Chapter 3

By BlossomingWords & Demetrius Hit Gravity

"To have halcyon and peace of mind are two different things. You want both, but you can only take one."

A/N: Heya guys! Thanks for all the reviews we're really pleased you like the story so far. We've tried to make this chapter a bit more romantic so we hope you like it! :)

Olivia had just turned her stove off when she heard the bing to her callbox. She smirked and looked at the time. 7:59. Leave it to Amanda to be exactly on time. She made sure the stove was all the way off before heading towards the callbox by her door.

"Come on up." Olivia said into the machine while pressing the buzzer.

Never in her life had she been so nervous. Even if she was, she never showed it. She always kept her 'badass Benson' exterior and stuck to it. This would be the first time Amanda Rollins would be stepping into her apartment, not as a detective, but as her girlfriend.

It was the good type of nervous.

A knock at her door brought her out her thoughts. She unlocked the door to her apartment and was greeted by a beautiful smiling blonde.

"Welcome to Casa de Benson." Olivia said stepping back to allow Amanda inside.

"I smell Italian." Amanda said raising her eyebrows. The dim lights of the apartment along with the moonlight from outside gave the apartment an electric feel.

"I swear you have the best the nose." Olivia chuckled.

"So I've been told." Amanda laughed back.

The laughter faded and the two women suddenly realised they had been standing in silence for a few minutes. Their eyes were locked, just how they usually were when they were together.

"So what did you make?" Rollins questioned as she walked over to the stove.

Olivia joined her and opened up a saucepan, she used a small spoon to grab some of the sauce before handing it to Amanda. The younger woman's eyes lit up.

"Wow that's amazing! It's a lot better than I thought it was going to be." She giggled.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Olivia said placing her hands on her hips in a joking way.

"It's supposed to mean that I think my girlfriend is a fantastic cook. That's what." The younger woman slid her hands around Olivia's waist before placing a small kiss on the brunette's perfectly full lips.

Girlfriend. That word's never ever going to get old. Olivia smiled as she held the blonde closer to her.

"Well ain't you sweet." Olivia tried her best to put on a Southern accent.

"Are you trying to mock me?" Amanda gasped and pretended to be offended.

"Definitely." The brunette gave Amanda a light kiss. "Now let's eat before it gets too cold."

"Oh my god." Amanda moaned, taking in another spoonful of the pasta Olivia made. "A New York girl who can cook. Not impossible, but extremely rare."

Olivia just smiled and took another spoonful herself. "I taught myself, really. Just something to pass the time."

"This is the best Italian food I have ever had. You seriously need to consider a career change." Amanda smiled back.

"I thought all Southern ladies knew how to cook?" The brunette questioned.

"Unless you want me to burn your kitchen down." Amanda scoffed lightly.

"Added to the list…" Olivia mumbled as she continued to eat her food.

"Hmm?" Amanda raised her head and eyebrows with confusion at the brunette.

"Added to the list of things I know about you."

Amanda began laughing slightly. "You're keeping a list?" She put her fork down and looked at Olivia.

"Yes."

"Okay, so what do you know about me, Detective Benson?"

Olivia stayed silent for a while, trying to find the right words. "I know your favorite color is blue, I know you can't cook, I know that cases involving children bother you the most, I know you hate to be interrupted. Just to name a few." She added with a small wink.

"Wow you're creating quite a list there Detective." Flashing an impressed look the woman continued to eat.

"Well I do try my hardest." The brunette beamed.

The two women talked their way through two bottles of wine, a dinner and two movies. Amanda had come to realise Olivia Benson wasn't such a tough cookie after all and had learnt a considerable amount about her new girlfriend during this short time. Whereas Liv had had heard the tales of life down south, the dos and don'ts and what to do when faced with an angry Texan wearing a cowboy hat.

"Then I said to her that boy couldn't fight his way out of a wet paper bag!" Amanda said in her southern drawl.

Olivia continued to laugh as tears streamed down her cheeks. "I can't believe you said that to her! She must have been mortified."

"Let's just say Kim wasn't that pleased and neither was his Mama when she heard it." The younger woman's head rested itself on Olivia's chest as they lay on her couch and watched the rain trickle down the window pane.

The New York street lights reflected a warming shade of orange into the room, piercing the darkness that had been slowly enveloping the apartment as the night drew on.

"I like this." Amanda muttered from the depths of the couch.

Olivia grabbed for her partners hand while her other hand stroked the blonde's arm "I like it too." She replied, placing a small kiss on the top of her head.

"To be honest, I haven't been this happy in a while." Olivia sighed.

"Me too. People usually get tired of my insanity to the point where they just wanna throw me off a bridge or something." Amanda replied keeping her eyes towards a window on the back wall.

"Well, they don't know what they're missing." The brunette smirked. "And trust, if someone threw you off a bridge, I'd be the first person to catch you."

"Is that so, Detective? Or should I already be calling you Sargent?" Amanda said raising her eyebrows in a mischievous manner.

"Ugh, Sargent Benson." Olivia groaned. "Sounds strange."

"Well too bad. I like it."

The two women of SVU sat in silence for a few more minutes just breathing in each other's presence.

"You know the perfect word to describe this?" Amanda said quietly.

"Hmm?" Olivia responded.

"Halcyon."

"Halcyon…" Olivia echoed wrapping her brain around the unfamiliar word.

"It means a period of time that was idyllically happy and peaceful." Amanda explained.

"I like it." Olivia smiled. It seemed as if the blonde was forever teaching her things.

"And I like you." Amanda smiled back.

"Well someone's being cheesy," Olivia sat up in her seat causing Rollins to do the same.

"It's the first time I've been able to say that for a long time." Amanda remained gazing on the showery streets of the city.

Olivia could feel Amanda's hurt from her past relationships but she knew she would be better than all that had come before. Or at least she'd try her damned hardest to be.

"What's the matter?" Benson asked as she realised that Amanda had gone quiet all of a sudden.

"It's just…actually it doesn't matter" The younger woman started.

"No what is it? We want to be honest with each other right?" Liv used her hand to slowly turn Amanda's head towards her.

"That guy from earlier he seemed to…like you. What was his name? Cass…" Amanda was stopped short by Olivia's lips.

Olivia snaked her arms around Amanda's small waist, pulling the blonde closer to her. Amanda was caught off guard. But before she knew it, she had her arms around Olivia's neck to steady herself.

The kiss heated up swiftly and Amanda let out a moan when Olivia bit her bottom lip softly. But she put on a pout when Olivia pulled away. Instead of saying anything, Liv just looked at her. The brunette's arms remained around Amanda's waist.

"What are you thinking about?" Amanda asked softly.

"How much I love you." Olivia answered with her voice barely above a whisper.

A/N: So what did you think? What's going to happen next chapter? Let us know with a review. Thanks for reading! :)