Chapter 11: Baby in the Chair (Part 3)
Disclaimer: I do not own.
A/N: Hey, what's up? Ughhh! I am so tired. If I lay down I will literally fall asleep. This sucks. Oh well.
Yay! I'll be going to Disney three weekends in a row. With different people each time. I am very excited. Three weekends in Disney!
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend; I may not be able to update till Wednesday. I'll try to do another chapter this weekend.
ENJOY MUCHLY!!!!!!!
"Olivia!" Elliot caught up to her about a block away from the precinct. Her only response was to walk faster. "Liv! Olivia, please!" He fell into step with her.
"What, Elliot?" She asked shoving her hands into her pockets. She didn't use a harsh tone of voice, but it wasn't her usual gentle one either.
"We need to talk." He stepped in front of her, forcing her to stop.
"I think I've talked enough for the both of us. Besides, you never wanted to talk before, why should you start now?" Olivia made to step around him, but he put an arm out.
"Well, how about I talk now?" Elliot looked into her eyes searching for some acceptance; any aquiescense, but found none. He sighed and also shoved his hands into his pockets.
"When you left…I thought it was because of me. We haven't really been on the best of terms lately." He paused, thinking how he should continue. "I know I haven't been the best friend or partner for the last few years. People kept telling me that if I didn't watch it you would leave. I didn't listen because I take it for granted that you'll be here everyday. But, then, that day…you weren't here and I thought that everybody had been right. You had left for good."
"When the captain told me that you were on an undercover assignment I figured you would be back in a few days. But, the captain said that I was getting a new partner and I kept reinforcing the fact that she was just a temp. That you would be back. Except you didn't come back. You were gone for over four months."
"So instead of talking to me earlier over the past few years, you thought you could find solace in a temporary partner that you'd known for less than four months? Gee, Elliot, that shows how much trust and confidence you have in me." Olivia said sarcastically.
"That's just it." Elliot dropped his eyes to his shoes. "I didn't know her, which made it that much easier ot talk to her. She didn't really know who I was so she couldn't possibly know what was going on in my life. Sometimes, it's easier to confide in strangers and people you don't really care for rather than someone that you've known for years and care--," Elliot stopped.
Olivia took a deep breath. "I saw you Elliot." She said uncomfortably bouncing on her heels. "I came back to the precinct to talk to the captain…and I looked out the office window and saw you…and her. I don't know, it was probably my imagination but…you seemed to be awful close to her."
"But that doesn';t matter. It's completely irrelevant to what the real problem is. You and I are so close Elliot. I can read you like a book and you me. But, you've been different lately. You've been cold, distant, angry, and just…you're not the same person. What are you doing to yourself? It's like you're beating yourself up because you were separated from Kathy, then because of you and Beck, and then because of you and Kathy getting back together." Olivia was careful to keep her voice even and her face composed.
"Make up your mind, Elliot! What do you want to do? You're falling apart from the inside out and it's starting to affect your relationships with people and your job."
Elliot stood rooted to the spot. He didn't have a good answer to any of those questions, so he asked on e of his own. "How did this happen? To us, I mean?"
Olivia let out a rush of breath and collapsed onto the nearest stoop. "I don't know." She cradled her head in her hands. Elliot sat next to her, but kept his distance.
"I thought we were okay." She continued facing away from him. "I thought we'd worked it out after I got back. I guess we didn't do as good a job as I thought we did."
"I guess not." Elliot agreed. "But, Liv," his placed a light hand on her back and was grateful when she didn't shake him off. "We can't just stay like this. I don't want to be kept at an arms length. I want us to be friends again." 'Yeah, friends.' Elliot thought with a touch of disdain.
"Can we, Elliot? I mean, can we b as close as we were? After everything that we've ben through… it's amazing we've stayed friends this long."
"Come on, Liv. Be optimistic. Olivia, I…" Elliot stopped mentally kicking himself. "I want to be friends." He finished lamely.
"So, we can forget all of this? Get a fresh start?"
"Yeah. I think that would be best."
A/N: This is only half the chapter. Sorry it took me so long to update. I'll be back soon.