Prompt #62: "We should go back. I can hear the countdown."/ "Would it be so bad if we missed the countdown?"
Wrapped in Red, Wrapped in Love
~oOo~
His tongue is battling against her own, fanning the flames of her desire and love for him. Elliot's hands are wrapped tightly around her, keeping her safe, cocooned from the cold December air.
Well, December for a few more minutes. After that, a new year will be starting, a new month full of new beginnings and life milestones, January.
They are on the terrace of his loft, gazing at the stars and sipping the exquisite eggnog Bernie made for them. She's gotta admit, there was a time she'd never thought this would be something she'd have, warm arms to fall back into and a person to share the daily difficulties of life, her harbor during a storm. Happy endings and second chances usually didn't work out for her. It was a situation she accepted, a part of her life she'd thought she'd come to terms with.
That is… until she saw him again after ten years on that March night and everything changed.
Elliot returned and she may not have known it or realized it then but the little flame of hope she was harboring became a blazing pyre burning bright in her heart, guiding her, back to the way home, back to him.
It was hard, challenging, and emotionally draining. There were days she was cursing him for coming back and titling her whole world off its axis; there were others she could breathe easier cause he had returned. She knew where he was and she could contact him, talk to him if she wanted to.
Seasons went and gone, she turned him down many times, he pushed, she pushed back. It seemed like there'd never be light in the dark sad tunnel.
She was wrong.
Everything changed when she received her gold compass that May morning a year and a half ago. Elliot appeared out of nowhere and gave her the incentive, the force to search for happiness inside her. It was the second time he left and while the first time was a shot to the heart, this one was cathartic, healing in a way. This time his parting smile calmed her. His number was still in use, always there for him to be reached and he assured he'll be picking it up.
She went into her own identity hunt with her therapist and he was still video-calling his own. They talked too, countless hours, at many points. They discussed everything and nothing, discovered inner peace by only hearing each other's breath.
All these actions were all the more rewarding when he finally came back and she kissed him at the airport. The compass was around her neck, tangling in his jacket while she was throwing her arms around him and locking their mouths together. A journey of loneliness had just ended and another one of companionship was just starting.
From that point onward, they were inseparable, loving each other with the strength of a thousand suns and every day falling a little bit more in love.
Noah had adored Elliot instantly, her partner making her son smile and enjoy life to the fullest. Olivia sometimes stood and watched them together, her heart pounding, seeing Elliot's sparkling eyes while talking to her boy. She could tell he was emotionally invested, had seen that look with his own kids. She was pretty sure he considered him his own too.
Elliot's family also welcomed them with open arms. Bernie forming a unique bond with her son and surprisingly Elizabeth Stabler becoming his partner in crime.
"Hey, baby, are you still with me?" he asks, tucking a strand of curly hair behind her ear, his other arm squeezing her waist affectionately.
She shakes her head, the movie of the past year's memories abruptly stopping, tucked again in a safe corner of her mind. Looking inside, she spies their family in the living room, presents spread out everywhere, and the TV playing in the background. There's low Christmas music, Dickie and Kathleen doing a goofy dance to the side while Elizabeth and Noah practice ballet moves. On the couch, Bernie is in a debate with her older son Randall – which Olivia surprisingly liked when she met him last year — with Eli observing them, an entertaining smile on his face.
Her ears perk up as she sees the TV, realizing their family inside has started gathering towards the center, most of them taking seats. Shit. She hears numbers. "We should go back, Elliot. I can hear the countdown."
She grips his hand, trying to drag him inside but he doesn't budge, staying rooted with his arms weaved tightly around her. A sneaky smile graces his face when Olivia finally faces him.
"Would it be so bad if we missed the countdown?" he asks cheekily.
A giggle slips out, she can't help it. "Are you serious? Our family is waiting for us inside."
5
"Never been more serious, baby," he replies, smoothly rubbing her back lovingly, his fingers drawing small patterns.
4
Right in this moment, looking at Elliot's deep blue eyes, only calmness resides inside of her — an endless love threatening to overwhelm her, pouring out of every crevice of her chest. A love that no matter how much she tried to deny always came back stronger, stealing her breath and giving it back to her at the same time. He's her person, her one in a million. They are two parts of the same whole, two souls wrapped together. Olivia thinks in every universe they end up together, there's no doubt…no other lovers, no stubbornness and self-torture of their own making. Other worlds are kinder than this one, but she's elated this one turned out to be good for them in the long run. Life gave them a gift that night; it didn't seem like it but it was a unique one, wrapped in tragedy and pain on the outside but with so much love on the inside.
3
"I love you, y'know," he whispers seductively in her ear, his tone one that always brings her to orgasm in the throes of passion.
2
"You're the love of my life. Thank you for not giving up on me." It's a statement. A declaration of love, it doesn't get more explicit than this. She never said it to a significant other before and she never will. Elliot is the only one this title belongs to.
1
"Move in with me."
"Marry me."
The two statements are being said at the same time, unwavering strength behind the words. There's a hint of fear on Elliot's face but he keeps still, watching every detail, every single shadow passing over her face. His voice is sure, that doesn't mean his heart is. She can tell he's afraid of the rejection. It took a great amount of convincing himself to spill that out. He wholeheartedly knows she's not the one to accept a marriage proposal or get married but he did it anyway because he loves her and because he's hoping he'll be the one to change her mind.
He's right. If anyone would be the one to legally bind herself to, it would be Elliot. He would be the only one to give an eternal vow in front of a great entity she doesn't really believe in. She would do it for him, not for her. Relationships are all about compromise, giving and taking, it's sacrificing a tiny part of your self or values in order to fill the person caring about you with joy.
In another instance, Olivia would have screamed out loud, the raw "No" battling to get out of her mouth. This is a different time, different stakes. Her mindset has been structured by years of abandonment and hardships, years of loneliness where she ached for his touch and presence.
She can live without Elliot but she doesn't want to. He's everything. She and Noah found a bonus family in the faces of his mother and kids.
"Yes, I'll move in with you. Oh! And I'm gonna be a pain in your ass roomie." He smiles, cupping her cheek and kissing her softly.
Their family cheers inside, welcoming the new year in a ball of tangled limbs exchanging kisses and hugs. She can't see their expressions, the stars shining in their eyes but she can sense the love they carry. It wraps her up like a warm hug, showing her the moments still potentially to happen if she opens the door.
"If it were another man, it would've been No."
"What?" he asks, a quiet small hope shining bright on his face.
"If another man was asking, it would be a No. Make no mistake, I would've never accepted and this probably would have broken us up. But…it's you, my partner, my other half. You showed me you're here for the long haul."
"Always." It's a vow he takes seriously if the steel underneath his tone is any indication.
"So, guess I'll accept your proposal, Mr. Stabler. I do have some terms, though. I won't fold quickly and give you all the power. I'm a Captain, after all," she responds, taking the simple silver band he previously produced from his pocket and passing it on her finger.
"You definitely are, Liv." Twirling her around, her hands tightly around his neck while the snow falls majestically around them, Olivia is sure life from now on will be different in its own way. Still important, still loving, still infused with trials and tribulations that may come up but with a different magic — one that spells out eternity.
Holidays are certainly not so lonely anymore.
The author of this SVU - Heart for the Holidays story will be revealed in January