Caitlin awoke around five in the morning to find her mother lying on the couch, her head on Elliot's shoulder, his arms wrapped protectively around her. They were both sound asleep.
Caitlin climbed onto the couch with the two of them. She rested her head against Olivia's side, clutching her doll in her arms, resting her thumb comfortably in her mouth. Olivia, in that in-between land of sleep and consciousness, shifted slightly to put her arm around her daughter. Caitlin cuddled close to her mother and soon she, too, was fast asleep.
* * *
Olivia awoke to find herself snuggled between the two people she cared about most in this world; her daughter and Elliot. She sighed contentedly as Caitlin stirred. The little girl sat up and yawned, glancing down to see that her American Girl doll had fallen to the ground. She smiled, picked up the doll, and nestled back against Olivia.
"Good morning, sweetie," said Olivia, stifling her own yawn. "Did you sleep well?"
"Yeah. So did Samantha."
Olivia smiled. "Let's not wake Elliot, okay? Do you want to do something special – maybe cook breakfast for Elliot?"
Caitlin nodded eagerly. "Let's make strawberry French toast!"
Olivia put a finger to her lips. "Okay. Come on." She beckoned for her daughter to follow her into the kitchen.
Caitlin grabbed the strawberries and started to wash them meticulously. For a four-year-old, she was very conscious about germs and insisted on washing each strawberry individually. She'd learned it from Alex.
* * *
Elliot awoke to a delicious scent. He didn't know where he was at first, but then he realized that he was in Olivia's apartment, sitting on her couch. He followed his nose into the kitchen, where Caitlin was squeezing some oranges for fresh orange juice.
Caitlin turned around and smiled when she saw Elliot. She dropped the orange she was holding and grabbed a plate. Handing it to Elliot, she dropped into an elaborate curtsy. "Breakfast is served, Monsieur."
Elliot laughed and took the plate full of strawberry French toast. He sat down at the table and started to eat.
Caitlin finished with the orange juice and skipped over to him. "Is it good?"
"Delicious."
"I made it," she said proudly.
"You are a very good cook," said Elliot, tousling her hair. Caitlin giggled.
"Hey," said Olivia, carrying the rest of the food to the table. "I helped, too."
Elliot smiled appeasingly. "You are a very good cook, too, Olivia Benson."
She smirked. "You're full of it."
Caitlin sat her doll down on a chair and put Samantha's arms on top of the table. "I'm giving Sammie breakfast," she informed Olivia and Elliot.
"What's she having?" asked Elliot.
"She's sharing my French toast," replied Caitlin.
"Why don't you get her some of the doll food?" suggested Olivia. She wasn't in the mood to clean up the doll after Caitlin got crumbs all over her.
Caitlin skipped back to her room and grabbed a plastic banana and a plastic glass of milk. She put it the food in front of her doll. "Samantha's having a healthy breakfast."
"Is she on a diet?" asked Olivia, amused.
Caitlin considered, then giggled and shook her head. "No. She's a baby. Dieting is bad for babies."
Olivia laughed. "That's right." Caitlin never failed to amuse her, constantly saying things that Olivia had no clue where they came from. She put two pieces of French toast onto her daughter's plate.
Caitlin sat down and took a bite of her breakfast. A smile spread across her face. "Yummy! This is the best we've ever made it."
"In your honor," Olivia joked to Elliot.
Caitlin pretended to feed the banana to her doll. "Samantha likes her banana."
"That's good," said Elliot. "Catie, why don't you go get Samantha dressed? She can't stay in her pajamas all day."
Caitlin nodded and skipped off to her room.
Elliot turned to Caitlin. "Liv, I – I mean, last night –"
Olivia raised her hand to silence him. She'd been dreading this. "I understand, El. I know. I was just upset; you comforted me. It didn't mean anything."
Elliot raised his eyebrows. "But that's just it, Liv. It did."
