A/N: find me on twitter at @lssswift. Gear up - it will be a bumpy ride for a bit!

"You never know the biggest day of your life is going to be the biggest. The days you think are going to be the big ones, they're never as big as you make them out to be in your head. It's the regular days, the ones that start out normal; those are the days that end up being the biggest."

For the second day in a row, Olivia groaned as she woke up, startled by Elliot's alarm. Realizing their escapade from the night before hadn't worked, she grabbed one of the pillows behind her and threw it over her face.

Elliot chuckled as he rolled over, snaking his arms under the cover and pulling her close. He kissed her bump before sitting up and kissing her lips.

"Morning," he said, in a raspy, sleep-laced voice.

"Morning," she muttered from under the pillow.

He laughed again before yanking it up and over his shoulder, letting it fall to the floor beside the bed. "Patience, Liv," he said.

"I don't have any."

"I see that." He smiled warmly. "She'll come when she's ready."

"What about when I'm ready?"

"From here on out, we're on her schedule."

Olivia sighed, sitting up in bed. "I'm going in today," she said quietly.

"What? You're supposed to be off; taking it easy."

"Yeah. I'll take it easy at my desk. Besides, I will just watch the clock if i stay here."

"Liv…" Elliot warned.

"We're fine. I know my limits and if anything, she's proving to be just as stubborn as me." Olivia slid out of the bed and raised her arms above her head, stretching as he smirked at her.

"One of the things I love about you, but damn, does it drive me crazy sometimes…"

"You love it." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she walked around the side of their bed. "I call dibs on the shower first!"

"Just don't use all the hot water!"

"A cold shower would do you good once in a while!" She called back, shutting the bathroom door behind her.

"Surprised to see you two here this morning," Fin said later that morning as he watched the two of them walk into the squad room.

Olivia huffed as she sat down at her desk, annoyance written all over her face. She was tired and the day was just starting out. The swarm of activity in the room didn't help; the symphony of phones ringing and voices yelling over one another made her head spin already.

"Little Miss still hasn't made her arrival?" Munch asked as he swirled a spoon in his coffee mug.

"Yeah, I thought I'd leave her at home today, fend for herself and all," she said as she stared at him and sighed.

Elliot laughed as he sat down in his own chair, immediately reaching for the stack of file folders that had been placed on his desk.

"Sorry, John, I'm just…not getting a lot of sleep and she is karate-chopping my insides."

"Munch, Elliot," Cragen said as he walked up to the group. He took one look at Olivia and changed gears.

"You okay, Detective?" He asked, watching her squirm.

"I'm fine. Why does everyone keep asking me that?"

"Because you're about to have a baby and I don't think you want to do that in the middle of our squad room."

"I'm fine," Olivia repeated, "I….would rather be here until I can't. I'd just be watching the clock at home anyways. I might as well be doing something useful here."

Cragen narrowed his eyes at her and then said, "Fine. But you're out of here at five sharp. No ifs, ands, or buts."

She saluted as she turned to her computer. "Aye, aye, Cap."

Elliot chuckled and looked back at his Captain. "What do you got for us?"

"Teenage vic down at Mercy. I need you and John to go down there and talk to him, see what you can find out. Suspect is looking like the piano teacher but just see what you can find out."

Munch sat his coffee mug down on his desk and grabbed his jacket off the back of his chair. "Ready?" He asked, glancing over at Elliot.

"Yeah," he said as he stood up. He turned to Fin and said, "Look after her. Text me if you need me."

"Got it," Fin said.

"See you guys later," Munch said as he turned to exit the squad room, knowing Elliot would fall in line behind him.

Elliot groaned as he rubbed his face later that evening. They'd been at Mercy all day interviewing their victim when they'd discovered two more. Cragen had sent them to each of the victim's houses for interviews and it was well past six when he finally had them go home for the evening.

Olivia had text him during the last hour of her shift, saying she was picking up Chinese on the way home from the precinct.

He put the car in park outside of their apartment building and sat there for a moment before he got out. He was tired, dead on his feet. He couldn't help but admit that he was looking forward to Mollie being born and getting to spend a little time away from the horrors of the job. As much as he loved what he did and how he sought justice for each and every victim, it got to be a lot to handle sometimes and sometimes he just wanted to turn it off.

Elliot opened the car door and slammed it behind him, clicking the lock button on the key fob. He jogged to the front door of the lobby to their building and walked in, lost in his thoughts as he made his way up to their apartment.

"Liv, I'm home," he called out as he opened the front door. Stepping inside and shrugging off his shoes, he notices the air has changed within the apartment.

The hair on the back of his neck stands up and instantly, he knows something is wrong. The takeout containers rest on the counter, still in their plastic bags from pick up. He walked over to the counter and frowned as he looked at them. They've long grown cold, and Olivia is never one to let her egg rolls go cold, especially when eating for two.

"Liv?" He called out, expecting to hear her normally cheerful voice echo back.

He is met with silence in return.

"Olivia."

It isn't a question this time; a statement, because surely, she just didn't hear him the first time. He can hear the orchestra that is Manhattan a little louder than normal in the apartment, as if they were on the ground level. He doesn't feel the magnetic force pulling him to her as he always does when she is around.

He pulls his weapon as he stalks around the counter in the kitchen, glancing at his right.

Shattered glass from the windowsill litters the floor, Olivia's cell phone and gun strewn amongst the wreckage. It's then that he knows.

Elliot's heart drops to his stomach as he drops his own weapon, falling to his knees. "Liv," he whispered.

An hour later and he is now standing in the middle of a crime scene, something he has done hundreds of times over the years. But now, it's his living room that is being infiltrated by his coworkers, his wife that has gone missing, he that is unable to breathe, unable to listen to the words he's being told. It's his living room that is being dusted for fingerprints, his brothers and sisters in blue offering words of encouragement to keep his head high, that they would find her and bring her home.

Cragen stands beside him, talking a mile a minute but Elliot doesn't hear him. He's focused solely on her - where she is, what happened to her, and what's happening now. Deep down, he knows.

His mind wanders back to the night before, when she'd made him watch some stupid soap opera with her before bed. The ending monologue echoes in his head - it's the regular days, the ones that start out normal; those are the days that end up being the biggest.

You never know the biggest day of your life until you're living it.