AN: Sorry it's been so long. Enjoy the next installment. This is obviously deviating from canon. Short chapter.
Once Erin let the two parental figures in her life into the apartment, she made her way for the couch in the living room. Seeing as it was the only furniture in the room, Olivia and Hank joined her, bookending the young detective. Taking in the surrounding apartment, and complete lack of personal belongings that adorned the place, he gave a low whistle, "Wow, you really made this place feel like yours," he said sarcastically, watching as Erin ducked her head.
"...isn't home," he heard her mutter under her breath, but left that statement alone for the moment. He pulled her into a hug; Hank Voight was not an affectionate man by any means, but Erin brought out a soft spot in the gruff man.
"I've missed you, kid," he said softly in his gravelly voice.
"Missed you too," Erin replied, before Hank pulled away from the hug and looked her over again. She looked like hell. Her breath reeked of alcohol and it was only mid-day, and he was worried what other habits she might have fallen into. He not-so-discreetly glanced at his daughter's arms, unobscured by her tank top, pleased to find no new track marks. At least she hadn't fallen back into that particular habit.
Erin blushed as she realized what Hank was doing, yanking her arms away and folding them across her chest. "You really don't trust me," she said accusingly to the man she saw as her father. The same man who told her to go to New York and never look back.
"I worry about you," Hank replied, "Erin you look like hell. You look like you've lost weight, never slept, and I'm not pleased at the alcohol I can smell. So forgive me for fearing the worst."
Erin turned her head away, knowing she'd cry if she saw his face; he was using that soft tone of voice that he reserved for kids that got messed up in cases, and for her. Instead, she chose to lash out in anger, "Why do you even care?!" she exclaimed, "You sent me away, told me to not look back, so I didn't. You didn't want me on your team anymore, in your life anymore!" Her voice rose steadily until she was yelling, fury overtaking her and she stood up, strode out of the room to her bedroom, and slammed the door behind her.
"Well, that went well," Hank muttered to Olivia, who had witnessed the entire interaction. She nudged him, pointing in the direction of the bedroom.
"You know, she's looking to see if you follow her, to see if you really care," Olivia explained.
"Of course I care!"
"You and I both know that, but that's the scared teenager you pulled off the streets in there," she said, "not the confident detective. Come on, if she doesn't open the door, I'll help you pick the lock," Olivia said, almost smirking.
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It took all of about two seconds for Erin to open the door once Hank knocked and said, "Erin, kiddo, can you let me in."
She swung the door open, sobbing, and Hank just pulled her into his arms once more. Olivia was right, this was the scared but tough Erin he took off the streets, the one who desperately wanted a parent's love but didn't trust adults. She looked so young without makeup, the weight she lost making her clothes hang off her, and she was the spitting image of her teenage self.
"I'm sorry," she sobbed into Hank's shoulder, "I'm so sorry please forgive me. Please don't leave me…" She said the last part quietly, but Hank still caught it.
"I'm here for you kid," he said, "Never forget that I love you."
Olivia took in the scene around her, she was right- Erin didn't have any furniture besides the couch. "We're definitely going furniture shopping," she muttered to herself, not wanting to break up the family reunion.
The trio ended up back on the couch as Erin sobbed it out once more, both adults offering comfort. It broke both their hearts to see her in such a state.
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A few days later, they had gotten Erin furniture. Hank was insistent on three meals a day, and with her father there to help ease her homesickness, she actually felt up to eating most times, her appetite returned. Hank had stayed at Erin's apartment, even without furniture, and Olivia was there every moment she could be.
Hank was endlessly grateful for Olivia's presence, he could tell the detective was starting to see Erin as a daughter, someone to mother and protect, and that made him feel better about the fact that he couldn't stay in New York forever, he had a job in Chicago to go back to.
He never wanted Erin to question his love for her again, so the two set up a time where they would call each other every week, and Hank vowed to visit as often as he could. When he stepped back on the plane to O'Hare, Erin had tears in her eyes as he tightly hugged her goodbye, promising that he'd see her soon.
"Never forget I love you," He said softly to his daughter, before pulling away from the hug to go make his flight.
"I won't forget," Erin said with a small smile, even though she still looked tearful.
Hank was glad Olivia was there to take Erin back to her apartment, knowing that the woman would care for the younger detective in his absence.
AN: I think I'm going to end the story here, but I love the mother/daughter thing Olivia and Erin had going on in the show, and I think I might play with that further in future stories, possibly set in the same 'verse.