Author's Note: Ha! I knew I could get it done before the weekend! You should all be very proud.

Disclaimer: In addition to all of the SVU characters, I do not own Alex Eames from Criminal Intent or any of the events surrounding her on-show pregnancy.

Chapter Eleven

After taking a twenty-minute walk, Munch walked back towards the SVU squad room. He peered carefully through the window before deciding whether or not it was safe to enter. Olivia was sitting at her desk alone. Casey was standing near Fin's desk as she put her coat on. Munch nodded. It was definitely safe for him to enter. Depending on how Olivia took the news, it might be necessary.

He opened the door slowly and stepped back to allow Casey to walk through it. "How'd she take it?" he asked curiously.

"Surprisingly well, all things considered," Casey answered honestly. "Now, if you'll excuse me…"

"Wait a minute," Munch said in a genuinely concerned tone. He gently grabbed Casey by the arm and pulled her out of the squad room. "Casey, you can be straight with me," he whispered. "Are you still pregnant?"

Casey felt her cheeks getting warmer. She wondered whether or not they were completely red. She quickly regained her composure and answered the question. "Yes," she said. She looked up at Munch and saw him looking at her lower stomach area. "I've been working out a lot," she explained. "I hear it makes labor less painful." Her face turned to one of panic. "That is true, isn't it?" she asked fearfully as she looked up at Munch with wide, frightened brown eyes. "Isn't it?" she repeated as his silence.

Munch did not know what to say to her. He pulled her into a soothing hug and rubbed her back gently. "Case, I'm sure you're going to be fine. Shh. Shh. You're going to be fine."

Casey nodded as she pulled away from Munch. "Thanks," she whispered.

"Anytime," Munch promised. He turned back to the door leading into the SVU. "Next time you go to the gym, you might want to try and get Liv to go with you. Just between us, but someone's having a little trouble losing those holiday pounds. Too much turkey, never good."

Casey wanted desperately to roll her eyes at how oblivious Munch was to everything. Instead, she chuckled slightly. "Amen to the turkey," she said finally. "And if you'll excuse me, I have such a craving for a hot dog right now. With lots of relish and mustard, pickles, and, um, honey," she lied. Was that too extreme, she immediately wondered.

Munch raised an eyebrow at her. "Well, suit yourself," he said. "I'll talk to you later." With that, he walked back into the squad room and left Casey to finally leave the station. Casey let out a huge sigh of relief as she exited.

Olivia stood outside the doors leading to the Major Case Squad room. Detective Alex Eames was the only detective who Olivia knew personally who had been pregnant on the job before. She walked cautiously into the room, avoiding the glances she presumed to be on her as she walked to the other detective's desk. Luckily for Olivia, Eames' partner Bobby Goren was no where in sight.

"Hey, Alex, can I talk to you for a second?" Olivia asked.

Alex gave Olivia a slightly confused glance, but she agreed. She motioned for Olivia to sit down. "Sure," she began. The confusion lingered in her voice. "Is there something I can do for you? Something about a case?"

Olivia shook her head. "No, this is more of a personal thing. My personal problems, but you might be able to help." She sighed and looked around again. While she felt okay with confiding in Alex, she did not want any other detectives knowing until she told the rest of the SVU. "I'm pregnant," she admitted. "And seeing as you were pregnant on the job a couple years ago, I thought maybe…"

Alex nodded. "You need help," she finished for Olivia. She immediately felt guilty. That was not in all how she wanted that statement to come out. "I didn't mean it like that. I meant you want to get advice, to hear the horror stories."

Olivia frowned. "Is it really that bad?"

Alex shrugged. "Not for the first five and a half to six and a half months," she noted. She then frowned. "But then, you're on desk duty." Her last statement was filled with disgust.

"Ew," Olivia agreed. She sighed and placed her hands across her lap. "Was it hard for you to tell everyone?"

Alex shook her head. "No. It was fine."

Olivia mentally slapped herself. "But our situations are completely different. Or, at least the circumstances leading up to them are."

"Care to elaborate?"

"Not yet," Olivia said simply. "After I tell the SVU." She stood up and placed the chair on the side of Alex's desk. "Thanks, Alex."

Alex smiled back at her. "Anytime, Olivia."

Hours passed before everyone was back in the SVU squad room. Olivia was sitting in her desk chair. Casey was sitting in Elliot's. Elliot was standing over Fin's desk. The two of them were discussing their latest case. Munch was sitting at his desk reading a newspaper. Olivia looked around at everyone. It was time.

"Um, can I have everyone's attention?" she asked. Munch looked up from his paper. Fin and Elliot looked up from their case file. "Um, closer," Olivia added. Everyone obeyed.

"There's something I need to make clear," Olivia began. She drew in a deep breath. She had to phrase her words perfectly.

Elliot glanced over at her. With one look at her nervous appearance, he knew exactly what was going on. He moved closer to her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "It's ok, Liv. You can do it."

Olivia nodded. "Ok. I can do this. I want to do this," she said softly. Those words were not heard by anyone else except for Elliot. "Ok, back on the first day when I 'returned', there was a reason why I barely stayed. No, it's not because of the subject matter of our work." She drew in another breath, and Elliot rubbed her shoulders soothingly. "It's because I saw Elliot's calendar."

Munch shrugged. "Yeah, the Celine Dion is a little disturbing," he agreed. "But is ditching work for the rest of the week really the best way to solve that problem?"

"Shut up, Munch," Casey and Elliot commanded simultaneously.

"He's right though," Olivia said as she looked up at Elliot. "We need to get you a man calendar."

Munch smiled at Olivia, but he did not say anything. Instead, he motioned for her to continue.

"Well, that was the day that I realized I was a little over four weeks late," Olivia admitted. "The only man I had been with was, well, you know. That realization freaked me out, and I left. My fears were confirmed that night." She drew in another breath. "I'm pregnant."

Olivia glanced back at Casey. "After seeing Elliot's computer or something like that, Munch somehow concocted the theory that Casey was pregnant. Because Casey knew that I wasn't ready to face the truth yet, she went along with it. But now I'm ready.

"The circumstances leading to the pregnancy weren't ideal, but I couldn't be happier now," she said as her hand joined with Elliot's.

Elliot smiled and kissed her forehead.

"Oh, come on," Fin said with disappointment. "It's only us. Give her a real kiss."

Elliot chuckled as he felt Olivia's arms going around his shoulders. He looked into her eyes and moved in closer. His lips met hers, and he kissed her. He didn't stop.

"Oh, get a room," Fin said.

Elliot and Olivia backed away from each other. The happiness on their faces was unmistakable.

"Well, congratulations," Fin said. "We're here for you," he assured Olivia.

"Definitely," Munch added. He frowned for a second and turned to Casey. "So you were never pregnant?" he asked.

Casey shook her head.

"You're a good actress, and a great liar," Munch began.

"Thank you," Casey said.

Munch walked back to his desk. "But you owe me three hundred bucks."