A/N: Writing this makes me want to write more Casey x Olivia fanfics! I felt a bit awkward at first, having never written for them, but I continue to feel I understand them both more as I write. I never thought I could ship this ship harder, but here I am.

This chapter is extremely long. I just couldn't find a good place to cut it, so you're left with it in its entirety. Sexual tension is heating up, so know that the rating on this story may change soon.

Inspired by "Night," season 6, episode 20.

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Law & Order: SVU, its characters, or storylines. I make no money from this work of fiction, that is inspired by an episode, but otherwise created from my own mind. Any relation or resemblance to another story or a real life instance is purely coincidence.

Recovery

Chapter 7

kateandharvey

Fully expecting to see the crazed man on top of Casey, Olivia was relieved when all she found in the bedroom was the sleeping form of the ADA tossing and turning under the covers. She let out a breath, putting down her weapon and setting it on the dresser by the bedroom door. She moved slowly toward the redhead, making sure to not disturb her if she'd gone back to sleep.

"Casey?" She whispered, getting closer to the bed with each step.

"No…" the sleeping woman whined, "please. I'm sorry."

Once she reached the bed and could fully see the face of the counselor, Olivia knew she was only having a nightmare. Gently, she sat down on the edge of the bed. "Casey," she whispered, her hand softly going to the woman's shoulder, "It's Olivia. It's okay."

The ADA's eyes slowly fluttered open, and it took her a moment of sleepy haze before the image of the detective came into view. "Liv?"

The detective smiled softly, rubbing the shoulder her hand was on. "Yeah, sweetie. It's just me." The eyes of the redhead were slowly filling with tears that were spilling over. "Were you having a nightmare?"

Casey nodded. "Yeah," she said, "Sorry."

"Don't be sorry." Olivia smiled.

"I woke you."

"You didn't," Olivia admitted, "I wasn't asleep yet."

A sniffle came from the ADA. "It was… it was about Anderson." She shared, "He was back for me, but this time, instead of beating me, he…" the tears were spilling faster now, "he…"

Olivia moved forward, wrapping her arms around her crying friend. Careful to avoid her ribs, she scooted toward her, holding the lawyer close to her chest. "I'm so sorry, Casey." She whispered into her hair as they hugged, "I'm so sorry." The ADA continued to cry, "It's okay. He isn't here. It's okay."

They held onto each other for quite some time. As the redhead cried into her shoulder, Olivia held her tightly, whispering encouraging words into her ear. Casey's chest was pressed tightly into that of her companion, and her arms were wrapped strongly around the woman's waist. Olivia's own hands were holding Casey's upper back, rubbing it in soft circles while she attempted to comfort the injured woman. The ADA was scared, and Olivia didn't blame her. She knew well how real dreams could feel.

"Liv?" Casey broke the silence, her voice muffled against the brunette's shoulder, "Do you think he'll find out I'm alive?"

Olivia shook her head. Not wanting to lie to the woman, she squeezed her just a little bit tighter and said, "I'm not going to let anything happen to you, Casey."

The redhead's tears slowly began to dwindle, and she was calming down. When her face had seemed to dry, she pulled back, and Olivia left her right hand resting on the woman's shoulder. "I feel like I've said this 100 times today, but thank you." The counselor looked touched as she continued, "Thank you so much for everything. Especially this evening." She rested her own hand on top of the detective's.

Olivia nodded, "Of course."

"Your support means so much to me." She was no longer making eye contact with the woman in her room. "I've got so much going on right now, obviously, and there's a lot on my mind. I…uh… I didn't say this earlier, but…" She sighed, her eyes shifting back to the detective. "What I shared with you…it's not really public knowledge. And I'd like to keep it between us, for right now."

The brunette smiled. "Sure." She could feel Casey's hand on top of hers, and the fleeting thought of, touching, ran through her head. "It's your business."

"You know," the redhead said, her hand falling down onto the comforter. Suddenly realizing, "You're the first person I've told since I was with Steph. Except for my dates, that is."

Olivia's own hand fell, too, and she had an odd feeling of Casey's mention of her dates. "I feel honored."

"I should've told you sooner." The ADA nodded to herself, thinking, "I just didn't know how. I couldn't find the words, but I also didn't want it to ruin our friendship." She shrugged in the bed, taking a hold of Olivia's hand and pulling it into her lap. "I know we were pretty close, pretty fast. I didn't want you to think I had any ulterior motives." When Olivia opened her mouth to respond, Casey continued. "I know; I should've trusted you. I do trust you. It's just a difficult thing for me."

"Like I said," Olivia reiterated, "It's your business." She poked fun at herself, attempting to lighten the mood. "Besides, it's not like I'm the most open person in the world."

"I think you're pretty open with me."

"I am," Olivia nodded, and said, only partially kidding, "that's what scares me."

The counselor grew quiet, her hand still gripping onto that of the other woman's. Examining their hands, she said, quietly, "It scares me, too." Elaborating quickly, she added, "Not that you're open with me, but how open I am with you." She took a breath, meeting the detective's eyes. "I feel like everyone important in my life always disappears." She sighed, "I think that's part of what makes me feel so guilty about Anderson. He lost everything because of me." Turning to the detective, she continued, "I know what it's like to feel alone, to feel like everyone important in your life is gone. I wouldn't wish it on anyone, but I made him feel that same feeling."

Realizing this conversation would be longer than she had originally intended, Olivia, hand still clasped in Casey's, stood from the bed. "Alright," she motioned her to scoot over, "I'm coming up." Effortlessly, the redhead scooted over, the brunette using the empty room to sit more comfortably on the bed. Their positions left both women sitting up in bed, their backs to the headboards, feet pointed straight out, and hands still clasped together. Olivia waited a moment before saying, "You didn't do anything to Anderson." At the counselor's look, "I mean, not alone. There were a lot of channels, a lot of people, that believed in his guilt. You aren't the only one. I know what it's like to feel guilty about a case. It's hard. But if it's any consolation, know that you're human and mistakes are natural. Plus, we all blew this one. Not just you." She gave the hand in hers a squeeze, "As for loneliness, I know how you feel about everyone leaving." She glanced over at the redhead. "But you have so many people that care about you, Casey... so many people, and none of them are going anywhere." She shook her head, "I know we joke, but you have no idea how many calls I got from Munch while I was in your hospital room." At the redhead's slight smile, she continued. "Not only Munch, by the way, but Elliot and Fin, and the Captain, and even Huang."

"I'm not a detective." Casey whispered.

"You're not," Olivia agreed, "But you're one of us. You belong to our group. You're in the sex crimes clan." She gently knocked the shoulder of her companion, "That's a big thing and it includes a lot of people that care about you."

"Even you?" She asked, and Olivia was extremely startled and confused by the question.

"Of course." She said, as if it was obvious.

It was, effectively, the middle of the night, and there was something about the atmosphere that made sharing seem so effortless. "It's stupid, but..." Casey began, staring straight ahead at her toes, "Every time we go to dinner or grab a drink, I always feel so comfortable with you. But then, the second we start arguing, I worry you'll drop me."

"Why?" The older woman asked incredulously, looking at the profile of the porcelain skinned redhead.

She shrugged. "I wish I knew." She scoffed, "I told you it was stupid. I don't know why I think you would do that, and I really don't even know why it worries me so much." She shrugged, slowly turning her head to look into the brown eyes of her companion. "I guess... I just feel so connected to you, you know?"

Olivia nodded, "I do."

"And I know we're friends, and I know now that you feel connected to me, too, but it just feels like it's different for me." She sighed, "I know you say I'm a part of the sex crimes unit, and most of the time I feel that way. But other times, I feel like the only person I really have in my corner is you." She was almost rambling, and she knew everything she was saying was so vulnerable and so transparent but she couldn't stop. It had been weighing on her for so long, and now, in this bed together, in the middle of the night, it was coming out. "I find myself so happy to spend time with you, and then throughout the day I'll see something that reminds me of you and smile. Your presence, your friendship, just calms me down so much and helps me feel like maybe everything I do is worth it." She took a breath, fidgeting with the comforter with her free hand, "And yeah, maybe you're one of the closest people to me, and it makes sense that you would have such an effect on me, and I do what I do for me, too, don't get me wrong." She sighed and in a whisper said, "But sometimes I'm just so scared, because it feels like I just care about you so much that it's overwhelming." Before Olivia could even hear what she was saying, the ADA grimaced, shutting her eyes tight. "God, I can't believe I'm even telling you this."

"Hey," Olivia squeezed their intertwined hands, and Casey opened her eyes. "It's okay. I'm glad you are." She paused for a moment, "I feel the same way." Casey gave her a look of, you're-just-saying-that and Olivia added, "I mean it." She shrugged, "It would be fair to say that you're my closest friend, too. After a long day with a particularly difficult case, all I want to do is drink a glass of wine and eat crappy take-out with you." The lawyer laughed lightly as the brunette continued, "And I love it when you send me pictures of things that remind you of me. It makes me feel…" she paused, looking for the right thing to say, "…like I belong somewhere."

Taking in the view of the woman's features, Casey had the fleeting thought of how beautiful she was. She smiled softly at the brunette, and they both tightened the grips on their intertwined hands. "You always belong with me."

"As long as I'm alive, Casey, you'll have somewhere to belong, too." Olivia, attempting to lighten the mood, joked, "Even when I'm too old to know who you are."

"You're already old," the witty ADA threw.

Laughing slightly, and rolling her eyes, the detective responded, "You should've thought about that before you friended me, I suppose."

"I'm gonna have to wipe your ass." Casey laughed heartily at her own joke, Olivia soon joining in, and she felt so light and free after all of these conversations with her friend, that she couldn't stop laughing. Soon both women found themselves laughing hysterically, growing red in the face, and wiping tears from their eyes.

Suddenly, the fun was broken by Casey's gasp for air, her hand flying to her side. "Casey?" Olivia immediately stopped laughing, her face growing serious, but cheeks still tear-stained. The ADA whimpered, and her face contorted in pain. "Case, what's going on?" Wordlessly, the redhead gestured to her side. Thinking quickly, the detective said, "I'm going to have a look, ok? Can you shift down?"

With a nod, the pained woman scooted so that she was no longer sitting against the headboard but laying in the bed. Olivia gently uncovered her, and lifted her shirt. Seeing the bandages there, she told her friend, "I'm going to take the bandage off." Carefully, the detective raised the bandage from the porcelain skin, and was relieved when all she found was bruising and stitches still in tact. "It's okay," she whispered, and Casey's eyes snapped to hers.

As the older woman replaced the bandage, the ADA asked, "I'm not dying?"

She shook her head with a smile, "You're not dying. Just a little too much fun." She made sure the bandage was sufficiently stuck to the skin, and gently reached to pull the shirt of the other woman back down. She couldn't deny the electrical shock that she felt as her fingers graced the skin of the counselor's stomach, and she immediately grew goosebumps at the feeling. Casey's stomach contracted at the feel of the fingers gliding over her, and she reached out to grasp the arm of the detective.

Feeling the bumps there, she whispered, "Oh. That happens to you, too?" Not knowing what to say, and feeling like time was moving in slow motion, the brunette left the shirt where it was. She was blinded by the sudden desire to feel what Casey's skin felt like under her palm, and she let herself give into it. She flattened her hand against the stomach of her friend, and once again felt the muscles contract. Her hand stayed still, simply laying against the skin, and feeling the heat underneath it.

"Liv," the redhead whispered, feeling the electrically charged air. She moved her own hand over that of her friend, and the detective sighed at the contact. Slowly, Casey moved their hands together over her skin, her eyes fluttering shut at the contact. They moved around her navel, across her swollen ribs, and up until their fingertips brushed her under breast.

This is what Olivia was describing. The electrically charged air. It was in this very moment of haze that it dawned on Olivia that this feeling was not being caused by the bond between two friends. This was sexual tension, nothing more and nothing less, and was, undeniably, erotic. At this realization, the detective found herself flushed, and her eyes could not seem to move away from the redhead's lips.

She moved her other hand, the one not under that of the ADA's, up to the milky neck of her companion. At this contact, Casey let out a breath, and opened her eyes. "Is this okay?" The detective asked, and the other woman nodded.

"More than okay." She whispered, "C'mere, I need to tell you something." Olivia removed her hand from the stomach of the woman and from the woman's neck, shifting so that her face was closer to that of the redhead's. She was now leaning over her, and she took a moment to examine the face of one of the most important people in her life.

Casey's eyes were no longer a bright green, but now straight emerald. Her eyelids were heavy, and her cheeks were flushed a light pink. If Olivia were to describe it, she would say that Casey Novak looked positively aroused. Should the brunette admit it to herself, she was, too.

Still keeping quiet, Casey's hand made its way to cup the detective's cheek. "I meant what I said earlier," she continued to whisper, "I am afraid of how much I care about you." Olivia tried her best to clear her head of the view of the redhead's lips and how much she suddenly found herself wanting to feel them. "But sometimes… I'm afraid…" Casey sighed, pulling the brunette down, their faces now so close together that Olivia could feel the hot air from the breath of her friend. "…I'm afraid that our bond isn't that of good friends." The detective waited. "I'm afraid that it's more." Sensing there was more, the detective continued to stay quiet. "I have never had ulterior motives," she said, "you have to believe me on that."

"I do." Olivia whispered.

"But God, if I don't wish you were interested in women."

"I'm not," the brunette admitted, moving closer to the redhead, "and I don't know what I'm doing, here," she was so close that their lips were almost touching, "but my current thoughts, about you, are not friendly."

In an instant, Casey closed the distance between them, her hand coming up to wrap itself in the hair of the brunette's head as their lips sat against each other, just barely touching and not moving. Sensing that Olivia was worried, she whispered, nearly into the other woman's mouth, "it's okay."

At this, the detective pushed forward, her lips still closed, but pressing more firmly against those of the redhead's. They stayed like this for a moment before Olivia pulled back. "I don't know how to kiss a woman," she admitted.

Disappointment was evident in the ADA's face. "It's okay." She said, again. She pulled her hand from the hair of her friend, and retreated. "It's okay."

Feeling quickly like she was being misunderstood, Olivia grasped her arm, "No, Casey, I…" she paused, "I want to. I just…" She sighed, her thoughts flying through her head and overwhelming her. She was ruining this friendship. At this point, it would barely be salvageable. She wasn't interested in women, so she didn't know what the hell she was doing. Again, she needed to remind herself that they were stuck together in this home, because a madman was after her friend.

"You're panicking." Casey said.

Sheepishly, Olivia nodded. "Yeah."

"It's okay." She repeated yet again. Even though every fiber of her being screamed that it was, in fact, a big deal, she said, "It's not a big deal." The detective opened her mouth to respond, but Casey pushed forward, "We should probably get some sleep, anyway."

Remembering that she only came in here because she thought she heard her friend in trouble, Olivia felt doused with cold water. Was Casey angry with her? She was so confused. She didn't know what was going on, and the one person that she would be open to talking about it with seemed to be annoyed that she'd ever entered the room to begin with. She was being dismissed.

"I'll see you in the morning," Casey said, "Thank you for coming to check on me." She smiled, and closed her eyes. While the relationship now seemed to be on shaky ground, Olivia knew that if she didn't act in this moment, if she just left this room, she would be left with only the crumbled remains of the friendship.

She had always been comfortable taking risks with Casey, and now she needed to take the biggest one of all. The detective reached forward, placing her hand on the cheek of the ADA. "Case," she whispered, and when the green eyes of her companion fluttered open and found her own, she leaned forward, pressing their lips together.