I'm sorry,

Elliot Stabler

Olivia folds the paper back up and slips it into its envelope. Her brain refuses to put a thought together. She tosses one end of the blanket towards her feet and tries to fall asleep. Staring at the ceiling, she starts to doze off. Amanda's speech about accepting her feelings and Elliot's rough draft circulate her thoughts as she slowly falls asleep.

Her alarm blares at the ripe hour of 6:00 in the morning. However, not waking up to her alarm, she feels Noah tapping her shoulder, "Mom. Mom."

Olivia sits up straight in a panic, "What? What's wrong?"

Slightly startling Noah he calmly says, "You gotta get ready for work." She nods as she starts to regain awareness of her surroundings. He asks, "Why'd you sleep on the couch?"

Olivia rubs her forehead as she stands up to fold the blanket, "I must have passed out." As she creases the blanket she turns to Noah and declares, "It's a school day. Go get ready for school."

Noah plops himself on the armchair dramatically, "I don't wanna go."

"Do you feel sick?" Olivia uses the back of her hand to feel the temperature on his forehead, "You seem okay."

Noah shakes his head, "I'm fine. I'm… I'm still scared."

Olivia's heart melts and she squishes in between Noah and the arm of the chair, making sure to wrap her arms around him, "Noah, I promise you, you are safe. It's over now."

Noah leans into her side, "Not for you." He looks up at her, "You still go to work every day and the same thing could happen. How am I supposed to go to school and focus when all I can think about is my mom getting hurt?"

Olivia's heart sank into her chest not knowing how to respond. She brushes her fingers through his curls, "How about you come with me to work?"

Noah nods his head in agreement. She points out, "You'll still be doing the schoolwork you missed."

"That's fine," Noah hops up and runs to grab his bag. As Olivia stands up, she notices the opened envelope on the side table. She takes it and puts it in her workbag. She and Noah head to the parking garage swiftly.

Noah switches on some Taylor Swift for the short drive to the precinct. Olivia acts quickly on her thought, "Noah, I have to drop something off at a different unit. Do you want to stay in the car or come up?"

"I'll go with you," Noah continues to dance in his seat to 'Afterglow.'

Soon enough Olivia pulls into the precinct-designated parking area. She and Noah walk into the building and down the hall. Before Olivia can reach the doorway, Elliot spots her and jogs up to her, "Hey." He notices Noah, "Hey, bud. How are you doing?"

"I'm good," Noah smiles and fist-bumps Elliot.

Elliot squats down to Noah's level, "I heard you like video games." Noah nods his head as Elliot points to a group of desks, "Well my friend, Jet, just so happens to be great at them."

Noah looks up at Olivia to make sure it is okay, "You can go." Noah grins and walks towards Jet at her computer."

Elliot turns his focus to Olivia and asks with concern, "What's going on?"

Olivia pulls out the envelope and waves it around gently, "I got your letter." Elliot nods his head along as he takes a deep breath. She asks, "Can we talk somewhere a little less crowded?"

Elliot leads her to an interrogation room to talk, "So… I uh…"

"Say it again," Olivia declares.

Elliot is confused and caught off guard, "Say what"

"Say that you care for me. Tell me it's going to work out," she puts her bag and the letter on the metal table to free her hands.

Still confused, Elliot decides to do as she says, "Olivia." He takes a sharp inhale as he takes her hands in his, "I care for you and-"

Before he can even finish, Olivia pulls him in closer by his tie and presses her lips against hers. Shocking Elliot, it takes him a second or two to know what to do. He places his hands on her hips as she rests her arms on his shoulders. The two separate only when they need air. Olivia tucks a lock of hair behind her ear and grins. A tear falls down her cheek, "I care for you too." She steps back to give him space. She admits, "But, I'm scared."

Elliot takes a step closer to close the gap between them, "I'm scared too." He wipes her tears off her cheek and rests his hand on her chin.

The two gaze into each other's eyes for what feels like an eternity only to be interrupted by a notification. Olivia looks down at her phone, "It's Fin." She wipes her tears away and takes a deep breath, "Talk later?"

Elliot nods his head and opens the door, "Ladies first." Noah and Olivia continue their day on schedule. The clock strikes 8:00 p.m. when Olivia notices that Noah and she are the only ones left in the office. Before she can even start to pack her bag, she hears a faint knock on her office door, "Is this later?"

Olivia smiles at the sight of Elliot standing in her office doorway, "It is."