Chapter Four: Connected

Work ended earlier than usual. The sun was just about to set and Elliot and Gabriel were packing up their things for the evening.

"Plans tonight, Elliot?" Gabriel asked.

"Nah. You?" Elliot replied.

"I've got a small date planned." Gabriel told him, almost boastingly.

Elliot stared at him, nodded, and then turned off his desk light, "Have fun."

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The door closed behind Nikki and her babysitter as they stepped out for the evening. Olivia locked the door to Gabriel's apartment and sat on the couch alone. She wished Gabriel was there with her but at the same time, she understood the consequences of working as a detective. Late nights were frequent despite what day they landed on. This one just had to be on Olivia's birthday. Olivia fell back against the couch and was surrounded in silence. She considered asking Elliot to hang out but he was probably with Kathleen at the hospital. Standing up from the couch, Olivia grabbed her jacket and headed out into the night. She entered a bar that was far too familiar from her long and stressful days working with SVU. The bartender spotted her entering the bar and instantly greeted her.

"Olivia! It's been awhile! I see Elliot and the gang come in but you're never with them!" Jake, the bartender, exclaimed.

Olivia smiled, "It's a long story, Jake." She took a seat and the bar and folded her hands together.

"The usual?" The bartender asked, already pulling out her glass.

"I'm glad you remember." Olivia replied with a small smile, trying to hide her dismay of being alone for the night. A few minutes later, he brought her an ice-cold beer.

About two drinks later, the door opened. Olivia paid no attention to who walked in. She only stared down at the closely finished drink in thought.

"Hey, guess who's here." Jake told the new customer and nodded towards Olivia.

"Is this how she spends her birthdays?" Elliot asked himself out loud and quickly made his way to her.

"Hey birthday girl." Elliot said as he occupied the vacant seat next to her.

Olivia looked at him in slight shock, "Hey." She said, slightly embarrassed and Elliot knew that; he only smiled. Jake came up to her and set another tall glass of beer in front of her.

"How's Kathleen?" She asked.

Elliot sighed deeply, "She'll be okay. She doesn't want to go to school for the next few days and she's asked for you a few times. Do you know something I don't?"

Olivia felt terrible for lying to Elliot, but she shook her head, "No." She said quietly and sipped her drink. "How's the rest of the family?" She asked.

"The kids are good. As for Kathy…" He thought about it, "I don't think it's going to work out." He finished, "I filed for a divorce last night. She's not happy about it so I decided to run a few errands before going home."

"I'm very sorry. If there's anything I can do…"

Elliot looked at her, desperately wanting her to be the first person he sees in the morning and the last person he sees before he goes to sleep. He wanted to tell her what it's like without her being next to him everyday. How miserable he is because he doesn't have the only person who can handle his flaws and it there to comfort him when he's upset in times like this one. She was the only one who understood him and the one he was most connected with. He missed her touch, her laugh, and her smile.

"No," He exhaled, "It's okay, thanks." There was a glass of beer placed in front of him. Elliot never ordered one but Jake obviously knew he needed it. There was a silence between them but Elliot broke it by speaking up.

"Why are you here alone, Liv? We all could of gone out and done this; you didn't have to celebrate alone. Munch and Fin are just a phone call away."

"After seeing everything that happened today, I felt like I needed a drink. I know I've only been gone for a few months but it feels like I'm new to this all over again. Especially seeing Kathleen the way she was, and how close she is to me, it made me realize…"

"You miss your old job, don't you?

Olivia shrugged, not wanting to admit it but not wanting to lie either. Elliot looked into his half empty glass, choosing his next words carefully.

"You know you can always come back."

She didn't say anything. She wanted to but knew she couldn't. Somebody already had her job but her connection with her ex-partner would be a distraction. Elliot sighed heavily.

"You're divorcing Katy because of what we did, aren't you?" Olivia questioned, refraining from meeting his gaze even though she knew he was looking directly at him. Eventually, she looked at him. Those blue eyes were something that she couldn't just ignore.

"Partly." Elliot said, Olivia sighed audibly. Elliot continued, "Mostly because my job is too conflicting with my marriage and we've been refusing to believe that for so long. I guess now we're just going to accept that."

The distress on Olivia's face made him change the subject.

"I was on my way home from work when I stopped by your apartment but you weren't there. I was going to give you your birthday present since I was in the neighborhood. Luckily, I ran into you here."

Elliot reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a long rectangular box. He slid it over to her and smiled. Olivia looked at him and took the box. She removed the top and gently grasped the gold bracelet in between her index finger and thumb. She looked up at Elliot in amazement.

"Happy birthday." He said. Elliot took the bracelet and clasped it around her wrist; the diamonds embedded in the gold hoops sparkled in the dim luminescence from the bar.

"Thanks, El." Olivia finally responded, keeping her true feelings to herself. There was more than just a simple thank you coming from her heart.

"Sorry you two, I gotta close up." Jake intervened.

The two paid for their drinks, said their goodbyes to the bartender and walked outside only to stop underneath the sign that stuck out of the building to shelter themselves from the rain. Elliot already knew Olivia walked to the bar like she always did.

"Come on, I'll take you home." Elliot said and the two hurried to his black car. They got in and Elliot drove to Olivia's apartment.

When Elliot pulled up to the front of Olivia's apartment building, he and Olivia ran to the front without an umbrella. When they got to the front, Olivia pulled out her keys and isolated the right one in her hand. The longer she took, the more soaked they got. The bracelet Elliot had given her never ceased to stand out the entire night.

"Thanks for making my birthday a lot better than what it would've been. You have a tendency to do that." Olivia said with a small smile, obviously not bothered by getting drenched by the rain.

"I'm just glad you didn't end up spending it by yourself." Elliot replied.

"Good night." She whispered. Olivia smiled once more at him again and turned to unlock the door. Before she could turn the knob, Elliot grasped her forearm, turned her around and pressed his lips against hers. Olivia didn't resist or slap him, instead she closed her eyes and immersed herself in his kiss surrounded by the rainfall.

Elliot finally broke the kiss and looked in her eyes for a reaction. Olivia was looking directly into his. Her mouth was still open slightly, her lips still tingling from the forgotten feeling of the sparks his touch emitted. Olivia closed her mouth and licked her lips, still speechless.

Finally, she opened her mouth.