I rarely post anything short, but here you go! Taylor Swift has a cat named Olivia Benson, and Mariska has a cat named Karma...I can't even with the cuteness.

"But look at her mom! One of the girls in my class cat had kittens and they were giving them away outside the school!"

Olivia didn't want to look at her. If she looked at the blue eyed kitten she might cave, and they absolutely did not need a cat. "We aren't ever home. She will be by herself all the time."

"You're never home," Noah scowled, and Olivia winced at the low blow.

She wanted to send him to his room for the comment, but she couldn't do it. He wasn't wrong, and she knew it bothered him when she had to leave important events for work. He just hadn't really vocalized it before. She sighed. "We aren't keeping a cat."

His eyes dropped in disappointment, and she felt her resolve weakening. Would it really hurt them to have a pet hanging around? Maybe it would help Noah not feel so alone all the time. Maybe they could….she shook the thought away. She didn't have time in her life for one more thing. "She can stay tonight, but in the morning she's gotta go somewhere else."

His eyes watered. Noah wasn't spoiled by any stretch of the imagination, but he was an only child which meant he got all the resources she could provide. She knew how to tell him no, and did so often, but he hadn't ever seemed so devastated by her refusal. She tried to soften the blow. "Maybe we can go to the pet store sometime and pick an easier pet to care for. Maybe a fish or a turtle…" the suggestion tapered off because she knew that wouldn't be the same as a cuddly kitten.

"No. It's fine. I get it." He slunk off to his room with the kitten still tucked in his arms. He shut the door softly, and stayed there for the rest of the evening.

-000-

"Come on Liv. Let the kid have a cat." He was as bad as Noah.

She groaned, instantly regretting telling him anything about the situation. She tucked the phone against her ear and leaned against her headboard. "He's got school and dance and art. He's barely home before me most of the week."

"It's not like it's a dog. Cats kind of like being by themselves.."

"What are you? Doctor Dolittle? How would you even know that?" She had known the man for a quarter century and he still had found ways to surprise her.

He chuckled. "Ma likes animals. She went through a cat rescue phase when I was like ten." It wasn't a stretch to imagine Bernie as an eccentric cat lady.

"Well, I'm not the kind of person to rescue tons of cats." It wasn't that she didn't like animals. She just wasn't sure she could keep one alive. After all, most of her house plants suffered from horrible dehydrated demises.

"He's not asking for a fleet of cats. He just wants one kitten. Let it be his responsibility. He's old enough."

She closed her eyes and punched the bridge of her nose."He's an eleven year old boy. You know as well as I do that I will be taking care of that cat."

"He might surprise you." Apparently Elliot really wanted her son to have this cat. She was halfway tempted to drop it in his apartment and let him deal with it when he came home from his assignment. Who was she kidding, he would probably like coming home to a kitten-and she would have to go over and feed the thing until he got back…

Elliot had never been forthcoming about his childhood. He only dropped small details here and there over the course of years. "When did you get your first pet?" She wondered aloud.

"I was eight. Mom got me a bird, and he was a total jerk."

"Wonderful."

"Look Liv, you raised a pretty responsible kid. Give him a chance to show you that he can do this. It might be a really good thing for him."

She sighed and rubbed her temple. This whole thing gave her a headache. "I'll think about it, but I think this is a crazy idea."

"Maybe it is, but maybe it isn't." He hesitated and she braced herself for advice she wasn't sure she wanted. "He's not the kind of kid to ask for things. If he's asking, maybe it means he really needs this."

She groaned internally. Elliot had only spent a handful of hours with her child and he already seemed to know him like one of his own. "I'll think about it," she promised.

"Good." She could hear the smile in his voice coming from the other end. He chuckled, "I'm not going to lie…he texted me after he talked to you…he asked me to plead his case."

"Oh my hell, seriously?" She wasn't mad. Not really. Noah seemed to instinctively trust Elliot, much like she did.

He laughed again. "Yeah, but don't bust him for it."

"He can't be texting you El! What if you're brokering some kind of deal and my kid is pinging your phone about his cat!?"

He laughed it off like it wasn't a big deal. "I'd just tell them my kid wants a cat and his mom won't let him. Not something I'd have to lie about really."

"Your kid huh?"

There was an uncomfortable pause on the other end and she knew he was second guessing his slip. He cleared his throat. "You gotta know Liv, whatever happens between you and me…I'll love that kid no matter what. He's yours, and…" he hesitated. "Anything of yours I would die protecting."

Her heart thundered. His words weren't about sexual tension, superficial desire. They were words of commitment to their partnership. Their friendship. They were words of affection and devotion. They were words of love.

"I wish you were here," she admitted softly.

He sighed, "me too Liv. Me too."

Silence passed between them, and the poiniency of their admissions floated through the air. Finally he cleared his throat and broke the silence. "I better let you go…"

"Okay," her voice answered softly.

"Talk to you soon?" His hope filled voice asked.

"I can't wait," she said before ending the call.

She stared at the ceiling for a while after hanging up. Elliot had called her weekly since his assignment began, and she had to admit, she enjoyed having a sounding board for parenting Noah. She had always done everything alone, and it was nice having someone else to give her a different perspective on things.

She rolled out of bed and padded down the hallway to peek in on Noah before she settled in for the night.

Her heart swelled when she found the little white kitten curled into a ball on the bed near Noah's chest. Damn it, she thought. They apparently had a new cat.

As she watched the pair sleep she realized she knew the cat's name. Karma. Because what goes around comes around, and Noah only put good into the world and her life. He deserved all the good things that would come back to him.