Chapter 9- The Perfect Proposal
*Elliot's POV*
We went to Alex's apartment to begin planning the perfect proposal. We threw around ideas for about an hour but couldn't come to an agreement on a plan that would sweep Olivia off her feet. Finally Casey made an intriguing suggestion. "How about a scavenger hunt? You can send her on a hunt, making clues along the way. You can use your favorite places or places that mean something in your relationship." Alex and I both agreed that this would be a fun, romantic, and unique way to ask for her hand so we decided to set a date. Two weeks from today, Saturday, I would make Olivia Benson my wife-to-be.
*Olivia's POV*
I got a call from Casey, asking if I wanted to have a girls' night out with her and Alex in a couple of weeks. It had been awhile since the three of us had gotten together, so I happily accepted the invitation. Two weeks later, I left Noah with Elliot and they picked me up. We went to a café on Fifth Avenue, the same café that Elliot and I always went to when we were hungry after a late night of working a case. Alex excused herself for a few minutes to take a trip to the ladies room and on her way back, her phone fell out of her hand. Bending down to pick it up, a puzzled look came over her face and she asked me, "Olivia, what is under your seat?"
I reached under my chair to find an envelope taped to it, my name written on the front. Suspiciously, I opened the envelope to find a note that read, "Hello, beautiful. Hope you are having a wonderful time. I have a surprise for you girls so follow these clues to get to the place where you will find it. Enjoy your girls' night out. I love you. –El." I was a bit puzzled and showed the letter to Alex and Casey. Intrigued, they both agreed to embark on this scavenger hunt with me, we loved surprises and, having three daughters, Elliot knew that girls really do just wanna have fun. "What's the first clue?" Alex asked me.
At the bottom of the page it read:
CLUE #1: We may not have known it then, but this place is where we had our first date. I cherish the time and conversation I spent with you at this café. I look forward to many more real dates to come. You will find the next clue at the place we first met.
I turned to the girls and said "The next clue is in the squad room, the place he and I first met."
We went to the precinct and on my desk was the second envelope. It read:
CLUE #2: "The first time I saw your beautiful face, I immediately fell in love with you. This place holds so many memories that we have shared together. Good or bad, they have formed who we are, together and as individuals. I fell in love with you for the first time in this very room and I continue to fall in love with you every single day. You will find the next clue in the place where I kissed you for the very first time."
"The next clue is at my apartment, the place he first kissed me. I'm kind of confused why all of these clues are milestones in our relationship but whatever, he has something fun planned for the three of us, I'm sure."
We went to the apartment to find the final clue taped to the door. It read:
CLUE #3: "Here lies the place I first captured your lips. Here lies the place where you captured my heart. The next place you go, you will find the surprise. It's in the heart of Central Park on a bridge that is surrounded by pine trees and white lights. When you find the bridge, you will find the surprise."
"The surprise is apparently in Central Park on a bridge." "What does that bridge have to do with you two?" Alex questioned. "Nothing," I said. "At least nothing I know of."
We went to the park and walked to the pond. About a hundred yards ahead, I saw a bridge and pine trees, all adorned with white lights. We walked to the bridge and there was nothing there. I turned around to face Alex and Casey and they were gone. I stood there, extremely confused. Suddenly, Noah was on the bridge walking toward me. Now I was super freaked out. What was my son doing here, alone in Central Park? And why was he dressed in a tuxedo? Who the hell bought him a tuxedo? Elliot appeared from behind a pine tree and began walking toward me, his crystal blue eyes sparkling and his smile beaming. He, too, was dressed in a tuxedo. He stopped about three feet in front of me and before I could open my mouth to speak, he took my hands in his and began talking.
"Liv. Tonight, I took you to three places that formed who we are together. Three places where we met, conversed, and loved. You are my world, Olivia. You amaze me every day. You are strong and gorgeous and you're the love of my life. I have loved you for forever. You keep me going. You make me strong. You inspire me every day to be a better person than I was the day before. As for Noah, though I haven't known him very long, he has captured my heart. He did it the same way you did, sixteen years ago, by radiating life, love, fearlessness, and light in everything he does. There's no doubt that he is your son. I see you in him every day. I love him so much. So that being said, I'd like to make you my wife and Noah my son. You two are my world. I love you so much, Liv, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. So…," He said. "Noah, buddy come here." Noah waddled over as Elliot got down on one knee. He picked Noah up, letting him sit on the other knee and said, "Show mommy what's in your pocket." Noah obeyed and used his tiny hands to grab a small, black, velvet box from his coat pocket. He handed it to Elliot and Elliot opened it, revealing a beautiful diamond encrusted ring with a glistening square diamond set in the middle. My eyes filled with tears as he held the box up to me and asked, "Olivia Marie Benson, will you marry me?" His eyes, too, were filled with as he asked the question and tears spilled down my face and I nodded my head violently, responded "yes", and held out my hand as he slipped the ring on my finger. He removed Noah from his lap, stood up, and picked me up as I jumped into his arms, wrapping my legs around his waist and my arms around his neck. Our lips met in an innocent, modest, slow, and sweet kiss. He placed me on the rail of the bridge as our kiss continued. We broke apart and he looked deep into my eyes, whispering, "I love you so much." "I love you too," I replied, "and I can't wait to become your wife." I leaned in to kiss him again and noticed Alex and Casey appear from behind a tree out of the corner of my eye. When we broke, they ran toward us, hugging and congratulating us on our engagement.
"You two knew all along, didn't you?" I said.
They looked at each other, laughed, looked at Elliot, laughed, and then looked at me, laughing and saying "yes." We all had a laugh as Noah walked back up to me, asking me to pick him up. I complied with his request, scooping him up into my arms and he marveled at the shiny new piece of jewelry on my finger. Elliot kissed me once again, quickly, and after the congratulations were over, we all went home.