A/N: Basically, this is kinda just a random stand alone without too much of a plot. EO has established a relationship after he left and came back, El is divorced, Liv is single.
This is for, Sarah501B, who wanted something a tad more…happy and fluffy, lol. It's not my usual forte but I hope you enjoy it!
What I'm trying to say
In my own simple way
Is I want you to be my last first kiss
I want you to be my last first kiss
My heart, yes it's finally found
My heart, yes it's finally found
Someone I can't live without
(Last First Kiss – Ron Pope)
She feels like an idiot with eight different dresses laid out and her hands smoothing out the latest, a slinky black number with a sweetheart neckline and a back that the sales girl swore would show off the fact that she, "obviously worked out."
Blowing out a frustrated breath and shrugs; grabs the bronzer and dusts her cheeks before lining her eyes and coating her lips with a light gloss.
It shouldn't be this hard, she surmises. It's not a fucking typical first date, she's known him for over a decade, he's her partner, ex technically but he'll always be her partner, her best friend…but things have changed between them now, and as she sprays her neck and dabs her wrists with perfume, she knows that after tonight, things will never be the same.
OoO
His palms are sweating like a fucking teenager before prom and he wants to pace the small circle of his living room until all the nervous energy is dissipated but he knows he could run a marathon and the jitters would still be there creeping up his spine.
He hasn't been on a first real date since high school. Even when he and his wife were separated, there were drinks and coffees with other women but there were no romantic dinners at some overpriced restaurant in the city.
But she's not, another woman. She's his…his partner, his best friend, his Olivia, and he knows in his heart that this is the one that matters, she's the only one who's ever mattered.
OoO
When he opens the door to the restaurant she fights back the snarky response, the typical banter that runs so easily between them and instead just arches her eyebrow and he smirks in response, knowing that the words aren't necessary. They run on the same rhythm, their frequencies flowing from the same energy.
It's dimly lit, white tablecloths and more silverware than necessary, and she bites her lip, her heart clenching knowing that he went through so much effort…for her.
Their reservation is called and he pulls out her chair and she feels giddy, heat prickling her skin, goosebumps rising on flesh. He slides across from her and she can't believe that after fourteen years she's still breathless at how handsome he is.
The shirt he wears is blue and his cobalt eyes seem to glow in the candlelight, piercing into her. Biting her lip she grabs her menu and forces her eyes downward. This is too weird…too much…and she feels like she's on the roller coaster at Coney Island and about to lose it.
OoO
He's never been much of an art buff but he swears that her, in that dress sitting across from him in is all the art he needs in life because she looks like she was taken from the finest colors in an artist's palette, the most delicate brushstrokes used to create her. The golden glows of her skin, the way the light dances off the angles of her face and those eyes that suck him in, swirls of espresso and cappuccino that you can get lost in and never want to find your way out of.
Picking up his menu, he watches the slight tremble of his hands and chastises himself to, get it fucking together. He's an ex-marine, a cop and yet she has him like a schoolboy, terrified and exhilarated.
OoO
They don't speak, whispered drink orders, pretending to pour over the menu when she puts it down and sighs, "This is weird" she says and it's like someone stuck a pin in the balloon as she watches him slightly deflate.
"I know"
Sighing, she looks at the door and then back at him, "Why are we making this so hard?" she wonders aloud, "I mean, come on Stabler, you've already seen me in my underwear" she teases trying to break the tension.
It's the memory that makes his cheek flush deep crimson and he chuckles, sputtering slightly, "Much different circumstances" he manages to get out with that cheeky smirk that does her in.
Clasping her hands, she looks at him, their gazes matched, "This isn't us…why are we trying to force it?" she asks.
His mouth flails and he looks hurt and she immediately shakes her head, "I didn't mean"
"If you don't want to do this" he says defensively and his arms are crossed over his chest.
She knows his tells, when he's lying, when he's covering, they know each other too well to try to hide anything anymore and she bites her lip, shaking her head, "That's not what I meant" she starts, "I just meant, this, this whole first date let's get to know each other crap. It's not us, we're hot dogs in the sedan, or Chinese in the one six…we're easy and…"
OoO
"Come on, let's get out of here"
He says it without thinking, getting up from his seat and throwing enough down for the drinks that haven't been touched, quirking his brow. Her eyebrows furrow and he holds out his hand, "Trust me Benson?" he asks with a grin.
"With my life" she says and puts her hand in his.
By the time they get into the car, the air of nervousness has dissipated, and she's looking at him with an arched brow, her lips pursed, "Where you taking me?" she asks.
"Home"
There's a part of her that's hurt when he says it, wondering if she ruined anything in the restaurant because this has all she's wanted for so long…she just didn't expect it to be so hard because they're effortless.
When they get to her building, he looks at her, "Go upstairs, blink the lights, get comfortable, I'll be back in twenty minutes"
"What?"
"You said you trusted me" he says leaning over her to open her door from the inside, their bodies pressed way too close, the physical response of her body almost overwhelming, "Now blink the lights for me"
"Asshole"
OoO
He makes it back in fifteen, throws his jacket in the back, unhooks the buttons on his dress shirt and rolls up the sleeves, his belt joining the jacket as he grabs the bags and heads up to her apartment. He knocks twice and she opens up, hair tossed in a ponytail, face free of the makeup, workout pants on and she's the most fucking beautiful thing he's ever laid eyes on.
"I was worried you weren't coming back" she teases, even though there's an undertone of real fear. Because they both know this is it…and not working out, it's not an option.
Holding up the bags he smirks, "Greasy Chinese…beer, and I'll tell you what…since this is our first date and all, you can have run of the remote" he tells her and watches her cheeks flush with color and her eyes sparkle.
"You're a classy guy Stabler"
Shrugging he bumps her with his shoulder, "Only the best for you"
OoO
They pass a box of Chinese food back and forth, trading and bantering over the horror flick they found channel surfing, "No, no, you never run up the stairs" they both exclaim at the same time, more upset at the stupidity of the victims than with the actual fright of the movie.
This feels like us
It's an overwhelming feeling, like a peace settled in her bones and the fear that's been coursing through her ever since they began this is starting to disappear in the way his hand rests on her thigh after they eat, or how he takes a swig from her bottle when his is empty.
Being together has always been the most natural thing in the world and when she leans into him and his arm wraps around her, it's like they've been doing this for years but it's nothing compared to the moment she looks up at him, he smiles and leans in to kiss her.
Their lips graze softly, and then it's suckling slow, his hand is cupping her face and her fingers are sinking into the hard muscle in his arms and they move together so in sync that it feels like it's the thousandth time they've kissed with all the electricity of a first kiss igniting their bones.
OoO
When the kiss breaks, he rests his head against hers, "Wow" he whispers.
Tugging her lip between her teeth she smiles, "Yeah, wow"
His fingers come to her chin and he knows it's too soon to say those words, even if he already knows it, "We should do this again sometime" he whispers playfully.
The little lyrical chuckle falls from her lips, "Yeah we should"
"How about forever?" they both think, neither letting it fall from their lips.
Because they were always meant to be each other's last first kiss.