Author's Note: Lindstrom told Olivia to see if something was there between her and Elliot, and Amanda told her to get them a hotel room. So where does Fin, the one who knows them best, stand on the Benson-Stabler saga?

TW for a couple of brief, non-graphic mentions of Lewis.

Hope y'all enjoy!

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Fin had been watching Olivia all day. Really, he'd had his eyes on her a little more than usual over the past few months, and what he saw worried him, the tension, uneasiness, and sorrow that seemed to constantly surround her these days.

Sadly, over the years Olivia had changed, now far from the fiery detective he met twenty years ago. There were moments, glimpses of the Olivia he used to know, mostly when she was with her son, and she still fought tirelessly for justice and peace for the survivors that came to them, but for the most part, she'd been replaced by someone harder, less emotional, almost a shell of who she used to be.

He'd seen a change in her the moment Elliot Stabler left SVU, way back in 2011. The ten years without him were some of Olivia's most challenging, made even more difficult by the absence of her partner next to her.

The partnership of Benson and Stabler was legendary in the NYPD; they were truly were two halves of a whole, each other's missing piece, and once separated, it seemed that neither really knew who they were without the other.

Fin hadn't spoken to Elliot after he left; his phone calls and messages all went unanswered, but he understood Elliot's need for separation. What he didn't understand was Elliot's refusal to answer Olivia's calls, cutting off all communication, and for that, Fin would never forgive him.

When the news of Olivia's NYPD award was announced, Fin pulled some strings and finally located Elliot, and he called him to persuade him to attend the ceremony if at all possible. Regardless of the history, Fin knew that Olivia still held feelings for Elliot, and out of everyone she'd ever worked with in her entire career, Elliot's attendance would be the one she'd want the most.

Little did Fin know what that fateful night would bring.

He'd expected the Benson-Stabler reunion would be tense. Elliot missed a lot in his decade away, and he'd left a lot of hurt behind. What Fin hadn't expected was the murder of Elliot's wife, a hunt for a madman, two undercover stints, and the dismantling of a police gang.

All within the first year of Elliot's return.

What surprised him more than anything was the absolute standstill in the progression of Olivia and Elliot's relationship. From conversations with both of them, he knew they were communicating infrequently, he knew Elliot had invited Olivia and Noah for meals, and he knew Olivia had so far declined all of the invitations. Olivia was still hurt by Elliot's absence, but the only way she'd start to heal was by having the necessary conversations with Elliot, telling him exactly what he did to her, exactly how he hurt her, and exactly what he'd missed while he was gone.

Fin had tried not to push Olivia, knowing that too much pressure was the best way to send her running in the opposite direction, but maybe she just needed a little nudge. She and Elliot had waited long enough, and Fin had a few bets to win.

It was late, the case keeping them tied to the precinct well into the evening. While everyone was taking breaks, Fin ordered dinner and decided to have a little talk with his captain to see if he could figure out what was going on in her head.

When the food arrived, he knocked on Olivia's office door before pushing his way inside.

"Had some food delivered since it looks like we aren't getting out of here anytime soon. Rollins ran out to see the girls before their bedtime and Velasco…I don't know where he disappeared to. He was smiling stupidly at his phone, so I assume he's talking to a girl."

Olivia looked up at him, with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, but he could feel her appreciation for his gesture. "Thanks for this, Fin," she said as he spread their food out across her office table.

When everything was settled, Fin looked back over at her. "Mind if I join you in here? Need to get away from the desk for a few minutes."

Olivia nodded, abandoning her work and moving to join him on the couch on the other side of her office. "Come sit, Sergeant."

Rolling his eyes, Fin said, "Don't call me that."

"I'm proud of you, Fin," Olivia said, elbowing him gently as he settled beside her. "And I couldn't do this work without you."

Fin tried unsuccessfully to hide his smile. Even though he felt it, recognized how much Olivia relied on him and his expertise to do their job, it meant something to actually hear the words from her.

They'd been through a lot together during their careers. Fin hadn't been an obvious choice to come to SVU, and it surprised him that he'd lasted this long in such a draining, heart-wrenching unit. But deep down, he knew Olivia was his reason for staying.

Olivia was the sister Fin had never had, the sister he never knew he wanted. While they'd never been official partners, he'd always felt protective of her, and she'd always made him feel like he mattered, like he was someone important to her, even though most of her days were spent with Stabler.

His protectiveness increased after their experience in Sealview. Even until his dying breath, he'll never forgive himself for not reaching Olivia sooner, even though he spared her from the worst of what could've been. He was glad she was comfortable enough to confide in him about her struggles afterward, but it broke his heart watching her fight through the PTSD.

Then came The Retirement.

Watching Olivia pick up the pieces of her soul after Elliot left without a word was one of the saddest things he'd ever witnessed, and someday he'll tell Elliot how lucky he is that he didn't show his face over the next few years, because Fin surely would've killed the man and felt absolutely no guilt for it. Elliot's absence shattered Olivia, and she deserved it far less than anyone he'd ever known.

Just when he saw Olivia beginning to really heal, when he started seeing glimpses of who she used to be breaking through, the beast known as William Lewis almost took her away from them forever. Fin didn't close his eyes for four days, not until she was safe. He'll never forget the haunted look in her eyes when she walked out of the beach house, and Fin will forever wish for her sake that he'd put a bullet in Lewis's skull.

But she survived, and Fin vowed then that as long as circumstances were within his control, he'd remain at SVU until Olivia was ready to leave. He knew no one on their current squad or anyone that would come after would know her like he did, would understand her the way he did, or would protect her the way he did.

But Stabler was back now, not part of their squad, but cases had overlapped with the organized crime task force a few times since his return, and he'd had the privilege to watch the Benson-Stabler team in action again. It took him back to the past, reminding him of better days when Munch's conspiracies, Cragen's leadership, and the unbeatable partnership of Benson and Stabler ruled the squad room.

Fin was proud of Olivia and everything she'd accomplished. She'd risen through the ranks of the NYPD after unimaginable trauma, and she'd become an incredible leader. If anyone deserved to find happiness, it was Olivia Benson. Amanda and Carisi had finally gotten their acts together and moved forward together, and he and Phoebe had reconnected after years apart. It was past time for Olivia to finally get the happiness she deserved, and he believed that only Elliot Stabler could give that to her.

"What?" Olivia asked, pulling him from his thoughts. When Fin looked up, she was nervously watching him wrestle with his memories.

He shrugged, taking another bite of his food, offering her a non-committal answer. "Nothing."

Almost immediately, her captain voice scolded him. "Don't lie to me, Fin."

"Just thinking about the past. When you first met me, did you ever think I'd be at SVU twenty years later?" he asked.

Olivia rolled her eyes as she laughed. "Honestly Fin, I didn't. You were the least likely person to even come to SVU, but now I can't imagine this place without you."

He grinned at her, touched by her response. "That means a lot. Same here."

After a few more minutes of silence, he decided to dig a little and see what he could find out about the status of her friendship "for now" with Stabler. "Liv, can I ask a personal question?"

He watched her study him for a few moments. "You can ask. Doesn't mean I'll answer," she replied with a smirk.

"Where do things stand with you and Stabler?"

Olivia's hands immediately abandoned her food to cover her face. "Not you too," she groaned, shaking her head.

Fin gave her a few moments to sulk before pushing a little more. "Come on, Liv. What do you mean, 'you too'?"

"Why is everyone so concerned about my personal life?" she asked, finally making eye contact with him again.

He couldn't help the devilish smile that crossed his face. "So you admit that Elliot is part of your personal life?"

Olivia playfully but firmly shoved him. "Fin!"

"I wanna know! What's going on with you two? I've been watching this weird thing between you two for two decades. Put me out of my misery."

She sighed, her shoulders sagging as she reclined back against the couch. "I don't know, Fin. There's just…so much stuff from back then that we've never talked about. He missed a lot while he was gone, and there just hasn't been time to talk since he's been back. He's been in the middle of his grief and adjustment to the new job and undercover assignments…"

"You gotta talk to him," Fin interrupted. "Don't you owe it to yourselves and to each other to get everything out in the open?"

"I don't know if he even wants any of that, Fin. I don't know that he…cares."

Fin stared at her for a moment, hoping she'd feel his frustration at her answer. "He wouldn't be asking you out over and over, letting himself get rejected over and over if he didn't care, Liv."

"He didn't ask me out," Olivia insisted. "He asked to take me and Noah lunch, and he asked us to come to a Christmas thing at his place."

Fin let out an exasperated groan. "He's including Noah because he doesn't think you'll agree to anything one on one. But we both know that what you two need is time alone to get everything out in the open."

Olivia looked down for a few moments, appearing to be deep in thought. "What if he can't handle it, Fin?" she finally asked.

"Handle what?"

She brushed her hand over her face. "All of it! Where to I even begin with him? Haden? Cassidy? Voight, Dodds, Tucker, my goodness Fin, he's going to lose his mind when he hears about them."

Fin held up his hand to interrupt her, both out of a bit of curiosity and an effort to lighten the mood a little. "Before you go any further, I just need to know which Dodds we're talking about here."

"FIN!" she yelled, a horrified look on her face.

"What?" Fin asked. "I got money riding on this! Help me out! You owe me!"

After shoving him again, Olivia got up from the couch and began slowly pacing in front of him. When she finally stopped, she looked down at him with tears in her eyes, and Fin felt his heart break for her once again.

"What if he can't handle hearing about Lewis?"

Immediately Fin stood up and crossed the room, stopping in front of her and cautiously placing his hands on her shoulders. The uncertainty and fear in her face was devastating, and he was frustrated with himself for letting the conversation go down this road. He'd never intended to upset her like this.

As a tear rolled down her face, Olivia's shaky voice quietly asked, "What if he doesn't want me after that?"

Fin couldn't stop himself and pulled Olivia into his arms. They rarely shared an embrace, only a handful of times, but she needed the reassurance, needed to be held by someone she trusted, and he knew that after Elliot left, he'd become that person for her.

After a few minutes of letting her cry into his shoulder, Fin pulled back, making Olivia finally look at him. There was shame and embarrassment in her eyes, presumably because of her tears, but he refused to let her sit in those feelings.

"I got you, Liv. It's going to be ok." He sighed. "Elliot's an idiot, always has been, and always will be, especially when it comes to you. But if you think that anything about Lewis, what he did, how all of that went down, will change the way he feels about you, you're completely wrong. The man loves you, Olivia."

With a nod, Olivia tearfully confessed, "I love him too, Fin." She swiped at a few tears. "This is just a lot to handle, my past, my son…"

"Let him help you carry it," Fin interrupted. "You don't have to do this alone anymore. You deserve to be happy and have everything you've ever wanted, and we both know that's him. You've waited long enough. Don't wait any longer, ok?"

Olivia studied him for a few moments before whispering, "Ok."

"Ok," Fin echoed. "Now, how about we finish up before Rollins and Velasco reappear?"

They returned to the couch and ate the remainder of their meals in silence, and Fin hoped that she was taking his words to heart. As they finished up and began cleaning up after themselves, Olivia casually said, "I wasn't expecting you to be the sentimental one. My therapist told me to figure out if there's anything between me and Elliot, and Amanda's advice was for us to just get a hotel room and get it out of our system."

Fin choked on the drink of water he'd just taken, shocked by Olivia's declaration.

"Liiiiiv, you can't say stuff like that to me! I don't need that picture in my head."

"We aren't, Fin. We…haven't."

Fin held his hands up, hoping to prevent her from sharing any more information. "I don't wanna know."

He gathered up the rest of their meal trash, and as he started out of her office, Olivia's voice stopped him.

"You're a good one, Fin Tutuola."

He looked back at her over his shoulder with a smile. "Back at ya, Olivia Benson."

Fin took a few steps out of Olivia's office before poking his head back in to say, "But if you and Stabler do end up in that hotel room, if you could let Munch know, that'd be nice. You know, for the bet."

Olivia threw a pen at him as she said, "Get out, Fin!" with a laugh.

As he settled back at his desk, Fin looked up into Olivia's office through her window one more time. She was seated, on her phone, a small smile on her face. He could only hope that maybe something he said to her sank in, and that she was texting Stabler right then to make plans to see each other.

Maybe now, she'd finally give herself a chance to be happy. It was exactly what she deserved.