Disclaimer: I own Jess, Allen, and Steve. Dick owns Olivia, Alex, Casey, and the entire SVU squad. It's very sad, and extremely unfortunate, I know, but that's the way life goes sometimes.

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"We really had to leave at eight, didn't we?" Alex moaned as she rolled out of bed, slapping her alarm as she did so. "Tell me again why we're leaving this early."

Olivia crawled out of bed and followed Alex into the bathroom. "Because we want to get there as early as possible so we can see as much as we can possibly see." She slipped out of her nightgown and joined Alex in the shower. "There's a lot to do up there and I want to do it all."

Alex smiled at Olivia's enthusiasm and turned around to kiss her. "Then that's what we'll do." She smiled as she pulled out of the kiss, feeling the water running down her back. She brushed the hair out of Olivia's face and swallowed, trying to fight the tears. "Thanks for holding me last night."

"You never have to thank me for holding you," Olivia told her softly. She reached around Alex and turned off the water. "I enjoy holding you. I love it when you're wrapped snuggly in my arms."

"You do?"

"You bet I do."

"Thank you," Alex said softly as they returned to the bedroom to get dressed. She opened the top drawer of the dresser and pulled out a pair of underwear and a bra. She could feel Olivia staring at her as she did this, and she smiled self – consciously. "What?"

Olivia smiled and shook her head. "Nothing. I was just admiring your beauty."

"My beauty, huh?"

"Oh yea," Olivia answered flirtatiously as she walked over and wrapped her arms around Alex. She smiled proudly as she met Alex's eyes. "You know, it wasn't even a year ago that you were absolutely terrified of changing in this room…you always had to do it in the bathroom, with the door locked. You were afraid I'd see you." She smiled warmly and stroked Alex's face. "I'm so proud of you, baby. I'm so proud of how far you've come, and I love you so much."

"I love you, too," Alex said happily. "You gave me the strength to get through everything. You're the reason I'm comfortable changing in front of you. You're the reason I'm not scared anymore."

"You're a beautiful woman, Alex."

"So are you, Liv. So are you."

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"This is a cute hotel," Alex said as she pulled the car into the parking lot of the Holiday Inn. "Good choice."

"Well I'm just glad to be here. I want to get out and stretch my legs."

Alex laughed and shook her head. "You'll have plenty of time to do that this weekend. According to you, we're going to do and see everything we possibly can. This place is gorgeous and it's going to be an amazing weekend."

Olivia smiled, but looked away and out the window. She bit her lower lip nervously as she looked down to the brochure in her lap. There was so much that she wanted to do, but she didn't know how possible it would be.

"Honey, what's wrong?" Alex asked, concerned, as she gently squeezed Olivia's hand.

She sighed and shook her head. "It's not important. Come on. Let's go get checked in so we can see the falls. That's the first thing I want to do here. Screw all the boat tours and everything else. I want to see the falls."

Alex, though concerned, said nothing. She simply nodded and got out of the car. She decided it would probably be best to talk once they got into their hotel room. It would offer more privacy. For now, she just pulled her bags out of the trunk and followed Olivia into the lobby.

"I'm Olivia Benson," she told the woman at the counter. "I made a reservation. I know you said check – in wasn't until two, but I was wondering if you could let us squeeze in an hour early."

The woman looked up and, seeing Alex standing behind Olivia, frowned. "You two are together? You didn't ask for a double. I booked you a single room."

Olivia swallowed angrily in an attempt to keep herself from yelling. She looked at the woman's nametag. Patricia. "That's fine, Patricia. I didn't want a double."

The woman smiled curtly and shook her head. "I'm afraid you'll have to wait until two. If you want to check in now, you can always try a different hotel."

Before Olivia could respond, Alex decided to intervene. "We'll wait," she said angrily before practically dragging Olivia out of the lobby and back to the car.

"Why did you tell her we'd wait?"

"Because you've already paid for the room. It would probably be impossible to get any kind of refund this late."

"So you're just going to let her treat us like this and act like nothing happened?"

Alex smiled slyly. "Of course not. I intend on making that room as dirty as possible for the cleaning service. I plan to leave incredibly nasty comment cards when we leave. And I plan on contacting her supervisor once we get home." She laughed slightly and gave Olivia's arm a gentle rub. "I want this weekend to be fun and as stress – free as possible. Trying to get a refund and book another room in another hotel would have more than likely taken most of the day. I didn't want to do that to you."

"Maybe we can leave dirty underwear here, too…right before we check out."

"Atta girl," Alex said. "I knew you had a nasty streak to you."

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"What kind of names do you like for a boy?" Allen asked. He set two plates on the table and walked back to the kitchen to bring out the chicken soup, salad, and water.

"I really like Ethan, though I'm also kind of fond of Jacob. What about you?"

He smiled and dished out the soup. "Christopher."

She raised her eyebrows and smiled. "I like that one. Chris for short?"

"Yeah. That sounds nice. Little Christopher."

"Good name, Allen. Christopher is a good one."

"Can I ask you kind of a big favor?"

"Um, okay," she said nervously, slightly confused as to where this question had come from. "What do you need?"

"If it's a boy, can we name it Christopher?"

She looked into his eyes and could have sworn he was begging her to do this. She reached across the table and grabbed both of his hands, giving them a gentle squeeze. "I like Christopher. We can do that." She smiled warmly and furrowed her eyebrows. "Any reason you want Christopher?"

He nodded slowly. "I lived in a foster home for about eight months before I was adopted. I was lucky enough to have been placed in that one, because they took really good care of me." He smiled, remembering those he had met in the home. "There was an older boy there. He was sixteen, and I adored him. His name was Christopher Michael. His parents had abused him in ways far beyond comprehension, and for far longer than mine did me. He'd only been pulled out of the home two years earlier. He was in therapy and doing really, really well. He talked to me a lot…told me I was a good kid and everything. He made me feel really good about myself. We lost touch over the years, but…" his voice drifted off.

"Allen?"

"Yeah?"

"I think Christopher Michael Handley sounds like a wonderful name."

"Thanks, Jess."

She smiled and nodded understandingly. "I would have objected if his name had been something like Dweezil or Pilot Inspektor or some other ridiculous name these celebrities are giving their kids nowadays, but I like Christopher Michael."

"Dweezil?"

"Frank Zappa's kid. Guy's an ass for naming his kid that."

He laughed and nodded. "That's for sure. So, any ideas for a girl's name?"

She nodded slowly. "I actually had an idea I thought I'd run past you. I've been thinking about this ever since I found out I was pregnant. I'd have to check first, but I'm sure it wouldn't be a problem."

He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "What's the name?"

"Alexa."

"Ah," he said, understanding her hesitation. He thought for a second, then smiled. "I think that would really mean a lot to her if you named our little girl after her."

"I've always liked that name, but I never really thought that much about it. Once I met Alex and really got to know her though…I don't know, it just seems right. I want my little girl to have a strong name – to be named after someone strong."

"Alexa sounds wonderful."

"Rose."

"What?"

"Alexa Rose."

He smiled as a tear slowly slid down his cheek. "Christopher Michael and Alexa Rose. They both sound so wonderful."

She placed her hand over her stomach and smiled. "They sound perfect."

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Once they were checked into the hotel and put their bags in the room, Alex decided to confront Olivia about the conversation they'd had earlier in the parking lot, before either of them had gotten out of the car. "Honey," she said, sitting down next to Olivia on the bed. "What's wrong? This weekend should be fun."

"I'm scared."

"What?" Alex asked, her voice full of concern. "Why? What's wrong?"

Olivia sighed and pulled up her shirt a little, revealing the small attachment to her waist. The doctors had decided that, for the sake of convenience, that it would be easier if she had a small tube inserted into her abdomen and had the chemo automatically pumped into her. It would save a lot of time and stress trying to keep doctors' appointments. "What if I get sick and can't do anything while we're here?"

Alex smiled and wrapped her arm around her. "Then we'll order lots of room service and movies. We'll lie in bed, I'll hold you, and everything will be okay."

Olivia pulled away from Alex's grasp and walked over to the window. "I'll ruin the weekend if I get sick. It's almost not even worth it to do this stupid chemo right now."

"Don't you dare think that way," Alex said sternly, standing up and walking over to her. She placed a gentle hand on Olivia's back and turned her around so their eyes met. "You wouldn't ruin the weekend. Coming out here, spending an entire weekend with you – just the two of us together, that's all I want."

"But we're at Niagara Falls, Alex! I don't want to hold you back from seeing everything."

"I don't want to see anything if you're not right there next to me." She wrapped her arms tightly around Olivia and kissed her head lightly. "There's no way I could possibly enjoy anything if you were sick in bed and alone. This weekend is special because it's just the two of us. It doesn't matter what we do, as long as we do it together."

Olivia wiped away a few tears and swallowed. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

"We should head out to the falls. I'm feeling really good right now and I don't want to wait until it's too late to see them. The chemo's supposed to start pumping in pretty soon, which means by tonight I might not be feeling so hot."

Alex wrapped her arm around Olivia's waist and led her towards the door. "Then let's go. On our way out, I think we should stop and make out in the lobby, just to annoy little-miss-what's-her-name."

"Patricia."

"Yeah, whatever. You up for pissing her off?"

Olivia smiled happily, glad that Alex had – once again – been able to pull her out of her depression and into a much better mood. "I'm game."

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"Steve?"

"Yeah, Case?"

She looked up from her computer and smiled. "Is it wrong that I'm paranoid because we haven't gotten any new cases in more than a week? I mean, we haven't gotten anything."

He laughed. "I don't think it's wrong at all."

"I mean, don't get me wrong. I'm really glad we haven't. It's always hard to read and hear everything some people go through, but at the same time, no new cases means more people are safe." She sighed and shook her head. "I mean, I know that a lot of people don't report it and stuff, but still…"

"I understand what you're saying," he told her.

"Good, because I'm not even sure if I understand what I'm saying."

"You make more sense than you think, Case, trust me."

"Yeah well, I hope I didn't just jinx myself by saying all of this. Knowing my luck I'll get a call sometime soon and have to deal with some huge, horrible case that's going to be incredibly time – consuming."

"Case, I'm sure you didn't just jinx yourself."

"See, you just double jinxed me! Now I'm screwed."

He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her chest. "Honey, relax. Enjoy this time that you have where you don't have to worry about cases. Take it as a gift. Don't worry about the future."

She tilted her head up and kissed him. "You always know exactly how to make me feel better, do you know that?"

He smiled as he kissed her back. "I'm your husband. It's my job."

"Yeah, well, don't ever stop being you."

He traced her cheekbone with his thumb and shook his head. "And you'd better never stop being you. I'm going to go make dinner. Care to join me?"

She nodded. "Give me a few minutes. I have to finish some emails and check my voicemail. I'll be there in a few."

"Take your time."

"Hopefully it won't take too much."

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"Wow," Olivia said, staring out at the falls. "Just…wow."

Alex smiled as she wrapped an arm around Olivia's waist and pulled her close. "They're so beautiful." As Olivia turned to face her, she gave her a light kiss on the lips. "I'm so glad you wanted to come out here this weekend." She looked back over at the falls and sighed happily. "I think this is just what we needed."

Olivia nodded in agreement. "I know it's exactly what I needed." She sighed as she watched the water flowing off the edge and pouring into the pool below. "I've been feeling really down lately with all this chemo and everything. I think I needed some time away from the city…get my mind off of things, you know?"

"So you're glad I asked you to take off from work?"

"Yeah," Olivia said quietly. "I know I was angry at first, and I know I got pretty mad with you about it, but now I'm glad you convinced me to do it. Honestly, I don't think I can handle the stress of my job right now. I need to focus on just beating this damn cancer. Then I can focus on my job again."

"Then you just take as much time as you need," Alex told her encouragingly. She was glad to hear Olivia opening up like this, and even more happy to hear that she wanted to focus on getting better. "You've got all the time you could ask for and then some, honey."

"Cragen's probably going to give Elliot a new partner."

Alex nodded. "Yeah, probably, but it'll be a temporary partner."

"He's not going to like it."

"No, he's probably not, but that's okay. Trust me, Liv, he's going to want to have to deal with a temporary partner a lot more than he's going to want you coming in while you're sick." She smiled and brushed away a tear from Olivia's cheek. "He loves you, and he wants you focusing on getting better. If that means he has to have some idiotic rookie partner for a little while, he's going to do it."

Olivia smiled and sighed. "I know. I still hate putting him through that though. He hates newbies."

Alex laughed. "Yeah well, the quicker you get better, the quicker he can get rid of the newbie."

"Yeah," she said happily, returning her gaze to the falls once again. "Alex, I just wanted to say…well, thanks for this weekend. It really means a lot to me that you're willing to put your life on hold for me."

"Liv, I'm not 'putting my life on hold.' I'm here because I want to be. I'm still planning on going to work everyday, but if you're really sick, I know Casey won't have any problem covering for me. You took care of me after I told you about my past and we took my case to trial. Let me take care of you. I want to do this, Liv. I love you."

"I love you, too."

"You'll let me take care of you?"

"Yeah. It's been kind of nice actually…having you hold me at night and doing all the chores and everything. Not that I want you to have to do everything, but I really appreciate it. I really like that you're letting me focus on me."

Alex smiled and hugged her tight as they left the falls and headed back to the car. They were planning on going to an Italian restaurant not too far from the falls, and she was excited. "I will always take care of you, just like you always take care of me." She pulled out of the parking lot and started driving. "Now let's go eat. I want my fettuccini."

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Dinner was ready and the table was set, yet Casey still hadn't joined him in the kitchen. Steve shrugged and started carrying out the food and setting it on the table. Once everything was ready, he went to the bedroom to find her. "Casey, honey, dinner's ready!" he called. When he opened the door, he frowned. She was sitting at her computer, the screen blank, her cell phone next to her on the desk. She didn't turn around or even acknowledge his presence. "Honey, what's wrong?" he asked worriedly as he made his way over to her.

She slowly spun her chair towards him, tears pouring down her face. "I jinxed myself."

"What? What are you talking about? What happened?"

"I just got off the phone with the DA's office," she said, sighing sadly.

"New case?"

She nodded. "Huge, too."

"Want to talk about it?"

"One of my old clients tried to kill herself two days ago…drug overdose. They're saying it's attempted suicide because of her past, but there's also suspicions that she didn't take them on her own."

"Attempted murder?"

"The doctors are looking into it."

"So what's going to happen?"

She shrugged and shook her head. "I don't know. Apparently she won't talk to anyone except me. Doctor said he wants me down there ASAP so I can see if she'll tell us what happened."

"If she took a bunch of pills, why aren't they just assuming attempted suicide?"

"Because there's evidence of recent sexual intercourse."

"And?" he asked. He knew she dealt with sex crimes, but he also knew that unless there were signs of obvious rape, not just intercourse, they didn't usually assume attempted suicide. There had to be something else to this. "Why is evidence of sexual intercourse important?"

Casey looked up for the first time, now with even more tears pouring down her cheeks. "Because she's eleven years old."