Note: Final chapter (for now ;)) thank you everyone who read, liked and reviewed this fic. I had a lot of fun writing it and I'll sure miss it!

"To be honest, I'm really glad you're staying," Noah told Olivia in the car, on their way to Elliot's apartment for Eli's birthday party. Initially it was supposed to be at Kathleen's place, but since Elliot was going anyway and his place was bigger, they moved the location. "I don't want to be there alone."

"You wouldn't have been there alone, your father and your grandmother are going to be there too," Olivia reminded him, but he didn't respond to that. "Are you nervous?" she asked.

"Yeah. I don't know if Elliot's kids will be mad at me or not."

"They're your siblings and they're not mad at you," Olivia reassured him. "Don't worry about it."

After visiting Olivia and subsequently talking with the rest of her siblings, Kathleen called Olivia to tell her she was officially invited to the party. Instead of making Olivia feel comfortable about going, however, it just made her feel unsure even about Noah going there by himself. She thanked Kathleen but said that it might be best if both she and Noah skipped the family event. Kathleen promised her that none of them were angry at Noah, and that everyone but Maureen were willing to try and move away from their anger and towards accepting her too as part of the family - being the mother of their half brother. The fact that it happened a while ago had helped, Kathleen explained, and that Olivia regretted keeping it a secret from Kathy.

Deep down, Olivia knew that if she had the chance to change the past, she wouldn't change a thing. The result of her actions back then was a son with the only man she could ever truly love, and she wouldn't give that up for anything. That truth she had to keep for herself, but it wasn't necessary for them to know it anyway.

"She needs more time and I don't know if she'll ever be friendly with you, but at some point she's gonna have to come to terms with everything," Kathleen sounded sure of herself.

"I don't want them to be mad at you either," Noah said after a moment of thinking.

Olivia sighed. "They just need time to get used to everything." She believed that most of Elliot's children would forgive her soon enough, but Maureen worried her. "Don't worry about it, honey. Just enjoy the party."

"What if I don't enjoy it?" Noah sounded worried.

"Then you just tell me and we'll go."

"Just like that? In front of everyone?"

"Well… we can go to the side for a moment."

"But then they'll know that I asked you to go home," he still didn't sound convinced.

"What do you suggest we do, then?"

"Mmm… I'll say something weird that only you would understand," at the thought of that, Noah sounded more cheerful.

"Like what?" Olivia smiled.

"Like that I really want to do my homework for Monday," he laughed at the ridiculousness of it.

"I thought you finished your homework."

"I did, but they don't know that."

"Oh, okay," Olivia chuckled.

They spent the rest of the drive much more relaxed. Knowing they could leave whenever he felt too uncomfortable made Noah happier about going to the party and facing his entire new family.

When they finally stood in front of Elliot's apartment door and waited for someone to answer their knock, Olivia felt so nauseous from the stress, that she almost banged on the door for someone to open it so she could run to the bathroom. Instead, she looked up and took a deep breath in to calm her nausea and her nerves.

The door finally opened, revealing Elliot on the other side of it, and the sight of him made her feel much better. He stepped outside quickly instead of letting them in, and closed the door behind him.

"Hey, guys," he smiled at them.

Olivia thought that he looked both calm and nervous, which confused her about what she needed to expect from his children.

"Hey…" Olivia examined his face with a confused smile. "What are we doing out here?"

"Just wanted to make sure you two are good before we go inside," Elliot tried to sound casual but Olivia noticed that his breathing was heavier than normal. She realized that the calmness she had recognized at first was fake. He was extremely nervous.

"We're fine… and you?" she asked, placing her hand on his upper arm.

As soon as she touched him, Elliot felt grounded again. He needed to stop spiraling but didn't know how to calm himself down, and she did it without an effort.

"I'm fine too," his voice was lower, more serious. The fake casual tone was replaced by a heavy, honest one.

The door behind him opened and Bernie emerged from the apartment. She looked happy to see them and somewhat relieved.

"What are you all doing out here? The party is inside!" she said cheerfully.

"Hi, Bernie!" Noah said happily, relieved to see another person who loved him.

"Hello, sweetheart!" Bernie held his face with both her hands and kissed his forehead before looking into his eyes. "When are you going to start calling me grandma?"

"Mama. Don't pressure him," Elliot said immediately, though he knew that his mother would do whatever she wanted anyway.

"I'm not. Am I?" she asked Noah.

"No," he smiled, his face still in her hands.

"Well then?" Bernie said, prompting her youngest grandson to respond to her question.

"Mama…"

"How about now, Grandma?" Noah asked and was immediately pulled into a bear hug by Bernie.

"Yes!" Bernie sounded happy and emotional. "Ready to go inside, grandson?" she asked and they both chuckled.

"So cool that you're my grandma," Noah said as they walked through the door hand in hand and disappeared into the apartment.

Elliot and Olivia exchanged astonished looks. Bernie sometimes made things look so easy, while they kept struggling with them for a long time.

"Well, I wasn't expecting that," Olivia finally said.

Elliot shook his head. It took him a moment to get over the shock, but then he looked at Olivia, examining her appearance up and down.

"You look great," he said quietly with a little, mischievous smile.

Olivia scoffed. She wore black pants and a black t-shirt, hoping she would merge with the background and go unnoticed. It was, of course, in vain to wish for that, as her and Noah were the main focus of every Stabler present. They were like exclusive items in an exhibition, about to be scrutinized by the critics. Her t-shirt was, indeed, a fitted one, and on top of it she wore a black, leather jacket, so she could understand where Elliot's compliment was coming from, but still, she thought that her look was pretty simple. Still, she appreciated the compliment, even if she disagreed with it.

"You too," she whispered.

Elliot closed the door again, giving them privacy in the otherwise empty ground floor of the building.

"Are you okay?" he asked, taking a step toward her.

"Me? Yes. Why? Are you okay?" she replied nervously.

"Other than desperately hoping that everything goes well? Sure," he said.

Olivia took a deep breath in. Knowing that he was also nervous didn't encourage her. She needed him to be her stability. "Do you think it will?"

"With most of my kids, yeah. Maybe not as soon as now, but it won't take them long."

"But not with Maureen." Olivia hated how much she dreaded her reaction. She had to keep reminding herself that it wasn't Kathy she was dealing with, and there was no need for her guilt.

Elliot sighed. "Eli is also not there yet, but he just doesn't know you that well. I'm not too worried about him, but Maureen… I don't know if she'll ever be okay with you."

"El –"

"But I don't care, Liv. If we stick together, we can handle it. Like we used to do when we were partners."

Olivia smiled. "We're still partners." She grabbed his hand and held it in hers.

"Yes, we are," he pulled her to him and, with his free hand, moved a strand of hair from her face before kissing her. He knew that one of his children might open the door and see them, but he didn't care. He had sacrificed years of his life in an unhappy marriage, partially because he wanted his children to grow up with their parents together. Now he was finally free to be with the woman he really loved, and they had to come to accept that their father was moving on. He couldn't wait for them to know that he was with Olivia.

The other reason for staying married all those years was his faith, which he wasn't even sure of anymore. It was hard for him to admit that, because that would mean admitting that he might have wasted two decades without being with Olivia the way he really wanted for no reason. For now, he just tried to stay grateful for having her, and not to dwell in his self blame and anger.

Elliot broke off their kiss, placing a little kiss on her cheek and another one right before her ear and then whispered, "Should we go in?" Somewhere deep inside he was hoping she would ask him to run away together, but he knew she wouldn't. She was there for him, because she knew how important it was to him for everyone to get along, and they needed to start somewhere, otherwise it would never happen.

"If we have to," Olivia joked.

Elliot looked at her, frowning, but then he smiled. He took her by her hand and opened the door again.

The loud chatter immediately hit Olivia's ears, as well as the warmth of the indoors and a sweet smell of something sugary. It gave her a false feeling that all was well in her life and she wasn't about to face five judges that would decide how her future would look like. It was all somewhat overwhelming to her as they walked towards the living room, where most of Elliot's family was. She slowed down a bit and felt him squeezing her hand gently to encourage her right before letting go. They hadn't officially told everyone that they were together, but they both knew that they weren't fooling anyone. It was impossible not to read it on their faces whenever they were in each other's presence or simply talked about one another.

Olivia scanned the room for Noah, but he wasn't there. The living room was occupied by Lizzie and Sharon, Dickie and his wife, Elliot's four grandchildren and Maureen, who was sitting in the armchair. Her face clearly stated that she didn't want to be there. Eli was the last one that Olivia saw. He was sitting on the floor next to Dickie's children, half hidden from view by them, and he seemed very uncomfortable. Olivia looked at the kitchen to her left and found Noah with Bernie and Kathleen. He was standing next to Bernie and watched closely as she finished decorating Eli's birthday cake.

Bernie looked up just then and welcomed Olivia loudly, as if they hadn't seen each other a moment ago outside in the hallway. Olivia knew that she did it on purpose, to get everyone's attention, and she hated it. She had to keep reminding herself who she was, because it didn't make sense to her that she was brave enough to deal with her job on a daily basis, but not with the Stablers.

"Hey, Olivia," Kathleen said. She wasn't as enthusiastic as she used to be in the past when seeing her, but she was smiling at her and seemed pleased that Olivia had decided to join them in the end.

"Hi," Olivia smiled back at her and then looked at everyone in the living room and greeted them as well. "Happy birthday, Eli."

"Thanks," he said awkwardly.

"Ooh Maybe Olivia can tell you the story of your birth, since she was the only one there when it happened," Lizzie said to Eli, who suddenly looked like he had found interest in what was happening around him. Lizzie then turned to Olivia and said, "It's nice to see you, Olivia." She waited a moment before looking at her twin brother and adding, "Right?"

"Uh, yes! Welcome," Dickie said quickly as he saw his sister's gaze.

Elliot stifled a laugh, which didn't go unnoticed by Olivia. She wanted to smack his arm, but everyone was looking at them.

"Come see the cake, dear," Bernie said to Olivia, saving her from the spotlight that she had put her in.

Elliot walked to the living room and stopped next to Maureen, brushing the back of his finger on her cheek lovingly to get her to look at him.

She didn't say a word but her eyes made it clear that she was unhappy.

Elliot leaned forward, placing his hands on the armrest, so that he could speak low enough only for her to hear. "Could you make an effort to be nice, please?"

"Could you make an effort not to be a hypocrite, please?" she whispered back.

Elliot frowned, shaking his head slightly in confusion.

"Stop pretending like there's nothing happening between you two. We all know you've moved on from mom," her whisper was getting louder with every word, but it was too noisy around for anyone else to hear. Anyone but Eli, who was sitting the closest to them.

Elliot took a deep breath, trying to keep himself calm. "Your mom will always remain who she was for me and for all of you. Moving on doesn't change that. We can't stop living."

"Well, can't you move on with someone else?" Maureen insisted. Eli was looking at them now and there was no doubt he could hear them.

Elliot stared at his daughter angrily, and she wasn't afraid to stare right back at him. "You don't have to like her or agree with my choices to be polite. I know your mama taught you that."

Olivia looked over at Elliot in the living room and by the look on his face, she knew that he was arguing with Maureen. It wasn't hard for her to guess that she was the topic of their angry exchange. She had half a mind to run over there and tell him to stop before he made things worse, but she didn't want to make a scene. Instead, she decided to let someone else get involved.

"Hey, Bernie…" she said quietly. The older woman looked at her curiously and Olivia gestured with her head toward the living room. "Do you think it's time for the cake already?"

Bernie looked over at where Olivia was gesturing, and after a moment of scanning the room, she understood what Olivia was talking about.

"Yes, that's a great idea, dear," she lifted the cake from the counter and started walking, followed by Noah, Kathleen and Olivia. "Here comes the cake!" Bernie said loudly as they approached the living room.

Elliot stood up, cutting off his argument with Maureen. They didn't reach any agreement, but as he sang happy birthday to his son along with everybody else, he hoped that his daughter would be mature enough to at least treat Olivia with respect.

As the song ended, Bernie started cutting the cake. Olivia stood at a small distance behind her, trying to give the family space – including Noah. It didn't work for her, though, because her son noticed she was standing alone and went over to stand with her.

"It's okay, honey, you can go be with the rest," she said to him quietly, again trying to avoid attracting everyone's attention. Noah just shrugged and looked at her, so she pulled him to her, placing him in front of her with his face to the others and circling his neck with her arms.

Elliot watched them from his spot next to Maureen, a little smile appearing on his face absentmindedly. It made him so happy to have his entire family in one place, celebrating something together, even if it was still somewhat tense.

"I want the biggest piece!" Elliot heard one of his grandchildren say, but he was too busy looking at Olivia and Noah for his brain to decipher who it was.

"No! I want the biggest piece!" another child yelled. This time, the angry tone caught Elliot's attention and he looked to see who was fighting.

"I said it first!" Kieran yelled louder than his brother.

"I don't care!" Seamus yelled back.

"Eli should get the biggest piece, shouldn't he?" Noah suddenly said from his spot in front of his mother. Everyone turned to look at them and the room fell silent.

Olivia felt her cheeks burning, even though she wasn't the one who had said it. She held Noah a little tighter, feeling badly for sort of using him as a human shield.

"Noah…" she said awkwardly. "Why don't we let them sort it out?"

"No, he's right," Eli got up and walked to his grandmother. "The biggest piece is mine." He reached out and waited for Bernie to hand him a plate.

"Yes it is, birthday boy," Bernie gave him his piece and then looked at her grandchildren. "And everyone else is getting equally sized pieces," she said warningly but immediately smiled as she handed them two plates with two, same sized pieces of cake.

"Sorry," Noah looked up at his mother. "Didn't mean to embarrass you."

"Oh, it's fine, honey," she caressed his head, wondering how to explain to him that they weren't exactly a part of the family yet, so they shouldn't get involved in family drama. "We just need to… give ourselves and everyone else time to get used to the new… situation," she hated stumbling with her words.

Just then, Elliot walked over with two plates and handed them to Olivia and Noah.

"Thanks!" Noah looked at the cake enthusiastically and Olivia smiled at him.

"Thanks," she said to Elliot, wishing she could bury her face in his neck, like she liked doing when she wanted to feel shielded from the world. Elliot caressed her upper arm in response, checking if she was okay. Olivia just nodded but didn't say anything. She couldn't tell him how uncomfortable she was even if she wanted to, because Bernie had just called all three of their names and asked them to join the rest. She was gesturing at the couch, which had been left empty just for them. That also made Olivia uncomfortable, but she couldn't say anything or refuse to go sit down.

Noah grabbed his mother's hand and started leading the way with Elliot at the rear. Everyone watched them as they walked through, but Noah didn't seem to care about being the center of everyone's focus again. Olivia wished she could have his attitude. Then again, he wasn't the one who did something wrong in their eyes.

Bernie handed her son a plate as soon as he sat down next to Olivia and then she finally sat down herself. For a moment, everyone was quiet except for the children, who failed to notice the tension that Olivia's presence had created, and chatted among themselves as they ate their cake.

"So, Olivia…" Eli suddenly said. Maureen shot him a disgruntled look, but he didn't see it, or chose to ignore it.

Olivia looked at him with her eyebrows slightly arched up in surprise. She didn't expect him to start a conversation with her. Kathleen or Lizzie, sure, maybe even Dickie, not Eli or Maureen. She didn't know if Eli disliked her or he was just being the awkward teenager that he was, but he never tried to communicate with her before.

"Can you tell me the story of my birth? My mom's recollection of it was limited for obvious reasons," Eli looked uncomfortable talking with everyone looking at him.

"Sure," Olivia placed the plate with her untouched piece of cake on the coffee table and stopped for a moment to decide where to start. She remembered that Elliot had to go away for the case they were working on and she volunteered to take Kathy to her doctor's appointment, but she didn't know if his children knew that, and she didn't want to tell them that the only reason she was with their mother that day was because their father had, as usual, preferred working over being with her. So she pretended that she didn't remember why she was the one who was with Kathy that day, and proceeded to tell about the accident, how she had helped the paramedics treat Kathy as she went into labor and how she had to cover them both when the firefighters removed the top of the car to get Kathy out.

After that, came the part in the ambulance, Eli's birth. She remembered it happened pretty quickly, and a moment after he was placed in his mother's arms, Kathy lost consciousness. Olivia then had to hold Eli as the paramedic tended to Kathy, until they arrived at the hospital.

The part where Elliot came out of Kathy's room after making sure she and Eli were okay, Olivia kept to herself. The way he hugged her then - silently saying goodbye to their slight hope of ending up together – she would never share. It was the first time they had ever touched like that, and at the time, she thought it was also the last. It was one of the most painful moments in her life, having to let go of her dream to be with him for good – or so she thought. She remembered closing her eyes for a moment as he held her, chills running up and down her spine like fireworks that exploded into an all-consuming fire. It left her empty and sad, but she didn't allow herself to dwell in her sorrow. Instead, she asked him about the baby's name and he told her that Kathy wanted to name him after him.

That part she did share with them all. "To that I said to him that it was just what the world needed - another Elliot Stabler," she concluded the story and everyone laughed. Everyone but Maureen, that is. "I remember it like it was yesterday." She especially remembered the hug and what happened right before and after it.

"Strange, how the time goes by so fast," Bernie said and Olivia nodded.

"So," Eli finally spoke, after silently listening to the story, "basically you were the first person who held me after the paramedic and my mom. Cool."

Olivia smiled at him, unaware that Elliot was smiling too as he watched her.

His dreamy eyes didn't go unnoticed by his daughters, though, and they started exchanging angry looks. Kathleen could tell that Maureen wanted to say something, and tried to prevent it from happening without catching everyone's attention. Maureen, though, had other plans.

"Dad, if you keep staring at Olivia like that you might start drilling holes in the side of her face," she said loudly, causing everyone to fall silent instantly.

"Maureen…" Elliot started, but his eldest daughter was relentless.

"I mean I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet."

"Don't talk to me like that," Elliot said in a dangerous tone.

"Elliot…" Olivia recognized that tone immediately. He was about to explode and she wanted to stop it before it happened. She knew that the sound of her voice had a calming effect on him, amongst other things.

Elliot broke the intense glaring match he was having with Maureen and looked at Olivia. She shook her head gently, asking him to ignore his daughter's taunts.

"Oh my God, look how she intervenes. What is she, your girlfriend or something?" Maureen fake laughed, reminding everyone of Kathy when she would get angry at Elliot.

"YES. SHE IS. And I don't want to hear another word from you." Elliot said quickly, his voice harsh and cutting like a knife at the end of each sentence.

Everyone stared at him and Olivia in shock. They had all suspected it, but Elliot kept denying it and they wanted to believe that he wasn't lying to them.

Bernie let out a squeak of joy and immediately placed her hand on her mouth to shut herself up. She already knew about them, of course, but now it was out in the open and official.

"Are you?" Noah asked his mother with hopeful eyes, but Olivia just looked at him without responding. She was also shocked by Elliot admitting the truth about them.

"I knew it!" Maureen got up. She was livid. "You're a hypocrite!" She pointed her finger at her father accusingly.

Elliot stared at her for a moment and then got up too and said in a low, angry voice, "And you're way out of line, Maureen."

"Hey, knock it off, you two," Kathleen also got on her feet. "You're ruining Eli's birthday party!"

Maureen and Elliot both looked over at Eli and they seemed taken aback. It looked like they had forgotten about the birthday completely in their rage.

Elliot titled his head down, exhaling loudly. "I'm sorry, son," he said to Eli.

"Yeah, me too, Eli," Maureen said shamefully.

Eli remained quiet for a moment, but then decided to say what was on his mind. "You two always ruin everything with your arguments. I'm so sick of it."

"Yeah, Eli's right," Dickie said. "I'm sick of it too. Mo, stop resenting dad for wanting to move on. And, Dad, stop lying to us already. PLEASE."

"Totally. You two need to stop," Lizzie reinforced her brothers.

"Oh, how quickly you all forget that this woman got dad to agree to have a baby together behind mom's back!" Maureen refused to let up.

Olivia closed her eyes for a moment, tilting her head down. That scene was exactly what she wanted to avoid when she considered not going to the party. Her biggest fear had come true.

"Hey, don't talk about my mom like that! She has a name, you know," Noah came to Olivia's defense.

"Noah, it's okay," she tried to get him to stop.

"Nothing against you, Noah, I know it's not your fault, but this is an adult conversation," Maureen replied angrily.

"Maureen, ENOUGH," Elliot warned her.

Maureen refused to quit and she opened her mouth to respond, but Kathleen intervened before that could happen.

"Stop it!" she yelled desperately as tears started streaming down her cheeks. Everyone watched her with stunned faces. Kathleen usually had a pretty calm demeanor, even when she was angry. She didn't tend to have outbursts like that. "What's wrong with us wanting to be a happy family again, Mo?! We've been through so much with mom's death and everything since!" she wiped her tears with her sleeve. "I'm just so tired of it."

For a moment, no one moved or talked until Elliot walked over to her around the coffee table and embraced her. "There's nothing wrong with that, Kathleen," he said quietly, trying to calm her down as he caressed her hair gently. Her shoulders were shaking from crying and Elliot felt his heart breaking for his daughter. "You deserve to be happy."

"You too, Dad," she said in a shaky, muffled voice and lifted her head from his shoulder to look at him. "Enough with the traumas."

"Hear hear," Bernie said, holding her cup of juice up as Maureen gave her an angry look. "Oh, sweetheart," she said to her granddaughter, "we all miss Kathy, but your father being miserable for the rest of his life isn't going to bring her back."

"Yeah, Mo," Lizzie said gently. "I'm sure mom wouldn't have wanted it."

"Well, she wouldn't have wanted him to be with HER either," Maureen sat back down, leaning back and folding her arms stubbornly.

"Maybe we should leave," Olivia said suddenly and got up, reaching her hand out to her shocked-looking son. "Come on, Noah."

"Liv, wait," Elliot rushed from where he was standing with Kathleen to stand in Olivia's way. "Don't go. Please."

"Elliot, I really think this is a family matter," she said, well aware that everyone was watching them.

"You are family!" he said in frustration, placing one hand on her forearm and the other on Noah's shoulder.

"Oh, yeah, Mom would have loved that," Maureen muttered bitterly.

"Well, that's how things are," Elliot said to her, trying to keep his tone even. A second ago he talked softly to Olivia, but he couldn't do the same for Maureen. She enraged him. "Noah is my son and he's a part of this family, and Olivia has always been family to me. We were partners for twelve years."

Olivia looked down, biting her upper lip in an attempt to hold back the tears.

"I don't want to hear another word about it, you hear me?" he said harshly. "You don't have to be nice if it's so hard for you. Just be polite."

Maureen looked away but didn't say anything else. The awkward silence filled the room like smoke, making it uncomfortable to be there. No one knew how to change the topic and go on with the birthday party.

"Well…" Bernie said eventually. "Who else wants to tell a story about the first time they saw Eli? Because I have a great one."

"Let's hear it, Grandma," Kathleen wiped the last of her tears as she walked toward the couch that was now empty. "Come on, Noah, let's see if her story really is that great," she offered him her hand and he took it as they walked back to the couch and sat down.

"Excuse me," Olivia muttered and left the living room quickly, walking past Elliot. She intended to go to the bathroom, which was in the beginning of the hallway, but it felt too close. She needed to put more distance between herself and the others, and her legs carried her to Elliot's bedroom.

The room was dimly lit when she walked into it. She tried to close the door behind her, but it was pushed back open halfway through.

"Liv…" Elliot entered the room after her and closed the door.

Olivia looked at him with her hand on her forehead. She still couldn't believe what had just happened.

"I'm sorry about… everything," he said, watching her shaking her head with her eyes shut for a moment before she looked at him again. "But I guess it was for the best. Now there really are no more secrets."

"Yeah," Olivia scoffed. "I would have preferred them finding out about us in a more gentle way and at a better time, but… what's done is done."

Elliot came closer to her and wrapped his arms around her, closing his eyes. At first, she didn't hug him back, which made him wonder if she was angry at him, but then he felt her arms around his waist and he tightened his embrace.

"It's gonna be okay. They'll all get used to the idea of us together soon enough," he whispered. "And Noah was already looking pretty happy about it." He heard Olivia's soft chuckle, feeling it against the skin of his neck.

"He was, wasn't he?" She sounded tired, but somewhat amused. "At least one of them is happy about it."

"Two. Mama is thrilled," Elliot said, causing her to chuckle again.

"Bless her," she said as she buried her face deeper in his neck. The warmth of his body had a calming effect on her. In his arms, she believed that they could overcome anything, and she had their long, turbulent history to prove it. If after all that they had been through – including his going away for ten years – they could still find a way to each other, there was nothing they couldn't overcome. Being free to love one another was so much better than they could have ever imagined, and now that they knew what it was like, there was no way that they would ever give it up.