Hi guys!
Another Jalen-centered chapter but of course, he's going to be talking to Olivia in this. This chapter was good to write, especially the conversation between Jalen and Olivia. But if you like this one, then you'll love the next one. (wink wink)
Anyway, enjoy Chapter 10.
Someone New - Ten
Throughout the day, Jalen was very much reminded of why he didn't come home much.
He loved his mother dearly; in fact, he was glad to see her smiling as she mingled with the various family members as they all came together to celebrate her birthday. There was a lot of laughter from her, a lot of happy tears, a lot of gossiping and just having a good time.
But then there were the other family members from his father's side, ones who were sometimes okay but also very close minded and a little ignorant. They were either overly religious and saying everything was "God's will" while simultaneously disrespecting anyone who they felt "wasn't of God", or they were stuck in this mindset that anyone who made it out of the inner city and made it big was "too good and stuck up." He'd heard a lot of comments - that's for sure: from homophobic comments that he had to shut down before Bailey heard it, or comments about him being a cop "in that big city", comments that didn't reflect pride, but instead disgust. In fact, he had an uncle who told him that he probably should have stayed around and focused on being a mechanic or working in the church, instead of working for "the pigs" of the city.
But perhaps what pissed him off the most was when one of his cousins brought up the case of Kenneth Cartwright as he had read about it, and his cousin then had the audacity to make the comment of "Hey Jae, wasn't you one of them cops that put that brotha behind bars?"
As if he didn't feel guilty enough about that damn case, despite the fact that it had been a good couple months or so now.
"You coulda helped him out." his cousin had continued. Jalen shot him a look and was about to light into him, which meant it was a blessing for the cousin when Jalen heard his mother call him over for something. He shot the cousin another glare before tending to whatever his mother wanted while trying to calm the anger that was bubbling within him.
Yeah, he was definitely ready to go home.
Throughout the day, he had also kept a close eye on Bailey. Though she had been talking with a couple of her cousins, there were also some moments where they seemed to be talking more without her and she would be looking down at her phone or playing with her anxiety ring - both of which were things she did when she was indeed anxious. He had noticed that her mother didn't talk much to her or check on her, something else that infuriated him but that he had to keep at bay. He didn't know if his mother wanted them to attend church with her in the morning or not, but if she didn't care one way or the other, he already had a plan to snatch Bailey up as early as possible and get them both back on the road to New York, where they both belonged.
As the evening and eventually night rolled around and family finally left, Jalen felt like he could finally breathe a little bit as he wasn't having to hold his tongue so much. He and his sister and Bailey helped with the clean up, though Jalen told his mother that he would get up early and break down the tables to load back into the garage. He also noticed that his sister Theresa did approach Bailey quietly and ask if she wanted to come home to her house tonight, and Bailey hesitated before politely declining to do so. She then excused herself to go shower after the long day before disappearing down the hall to the guest rooms. Jalen picked up on the disappointment from Theresa, and he fought the urge to respond with an "I told you so" laced comment. Instead, he pecked his sister on the cheek and gave her a hug when she approached, and Carolyn followed suit before they both waved Theresa off. Jalen stayed up and talked with his mother for another hour or so, then he too decided to turn it for the night as it had been a long day, and he was quite tired. After heading down the hall and checking in on Bailey first - and being pleased to find that she was settled in bed with her headphones on and was watching a comfort show - he headed to the other guest room himself.
By ten, he was showered and in pajama bottoms and a t-shirt for bed. He knocked on his mother's bedroom door to say goodnight again, and then he slipped into the guest room and shut the door behind him. He settled into bed and almost instantly grabbed his phone, his fingers seemingly moving on autopilot as he was eager to talk to the one person who had been on his mind all day.
He didn't even text her first; he tapped her contact and hit the call button straight away. The phone rang twice and then the line clicked; "Hey you, I wasn't expecting to get a call!"
Jalen immediately chuckled; "Ouch, so you don't want to talk to me?"
"I was not saying that," she was laughing already, and the laughter was like music to his ears; "No seriously, I saw it was getting later and I was like itching to call you, but I didn't know if you were busy and I didn't want to bother you."
"First of all, you're never a bother to me; secondly, I've really been wanting to call you all day…" he sighed a little, then he continued; "Tell me about your day."
"That deep sigh gives indication that you need to talk about your day first."
"You tell me first, Captain," Jalen teased, though he was partly deflecting as well; "Tell me everything."
"You're deflecting, but okay fine…" she replied, before then launching into an animated story about her day. She talked about how she and Noah had a lazy morning that consisted of comforting cartoons and Noah showing her funny videos on TikTok, then how they spontaneously decided that an afternoon of ice cream and a museum was a fun thing to do (hence the selfie of them having ice cream). Jalen's heart swelled as he listened to her talk about her afternoon with Noah; the way her voice lit up with happiness and love for her son. His heart simultaneously ached a little, as he wished he had been with them today.
He was starting to realize that he preferred to be wherever Olivia and Noah were, as those were his happiest moments as of late.
"It sounds like you had a damn good afternoon, I'm jealous." he remarked as she concluded her story, the smile still present on his face as he did so.
Olivia let out a little laugh; "It really was a good afternoon, we just wish you were with us…" she paused, then continued with; "No more deflecting though; tell me about your day."
Jalen smiled at her little comment; "I wish I had been there too, it would've been better than being here."
He then paused for a second to gather his thoughts, then spoke; "I'm going to start this by saying that I love my mom, and I'm real glad to come down and see her. She's the only mom I've ever truly had in the grand scheme of things, and I'll never forget that when she married my dad when I was thirteen, she wasted no time in adopting me as hers too. So, I'm going to say that to start, that I love her and I'm glad I can come down and see her."
"I sense a but coming."
"There's definitely a but in this," Jalen paused to take a quick sip of his water, then he continued; "I love my mom and I'm glad I can come down and see her, but I am so quickly reminded why I have essentially established myself away from here, in New York. Between my father's side of the family and my damn sister…damn I'm ready to come home."
"Yikes, I sense a story!"
Jalen let out a sigh, and from there he began recounting the events and conversations of the day; from the very start of their visit when Theresa gave Bailey the light hug that made Bailey feel anxious and uncomfortable, to the brief but tense conversation that he and Theresa had in the kitchen after Bailey left the room, followed by comments about his profession from family members who couldn't be just proud of him, and the homophobic comments towards Bailey that he tried to make sure Bailey didn't get wind of. He talked about how he and his cousin had had a brief conversation about the Kenneth Cartwright case since his cousin had read about it, and he talked about how he wanted to "knock the shit" out of his cousin.
"Again, I love seeing my mother, but I could do without seeing the rest of my family," Jalen began winding down his story, realizing he had been talking for a good stretch of time now; "I've already got it in my head that if Mom doesn't care if me and Bailey go with her to church, I'm snatching Bails up and we're hitting the road early."
"First of all, I'm glad you felt comfortable enough to share some of your family dynamics with me; that's tough to deal with," Olivia replied, her voice being just enough to ground Jalen once more; "I'm sorry that people are shitting on you for your career choice. I mean distrust in the police is valid, but it's a shame that your family can't see that you're trying to make a difference, to be the police officer that people can go to and trust. I definitely see that, anyway; you really are a good man Jalen, and you're one of the cops that the world needs; one that is there for the right reason."
Jalen couldn't help but smile to himself as he listened to Olivia's kind words on the other end of the phone. "I appreciate you saying that Liv; I really do. Sometimes shit like the Kenneth Cartwright case gets to me - as it has been doing for the last couple months - and I just lose sight of the fact that I really did get into this profession to try and make a difference. What matters the most I guess is that people that have genuinely taken time to understand my reasons for taking this route can see that I'm trying to make a difference and do the right thing; you know?"
"Exactly that, because you really are trying to do the right thing while simultaneously seeing the grey area of life, and leading with grace and empathy, and that's what the world needs," Olivia remarked; "And speaking of leading with grace and empathy, you also do that with Bailey and that's the most beautiful thing to see. I'm sorry as well that her mom isn't being so nice to her. I understand it can be a little tricky to process that your kid is queer, but the worst thing you can do is shut your kid down or make them feel less than. It takes time to process and understand, and one of the best things you can do is educate yourself, and most importantly - love. You must love your kid regardless, so I'm really glad that despite this, Bailey has you and your mother fighting in her corner."
"Woman, don't make me cry or something on this phone," Jalen chuckled as he listened to her, though he really did have to deflect a little as he was a little emotional at her words; "Yeah, I don't understand my sister. It was like she switched overnight the moment that Bailey came out; they went from being peas in a pod to strangers, and Bails is just…she is such a sweet kid that doesn't deserve this shit, you know? I know she tries to play it off like it's fine but it's not fine, and I know she tries to overcompensate on everything so that her mother will give her some sort of acknowledgement. It's sad to see, really; I just try to remind her that she is deeply loved."
"And that's all you can do, Jae; is just keep reminding her that she is very loved and supported. Kids need to hear that." Olivia replied.
Jalen hummed in agreement before speaking again; "Liv, forgive me for prying, but you speak like you're speaking from experience."
There was a pause and her breath hitched, then she sighed a little and responded a little quieter; "Let me preface by saying I'm not trying to out my kid, and at the end of the day it's his place to tell you whenever he's ready or comfortable, but I will say that we had a conversation about a year ago. So yeah, I am speaking from the experience of educating myself, leading with grace and empathy, and simply loving him. I love my boy more than anything in this world and I just want him to be happy and his true authentic self; that's what anyone should want for their kid."
"That's definitely what anyone should want for their kid, and I wish my sister would see it that way," Jalen remarked; "Also, I won't tell anyone what you shared with me, and Noah won't know that I know. But I'm glad you shared that, and that as a parent, you are doing the right thing for your kid. I wish her parent would do the same but if she won't, then I will do the right thing. At the end of the day, she's the same person she was two seconds before she came out to me."
"Exactly that, she's literally the same person she was two seconds before," Olivia let out an exasperated sigh then continued; "I love how close you and Bailey are, by the way. Will I meet her soon so we can think up some bald jokes?"
Jalen had to let out a laugh at her question; "I hope I can get you guys to meet soon, without the damn bald jokes. Funny though, we talked about you earlier. It really started because she was telling me about her friend that is teetering on the edge of being more than friend, and I told her about you too."
"Oh? Am I also teetering on the edge of being more than your friend, Jalen?" she teased, a light chuckle escaping her in the process. Jalen paused and bit his lip; that voice of hers was sending shockwaves through him, as was the subtle flirting and the magnitude of her words. He knew she was probably teasing, but he figured he could match her play right now.
And he would do just that.
"I mean you might be, if you go out with me."
And there it was.
He heard her breath hitch, a slight laugh, and a quick clear of the throat. "Jalen Shaw."
"Yes Olivia?"
"You trying to admit something to me?"
"I think we've established that there's something, haven't we?"
"I mean, I guess…" she was giggling now, and Jalen knew he had her; "I swear to God I'm so glad you can't see me right now, you really have me blushing way too hard and I don't like it."
"I've officially turned the badass woman Olivia Benson into a giggling girl, and I'm here for it." Jalen was picturing how adorable she must look, and the image in his mind made his heart swell.
Olivia was still giggling a little as she began speaking; "I hate it, you are ruining my badass vibe. It's also just funny because I think Noah is picking up on something too; he told me last night that you're very nice and that you seem to make me smile."
"Oh wow, if Noah's picking up on it then I'm doing something right, because my ultimate goal is to make you smile all the time," Jalen remarked, though he couldn't help but be grateful to hear that Noah had noticed this too and was fine with it; "If Noah's picking up on things, that means you absolutely have to go out with me now."
"So you're just going to ask me like this over the phone?"
"I mean I'd rather ask you in person," Jalen teased back; "Okay seriously I'm not trying to freak you out but just know that I would like to take you out some time, but I would rather ask you for real in person and not right now during a late night phone call."
He suddenly felt a little self-conscious, like he had word vomited and flirted a little too much and potentially scared her. He knew that thought was irrational and that things were probably fine, but still a large part of him was hoping he hadn't put his foot in it and that she was okay with the idea of going out with him at some point. At least he put that in the atmosphere now, that he wanted to take her out on a date sometime.
There was a brief pause as she calmed down her giggles to try and relax some. She then let out a little airy sigh before responding;
"Well, I certainly can't wait for you to ask me in person."
And there it was; an indication that she was feeling this too, that she would indeed go out with him. His heart was about to beat out of his chest with happiness.
They both felt it.
Something new was brewing, and the smile on his face couldn't have been any brighter at the thought.
Jalen was up at a decent hour the next morning; around eight-thirty to be exact.
He and Olivia had talked on the phone for a good hour and a half on the previous night, it seeming that the acknowledgement that their bond was now taking a different turn had only drawn them deeper into conversation. He had gone to sleep with a smile on his face, and woke up feeling giddy as he thought about the way he would ask her out in person, the idea that she would most likely say yes. Then he would have to think about where to take her, because Olivia Benson deserved the best and he planned to deliver.
He was still smiling to himself as he finished dressing in a pair of sweats and a t-shirt, and as he strolled down the hall to the kitchen. He found his mother already awake and pottering around the kitchen; making strong coffee and toasting some bagels to team with the homemade jam she'd recently made. Upon hearing him approach, she looked up and immediately smiled; "Good morning, honey; sleep okay?"
"I slept pretty good, I think I was tired." he leaned in and pecked her cheek, then reached for a mug. Carolyn smacked his hand however and shot him a look.
"Sit down, you're a guest."
"Mama-"
"Sit down, Jalen." She nudged him. Jalen simply laughed but nodded his head before going to sit down at the small kitchen table. He whipped out his phone quickly to check; he rolled his eyes as he already had a message from Vincent about something work related. However, he had to smile when he saw a message from Olivia, sent about half an hour ago;
'Olivia B: 8:02am - Good morning handsome! I'm up way too early for a Sunday for whatever reason lol. Hope you slept well!'
His fingers danced across the screen as he instantly texted her back; '8:35am - Good morning beautiful! I'm up finally, gonna relax with my Mom for a minute then I guess me and Bails will hit the road lol. How are you? Did you sleep alright?'
"Alright here we go, bagels and homemade peach jam, and coffee." The voice of Carolyn Shaw captured Jalen's attention; leading him to put his phone aside as he stood up to quickly grab the plate of bagels from his mother so she wouldn't drop anything. They sat down together at the small table, and Jalen immediately began putting his cream and sugar into the coffee. He took a sip and groaned in delight.
"Wow Mama, I always forget how good this coffee is until I come home." He gave her a thumbs up, earning a laugh from his mother as she spread some jam across the warm bagel.
"Good, because I brought extra cans when I went to the farmer's market the other day just to send some back with you." She remarked. Jalen nodded his head and took another sip before grabbing a bagel. He and his mother engaged in light conversation over the coffee and bagels, just basking in the comfort of being together and enjoying this time to talk about whatever.
"So dear, I do want to ask you something and you don't have to tell me, but I'm going to ask…" Carolyn paused to take a sip of her coffee, then gave her son a look as she posed the question.
"Who's Olivia?"
Jalen was taken aback by the question that had been posed by his mother, leading him to look up from his coffee with a slightly shocked look. Carolyn was giving him smile, though it was clear that she was also very curious as well. Jalen let out a little laugh while glancing down at his coffee for a moment.
"You heard me talking, didn't you?"
"I promise I wasn't eavesdropping on purpose," Carolyn replied as she held up her hand; "I did hear you on the phone though. You sounded very light and happy, which was refreshing to hear."
She paused to take a sip of her coffee, then she continued; "You really don't have to tell me, but I am curious to know who this Olivia is that makes my son laugh."
Jalen shrugged a little, a shy smile spreading across his face. He figured he had already told Bailey about Olivia, so he supposed to that there was no harm in letting his mother in on this little development in his life as well. He took another sip of his coffee then he looked up again.
"Well, Olivia…Olivia's a friend, she's…a really nice friend," he replied, unable to keep the sense of peace and happiness out of his voice as he spoke about her. "We met a couple years ago just after I started working for the two-seven; we actually ended up having a joint case - like us, SVU which is her unit, and Organized Crime; so, we all had to work together, and she and I ended up bonding over sushi and organic smoothies…" He chuckled at the memories of early conversations with Olivia.
Carolyn eyed her son with a smile on her lips, it being clear that she could see that Olivia was special to him already. "Well tell me more then. She's a cop too, I assume?"
"Yeah, she's a Captain actually; so, she's got probably twice as many years on the force as I do…" Jalen explained. He paused to take a bite of his bagel, then he continued; "Umm what else to tell? She's a few years older than me, and she has a kid."
"Oh, wow she's a mother too? How old is her kiddo?"
"He just turned thirteen within the last couple months, but he's a cool kid."
"Father in the picture?"
"Damn Mom, you ask a lot of questions," Jalen laughed a little; "But I should have led with the fact that he's adopted."
"Oh, I'm following now," Carolyn chuckled as she nodded her head; "Well, I guess if we're talking about her like this, it means you like her?"
Jalen couldn't stop himself from nodding right away. He was unable to shake the feeling, so it was fair for him to admit it to his mother. "Yeah, I do like her…I like her a lot."
"Well, that definitely warms my heart to hear, sweetie," Carolyn remarked, smiling warmly at her beloved son; "You deserve some happiness and peace, so I hope this works out for you. Hopefully I'll meet her and her boy at some point, yeah?"
Jalen couldn't help but smile at the thought. The thought of something blossoming so beautifully with Olivia, and one day being able to hopefully bring both her and Noah home to meet his mother. The thought gave him such a warm feeling, and he just hoped that the stars would align and that this would be a reality someday.
He sipped his coffee then gave his mother a smile;
"I hope you will Mama, I hope you will."
I'm literally so beyond grateful for your support. I can't wait to post the next chapter for you all! Thank you guys, for everything! xo