves.
"That's really crazy, me either," he says. "Since we have so much in common and all, do you think you'd want to go out on Friday night? I mean, since neither one of us has plans."
"Wow," Olivia says, unable to keep from laughing now. "That was really something."
"Yeah, I know," Brian says, chuckling as well. "You see, the key is to agree, no matter what the other person says."
"Oh no," Olivia says sarcastically. "So, tell me, what's your actual favorite color?"
"Green," Brian admits. "And when I come home from work, I like to watch Friends."
"Wow, I don't know if this is going to work," Olivia says, still giggling softly. "I didn't peg you as a Friends man."
"Alright, but the real shocker is, I have plans on Friday night," Brian says. Olivia raises her eyebrows again.
"What? Well, now I want to know what you're doing."
"I'm planning on going on a date with this really cute mom I met at my friend's birthday party," Brian says, his smile slowly growing. Olivia's nose wrinkles, but she can't help but laugh, and eventually, Brian laughs as well. "See? Pretty lame, huh?"
"Super lame," Olivia says, pushing Brian's leg gently. But eventually, she smiles softly. "Just lame enough for me to want to give you my number."
Across the room, Elliot is watching. He sees Olivia nudge Brian's thigh and he nearly bites his tongue in surprise. As she pulls out a pen and starts scrawling down something on a napkin, Brian looks up, catching his eye. He gives Elliot a quick nod and a thankful smile. Elliot smiles back and calls Kathy over, handing Grace to her and stepping out of the room.
After everyone has finished eating, the party starts to wrap up. People start trickling out and when the living room is empty, Olivia starts cleaning up, grabbing plates and cups and heading into the kitchen to put them in the trash. When she walks in, she sees Kathy with Grace on her hip, wiping the counters down.
"Hey, there's my sweet girl," she says, taking Grace, who started wriggling in Kathy's arms as soon as she saw her mother. "Do you know where Elliot is? I wanted to say goodbye before we left."
"I think when we started wrapping everything up, he went outside to grab the boys. They didn't come in the house once this whole time," Kathy says, chuckling.
"I feel so bad for Luke sometimes," Olivia says, glancing out the window, where she sees her son and Dickie trying their hardest to tackle Elliot. She smiles softly. "He loves being outside, but we don't have a yard, or really anywhere for him to run unless I take him to the park."
"You had a little yard at your townhouse," Kathy says, placing the dishrag in the sink. "Why'd you all move?"
"After Jonathan passed, I kind of just got rid of everything that had been part of my life with him, I guess," Olivia says slowly. "I sold the townhouse, got a new job, cut my hair, even got a new babysitter. Everything reminded me of him."
"Oh," says Kathy, not having expected this answer. She dries her hands slowly, searching for the correct way to say what she wants to. "Can I ask you something?"
"Of course," Olivia says, looking over at her. "What's up?"
"Are you and Elliot…" Kathy begins, and Olivia raises her eyebrows. "You know, like a thing?"
"What?" Olivia says, surprised. She shakes her head quickly. "No, not at all."
"Okay," Kathy says. Olivia, however, is confused now.
"Why do you ask?" she says. "I mean, are you two thinking about getting back together or something?"
"No, nothing like that," Kathy says, shaking her head. She looks away. "I was just wondering I guess. You know, when our kids became friends, you guys took to each other right away. When the boys were in kindergarten, you two were just as close as they were. And you were both married at first, but now things are different, you know? So, when you disappeared for an hour earlier, I just wasn't sure…"
"We went to work on PTA fundraising ideas," Olivia assures, still shocked that Kathy had been thinking she and Elliot had something going on. "And actually, his friend Brian asked me out earlier."
"Oh?" Kathy says. For some reason, she says this as if she's relieved. She's able to look at Olivia now, offering an apologetic smile. "That's nice. I'm really sorry, for asking. You won't tell Elliot?"
"No," Olivia says, shaking her head. "Of course not."
As she finishes her statement, the boys come jogging in, sweaty and smiling. Olivia wrinkles her nose, teasing her son, who grabs a water bottle and starts gulping its contents down.
"Oh, Luke," she says. "You're getting in the shower as soon as we get home, okay?"
"Okay mom," Luke agrees. He turns to Kathy. "Can I take a piece of cake home please?"
"Of course," Kathy says, smiling and going to the fridge to get him a piece of cake. As she busies herself with this, and as Luke is distracted, Olivia smiles at Elliot.
"Thanks for setting me up with Brian," she whispers. "He does seem like a nice guy. We're supposed to go out Friday night."
"Oh," Elliot says. Friday night seems so soon. "Well, no problem. Thanks for coming over."
"Of course," Olivia says, smiling gently. She looks back at Luke, who's being handed his cake by Kathy. "Ready to go, bud?"
Luke nods and says goodbye to Dickie, and Olivia is getting ready to head out, but she's again surprised as Elliot leans in and gives her a quick hug. She pecks his cheek quickly, something Kathy pretends not to see.
"Gross," she says, wiping at her lips. "You're all sweaty." Elliot chuckles and shrugs.
"Sorry," he says sheepishly.
"Come on, Mom," Luke says, opening his arms and stepping in, a cheesy grin on his face. "What's wrong with a little sweat?"
"Don't you dare," Olivia warns, tousling her oldest's hair. "Come on, time to head home." She looks back at Elliot and Kathy, smiling again.
"Thanks again. See you soon, Dickie."
"Bye Olivia," Dickie says, his mouth full of cake. "Bye Luke."
•
Even after she leaves the presence of Kathy Stabler, her question floats around Olivia's head. She wonders about what she'd asked while she drives, and even later that night, when her children are asleep, and she was up doing some of the work she'd ignored for the rest of the week.
Why had Kathy asked if she and Elliot were an item? Olivia would have been lying if she said that she hadn't thought about it at least once. Elliot was handsome. And he was a good father and a dedicated police officer. He was a nice guy, funnier than almost anyone she knew, and whenever they were together, it was easy to relax; to be herself. What Kathy had said about them becoming friends easily was true, and what she said about things being different now was also true. Things were different now, and so she guessed that if she'd ever had a chance to explore something else with Elliot, that chance was now.
But she knew that he couldn't have felt anything for her. He'd set her up with one of his friends today, and she wasn't mad about that. A relationship between them would be hard, and with their sons being as close as they were, there'd be a lot of pressure on making things work. It didn't seem worth the risk.
So now, she does her best to push any lingering thoughts she'd had about Elliot and what kind of boyfriend he'd be to the back of her mind and think about Brian instead. He was cute. And he'd made her laugh. Yes, that was something much easier to justify pursuing.
But in spite of herself, in just a few short minutes, she finds herself wondering about Elliot again. Wondering what he wished for when he blew out his candles, and if he really was going to butcher the recipes in her cookbook, and what he'd said about her to his work buddies. But mostly, Olivia wondered if he was in his own apartment, thinking about similar things.
She doubted it.