Better late than never, right?

Olivia had just finished putting Noah down for the evening. It had been a long day full of last minute Christmas shopping, movie marathons and a fabulous home cooked meal. Olivia had wanted to go out, but since Hank was visiting for a few days, he had insisted they spend as much time together as a family as possible. "Olivia don't be silly," he grunted, "I can cook okay. You just relax." And so Olivia had done just that; she poured herself a glass of wine while she indulged in ABC's 12 days of Christmas.

When Hank had finished putting the final touches on the chicken, he called Olivia and Noah to the table. Olivia walked into the dining room and couldn't help herself from smiling. Not only had Hank made dinner, but he had also set the table and had decorated beautifully. A wreath hung on the back wall with pictures of the three of them woven into the thick greenery. Surrounding the wreath were white Christmas lights, illuminating the room to make it seem like it was glowing. Never in a million years did Olivia imagine she would ever be this lucky. She didn't just have a beautiful baby boy, she also had a loving, handsome man who loved her just as dearly as she loved him. She walked over to Hank and pulled him in for a soft hug.

"Thank you" she whispered into his ear.

"You're welcome" he whispered back, breaking the hug as he reached for her hand. They stood there for a moment – hand in hand as they watched Noah try to climb into his highchair. It was quite a sight to see; a battle between the will of a little man and the opposing force of gravity. "I better go help him" Olivia muttered over a laugh.

Once they were all settled in their chairs, Hank raised his glass. "I'm calling a toast, a toast to this wonderful year and for this wonderful family that I'm proud to call myself a part of. A year ago I never would have imagined that I'd be sitting here across from a beautiful lady and a little pain in the as- I mean cute kid. Here's to a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year." Olivia couldn't help but grin as he made his speech. No one had ever captivated her as much as this man did. "Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year" she proclaimed back. They both took a sip from their wine glasses, and dug into the meal that was in front of them.

Following dinner and the massive clean up, as Noah could never simply keep his food on the table, Hank, Olivia and Noah settled in on the couch in the living room. With Noah nestled in-between them, they watched Home Alone while munching on Christmas cookies. After an hour Noah was fast asleep, and so Olivia decided to take him to bed. "Goodnight my sweet boy" she whispered, placing a kiss on his soft head and laying him down into his crib. She then creeped out of his room, closing the door ever so quietly as he was a light sleeper.

When Olivia made her way back to the living room, she found Hank overly engrossed in the scene playing before him. Never had she seen someone so enthralled by Home Alone as Hank was. "Enjoying the movie?" she giggled.

"This is a class A movie," he responded, "I gotta tell you usually I'm not a fan of Christmas movies but this, this is some good shit Liv." She couldn't help but laugh as she trudged over to the couch.

"This is a classic Hank, haven't you seen it before?" she asked, playfully swatting at his arm. "Well of course I have, I've seen all of the classics" he mustered, giving her a slight wink. She found herself grinning again, something she always seemed to be doing when she was around him. She leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder as they enjoyed the rest of the movie. By the end of the movie, both of them were nearing sleep. "Let's go to bed, yeah?" Hank grumbled, reaching for Olivia's hand.

"Yeah, we do have an early call," Olivia smiled.

Together they made their way to the bedroom. Olivia walked into the bathroom and quickly changed and brushed her teeth. Upon coming back to the bedroom she saw that Hank was already in bed. She drew back the covers and nestled up against him.

"Goodnight Hank" she whispered, resting her hand on his chest.

"Goodnight Liv" he whispered back.

"I love you" he spoke softly into her hair.

"I know" she uttered back, as sleep took her away.

"And just what the fuck do you think you're doing?" Olivia screamed, following Hank as he stormed out of the apartment. "Just where do you think you're going?" she yelled.

"I have to go back to Chicago, Olivia, you knew this would sometimes happen when you agreed to the terms of this relationship" he responded, continuing towards the elevator.

"Understanding it and seeing it are different" she responded, running to catch up to him. "Me and Noah need you Hank, just for a few more hours. Please," she urged, taking his hands into hers.

"You and I both know that you really don't need to leave for a few more hours, so why are you running? Did you finally realize that you don't want this; that you don't want me?" she whispered, her eyes struggling to hold back tears.

"Olivia I can't do this right now, I'm sorry," he muttered, forcing his hand out from hers and striding towards the elevator. Grasping at straws, Olivia reached for his hand yet again and spun him around.

"You promised me that you'd be different than the rest of them; that you were my true love, my soul mate, my lover and my best friend when all else would fail. I've shared my darkest secrets with you, my biggest regrets and my worst nightmares. But this, what you're about to do, this is my biggest nightmare of all. When I started this relationship with you I felt something that I hadn't felt since Cassidy – hope. I saw a future for us, a happy, bright future but here you are crushing everything I imagined for us. I guess you lied when you said you were different than Elliot and Nick, because right now you're walking out for solely you, just like they did to me. I deserve better than this, for fucks sake, I deserve better than all of you. If you can look at me, if you can look at my eyes and tell me that you don't want this, I'll let you go without question. I deserve better than this, I deserve better than someone who would leave me alone after all that we've built together" she cried, letting go of his hand.

"Tell me you don't love me Hank, tell me" she uttered, never breaking eye contact with him.

"Olivia I…"

"You what Hank, you what?"

"Olivia I-"

"Olivia wake up, Olivia!" Hank spoke, shaking her gently. "Olivia are you okay?"

She sat up slowly in bed, confused as to where she was or what was happening. She slowly turned her head and reached for his face. Her hand cupped his cheek softly and she pulled him in for a soft kiss.

"Olivia I'm so confused" Hank whispered, pulling her in for a hug. "What happened?"

"I had a bad dream," she whispered, "but I know that it was just a dream. We're here now, and this, what we have, this is true" she replied, a single tear dripping down her face.

She caught a lucky break when she heard Noah crying in the distance. She drew back from the hug, wiping the tear off her face quickly. She smiled, as she took a moment to appreciate what she had in her life. In the past, her partners had left her to fall in her own despair, but she knew Hank would never leave her. She was his unconditionally, until they met their bitter end.

"Let's go get the kid and open presents, okay Liv?" he said, pulling her off the beds and towards the door."

"Yeah let's do that," she responded, excited for her first Christmas with Hank and Noah. This was her future, and she couldn't wait to continue living it.

All mistakes are mine; I don't own the characters!