Prompt #40: During their years as partners, Olivia was always alone for the holidays, but Elliot did his best to share some of the holiday cheer. Now Elliot finds himself alone for the holidays, will Olivia be brave enough to go to him (or include him) and finally take that step after remembering the good old days. Healing, forgiveness, and holiday spirit.
Alone for the Holidays
~oOo~
"Mom? Where'd you get all these NYPD Christmas ornaments? I found this little box with the other decorations in the closet." Noah lifted one of the little baubles out of the box. "This one has Christmas 2000 on it. That's older than me."
Olivia swallowed back the sudden rush of emotions. She swiped at the tears in her eyes. "They were a gift from my best friend. He didn't want me to feel alone at Christmas. And at the time, I didn't have any decorations at all."
"None?" Noah seemed absolutely shocked. He'd never known a Christmas at their home without decorations. She'd tried to go out of her way to ensure he had everything a kid could possibly want during the holidays. "Wow."
"Yeah." Olivia pulled him into a hug when he looked at her sadly. "But I have everything I could ever want now."
"Did Elliot give you all of these?" Noah lifted up the box in her arms. "Is that why you didn't put them on the tree for so long? Because he made you sad, and they reminded you of him?"
Olivia eased back a little from the hug. "It's complicated."
"Are you in love with him? 'cause Uncle Fin says you are."
Olivia made a mental note to put Fin on weekends for the rest of his career. "It's…."
"Complicated?" Noah grinned up at her.
"It is. I do care about Elliot." Olivia glanced down at the box of ornaments in Noah's arms. She thought about her old partner halfway across the city on his own for the first time in a long time. Bernie had gone on a trip with Kathleen. The rest of his kids were spending the holidays with other family members. She hated thinking of him all alone. She knew what that was like. "Noah. How'd you like to spread a little Christmas joy? Elliot's on his own for Christmas. I'm thinking maybe we could surprise him. What do you think?"
"Yes." Noah shoved the box of ornaments at her and was off like a shot. "I know just what to bring."
It took an hour to gather everything Noah thought they'd need. Olivia carefully packed everything into bags to make it easier to carry. It was a struggle to get all of it out to the Tahoe.
Noah immediately queued up Christmas music for them. He sang and danced in the backseat while she drove. "Mom?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you think Elliot would come to my dance thing next week?"
Olivia knew Elliot would move mountains for her son. "I definitely think he would if you asked."
A bemused Elliot opened the door for them when they knocked. Noah bounded inside, handing off his bags to Olivia, who struggled until Elliot grabbed most of them. Her son was already directing where things should go.
The doorbell rang ten minutes later with the rush order tree that, by some miracle, Fin had helped them get. Even her cynical sergeant wasn't immune to Noah's puppy dog eyes. Elliot was absolutely enthralled by her blue-eyed boy, so he went along for the ride.
They decorated the tree. Elliot lifted Noah up so he could put the makeshift angel they'd made out of paper on top. They had too many cookies and watched holiday movies until Noah fell asleep on the couch.
"I have something for you." Elliot grabbed her hand, quietly leading her into the kitchen. "Wait here."
Olivia stood in the kitchen waiting for him. He stepped back in, placing a box on the counter, then reached into the cabinets to retrieve a bag of sugar. "El? What—"
Elliot slid the bag of sugar along the counter. "This is here in case you're tempted to search my kitchen for it."
"You're such a dick." Olivia punched him in the chest. Her gaze darted over to make sure she hadn't woken Noah up. She gestured to the box on the counter. "What's this?"
"Merry Christmas, Liv."
Olivia remembered the last box he'd given her. She still had the necklace around her neck. She lifted the lid off the present and gasped in surprise. "El…"
"I wanted to add to the collection. I never imagined you'd bring them over to my place." Elliot watched her lift the blue bauble out of the box. It had an image of her and Noah engraved on it, along with the date. "Thank you for bringing a little joy into my Christmas."
Olivia set the bauble back in the box and gently placed it on the counter. She grabbed him by the front of his henley and yanked him forward. When their lips met this time, she didn't turn away or run from the moment. She melted into his arm and allowed herself to enjoy the moment. "You were right, El."
"Yeah? Had to happen once in our partnership."
"The compass led me to happiness." She pressed her hand over his heart like she had at the urgent care after being shot. "It led me home to you."
The author of this SVU - Heart for the Holidays story will be revealed in January