Elliot felt the pin prick sensation in his throat and groaned. He knew that feeling. After raising five kids, all of which went to public school, he knew when strep throat was coming on.

It had been two days since he cared for Noah and slept over at Liv's place. Elliot spent the night on the couch, with Olivia crushed up against him. He didn't sleep much, but it was worth it to have her sleeping in his arms. The morning went normally, and before he knew it they were all out the door, Elliot and Liv to work and Noah to school.

He called Olivia last night to see if she wanted to have dinner. He worried if they waited around too long, things would go back to the way they were. He never wanted to go back. He wanted to move forward.

That was why getting sick was the absolute worst thing to happen today. He walked to the breakroom fridge to find a bottle of water and text Liv.

E: My throat hurts.

O: NO

E: YES

O: Oh god Elliot. I'm so sorry!

E: You should be….Just kidding. It's fine. I'll survive. Maybe.

O: Need to reschedule tonight?

E: Probably should. Don't want to share germs… Unless you want to share germs.

O: Gross. No.

E: I'm going to see if I can get an antibiotic today. Dinner tomorrow night?

O: If you aren't dying.

E: I'm not dying.

O: We will see. Ever heard of man flu?

E: Shut up. I'll be fine.

O: Good luck, I heard strep is way harder on adults.

E: Great.

Ayanna was out of the office for the day, so Elliot gave the rest of his squad a wave before heading out the door. He'd text Ayanna to let her know what was going on, but it was better to duck out before he passed it to everyone.

-000-

Olivia started to feel a little bad about leaving Elliot to his own devices. After all, the only reason he was sick was because he took care of her son. She tapped her fingers against her desk. She should visit him later, just to be sure everything was okay.

The day was slow, a massive contrast to the days prior. By 3pm she felt done. She hadn't heard from Elliot since the morning, and she hoped he was getting on fine by himself. "Ugh." She groaned in frustration and pushed her chair away from her desk. She knew she'd spend the entire afternoon worrying about him if she didn't just go over and check on him. She snagged her bag and coat, and found Fin on her way out. "You good here?" She asked. "It's dead and I need to get a few things done out of the office today."

"Would those things have to do with a certain sick detective?" He gave that typical Fin smirk.

She felt the blush and couldn't contain it. "How the hell do you know anything about that?" She knew she didn't say anything about it to anyone.

"When will you learn that I just know things?" Fin leaned back in his chair, looking very satisfied with himself.

"Ugh, just call me if anything comes up."

"Of course, Cap." His face still held that satisfied smirk so she turned and walked away before he made the conversation even more awkward.

-000-

Olivia stopped by a bodega on her way over to Elliot's. She remembered what he said about letting Noah live in popsicles so she was sure to buy a huge package with as many flavors as possible. She grabbed a couple cans of soup because the practical part of her couldn't understand living on popsicles as your only sustenance.

She knocked on Elliot's door and waited, but she didn't hear movement. She figured he was napping and used her key to let herself in. She had the key for years now but never had the occasion to use it. After letting herself in and locking up behind her she made her way to the kitchen to drop the frozen items in the freezer before they melted.

She heard the shower running and knew that was why he didn't answer the door. She didn't want to scare the shit out of him by suddenly appearing on his couch when he got out so she stuck her head into his bedroom, noticing the adjoining bathroom door left wide open. "El?" She called.

"Liv?" She nearly laughed at his confused voice.

"Yeah it's me. I brought some popsicles and stuff for you."

"Thanks," he called. "I'll be out in just a minute."

"Okay."

She shut the door behind her and wandered back into the kitchen. Her body buzzed with nervous energy. This was their first time seeing each other since they openly admitted the feelings brooding beneath the surface of their relationship. The kissing was damn good too. She felt her face flush. She wasn't sure how she was going to make it out of here without kissing him. The constant reminder of germs should help.

She heard the shower shut off and she found a space on the couch to make herself comfortable. She flipped through her phone, answering a few non-urgent emails.

The door to Elliot's bedroom closed and he dropped himself onto the couch next to her. The leftover warmth from the shower and the smell of his body wash and cologne was nearly intoxicating.

"Whatcha got for me," he grinned and she knew it was right to come here. Her heart swelled with the realization how much he wanted her with him.

She got up and walked toward the kitchen, "Popsicles and soup. Want anything right now?"

"Besides you?" She stopped in her tracks and turned and nearly laughed at his comical grin.

She rolled her eyes, "I set you up perfectly for that one didn't I?"

"Couldn't help myself," he admitted. "I do want a popsicle though."

"No soup?" She asked, fully teasing.

"Nah, the only good thing about being sick is all the popsicles.

"Yeah yeah," she smiled and opened the freezer. "What flavor?"

"Umm cherry." She dug a cherry popsicle and impulsively grabbed herself an orange before returning to the couch. "Hey," he complained, "I thought these were all mine!" He teased.

"What? You won't share them with your favorite person?" She grinned flirtatiously.

He reached out his hand to cup her face affectionately. His gaze oozed affection. "Nope."

She broke into laughter, smacking him on the chest. "You suck."

"Okay okay," he agreed, "I guess you can have one, but only because I love you so much." His tone was light, but she could hear the honest meaning behind his words.

"Thanks," she grinned and pulled off the wrapper and set it on the coffee table, and he did the same.

She leaned back into his shoulder and he put his arm around her. She heard him swallow hard, "Damn this hurts."

She looked up at him, "Did you pick up your antibiotic?"

"Yeah, but it still hurts." He complained.

"That's what the popsicles are for," she impulsively kissed his cheek.

"Thanks for coming over Liv." His eyes conveyed his sincere gratitude and she was grateful she came.

"No problem," she said.

They finished their popsicles and laid the sticks next to the wrappers. She hesitated to move, feeling very comfortable sitting on the couch with his arms around her.

"Wanna watch TV or something?" Elliot asked after a long period of silence.

"I can't remember the last time I watched TV, but sure."

He laughed lightly, "Same for me, but I'm sure we can find something."

He flipped through the channels until they found a crime drama they could ruthlessly make fun of.

"What!? I want to know the lab that can churn out a DNA match in a day!" Olivia all but yelled at the TV.

Elliot laughed, "I just want to know how I'm the world they get to trial so fast."

"Right?!" She shook her head, "I guess waiting weeks for DNA isn't very sexy."

"Yeah, I guess not."

She laid back into him. Olivia guessed who the murderer was within the first fifteen minutes. That led to a guessing game for the next few hours as they tried to see who could guess the murderer first. Winner got a popsicle. They each won an even amount of popsicles, making it difficult to determine who the better detective was.

It started to get late. Elliot slept soundly with the TV still on and his arms still around her. She probably should get back to her apartment, but she had no real desire to be alone. Noah was sleeping over at Amanda's tonight. The girls had been asking for a while and Noah loved his little 'cousins'.

Elliot stirred beside her and yawned. He rubbed at his throat, "Ugh, even yawning hurts." He looked at his watch, "Woah, how'd it get so late?" He kissed her head, "Do you need to get Noah from somewhere?"

She pulled his arm tighter around her and snuggled in, "Noah is at Amanda's tonight, I'm in no rush."

He kissed her temple, "Yeah?"

"Yeah," she smiled.

He grabbed her more tightly around her middle and kissed behind her ear. "In that case," he grinned and began leaving a trail of kisses down her neck.

She meant to protest, but her brain seemed to be broken. Her somersaulting stomach was in control now. He kept his lips on her neck and around her ear, careful to avoid her lips. "This okay?" He asked, his mouth finding her earlobe.

"Mmm," her eyes stayed closed, "more than okay."

He turned his attention to her jaw, and flipped her so she was now laying underneath him. Her body pressed into his, and she slid her hands up his shoulders and tightened her arms around him.

He continued his exploration, but asked, "Are you sure? I don't want you to get sick." His lips found her collarbone and the last thing she was thinking about was getting sick.

"Elliot?" His lips had found the base of her neck and moved towards her chest.

"Mmm?"

"Will you please shut up?" She grabbed his face and pulled his lips to hers. She could literally care less about germs right now.

His lip moved against hers, but he kept his tongue in his own mouth, which was probably for the best, but she couldn't help craving more.

His hands slid underneath her, sneaking below her shirt, before he rolled her on top of him. His hands snuck towards her ass and slid back towards her lower back. He grasped the bottom of her shirt deftly pulling it over her head. She gasped as his lips moved towards her sternum, and it was very clear where this was going. And she was more than willing to let this fire burn.

-000-

Olivia stretched awake in the early morning. Her body never seemed to sleep in anymore. Elliot"s arms were weaned around her middle and her leg was sandwiched between his thighs. Last night was completely and unexpectedly perfect.

She leaned into him, pressing a soft kiss on his lips. His mouth curled into a smile before his eyes opened.

"Good morning," she whispered.

"Good morning," he returned. He kissed her again.

"I was going to ask how you are feeling, but I'm thinking your answer won't be about your throat."

"You know me too well," he grinned. "My throat still hurts, but not nearly as bad as last night," he admitted. He cupped her face with one hand and said, "Hopefully I didn't get you sick."

She leaned into him, brushing her lips softly against his. "I'm not worried, and even if I get sick, it was 100% worth it."

"Yeah?" His eyes smirked with pride.

"Absolutely," she answered before enveloping his lips with hers.