Thirteen

Elliot arrived at the theater before Olivia.

He got out of the cab and tried to wipe his clammy palms on his thighs. He was breathing deeply and evenly to try and calm himself down. But the moment he stepped up to the theaters doors and saw the poster beside them, he calmed down. The poster for Measure for Measure consisted predominantly of Lizzie in full costume, staring directly forward with a strong, accusatory gaze.

Tonight was Lizzie's night, and he needed to remember that.

Feeling better, Elliot followed a group of people arriving into the theater lobby. His ticket was in his inner blazer pocket. The lobby was spacious enough, half full of people just chatting before heading inside to their seats. Looking around, he knew immediately that Olivia wasn't there.

"Dad!"

Two voices called out to him from the other side of the lobby. Kathleen and Richard were standing by the open doors leading into the theater. He saw them clearly because several steps led up to the landing where they stood. He went up to them and gave them both a hug. "Hey, guys. The others here yet?"

Richard nodded. "Mom, Andrew, Maureen and Karl are inside already in their seats."

"Rich, that's not who he's thinking about," teased Kathleen, and Elliot's lips pursed in annoyance.

"Ah, of course," said Richard, his own teasing smile on his face. "Then, in that case, not yet."

"We'll meet you in there, Dad," said Kathleen, squeezing his hand in reassurance before she and Richard walked through the doors of the theater.

Elliot let out a breath and decided to step down from the landing and onto the main level of the lobby. He didn't want her to see him on a level higher than her and get spooked. Besides, he wanted a private moment of seeing her again before she saw him again.

Selfish, perhaps, but he'd been dreaming of this for over four years.

Olivia's cab pulled up in front of the theater, and she immediately saw that Elliot was not standing outside. Looking at her watch, she saw that it was just over five minutes to curtain. Cutting it close, yes, but traffic in Manhattan was never easy to predict. At least she wasn't late.

She got out of the cab and looked up at the modest theater. She soon saw the poster and she grinned. She already knew that Lizzie would be great, and mentally wished for her to break a leg.

One more deep breath, and she walked through the lobby doors.

She only had a brief moment to take in the lobby before she realized that he was watching her.

Through the double-glass doors of the theater, Elliot saw a cab pull up, and he knew it was her before the door was even opened. The first thing he saw was a woman in a very light blue dress, what the color of moonlight or starlight is. She stood outside on the sidewalk for a moment, and he could now make out a curvy figure and loose brown curls. His heartbeat was steadily accelerating. This was really happening.

He then saw her walk up to the doors, open them, and come inside. For a moment, Elliot was able to look at her taking in the lobby without her having seen him. A fragment of a line from Romeo and Juliet came to his mind: …for I never saw true beauty till this night.

Then, she froze and turned towards him. Their eyes met and the world stopped.

Olivia turned her head in the direction she felt his gaze on her, and there he was, standing against the wall of the lobby. Her breath caught in her throat and her heart stopped beating for a moment. He was four years older, he was dressed in better clothes, he had less hair on his head…but his eyes were the same, and their complete focus was on her.

She saw more than heard him say her name: "Liv…"

As he walked towards her, Olivia murmured, "Elliot…oh, my God…"

Elliot murmured her name and his legs propelled him towards her. He just barely heard her say, "Elliot…oh, my God…"

He stopped when there was only about a foot of space between them. He could smell her now, and his eyes just kept drinking in her features like a starving man. His mind struggled to find the right words to say – "You're here," "You're so beautiful," "God, I've missed you," "I'm so sorry this took me so long," "I love you so much," – but he couldn't settle on anything, so he said nothing. He was also struggling to not reach out and crush her to him, not to crush his lips to every part of her that he could reach. Instead, he just stood there.

Then, Olivia began to reach out her hand.

The lights over their head flickered on an off.

When he stopped less than a foot in front of her, Olivia was overwhelmed by the scent of him. He smelled the same as she remembered, and though his face had a few more wrinkles, his eyes were exactly the same. She hadn't known that eyes could be that blue until she'd met him.

She had been dreaming of this moment for over four years; even when her anger and hurt were at their peak, she had never wanted to not see him. And now, here he was. No longer was this a voice on the phone. She could see him, smell him…could she trust that this was real?

Her hand raised of its own accord and began to reach out to him.

The lights over their heads flickered on and off.

Both jumped a little bit as this intense moment was broken. "What the hell…?" muttered Elliot, looking around the lobby. The few other people still in the lobby seemed completely unaffected and began to walk into the theater proper.

But Olivia laughed, and Elliot immediately looked at her again, drinking in what he had missed the most: the sight of Olivia laughing. She met his eyes again and said, "That's a signal that the show is about to start. Come on, let's get to our seats."

She walked to the open theater doors and Elliot was right behind her. He wished that the lights had flickered just a moment later; he didn't know where Olivia had intended to touch him, but he didn't care. His own hands were now itching for her. As she stepped up the few steps to the landing of the doors, his hand rested very gently on the small of her back, a chivalrous gesture that came naturally to him. Olivia said nothing, but she smiled to herself.

An usher looked at their tickets and pointed out their seats, which were together. Elliot made a mental note to get Lizzie an extra present for her next birthday for insuring he and Olivia would sit together. After taking a playbill, they walked to their seats. Happily, they were in the row directly behind the rest of his family. The six of them had all turned their heads and were watching the old partners approaching – all were smiling in satisfaction.

When Elliot and Olivia were seated beside each other, Elliot was still at a loss for words. He looked at Olivia, who was looking at the stage, seemingly examining it. He took the opportunity to drink in the sight of her again. Her hair was as long as it had been when he'd left, and she'd loosely curled it. Her olive skin practically glowed, and the smell of her light perfume she'd used since he'd met her made him clench his hands on the armrests.

Suddenly, Olivia turned her head and looked at him. Their eyes locked, and Elliot was once again breathless at the sight of those dark eyes. He held nothing back in his own gaze: his adoration, his nerves, his guilt, and his hope.

As for Olivia, her eyes did not reveal as much just yet. She was searching his own eyes, listening to the silent message that Elliot was conveying to her. Sometimes over the course of their partnership, she would swear that they could say more to each other in a look than most could say with words. Now, even after the distance and time passed and all that they'd gone through and how much they'd changed…they could still communicate without words.

Another thing that had remained the same: those looks were incapable of lying.

Any last shreds of doubt in Olivia's mind disintegrated. She un-shuttered her expression and watched Elliot gasp as he read what was in her eyes: her own nerves, her forgiveness, her relief, and her love. When he felt warmth cover his hand resting between them on the armrest, he gasped again at the sight of Olivia's hand resting on his.

Looking back up at her, he saw that she was smiling. "Hi, El," she breathed.

He didn't hold back his own smile as he laced their fingers together. "Hey, Liv," he murmured.

She squeezed his hand and said, "Let's watch Lizzie's show."

He heard what she wasn't saying – this is Lizzie's night, your family is nearby, we'll talk after the show – and nodded. As the lights began to dim and the audience quieted, they then turned their heads to the stage.

No one who had known Elizabeth Stabler a long time could quite believe that the dynamic, genius and heart-breaking character on the stage was being played by a young woman who had once been most comfortable hiding behind a book. As Isabella, Lizzie commanded the stage from the moment she stepped into the stage-lights. But this role was a tough one, both to play and to watch, especially for those who loved her.

During that bone-chilling scene in which Isabella – a novice in a convent – is told that the only way to save her brother from execution is by sleeping with the man who had her brother charged, Elliot was holding onto Olivia's hand for dear life. As people who had and still worked SVU, it saddened them how much things had not changed after 400 years. When Isabella threatens to tell others what he is asking her to do, his cold reply of "Who will believe thee, Isabel?" caused rage to fill both of their chests. And then, when Isabella is left completely alone after this conversation, words that both had heard so many times came from her mouth: "To whom should I complain? If I tell this, who would believe me?"

Olivia reached her other hand over and placed it over their joined hands. When he looked back, Elliot would remain convinced that the only thing that kept him in his seat – in spite of, even because, Lizzie and her co-star were so convincing in their roles – without making a sound.

Thankfully, their pride and love for Lizzie was enough to get all of her loved ones through the performance. As hard as some scenes were to watch, she and her whole cast did a fantastic job in telling an important story still relevant today. The mark of any good production of a Shakespeare is how much it makes the audience pay attention, how it makes the language accessible rather than intimidating.

This production of Measure for Measure exceeded that expectation, if the standing ovation the audience gave was any indication.

After the show, the families and friends of the cast waited in the lobby for the cast members to come out. Olivia stood with the rest of the Stablers, with Elliot by her side. Though they were no longer holding hands, they stood close, as though distance might make the other disappear.

Before long, Lizzie came out through the theater doors, her face clean of makeup and in her own clothing. Upon seeing her family, she grinned and ran to them. She hugged each member of her family while they showered her with well-deserved praise (everyone had gotten her flowers, but they'd all been delivered to her dressing room).

Olivia was the last of them to hug Lizzie. As she did, she murmured into the young woman's ear, "You did her so proud."

Lizzie squeezed her hard before letting her go. The group chatted for a bit before Lizzie excused herself; she had a cast party to go to. She listened to her siblings' encouragement and her parents' reminders to stay safe with good humor before leaving them.

"Well," said Maureen, leaning against her husband. "We should relieve Rosie and Eli from Lucy's hands. At least she'll be asleep."

"You think Eli will be asleep?" asked Andrew to Kathy.

"Ah," Olivia interjected. "Lucy may have promised him pizza and ice cream tonight."

Elliot laughed, Olivia smiled guiltily, and Kathy gave her fiancé a mock-exasperated look. "Up for another relaxing evening?"

Andrew rolled his eyes exaggeratedly. "At least we're trained medical professionals."

They all laughed and exchanged goodbyes. Each member of the Stabler family gave Olivia a warm hug, last of all Kathy. She exchanged a meaningful look of encouragement after she did so.

Finally, it was just Elliot and Olivia again. "Can you give me a second?" asked Olivia, pulling out her phone. "I want to update Lucy."

Elliot nodded. "Sure."

She stepped away from him and pressed her phone to her ear. He took a few steps away to avoid eavesdropping. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he looked down at the pattern in the carpet. She hadn't yet told him if she would need to go straight home after the show or if she could stay with him for a while longer. He mentally prepared himself for the worst case scenario.

After a few minutes, Olivia approached him and he lifted his gaze to hers. Her expression was calm, but her eyes showed equal measures of hope and nerves. "Lucy came over prepared to spend the night if needed. She's used to it, given how late I work sometimes, and always likes to be prepared. I just told her that I probably wouldn't be home until tomorrow. Can I spend the night at your place?"

Of all the scenarios Elliot had been preparing himself for, that was the last one that he'd been expecting. However, her tone of voice and expression held nothing suggestive or flirtatious. Seeing his astonishment and confusion, Olivia stepped closer to him.

"Look, El…I can't promise anything beyond talking tonight. I don't know what I'm ready for yet. All I do know…is that I've missed you so much, and I don't want to waste any more time."

Elliot had never wanted to cry so much out of sheer joy since Eli's miraculous birth. Impulsively, he grabbed her hand, lifted it, and kissed the back of it – the first time he had kissed her in any way. He kept his head bent over it for a minute while he composed himself, and she waited patiently. When he lifted his head, she smiled at him softly and he returned the smile.

They then walked hand-in-hand out of the theater lobby.

A/N: The more reviews I get, the sooner you guys will get the next chapter. :)