Hey guys.

I'm finally here with an update and it's so long omg. We've jumped a few week and it's now May. The case is coming up, Kathy finally talks to Olivia, and Olivia gets a letter that makes her rethink some things. Have a read and find out.

Enjoy xoxo

Just Friends

Part 26

The next few weeks passed in a blur. Olivia was fully moved in with Elliot and the kids and had given up the apartment that had been her home for the longest time. Maureen came and went as she spent a lot of time on the Hudson campus, but she loved that Olivia was around every time she came home. Kathleen also loved that the woman she had always been so close to was living with her, allowing the house to feel more like a home as she felt like she had two loving parents around instead of just one that tried his best to do right by them. The twins also loved having her there with them constantly, and Eli loved seeing his Livie all the time. None of the kids had asked much about Kathy anymore – not even little Eli was asking for his Mommy. Kathy had reached out and she had had a couple conversations with the older kids and had seen Eli once, but that was as far as anything went.

The divorce had been finalized about a week after moving into the new house, and Kathy didn't even fight about the kids. She gave full custody of the remaining kids over to Elliot but didn't agree to visitation right away as she said she needed to work out new living arrangements as she was moving out of the family home. Nobody had any idea what that meant, but the children really didn't care as they were with the two people they wanted to be with, and they were happy and healthy. Kathy hadn't had a chance to talk to Olivia yet as their work schedules were clashing – usually she was leaving when Olivia was coming in, or she was scheduled on days that Olivia was not and vice versa, but she knew she needed to have a word with her soon just to smooth things over with her.

Elliot had also used the lump some of money he had in a trust fund that had been left some years back by his grandfather to pay off a few bills, and to buy a car for Kathleen so that she would be able to have a little more freedom, though he made her promise to be responsible with it. He had even gone as far as to surprise Olivia with a car as well; he picked her up from work one night in a new, shiny grey Honda Accord and threw the keys at her once she came outside. She had actually cried when he explained and given him a lighthearted threat about killing him for spending money on her, but she was truly grateful for it as it did make things easier considering she still worked in the heart of Manhattan.

Olivia too was settling into life with her new family. She loved being there for the kids and taking on that motherly role, especially since it seemed that Kathy wasn't trying much to be there for them. She loved being on hand to give them advice and spend time with them. She took Eli to daycare on the days she didn't have to work and slowly became involved in everything he was working on at daycare. She was slowly becoming involved in the kid's activities with school. On days she wasn't working, she made their dinner and helped them with homework if they needed it. Something about this new life felt very domestic, yet she loved it. She wasn't even scared. She felt like this was where she belonged.

May had just rolled around and now, there was one final thing looming over the happy bubble that Elliot and Olivia were trying to remain in. The court case with Mark Weber was coming in – in three days time to be exact on the Thursday – and Olivia was nervous. She had, had a few meetings with the Assistant District Attorney, and had even had a mock examination in the witness stand to help her feel a little more prepared. Elliot promised to be there every step of the way, and this made her feel a little more at ease.

Today was Monday, and the case being so close was something that was playing on her mind. However, today was her final day of work before she got an actual five days off, so she was throwing herself into the twelve-hour shift – which she was only three hours into – and focusing on the fact that no matter what, things were actually looking up. She did feel a little better though, especially since Mark was back in jail after violating a protective order that had been put in place to keep him away from his ex-wife. He would be in jail for that anyway, but at least now he was locked up until the trial.

Olivia had just finished checking on a patient and had only just sat down when the phone started to ring. Sighing to herself, she picked it up and put it to her ear;

"Mercy General Emergency, this is Olivia Benson."

"Olivia, please don't hang up."

She rolled her eyes and scoffed. Yet another person that didn't seem to take hints well – her mother. The woman had been back in New York for weeks now for reasons that Olivia knew nothing about, and she was still trying to have conversations with her even though Olivia had no interest in doing so.

"I'm at work," she hissed, keeping her voice low; "Please, just leave me alone."

"Not until we talk," Serena spoke quickly; "Please, meet me for coffee or something?"

Olivia rolled her eyes; "No…now stop calling me."

Serena was still talking when Olivia slammed the phone down. Casey looked up with a raised eyebrow; "A little aggressive with the phone there, aren't you?"

"If my mother would stop calling me, I wouldn't be so aggressive," Olivia breathed out, rubbing her temples, "She's pissing me off. Do you know she actually got my forwarding address from my landlord and showed up at our house a few times wanting to talk? Elliot really did almost arrest her this latest time."

"Listen, you've never told me the history there and the fact that you won't talk about it says it all, but maybe you should at least hear what she has to say," Casey suggested with a shrug, "Put it this way – you can hear her out and then tell her to leave you alone, and she'll do it since she's spoken to you."

"I don't know if I'm ready for all that," Olivia replied as she focused her attention on her friend, "There just…there's a lot of hurt there, Case, and I don't know if I want to deal with it."

"I can understand that; whatever it is, it has to be bad for you to not even talk much about it," Casey gave her a sympathetic smile, "Whatever you decide to do, I'll be here for you, encouraging you to make stupid decisions."

Olivia let out a laugh, leaning her elbows on the desk; "Thanks Casey, you really are-"

"Olivia."

Olivia looked up at the sound of her name and her eyes narrowed in suspicion straight away. Kathy was standing there, and Olivia was confused as to why she was even around considering today was her day off. Casey too was watching them and was prepared to jump in and defend her friend if necessary.

"Hi Kathy," Olivia spoke up, looking the woman up and down, "Can I help you?"

"Can we um…talk?" Kathy quietly asked. She seemed a little nervous, and Olivia wondered what this could possibly be about. Curiosity of course got the best of her and she nodded. She told Casey to watch her patients for her, then she and Kathy went into the break room.

"Okay," Olivia perched herself on the edge of the table, folding her arms across her chest; "Talk."

"First of all, I really am sorry for everything I put you through; it wasn't fair and instead of me just owning up and realizing I failed at this marriage, I chose to blame you for everything, even for my mistakes and that wasn't fair, especially since all you ever did was try to fight for my marriage, probably more than me and Elliot did…."

She then paused for a second, before continuing,

"My…ex-boyfriend now, Paul; the guy I cheated on Elliot with," Kathy had a worried look on her face, and that concerned Olivia; "He's the lawyer of that guy who assaulted you, and the brother."

Olivia's eyes went wide. Things were coming together in her head; Kathy's threat, Kathy talking to her boyfriend about making her pay for what happened. She looked at the woman before her;

"Did you send that prick to the club to rape me?"

"No, I swear to God I did not; I didn't even know they were related until after Paul and I got together and he told me he was representing him, and by then I was so angry…" she trailed off, and took a moment to compose herself before she then looked back up at Olivia again; "Olivia, I am so sorry for everything. I know Mark is in jail now, so he can't hurt you, but I just wanted you to know how sorry I am for ever even thinking about having someone hurt you."

Olivia's rolled her eyes and stood up from the table; "You apologized, now go."

Kathy nodded, sighing to herself. She turned to leave the room, but then looked back; "Thank you…for taking care of my kids. You always have loved them like they're your own, and you're pretty much their mother now."

Olivia's expression softened slightly; "You are their mother, Kathy; they still love you…they just need to build with you again and move on from the things that have happened, and I think that would start with you seeing them and talking to them…your visitation thing."

"Mmm…I guess you are right," Kathy sighed, shrugging; "Um…still though, thanks for taking care of them….and Elliot." She paused, and Olivia could see the tears in her eyes;

"You've always given him stability; just please, don't hurt him. He never deserved it, he never deserved me," her voice cracked slightly, and a couple tears slipped down her cheeks; "He's always deserved better, and you are better for him – always have been."

Olivia swallowed, unable to find the words to say. The woman whom she had regarded as a cold-hearted bitch had really just started crying in her presence and seemed so defeated and broken. Part of her wanted to reach out and hug her, but she simply couldn't move. She suddenly was a little worried. Kathy was clearly broken and needed someone to talk to, because she had essentially lost everything even though it was halfway gone when things happened.

"Kathy, I promise I'll take care of him and won't hurt him, or your kids," she spoke softly as she took a step closer; "But…take care of yourself too, for your kids especially; maybe talk to someone. I have a great therapist that I've been seeing off and on since I first moved here if you want his number."

"I'm fine, don't worry," Kathy held up a hand then squeezed Olivia's arm, "See you later, Olivia."

With that, she then turned and walked out of the room, leaving Olivia to stand there to try and process everything that had just happened. No matter what had happened between her and Kathy, seeing the woman look so defeated was something that concerned her greatly. She just hoped that she would be alright, as nobody deserved to be as defeated as she so clearly was right now.

She took a deep breath and composed herself, then made her way out of the room. She went back to the desk and immediately held her hand up to Casey, signaling that they would talk about it later. For right now, she just wanted to get through the rest of this day, so she could get home to her family.

Her family.

The day passed quickly, and before long, Olivia finally found herself free of work for a few days. The day had gone smoothly, though she had still been concerned about Kathy and hoped that the woman would be alright. She had seen Elliot during the afternoon when he and Amanda had come to the hospital to interview a victim but didn't get a chance to talk to him about the visit with Kathy as they'd only had time to say hi and share a hug and quick kiss as she'd walked him out.

She had text him as she was walking outside, and he responded by telling her that he was still at work and would be for quite a while as they were working a pretty intense case, so she decided to drop him off some dinner. She stopped by their diner and grabbed his favorite sandwich and a bag of chips, before then heading towards the precinct. She parked along the curb and grabbed the bag, before getting out and heading inside. The guard at the desk recognized her and simply waved as she passed, then she took the elevator up to the floor where the Special Victims Unit was located.

The elevator doors pinged open and she made her way towards the entrance of the squad room. She rounded the corner and crossed the threshold, smiling when she spotted Elliot and Fin standing at the monitor, going over notes about the case while Munch was flicking through a file with Amanda. Captain Cragen came from his office and spotted Olivia, leading him to smile as he walked towards her.

"Hey Olivia, what are you doing here?" he asked.

"Hi Captain Cragen," she greeted, giving him a warm smile, "Just came to bring Elliot some dinner." She gestured to the bag and Cragen nodded, patting her shoulder.

"He'll appreciate it," he chuckled before looking towards where Elliot was, "Elliot, take five!"

"Cap, I don't have t-" Elliot whirled around but stopped when he spotted Olivia. His lips curled into a smile and he rushed towards her, wrapping an arm around her; "Hey baby." He pressed a kiss to her lips, his eyes sparkling as he watched her. Cragen patted his shoulder and told him to take a few minutes. Elliot nodded and led Olivia to the cribs just to have some moments alone with her.

"I brought you dinner," she handed the bag over to him, "You okay?" she turned slightly, rubbing her hand over the back of his head and over his shoulder and back.

"I'd be great if I could just come home, but this prick seems to be moving fast and we need to find him," Elliot sighed, rubbing his hand down his face; "Two victims, one eleven – the one you saw earlier – and our latest one is twelve, only she didn't get away," he kept his eyes on the ground as he spoke, "Our ME says she was only dead for about two hours when she was found."

He then looked up at her, and it was then that Olivia saw the moisture that had gathered in his eyes; "How can people do things to kids, Liv? I don't get it."

"I don't get it either, they're the absolute scum of the Earth," she leaned her head on his shoulder, keeping an arm around him, "But there's superheroes like you, out there taking these pricks off the streets."

"I try my best," he turned enough to kiss her forehead, "You have a good day at work?"

"Yeah it was good, it ran smoothly," she sighed, "Kathy though – it's weird…she came in to talk to me, and we talked and-"

"She didn't upset you or anything did she?" Elliot immediately asked, a look of concern flashing across his features.

"No…not at all," Olivia rubbed his back gently, "She knows that her lawyer ex-boyfriend or whatever is the brother of that Mark prick, and she apologized for even thinking about getting someone to hurt me, and she apologized for everything else and told me to take care of you and the kids. She just looked so…defeated…and I felt bad for her."

Elliot was silent for a few moments before he spoke again; "She actually apologized…and meant it?"

"I know, I'm having a hard time processing it too," Olivia laughed a bit, "But no…she did apologize, and she meant it, I could tell. It's just, she looked really defeated and I'm just kind of worried about her."

Elliot had a look of disbelief on his face. Only Olivia Benson would feel bad for and worry about the woman who had pretty much been giving her hell for years; typical.

"I think it's a ploy to try and get some sympathy, so I wouldn't worry too much about it," he pointed out, "Look baby, don't worry yourself silly about this. If it'll make you feel better though, after your case, we can sit down and talk to her to smooth things over?"

"That would make me feel better because I think she's actually having a really hard time," Olivia leaned into him a bit and let out a laugh, "Only I would worry about the bitch that's given me more trouble over the years, especially in these last couple months – what is wrong with me?"

"Your heart is too damn big, but that's a good thing too – shows the type of person you are." He replied. He pressed a kiss to her forehead and was just about to settle on her lips when Amanda burst into the room;

"Elliot, we got another victim."

And just like that, his shoulders slumped. He looked at Olivia and shook his head in despair, and Olivia leaned up a bit to kiss his lips.

"Go get justice for these victims," she told him, stroking his cheek, "I'll see you when you come home."

"I'll try and be home soon, I mean it," they stood up together and he pulled her close, "I love you, kiss the kids for me."

"I love you too, and I will," she kissed him once again, holding onto the side of his face, "Be safe out there."

"I will and let me know when you get home." He told her. He kissed her once again before running off to join the others, while Olivia fished her keys from her pocket and headed out. Once outside, she got into her car and pulled away from the curb, heading towards the family home she shared with her little family.

"Goodnight stars, goodnight air; and goodnight noises everywhere…the end."

Olivia looked down to the side of her; the toddler was fast asleep, cuddling his stuffed teddy bear. Olivia smiled and carefully shuffled off of the toddler bed, before leaning down and pressing a kiss to his blonde curls.

"Goodnight Eli; I love you, my sweet boy." she whispered. She tucked him in properly and kissed his head again, before flicking the switch for the nightlight. She then quietly crept out of the room and closed the door halfway, before moving through the house to check on the rest of the kids. Kathleen was sitting at her desk with her earbuds on her ears as she worked on a report for her AP class; she simply gave Olivia a wave to which Olivia laughed and waved back. She then checked on Lizzie, who had just crawled into bed. She kissed her cheek and told her goodnight before leaving the room to check on Dickie. Dickie was already in bed and had switched off his main light, the only glow now being from his television. She quickly gave him a kiss on the cheek and told him goodnight, before leaving the room as well. She went downstairs and went straight into the kitchen where Maureen was washing the dishes from their dinner.

"You didn't have to do that sweetie, I would have done it…or used the dishwasher." She spoke up, capturing the young woman's attention. She laughed as she finished the last of the dishes before she then turned the water off.

"You're just like Dad," Maureen laughed away to herself as she dried her hands on a dishtowel, "He used to say he would do the dishes, which meant he was loading them into the dishwasher."

"Hey, it's there for a reason," Olivia shrugged as she reached into the refrigerator for a bottle of water, "Hey Mo…have you talked to your mother?"

"I talked to her earlier, we're gonna meet for lunch tomorrow to talk," Maureen shrugged as she perched herself on one of the stools at the island counter; "Honestly I've been avoiding her, but I think I do need to talk to her. I love my mom, I really do, but it's just…she's not the same person she was when I was growing up. I don't know what happened, but I don't like it." She took a sip of her juice, "Why do you ask?"

"She came to me earlier when I was working, and we talked; she just seems really defeated about things and it bugged me a little bit." Olivia explained as she sat beside the young woman. Maureen smirked, nudging her.

"Only Olivia Benson would worry about someone who gave her so much hell."

"Now you sound like your father," Olivia rolled her eyes and nudged her back, "Seriously, I'm glad you're talking to her, and maybe you can convince your brother and sisters to do the same."

"Lizzie and Dickwad I'm sure I can convince, but Katie…" Maureen shook her head, rolling her eyes; "That girl has Dad's stubbornness and temper; Mom would have to be on a death bed for Katie to even consider talking to her."

Olivia let out a laugh as she shot Maureen a funny look; "Kathleen is not that bad."

Maureen gave her a knowing look; "Kathleen is definitely that bad."

Olivia laughed even more, shaking her head in despair as she sipped some water.

A short while later, the pair were on the sofa together, watching the nightly news and chatting away; Maureen was telling Olivia about the classes she had picked up for the fall semester of college that would be starting in August. Olivia was in the middle of asking her something when the doorbell suddenly went, causing the two to exchange a glance. It was just past eleven, so she was wondering who the hell was showing up on her doorstep at this hour.

She made her way to the door and didn't see anyone, which confused her. She opened the door a bit and looked around; she still didn't see anyone, and the neighborhood seemed quiet. She was just about to close the door when she noticed a folded piece of paper stuck on their glass storm door. She opened the door enough to grab the paper, before then closing all the doors again. She locked the large front door, before making her way back to the living room as she unfolded the paper.

"What's that?" Maureen asked. Olivia looked down at the paper, sighing straight away;

"My mother trying to reach out." She folded the paper back and tossed it onto the table before plonking herself back down onto the sofa. Maureen reached forward and grabbed the paper as curiosity took the best of her.

"How come you don't want to talk to her?" she curiously asked.

"Mo, me and my mom had a very complicated relationship clean up until I moved here," Olivia looked over at her, "I mean, I only just told your Dad everything about it some weeks ago, and I've known him for so long; that's how bad it is."

Maureen's eyes went wide; "Whoa, that's insane; so how long has it been since you talked to her?"

"Twenty years."

"Twenty whole years?"

Olivia nodded, shrugging her shoulders; "Maureen, trust me, it was for good reason. She's been back in New York for a while now and has been trying to reach out, but I don't know if I'm ready for all that."

Maureen glanced down at the folded paper before looking back up at her again; "Is it okay if I read it then?"

"Be my guest." Olivia nonchalantly replied as she focused her attention back on the television. Maureen nodded her head before unfolding the paper, focusing her attention onto the words written in swirly handwriting and black ink.

A few moments later, she looked up again and looked at Olivia straight away. Olivia felt her staring and looked up from her phone, raising an eyebrow; "What's wrong honey?"

"I'm not trying to tell you what to do," Maureen immediately started; "Look…just like I need to talk to my mother, I think you need to talk to yours too."

"Mo-"

Olivia, just hear her out, please," Maureen slid the letter into the older woman's hand, "I think it'll help you have some closure."

She then leaned over and pressed a kiss to her cheek before standing up; "I'm going to bed because I told the coffee shop I would start working again tomorrow and I'm starting at seven, so goodnight and I love you."

Olivia nodded, giving her a small smile; "Goodnight honey, I love you too."

Maureen smiled before heading off to her bedroom that was off the side of the living room. The door closed behind her, leaving Olivia with her thoughts. It was quiet as they had all settled down for the evening and Elliot was still at work, which meant she was alone with the thoughts that plagued her on the nights where it was too quiet, and her brain was too loud.

Maureen was right – talking to her mother would probably give her some sort of closure. She had spent twenty years running from the scars of her past. When she came to New York at age sixteen, she swore then that she would never speak to her mother ever again. In the later years, every birthday card and every letter went ignored with their half assed apologies and well wishes went ignored; they ended up in the trash all the time. When she got older, she confided in her Aunt and told her the real reason why she left California, and the woman damn near wanted to press charges against Serena Benson and every son of a bitch that had ever laid a finger on Olivia. Olivia told her not to and told her to just let it go because that's what she had been doing, focusing on letting go of the baggage she'd carried for so long. She thought she had let it go; she prayed to whatever higher being for some piece of mind and had a long talk with herself over the years, telling herself that she would survive and thrive from what happened to her.

But her mother being in the area again seemed like the wounds had been opened again. She thought about the hell she suffered at the hands of this woman and it made her feel like that scared teenager again. But she didn't want to feel that way. She wanted to conquer this obstacle. She knew she had to do this anyway, despite the fear she felt. She needed closure before she could move on with her life and give absolutely one-hundred percent of herself over to Elliot and the kids. There was just this tiny piece she had to get back, and she knew exactly what needed to happen first.

She took a deep breath, then unfolded the piece of paper. She swallowed the nerves that had gathered inside of her and looked at the paper, her eyes dancing over the swirly letters written in black ink as she read;

Dear Olivia,

I know I've tried to reach out to you a lot; I have been invading your space in so many ways when I have no right to do so. I have just done so many things wrong and I am desperate to make things right. You are my only child and the fact that we have been estranged for so long is breaking me. It has been breaking me for so long and I just pray that we can make amends before time gets away from us. I am clean and sober and have been for some time now, and I am so sorry that it has taken so long for me to get my life together.

You never deserved the things that happened. You didn't deserve to be traded and used and abused constantly. You didn't deserve to have me as a mother. I will never forget that moment when I came to and realized that you were gone, the pain that ripped through me as I realized I had lost you. But you were better off; you were always better off without me. I thank Marsha for raising you into the woman that you were destined to be – the one with the good heart that dedicates her life to helping others. I couldn't do it, and you deserved only the best.

I am reaching out and desperate to make amends because I do not know how much time I have left. The day you saw me in the hospital was due to my illness – liver cancer. I have been battling this for some time and recently, the doctors have expressed that there is not much left to be done. It has spread, and I have opted not to continue any treatments as they are not doing anything. I want to enjoy whatever time I have left on this earth. But, the enjoyment begins with making amends with you my sweet girl. So please, if it is in your heart, I hope that you will call me and meet with me for a meal or a coffee; whatever it is, I will be grateful.

I am so sorry for the pain I caused you. I want you to know that I am proud of you – you have grown into an amazing woman. I will be hoping for your call, and I hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive me for everything that has happened.

No matter what, I love you Olive.

-Serena

A tear dripped onto the page, smudging the letters of the woman's name. Olivia didn't even realize she was crying at first, but now she just felt the tears constantly pouring. She sniffled and wiped her tears away and looked further down the page, where Serena had put her contact information such as her address and phone number. Olivia swallowed the lump in her throat before picking up her own phone. She put the number into her contacts and saved it, making a mental note to give the woman a call tomorrow. She didn't know how she would feel when she sat face to face or when they would talk, but she did want to at least give her a chance.

Closure…this was going to be closure.

Andddd another update completed. What do you guys think - is Kathy sincere with her apology or is Olivia being too quick to believe her? What about Serena - should Olivia meet up with her? Ahhhh so many questions. Let me know what y'all think. Until next time xoxo