I began writing the story because I've always been saddened by the knowledge that Elliot and Olivia would never have children together. In addition, I wanted to show what a miracle adoption is.
The idea for this chapter came from my personal family experience. My niece was given up for adoption after she was born, and years later she came back into our lives, mostly to open, living arms. (Minus a couple of people who were jealous.) Her parents were very supportive of her finding her birth mother and family. They did the same thing that Ella's parents did that is told in this chapter.
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"Mom…why am I going to Uncle Fin and Aunt Phoebe's house tonight?" Olivia hated keeping all of this from Noah, but she wanted to figure out the perfect moment…if a perfect moment even existed. "Hurry up and finish your dinner. Fin will be here soon." A knock on the door elicited a squeal from Noah, who jumped out of his chair and ran to the door. He stepped up on his step stool to peek through the peephole. "Mom! It's Elliot!? Why is he here?" Noah jumped down and let Elliot inside.
"Hey Noah. How ya doin'?" Elliot moved further into the apartment, with Noah closely behind. "I'm great. I'm going to Uncle Fin's tonight. Do you and mom have a date?" Noah laughed at his statement when he saw Elliot and his mom smile and blush. "Well buddy, not a date date. We are just going to talk and get caught up tonight." Elliot gave a little wink to Olivia, and patted Noah on the shoulder.
Olivia's cell phone pinged, and Olivia started gathering Noah's items. "Hey sweet boy…Uncle Fin is downstairs. Put your shoes on, and I'll take you down." While she and Noah were out of the apartment, Elliot enjoyed looking around at all the photos of them scattered through the house. He always hoped Liv would be a mom, and now that wish brings him a modicum of sadness. She had already been a mom.
When Olivia returned, she poured a glass of wine for each of them, after which they sat on the sofa, and gathered their thoughts. "Do you know what Ella has to give us?" Olivia shook her head. "I'm not sure. It could really be anything. But I'm anxious to know." She took a slow sip of wine, and set the glass on the coffee table. Elliot reached out and stopped Olivia's knee from bouncing.
"Liv? Why are you so nervous?" Olivia didn't realize she had that nervous tick. "I'm not sure. Maybe it's the idea of all of us being together." A tear rolled down her cheek. "That is something I only ever dreamed about. I can't believe this is happening." Elliot took Olivia's hand and brought it to his mouth, and gave the back of her hand a gentle kiss. "This is happening. Our daughter." The weight of the moment overtook both of them, and they held each other's hand tightly, knowing they were there for each other.
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The serenity of the moment ended when there was a knock at the door. Olivia had left Ella's name at the front desk so they really didn't know exactly when she would arrive. They stood up together, and Elliot gave her a tight hug. "You ready?" Olivia nodded, and walked to the door.
Ella arrived carrying a larger bag in addition to her smaller backpack. Upon entering, she set everything down and wrapped her arms around her birth mother. Olivia held her tightly in the embrace, never wanting to let her daughter go. Elliot stood back taking in the beauty that was before him. The woman he loved holding their miracle daughter. After a few moments, Elliot couldn't take it anymore, and he approached his girls, wrapping his arms around both of them. Olivia exhaled and sunk her body further into the embrace, never wanting to forget the magic of this moment.
The three of them eventually pulled apart, and settled in the living room. Ella looked at Elliot and Olivia. "Thank you both for meeting me. It's really nice to be here." She began unpacking her bag and stacking the items on the coffee table in front of them. "I wanted to share all of these with you." Olivia scanned the items quickly, and looked up at Ella. "Are these photo albums?" Ella grinned, and continued on. "From the moment I was handed to my parents…my adoptive parents…they documented my life. Literally photos of every milestone and important moment. After I found out I was adopted, they told me they were making these photo albums with the intention of giving them to my birth parents one day."
Olivia reached out and lightly ran her fingers over the edges of the photo albums. She looked at Elliot as tears formed in her eyes. Elliot rubbed her back while fighting back his own emotions.
"I've always dreamed of this moment…sharing all of these with you." Olivia picked up the first album, and brought it to her lap. "May I?" Ella smiled, but wanted her to wait. "In a minute? I have a couple more things to give you first." Ella reached into her bag, and brought out a few more items. Olivia saw what was sitting in her daughter's lap, and took a deep breath that got caught in her throat. "Do you recognize these Olivia?" Ella picked up the first item, and handed it to Elliot. It was an infant teddy bear onesie. He held the tiny outfit in his large hands like it was the most precious thing in the world.
Olivia exhaled and let her tears flow freely. "That's the outfit I put on Ella the day I handed her over to the adoption agency." Elliot brought the onesie to his face, and gently kissed the fabric before handing it over to Olivia. She took hold of the tiny outfit, as her body shook trying to hold back the flood of emotions she felt coming. Elliot scooted closer, and wrapped his arm around Olivia, comforting her as she took it all in. "I never thought I would see this again. Every time I thought of you…", glancing at Ella, "...this is the outfit I saw you in. I just can't believe your parents saved this."
Ella nodded her head gently. She had always been in awe of her parents for wanting to document everything for her birth parents. "They also kept this." Ella unfolded a pink baby blanket with butterflies. Olivia looked up to see the fabric in front of her. "That's the blanket I had you wrapped in." Elliot extended his hand and took the blanket from Ella, and placed it in Olivia's hands. She gripped the blanket and brought it to her face, and inhaled whatever baby scent was left. She closed her eyes and thought back to the precious moments she had with Ella, slowly rocking her asleep, wrapped in this very blanket. She took comfort in Elliot's touch as he rubbed his hand up and down her arm.
Olivia opened her eyes and looked at Ella. "You slept with this blanket every night." Ella smiled back, taking in the emotions she was witnessing. "My parents were told everything. That I was wearing that onesie when you handed me over, and that I was wrapped in that blanket. That is why they wanted to ensure they saved it to return to you." Elliot pulled Olivia into his arms as Olivia began to openly sob. He kissed the top of her head, and turned his gaze to Ella, speaking softly. "Thank you." Ella stood up and went to kneel in front of Olivia. Elliot pulled them all into a tight embrace, where they all let their emotions flow.
The three of them stayed in their cocoon until Ella sat back on her heels. She reached over to her bag, and pulled out one last item and placed it in Olivia's lap. A light tan teddy bear that brought a smile to her face. "Elliot", she said in a whisper. "Huh? What?" Elliot was confused. Olivia picked up the teddy bear, and looked at him. "This is the teddy bear I bought for Ella, and sent it along with her to the adoption agency. I named him…" Ella cut in quickly. "Elliot. His name is Elliot." He took the teddy bear, and held it close to his heart. "Thank you. Honestly, thank you."
After many more conversations and stories, the evening began to naturally die down. They had only gotten through one photo album…the most recent one. It was filled with photos of Ella as a teenager, playing sports and participating in school activities. She told them she wanted the two of them to look through the other albums together…without her. "I need to get going soon. It's late, and we have an early morning campus tour of NYU." Elliot insisted on driving Ella back to her hotel, but she refused. Eventually, they compromised that Elliot would pay for an Uber to take her back to the hotel. "Sorry to annoy, but I have to make sure you making it back safely." Ella and Elliot smiled at each other, enjoying their dynamic.
"Ella…would you like to have dinner with us tomorrow night? My kids are so anxious to meet you. And I think Noah as well?" Elliot looked at Olivia, who smiled softly while nodding yes. Olivia put her arm around Ella and gave her a gentle squeeze. "We would love for your parents to join us. We both are really eager to meet them." Ella said that her parents would like that, but she would check with them and text everyone in the morning.
After several hugs, and tears, Elliot walked Ella out to the street to ensure she safely got into the car service. When he returned to the apartment, he didn't immediately see Olivia, but he saw the glow coming from down the hall. "I'm in here", she said from her bedroom. When Elliot arrived at the door of her sanctuary, he leaned against the frame and smiled. Olivia was sitting on her bed with all the photo albums spread out around her. She was holding Elliot the Bear in her lap, and she looked up at Elliot with her deep chocolate eyes that took his breath away.
"Come on Elliot, let's get to know our daughter."
(The photo albums and onesie are based on my family's story. When my niece came back into our lives, her parents had made photo albums documenting my niece's life, with the intention of giving them to her birth mother. And they also kept the onesie that my sister sent along with her upon surrender.)