Hey everyone! Thanks for all the great feedback, they always make my day. I hope you enjoy this chapter, it's just kind of a "kick start" type of chapter.
Enjoy!
…...
After blinking a few times Sidney was finally able to focus on the ceiling above her recognizing it as her own. Turning her head slightly, she saw the red numbers of the alarm clock staring back at her.
Damn, 3:am.
Stretching her soar muscles, images of the night before came flooding back to her.
Olivia…
Reaching over to the spot next to her Sidney was surprised when she felt the cool of the empty sheets. Sitting up in bed, she looked around the room realizing she was alone. Slipping out of bed wrapping a blanket around her naked form, she quietly left the room.
Sidney came around the corner into the living room. The room was dark, except for the pale light of the street lights shinning through the window. Moving to her right, Sidney realized that there was a small frame of a person seated on the couch.
She quietly made her way towards the couch unnoticed by the woman sitting on it; studding her briefly in the dim light, she was holding mug in between her hands and portraying a concentrated look.
"Looks like your thinking about something very serious there detective." She commented taking a seat close to Olivia but not quite touching her.
Jumping slightly at the sound of the voice, Olivia could not help but smile. "Looks can be deceiving doctor."
Olivia propped her elbow on the back if the couch and rested her head in her hand, looking towards the woman before her. Sidney's green eyes were even brilliant in the poor lighting, and that little grin was quickly becoming Olivia's undoing.
The detective had changed back into her jeans and t-shirt, her hair sticking up in different directions; Sidney thought she had never looked more adorable.
"How long have you been up?"
"Not long, half an hour at most."
Olivia was still giving portraying a very serious look. "Tell me something." Sidney asked more as a statement than a question.
"Ok."
"You don't…you don't regret what we did do you?" Olivia wasn't really surprised by this line of questioning. Grabbing Sidney's hand in her own, Olivia let out a long breath she didn't even know she had been holding in.
"Do you?"
"Ah, answering a question with a question detective." Sidney joked. "No." Came the simple answer after a few seconds of silence. "No, I don't regret it. I just- I wanted-."
But before Sidney could finish what she was trying to say Olivia placed two fingers on Sidney's lips, silencing her.
Olivia wasn't sure why she had stopped Sidney from speaking her mind, don't lie yourself, you know exactly why you did it, chicken.
After a few agonizing moments of silence, Olivia did something that took the doctor by surprise, she laughed.
"What's so funny?" Sidney asked a little confused but smiling non the less. But Olivia didn't answer right away but instead kept laughing gently.
Throwing caution to the wind, Sidney leaned in capturing Olivia's lips with her own. Pulling back, Sidney looked at Olivia, the laugh had died in her throat and still her eyes remained closed.
"You going to answer my question detective?" Sidney asked in a low, seductive voice. Pushing Olivia back with her hand, Sidney made herself comfortable on the detectives lower hips. She ran her hands slowly down Olivia's clothed covered frame.
"Um, I-I was just…aw." Sidney had moved her hand under Olivia's shirt and was now gently running her hands over the perky breasts. Causing Olivia to have a difficult time answering the question.
"Mm, I was just wondering if y-you planned on having a toga party?" Olivia finally was able to get out, referring to the bed sheet wrapped around Sidney. Olivia had just sat up and ran her hands gently up Sidney's long, slender neck, eagerly taking the woman's lips onto her own, when a loud beep caused both woman to groan in frustration.
"Damn it. That's me." Sidney said, reaching over to the end table, snatching her glowing beeper. "It's the hospital." Not moving from her position on top of Olivia, she took her cell and pressed a few buttons before placing it near her hear, while Olivia kept her hands on the doctors hips.
"Hall…yeah…when?…ok I'll be right there."
"You have to go?"
"I do, and you should come with me…Elliot's awake."
…...
Once at the hospital the two women quickly made there way towards Elliot's room, and Olivia suddenly found herself uncharacteristically nervous.
What if he can't forgive me? The question had been on the detectives mind ever since she had left Sidney's apartment. Thankful that Sidney was the first to push open the door and walk into the room, Olivia sighed heavily before following.
The first thing Olivia noticed when she entered the room was it was crowded. Not only were Sidney and herself there, but Dr. Beckett, Kathy, were also in the small room. Walking further in the room, but still staying out of the way, Olivia finally was able to see her partner, his blue eyes shinning up at his wife and a breathing tube coming out from his mouth. Kathy was gripping her his hand, tears were falling from her face. Olivia had not even realized Dr. Beckett was explaining Elliot's current state until she was half way through her explanation; the detective was still trying to come to terms…
Elliot was alive.
"He is doing very well. The fact that he not even 24 hours after his surgery is remarkable." Dr. Beckett said positively.
"W-what about the breathing tube?" Kathy asked still silently sobbing.
"Well his lungs were damaged by one of the bullets and we don't want to put too much strain on them, so basically the tubes are just a crutch so to speak. We should be able to take it out in the next couple of days."
"You hear that babe, you are doing just fine." Kathy said turning back to her husband.
"Well, we'll give you guys some privacy. I'll be back in a few hours to check and see how you guys are doing." Beckett turned towards the door, sharing a look with Sidney.
Sidney knew she had some apologizing to do to Emily, so reluctantly sot turned to leave, bypassing Olivia as she did giving her a soft smile before closing the door behind her.
Seeing Olivia for the first time Kathy brought Elliot's hand to her mouth and kissed it. "I'm going to go get the kids. They have been waiting to see you." And with that Olivia found herself alone with Elliot.
Pushing away her uncertainties Olivia walked towards Elliot until she was standing next to the bed.
This time she really took in the sight of her partner; he looked strong, like the Elliot Stabler she had always known. The beep of the heart monitor was the only sound in the small room until Olivia finally broke the silence.
"You look like shit." Even though he couldn't talk Elliot's eyes communicating everything that needed to be said.
The longer she stood there the more she could feel the pin prick of tears threatening to fall, but she stubbornly pushed them away. "El, I am so sorry-." Olivia was stopped mid apology by Elliot's weak grip on her own hand. She met his gaze it was hard and determined causing Olivia to take a breath of surprise.
Before anything else could be said Kathy came back through the door with all five Stabler children following behind her. Straightening her body immediately, Olivia smiled briefly at the family.
"You don't have to leave Olivia." Kathy said watching the brunette make her way towards the door.
"I'll be back later."
"Olivia…" Before the detective even knew what was happening Kathy Stabler embraced her in a strong hug. Eventually, Olivia returned the hug but only briefly. She knew what Kathy was doing yet she also felt that she in no way deserved such kindness.
"Take care of yourself Liv. And don't be a stranger huh?"
Without another word, Olivia smiled softly and left the family to themselves.
…...
"Has my plane ticket come in yet?"
"Ugh, yup, here you go doctor." The nurse smiled handing Emily a cream colored envelope.
"Thanks."
"Leaving already?"
"No, not until tomorrow evening." Emily explained, glancing at Sidney leaning up against the nurses station before turning her attention back on the folder laid open in front of her.
"Look, Em I know I screwed up-."
"Ha. Ya think."
Sidney shook her head, "You never did let me off the hook easily."
"Only when you were in the wrong." Emily set down her pen and turned towards the younger woman. "You lied to me Sidney. You stood there and told me you could handle this, you told me that it wasn't personal when it clearly was. And because of that you put a mans life on danger."
Sidney felt like a child being scolded for braking a rule; she looked away from Emily and down at the tiled floor.
"I'm sorry, I was wrong." That was all Sidney could think of to say, that was really only the thing she could say.
Taking pity on the young woman, Emily softened her tone and her posture. "You know Sid, you always did let your bleeding heart seep into your work. It's the one thing that makes you such an amazing doctor…and it is also your biggest handicap."
Sidney tore her eyes up from the floor, letting the words sink in. Emily was always honest with her, never tried to sugar coat the facts, it was the one characteristic that Sidney found so damn attractive of Emily.
"Hey, what are you doing tonight? Maybe we could grab a drink and catch up." Emily suggested, all evidence of anger gone from her voice.
Normally Sidney would have agreed, but she instead hesitated. She was about to decline her friends offer when she caught a glimpse of Olivia step out of Elliot's room and slump against the wall. The image broke her heart.
Emily noticed her friends' attention was no longer on her, she turned slightly and noticed Olivia. "Poor woman."
"Yeah." Sidney agreed without even realizing it. "I'm going to see if she's ok." Sidney quickly said before leaving Emily, making her way towards Olivia.
When she was close enough she saw the woman had her eyes closed tight, her hands running through her short hair. Poor woman.
"You alright detective?" Dropping her hands, Olivia wasn't really surprised to see Sidney standing beside her.
"Um, yeah, yeah I'm good. Um, did you need to go in?" She asked pointing her hand towards Elliot's room, clearing her face of all emotion.
"No, no. I just saw you come out and wanted to make sure you were doing ok."
"Oh, well thanks, I'm good." Olivia stood up a bit straighter, she was becoming a little nervous and didn't know what to say.
Sidney gave her a look but chose to accept her answer. "Well alright then." A knowing smile coming across her face.
Olivia couldn't help but smile as well, taking a step closer to Sidney, refraining from reaching out and taking her hand.
"Olivia. Hey, there you are." Both women turned their heads, walking towards them was none other than Alex Cabot dressed in her typical court room attire.
"Alex, what are you doing here?" Olivia asked.
"I was on my way to court, opening arguments start today for the Mendel case, when Cregan called me saying Elliot was awake, I wanted to come and see how he was holding up." Alex said shifting her brief case.
"Oh, Kathy and the kids are in there right now, but I am sure he would be glad to see you." Sidney took note of Olivia's change in demeanor when the ADA came around; she stood up a little straighter, burying her hands deep in her pocket, as if this woman demanded her up most respect.
"Dr. Hall, it's nice to see you again." Alex finally greeted Sidney.
"Likewise Miss Cabot." Sidney replied politely, but couldn't help the warm feeling she felt in her stomach at the woman's presence.
For a moment there no one said anything, filling the air with tension.
"So, uh doctor, was there anything you needed from me?" Olivia finally asked breaking the silence.
Doctor?
"What, oh no." Liar. "I should go, I have a surgery in about an hour." Sidney quickly said, feeling rather crowded.
Alex would have had to be blind not to see Olivia shift a little towards the doctor as she turned to go as if wanting to stop her, yet in the end Sidney walked away leaving the two colleagues alone.
Interesting.
"Well, come on, lets go see if Elliot is up for some more company." Olivia said holding the door open for Alex.
…...
The rest of the day had been relatively uneventful, Olivia had gone home for a few hours after Alex had shown up to see Elliot and tried to catch a few hours of sleep before heading back to the hospital.
She had not seen Sidney since that morning and was hoping to catch the doctor while visiting her partner and maybe convince her into going out for a drink.
Olivia wasn't exactly sure what this thing was that she had going on with the doctor, but she had to admit, she enjoyed it. However, she also had to admit that it was probably a bad time to dive into…well into whatever it was she was diving into; the thing with Elliot, Sidney being her doctor and now his, it was just all…overwhelming.
When she showed up at the hospital, she checked in on Elliot and come to find that he was fast asleep, but still doing very well. She had gone to look for Sidney but was disappointed to find out that she had left about an hour ago. Debating on whether or not she should stop by the doctors apartment Olivia ran into none other than Alex Cabot on the way out of the hospital. She had been going to see Elliot before she went home for the night.
"Well sorry you made the trip for nothing councilor, but he is asleep."
"Leave it to Stabler." Alex said with a small grin.
"Hey, what do you say to a drink? It is a Friday night." Olivia asked figuring it was the least she could do for the ADA after she had shown Elliot such support.
And that is how Olivia Benson found herself seated at a small table near the back of a bar having a drink with Alex Cabot.
The conversation stayed relatively neutral, and Olivia found herself having rather a very good time.
"Sounds like you made quite an impression on him."
"Yeah you could say that." Alex chuckled before taking a generous drink of her red wine after finishing her latest story. "So, I hear IAB still hasn't cleared you." Alex said nonchalantly, watching the detective closely. She had to give the detective credit, she had masked her reaction very well, only the slightly tighter grip on her beer bottle gave her away.
"No they haven't."
"Don't worry Liv from what I've read from the reports it was a clean shoot."
Olivia finished off her beer and motioned to the bar tender for another. "You know maybe it's for the best, I've been meaning to take some vacation time." Olivia thanked the man who dropped off her beer.
"What will you do?"
Olivia shrugged. "Don't know, watch movies, finally finish the book I started six months ago…clean." That brought a smile to the ADA's lips.
"To vacation." Alex said raising her glass to Olivia's and taking a drink. Olivia was about to suggest they order another round when her eyes caught a familiar face across the bar.
"Sidney." She said before she even had time to think. The doctor turned towards Olivia and smiled.
"Hey Olivia, what are you doing here?"
"Just having a drink with Alex. What are you doing here?" Sidney looked over at the blond sitting across from the detective, feeling that same warm feeling in the pit of her stomach.
"I um, I was just-."
"Hey sweetie there you are, ready to- oh, Detective Benson, fancy seeing you here."
"Yeah, fancy that." Olivia said, looking back and forth from Sidney to Emily Beckett and giving off a tight smile.
The look did not go unnoticed by Sidney. "Um, Emily Beckett this is ADA Alex Cabot, she is the one who handled the case I was telling you about."
"Oh, well it's very nice to meet you Miss Cabot." Emily said reaching out to shake the blonds hand.
"Dr. Beckett is the one who operated on Elliot." Olivia chimed on as well.
"Well, then it is very nice to meet you doctor." Alex said with complete honesty. "Won't you two join us?" She offered, she had noticed the look passed between both Hall and Benson and was intrigued to say the least.
"Sure, why not." Emily said, she placed her hand on the small of Sidney's back and pulled out her chair; Olivia took a generous swig of her beer.
"And who says chivalry is dead?" Alex joked.
"Actually I think she secretly hates it when I do things like that, which is precisely why I do it." Emily took the Sidney's hand in her own and gave it a light squeeze before releasing it.
Olivia could feel her face begin to get warm, and she suddenly felt like telling Beckett to keep her hands to herself.
Yeah that would go over real well…you have no claim over her Benson!
"How long have you worked together?" Alex asked, keeping the conversation going smoothly, taking note that both Olivia and Sidney had yet to speak.
"Well we don't exactly work together anymore. I was Sidney's mentor when she first moved to New York, not long after that I got a job offer in Chicago, and the rest is history." Emily explained. "What about you two?" She asked pointing to the detective and Alex.
The conversation went on like this for quite sometime, with Emily lightly touching Sidney whenever she could, which caused Olivia to become more withdrawn from the immediate conversation.
Olivia's final undoing was when Alex had excused herself to use the restroom, and she caught Emily leaning over close to Sidney and whisper something in her ear. Olivia was literally seconds away from getting up and leaving when she felt the light pressure of a hand on her knee.
She whipped her head up at Sidney, but she was looking at Emily and nodding at something she was saying. The hand on the detective's knee began to rub light circles, the heat could be felt through her jeans.
Olivia reached for her beer to do something to occupy her hands, but found the bottle empty.
Damn it.
"So what about you Detective?"
"Uh, what?" Olivia asked, having no idea what was asked.
Emily grinned. "I asked, if you had any plans for the holidays?"
"Oh, I um-." The hand on her knee began making it's way up her leg, gently running on her inner thigh. "Work. I am scheduled to work." Olivia spat out, a little more forceful than she had intended.
She wasn't sure what had gotten into her, all she knew was that she liked the attention and that she didn't trust her voice to say anything else. Her train-of-thought was lost when she heard Sidney speak.
Are you okay?" she asked softly, with a glint in her eye.
Olivia glanced down at the hand that was slowly rubbing her thigh, and then looked back at Sidney, who was waiting for her to say something. She wasn't sure what she should do. "Y-yeah, I'm good."
The blonde took her hand and moved it so that it was just inches from Olivia's center, sprawling her fingers over her thigh, squeezing it gently, hoping to get the detective to react. Olivia was in complete shock. The woman she'd been attracted to from the very day she first saw her was now sitting with her in a bar, with two of their colleagues no less, with her hand up her leg and she didn't seem to care if any one noticed.
Olivia quickly looked back towards Emily who was in a conversation with Alex whom Olivia never even saw come back to the table. While Olivia was contemplating what to do next, Sidney kept her fingers working on Olivia's thigh.
Olivia's pulse was now throbbing and the growing sensation between her legs was getting to be unbearable, so she took a chance. She took Sidney's fingers and stilled them with her own. She saw Sidney stiffen slightly but didn't remove her hand.
Moving Sidney's hand further up her thigh so that most of her forearm was now hidden under the table she saw Sidney shutter in response. And just when she thought she was going to spontaneously combust Alex stood.
"Well ladies I think I'm going to call it a night, I've been up since the crack of dawn."
"I second that." Emily agreed also standing up, grabbing her coat from the back of the chair.
Sidney's hand quickly tore itself away from Olivia's thigh, leaving the detective feeling naked.
The cool air was exactly what Olivia needed to clear her head.
"Well that was fun. The next time I'm in town we should try and do this again." Emily concluded. The rest of the women agreed. "Well, I'm heading uptown, anyone want to share a cab?" Emily looked towards Sidney who was skillfully avoiding the gaze.
"I'm heading that way." Alex spoke up.
"Great. Well Sid I'll see you tomorrow, and Detective Benson it was nice to see you again."
"You too doctor."
Emily quickly hailed a cab and opened the door waiting for Alex to enter; but before she did the ADA gave the detective a sly that caught Olivia off guard.
Olivia and Sidney waited until the cab pulled away from the curb before turning and walking in the opposite direction. They had walked a few blocks in silence before Olivia finally spoke.
"So, you going to tell me where that came from back there?"
"I have no idea what are you talking about." Sidney said before meeting Olivia's eyes. "Look, I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable."
"I don't think that's exactly how I would describe it." Sidney bowed her head at the confession. A few more moments went by before they had reached Sidney's building.
"Well this is me."
"So it would seem."
"Well, thanks for the drink detective, I had fun."
Olivia nodded in agreement. "Sidney wait." Olivia grabbed her wrist stopping the woman from turning to go. "Look, I'm not really good at this whole, talking about feelings thing, but I think it's safe to say we are on the same page here." Sidney did not speak, but let the detective continue. "I um, I was wondering, if you would like to go out with me…like on a date."
Sidney leaned in towards the woman and brushed her lips over her cheek, but before Sidney could pull back Olivia grabbed the back of Sidney's neck and crushed her lips with the doctors.
Sidney was the one to break the kiss; she thought it was absolutely adorable at how nervous Olivia sounded.
"So, is that a yes?"
Sidney did not answer verbally, but instead grabbed Olivia by the hand and led her towards her apartment.
"How about breakfast…tomorrow morning?"
…...
Well there you go! Hope you like! Let me know!