A/N: "Language has created the word "loneliness" to express the pain of being alone. And it has created the word "solitude" to express the glory of being alone. And it has created the word "love" to express the blessing of never being alone again."

DISCLAIMER: SVU and characters belong to Dick Wolf, this story belongs to TStabler©

The day was dragging. Olivia and Elliot spent most of it ignoring Fin, making phone calls to the morgue, the lab, TARU, and various stores looking for a specific couch for the house they hadn't bought yet, and finishing paperwork on which they'd fallen behind.

Cragen, watching them keep to themselves, walked over and cleared his throat. "A minute with both of you?" he said, his eyebrows high. "Now," he added, turning, assuming they'd follow.

Olivia looked up at Elliot, shrugged, put her pen and file down, and got out of her chair. She waited for Elliot, who mimicked her actions, then walked into Cragen's office, still saying nothing to Fin.

Cragen looked at them as they walked into his office and he folded his arms as he asked, "Just how long do you think you can avoid talking to him?"

Elliot glanced at Olivia before looking at his captain. "To who, Cap?"

"Whom," Olivia mumbled, out of habit.

Elliot chuckled, looking back at her, relieved that after so much time apart she could still correct his grammar without batting an eyelash. "Whom," he said, rolling his eyes.

"Santa Claus," Cragen said, annoyed. "Who do you think? I don't know what exactly is going on, but I got the general idea. How many times have I told you to leave the personal shit out of..."

"This is beyond...this was the ultimate betrayal, Cap," Elliot said, sounding hurt. "It's not affecting my work. As long as I don't have to work with him, I'm good."

Cragen looked at him and then said, "You might have to, Elliot. How many times do we have to split up into..."

"I'll go with Liv," Elliot interrupted. "Leaving her alone with Fin isn't a good idea right now either."

Cragen ran a hand down his face, shaking his head. "You can't...I get that you have issues with him, both of you, but don't make me write you up or send you home for this," he warned. "You can be civil for a few hours, you have no choice."

Elliot, deciding the meeting was over, turned to leave.

"And don't think I don't know what's going on with you and your new car," Cragen said, stopping him.

Elliot turned sharply and Olivia coughed. "What?" he asked, confused.

"Fin trashed the Lexus, so you, what, traded up for a Ferrari Fioriano?" He looked at Olivia and said, "The four-door, leather interior, cherry-red, fully loaded."

Elliot squinted. "Did you just hit on Liv?" he asked, folding his arms.

Cragen laughed. "No, but I got you to admit it," he said, grinning. "If this is some kind of rebounding thing that's just gonna end..."

"It's not," Olivia cut in. "It's not. We...we haven't even hit the floor, or bounced yet. No rebounding."

Elliot laughed at her attempt at a sports reference, and he said, "It's nothing like that, Cap. We're just...helping each other cope with a lot of things right now."

Cragen pressed his lips together and nodded as he hummed. "Yeah," he said, "Go out there and cooperate with the other detectives in this squad or you can help each other cope with unemployment, too." He shared a chuckle with them, watched as Elliot held the door open for Olivia, then said, "Hey, Elliot?"

"Yeah, Cap?" he asked, turning again.

Cragen lowered his voice, took a step closer to Elliot, and narrowed his eyes. "If you so much as park your new car too close to the curb, I will revoke your license, get me?"

Elliot looked his captain in the eyes, nodded once, and said, "I swear, I'm not gonna hurt her."

Cragen nodded, then got back to his own work as Elliot walked back to his desk. He stopped when he saw Olivia on the phone, and Munch and Fin staring at her. She looked annoyed, slightly hurt, and she wasn't saying anything. "What's going on?" he asked, directing the question toward Munch.

"Porter," Munch said, shaking his head. "She told him she was hanging up, then he said something and she's looked like that ever since."

"Liv." Elliot said loudly, walking toward her. "Liv, hang up." He tried to take the phone from her but she moved, pulling out of his reach. He watched a tear roll down her cheek.

"I can't...Dean, I can't do this right now," she whispered into the phone, sniffling. "Just stop, seriously, I'm not coming back."

Elliot tilted his head. "Hang up," he said again, wondering why she was ignoring him. He lifted his hand and brushed away a tear, and she finally looked at him. "Baby," he whispered, "Hang up."

She sniffled, letting her hand drift away from the side of her face, and she dropped the receiver onto the cradle. She fell into his arms once the phone was down, her crying stopped but her nerves shattered.

"What did he say to you?" he asked, right in her ear. He pulled her out of her chair, walking her toward the stairs. He guided her up to the cribs, knowing she wouldn't talk about it in the squad room.

She waited until the door was closed behind them, then she said, "He told me if...if it was that important to me we could have kids." She let out a depressed chuckled. "He said that he would try harder to understand our relationship, that he wouldn't take me for granted or assume I'd change for him anymore. Then he started...he started crying."

Elliot let out a breath and he tried not to feel the fear that was building. "Okay," he said. "If you want me to..."

"I told him it was way too late," she interrupted, looking up at Elliot. "That's what he should have wanted, and should have done, from the beginning. He just..."

Elliot cut her off, relieved. "You don't want to..."

"Of course not!" she said, surprised. She moved closer to him, cupped his face, and said, "I can't leave you now. You still owe me another dinner."

He laughed with her, letting his nerves settle. "So you're leaving me after that, huh?" he asked, teasing her, wrapping his arms around her.

"Depends on where you take me and how much you tip the waiter," she teased back. They shared another laugh and she got serious for a moment. "El, this...whatever is happening here...this feels right. This is what...this is what this is supposed to feel like, right?"

"What?" he asked, brushing his nose lightly against hers. "What what's supposed to feel like?"

"Love," she whispered as her eyes closed. "You're supposed to feel like you've got someone, like someone's got you. You're not supposed to feel lost and alone." She opened her eyes and said, "I loved him, I did, but without you, no matter how hard I tried, I always felt alone. I didn't feel like this with him, El."

He kissed her, holding her tight, and he pulled away slowly as he whispered, "Good." He pecked her lips again and said, "I like being the first guy to do things."

She chuckled and gave him a squeeze. "You always make me smile," she said.

"I love making you smile," he told her. "I love you."

She looked into his eyes, kissed him one last time, and said, "I love you, too." She sighed and shook her head. "We need to get down there before Cragen gives us another lecture."

He laughed and led her down into the bullpen. Fin rose out of his seat, immediately walking up to Olivia. "I need to talk to you," he told her.

She looked over at Elliot, who glared at Fin and gave Olivia a look, one that meant "do what you want," and he went back to his desk. She looked at Fin and sighed, folding her arms. "Why?" she asked.

"It's important," Fin said, grabbing his keys. He yelled to the back of the room, "Yo, Cap! Me and Benson are goin' to Mercy."

"We're what?" she asked, shocked.

Elliot looked up and raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?" he interjected, annoyed.

"I need to talk to you, and you have to talk to a vic. I'll drive you over, we can talk in the car," he explained. He put on his jacket and gave her a gentle shove toward the door.

She looked at Elliot, saying something with her eyes as she left. She took a breath as they walked in silence toward the elevator. She knew what he was going to say, and she didn't want to hear it. Not tonight.

A/N: That conversation will change Olivia's opinion about what Fin did, and it will also make her even more anxious to make things work with Elliot. Why? Review here or on Twitter: TMG212