Prompt #42: Set in Season 12 but EO became canon in season 8. Elliot and Olivia are spending Christmas with their four-year-old daughter, who asks them a lot of questions about how they met. (Full Fluff)
Christmas with the Stablers
~oOo~
"Mommy! Daddy!"
The four-year-old tore into her parents' still dark bedroom and climbed clumsily up onto their bed.
"Daddy!" she launched herself against Elliot's bare chest, throwing her arms around his neck. He smiled despite himself. He had heard her get up.
"Hey, baby girl," he greeted her sleepily
"Daddy, it's Christmas!" she exclaimed
"It is?" he pretended not to know "Huh. I wonder if Santa came."
"Let's go see!"
She knew not to look until they went into the living room together. Elliot glanced over at Olivia, who was lying on her side, breathing slow and deep. They had been up until well after midnight. He squinted as he looked at his watch and groaned inwardly. It wasn't even 5 am.
"Tell you what." Elliot looked up at the blue-eyed toddler and brushed a lock of dark hair, mussed from sleep, away from her face. "Go back to your room and look at a book for ten minutes. Okay?"
"But—"
"Sera." Elliot gave her a stern look then squeezed her cheek affectionately. "Just ten more minutes."
"Okay, daddy."
Elliot watched as she clambered down off the bed and ran out of the room. He shook his head, amused, then shifted onto his side and wrapped his arm around Olivia's waist, nuzzling her neck. She was warm and soft and sweet and he really didn't want to wake her. She sighed and buried her head in the pillow.
"Merry Christmas," he whispered in her ear
Olivia smiled to herself. She felt his warm breath. His early morning stubble tickled the nape of her neck and she could feel him, hard against her. She pushed back up against him and he groaned.
"Liv…," he warned.
"What?" she asked, feigning innocence. "You don't want an early Christmas present?"
"Oh. I do," he growled before pressing a chaste kiss onto her shoulder. "But our daughter is waiting on us."
"That kid." Olivia smiled ruefully as she lifted her head. "Thank God she's cute."
"She is," Elliot agreed, squeezing her tight. "Sure you don't want another one?"
"Oh. I'm sure." Olivia struggled to escape his embrace but resistance was futile.
He moved his knee between her thighs and she felt the slight tenderness there, a delicious reminder of the night before. Nearly five years of this and it was never enough. His hand moved slowly along her undulating curves as he held her in place with one strong forearm.
"El…"
"I just want a kiss," he promised
Olivia sighed, melodramatic, and turned toward him. But as his fingers got caught up in her hair and he pulled her mouth toward his, she felt herself resign, her softness melting into his lean muscle.
"Daddy!" Serena's voice sang out.
"That's you." Olivia laughed and pulled away from her husband, albeit a bit reluctantly.
Elliot stretched and propped himself up on one elbow just to look at her, so beautiful in the early morning. Her face was bare save for a bit of residual mascara and her long brunette mane was unruly. He watched as she buttoned her red pajama top and slid into a pair of moccasin-style slippers. She tossed him the top that matched his red and green plaid pajama bottoms and he sat up, dressing slowly. He rubbed a hand over his face and shook his head as if to clear it.
"Hungover?" Olivia asked, teasing.
"Just tired." He stifled a yawn.
"Well, the good news is," she applied some lip balm, "we have the whole day."
"Last night was fun." He smiled.
"It was," she agreed, running a hairbrush through her long hair, smoothing out the curls.
"Tonight will be fun too," he promised, unable to resist kissing her again.
"Dad-DY!"
They turned to see their four-year-old in the doorway, pouting, hands on her hips.
"Hey!" Elliot picked her up and tickled her until she was laughing breathlessly.
"Stop!" she shrieked between fits of giggles. "Daddy-Stop it!"
"Okay," he relented, setting her down and kissing the top of her brunette head.
"Merry Christmas, sweetheart." Olivia bent to give her a kiss.
"Merry Christmas!" she replied excitedly, bouncing on her toes. "Can we open presents now?"
She directed the question at her mother because Olivia was generally the one who made the rules. Despite Elliot's pretense of being in charge, his youngest daughter had him wrapped around her little fingers and she knew it.
"Presents?" Olivia looked skeptical. "Before breakfast?"
Her face fell and Olivia couldn't help but laugh.
"Of course we can open presents," she said, taking her daughter's hand. "Come on."
~oOo~
The night before, Elliot and Olivia had gone to Christmas Eve mass with Maureen, Kathleen, Lizzie, Dickie, and Serena. All four of Elliot's eldest kids would be with their mom and stepdad today, but they'd gone to church with Elliot and Olivia as they had been doing every year since their youngest was born.
They'd all had dinner together afterward. The kids were allowed to open one gift each — pajamas. It had become tradition that they all get matching holiday pajamas. Olivia and Elliot had also let their youngest exchange gifts with her siblings since she wouldn't see them on Christmas morning. They'd spoiled her, of course, they always had, despite Olivia's protest that a little girl didn't need quite so much. In turn, she had helped Serena hand-pick the presents for her brother and sisters.
It had definitely become more fun now that Sera was getting older and was starting to be more involved in the holiday festivities and traditions. This year and the year prior she had been fascinated with all things Santa and the elves and the North Pole. Olivia had been practicing her letters with her and she had wanted to write her own letter to Santa, which had been completely illegible but she'd been proud of it.
Serena was every bit as stubborn as both of her parents and had been from birth. She was also affectionate and loving, smart — almost too smart — loved books and was a deep thinker with a curious mind.
At the same time, she was extroverted and loved to talk to anyone and everyone. She was also innately kind. Her mother's daughter, Elliot would say of his youngest with pride. She had also inherited Olivia's dark hair, long lashes, heart-shaped face, full pout, fair olive skin, and a light smattering of freckles across the bridge of her button nose. She did have the Stabler blue eyes, of course. And a dimple in her left cheek that was all Elliot.
After they had seen the older Stablers off, Elliot and Olivia managed to get Serena into bed… though getting her to sleep was a much more difficult task. They had left cookies out for Santa and carrots for the reindeer and Elliot had read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas — twice. Olivia had shut the light and sat and rubbed her back, reminding her that Santa wouldn't come until she was asleep. And finally, finally, she'd drifted off.
~oOo~
Elliot had poured the rum-spiked eggnog and they'd listened to Christmas carols while Olivia stuffed the stockings and Elliot set to work assembling the bike their daughter had requested, cursing as he studied the directions and fumbling with the tiny nuts and bolts. After setting the living room up, Elliot and Olivia slow danced to 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas' in the soft twinkling of the white lights that adorned the tree and the warmth and glow from the hearth.
They continued to get into the holiday spirit and, admittedly, Olivia had overindulged in the eggnog and ended up attempting a sexy little performance to 'Santa Baby' which had led to the two of them making out like teenagers in front of the fireplace before stumbling into the bedroom to make up for some long overdue alone time.
Olivia had pulled her hair up and Elliot had unzipped the back of the forest green dress she'd worn to mass. He'd been thinking about getting her out of it for most of the mass. He'd inhaled the scent of her perfume, the subtle hints of jasmine and vanilla. The dress had pooled at her feet and she'd turned to her husband, drawing closer to kiss him. He'd kissed her back with intent.
"God, I missed you," he'd murmured.
"Prove it," she challenged, teasing.
He had. More than once.
~oOo~
Predictably, Serena had caught sight of the bike first, topped with a big red bow.
"A bike!" she tried to get on it right away and Elliot had to put his coffee down to steady her.
"I guess you were a good girl," he said. "Why don't we open some other presents?"
"Can I ride my bike?" she asked, staring up at him. "Please?"
"I'll take you out this weekend," he assured her. "Look at mom."
Serena beamed at her mother, who was snapping pictures. When Olivia looked through them, she was amazed to see that her baby looked as if she'd grown taller overnight.
Elliot and Olivia cuddled on the couch, having lit a fire, and watched Serena gleefully tear through the wrapping paper, exclaiming over each gift until she was playing happily with her toy horses, princess playset, and an American Girl doll made to look like her.
Olivia gifted Elliot a new pair of cufflinks and he gave her a new necklace, a simple, small gold circular pendant with the initial 'S' on a delicate chain. His thick fingers fumbled as he tried to work the tiny clasp so she could wear it.
"It's okay," Olivia insisted, leaning in closer for a lingering kiss. "It's beautiful. I love it."
"M'glad," he murmured into her mouth, cupping her cheek.
"Mom?" an inquiring voice spoke up.
Olivia blushed as they broke their lip lock and turned to Serena, who had been momentarily forgotten.
"Yes, sweetie," she replied
"Why do you always kiss Daddy?"
Elliot almost choked on his now lukewarm coffee but, as per usual, his wife had an answer for their inquisitive daughter.
"Because I love Daddy," she explained. "We're married and married people kiss."
Serena nodded her understanding.
"Refill?" Olivia offered, taking Elliot's mug.
"Thanks," he sat cross-legged on the floor and started talking to Sera about her new doll and what she wanted to name her. Elliot really was made to be a girl dad, Olivia thought, pouring their coffee.
"Daddy…" Serena looked thoughtful. "Did you always love mommy?"
"Always," he replied without hesitation, casting a glance at Olivia who was smiling over her shoulder.
"How did you find her?"
Olivia chuckled to herself. Sera was very much into her fairytale romances. She loved stories like Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. Like most little girls, she played dress-up in princess gowns all the time.
"I found her…" Elliot thought for a minute, pulling Serena up onto his lap, "when she walked into my old squad room."
She looked up at him, interested. She knew all about her parents' work and what they did — or what they told her they did — that Mommy helped people and Daddy kept everyone safe.
"She was so beautiful a—"
"The most beautiful?" Serena interrupted.
"Yes. The most beautiful girl I have ever seen. And she was funny and smart and kind." He kissed her baby-soft cheek. "Just like you."
"And what happened?" she urged him to continue, as Olivia returned with the two steaming mugs.
"I'm gettin' there," he replied. "So, Captain Cragen told me that she was gonna be my partner, and—"
"You were police together?" Sera interrupted again.
Olivia watched, almost as enchanted by the story her husband was telling as their daughter was. The way Elliot adored her and the way she looked up to him wide-eyed and intrigued was endearing. Her family, both biological and blended, was the best part of her life.
"We were partners," she couldn't help but cut in. "And we were best friends."
"And you fell in love?" Their daughter prompted.
"We did," Olivia replied just as Elliot said, "I did. Took mom a little longer."
He winked and Olivia shook her head at his recollection. No need to tell their child that he had been married and already had a family and neither of them had wanted to risk their partnership or friendship…
"And you asked her to marry you?" she asked Elliot, eager to get to the happily ever after part.
"We were partners for a long time," he answered honestly. "But yes, daddy asked mommy to marry him."
"Took him long enough," he heard Olivia intone under her breath.
"And she said yes!" Serena enthused.
"She sure did."
"And then we had a baby girl," Olivia added
It hadn't happened in exactly that order, but...
"Me!" Serena exclaimed
"Yes. You." Elliot set her on her feet and retrieved his coffee, hoping to get a little caffeine in while it was still hot.
"Mom?" she went over to Olivia. "Was daddy your prince?"
"He was my prince," she confirmed, looking over at Elliot, who was laughing.
He would undoubtedly call her out on that later.
"Okay." Olivia stood, muscles stiff. "Let's get you dressed and then we'll have breakfast."
Elliot was already getting started, setting the dozen eggs and the loaf of bread he'd picked up out on the granite countertop. They had lived off of takeout for so long and were often so busy, they still favored convenience when it came to food but occasionally they would fix something simple, like brunch or kid-fare like macaroni and cheese or chicken fingers.
"Daddy?" Olivia interrupted his meal prep and he smirked. "Why don't you get started on those mimosas."
"On it." He grabbed the orange juice out of the fridge.
~oOo~
By the time Olivia had managed to get Serena into a pair of tights, skirt, sweater, and shoes she could smell the oven-roasted potatoes and the bacon sizzling and realized she was starving.
"Done?" Sera tried to jump up.
"Hold on." Olivia had two bobby pins between her teeth. "We just have to do your hair."
"Mommy…," she complained
Olivia sighed. Not only was she hungry but exhausted. And she had a headache.
"Just let me brush it," she bargained.
"Don't pull," Sera reminded her.
"I won't." She ran the hairbrush through her long brunette strands, careful not to tug before sending her off. "You're good."
The child bounced out the door, humming. Olivia shook her head. All this for a couple of pictures suitable for framing when she'd already taken dozens of Sera with her siblings, as well as self-timer pictures of the seven of them together. Elliot had gifted her the camera years ago and it was still one of her favorite things, being able to capture those fleeting moments of the past four, almost five, years. Serena would be five in February, she thought. Two weeks before Olivia turned forty-five.
Where had the time gone?
~oOo~
The food Elliot had prepared was nothing fancy but it was good. The bubbles tickled Olivia's nose as she sipped her second Mimosa. Serena would often say she was hungry and then pick at what she'd been given. She nibbled at her toast with jam. Luckily, Elliot could be counted on to make sure there were no leftovers. He helped himself to more sausage and Serena yawned.
"You look tired," Elliot observed.
"I'm not tired," she insisted.
Elliot and Olivia exchanged glances. Serena had outgrown naps over the past year, which was a good thing because she had started preschool that September. She had always been a ball of energy but those quiet afternoon hours, however fleeting, had been their weekend respite. She may not have been tired but they were.
"Mmm." Olivia paled suddenly as she swallowed a forkful of scrambled eggs. "Excuse me a minute."
She hurried to the restroom. When she returned, Elliot shot her a look.
You okay, he mouthed.
Hungover, she mouthed back, rolling her eyes. Her tolerance wasn't what it once was.
She filled a glass of water from the tap and swallowed two ibuprofen as Serena watched their wordless exchange thoughtfully, swinging her long legs.
She didn't miss a thing.
"I think I'm done," Olivia announced as she started scraping the food off the plate and into the trash.
"Can I be done?" Serena asked
"Su—"
"No," Olivia cut Elliot off, addressing Sera. "I need you to take some more bites."
"You didn't finish yours," she said, petulant.
Olivia's brow raised and she changed her tactic.
"I think daddy's right. You're tired. Maybe you should take a nap."
"No!" she cried.
"Then you need to eat a few more bites."
"How many?"
"Four," Olivia replied calmly. "And finish your milk."
Serena started chewing her toast right away and Olivia took Elliot's empty plate and started washing the dishes. Satisfied. Elliot watched fondly. He had always known Olivia would make a great mom. She was gentle yet firm, always loving and ready with open arms. She had a lot more one-on-one time with Sera than he did and he wished he had more time with both of them.
~oOo~
After getting the kitchen cleaned up, Olivia had snapped a few dozen photos in front of the tree and fireplace, then the three of them played for hours before settling down to watch some Christmas Specials and drink hot cocoa under the same blanket, Sera nestled in between them on the couch.
Olivia especially loved this time of year.
The holidays made her nostalgic but she couldn't help but feel a bit sad knowing that Elliot would be off again next week. It was a rarity that they both had two consecutive days off midweek to spend as a family. And she had to remind herself how fortunate they were that after Elliot had transferred out of Special Victims he was almost immediately offered a job in Anti-Terrorism. The significant pay increase had helped a great deal in expediting his divorce and taking care of college tuition for four kids… and, combined with her higher income as a sergeant, it had afforded them their three-bedroom apartment in Manhattan. They could send Serena to private school and pay for after-school childcare with an amazing nanny who had been with them since their daughter was an infant. They weren't necessarily wealthy but they had a comfortable life and considered themselves fortunate to have careers they both loved and to be in a happy marriage with five happy, healthy kids. It certainly wasn't how either of them had imagined their partnership would end up. It hadn't been easy getting from there to here but it had all been worth it.
Olivia just wished working Joint Terror didn't take Elliot away from them so much.
She sighed, resting her head on her husband's shoulder. She may have been feeling the post-holiday letdown already but at least they had the upcoming weekend and New Year's to look forward to.
~oOo~
Later that evening, Elliot was playing with Serena in her bedroom, helping to put away all her new toys while Olivia picked up the living room, tossing all the discarded wrapping paper when Elliot emerged from Sera's room, closing the door quietly behind him. He brought a finger to his lips.
"She's asleep," he said in a hushed voice.
"She is?" Olivia couldn't believe it.
Serena had never been easy to get to bed. But she'd been up so early and she'd gone to bed so late the night before. Maybe…
"You think she's out for the night?"
Elliot nodded and smiled, coming up to her, wrapping his arms around her waist.
"You feelin' better?" he asked.
"Oh yeah. Fine."
"Let me give you a hand," he offered.
"I'm done," she replied. "But if y—"
Before she could finish the sentence, he pulled her into a hard kiss, grabbing a fistful of her long hair.
His mouth on hers was the only thing keeping her from shrieking, surprised by the sheer force of him. It didn't hurt. Her scalp tingled. And as he placed his other hand on her lower back and pushed his pelvis up against her, she realized it was payback for teasing him that morning.
"You like your present?" he asked, his voice husky.
"I love it." She touched the pendant.
"Not that one."
"Oh." She smirked.
Elliot had a package delivered last week tied with an ornate red bow. More a present to himself.
They'd had a 'phone date' that night…
"Why don't we…"
"Now?" She was surprised but more than agreeable.
~oOo~
Elliot sat on the edge of the bed and Olivia straddled his lap, kissing him passionately, when the bedroom door opened. Neither of them noticed until a small voice interrupted them. It wasn't the first time, but...
"No." Olivia sighed, dropping her forehead onto her husband's shoulder, flushed. Elliot groaned, shifting uncomfortably before they turned to look in the direction of where the voice had come from.
Serena was standing in the light coming from the doorway, rubbing her eyes sleepily.
"Are you playing Santa?"
Olivia sputtered, trying not to laugh as she pulled herself off of her husband, who was horrified. If she'd come in a minute or two later it could have been a lot worse and a lot more difficult to explain.
"Mmhmm." Elliot cleared his throat and swallowed hard. "What are you doing out of bed?"
She shrugged, blinking her big blue eyes up at them innocently, always thinking. Her little brow furrowed.
"Daddy, are you Santa?"
"No," he replied. "We were just playing pretend."
"Can I play?"
Elliot looked like he was stuck, so Olivia went over to her and knelt down to her level.
"Sweetie, let's go back to your room, okay? It's bedtime."
"But…" her lower lip quivered and tears pooled in her eyes.
"Want Daddy to take you?" Elliot offered.
"No." She shook her head, big tears slipping down her round cheeks.
Elliot and Olivia exchanged a look, resigned to the idea that they wouldn't be 'playing' tonight.
"Do you want to sleep with us?" Elliot asked.
She nodded, brightening at once. He could swear those tears were an act sometimes… But he couldn't stand to see her cry, whatever the reason. Seeing her mother cry had the same effect.
"Just for tonight," Olivia reminded her.
She had found herself saying that a lot. On those lonely nights without Elliot, having Sera's warm little body snuggled up next to her was a comfort, though not particularly comfortable.
She happily settled in, getting under the blankets in the middle of the bed.
"C'mon. Scoot over."
Elliot climbed in beside her, with Olivia on the other side. She kissed her husband goodnight, then her daughter, and switched the light off. After about ten minutes of chattering and wiggling, Serena rolled onto her belly and Olivia rubbed her back in circles until her restless body stilled and her breathing deepened, sound asleep.
Elliot's hand sought hers in the dark and she reached her hand out until their fingers interlocked.
"Merry Christmas, El," she whispered.
"Merry Christmas, my princess," he replied.
All in all, it had indeed been a very Merry Christmas.