There's a new girl in school. There will be a switch of POV (at last) in this chapter and we'll get to know the young brunette a little better. Enjoy!

...

5.

Elliot was being flanked by John and Brian when they got in line for lunch. He really appreciated their concern but he wasn't going to make a scene if Kathy did try to approach him again, and he'd already heard that Nick wasn't in school today. He spotted Olivia in line in front of him, about four people down, and when she started walking away with her tray, he caught her eye. She smiled at him and then pulled her shoulders up, indicating that she had no idea where to sit. Elliot raised his index finger and mouthed 'one minute' at the new girl.

"Who's that?" Brian asked him.

"Name's Olivia. She transferred in today. She can sit with us, right?"

"Sure," both Brian and John hummed, nodding their approval. The new girl looked nice after all. A bit boyish, but nice.

"She should grow out her hair," Brian remarked.

"Yeah, start off by telling her that and leave a lasting impression," John huffed, earning him a punch in the arm from Brian.

Elliot glanced at Olivia again. Her hair looked fine to him. She had her dark locks cut in a bob that ended just below her jawline and since it curled a little, it bounced when she walked. She was dressed a little like a boy, in simple jeans and a sweater, but she was clearly a female. She definitely had more curves than Kathy or her blonde friends. Elliot grabbed his tray after choosing his dessert and walked over to Olivia.

"Hi again," she said quietly.

"Hey. I'm just waiting for my friends. You wanna sit with us?" Elliot asked her.

"That'd be great. I haven't made any friends yet."

Elliot smiled at her.

"Well, you got one now. And here come two more. Olivia, meet Brian and John. Guys, this is Olivia."

They all mumbled polite greetings and John led the way to their table.

"This is us," the skinny boy announced, plopping down in a chair.

"Does every group have their own table here?" Olivia asked, sitting down across from John.

Brian quickly took the chair next to Olivia, and Elliot was left with the seat next to John. He looked at Brian, one eyebrow raised, but Brian was already focused on the brunette next to him.

"Not officially," John told Olivia, "but we're all creatures of habit so …"

He gestured around him, indicating that everyone pretty much sat where they always sat. Then he took off his glasses to clean them before eating.

"Yeah. So consider this your table from now on," Brian said with a wide grin.

Olivia chuckled and glanced at Elliot before turning her attention to her food. John immediately volunteered to explain the various food groups to her and the dangers of the additives, and Elliot shook his head. John and his theories. He was going to get his ass kicked one of these days by boys who weren't as patient with him as he and Brian.

He tried very hard to ignore the three blondes who shuffled to their regular table to sit with the other cheerleaders, and ignored the tightness in his stomach. He forced himself to try and eat his lunch without looking at the cheerleader table again.

John kept the conversation at the table going easily and they found out that Olivia was sixteen and one grade below the boys. They wouldn't have any classes together but agreed to meet up for lunch from now on, at least until Olivia would find some friends in her own classes to hang out with. Elliot tried to focus on their conversation but was distracted by Kathy's proximity. The blonde looked at him from time to time and he knew she would want to talk to him at some point. He tried his best to ignore her despite the feelings he still had for her. He didn't want to talk to her and he wasn't going to try again with her after what she'd done. Or so he kept telling himself.

After finishing most of her meal, Olivia looked behind her at the cheerleader table and then back at Elliot. She cocked an eyebrow and looked at his bruised right hand. When her brown eyes met his blues, Elliot nodded slightly. It didn't surprise him that the new girl was so perceptive and he liked how he could have a conversation with her without using any words. Brian was talking to Olivia about baseball but she wasn't really paying attention. When John asked her which school she had transferred from and where she lived, Olivia told them that she was from Manhattan and that her mother had transferred her from Manhattan to this school in Brooklyn so she could keep an eye on her.

"Keep an eye on you how?" Brian asked, scooting away from her a little and glancing around.

"She teaches here," Olivia clarified. "Ms Benson? English? Ring a bell?"

The three boys exchanged a glance and nodded. They knew Ms Benson alright. That woman had issues. They'd all been sent to the principal's office for one thing or another in Benson's class.

"Wow. That's your mom?" Brian asked after a few moments.

Olivia chuckled.

"Yeah. I didn't pick her you know. I'm stuck with her like the rest of you."

They all grinned and it was good to know that Olivia knew that her mom wasn't the nicest teacher they had.

"So why does she need to keep an eye on you?" John asked.

Olivia bit her lip and checked her watch. Just then, the bell rang and all the kids started standing up. The entire cafeteria was filled with the sound of chairs being moved and Olivia shrugged, grinning at the three boys standing with her.

"A story for another time."

...

Olivia Benson was relieved that she was making new friends on her first day at the new school. Not that she'd left many good friends behind in Manhattan. She had hoped that somehow, the transfer could be a fresh start for her. God knew she needed one, but she wasn't sure if she'd be able to function at all, now that her mother was even watching her in school. Fortunately, Serena had to be there earlier than her and left later, so they wouldn't be traveling together. She loved the solitude of public transport, however contradictory that sounded. Before, she had enjoyed being alone for a while after her mother had left for work and before she'd have to go to school herself. She'd walked then and for the past few weeks, she'd walked into staring, gossip and even some bullying, although the bullies usually regretted coming near her afterwards. But still, even if the other kids respected her because she could fight, she'd sat alone most days. She couldn't sit with Michael anymore because he'd been fired. Because of her.

She sighed and shook her head lightly before walking into her next class. She missed Michael. She missed him so much. She thought he was going to save her from her mother and her crappy life but it hadn't happened. She understood that he'd had no choice but to accept getting fired from his job as a teacher's assistant and leaving town. The alternative would have been much worse … But still, she missed him and it hurt.

Olivia walked into her next class and saw a girl waving at her and pointing to the seat next to her.

"This one's free, Olivia."

Olivia put on her best smile and walked over to the girl.

"Thanks. Elizabeth was it?"

The girl nodded.

"Yeah, but everyone calls me Beth. I know what it's like to be the new kid," she told Olivia. "I transferred in in the middle of the year too last year."

Their teacher stood up and told everyone to settle down.

"Make any friends?" Olivia whispered, and Beth leaned over to whisper in her ear,

"Won't take long. You'll see."

Olivia thought of the three boys she had lunch with and now Beth. Four new friends on her first day wasn't bad. It wasn't bad at all.

...

Olivia kicked off her shoes when she got home after her first day and was relieved to find their Manhattan apartment empty. She quickly grabbed a bottle of water and a few crackers and went to her room. She never knew what her mother would be like when she got home. She would probably want to know how things went in school but her mother wasn't one of those people who would bring tea and cookies and have a nice chat with her daughter. She was still livid with her for what she'd done, making her go through all that paperwork to have her transferred to Brooklyn. She was never going to hear the end of it. Olivia hadn't told her new friends yet, but she was grounded for a full month before she could even consider hanging out with them after school.

She took out her books and checked her homework. It wasn't much yet, since she'd have different classes the next day, but she went over her work of the day anyway. Luckily, her new school used the same books as the old one. After going over her notes once more and packing her bag for the next day, she grabbed a book and settled on her bed to read a little.

Reading was a great way to escape the less pleasant parts of her life and she loved getting lost in the mysteries of solving crimes in a world that seemed so much more exciting than her own. When she read a scene about a man going nuts because his girlfriend had broken up with him, she remembered the looks her new friend Elliot had sent in the direction of the cheerleader table over lunch. He was hurting, that was obvious. And he'd injured his hand because of one of those girls. She didn't know these Brooklyn cheerleaders yet, but she knew the type. Most of them would try to hook up with the best football players, whether they were nice guys or not. It was mostly about status and somehow she couldn't really see Elliot playing along with that game. She didn't know him yet but she sensed that he wouldn't just go with a girl to have some fun. He wouldn't be so sad now if he was just having meaningless flings with popular girls.

His friends were nice too. Brian seemed a little desperate at times and John was a little geeky, but both were nice boys, just like Elliot. Having real friends was important. It made all the difference in high school. They could support you and help you through the toughest times, but they could also turn on you and stab you in the back, as she had found out the hard way. She hoped that she would find a few trustworthy friends in the new school, just like Elliot had. Beth seemed nice and she had introduced her to a few other girls they shared classes with. Olivia couldn't remember all their names after just one day but she was beginning to think that maybe it was going to be alright.

She sat upright when she heard the front door slam. Serena was home. She quickly hid her book underneath her pillow and grabbed one of her school books, silently praying that her mother wouldn't come into her room this time. She closed her eyes when she heard her mother's booming voice call out to her.

"Olivia! Are you home? Show yourself!"

She took a deep breath and breathed it out slowly before answering her mother,

"Coming mom!"

…

To be continued.

A/N: as for Olivia's looks: think of her hair back when she was on Falcon Crest but no dresses or sexy tops (yet). I've posted a picture on Twitter by way of illustration.