Chapter 25 :
Provocation :
Two weeks have passed and it was now the first week of December. Following their last conversation, Amanda and Olivia had agreed that a romantic get away was probably premature. Fortunately and against all odds, what could have been perceived as a serious set back in their relationship, turned out to have the opposite effect on them.
Instead of sharing their beds during the week ends, Amanda and Olivia had started to extend their sleep overs to the week days as well and they were now spending all their nights at the blonde's place which was much closer to the station than Olivia's.
Following their last conversation, Olivia had decided to follow Amanda's advice and was now more in touch with her negatives impulses and instead of burying them inside, had started expressing them, either physically or verbally, when ever she felt they were too much for her to bare.
As promised, Amanda remained at Olivia's side and when ever she felt that the brunette was about to lose her composure and control while interrogating a suspect, would take her to the break room, so she could express her anger and frustration by either hitting the walls or cussing the perp instead of attacking them.
The first time Olivia had found herself in need of a few minutes away from the interrogation room was only a couple of days following their conversation. The team had been called on a rape case involving a six year old girl who had been kidnapped in her own bedroom by an ex con who had just been released after spending twenty years in Rikers for a similar crime. His DNA had been found on the little girl's bed sheets and after two days of an exhausting man hunt, the perp had been apprehended. Unfortunately the girl was nowhere to be found and Liv and Amanda spent almost ten hours straight interrogating him trying to get a location out of him.
Unfortunately, the rapist, knowing that he was going to spend the rest of his life back at Rikers anyway, refused to tell them where the girl was and instead spent several hours detailing everything he had done to that poor girl, sparing no graphic detail.
After spending eight hours listening to him, images flashing before their eyes, both Amanda and Olivia were exhausted and just as Fin and Munch were about to take over, the rapist said something that immediately triggered the brunette's furor. Amanda was standing a few feet away from her and in a split second saw the fire in Olivia's eyes and knew she was about to lash out on the suspect but managed to grab her and drag her out of the interrogation room just in time.
Unwilling to have Cragen and the rest of their team witness Olivia's outbreak, Amanda dragged Olivia to the break room where the brunette was able to completely let go her anger out before collapsing in her arms. For the first time since she had joined SVU almost 14 years ago, Olivia went home that night completely relaxed, after CSU had find trace evidence leading them to where the girl had been hidden by the suspect.
As reluctant as Olivia was to stop trying to control her emotions and to just let them come out, the brunette was now convinced that Amanda was right, that the best for her was to not burden herself with the horrors they saw every day so she could go home at night and be able to spend the evening with Amanda and enjoy her presence, instead of torturing herself over what her victims had gone through. Not only Amanda had taught her how to be in touch and to accept her darkness but she had also taught her how to embrace it and to release it in due time, so she could compartmentalize better and live a normal life.
When Olivia had her first outburst, Amanda's first instinct was to take a few steps back and to let her release the anger the suspect had triggered. She could see the blood filling up Olivia's eyes and was terrified that the brunette might decide to direct her blows at her.
Luckily, after spending a couple minutes watching Olivia punching the door as hard as she could without breaking her knuckles, Amanda finally felt safe enough to reach out to her girlfriend, wrap her arms around her and comfort her.
Now, ten days later, things had gone back to normal and Olivia had not had any other significant outburst.
"Well thank you for that wonderful day Detective." After a particularly though investigation, Olivia had decided to treat herself and Amanda with an afternoon at the Rockfeller center ice skating rink.
"You're welcome dear, I didn't know you were that good." It was the first week of december and the snow was falling heavily on the streets of New York City and the two women had decided to warm themselves up a bit by having dinner in an italian restaurant a block away from the rink.
"I have had some practice, my dad started to teach me and my sister as soon as we were able to walk." Stepping inside the restaurant, Amanda snaked her arms around Olivia's waist and pulled her into a warm, tender kiss. Ever since they had come out as a couple, the two women had started going out and had grown surprisingly comfortable kissing or expressing their affection in public.
"What else has he taught you that I might enjoy?" There was so many things that Amanda had shared with her parents that Olivia had never had the opportunity to experience with her mother, but listening to the the blonde telling her about her happy childhood memories brought happiness to her heart and helped her understand how and why the blonde had become the woman she was today and could only hope that one day, they would build a family as united and happy as hers.
"He taught me to...how about we go home? This place is packed, I doubt we're gonna get a table anytime soon and I'm starving." As Olivia was walking backwards inside the restaurant, Amanda took a quick look around and saw trouble sitting a few feet away from them.
"Are you sure?" Not catching on Amanda's anxiety, Olivia turned around, to see if Amanda's assessment was correct or if there was at least one empty table.
"Yeah, come on, let's go." Pulling Olivia towards the exit door, Amanda tried to best to hide behind her so the person she had wished she would never meet again, especially while with Olivia, wouldn't see her.
"Okay, wait, did you hear someone calling your name?" Unfortunately the blonde was hard to miss in a crowd full of dark haired people and as they were about to step out of the restaurant, Olivia distinctly heard someone calling her name and immediately spotted a brunette waving at them.
"Oh crap." Amanda groaned, as she saw Lisa waving at them, inviting them to join her at her table.
"Who is that?" Standing there, in the middle of the restaurant, Olivia had no idea who that mysterious woman was, but could feel Amanda's discomfort.
"Liv, look at me. No matter what happens in the next few minutes, I love you, so please just ignore anything she's going to say, do not take her bait." This was the moment she had been fearing ever since Lisa had resurfaced a few weeks back. Up until now, Lisa had kept her promise and had resisted the urge to call or text her but she knew her ex girlfriend well enough to know that she wasn't going to give up and knowing how protective and jealous Olivia was, she was afraid that this unfortunate situation might turn into a blood bath.
"Oh, I see. Well, I think this is the perfect opportunity to introduce myself and make it very clear that you're with me now." Without waiting for Amanda's approval, Olivia walked towards Lisa's table feeling more confident than ever, she had prepared herself for this meeting and knew exactly what she was going to say.
Walking behind Olivia, Amanda started to feel a knot in the pit of her stomach, the brunette had that flame in her eyes and the way she was squeezing her hand made it very clear that this wouldn't be a cordial encounter.
"Hi, Amanda, it's very nice to see you again and you must be Olivia, I have heard so much about you." Standing up as Amanda and Olivia were reaching her table, Lisa couldn't help but smiling, this was the perfect opportunity for her to make her intentions known to Olivia.
"Follow me in the restroom please." Seeing the corner smile on Lisa's face, Olivia started to feel the anger and resentment filling up her heart and instead of causing a scene in the middle of the restaurant, grabbed Lisa's arm and dragged her towards the bathroom.
"Are you offering a quickie in the bathroom? I knew Amanda was into three ways but I thought you would want to get to know me better first." Lisa wasn't stupid and knew exactly why Olivia was taking her into the restaurant's bathroom and was hoping that the brunette wouldn't be able to control herself, so Amanda could see just how wrong she was for her.
"Olivia, please, this is not necessary. I was very clear to her the last time I saw her, just let it go." Amanda hated Lisa and this ability she had to spot people's weaknesses and to exploit them to get them exactly where she wanted.
"Stay out of this Amanda, this is between Lisa and me." Under normal circumstances Olivia wouldn't have bothered to even acknowledge it some woman had made jokes about Amanda's sexual past but this was not an innocent teasing, Lisa had said that deliberately to provoke her and she wasn't about to let this go.
"Mmmm, I love strong and confident women, you, Amanda and I could do so much together." As she felt Olivia's left hand tightening around the collar of her shirt, Lisa felt slightly aroused and the sight of Olivia's anger was the best reward she could have hoped for.
"You listen to me carefully. Amanda told me all about your little minds games and I know that at some point in her life, she agreed to play along but those days are over. Amanda is with me and the only way for you to ever touch her again would me over my dead body, so I suggest you back off, unless of course you want to see what I'm capable of." Olivia was pinning Lisa against the wall, her left forearm pressed against her throat. Her right hand was closed into a fist, she wanted to punch her so badly, but knew that allowing herself to do so would be taking Lisa's bait and she was smarter than that.
"Is this really the kind of woman you want to spend your life with Amanda? A woman who's unable to have a conversation without being physically threatening?" Olivia's forearm was crushing her throat and she could barely breath, but her vision wasn't altered by the lack of oxygen and she could see just how scared Amanda was and felt she had made her point.
"Liv, look at me. You don't want to do this. Lisa might be a cold hearted bitch but she's not a perp and if you hurt her, you won't be able to live with yourself. I love you, she means nothing to be and she knows that, that's why she's provoking you, don't take her bait, please." Amanda, who up now had stayed a few feet behind, took a few steps towards Olivia and reached out for the brunette's left arm, knowing she might get hurt, but it didn't matter, she needed to stop Olivia from making the biggest of her life.
"You're right. Let's go home. You, I swear to God, if I find out that you contacted Amanda, I will hurt you, make no mistake, letting you go unharmed this time doesn't mean I don't have it in me, because trust me, I do." Olivia was so close to Lisa that she could feel her breath on her face and could read the fear in her eyes. Up until now all she could read in Lisa's eyes was confidence and a taste for trouble, but now, it was very clear that she had managed to scare her enough to feel confident she would not be a problem anymore.
"Don't tempt her, trust me, that would be the biggest mistake of your life." Reaching out for Olivia's hand as the brunette finally let go of the grip she had on Lisa, Amanda couldn't help but feeling sorry for Lisa. She obviously had no idea who she was dealing with and that Liv wasn't one of those harmless younger women she'd usually play with.
"Okay, fine, the two of you deserve each other, you're equally sick. But one day Amanda, you're gonna crawl right back into my bed , you always do." Sitting on the floor, holding her throat as she watched Olivia and Amanda walking away, Lisa could barely believe what had happened. This was not supposed to end like this and she'd be damned it she'd let Olivia get away with it. She might never get Amanda back but she was determined to get back at Olivia for humiliated her like that.
Alright guys, I know this chapter was dark and hard to read but since a few readers were confused by their last conversation, I figured that showing Olivia's darkness was better than trying to explain it.
This was just a preview of just how dark and violent Liv can be if she feels provoked and the ride back home won't help her cool down. In the next chapter, Olivia and Amanda will go home and that's when all hell will break loose. Be prepared because as poorly as this chapter was executed and written, the next one is probably gonna be one of the darkest I have ever written.