One
Now that is the definition of a woman in love.
Three people had this thought about Olivia Benson the morning after the opening night of Lizzie's production of Measure for Measure.
The first to have this thought was the cab driver who picked up Olivia outside of Elliot's apartment building. He was just coming up the street as she walked out of an apartment complex, and raised her hand to hail him just in time. The woman was beautiful, dressed in a light blue gown that the cabbie instinctively felt that she'd worn the previous night.
There were two types of women whom he picked up in the morning that wore that kind of dress in the morning: those that looked miserable and hungover, and those that glowed with happiness and love. This woman most definitely belonged in the latter category.
She was smiling from the moment he saw her, and remained smiling all through the short ride. Not a big smile, but a small and intimate one that seemed just for herself. Normally, the cabbie liked to make small talk with his customers (at least the friendly-looking ones), but that smile, her faraway gaze, and the way she held her hand pressed to her heart stayed his tongue. This woman was clearly off in another world – a more beautiful world than this – and he was loathe to pull her out of it.
Thankfully, when he pulled up outside of the address she'd given, the smile and dreamy attitude remained on her face. She paid him handsomely, thanked him, and practically floated out of his cab and into the apartment complex.
Never in a million years would he have guessed that this was a Lieutenant in the NYPD.
The second person to have this thought was Lucy. She had just placed Noah on the living room carpet in front of his blocks when she heard the door being unlocked from the other side. Then, her boss walked in looking absolutely radiant. Her makeup had been washed off, her hair was messy as though she'd combed it with her fingers, and her dress was a bit wrinkled; nevertheless, she looked even more beautiful than she had last night due to the smile on her face.
"Morning!" she practically sang as she tossed her purse onto the sofa.
"Good morning, Olivia!" greeted Lucy, grinning at how happy her boss seemed.
Little Noah's face brightened as much as Olivia's upon his mother's entrance. "Mamamama!" he cooed, raising his arms towards her.
Olivia, still grinning fit to burst, knelt down and scooped up her son, cuddling him close. "Hello, my sweet boy! Did you have fun last night?" She turned her gaze to Lucy when Noah had cuddled his face against her neck.
Lucy nodded in response. "Oh, yes, we all had a good time last night. And from your smile, you did too."
Olivia merely nodded at Lucy's teasing observation, giving nothing more than that away. "I hope they weren't too much to handle."
Lucy waved a hand dismissively. "Oh, it was a joy! Rosie was a little angel, and Eli loved being the big kid with the two little ones. Like I told you, Liv, this was nothing compared with a daycare of over a dozen toddlers."
"Good," said Olivia, kissing Noah's head. Then her expression sobered a bit. "Fin called and we've caught a serious case."
"Say no more," said Lucy. "Noah and I will be fine. Go save the world."
"You're a lifesaver, Lucy," said Olivia as she handed her son over to his nanny. "I'm just going to change and freshen up."
Fifteen minutes later, Olivia was walking out of her room, dressed in her standard black slacks and blazer. She bent down to Noah and kissed his head. "I'll be home as soon as I can, my love," she murmured. Straightening up, she looked at Lucy. "Not sure how long this will take, but I'll keep you in the loop, Lucy."
"No problem, Olivia," said Lucy. "And, by the way, I'm glad you had a good night."
Olivia smiled again, glowing again, and practically floated out the door.
Lucy tickled Noah, who giggled, and said, "Did you see how happy your mommy was?"
The third person to have this thought was Fin, though he didn't have it right away.
When he saw Liv come off the elevator of the hospital and walk towards him, she was all business and in full lieutenant mode. But Fin knew her well, and looked at her closely as she approached him. Thankfully, he saw no signs of exhaustion or sadness or anger. On the contrary, only a person who'd had a full and good night's sleep could radiate this much energy on a Saturday morning.
"What've we got?" she asked, and Fin shoved all questions he had about what could have happened last night to the back of his mind.
Not until two hours later, when they were driving back to the precinct, did Fin broach the topic with a single word. "So?"
They had worked together so long and knew each other so well that this one word was all Liv needed to understand what he wanted to know. She turned her gaze from the window to him, and let her mask drop. Even from a quick sideways glance at her before looking at the road again, Fin saw what he needed to see.
Now that is the definition of a woman in love. And she's happy.
He grinned. "That's whassup," he murmured with satisfaction.
Liv gave a silent chuckle and turned her gaze back out the window. She knew that she could trust Fin not to gossip about this.
No one else saw that look or smile on Olivia's face for the rest of the day, though. Once she and Fin arrived back at the station, the current case consumed all of their and the rest of the squad's attention. It wasn't until the start of the evening – when Olivia finally had a moment to herself – that Olivia remembered her promise to text Elliot.
Hey, El. Sorry I haven't texted sooner. This new case is all-consuming. Probably won't be home until well after Noah's asleep.
She groaned as she typed out the last sentence of the text. Missing the occasional bedtime was one of the worst things about her job. Elliot's reply came as she relayed the same message to Lucy (who, angel that she was, replied that of course she would stay the night).
You'll crack it, Liv. Text when you make it home. I've just started a late shift so don't worry about waking me.
Olivia grinned, allowing herself that look and smile again in the privacy of her office. After texting a quick thanks, she put her game face back on and returned to the squad room.
Less than an hour later, during a strategy meeting, Olivia got a text. Once upon a time, she would have ignored it until the meeting was done. But now, being a mother, Olivia always checked (as discreetly as she could).
However, the text was not from Lucy – it was from Elliot. It simply read: Did it come?
Olivia's brow furrowed in confusion. Thankfully, this lasted only a moment. In the next moment, a delivery guy carrying four large pizza boxes came into the squad room calling, "Delivery for Olivia Benson!"
Sonny exclaimed 'hallelujah' and Amanda looked ready to weep in relief. After they'd taken the pizzas from the delivery guy, Olivia approached him, only able to say, "Umm, that's me."
The delivery guy smiled at her. "Don't worry, ma'am. It's been paid for, tip included. Enjoy your evening."
As he made his way to the elevators, Olivia heard a smug chuckle behind her. She turned and saw Fin grinning knowingly at her. "And they're from Ray's, too," he said, softly so that Sonny and Amanda couldn't hear them. "Elliot would never order pizza from anywhere else."
Before Olivia could respond, Fin had turned and joined the rest of the team as they dug into their much-needed dinner. Turning her back to her squad, Olivia pulled out her phone and sent a reply, not allowing herself to second-guess herself before sending it:
I adore you, Stabler.
His reply came back within three seconds.
I'm yours, Benson.
It took all of Olivia's strength to keep a very big and goofy grin off her face before she joined her squad again.
It was just before midnight when Olivia finally arrived home. She was exhausted but glad – they'd gotten a hit on the DNA and managed to track down the suspect easily. He was safely locked up and the two girls in the hospital and their families could sleep safely tonight.
After locking the door behind her, Olivia pulled out her phone and texted Elliot: I'm home. After checking on her son, Olivia walked into her own room and shut the door behind her in relief. She took her time undressing and washing up before bed. Just before she could put her phone down to charge, it vibrated as Elliot's name appeared on the screen.
Olivia grinned and answered the call. "Hey, partner."
"Howdy," laughed Elliot in return. "Sorry you had such a long Saturday away from Noah."
"Yeah, it's a job hazard you must remember well."
"One that I don't miss in the slightest. How are you doing?"
Olivia smiled at the warm concern in his voice. "I'm good. We found our main suspect and he's in lockup."
"That's my girl."
Olivia grinned as her cheeks flamed, and she laid down on her bed. Ever since she and Elliot had started talking on the phone almost two months ago, it felt like each interaction was a strong brick or mortar reinforcing the foundation that had broken when he'd left. This was their first phone conversation since they had come face-to-face again…since they'd finally told each other how much they loved each other…since they'd fallen asleep in each other's arms…
Remembering what she had said to him about not wanting to live in the past but to move forward together, Olivia asked, "Do you have to work again tomorrow?"
"Thankfully, no. I called as soon as I finished my shift, and I'm not needed again until Monday afternoon." He paused for a moment. "What about you? Do you have to go back in tomorrow?"
"Yeah, but just in the morning to see that arraignment goes smoothly. With the evidence we have against this prick, I'm confident the families won't have to worry about him anymore."
"Good. Eli has a soccer game tomorrow afternoon in Brooklyn…would you like to come? Maybe bring Noah?"
Olivia winced before bringing herself to answer. "I'm sorry, El, I can't. Noah has a check-up with his pediatrician at 2:00. She's really good about having appointments on the weekend, and I –"
"Say no more, Liv," interrupted Elliot. "I understand. There will be other chances."
She knew that he did indeed understand, knowing her so well and being a father. But she could hear the note of sadness in his voice, too, and she felt the same. She wanted to see him again as soon as possible.
Thankfully, Olivia quickly thought of a compromise. "Well, if you don't have dinner plans, you could come to my place and have dinner with Noah and me."
His answer was immediate and joyful. "Hell yes, Liv!" His voice then took on a teasing tone. "So, you want me to pick it up on the way?"
Olivia gave a mock gasp of indignation that, even though he could only hear it, made him laugh. "Excuse me, Stabler! You think motherhood wouldn't have pushed me to at least expand my culinary knowledge?"
"What do you mean 'expand,' Liv? How about 'start' or 'begin?'
"You know what, if you're not going to appreciate my hospitality perhaps I should take back my very generous invitation –"
"I'm sorry, I take it back, I'm sorry," he relented, and then they both fell into soft giggles. When they had both settled down, Elliot spoke again. "Seriously though, Liv, I would love to come. May I make a suggestion, though?"
"Alright…"
"Does Noah like spaghetti?"
Olivia smiled. "He loves it, actually."
"I have some amazing sauce that I brought back from Italy which goes great with pasta. That ok?"
"Sounds perfect. I'll text you my address and you text your ETA."
"Can't wait, Liv…I already miss having you with me."
Olivia grinned, her cheeks burning, knowing that he was referring to her sharing his bed. She felt exactly the same, but she couldn't bring herself to say the same thing yet. "Goodnight, El."
"Night, Liv. I love you."
Warmth spread throughout her body to the tips of her fingers and toes. "I love you, too," she murmured before hanging up the phone quickly, knowing that she had to rip the band-aid or else she'd never hang up.
After putting her phone on its port to charge, Olivia burrowed into her warm bed and thankfully fell asleep quickly. Tomorrow couldn't come fast enough.
Not too far away, Elliot lowered his phone from his ear and pressed it against his pounding heart. Finally – finally – he could say those words to her out loud, freely, nothing holding them back.
It took him a little longer to fall asleep due to his excitement. But he breathed slowly and evenly, reminding himself that this was only the beginning. That they would move at her pace, however slow she wanted it, because she deserved it.
She deserved the world, and he intended to give it to her, no matter what it took.
A/N: I love reviews so please encourage me to keep churning out chapters!
Just please - DON'T talk about the current season. I'm abstaining myself from it until it's over because I have enough stress in my life, and learning the role that Barba's going to play was the straw that broke the camel's back for me. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if - after the crossover on the 9th - there won't be new episodes until well into the New Year since the holidays are coming. That's just the sort of thing they would do, along with doing everything but actually having Elliot and Olivia have a real conversation about the things they need to talk about...
You see why I prefer my own universe right now? Anyway, hope you like it and tell me what you think!