Another chapter to make up for not posting the last couple of days. Enjoy! :)
A few days later Olivia was sitting on the couch, dressed in the nicest clothes that she could still fit into, with Noah playing beside her. She was nervous. The social worker had called, wanting to come for her final home visit before the adoption and she was bringing Judge Linden with her. The judge wanted to come and see for herself how the family was adjusting now that Elliot was out of the hospital and he still needed to sign the adoption petition. The judge had requested medical records from Elliot's doctor with a statement that proved he was mentally competent to sign the adoption papers after his brain injury, and luckily the doctor had agreed Elliot's progress was good and he could legally make such decisions. Olivia knew the judge was making special accommodations for them, and she was grateful, but she was still scared.
"It's gonna be fine," Elliot tried to assure her but he was worried himself. Olivia was Noah's mother, and if she lost him, Elliot would never forgive himself. He'd even called Fin and asked him to come over and help him clean up the apartment and make sure everything was in order for the visit, and asking Fin for help was one of the hardest things he'd ever done, but he did it for Olivia and their son. He could put his pride aside for them.
"What if they think I'm not taking good care of him since I'm on bed rest?" she asked nervously. "What if he runs off during the interview and we can't chase him down? What are they gonna say about us, El?" She closed her eyes, "We are not good parents…"
"Yes…we are," Elliot insisted. "Noah is fine. He's happy…he's healthy…and he loves us." He smiled at her, "Especially you…he's in love with his mommy…and so am I."
Olivia smiled, "I hope this goes well." Her last visit had been while Elliot was in the hospital and it had been extremely short. She'd called and explained the situation to the judge and she'd been very understanding. She hoped she still would be.
There was a knock at the door, and Elliot wheeled himself over to answer it. He'd wanted to try walking while their visitors were there, but Olivia had convinced him it would be better to do what was most comfortable when they were already under the watchful eye of the social worker. He opened the door, and welcomed the two women as they walked into the room.
"Detective Stabler," Judge Linden said softly, a look of pity on her face that made Elliot cringe. "It's been years…"
"Yes…it has," he extended his hand and shook hers, "But I'm not a detective anymore. Just call me Elliot."
"Okay…Elliot," she smiled and introduced him to the social worker, "This is Miss Carter, from social services."
"What happened to Mrs. Morrison?" Olivia asked from the couch, turning to look at them as they walked toward her. "She's been here the last two times."
"She quit," Judge Linden said, sitting in the chair closest to the couch, while Miss Carter sat across from them. "Unfortunately we lose a lot of social workers…but you know how stressful the job is Sergeant Benson." She looked at Noah, playing by his mother and smiled, "So, how is our little guy doing?"
"He's good," Olivia smiled. "Growing up so fast." She ran her fingers through his hair and he looked up at her and giggled. "Noah…these nice ladies are here to see you," she said gently. "Can you say hello to them?"
He looked at them and waved, but didn't say anything, and immediately turned back to his toy.
"He seems happy," the judge smiled. "I know I made the right choice." She watched as Olivia shifted uncomfortably on the couch, "How are you doing? Are you feeling okay?"
"I'm fine," Olivia insisted. "The doctor put me on bed rest, so that's been a hassle…"
"How are you two managing things then?" Miss Carter asked, taking notes in the file.
"We're doing fine," Elliot insisted. "We have friends and family helping for now…and I can still take care of a lot. Noah's well cared for, I can promise you that."
"It's not our practice to place children in adoptive homes with two disabled parents," Miss Carter said quickly. "That is certainly not in the best interest of the child."
"I'm not disabled," Olivia argued. "I'm pregnant. Once I have the baby everything will get back to normal. And Elliot is getting better…he's made so much progress…"
"Don't worry," the judge assured her. "Everything is fine…" she gave a nervous glance at the social worker.
"I'm still not sure this is something we can do," the social worker wrote vigorously in the file. She looked at the judge, "We may have to do a removal order…at least for the time being."
"No…" Olivia gasped. "You're not taking him…" She picked up her son and held him close. "He's my son…"
"He's your foster child," the social worker reminded her.
"Please…don't do this," Elliot pleaded. "Olivia is a good mother. If this is because of me not being able to take care of them…you can take my name off the adoption petition and we'll hire someone to come in and take care of things until the baby is born. You can't take him…"
"We're not," the judge looked seriously at her colleague. "I don't care what you normally do…I know this little boy is in good hands. They're good parents and you are not taking him."
"Do you think it's fair for the child to grow up without two healthy parents?" the social worker asked the judge. "And I see in the records that their baby also has disabilities. How much time will they be able to devote to Noah?"
Judge Linden looked sadly at Olivia who was still clinging to her son, "What's wrong with your baby?" she asked.
"Nothing is wrong with her. She has Down syndrome," Olivia answered tearfully. "And if I had known that would be used against us, I'd never have told Mrs. Morrison when she asked me about the baby last time. This isn't fair…I love both of my children and I will take care of them both…" she looked at Elliot, "We both will."
"I know you will," the judge said gently. She looked at the social worker, "We are approving the adoption."
"I don't agree with you," Miss Carter argued.
"I have known these people for over a decade," the judge said honestly, "And you've known them for ten minutes. You're basing all your judgments on things you are reading in that file and some misconceived notion about who makes a good parent."
"I'm following my training," Miss Carter defended herself.
"You can't learn everything about people in your training courses," the judge replied. "And no matter what you recommend, I am the one who will make the final decision in court, and I will give them their son. So you might as well approve the paperwork now."
The social worker marked some boxes in the file and handed it over to the judge. Then she stood up and walked out the door without saying anything else.
"We love our son," Elliot said seriously. "I may not be as capable as I used to be, but I'd give my life for that little boy. You have to know that."
"I do," the judge said gently. She pulled out the adoption papers and looked over them, "I need you both to fill these out so I can get them filed and we'll set a final adoption date."
Elliot stood carefully from his chair, and moved next to Olivia on the couch. He looked at the paper, "His name is Noah Porter?" he asked. "He's not biologically related to Dean Porter, is he?" he asked.
Olivia laughed, "No…trust me."
"You can change his name on his new birth certificate. First, middle, and last…just put it on the form," the judge said.
"His name is Noah," Olivia insisted. "I don't want to change that…but we could pick middle name for him."
Elliot nodded, "What are you thinking?"
"I want his name to be special…" she smiled. "What about Noah Elliot…after his daddy?"
Elliot smiled, "That's really sweet Liv, but Eli's name is already Elliot Jr. and I don't want to make my sons share a name."
"I didn't think of that…you're right," Olivia agreed. "But I don't know the right name."
"I do," Elliot took the paper and pen and wrote their son's name as neatly as he could. His handwriting had gone downhill after the shooting, but he was careful so everyone could read it and he handed the paper to Olivia, "This…is special…"
"El…" she looked at the paper and then back to him. Then she nodded in agreement, "Noah Oliver Benson-Stabler," she read her son's name aloud for the first time. Then she looked at her son, "Do you like your new name, buddy?" she asked and nodded in agreement. She signed her name at the bottom and handed to paper to Elliot who signed it as well and passed it to the judge.
"Good," the judge smiled, "I'll file this today and we'll have our finalization hearing on…" she looked at her calendar, "May 21. Does that work for you?"
"It should be fine," Olivia agreed, anxious to have the final adoption papers in her hand.
"As long as we're not at the hospital having a baby," Elliot reminded her.
"She's not due until four weeks later," Olivia insisted. "We'll be fine."
"Well, if something changes just let me know and we'll reschedule," Judge Linden said happily. "I'm so happy for your little family. This is perfect."
"Thank you," Olivia let her tears fall down her cheeks.
"When are you getting married?" the judge asked. "Because you know…I can perform weddings too."
Elliot laughed, "I'm not sure she's ready to marry me yet."
"Yes I am," Olivia said seriously. "I'm ready…whenever you are."
"We could always have you marry us at the adoption hearing," Elliot teased. "That'd be a first I'm sure."
The judge nodded, "I love doing things the unconventional way," she smiled. "I'll set aside some extra time that day and you bring all your family and friends. We'll get all your big life moments taken care of at once."
"Are you serious?" Olivia asked in disbelief.
"I was teasing…but it could work," Elliot answered. "If you want to…"
Olivia bit her bottom lip and looked from Elliot to the judge to her son and nodded, "I want to…"
"Good," the judge stood up and walked to the door. "I'll let myself out. See you in a couple weeks. Don't forget to get your marriage license."
She walked out and Elliot leaned over, kissing Olivia gently on the lips. He rested his hand on her stomach, pulling away from the kiss when he felt the baby kick, watching as the fabric of her green blouse fluttered with the movement. "You're a happy little thing today, aren't you?" he teased, gently rubbing his hand over her stomach.
Noah reached out and hugged his mother's stomach, "Baby…kisses…" he said, placing a kiss on her stomach and laughing when the baby kicked at him. Then he climbed up and kissed Olivia and climbed over to Elliot giving him a slobbery kiss as well, before settling himself in his lap.
"I love you," Olivia cried, leaning over and kissing Elliot once more. "Thank you…"
"For what?" he asked.
"For being you," she brushed away her tears and rested her head on his shoulder, and for the first time in a long time she felt like they were going to be okay.