Enjoy the chapter! Two in a row, baby!
Olivia decided she wouldn't mind waking up this way every day. Well perhaps not quite this way—she and Alex managed to each fall asleep on the couch, and the pressure of the armrest against her neck was starting to kill. But all she had to do was move her gaze down and it was suddenly the most comfortable position she'd ever been in. Her hands in silky blonde hair and the warmth of Alex's face against her chest as the woman exhaled each breath evenly upon her skin. She stroked the soft hair, not wanting to wake Alex up, per se, but craving her attention.
"Hmm…" Alex began to hum as she stirred. She looked up at Olivia and smiled. Alex hadn't woken up in anyone's arms since…well she couldn't really remember. And she couldn't imagine that any of those arms were as strong and protective as Olivia's.
"It's nearly nine," Olivia said softly.
"Oh," Alex responded. "You have to go, don't you?"
"Soon." Olivia continued her ministrations through Alex's hair. "But you make it hard to want to leave."
Alex grinned. "Because you're always so eager to get up?"
"You'd be surprised, I'm quite a morning person," Olivia smirked, dipping her head to place a kiss on Alex's forehead.
"That's interesting, detective. So am I," Alex said while lifting her body to meet Olivia's lips with her own, smiling into the kiss and feeling like a lovesick teenager. She pulled away blushing. "That's why I have energy to do things like that."
"I do like things like that. Luckily for you, I'm such a morning person that I even have energy to make you breakfast." Olivia gently removed herself from underneath Alex and began to walk towards the kitchen. She paused and turned around. "Or maybe that's just because it's you."
Alex laughed and slowly got up to follow Olivia. When she got to the kitchen, she found Olivia pulling out bowls and a box of corn flakes.
"Cereal?"
"In my defense, I have the energy to make you a real breakfast. I just don't have the food."
Alex rolled her eyes and wrapped her arms around Olivia's waist, completely aware of the detective's breath hitching in her throat as she did so. She smirked and buried her head in Olivia's neck. "I like this."
"Corn flakes?"
"No, us. Like this," Alex explained. "I was really scared about it—incredibly terrified would actually cover it better—but standing here with you now, it seems too good to be scary."
"I like it too. Love it, in fact."
Alex released her hold on Olivia's waist and walked over to grab the milk from the fridge and a couple of spoons. "I'll take these over to the table."
Olivia followed Alex with the filled bowls and watched as Alex topped them off with the milk and push each of them towards one of the chairs at Olivia's tiny dining room table. "Votre petit-déjeuner, mademoiselle."
"You and your French again," Olivia smirked. "By the way, I finally figured out what you said that one time."
"What one time?"
"'Thank you, my detective?' Oh, except you left me in the dark about the true meaning of Angelina's last name."
Alex blushed again. "Jolie?"
"As in pretty, or beautiful. I must admit, you were very forward. I just didn't know it."
"Well, I didn't realize you were going to run off to translate it," Alex said sticking her tongue out in a very un-Alex-like fashion. "I was hoping you'd just miss the word."
"Well, did you mean it?" Olivia grinned.
"And still do," Alex smiled. "What's on your agenda for today?"
"We're gonna meet the new ADA today," Olivia replied rolling her eyes. "Can't wait to see them vomit the first time they see some of the work of the sickos we catch."
"Don't be so condescending Olivia, you have to give the rookie a chance. If we never gave them any chances, we'd never have any new people," Alex said, rubbing Olivia's arm.
"I was just getting used to Hardwicke too," Olivia continued. "I wonder how the hell they get off sending someone just off the bar exam to SVU. They should go to white collar, or even narcotics or something. We're serious business." The brunette sighed, and gladly took a hold of the hand moving up and down her arm. "And what do you plan to do with your day?"
"I have some final travel plans to make, you know, exchanging some old clothes for new ones, confirming the flight, catching up with Coughlin, and…Olivia?" Alex frowned as she saw Olivia drop her head and pull her hand away from Alex's.
"I really wish you wouldn't go back there. I…I know I can't make you do anything, but I really wish you'd stay."
"Olivia, I can't stay here. The women there need me more than anyone else here does."
"That's not true, Alex…"
"Of course it's true! The victims here have plenty of amazing cops like you, plenty of prosecutors and advocates for them. In the Congo they have almost no one."
"It's not about the victims, Alex, it's about me!" Olivia huffed out a breath, thinking of how incredibly selfish she must sound. "I need you and I need for you to stay alive."
"Oh, Liv, I would love nothing more than to remain with you. I'd gladly stay in this apartment for the rest of my life! But we have to be realistic, don't we? There's nothing left for me here."
"Am I not enough, Alex?"
Alex looked at Olivia and reached for her hand again. "Of course you're more than enough, Liv, but I need to have a job. And I'm quite certain there's no place for me here anymore."
Olivia nodded. "You sound pretty sure of yourself. Excuse me." She got up and put her bowl in the sink and immediately retreated to the bedroom to get dressed.
Alex sighed. Now she was positive Olivia was going to shut herself off again. A few minutes later, Olivia left, saying only a mumbled goodbye to Alex and leaving a spare key on the table.
The blonde ran her fingers over the key, retaining a glimmer of hope that Olivia was not planning to give her the cold shoulder this time if she was willing to leave her access to her apartment to come and go as she pleased. That was a huge sacrifice to Olivia, someone who treasured her privacy and space, and Alex knew it. It was a tremendous step, and it suddenly dawned on Alex that Olivia was really trying to make it work. It touched her greatly and she knew that if the detective cared enough about her to do something like this, Alex needed to do something to show she felt the same way.
And then Alex had an idea.
Grinning, she leapt up from her seat at the table and ran to grab her keys. Time was of the essence.
"Cabot? What on earth…"
"Hello, Jack," Alex said stretching out her arm. McCoy took it dazedly and shook it firmly. Alex smiled. "May I sit?"
"Yes, of course. How can I help you, Alexandra?"
Alex took a deep breath. "I was speaking with the detectives over in Special Victims and they told me about the departure of Gillian Hardwicke."
"Alex…"
"They also told me that a new attorney had been appointed to the unit."
"Both statements are true. So I reiterate: how can I help you, Alexandra?" McCoy said tapping his fingers on his desk.
"I want that job," Alex stated matter-of-factly.
"You just stated that you were aware of the fact that a replacement ADA had already been assigned. That, combined with the fact that you are not actively employed with the DA's office makes me wonder what you think gives you the right to ask for the position."
"Come on Jack, I had eight years of service for the DA's office, including five with the unit in question. That experience means familiarity with the cases and the squad as well as emotional preparedness." Honestly, Alex wasn't sure she still had that emotional preparedness but Jack didn't have to know that.
"That doesn't give you the power to take a job away from an attorney that was already promised said job."
"But they just passed the damned bar!"
"Yes, but not for the first time," a voice came from behind Alex and the blonde whipped her body around to find the source.
"Oh, my, God. Really? Really?"
"Hi Alex," Casey Novak said sheepishly.
"Hi Casey," Alex responded, pulling herself together. "I'm sorry I wasted your time, Jack." Alex stood to leave but Casey put her hand up.
"Uh uh," she said, and Alex's feet rooted to the floor. "Jack, it's okay, I'll find somewhere else."
"No!" Alex shouted. "I'm not taking a job away from a lawyer who is equally qualified for the position."
Casey looked towards Alex with a stunned glare. "Well I'm not taking a job away from a lawyer who only left it once because she was shot and once because she went to save the world."
Alex stepped closer to Casey. "I'm not standing in the way of the return of the ADA that served the longest term in SVU history."
Casey moved even further towards Alex. "Well I'm not standing in the way of the return of the ADA that had the highest conviction rate in SVU history!"
They were pretty much in each other's faces now.
"Novak!" Alex hissed.
"Cabot…" Casey returned coolly.
"Ahem," McCoy cleared his throat and both women turned to look at the district attorney. "If you two will stop cat fighting for a minute, I think I may have a way for both of you to get what you want?"
"What, you mean you won't give the job to either of us?" Casey asked indignantly.
"No, Ms. Novak. What I meant was that I would give it to both of you." Both pairs of eyebrows shot up. "While SVU boasts the most complex cases that take the most time to both prepare and argue, it is also the only squad in Manhattan that employs only one assistant district attorney at a time. Now I implore either one of you to explain to me the sense in that." Both women remained silent. "Now you two are easily the two most successful ADAs in the history of the SVU. So what I'm proposing is that you work together as co-council. That is, if you can cooperate without scratching out each other's throats."
Casey looked at Alex, and Alex back at Casey. The two had met for the first time when Alex returned for the Connors trial, and since then, they'd sort of stepped on eggshells every time they saw each other. Neither attorney had any problems with the other, with the exception of some jealousy that neither one would ever admit. However, Alex hadn't seemed quite confident in Casey, and Casey had seemed a little put off by Alex.
Alex was the first one to speak. "I suppose, as Casey was the person to whom the job was offered, that she should have the privilege to decide this for herself." She and McCoy turned their heads towards Casey.
Casey shuffled her feet on the floor and played with her hands. She bit her lip and turned to face the blonde.
"Alex, I know you really want this…"