Here is chapter three. I've decided not to throw chapters three and four together, because this chapter stretched out a bit while I was editing it. To the hardcore shippers that I mentioned last time, wait till next chapter. Sorry for the bait and switch. I could go ahead with the next chapter now but I really want to start on this other fic while I still have it good in my head.

Anyway, I think you guys will like this chapter. If you feel like I left you with too little or something please let me know. That way I can decided if the next chapter should become a priority this week (if so, then I'll post it earlier than I plan to). Enjoy.

Floodgates

Elliot left her with his contact information. Seems they were on good terms again. They liked that. Only when the telephone rang was she back on her toes. "Benson… Hi Catherine. I wanted to talk to you… Do you know what she wanted? … Okay. Thank you, Catherine." She hung up the phone.

With everybody back in the precinct Olivia used the opportunity to fill the squad in. "Everyone, Catherine called. Saturday, a girl came over—white, privileged, "demanding". She wanted something from Jamie but we don't know what. It must've been important because the girl threw a fit when Jamie didn't or couldn't give it to her."

"Jamie didn't mention anything about an argument with anybody," said Fin, intrigued.

Nick said he wondered what Jamie was hiding.

"We're gonna find out," said Olivia.

But Fin had his doubts. "If she didn't tell us then, she won't talk to us now. And she had to have known the guy. No forced entry and the secrets she's apparently keeping. Would she maybe remember you, though?"

"I'll see."

Olivia called Elliot's cell to offer to let him join her. She's very good with young victims who will see her as a motherly figure. But Jamie was very close to her dad before his untimely death. And if she remembers Benson she'll certainly remember Elliot.

Mercy Hospital

Elliot had been surprised at Olivia's offer. Even though their last visit ended with a pleasant moment, he couldn't let himself believe that she would forgive him and let him back into her life at all. Then she suddenly invites him to talk to a victim with her—he's not on the job anymore. He knew it would feel good, though, to be out there with her again. To make a strong, honest promise to a victim and feel the relief and satisfaction of delivering. To put a bad guy away. Help a girl heal. He almost thought the invitation was some covert operation to get Elliot out of retirement, but he knew better. Olivia's a cop. She's got a lot of resources at her disposal. She could've looked up his new phone number, address, employment—anything—to hunt him down and demand that he look her in the eyes and tell her that he's really leaving her. Yes, her. He's had to face it: leaving SVU was not as difficult as he thought it would be, but it was Olivia that haunted him. He told his wife he wasn't himself because he missed his job. It was true to some extent. But a blind man could see that he wanted Olivia in his life. Without Special Victims, however, how would it work anyway? She was better off without him. He had too much baggage. "She'll get along fine," he assured himself. Besides, he couldn't have been that important to her. He's worthless. So many times he's tried to shield her from the truth that he wasn't the man he made himself out to be. After Jenna the game was up.

They walked into Jamie's hospital room. Olivia first. Then Elliot. Olivia spoke calmly in a caring tone. "Hi, Jamie. My name is Olivia Benson. I'm a police officer. And this is my friend—"

"Elliot. I remember." Her voice was weak and her breathing was labored. Her eyes filled with tears and she began to frown. "When I was seven, my uncle—And my parents—But you two helped me."

Olivia leaned in and gently rested her hand on Jamie's wrapped head. Elliot went to the other side of the bed and held her hand in both his hands. "Jamie, sweetie, we want to help you again, but you have to help us. We both care deeply for you. We want to put the man who did this away." She was very unsure and contemplating. Olivia said, "Who is the girl who came to your apartment Saturday? She was mad at you. Did she have something to do with this?"

"Carla wouldn't," she said excitedly, sucking her wet, quivering lip back in.

"Well, she was angry about something."

"She wouldn't hurt me for that! She's my friend!"

"Catherine didn't get the feeling like she was very friendly toward you."

Elliot brought Jamie's hand to his mouth and gently kissed it. "Somebody beat you. And he raped you. And he's going to get away with it." Jamie swallowed hard and a tear dripped from her eye. Her dark brown eye. "He's supposed to be my friend. But I wouldn't have sex with him and our friendship hasn't been the same since."

"Who, sweetie," he asked.

"Carlisle." Then she couldn't hold back her cries anymore.

NYU the next morning

Nick and Amanda approach the same small group. Nick snatches Carlisle from where he is sitting. "Carlisle Anderson, you are under arrest for the rape of Jamie Gaines. You have the right to remain silent…"

Carla was appalled, or vindictive, actually. "Don't say anything, Carlisle," she pulled out her cell phone and started dialing, "I'm calling dad right now."

Interview room 3

Elliot walks through the door rolling up his sleeves; a bad sign for Carlisle. This always happens before a male suspect gets roughed up. "I'm prelaw. I know I don't have to say a word," said Carlisle with an evil grin. Elliot grabbed the boy's shirt collar in his fists. "Hey! You can't do that! Cops can't do that!" In his face, Elliot menacingly tells him "I'm not a cop" smirks and lets him go. "I've got half a mind to beat the crap outta ya! But instead I'm gonna ask you something." He sat down, breathing heavily through his nose. "Every time a girl doesn't sleep with you you get violent?"

"No girl has ever turned me down."

"Jamie did! So you broke her ribs and her face. You fractured her skull! I'd love to hear your side of that story."

"You'll have to wait till my lawyer gets here."

The magic words were spoken and Elliot left. He waited outside the room for the lawyer, Carlisle's father. "He's gonna pop like a bubble. I can feel it," he tells Olivia. She can feel it, too. Upon his arrival Elliot goes back in with Olivia. They both stand, seemingly towering over the boy and his father.

Mr. Anderson tells Carlisle not to say anything. "I'll tell you what questions you can answer."

Olivia starts. "First, where were you Tuesday night just before it became Wednesday morning?

Mr. Anderson nods. Carlisle says, "With Carla and Joe at his house."

"Mhm. Jamie says you came on to her once. She rejected you. That piss you off?"

"That bitch wouldn't know a good lay if it slammed into her."

Elliot interjected, "That's exactly what you did, Carlisle! You slammed into her over and over and when we get your DNA you're done for! Then you'll never be a lawyer like your father, huh?"

"You wanna be like your father, don't you," asked Olivia, cunningly, "Three domestic violence incidents within six months before your mom left him."

Mr. Anderson defends himself emotionless, "No charges were filed."

"You wanna know where she is now, Carlisle?"

"That whore has nothing to do with Carlisle. Right, son?"

"Do you remember? The fighting. Yelling. Crashing. Dead silence. She became a drug addict, Carlisle. Unemployed. Just selling her body for a fix. Your flesh and blood. The woman who birthed you!"

"How does this relate to my boy?"

Elliot switched to empathizing with the young man. "You're more likely to commit crimes of violence if violence took place in your home. As young as you were, Carlisle. Not knowing right from wrong. This man may as well had raped Jamie himself. You know what I mean? Maybe- maybe it wasn't your fault," he offered.

"Tell us what happened," Olivia offered, "The judge might take it easy on you when the court hears about you father's history of violence. Make this right, Carlisle."

Carlisle was breathing hard to fight back tears. "My mom left to be with another man. The one she was cheating with."

"That's what your dad told you."

"Sooner or later we're going to get that sample. If you wait for later you won't get a deal," Elliot urged.

Barba walked in. "And I can get you a deal."

The boy hesitated, his mouth open, wanting to form words, but he didn't know what to do. His father, a man he modeled himself after, a man he trusted and could always depend on, was telling him to keep his mouth shut. And his sister, his twin sister, he didn't want to get her in trouble and she's always known what to do. Truth be told, she was more like her father than he was. And she got a lot of glory because she was a girl—the only female his father actually loved and didn't objectify. But he knew his sister had a streak of evil in her. Perhaps, that's what made her better at being like their father. She never expressed missing their mother. Christmases where Carlisle had one thing on his list and looked at his toys with disgust in his heart and stomach, Carla filled her paper with material things that would make her so happy on Christmas morning it was as if nothing had ever gone wrong. He sometimes thought to himself, "What is wrong with her. Why doesn't she have a heart?" She took after their father. These twins were only alike on the surface.

"Okay. Fine!"

"Don't," screamed his father. Was he genuinely afraid for his son or was it about his family's image? Who will ever know?

"But it wasn't my fault! Okay? She made me do it!"

His excuse infuriated Elliot but he kept his voice low. "Jamie didn't make you do anything. She's the victim."

"Not Jamie," asked Olivia, her eyes narrowing.

"She denied both of us something that was ours." He started crying, trying to choke the tears back like he had when his mother never returned for any of his birthdays – that's all he had every wished for. He still wishes for it, too. "I wouldn't have gotten sucked into this if she had just let me bang her earlier this year!"

Olivia told him to go on.

"She has enough money already. Our funds are getting lower every time we turn around. We would've gotten 100K if she would've just stepped down."

Barba chirped in. "Your father's been dipping into your trust funds. Turns out he's not so good at investment making. Chasing extreme wealth. More is never enough."

"Only a girl can win that scholarship money in the tournament tonight."

"How much was she offering you," asked Elliot referring to Carlisle's sister, Carla, in return for him making sure Jamie missed the competition.

"50/50." He gently sucked some snot back into his nose before it could get too far. "You're running late."

Elliot immediately looked over at Olivia. "Like a bubble."

Olivia called Det. Amanda Rollins to escort Carl to holding and tell Fin to take Nick to pick up Carla. Then she introduced ADA Barba to Elliot. It was a gesture nobody recognized the importance of. "This is my former partner, Elliot Stabler. We worked together for twelve long years. Elliot, this is ADA Rafael Barba."

"Pleasure to meet you, Stabler. I've heard good things about you," said Barba, meeting Elliot's hand with his own.

"I certainly hope so," he said, smiling cordially.

"Are you coming out of retirement or…" His voice trailed off in anticipation of an answer without having to complete his sentence.

"Uh, no, actually. I'm visiting. I can't have Olivia outranking me, ya know."

The three of them laughed before they decided that meet-and-greet time was over. Barba needed to go get paperwork for the case and Carlisle's deal arranged. "You gonna follow me around all day," asked Olivia, teasingly. They walked in her office and she started getting some things together and into her purse. He looked confused because why would she be going home early when a suspect is about to be coming in?

"You're packing up pretty early, don't ya think."

"Nope," she answered, deliberating in her mind whether it was any of his business or not. Ultimately, she decided that she still trusts him no matter what. "When it's really time to go home I just wanna be able to grab it and go. Shave as much time off as I can."

"What's the rush, Sergeant?"

"Well, I have a life."

"Oh, yeah," he asked, teasingly with a chuckle, "What's his name?"

She played along into his presumptuous assumption. "Noah." She said it smiling slyly. It was actually sexy to him. It was, like everything else in their former lives, foreplay. It was a fun game to play. "Why?"

He shrugged, lifting one corner of his mouth, and turning his head to the side, away from her. "No reason." She finished throwing things into her purse and let it flop into her chair. Then she walked up to him, her presence demanding his attention. He looked into her face. She was obviously amused. "I bet I can beat him up," he said, low. He let himself smile when she laughed out loud, the first time since his return that he'd gotten a full smile out of her. She touched her hand to his chest playfully and started past him as he followed. "I bet you could," she said, "Anyway, it might take a minute for them to get here with Carla—"

"Yeah, I could use a bite." It made them both feel good to know that they still had it. That seemingly telepathic chemistry. They smiled, unbeknownst to one another, at this.

"You're buying," she reminded him.

"Just like old times."

Doris's Diner

They were sat at a table by the window. It wasn't as crowded as it should've been considering that it was nearing quitting time in Manhattan, but that just added to the wonderful alignment of the stars. Elliot ordered himself burger, a glass of water, and one shot of bourbon. Before Olivia could speak he ordered for her a chicken and vegetable soup and tea. He did all this with is chin in the air and smirking, showing off because he remembered. She found his pride to be cute and wanted to let him down easy. "Close," she said, a finger in the air to stop the waitress from writing the wrong order, "Actually, make that broccoli and cheese soup."

"No problem," said the young woman. "And no shot for the missus," she asked, looking form Olivia to Elliot. He looked at Olivia for an answer. She shook her head. The nice waitress said, "Tsk, tsk, tsk… You're not doing it right."

He had to do everything in his power not to blush. He thanked god he could control that in front of Olivia. His only saving grace was that they'd get that all the time, people thinking they were a couple, so it was never a big deal. But now, him being single, he didn't want to make a wrong move and jeopardize anything. They looked at each other for about five seconds when the waitress left, then Olivia looked out the window. He held his gaze on her. Her hair looked so soft. He's only ever gotten to feel it once when that prick Andy nearly shot her and Elliot held her in his arms, touching her face, moving her hair from it, extreme concern festering in his heart. It was about the same length now and still gravity was light on it. He wondered how he could get away with just feeling it. But it would be impossible because of the implications that would come with doing something like that. The waitress arrived with Olivia's tea and Elliot's glass of water and shot. Olivia thanked her graciously and ran her finger along the rim of the steaming tea. She looked up only when her peripheral caught Elliot throwing the shot back. Then the spirit gave him courage.

"So," he said, then paused, "You really like this Noah?"

She smiled a little. "I love him. With all my heart."

He didn't see that coming.

"So, it's serious."

"As a heart attack."

All he could think was that that shot was for nothing. The game was over.

"What about you, Elliot? How long ago did you and Kathy divorce? Seeing women yet?"

Just then the waitress appeared and sat their food in front of them, telling them to enjoy. He lifted the top bun of his burger, occupying himself, hoping that the interruption had stopped the conversation from going in the direction it was going. Wishful thinking it was.

"So?"

He sighed and thought up some words to say because he couldn't leave her waiting too long without her having to speculate. "It's been about a year and a half." He wasn't smiling anymore.

She felt the change in temperature but didn't back off. She had to make him talk. After all, that's what partners are supposed to do. "You guys made it a long time since I saw you last."

"Why wouldn't we," he asked, still inspecting his burger. That attitude, that temper—it was still there and if he isn't careful, she thought, it could be what keeps them away from each other. He's lucky she understands him and is compassionate and empathetic in spite of his lashing out.

"And you've been seeing new people," she persisted.

"Um. Not really."

She frowned a bit. She doesn't want him to be alone. She knows what that's like and Elliot's too good a man to waste away like her. "Well, what are you waiting for," she asked, almost angry.

"I don't want to see new people."

There was an emphasis on new. Suddenly she didn't feel safe hiding behind her nonexistent boyfriend. Suddenly, she wanted Elliot. She wanted all of him. She wanted his friendship, his loyalty, his company, his love. She wanted to feel his lips finally against hers and know what Kathy had taken for granted.

So, tell me what you think. I feel good about it. It's not often that I write something and don't hate it when I read it over. I feel like this dialogue is completely viable. Review, tell me what you like, what you hate. Happy reviewing!

PS: Thanks to the couple of people who participated in my poll. I'd like to see more people respond to that. I want it to be something fun and it's an open poll so you can see how others are voting, too.