Elliot shook his head and walked out of the jail. He contemplated turning left and walking to Olivia's apartment but turned right instead and began the trek back to his apartment alone.

The next day Elliot arrived at the precinct at his usual time, coffee in one hand and tea in the other. He set the tea on Olivia's still vacant desk and began to rifle through some of the papers that had accumulated over the last few days.

Munch and Fin rolled in around 9 and settled into their routine of badgering each other and with Fin ragging on Munch for his latest conspiracy theory. Cragen came out of his office an hour later and announced that they had a new case.

"Rape/murder in Chelsea. Munch, Fin, you take this one. Stabler, my office. Now."

Elliot shrugged his shoulders and nodded his good lucks at Munch and Fin. Olivia still had not come in.

He closed the door behind him and sat on the arm of one of the chairs facing Cragen's desk.

"You're working solo for now until your new partner is assigned." Cragen said, pouring Elliot a drink from the bottle of scotch in his desk that usually sat untouched.

"Excuse me?" Elliot replied. "What do you mean 'new partner?'"

"Olivia has transferred departments. She filed her paperwork yesterday. There's a backlog at IAB so your new partner won't be assigned for a few weeks. Are you capable of working by yourself, Stabler?" Cragen asked, serious as a heart attack.

"Transferred departments?! Where the hell did she go?" Elliot jumped up from the armrest, trembling, and ready to run.

"Computer crimes. Said she couldn't take these cases anymore. I can't keep he here if this is not where she wants to be. There was nothing I could do. My hands are tied."

Elliot could not believe what he was hearing. He was light headed and felt like his foundation had been ripped out from underneath him. "Fuck." He whispered, more to himself than out loud.

"Don't do anything stupid, Stabler."

Elliot waved his captain off and stormed out of the bull pen. He grabbed Oliva's now cold tea off her desk and made a bee-line for the elevator.

Olivia sat at her computer in her new cubical, unconsciously testing out her new chair by swinging her hips from side to side. This is a good change. She thought to herself as she stretched her arms out in front of her, easing some of the tension in her shoulder blades. No perps to chase, no kidnapped kids, no raped women, no pedophiles to interrogate. Yes, this would be a welcome transition for her tired soul.

She set to work on the files that her new captain had assigned her this morning when she reported in. She was doing the bitch work of the department from now since she was starting at square one but Olivia had convinced herself that she didn't mind. She was completely lost in concentration when the chair next to her spun around and someone sat down next to her. Jerking her head up, she found herself eye to eye with Elliot Stabler.

"Here's your tea." Elliot said flatly, shoving the cup in front of her.

"...Elliot." Olivia shook her head, confused and annoyed. "What are you doing here?" She whispered.

"I'm reporting for duty to my new job assignment. I have to start from the beginning but the captain says I'll be up to speed in no time." Elliot turned to the computer monitor next to Olivia and switched it on.

"You did not switch to computer crimes. I know you better than that."

"You know, I thought knew you too. But the Olivia I know would have had the decency to tell me that she was leaving. She would have had the courage to look me in the eye and tell me that she couldn't take it anymore. Guess you never know, do you?"

"I'm sorry, Elliot. But I told you I needed space and you need to leave now before my captain comes back and gives me shit on my first day."

"Liv, you can't be happy here. You live for the victims, the ones that need your help, that no one else can or will help. If you need space, let me be the one to leave SVU. I'll go. I'll transfer to homicide. You belong in SVU."

"That's ridiculous."

"Olivia, what happened? Please. I thought we were okay. Better than okay! I...I love you, Olivia. The moment I told you that was the happiest moment of my life. I don't want to lose you."

Olivia softened momentarily but maintained her steely demeanor. Before she could answer, a booming voice came through the lab.

"Benson, training starting now! Room 213!"

Olivia stood, straightened her shirt and walked away, leaving Elliot alone again without a glance backwards.

She stopped at the bathroom to wipe away the silent tears that were streaming down her face before making her way to the squad training. She felt like a porcelain doll that had been smashed into tiny pieces and put back together with flimsy tape. She was barely keeping herself together but he was safer if she was not around. That she knew with her whole heart and soul. It would only be a matter of time before he realized that too.

Elliot called Cragen on his way out of Computer Crimes and told him he was taken the rest of the day off to spend with his family. He felt like he had been hit by a truck. How was he supposed to do his job without her, let alone function as a human being?

When he reached his family's home in Queens, Lizzie and Dickie were outside playing soccer in the front yard with Maureen, holding Eli and Kathleen looking on. If Kathy was home, she wasn't outside and for that, Elliot was very relieved.

Lizzie and Dickie ran up to their dad as he got out of the car. He enveloped them in a giant bear hug and then set them both back down with a thud. The twins bounced back over to their make shift soccer field again and picked up right where they had left off. Elliot walked over to his two eldest girls and scooped Eli up in his arms. The paternity test was due back in a couple days and it worried him to no end that Eli might not be his so for now, he spent every second he could holding him in his arms.

"What's up dad? Why are you home so early?" Maureen asked.

"Thought I would spend some quality time with you all. Where's your mother?"

"She went out." Kathleen chimed in. "Said the twins energy was driving her crazy and she needed to get away. It's like she doesn't even want to be a mother anymore. She just sits around all day and watches tv or stares into space."

"Kathleen, your mother has been through a lot recently. Don't forget that." Elliot gave his daughter a warm smile.

"So have we and so have twins but you don't see us moping! Olivia wouldn't do this! She taught us to always make the best of even the most terrible situations. You know that quote she has hanging in her bedroom? What is it Mo? Remember? It was our favorite when we were there..."

"Even on the worst days, there's the possibility for joy." Maureen said quietly, watching the twins kick the ball back and forth.

"You know, girls. I think Olivia would benefit from a little reminder of that right now. She's having a hard time with all this." Elliot said, turning slightly and lowering his voice so the twins were out of earshot.

"Why's that?" Kathleen asked.

"She quit SVU, Katie. Moved to Computer Crimes."

"WHAT?!" Both girls cried, startling Eli.

"Yeah. Said she couldn't deal with the cases anymore but I think it was to give herself some time away from me. She's blaming herself for what happened to Lizzie and Dickie."

"That's nuts!" Said Maureen, completely taken aback.

"I know that, you know that, but Olivia feels things deeply. It may take her a while to shake herself out of this one." Elliot said sadly. "Why don't you two give her a call tonight. See how she's doing." He was so worried about her and if she was going to shut him out he was most certainly going to find another way to check up on her.

Elliot had put the last of the supper dishes in the dishwasher when Kathleen came in the kitchen, already dressed in her pajamas.

"What's up, Katie Bug?" Elliot asked, smiling proudly at his second child.

"She's not answering." Kathleen said, furrowing her brow slightly and holding out her cell phone. "She has never not picked up one of my calls."

"Olivia? Maybe she's still at work, babe." He said, turning to face the sink.

"Dad, she picked up once while she was chasing a perp to tell me she would call me back. She always answers."

Elliot chuckled slightly, remembering Olivia outrunning him despite the phone call. Kathleen's worried expression brought him back to reality. "I'm so sorry, kiddo. She's going through a lot right now. Maybe she just needs some space from all of us." Elliot wrapped Kathleen up in his arms and kissed the top of her head. "She'll come around, babe. Don't worry."

But Kathleen was worried. This was not like Olivia. She kissed her dad on the cheek and went upstairs to talk to Maureen. They had to fix this.