Olivia savored the feeling of the warm sun kissing her skin. She was leaning back on her elbows, an old blanket tucked beneath her, protecting her jeans from the damp ground. Her eyes were closed, and her head was tilted back, allowing the sun to warm her face.
She kept her ears perked towards the sound of the shutter snapping on Noah's camera. It was his insistence that brought them to the park. He wanted to use his new camera to photograph the newly hatched ducklings they encountered on their way home from dance a few days earlier.
Despite her all-consuming mental and physical exhaustion, she agreed to the outing.
It had been a long, cold winter, and she was grateful for the rays of sunshine finally breaking through the never-ending gray of the clouds.
In like a lion, out like a lamb.
That was the saying, but there hadn't been anything gentle about the month of March. It had barreled in with roaring force and maintained its death grip until the bitter end.
She wasn't thinking about the weather. Not really.
His absence, the Maddie Flynn case, and the resulting emotional spiraling made an already dark winter feel even more bitterly cold.
But today the sun was out, and she felt some of the darkness dispelling from her soul.
Her eyes remained closed when she felt him settle on the blanket beside her. She didn't need to see him to know he was there. Her body seemed to instinctively know his physical proximity to hers. She wanted to say it was an old habit, cultivated from necessity and survival on the job, but she knew better. It was like that from day one.
"Following me, detective?" She asked the question while her eyes remained closed.
She felt him shift his weight a little. "Nah. I do a long run on Saturday mornings." He chuckled. "I like the trail here."
It could have been a coincidence, but she didn't think so. After all, his normal running path didn't bring him this deep into the city.
"Are you sure a curly-haired kid didn't tip you off?"
He let out another breathy laugh. "I'm not going to reveal the identity of my CI if that's what you're asking."
She opened her eyes and rolled her head in his direction. "Guess that answers my question."
For a moment, she took in the sight of him sitting comfortably next to her. He had his knees pulled up with his forearms resting comfortably on top of them. For the first time in a long time, he seemed settled.
Without thinking, she reached a hand toward his face and ran her fingers over his clean-shaven face. "When'd you ditch the beard?"
She dropped her hand, and he ran his own fingers over the skin where his beard once was. He shrugged. "Seemed like it was time." His eyes flicked to her face with uncertainty, and he seemed to be seeking some sort of uncharacteristic reassurance. "It was a little itchy when I'd run."
"I liked it," she admitted. "But," she hesitated and let him sweat it out a little. "This feels more like the Elliot Stabler I know." And love, her mind thought the words, but her mouth couldn't quite form the words yet.
His signature cocky smile crossed his face. "Glad you like it."
She thought about teasing him and downplaying her response, but her heart was tired of denying and deflecting.
"I really do."
Something about his clean-shaven face made her feel at ease. At home. Some part of her felt like it was a sort of sign. Like he was shedding the persona he'd adopted to avoid the trauma of the past. He wasn't running anymore.
She sat up fully and nudged his shoulder with hers. They both remained silent, but there was an unspoken warmth in the moment. He turned his body towards hers, and his typical arrogant smile returned. "My friend Olivia," his grin broadened, "can I take you and Noah to dinner tonight?"
She returned his smile with one of her own. "Well, my friend Elliot, I think we would both like that very much."
Her heart stuttered at the joy written all over his face. "Yeah?" His voice was filled with hope.
"Yes," she affirmed.
Without another word, she scooted closer to him and laid her head on his shoulder. One of his hands dropped behind her and rested behind her back. She closed her eyes again and basked in the sunshine.
-000-
I have a cute scene written with Noah snapping a picture of the pair and showing Olivia later. I couldn't really make it fit within the context of this collection though. Maybe I'll post it as a short stand alone or something. Idk.
