A/N: Welcome back!
Just a short one. :)
"S-she's gonna be okay, right?" Noah whispered, having melted into his mom's arms the minute she walked through the front door and into the living room where he was sitting.
"She's going to be fine," Liv whispered. "I promise."
His head was buried snuggly into her chest, his little body tense with fear and nerves at the thought of his Aunt Amanda being hurt.
"W-where's dad…"
"He's… he's at work bud… I have to go back I just… I wanted to check on my boys," she nodded, extending an arm to Eli who also melted into her embrace.
The trio were sat in Maureen and Carl's living room, the boys having gone there at the start of the hellacious week, filled with threats, bombs, and death.
Noah had found out about the shooting via a kid at school and had promptly experienced a full blown panic attack that could only be assuaged by his big brother.
"I wanna go home, mom," Noah finally said, looking up to her with wide and tired eyes.
"Soon," Eli answered for her.
She turned slight to look at the 16 year old, marveling at how much he'd grown and changed in the 8 months they'd been a family.
He was gentler and kinder, and would move mountains to protect his new baby brother.
"Soon," Liv echoed, encouragingly.
"T-tonight?" Noah whispered.
"I… I don't know, buddy… I hope so," she whispered.
Noah sunk even further into his mom's arms. The usually brave little boy still had his moments of uncertainty and fear, especially now that his mom and the dad he'd wished for for so long were risking everything.
Breathing out softly, she hugged onto both of them, enjoying a few long moments of silence she hadn't had since Monday morning before she got out of bed.
The last time her partner held onto her with ease and joy.
Her partner.
Her eyes closed, remembering the argument early in the week that had mostly kept them apart since.
"You're going to find the bomb? Elliot, are you kidding me?" She exclaimed once the crowd had dispersed and she'd yanked him behind the nearest closed door.
"Oh I'm sorry, did you want people to die?" He cried, the emotion of losing his young CI rearing its ugly head.
"Obviously not, Elliot. But I don't want you to die either!!!" She scoffed, her own frustration and exhaustion finally coming to its own head.
"I'll be fine, Olivia."
"We have bomb squads for a reason! People trained to do this!"
"People trained to do this when they know where the bomb is, Olivia!!!" He yelled.
"My God…" she stopped, pressing her hands to her head and exhaling sharply.
"My God what?"
"You're not going anywhere. That's an order." She snapped, brushing past him and out to the bullpen.
The truth was, she was scared too.
Maybe even more scared than their young son, because she had a first hand look into just how damn stubborn he could be.
It wasn't lost on either of their boys how brave their dad was, nor how his intense bravery could morph quickly into reckless stupidity.
He hadn't obeyed her orders, obviously, and instead had roped Jet into his shenanigans and, much to her annoyance, promptly found the location of the bomb.
"You're really still mad at me?" He asked as they walked down the dark hallway and into his squad room.
"Yes," she said, exasperatedly. "You defied a direct order from a superior... ThoughI shouldn't be surprise."
"Hell is that supposed to mean?" He whispered harshly, turning to face her.
His quiet outburst was halted by the Deputy Mayor's accusations that ended in an intense and fiery physical altercation led by Elliot's desire to defend and protect his captain.
He kept a protective hand on the small of her back as she told the man exactly what they were going to do and why, with a confident ferocity that made his cock swell.
Her body was buzzing once the Deputy Mayor left, and when she turned to him, he saw the need that was etched into her furrowed brows and big brown eyes.
There was no discussion or questioning, then, just a lock-step walk to a secluded bathroom on the second floor of the squad. It was against a cool tiled wall that they fucked out their anger and frustrations, and promises of love and apologies fell from his lips all over every inch of her bare skin he could access.
The front door opened suddenly, pulling her from the memory that was making her flush, and in a second, the boys were sprinting from her arms and crashing into their dad.
He looked exhausted and she was sure she could smell him from the doorway, but seeing him hugging their sons (still in one piece) made all the bad feelings melt away.
His eyes shimmered over their son's heads, with tears of both apology, forgiveness, and gratitude for patience and love.
Gratitude for the life they'd created, the work they did together, and the fact that they were both safe, against all odds.
Noah's small voice broke their mutual concentration on one another.
"Daddy can we go home?"
"Yes," he said simply, immediately, finally releasing them and taking a step back.
With his eyes locked on Liv's, he gave a small smile that she mirrored. "Let's go home, guys."