A/N: Ok, LSM...the long awaited (not really) chapter six. Again, this one is for you. I think I've gotten more ideas for this story/pairing than I have for any other story/pairing. You might just make a J/O shipper of me yet.


He disappears for a few days after that second incident. None of those that remain in the squad room know where he is; they have the feeling that the captain knows, but he isn't saying anything, and somehow they all know better than to ask. For some reason, the squad room seems empty without him, as if it isn't complete without all four of them there. She's trying to concentrate on her paperwork, since there aren't any cases to close as of yet, but instead, she finds herself twirling her pen between her fingers and staring over at Munch's desk ever so often.

"What, does he owe you money or something?" Elliot's voice breaks into her thoughts, and she turns to look at him, slowly realizing that she's been caught. She would've jumped; but she knows that in itself could give her away and confirm Elliot's suspicions.

"No," she says. "I'm just tired." Hopefully, you'll buy that, she adds silently. When he doesn't say anything, she looks over at him only to find that he's gone back to his paperwork again. The phone rings and she reaches for it, almost automatically. A voice on the other side alerts her to yet another case that they'll have to solve; after being given the information she needs, she hangs up and reaches for her coat.

"Where are you going?" Elliot asks, looking up after noticing that she's no longer sitting at her desk.

"Crime scene," Olivia tells him placidly. "You didn't hear the phone ring?"

"I did, but that doesn't mean anything," he replies. Olivia looks at him as if she is sizing him up for a fight, then leaves. Before she's out of the precinct, she hears footsteps behind her and turns to find him following her.

"Thought the phone didn't mean anything," she says coolly. He gives her a look.

"It's eleven o'clock at night," he says.

"And your point is?" she asks in reply. "I'm a cop, Elliot. I can take care of myself."

"Then what's the point of having a partner?" he asks her. She rolls her eyes and pushes the door open before he can do it for her. Wind comes rushing at them and she pulls her coat closer around her.

"I don't know," she says, "You tell me." He casts her an annoyed glance before taking the keys from her grip and walking off before she can say anything. She runs after him and when she's within hearing distance, she swats at him.

"What's your problem?" she asks. Elliot looks at her over the car's roof before pulling the door open and getting in without answering. Scowling, Olivia follows suit, glaring at him as she fastens her seat belt so they can leave.

"You gonna answer me or not?" she demands.

"I don't have a problem," he tells her shortly. "Where are we going?" Annoyed, she shoves the address at him and turns to look out the window. Silence lingers between them until they're halfway there.

"You ok?" It's the first time in a long while that she's heard him sound concerned about her, and she turns to face him.

"Yeah," she says, "I'm fine. Let's just get there."

When she doesn't continue, Elliot turns to look at her as they come to a stop at a red light.

"I can take you home if you want," he says finally.

"I'm fine," Olivia says again. "We almost there?"

"Yeah," Elliot replies, and again, there is silence. It disappears when they reach the scene. Already, there is a large crowd on the outside of the crime scene tape. CSU is present, and so is M.E. Warner.

"What do you think?" Olivia asks, forgetting for a moment that she isn't with Munch and motioning to the crowd as they get out of the car. "How many of them know something?"
"Probably not many," says Elliot, glancing at her strangely. "When do they ever? They're just here for the show."

His sudden cynicism surprises her, but she says nothing and instead follows him across the tape and towards Melinda.

"She was strangled," the medical examiner tells them bluntly. "More than likely raped."

"Any signs of fluids?" Olivia asks in reply. Melinda shakes her head.

"Nothing," she says. "Your guy must've thought to use protection. I'll be able to tell you more in the morning." She motions to a few of her assistants standing nearby; within minutes, they are gone and so is the body.

"Anything?" Elliot's voice startles her out of her reverie, and she looks up at him, shaking her head.

"Not till morning," she replies. "What about CSU?"

"Same," he says. The streetlights glint off the keys in his hands; he looks down at them and sighs. "Let's get out of here."

"Sounds like a plan." She hates this…hates always feeling like she's in cop mode when she's talking to him, or when they're alone together. She figures that they should at least be able to act as if they have more than just a partnership. But she knows that if she's stubborn, Elliot is worse. Neither of them are ever going to admit that they might be wrong.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Elliot says once the crime scene is out of their sights. Olivia turns in her seat to look at him, sighing.

"Why do you think people always gather at crime scenes?" she asks in reply. He makes a face.

"Come on, Liv," he says, "Why would you want to think about that?" She shrugs.

"Because that's what we see at every crime scene," she replies. "Why would people want to do that to themselves?"

"I don't know," Elliot replies, keeping his eyes on the road before them. "They probably get their kicks from being there…watching us work. Cheap form of amusement."

"Don't you find that disturbing?" she asks, and Elliot casts her a puzzled look. It's then that she realizes that she's doing the questions thing again, and with the wrong person. She sighs again and runs a hand through her hair.

"Never mind," she says. "You don't have to answer it if you don't want to." She's almost hoping that he won't want to…a feeling of guilt has settled over her, and though she finds it ridiculous, it won't go away. But Elliot doesn't notice, and as he turns, he answers.

"Yeah," he says, "I do. One would think people would be frightened by a crime scene instead of fascinated by it. What do you think?"

Olivia eyes him for a moment, tempted not to answer him, but they haven't really had a civil conversation since he asked her if something was going on with Munch, so she figures she might as well take this chance and run.

"I think it's sick," she says. "Maybe if we didn't shield them from seeing the bodies, they'd stop coming….they'd stop making our jobs harder."

"I'll say," says Elliot. "The thing I hate about that is that none of them ever seem to know anything until a week into the investigation, and by then, we're going around in circles because they didn't tell us in the first place."
"It does get annoying," Olivia says absently, distracted by the shadows dancing on her arm, cast by the streetlights and the objects around them. Elliot glances at her as they come to the second red light since they left and sighs.

"Mind telling me what's so interesting about those shadows?" he asks. Olivia looks up, chuckling softly to herself.

"Nothing, really," she says. "They're just something to look at…there isn't exactly anything else."

"You want to go back to the precinct or do you want to get something to eat?" Elliot asks.

"Let's grab something to eat," Olivia replies, suddenly hungry. "I haven't had anything all day."

"You gotta quit doing that to yourself," Elliot remarks as he turns to go towards what has, over the past few months, become their favorite place to go. She snorts.

"You're one to talk," she says. "We catch one of those high-profile cases and it's all I can do to get you to leave the squad room."

"That's not true," he protests as they get out of the car to go inside. "I leave the squad room."

"Yeah, only when I make you," she tells him. "You're worse than I am when it comes to that."
"Am I?" he asks, pulling the door open for her and waiting until she's completely inside before following. "Prove it."

"I don't have to prove it," she says, taking her coat off. "You can go ask anyone in the squad."

It is when they're sitting down across from each other that Olivia realizes that she no longer feels as if she's in cop mode. In fact, she feels comfortable, almost relaxed…the first time she's felt this way with Elliot in a long time. With this in mind, she eyes him for a long moment, saying nothing. He notices and raises an eyebrow.

"What'd I do to get that look?" he asks. She rolls her eyes and pushes at his feet under the table .

"Nothing," she says. "You didn't do anything. I'm just looking at you. I can still do that, right?"
"Last time I checked, you could still see," Elliot replies. She shakes her head.

"Why do I put up with you?" she asks. He grins.

"Because you're my partner and you don't have a choice," he says. She smirks.

"I wouldn't bet my life on that if I were you," she says teasingly. "I could always ask Cragen to stick me with someone else, and then where would you be?"

"You wouldn't, would you?" Elliot asks, suddenly serious. Olivia eyes him again and shakes her head, sighing.

"No," she says, "I wouldn't. You know that. I'm just saying that if you really want to think about it, I do have a choice."

"But you wouldn't ask Cragen to put you with someone else?" Elliot asks again, and when she looks him in the eye, she can see that he's afraid of what she might tell him this time.

"No," she says again, "I wouldn't. I'm too used to you to work with anyone else long-term, and besides, I doubt Munch or Fin would stop you from going overboard on someone."

"I think they would," Elliot counters, "Because if they didn't, it'd just get them in trouble."

"Yeah, but guys aren't always inclined to think that way," says Olivia. She takes a sip from the glass that had just been placed in front of her and continues. "You're more likely to cover up something than admit it outright."

"So, now we're all corrupt, is that it?" Elliot asks, laughing. "I ought to tell IAB that theory and see what they say."

"Thought you hated IAB," says Olivia.

"I do," says Elliot, "But that…that's something worth telling them, just to see how they'd react."

"Yeah, I can see that," Olivia remarks. "They'd probably have a fit about it."

"Seeing as they tend to think our entire unit is up to something," Elliot says in reply, and she laughs.

Before either of them realize it, they're looking at their watches, paying the tab and getting up to leave. She pulls her coat closer around her as they step out into the cold, her thoughts going too fast for her to keep up with them. Elliot glances at her as they walk towards where they've parked and slides a tentative arm around her waist. She moves closer to him, smiling faintly.

"You know, I've missed this," he remarks, quietly enough so that only she can hear him.

"Missed what?" she asks.

"This," he says, motioning to himself and then to her. "Being able to talk without getting into a shouting match, you know?"

"Yeah," she says, moving closer to him than she already is. "I know…I missed it, too."