She felt sticky. She wanted to open her eyes, but she hurt, and she was tired of hurting. She felt her sweaty skin stick to another person's bare skin as she shifted her weight. That's when she remembered where she was and who she was with.
She winced as she tried to pull her eyes open. Her insides felt scrambled and she felt stabbing pain with every breath.
Sensing her discomfort a soothing voice drifted into her ear. "Shhhh. You're okay." Her eyes finally opened when his lips pressed a kiss on her forehead. "Hey," he greeted gently.
He looked like hell. She was sure she looked worse, but he looked horrible. "Hey," her voice rasped. She felt like she swallowed a bucket of sand.
He shifted her carefully, but any movement hurt. "Sorry," his voice was pained, but he finished reaching for the cup of water set on the side table. He helped her drink, because damn it, she couldn't even lift her arms without searing pain in her ribs.
After a few swallows she felt like she could at least talk. "Thank you," her voice was no more than a whisper.
Elliot brushed her sweaty hair away from her face. His eyes were bloodshot, she doubted he slept at all the night before. Actually, she was sure he didn't. He promised he'd watch her sleep, and she was positive he watched over her all night.
She leaned against his shoulder, turning her head slightly to kiss the base of his throat. "You should get some sleep," she whispered. She knew he wouldn't, but she worried. He really looked awful.
"I'm okay, he insisted. He brushed a hand over her cheek, "How's your pain?" He asked tenderly.
"Uh," she thought for a moment. It was bad, but she didn't want more painkillers. "It hurts, but I'm okay. I don't want more meds," she insisted.
He did that thing where he read her to make sure she wasn't completely bullshitting him. "Okay." He accepted her answer, probably because she wasn't gasping in pain at the moment.
"You need sleep, El." She tried again.
"I'm fine. Fin wanted to come later. Maybe I'll sleep then." He sounded pretty noncommittal, and she wasn't going to let him kill himself trying to take care of her.
"Tell him to come now, and you go home and sleep."
"I can sleep here."
"I'm sure you can, but you'll sleep better at home."
"I'm fine Liv."
"Call him or I'm going to call him…" he eyed her skeptically, "okay fine, I'll have someone else call him for me. Plus," she snuggled against his shoulder, "I'll need you tonight," she said seriously.
He still seemed hesitant, but finally agreed. "Okay. I'll see when he can get over here, but I'll be back after lunch. I don't need to sleep all day."
"That's all I'm asking."
-000-
He called Lizzie to take him home. She showed up right as Fin did, making it an easy transition. Despite their audience, Elliot kissed her sweetly and squeezed her hand before departing.
He really wanted to stay, but he was dead on his feet, and he knew he would be staying up through the night again making sure Olivia dreams didn't morph into nightmares.
He called Lizzie because she was the least likely to dig in for information. As expected, she let most of the ride pass in silence, only speaking when she insisted they drive through somewhere so he could eat.
When they made it to his place, she parked, clearly intending on walking him in. Normally, he would insist he was fine, and shew away whatever child was fussing, but he was tired, and Lizzie wasn't actually making a fuss so he went with it.
She walked him to the door and made sure he was dexterous enough to use his keys. He wanted to roll his eyes. He was tired, not drunk. Although he did read somewhere, being awake for twenty four hours was the equivalent of blowing a .1% so what did he know.
He opens his door and Lizzie followed him inside but kept her hand on the door, leaving it partially open. "You gonna be okay?" She finally asked.
He yawned on cue. "Yeah. I need some sleep and then I'll be fine."
She wrapped her arms around him and said, "just so you know, I'm really happy for you."
He returned her hug and unexpected tears pricked his eyes. "Thank you baby."
Once Lizzie left, he stripped, leaving a pile of clothes down the hallway as he found his way to his bedroom. He tossed his phone on his nightstand and he was asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.
-000-
He wasn't sure he even knew what day of the week it was when he woke up. He pressed the heels of his hands onto his eyes as they adjusted to the light he didn't bother turning off before crashing on his bed.
He rolled over and grabbed his phone. "Damn it!" He hurried out of his bed after viewing his illuminated screen. 6pm. He slept the whole damn day. He quickly punched out a text to Olivia.
E: I'm sorry! I didn't set an alarm!
O: You were exhausted I'm surprised you found your way through the apartment door.
O: I'm fine. Fin stayed until almost 2 and then Amand brought Noah over. They're still here. I'm okay. Promise.
E: Still pissed at myself.
O: I'm seriously fine. I feel awful, but my pain is manageable. Promise.
E: Well I'm showering and then I'll be back.
O: Take your time.
E: Do you honestly believe I'd take my time? I'll be there in a half hour.
Enough time for a five minute shower and then the drive to the hospital. He felt compelled to add:
E: I love you, you know.
O: I know, and I love you too.
-000-
"You think he realizes that I'm the one texting him?" Amanda asked.
"Probably not. I'm sure he will remember my limited range of motion at some point, but I doubt he's going to care."
"Probably not," Amanda's eyes darted to Noah who had earbuds in and couldn't hear the adult conversation going on around him. Amanda locked Olivia's phone and set it down next to Olivia. "After all, he basically involved me in a booty call setup." She grinned mischievously.
"I want to deny that's what happened," she gave Amanda a cheeky grin. "But we both know better." She decided to blame her lowered inhibitions on the narcotics. She definitely didn't plan on sharing the details of her sex life with Amanda. Even if she was her best friend.
Amanda chuckled, probably noting Olivia was a touch high. "Sooo it's been good?" She pressed.
"What do you think?" Olivia sighed and leaned her head back against the reclined hospital bed. "Uh yeah, we should have done it years ago."
Amanda was enjoying it all too much but Olivia didn't feel like she could stop the words coming out of her mouth. Oh well. She would blame the drugs later. "That good huh?" Amanda was still grinning stupidly.
Olivia closed her eyes as snippets of their nights together flashed through her mind. She felt the flush flooding her cheeks, but her mouth couldn't stop talking. "Yeah. Earth shattering."
"Decades of foreplay will do that I imagine." Amanda teased.
"No joke," Olivia sighed.
Silence passed between them for a couple moments before Amanda asked, "Is he going back under soon?"
Olivia sighed again, "He says no. He says he told Ayanna he's done with this assignment and he isn't doing any more deep UC work, but…"
"You don't believe him?" Amanda wondered.
"I want to, but I don't know. I guess we will see what happens. It's like he gets sucked in again and again. There is some allure to living a life that isn't his own I guess."
"I understand the impulse," Amanda admitted.
"So do I to some extent, but if we are going to make this thing work, really work, he's got to stop running and start talking out shit. I can't continually chase him down when things get tough."
"I get that," she agreed. She glanced down at her watch. "Elliot said he'd only be a half hour right?"
"Yeah, why?" Olivia asked.
"Oh nothing, it's just been an hour. Probably hit traffic or something.
-000-
He was making good time so he thought he'd stop and grab Liv some soup or something. The hospital food lived up to its gross reputation, and she couldn't stomach anything too solid anyway.
He popped into the cafe located not too far from the hospital. He knew Olivia liked food from that particular place. He quickly picked up some food, and exited the building, to go bag in hand. He glanced at his watch. The stop cost him a little time, but not much. He might be five minutes longer than he planned, but it was worth it.
The sun began setting, dimming the world around him. It was that weird time of day. The one where it wasn't dark, but it wasn't really light either. Dusky.
He reached for the door handle on the driver side of his SUV when he heard the first pop. His eyes darted around as he tried to figure out the source. There weren't many people on the sidewalk, but the ones who were glanced around nervously.
He shook it off. He knew the sound of a gunshot, but maybe he was mistaken. Still…he pulled the car door open. He'd radio someone to do a quick sweep. It was possible the shot happened within an apartment with an open window or something.
He leaned into his car, but another pop rang out. This time the shot hit its intended target. Him. He felt the bullet tear through the back of his shoulder near his right shoulder blade. He didn't have time to react before a final shot echoed through the air, and a second bullet passed through his lower back. It was silly, but all he could think of was that he was definitely not making it to the hospital within the promised half hour.