Ain't It Good To Know That You've Got A Friend
She insisted she was fine. But she wasn't. Anyone could see that she wasn't.
Elliot was gone and Olivia was left alone, and she wasn't fine at all.
Now, John Munch knew himself as a person. He knew what people thought of him, the sarcastic conspiracy nut. He knew what people expected of him. But every so often, he felt like there was more in him that people didn't know about. Normally he wasn't out to prove himself or prove anyone else wrong about him. Normally he was fine hiding that part of himself away. But this was not a normal situation. Elliot was gone, and Olivia needed a friend.
Maybe a normal person would call and invite Olivia out to a bar to talk and reminisce and drink and cry and whatever else. That, or maybe show up at her house with a bottle of something so she could drown her sorrows. Munch was a good shoulder to cry on, he knew. But he also knew that Olivia Benson was not the type to wallow, and she really wasn't the type to open up and be vulnerable with just anyone. And Much was not the guy for that. Not for her. And that was fine.
But he couldn't just do nothing. He'd been at SVU with her for more than a decade. She was like the little sister he never had. He trusted her with his life and with a hell of a lot more important things than that. He had to do something to help her. Even if she didn't want help. All the more reason to give it.
And all of that played in Munch's head when he went out that Sunday morning. He knew where he was going and what he was doing. And when he got to Olivia's building, he hit the buzzer trying to convince himself that he'd done the right thing.
"Yeah?" came Olivia's voice. The both of them had the day off today, which was convenient.
"It's Munch," he said. "Can I come up?"
"Oh!" she answered in surprise. "Sure."
The door buzzed, and Munch made his way inside. He tried the elevator, but it was broken. Again. Up the stairs he went.
He knocked on the door, and she opened it immediately, knowing he was there. "Hi," she greeted, still obviously confused why he was there.
"You know, you really should bug your super to get that elevator working," he said. Maybe 'hi' would have been a better opening.
Olivia gave a small chuckle. "Do you want a glass of water after that trek?"
"No, I can't stay, actually. I just came by to bring you this." He held up the crate he had in one hand.
She frowned. "What is that?"
"It's a cat. Or I guess it's a kitten. The shelter said his name is Marmalade. I think because he's orange, but who knows," Munch told her.
Olivia's jaw dropped. "Munch, I don't know what to do with a kitten!"
He held up the bag in his left hand. "This is all the stuff he needs. A starter litter box and some food and a bowl and some toys."
She was still taken aback. Really, he didn't blame her. It was a crazy thing to do.
Munch conceded, "Look, just keep him for two weeks, and if you don't want him, I'll take him back. No questions asked. Apparently the ASPCA had a robust return policy."
"But…why?"
"I assume you mean why did I get you a cat?"
"Uh, yeah."
He sighed. "I know things have been hard. I know you're getting through it as best you can. I'm not going to ask you if you're okay, because I know you're not. I'm not going to tell you everything will be fine, because who knows if it will. But what I do know is that you need something. Someone. I don't expect it to be me or Fin or Cragen, but you know we'll all be right here the second you ask. But we all also know that you won't ask. So instead of coming home to an empty apartment every night, I thought you could use a friend. Or at least see how it works out."
Her dark eyes searched his face. And eventually she said, "Put those things down."
"Why?"
"Because I'm gonna hug you."
Munch did as she told him, and she immediately wrapped her arms around him in a warm embrace. He hugged her back, knowing how rare this was and savoring the feeling of just getting to be here for her for this one time.
"Thank you," she said softly.
And Munch let himself smile. Just a little bit.