The Others

An anchorwoman stood outside of Michelle Herman's Manhattan townhouse reporting the updates.

"Officials tell us that Michelle Herman, star of NBC's Criminal Order has been raped by what they believe to be an out of control fan. The man was last seen in the Manhattan area wearing a jacket with the initials DH on the left hand pocket. He is said to be armed and totting Michelle's 13-month-old son, Michael. Anyone with information is to call the number on the bottom of your screen."

Kathy blinked her eyes open to watch the television. Michelle Herman appeared on the screen with her husband Robert. She sniffled into a tissue but kept a strong composure like a Greek goddess at the beginning of a tragic play.

"I want to thank all of my fans and supporters for being with me in this time of hopelessness. The sketch of the man at the bottom half of your screen has my son. My son, who is barely a year old, was taken from me. If anyone has any information about my situation please help us by contacting the hotline number below. As the founder of the Hope Heart Foundation I've listened to many horrific stories and held the hands of women and children in need, but nothing could prepare me for a day like this. I beg the man that did this to my family to stop and think about what you are doing and to please return my son safely to his parents. And god bless the people that know my hurt. Stay strong and pray for my son. Thank you."

Kathy turned her head to look out the window and saw Olivia curled up in a chair sound asleep.

"Olivia."

Olivia tossed her head to the side and squinted her eyes open. With a grawgy voice she replied, "Good morning."

Kathy sat up with her hands holding her large tummy. "What are you doing here?"

Olivia yawned and stretched herself in the chair. "I saw your text message to Elliot and I came to give you company."

"Where's Elliot?"

"He fell asleep."

"How did you get his cell phone?"

"He"-Olivia hesitated a bit. She hadn't thought about Kathy's reaction to him falling asleep at her house. She also knew how jealous Kathy could be. "He took a nap at the precinct and told me to wake him if you called but he was so exhausted I couldn't wake him up."

"Oh."

There was an awkward pause and then Kathy continued her skepticism. "So why are you here?"

"I had some down time and you seemed like you needed to talk."

"Well I'm not an unpopular person. I do have friends. I have my fair share of company." She paused and then mumbled under her breath. "But thanks for the thought."

Olivia tried to remain patient. She knew Kathy wasn't always easy to talk to. "Listen, Kathy, I didn't mean to offend you, but I know how terribly lonely and dull sitting in a hospital can be."

"Really? How many children have you had?"

Olivia starred her in the face. Anger tingled throughout her body. "That was uncalled for."

"Sometimes the truth hurts."

Olivia shook her head and gathered her things. "That was by far the most selfish thing I've ever heard you say."

Kathy sat up with rage in her eyes. "You've ruined my life! My husband doesn't talk to me anymore. When he's not playing with the kids or working with you, he's talking about you, or talking with you, or dreaming of you. " Kathy started to cry. "He wakes up screaming your name. Do you know how much that hurts me? He says one thing but does another. The only thing my husband and I have in common anymore is sex and children. All I want is the man I met in high school back. All I wanted was for him to come home last night and hold me and talk to me. Instead, I get you."

Olivia handed her a tissue. "Kathy, I'm sorry. I don't know what to say. I just wanted to help you two out."

"You want to help out? Stay out of our lives."

Olivia grabbed her coat and headed for the door. "If you would just listen to him and yourself every once in awhile you might understand why he chooses his job over you."

Kathy screamed at Olivia. "Get out of my room, Olivia Benson!"

SCENE

A loud buzzing sound woke Elliot up from a hard sleep. He grunted to a sitting position. His hair was messed up, his eyes would barely open, his shirt was off, and he wiped the drool from the side of his face.

The buzzer sounded again. He looked around confused about where he was. "Liv?"

He stood up, fumbled to the door, and pressed the entrance button. He stood in the middle of the living room looking for his shirt when Dean Porter walked through the front door.

"Olivia?"

Elliot spun around and gave a confused wave to Dean. "Hey."

Dean backed up. "Oh, sorry. I didn't realize I was interrupting something."

Elliot pulled the blanket up and found his shirt. "Huh?"

"I forgot my umbrella last night. I just came to get it." He grabbed the umbrella by the door and slide out of the apartment as fast as he could.

Elliot took a second to figure out what just happened and then he raced after Dean to explain. "Dean! Dean, hey, you weren't interrupting anything. I just fell asleep. I think."

Dean took in the wrinkled mess that was Elliot and got into the opening elevator doors. "No need to explain. I get it. Tell Olivia I said hi."

Elliot yelled as the doors closed. "Dean, it's not like that. We were working. I mean, we didn't do that because I was asleep. We didn't do that last night. No, wait, that's not what I meant."

The elevator was gone.

"Fuck!"