From Hell To Heaven

A/N This chapter is a bit long but is more about Elliot and how he's feeling, seeing as he rarely tells anyone himself I guess I'll do it for him lol Look out for Fin and Elliot being secretive, is there something they're holding back? ^_^ Second, there is a really nice scene I like coming up, not major EO but implied ;) I don't know if you noticed by I like to post at approx. 3 day intervals, and today I nearly forgot to post. Not because I lost interest but because I'm halfway through furiously typing up a chapter. *Sneekpeek* there's a little E/O arguement coming up, nothing major but it comes after another major incident for Liv. Enjoy ;) x

Chapter 6- Leaving Your Love, Her Silhouette

Elliot sat in the cafeteria, he wasn't sure for how long, staring at the coffee cup in his hand. He hadn't bought two. He knew it was just as excuse so she she could be left alone. He decided he would give her as long as she needed; until she called for him or at least until he couldn't bare to be away from her any longer. And he could already feel the yearning in his chest.

"Hey," a voice said, snapping Elliot from his thoughts. "You drinking that?" Fin asked unabashed as he settled in to a seat opposite Elliot.

"Nah, go ahead." he replied, sliding it across the table as Fin thanked him.

"How's Olivia?" Fin asked, sipping the coffee, pulling a slight face as the strong taste.

"She's awake now." Elliot replied, skipping over the amount of relief that small change brought.

"Nah, wait a second, hold up. You damn near beat a CSU when they snapped her picture in the park, rode alongside in the ambulance, walked with her on the gurney, sat with her all night, and now she's awake...you're sitting down here?" he asked in doubtful confusion.

"She needed time alone."

Fin merely nodded, not pressing the obviously private matter. "Baby girl's not made of stone, no matter how tough she comes across."

Elliot could only nod as he silently betrayed her trust; wondering if he should ask Fin.

"What did the doctors say?" Fin said in ironic timing.

"She was hit in the back of the head with something, caused a slight concussion. They said her mind went in to shock and sort of...sealed off, that's why she was unconscious for so long; to protect itself. Which isn't surprising after what happened before. And I don't think she got much sleep the night before either." he said, subtly slipping Sealview in to the conversation.

"Yeah, I guess." Fin said cautiously, knowing Sealview was a dangerous subject when it involved Elliot. He didn't know and Olivia didn't want him to know. And even if she did, Fin would never betray her privacy by telling Elliot; it wasn't his place.

"Fin," Elliot began.

"No, Elliot." Fin interrupted. "She'll tell you when she's ready. It's her secret to share, not mine."

"I'm not asking what she put in her statements, I just want...need, to know what you saw. When you got to her, what did you see?" Elliot felt dread in his chest but it was drowned out by the nagging feeling in his mind of the need to know.

"Elliot," Fin began in arguement.

"Fin, please, it's driving me crazy. I can see her hurting but I can't even begin to know where to start to help her. It's not knowing that's the worst; my mind keeps going over old cases we had, wondering what that bastard did to her. Do you know what it's like, lying awake at night, thinking of the most horrific things some sick bastard could have done to the woman you..." he stopped himself before he admitted it to Fin.

Fin saw the pain in Elliot's eyes, devoid of moisture as Elliot forbade them from pooling.

"Elliot," Fin began in a surprisingly soft tone. "When I ran in to that basement...I didn't know what to expect. But when I got in there..." he hesitated, seeing the memory again, feeling his heart squeeze as much as it had then. "I saw fear in her eyes like I had never seen before."

Elliot was almost frozen for a second as he didn't want to meet Fin's eyes, but not wanting to look around the cafeteria, at people with only trivial problems.

"She would shoot me just for telling you that, so you don't know anything, right?"

"Right." Elliot agreed; he wouldn't say anything to Olivia.

"Detective Stabler," a voice said behind him. He turned and saw a nurse, Olivia's nurse. "She's asking for you."

Elliot didn't move immediately. "Thank you." he said and the nurse sidled away with a fond smile. Fin drank down the last of the almost cold coffee.

"Hey, man, you told Olivia yet?" Fin asked.

"No," elliot admitted with a sigh.

"She needs to know, Elliot. She'll find out sooner or later, better coming from you than her spotting the photos."

"I will tell her, Fin. I don't want to rush her yet." Fin nodded in agreement. "Anyway, I better get her the coffee she wanted or else." Elliot joked as he stood up.

"Meet you back at the presinct?" Fin asked, pushing his chair back.

"Yeah."

"Thanks for the coffee." Fin said, heading in the opposite direction to Elliot.

xXx

"Elliot!" Olivia smiled in relief, as Elliot stepped in to her hospital room, then proceeded to walk towards her bed. "You were gone so long; I thought you'd gone home."

"I wouldn't leave you, Liv." he said casually as he sat in the chair next to her bed, noticing her fond smile. He held out the coffee in his hand.

"You're a lifesaver." she praised, subtly refusing to acknowledge the real reason she'd asked for some time alone; he decided to play along if that's what she wanted. "Anyway, my nurse said I got the all clear; I can leave. Would you mind giving me a ride home? I can tell you all about the speech the nurse gave me about no heavy machinery or alcohol." she joked as she sipped her coffee.

"Actually, I know you've had a rough night, but you need to come back to the presinct with me first."

"To give my statement?" she asked doubtfully. "All I I remember is everything going black." she lied, hastily skipping over her near panic attack.

"Well then it'll be a short statement." Olivia merely smiled and decided not to argue. "But it's not just that, there's...other stuff, we need to talk to you about." He saw her eyes tighten in suspicion, but he cut her off before she could demand an explanation. "And Munch is dying to see you; he's piled up with paperwork back at the Presinct. Fin popped in while you were...asleep."

"Elliot, I can't go to the presinct in a hospital gown. And before you say, no, I'm not just putting your coat over it." she joked, wondering when she would get all her clothes back from evidence. If she even wanted them back now, after the possibility of them being tainted by whoever touched them. He merely chuckled quietly as he pulled something from under his seat. A black rucksack. He placed it beside her and began to explain as she opened it and looked in.

"I made a pitstop at my apartment; just some clothes, most of them are Kathleen's. The er...underwear is Kathleen's too. I hope you don't mind."

"No, thanks, El." she said, surprised by his thoughtlessness, but also slightly peeved about losing all her clothes. She blushed as she realised that besides the hospital gown, she was completely naked. Barely an arms reach from Elliot. Then she wondered in embarressment, who had undressed her and changed her.

"I'll give you some privacy." Elliot said, getting up.

"No, wait," Olivia suddenly called before she could think, causing him to hesitate. "I...I don't want to be alone." She looked away hesitantly, embarressed as a flush rose in her cheeks.

He considered for a second. He would stay but he would respect her privacy. "Ok."

She met his gaze with a warm smile as though she feared he would reject her. He remained stood up and leaned forward to pull the blue curtain around her bed. Then, he headed to the door, turning the small lock in to place. He returned to his seat, the curtain guarding her from his view, as intended. He heard her pulling the clothing from the rucksack. The light from the window cast her silhouette against the thin curtain. It was morning now, and he dreaded to think how long she'd spent last night lying on that dirty floor. He remembered how cold she had been when he had held her, calling for a bus.

He tried not to look as the shadow slipped the gown from her shoulders and allowing it to fall to the floor. He tried to look away from every perfect curve of her body. He looked away for a long moment, and when he looked back she was guiding delicate straps on to her shoulders. He tried to control the pounding in his chest and the heat rising down his body. He saw her slip his own t-shirt over her head and shoulders, allowing it to fall freely down her body, coming to rest below her waist. As he felt the pressure build in his groin, he knew he was letting his mind wander; his imagination was getting the better of him.

He looked away from the curtain and pushed the explosively erotic images from his mind. After another minute or so, he heard the curtain slide back. He looked up and saw her eyes watching him. 'He's still here,' she thought fondly, almost expecting him to disappear, though she knew she would never get her wish for everything that happened to be a bad dream; she was not about to wake up. He looked her up and down, and then back up. The black Converse hightops borrowed from Kathleen fitted, and so did the dark jeans that followed her every curve. He smiled when he saw his own NYPD t-shirt, and grey sweatshirt jacket over the top. It was too big, but she seemed to prefer it that way, like the size made it more comfortable.

"Thank you." she said again, stood in front of him.

"Liv, you don't need to thank me." he said, standing up opposite her. "I'm just glad you're ok."

She smiled softly for a moment before falling against his chest and placing her arms around his waist. She let out a sigh.

"The last few months seem like a nightmare." she admitted. "A nightmare I can't wake up from and..." she stopped herself, knowing she would end up in tears if she wasn't careful. "And we had better get going before Cragen busts both our asses." she joked, pulling away from his warm, broad chest.

"Yeah." Elliot muttered in agreement. She grabbed the empty rucksack and slung it over her shoulder. They headed to the door, as Elliot swallowed his disappointment. He thought she was ready, ready to tell him what happened, what happened in that basement. He took a deep breath. If she still needed time then that was fine. He would wait, he would always be there for her, he didn't want to rush her. As Fin said, "It's her secret to share..."

A/N Aw I love it when Elliot's being nice, but then again I love it when he gets overprotective and shouty lol Olivia's slowly starting to open up to the idea of telling Elliot, but I doubt a hospital in Kathleen's clothes are the best place for that. :) I try to spellcheck as best as I can but I prefer to use Wordpad and it doesn't have that tool so I have to do it manually. Anyway, review if you can, all comments welcome and will get a shout out next chapter xx