O: I already hate this case.
E: Sounded like it would be a tough one.
O: It's the kind that keeps getting worse. I really hate it.
E: Can I bring you and Noah dinner tonight? I know it probably won't help much.
O: I'd love that, and it would help. I don't know how late I'll be.
E: What if I pick up Noah from Amanda's in a couple hours and we can order in or something?
O: He would love that. What if I'm pretty late? I really have no idea how long I'll be here.
E: I'll take care of it Liv, just do what you need to do and text me when you finish up.
O: Thank you.
E: I love you
O: I know.
E: No I love you back?
O: I'm at work
E: I know. I'm kidding. Well not about the loving you part. That's true.
O: Fine. I love you.
E: Attagirl.
O: Shut up.
E: You love it.
O: I do… but I need to work. You're distracting.. to say the least.
E: Oh am I?
O: Oh God. I'm silencing my phone.
-000-
Elliot was still smiling at his phone as he unlocked the door to his apartment. To his surprise the apartment was pretty quiet. He half expected to be accosted by both his mother and daughter the second he walked in. He passed by his mothers room to see the door cracked. He peered into her room. She was sound asleep, snoring softly.
He shut the door quietly, and tried to sneak into his room before Kathleen noticed him. He wasn't fast enough. "So, where have you been?" Kathleen's voice called from the living room couch.
His shoulders dropped as he sighed. He wandered towards the living room. He stopped at the entry and folded his arms and leaned into the wall. "Do I have a curfew?" He asked humorously.
Kathleen dropped the book she was reading onto the ottoman, and sat up a little straighter. "Nah," her eyes teased, "but I am curious if there is some sort of legal curfew for seniors."
"Ha ha." He said sarcastically. "You think your so funny."
She laughed, "Oh I know I am." She patted the couch cushion next to her and he dropped beside her.
"So," she began, "you weren't at work…" Kathleen was as subtle as a stage five hurricane.
He laid his head back, focusing on the ceiling. He'd make her work for it. "Who says I wasn't working?" He turned his face towards hers, eyes dancing.
Kathleen groaned exaggeratedly. "Oh come on Dad." She huffed. "Your sergeant stopped by and then Grandma said Liv came by yesterday."
"Well Grandma doesn't always know what day it is…" he teased.
"Oh shut up. She has been lucid." Kathleen's eyes softened. "You were with Olivia?" She asked, and Elliot felt touched by the hope in her voice.
Out of all his kids Kathleen had the best relationship with Olivia, and seemed to be the most sensitive to his feelings regarding Liv. Less is more . He reminded himself. He'd love to confide in his daughter, but he knew neither he nor Liv were ready for the entire Stabler family to know about the sudden progress in their relationship.
"We had a pretty bad argument yesterday. She was looking for me so we could sort some stuff out." He shrugged. "Yesterday was madness so we couldn't talk until it was late."
Kathleen looked extremely skeptical, "Okay, so you're telling me you went over late last night," she gave him a solid side eye, "to talk, and you didn't show back up here until," she peeked at her watch, "11am?"
"Pretty much, yeah." He pushed his palms against his knees and stood. "Now," he headed for his room, "I need to shower." His eyes met Kathleen's, "and then I really do need to get to work."
He felt her eyes in his back, and knew that there was no way this conversation was over.
-000-
Kathleen rolled her eyes once her dad shut the door to his room. He was such a horrible liar. How the hell was he such a good cop? She shook her head, and picked her book back up. The denials were getting a little absurd. Of course he was at Olivia's all night. And sure, he probably needed to talk to her, but Kathleen was positive there had to be more than talking going on. Seriously. There was no way their relationship was still platonic or whatever the hell it has always been.
The two of them were so damn obvious. She was standing a foot from Olivia when he admitted straight to Olivia's face that he loved her. Sure, he was a hot mess then, but it wasn't exactly a novel statement. They all knew he loved Olivia. That's why she invited her to that whole failed intervention thing anyway. She figured if anyone could get through to him, it would have been her.
Even setting aside the events of that night, one could obviously infer there was more there. There had always been more there. Sometimes she wished her dad could cut the crap and just be straight with everyone. With her. With himself. With their family. He wasn't doing anyone any favors by dancing around this, and worrying about how everyone would feel.
She'd talked to most of her siblings, and all of them had varying relationships with Olivia, but all knew that a relationship between Liv and her dad was an inevitable event. If he could ever get his shit together.
"Hey Katie, was that your dad?" Her Grandma must have woken up, she stood in the same place her dad did minutes ago.
"Yeah. He's showering," she gave her grandmother a knowing look, "he says he needs to go to work."
Bernie shuffled to the couch and took a seat next to Kathleen. "Real work this time or back to Olivia's?"
Kathleen laughed lightly, "I think real work this time, but he was definitely at Liv's last night."
"Ohh," Bernie replied with a grin. "Got any more gossip for me Katie bug?"
Kathleen dropped her book back to the ottoman. "Not really. He admitted he was there to resolve an argument."
"I'd say they more than resolved that argument if he is just barely getting home." Bernie's eyes danced.
"Grandma!" Kathleen scolded while laughing. "He didn't tell me anything else, and didn't offer any explanation."
"Well of course not dear," her grandma gave her another smirking smile, "he's not going to divulge the salacious details with his daughter."
Kathleen couldn't stop laughing, "Well I'm pretty sure he isn't going to share more with his mother either."
Bernie patted Kathleen's knee, "Maybe not, but I have had much more practice at getting the truth out of that boy."
Kathleen continued to laugh. She folded her arms against her chest and leaned into the couch, and waited for her dad to get out of the shower. She couldn't wait for the next installment of the Bernie Stabler show.
-000-
Olivia dropped her keys onto her desk. She just finished interviewing their victim, and making arrangements with the neighboring precinct over the arson charges. She had a little lull of time before she wanted to sit in on interviews with the boys on the victim's debate team. From the sound of things, they tormented her ruthlessly.
Olivia shook her head, and made a mental note to kindly remind Noah to never turn into an idiot teenage boy. She reminded herself that he was such a good kid, but in her line of work she saw many parents blind to their children's indiscretions.
A knock on the door broke her free from her thoughts. Fin pushed in, holding a take out box. "I made you come in…figured I owed ya some lunch."
She reached out for the box, "Thanks. I won't turn down some food incentive."
"I feel bad for pullin' ya away from Noah for the day." He settled into the couch next to her desk.
"Don't worry about that. He's still at Amanda's." She opened the box and pulled the plastic utensils from their packaging.
"Pizza night?" Fin asked as he leaned back into the couch cushions.
"Yeah. She's keeping him for most of the day until E…" she caught herself. Not soon enough.
A smirking smile crossed Fin's face. She hated when he got all amused and smug. "Until Elliot can pick 'em up?"
She gave him an exaggerated side eye. "Yes…" she said slowly.
His voice still had that amused lilt to it, "I'm guessin' you caught up to 'em yesterday."
Her brain wasn't able to come up with any believable alternate explanations and it didn't matter anyway. Fin could call her bullshit from a mile away. She sighed. She could give him some info.
"Not until last night. He had his hands full with that fiasco with the diplomat most of the day."
Fin laced his fingers together causally and leaned forward. "How'd all that go?"
Her mind wandered to the events of the previous night, everything they discussed and everything else. She tried to focus on her food, but damn it, she could feel her cheeks flushing at the memories and she knew Fin could easily infer what that meant.
He chuckled and leaned back again, clearly getting an answer from her not so subtle behavior. "Good, I take it." He grinned.
She pushed away her smile, but it was difficult to accomplish when he kept smiling at her like an idiot. She rubbed her palm across her lips, as if she could wipe away her now broadening grin. "It went fine." She didn't bother covering the smile anymore.
"More than fine," he commented.
Her eyes darted up and she gave him her best glare, but it was given with a smile so it probably wasn't too threatening. "We talked about yesterday." She glanced up, and Fin appeared to be listening intently. "We talked about," she shifted a little in her seat. Even now she hated using his name, "um. Lewis." Fin's eyes widened in surprised, and she hurriedly added, "Not like everything. Just basics." Her eyes found Fin's, her longest most faithful friend. "He didn't know, and I…" she suddenly felt a little emotional, "I couldn't talk about it all. I told him he should look up the files." She bit her lip, "Do you think he should? I mean, I want him to know about it, but I can't talk about everything. I can't."
Fin shifted towards the edge of the couch and reached his hand out for her and tugged her to the couch next to him. "If you're askin' me how he'll react…" he let out a sigh, "I don't know. He's Stabler , but that man has changed a lot. He's not going to like it." He shook his head.
"I warned him it would be hard." She looked down at her hands, "I'm worried he will take it all too hard."
Fin nodded. "Yeah. I dunno." Fin reached out and squeezed Olivia's hand, "It was hard all of us, ya know," his brown eyes held hers, "we felt responsible in some way." She tried to say something to the contrary but he waved her off, "I know it wasn't anyone's fault but the monster's himself, but all of us wished we had done something different. The thing about Stabler is he's gonna hate himself for not being there and not stoppin' it." He took her hands in his. "But Liv, whatever guilt or pain any of us feel isn't your responsibility. You suffered more than any of us could comprehend, and you should be the focus. Not him, not me, not Lewis. You. Tell him what you need and expect nothing less. Don't let him wallow in whatever self-pity he'll for sure find himself in, because that experience wasn't ever about him."
She swallowed deeply. "I just don't want him to bolt. I worry…" the thought just tapered off.
"Then don't let him. This is going to tear him up pretty bad. Expect that, but that idiot loves you, and I'm pretty damn sure he'd walk through hell for you. Just tell him what ya need and he'll do it." He gave her a wry smile, "and if he doesn't, that'll finally give me an excuse to bust his ass."
She laughed and he wiped away a stray tear. "Thanks Fin," she whispered.
He reached around her shoulders, "I got ya baby girl. Always have and always will."