More soundtracks because why not?

The incident part: The Ice Breaks - Panu Aaltio
The comfort part: Fall Colors - Panu Aaltio

Also, thank you for all the comments! I appreciate them a lot.

(Trigger warnings for this chapter: Sexual harassment, Cassidy's a jerk.)

After everyone had eaten, a calm silence fell in the cottage, and they began to nap one after another. Olivia's eyelids felt heavy, but she struggled to avoid sleeping, fearing Elliot would disappear while she slept. She leaned against him and as she listened to his calm breath, she felt the peace surrounding her for the first time in a long time. Cassidy's snoring filled the cottage and Olivia's eyelids closed despite her resistance. She sighed deeply and suddenly felt Elliot's thumb touch lightly her cheek. She wrapped her arm tightly around his one arm. Elliot leaned his cheek against her head, and she let the dream wrap her in its peaceful embrace.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was almost dusk outside when Olivia opened her eyes. It was quiet in the cottage, and Olivia's heart skipped a beat before she realized Elliot's arm was still resting in her lap. She corrected her posture, and the movement made Elliot wake up. He looked confused for a moment, but then turned his gaze to her and smiled. The sight made the butterflies flutter in her stomach.

"Hey, you," he said quietly and Olivia replied with a smile. Then she looked around and was surprised when she couldn't see the others.

"Where is everybody?" She wondered and stood up with a groan. Elliot stood up too, limped behind her and they opened the door.

"So, you finally woke up," Cassidy growled as he leaned against the doorjamb. His condition had clearly improved, because standing did not make him look like he was going to faint.

"How long did we sleep?" Elliot yawned and Cassidy shrugged.

"A few hours because it has already started to darken."

"It feels like that," Elliot stretched his numb limbs. "Where are the others?"

Cassidy turned his gaze forward. "Brown is setting traps, Munch and Fin are looking for firewood, and I got tired of watching you sleep, so I came to breathe in the fresh air."

Olivia pursed her lips and squinted her eyes because something in Cassidy's attitude was suspicious. However, when he didn't say anything anymore, she sighed and glanced at Elliot.

"I could go to see that brook before it gets dark, I really want to take a relaxing bath," she grimaced. Then she gave a laugh when she saw the questioning gazes of the both man. "Thank you, but I'm sure I'll manage all by myself. I understood the brook is not far away." She touched Elliot's arm lightly and set off to wade in the direction Cassidy had pointed out. She found Brown's tracks, and began to follow them. The cottage disappeared behind a small hill, and the silence surrounded her. Olivia suddenly felt anxious, and noticed that she hoped Elliot would have come with her. Then she shook her head vigorously.

"No, you have to make it alone. It's just a forest, for God's sake!" However, she felt the anxiety grew, and she was almost turning back when she noticed the brook in front of her. She picked up a branch and began to knock the ice with it. Brown had been right about the thickness of the ice, because it broke easily and soon she had made a hole about the size of a bathtub. There was about a meter of water and the flow was not strong, but Olivia gulped as she looked into the icy water. Then she stood up, hung her clothes on the branch of the tree next to her, and stepped into the water. The water was so cold it blocked her breath and she could barely hold back a scream. She closed her eyes and crouched so that the water reached her neck. It only took her a few seconds to wash herself, and then she stood up gasping. She rose from the water, careful not to slip on the slippery rocks, and leaped a few steps towards her clothes. She was just grabbing her shirt when she suddenly heard a branch crackle and quickly turned her head. Then the color escaped her face.

"Brian! What the hell are you doing?!" She snapped and pulled the shirt in front of her. "How long have you been there?! And how did you even get here?!"

Cassidy grinned in embarrassment and raised his hands as a sign of surrender. Then he limped over to her, and Olivia felt very uncomfortable.

"Sorry, I wanted to make sure you won't get lost," he stepped closer and Olivia stepped back because something in Cassidy's gaze made her anxious. Frost pinched her skin, and she shivered. However, she did not want to reveal herself in front of him.

Yes, they had slept together, it wasn't about that. The thing was, Cassidy had actually never really seen her. They had always had sex in a dark room because that way Olivia had felt comfortable. The thought of Cassidy seeing her in a bright light had made her anxious. However, she hadn't figured out why, but now that his eyes were running along her body, she understood why. His gaze made her feel like she was an exhibit from which the judges tried to find as many mistakes as possible.

"Where's Elliot?" Olivia backed away a couple of steps and grabbed her pants from the tree branch with one hand. That's when Cassidy's eyes flashed dangerously.

"We don't need him, do we? I am your boyfriend, and I have the right to have some dyadic time with you," his voice was suddenly ominous, and then he grabbed her arms and pulled her close. She felt his hot breath on her neck as his hands wandered fiercely over her bare back and landed on her ass. Tears welled in her eyes as she tried to break away, but Cassidy's hands were strong and her body suddenly felt paralyzed.

"What's wrong with you?" She asked in a stifled voice, but Cassidy didn't answer. Instead, he slid his hand higher over her breast, and moaned.

"God, I've missed this."

When Olivia struggled to break away, he squeezed hard her breast and made her yelp in pain.

"Don't… please…"

"Don't you want this?" Cassidy's gaze was almost insane. "Just wait, you'll want it soon."

Olivia squeezed her eyes shut, but then there was an exclamation:

"Hey!"

She turned her gaze in the direction of the voice, and a sob of relief escaped her lips. Elliot stood a few feet away from them and he had clenched his fists.

"What are you doing?!" He asked threateningly and Cassidy squinted his eyes dangerously.

"I'm spending some quality time with my girlfriend," his whole body tensed. "So we don't need you here."

Elliot glanced at Olivia, whose eyes sparkled with tears. Help me, she looked at her partner, begging. Then he turned his gaze back to Cassidy.

"She doesn't seem to want it," his voice was enraged. "So let her go."

"You know what?" Cassidy tilted his head in frustration. "I almost wished we would have gotten rid of you. I can say that, from a boyfriend's perspective, Liv focuses on you a little too much."

"Let go of her!" Elliot shouted and Olivia breathed in sharply. He had straightened himself to his full height and his eyes flared with anger as he looked at Cassidy. He looked so menacing and powerful that Cassidy seemed to startle. Then, however, he gave an arrogant laugh and turned to stroke Olivia's cheek. She tried to back away, but then Elliot bumped into Cassidy with all his weight and tackled him to the ground, and Cassidy's grip on Olivia detached. As they wrestled, Olivia rushed to grab the rest of her clothes and dressed as fast as she could. Then she turned to look at the two men again. Cassidy was lying under Elliot and had clearly gotten beaten as blood dripped from his nose.

"How is it even possible that you, who have been working with SVU, can't understand what that means "no"?!" Elliot's voice was full of rage. He raised his hand to a new punch, but Olivia stopped him.

"El,", she touched her partner's shoulder. "It's enough."

Elliot let his hand drop, stood up, and tugged Cassidy up from the collar of his jacket. He suddenly looked as if he had woken up from a trance.

"You'll better be happy you survived with just a black eye," Elliot growled. "Get out of my eyes!"

Cassidy hesitated for a moment and glanced at Olivia, who immediately turned her gaze away.

"Liv, I'm s…"

"How many times do I have to tell you this?!" Elliot roared. "Fuck off!"

Cassidy startled, lowered his gaze to the ground, and started to limp towards the cottage. Olivia and Elliot watched him go, and the moment he disappeared behind the hill, a sob escaped Olivia's lips. Elliot immediately turned to her and lowered his hand tentatively over her shoulder. His hand was still shaking with adrenaline.

"Are you okay?" He asked softly. Olivia lifted her gaze and tears rolled down her cheeks.

"I… I…" She mumbled. Elliot said nothing, just gently rubbed her shoulder. She took a deep breath. "He was like a whole different person, I didn't know him at all." Then she fell silent.

"Liv, it's not your fault," Elliot said quietly, as if he had read her mind. Then he bit his lip. "Can I hold you?"

Olivia hesitated for a moment but then nodded. He gently pulled her into his arms and wrapped his arms around her. She sighed and pressed her head against his chest. They stood like this for a while until Olivia suddenly looked at his legs.

"Pretty impressive tackle with a sore leg," she pointed out amused and felt Elliot gave a laugh.

"Believe it or not, I've wanted to do that for a long time."

"And why am I not surprised?" She snorted and Elliot grinned.

They stood still for a moment entwined to each other until she began to tremble from the cold, and they started to walk towards the cottage. They walked in silence, and suddenly she grabbed his hand.

"El," she whispered and he turned to look at her questioningly. Then Olivia took a step towards him and pressed a kiss on his cheek. "Thank you."

A smile brightened Elliot's face as he wrapped his arms around her, closed his eyes, and pressed his lips against her ear.

"Always."