CHAPTER 17

" Elliot. Olivia. I am ready for you." Kim said as she opened the door to the waiting room. Kim was unsure of what to do. Elliot and Olivia got up and entered the office, silently. They had not spoken to each other since they entered the office over two hours ago.

"Please sit. After talking with both of you, I have come to the realization that I am a little unsure of where to go from here. I feel that both of you are mentally stable to return to work, which I will send my report later today. I do however feel that there is something else. Something either you two have to say to each other, or something one of you is just clearly hiding from me. So what I would like to do is ask you both some questions. I would like you to answer them as honestly and completely as you can. Can you both do that?" Kim believed that they truly needed to admit to themselves and each other what exactly is going on in their minds. Elliot and Olivia both nodded in agreement. "Elliot, I would like you to tell Olivia exactly what you were feeling when she was kidnapped."

"Liv, when I found out you were missing, I felt lost, lonely. I was heartbroken." Elliot was surprised at how incredibly easy it was to talk to Olivia with Kim in the room. "I was filled with rage towards the person who had you."

"Elliot. I want you to tell Olivia everything. Every feeling you had for her during this entire ordeal. I want you to open up and tell her what was going on in your mind while she was missing, and while you both were being held. I want you to be honest with her, tell her everything, even if you are afraid it might hurt her."

"I was terrified of what might be happening to you." Elliot lowers his head, "and I was angry you left. I was angry that you allowed this to happen. You have always told me you could take care of yourself yet now I had to save you. I didn't want to be in that position. I was scared. I was scared of losing you. I was scared of finding you and you not being the person I knew. I had every possible scenario playing out in my head and I was mad at you for making me go through this." Elliot hung his head as Olivia looked at him with tears in her eyes. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Did he blame her for what happened? All this time, was he angry at her? Why didn't he say something to her?

"Olivia, I want you to do the same. Tell Elliot your feelings. Tell him things that were going through your head. Just let yourself speak, and don't censor yourself." Kim knew what she was doing. She knew she needed to get them to tell each other everything. By doing this, she knew that their relationship would be stronger, that they would understand where the other person was coming from. It would be this that would help them to move forward, together.

"I wondered how long it would take you to find me. After the first few days, I gave up. I didn't think you would find me. I knew you were looking for me yet I lost faith in you. It hurt that you weren't trying harder. I was scared I would never see you again and that I would never be able to tell you I love you. When Harris forced you to have sex with me, I hated the fact that it wasn't you. I know now it was you but at that moment, I didn't. I was angry you were leaving me to figure this out for myself." Olivia couldn't believe the words that were coming out of her mouth. They were true but only in those moments, not now.

"Olivia, please tell us what you felt that moment you heard Elliot's voice."

"I was more excited than words can express. I started to cry. I knew I was safe. I felt like my prince had come. I wanted to hug him, to hold him, and never let go. I wanted to stay as close to him as possible." Olivia's tone started to lighten, thinking of that moment.

"Were you angry at him or hurt by him?" Kim needed them to understand that in their moments of despair, they blamed each other, but only as a survival mechanism.

"No. I was not angry at him at all. I was so happy to hear his voice and know he was there that it didn't matter what had happened. All that mattered is that he was with me."

Now it was Elliot's turn. "Elliot, when you walked into that room and saw Olivia, what were your reactions, your feelings?"

"To see her, alive, was the greatest feeling in the world. Then my entire body filled with hate towards Harris. I wanted to kill him. Her body was covered in blood and it was my fault. If I would have gotten there sooner, I could have stopped him. I was confused. I was totally in love with the sight of her and filled with hatred towards him I didn't know what to do. DO I kill him or go to her?"

"Were you angry at her?"

"Absolutely not! We work with victim's everyday and she did exactly what we tell them. She survived. That's all that matters. She did everything right. She did what she needed to do. There was no anger, just relief, happiness, and love." He looked up for the first time since this session started. He took her hand and smiled at her. She looked into his eyes and saw those beautiful, reassuring blue eyes she loved so much.

"Are either of you angry or hurt at each other now?" They both shook their heads no, never breaking their gaze. "I really think this was a successful session. I truly believe you both love each other and need each other as partners, in work and in life. I am going to send over my report, releasing you both. As soon as you feel ready to return, you can. You will need to talk with Captain Cragen but in my opinion, you are mentally stable to return to work. I think you have an unbreakable bond and are 'soulmates' in every sense of the word."

All three stood up and shook hands, thanking each other. They said their good-byes and Kim told them to return anytime they felt they needed too, for any reason.

Elliot and Olivia walked out of the office and to their car hand in hand, very happy with what the morning had brought them.