A few weeks later things were pretty much back to normal. Kate had recovered from what was in fact a nasty stomach virus. By the time Elliot had arrived at the ER, they had hooked the little girl to IVs for fluids and knowing Maureen was exhausted he had encouraged her to sleep in the chair next to her daughter's bed while he stayed up to make sure his granddaughter was okay. He'd called Olivia to fill her in on the diagnosis, and that was the last time they had spoken. It seemed neither of them were willing to take the first step in solving their problems.
Now, Olivia was busy preparing for Noah's first birthday party, which was no small feat in and of itself. After Kate had been released from the hospital, Maureen had taken a few days off to stay home with her, and eventually had succumb to the stomach flu herself. Olivia had been forced to take the baby to work with her, which led to less productivity for everyone. Then Noah had caught the virus, and she'd stayed home with him hoping he wouldn't end up as sick as little Kate had, relieved when his temperature stayed below 100 and he recovered in a few short days. However, having him at the station had obviously spread the germs around as both Fin and Rollins had ended up out sick for two days and as much as Olivia hated to admit it, she wasn't feeling so great herself. Having kids definitely changed things…she rarely got sick and now she felt like she'd started a mini epidemic.
"Hey…are you okay?" Nick asked as he peeked around the door. He'd knocked, but she had her head down on the desk and obviously hadn't heard him until he walked in.
"Yeah," Olivia said as she lifted her head and rubbed her temples, trying to relieve her headache. "What did you need?"
"I just wondered what time you wanted me at your apartment tomorrow night…for Noah's birthday?" he came in and sat across from her. "You sure you're alright? You don't look so good."
"I'm fine…it's just been a long day," she tried to sound convincing. "Dinner will be ready around 6:00," she answered. Nick's daughter was in California with his ex-wife and none of her other friends had children, so Olivia decided a dinner party in celebration of her son's birthday would be just fine. Dinner, cake, ice cream, and presents…followed by a quick bath and bedtime, would be perfect for a party he'd never remember anyway. She thought about Elliot telling her first birthdays were really for the parents, and she knew she was taking the easy way out, but she also recognized that she didn't have time to plan a big kiddie party, especially if her son was the only kid there. Even Kate couldn't come because she was visiting her father in D.C. for the weekend.
"I'm gonna head home," she stood up slowly, trying to conceal the dizziness she felt, but having to lean on the desk as she tried to stop the room from spinning. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes until the feeling passed.
"Do you want me to give you a ride home?" Nick asked with obvious concern. "You probably have that bug that's been going around here."
"Well if that's the case, you don't want to catch it," she insisted as she walked toward the door. "But I'm fine anyway. It's just been a long day. I'll see you at 6:00 tomorrow." She walked out the door and headed to the elevator, and Nick knew better than to argue with her.
The following morning she awoke to the pounding on the front door and realized she'd overslept. Usually Noah woke her up long before Maureen arrived for the day, and as she sat up she heard him crying in the nursery and realized she'd slept through his cries. She rushed to the nursery and picked him up before going to the living room to open the front door. Noah was still crying as she fumbled with the locks and when she opened the door Maureen looked at her with concern, "Olivia…what's wrong?" she asked as she stepped into the apartment, sitting two boxes wrapped in birthday paper on the side table. "Were you still asleep?"
"Yeah…I guess I was more tired than I thought," she said as she patted her son's back and tried to soothe his cries. She felt terrible and her stomach was painfully sour. "Can you take him…" she handed her son to Maureen and ran to the bathroom, leaning over the toilet and emptying her stomach, praying she'd feel better when she was done.
Maureen took Noah to his room, changing his diaper and then walking down the hall toward the bathroom, the baby situated on her hip. "Olivia…are you okay?" she asked through the closed door. "Do you need anything?"
"I'm okay," Olivia insisted as she rinsed her mouth with cool water and looked in the mirror at her face, sweaty and pale. "I guess I couldn't avoid this stupid flu forever," she reluctantly admitted. She took a deep breath, opening the door and forcing a weak smile at Maureen and Noah standing on the other side. "I guess it's a good thing I took the day off today." She made her way back to the living room and leaned back on the couch, trying to forget how miserable she felt.
Maureen sat with Noah in the chair and looked seriously at Olivia, "Maybe you should go back to bed," she suggested. "Are you going to cancel dinner tonight?"
Olivia sighed, "Maybe I'll feel better by then," she said hopefully. "I don't want to ruin Noah's birthday," she looked at her son and realized she hadn't even acknowledged his special day. "Happy Birthday, Sweetheart," she said with a smile.
"I brought presents," Maureen smiled as she sat the baby next to his mother and went to get the boxes from the table. She picked the baby up, sitting him in her lap, "Is it okay for him to open them?"
"Sure," Olivia nodded, excited to see her son open his first presents.
Maureen helped him open the first box, and she and Olivia giggled at how excited Noah was by the colorful paper and bow. "This is from Kate and me," she smiled as she pulled out a red t-shirt with the words "Birthday Boy" printed on the front in big blue letters. "I thought maybe he could wear it today."
"That's adorable," Olivia smiled. "Of course he should wear it. Thanks Maureen…that was really sweet." She looked at the slightly larger box, "Who is the other present from?"
Maureen looked at it and then back at Olivia, "It's from my dad," she admitted. "He said he really wanted Noah to have it, as long as it was okay with you." She wasn't sure what had happened when her father had shown up at Olivia's apartment looking for her weeks earlier, but she knew something was different now. Neither of them talked about it, but it was obvious.
"Of course," Olivia sighed. "If Elliot went to that much trouble, I want Noah to have his present." Maureen once again helped Noah open the present, pulling out a toy police car. It was soft, for a baby, but had working lights and sirens that made Noah giggle when he pushed them. The little boy loved the car so much that he pushed the buttons over and over again, making it flash and beep to the point that Olivia wasn't sure her headache would ever go away. "He loves it," she said as she closed her eyes and took another deep breath.
"Olivia, go back to bed for a while," Maureen suggested. "Noah and I can get things started for his party and maybe you'll feel better when you wake up."
As much as she hated to give in to being sick, Olivia knew she had no choice. "Thanks," she whispered as she patted her son on the head and made her way back to her bedroom. She wasn't going to ruin Noah's special day. As she lay in bed listening to her son play with his noisy new toy, she wondered if Elliot had known his gift would be the highlight of her son's birthday. Maybe she should have invited him to the party. As she drifted off to sleep, she wondered why she hadn't yet confronted him the way she had planned to the night she'd driven to Queens. She couldn't think for long though, because she was asleep within seconds.