Prompt: Baby, Please Come Home
Baby, Please Come Home
~oOo~
Olivia had begged Brian to leave her alone for the holiday, and he had agreed – albeit reluctantly.
Brian had been wonderful, but Olivia could sense his frustration. She could hardly blame him; she'd been hot and cold. Sometimes she needed him to hold her and would panic if he left her sight, and the next minute she would demand to be alone.
In all honesty, Olivia was frustrated with herself. She hated feeling as if she needed to rely on someone. She hated how, all these months later, the shadows in her bedroom still seemed to stretch into the shape of William Lewis. She hated that the smell of cigarette smoke made her want to vomit. She hated that she still woke up screaming Elliot's name.
Brian, bless him, hadn't brought that last bit up.
So Olivia was alone Christmas Eve, watching snow fall while their tree glowed merrily in the corner of her eye. A shiver passed through her. That happened sometimes – the fear would creep up out of seemingly nowhere until it absolutely choked her.
Tears blurred her vision, and Olivia wrapped her arms around herself.
William Lewis wasn't there. William Lewis was in jail.
But her whole body was screaming that she was wrong. She couldn't breathe.
Olivia forced herself to move, scrambling to the kitchen to grab her phone and a bottle of wine. She wished she could stomach something stronger.
Her thumb hovered over Brian's number, but her own hand betrayed her.
Click.
"You've reached Elliot Stabler, please leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can. No, Eli don't—"
Hearing his voice, Olivia grasps at her sanity like a bar of soap in the tub.
"Elliot." She manages to get out, hating how broken her voice sounds. "God, I–"
Olivia is choking on her words; her hands are shaking too badly to open the wine.
"Elliot something bad happened. Months ago, but... Elliot, I need you. Please, I– Elliot I'm terrified all the time. I don't know if I'll ever feel safe again.
"El, please I just need you to hold me. Just once," she says, wildly. "Just once and I'll be okay again. Please, Elliot, just come home. I need you to come home." Olivia hangs up and practically throws her phone across the room, uncorking the wine with a vicious tug.
Elliot won't call her back, she knows that. She stumbles into her bedroom searching frantically through the closet. Somewhere in the back she has one of Elliot's old sweaters. It still smells like him and maybe if she puts it on. Maybe if she puts it on and wraps the blankets around herself so hard she can hardly breathe, it'll be like Elliot is the one holding her.