March 2008

My back feels like hell Olivia thought when she woke up this morning. She was trying to not take any painkillers; just in case they affected the little one, but it was a tall order.

She almost told Alex and Casey about it, but they would have made her stay home.

If I feel any worse, I can take a half day.

Olivia took Koji to work with her and the pain subsided … well, until it came back with a vengeance.

"AAHH!" Olivia shrilled before falling backwards. Koji ran behind her, breaking her fall.

Elliot heard her cry and ran back to the precinct. "Liv, what happened?"

"I think … it's baby time." She had felt a contraction, one that was strong enough to make her fall down.

When Elliot called Casey, the redhead had been about to bring Olivia some pizza.

"Where are you?"

"On our way to Mercy. Liv already called the doctor."

Alex had been driving, but Casey decided to take the wheel. "I don't need you getting us arrested on the way to the hospital."

Alex pouted as Casey slid into the driver's seat.

"You make the calls," Casey told her as she drove. They had to call Alex's father, Casey's mother, their siblings, Aunt Margo not to mention checking in with all of their friends.

Of course Alexander wanted to know everything about his grandbaby.

"How far along is she?"

"We don't know Dad."

"Do you think she'll be born today or tomorrow?"

"I don't know that either?"

"Should I drive down from Boston or wait and see the baby on Skype."

Alex started wringing her hands.

By the time they got to the hospital, Casey took Alex's cell phone from her. "Your new job is to keep Olivia calm."

"Me?"

"Well, you can't talk to our friends or family without snapping so …"

"I didn't snap!" She just got sick of everyone asking her the same questions that she could not answer.

Casey rubbed her back. "Eat some more pizza."

Alex flared her lip, although she did want more pizza.

They got to the waiting room and Elliot was trying to appease a hollering Olivia.

"Where's my EPIDURAL!"

Casey shivered.

Alex handed her the pizza and went inside.

Elliot quickly made his escape. "Oh look, pizza!"

A soft kiss from Alex was enough to get Olivia to stop screaming.

"This hurts," Olivia pouted, "a lot."

"I know baby, but our little girl is almost here, and I bet she's going to be gorgeous, just like her mama!"

Olivia forced a smile.

While Alex managed to keep Olivia somewhat calm, Casey was pumping Elliot for as much information as she could get.

"So what is it that new parents always forget?"

So many things. "I remember when Maureen was born; we struggled to get the car seat installed properly."

They already had the car seat checked by the nearby Babys R Us."

"Also, you won't believe how much babies can poop. Your baby poops. You go to change the diaper and BAM! mid change, it poops again."

Casey made a face. "Oh goodie!"

Three hours later, and Olivia was 4 cm along.

"Am I almost there?"

The doctor gave her an apologetic look. "You need to get to 10 cm first."

"When can I get that epidural?"

"When you get to eight cm."

"EIGHT!" she shrieked.

Elliot had to get going. "And that's my cue." He and Kathy would be back later.

When Alexander and Warren arrived to the hospital, they could hear shouting.

"Stop pacing back and forth!" Casey hissed at Alex.

"I'm nervous okay!"

"But you're pacing is making me nervous."

"Were you not nervous before?"

"Of course I was nervous before, but now I'm even more nervous."

Alex and Casey were quarrelling one moment and hugging it out the next.

"What's going on?" Warren asked, once they were at the waiting room.

"They rushed Olivia to NICU. Her heart rate dropped very low."

They thought she had fully healed from the car accident, but apparently the wound reopened.

An NICU nurse came to inform Alex and Casey that, "we're going to have to perform a Cesarean section."

Then came the dreaded question, "if we can only save one of them …"

"Save Olivia," Alex couldn't imagine being without her.

Casey couldn't say anything. She knew Olivia would pick their daughter over herself, but she also knew that if she or Alex were in her shoes, she would say to save them too.

Hopefully, it didn't come to that.

Doctors went in and out of the operating room. Alex and Casey could only watch behind a Plexiglas screen as they watched their wife go under the knife.

The two women clung to each other, trembling in fear.

Cragen and the boys came to the hospital as soon as they heard Olivia was in surgery.

Don and Alexander shared knowing glances. They both knew what it felt like to survive a wife and the pain was unbearable.

Cragen never saw it coming; he went to work like he always did just to get a call his wife was gone.

Alexander had to slowly watch his wife die over the span of nine months; one might say that at least he got to say goodbye, but knowing and being powerless was the worst.

He hoped his daughter never learned that feeling.

It was 8:37 when the doctors came out and told them that they had a healthy baby girl.

"What about Olivia?"

"I'm sorry to say …"

That's all the doctor said before Alex fainted.

Casey was the first one to hold their little girl, with big brown eyes and brown hair, she looked just like her Mama.

"Does she have a name?" Alexander questioned.

Casey smiled. "Lily Caroline Benson." They decided each child would get the surname of the woman who carried her.

When Alex came to, she felt like a truck had hit her.

"Liv … LIV!" she shrilled in a panic.

"I'm right here," she said weakly.

Alex turned. "Liv, you're okay?"

She nodded. "They had to take out some of my intestines." Depending on her recovery, she may not be able to return to the police force.

Alex knew what that could mean. "Baby …"

"It's okay," Olivia considered herself lucky. "I'm alive and our baby is just perfect."

Casey brought in their baby, and Alex couldn't believe how pretty she was. "Aw, she has her Mama's face."

They had to feed her with a bottle until Olivia's anesthesia wore off and she was no longer on painkillers.

Once Olivia was less woozy, their friends and family came in to meet the newest Benson.

"I hope you have all girls," Munch told them.

"Why's that?" Casey questioned.

"If you have a son, he'll have a sister and three moms. Poor boy will never be able to get into the bathroom."

Everyone started laughing.

Three days later, they were all able to go home.

Koji was very relieved to have his ladies back and he promptly lied down in front of the crib. His new job was to guard the baby.

Olivia had six weeks of maternity leave. At the end of it, she would go in for a physical to see if she could return to the force. Deep down, she was scared. Being a cop was all she knew how to do, but when she looked at Lily, she knew it would be all right.

They had a family, a complete family. It was hard to ask for anything more.

AN: This is the end of the main story. I'll be posting an epilogue 5 years later.