A/N: This is the third part to the last two chapters with the same title. This is a bit long but I wanted to finish this arc. I may do another chapter related to this eventually but I will have to see. I still have my two other stories to update. Rollins and Amaro start with SVU a season early.
When Hank and Olivia came back from their honeymoon, they looked at houses. They took Justin with them since he was going to be living there too. They found a house they all liked and Hank put a bid on it. That bid was accepted and then Hank had to get his house ready to be put on the market, which meant he and Justin needed to start going through stuff that they were either going to keep or give away.
Olivia had heard from Cragen that Elliot was going to be on Patrol in one of the other boroughs once he had passed his psych evaluation but so far, he hadn't done it.
A couple months later…
Justin was back in school. They were moved into their new house and when they weren't working, Olivia had been unpacking stuff, while Hank was painting the nurseries. They had found out that Olivia was carrying twins, one of each. Hank was nervous because the same thing had happened when Camille was pregnant with Justin. The doctor had assured him that both babies were healthy.
One weekend, Olivia was going through boxes of Hank's and found a photo album. Erin was over and Justin was helping Hank.
"Look at this."
"What is it?"
"It's a photo album with pictures of Hank. He looks like a model."
Then Hank and Justin came downstairs to get some water.
"Honey, what is this?"
"What?"
"These pictures. You look like a model."
"I was. I started modeling when I was 16 to help my mom pay bills and while I was in the Police Academy. My dad died in the line of duty was I was pretty young, so I had to do somethin' to help. I forgot I still had these. I just put photo albums in boxes."
"You were sexy then. You still are."
"Thanks."
Hank went over and kissed her and then Justin pulled something out of one of the boxes.
"Oh, wow!"
"What?"
"This is a video with Mom."
Justin put the video in and they watched it.
"Camille was pretty."
"Yeah, she was but I think you are too. I'm glad you're my step-mom but a part of me feels like I wanna call you Mom but I don't wanna make you uncomfortable. Those babies you're carrying are my brother and sister just like Erin is my sister."
"I'm going to leave that up to you. I love both of you as much as I love the babies I'm carrying. If you decide you want to call me Mom, I'm ok with that but if you decide you just want to call me Olivia, I'm fine with that too."
"Thanks for being so understanding about it."
"You're welcome. So, what happened with your voice?"
"I had a tube put in after an accident and I kept trying to pull it out. This is the result of that."
Hank ended up telling her about the accident. They finished watching the video and then Hank and Justin went back up to finish painting after Hank kissed Olivia again. Then Olivia's phone rang. She saw it was Kathy, so she answered it.
"Hey, Kathy."
"Hey. I just called to let you know that I filed for a divorce and of course he didn't take it very well."
"I'm sure he didn't. I'm sure I'll somehow get blamed for it."
"He's also not allowed to be a Detective anymore. He'll be on Patrol in Brooklyn once he passes his psych evaluation. If he passes it I should say."
"I heard that from Don."
I still don't get why he tried to make you look bad."
"Because he doesn't want me to be happy. He told me that I'd never have a connection to anyone like I had with him. He pulled this crap with saying I kept pursuing him and supposedly threatened you to make himself look good."
"You never threatened me and I told him that."
"Why would I threaten you? He's the one that threatened Hank. I know you felt threatened by me because of the amount of time I spent with him but I swear nothing ever happened."
"I believe you. He finally did tell me what he did to get you out of jail."
"Which I never asked him to do."
"I told him he should have been honest with me about it but I would have been fine with him helping you. He wants to see Eli but I told him not until he gets help for his anger issues. Dickie and Lizzie are old enough to decide and right now, they don't want to see him. Neither do Maureen and Kathleen. How's Hank?"
"He's wonderful. I'm no longer in New York. As of a couple months ago, I'm in Chicago."
"Wow! So, things are pretty serious between the two of you."
"Yeah. We got married before I left New York and we're expecting twins. Please don't tell Elliot."
"Why would I tell him? Congratulations! I'm really happy for you."
"Thanks."
"Do you know what they are?"
"A girl and a boy."
"Are you working?"
"Right now, I'm in Hank's unit taking calls until the babies come. They eventually want to start an SVU here and once they do, I'll be running it. I took the Sergeant's exam before I left New York."
"If anyone deserves that, you do."
"Thank you. I really appreciate that."
"Are you having a baby shower?"
"It's going to be in mid-November. I'll make sure to send you and the girls an invitation."
"Ok. I should let you go."
"Ok."
Olivia hung up and then she and Erin continued going through the rest of the boxes in the living room.
A couple weeks later…
Everything was finally unpacked and Hank had decided to surprise Olivia with a weekend in New York. Justin was off from school, so he and Erin were going too. Antonio and Al said they would be fine on their own. When the flight arrived at LaGuardia, they got their luggage and then went to get the rental. They drove to the hotel and got checked in. Once they were checked in, they headed over to the Precinct. Olivia was looking forward to seeing Don, John and Fin. When they arrived, there were a couple new faces.
"Hey, guys."
"Liv! It is so good to see you."
"You too."
"This is Amanda Rollins and Nick Amaro. Rollins transferred here from Atlanta. Rollins and Amaro, this is Olivia Benson."
"Voight."
"Sorry. Olivia Voight."
"It's nice to meet you."
"You too. We've heard a lot about you."
"This is my husband Hank and my step-kids, Erin and Justin."
"It's nice to meet all of you."
"You too."
Then Don came out of his office.
"Liv, it is so good to see you."
"You too."
He hugged Olivia and shook hands with Hank, Erin and Justin.
"How is everything?"
"It's great."
"You look great."
"I feel great. We're having twins, one of each, so I'm really excited about that."
"Liv, that is wonderful! Congratulations!"
"Thanks. I talked to Kathy a couple weeks ago."
"How'd that go?"
"Fine. She told me she filed for a divorce."
"Elliot still hasn't come to get his stuff. He thinks his demotion is all Tucker's doing but I had something to do with it as well. He doesn't think he did anything to deserve a demotion."
"Of course he doesn't. Nothing is ever his fault."
Don took all of them into his office, so they could talk. Then Elliot came in.
"Munch. Fin."
"Munch, did you hear somethin'?"
"Who the hell are you two?"
"Nick Amaro."
"Amanda Rollins."
"What happened to Liv?"
"What do you care?"
"She went to Chicago to be with that Sergeant, didn't she?"
"It's not our place to say anything."
"I'll take that as a yes then. When is she going to learn?"
"Learn what? Who blamed her for somethin' she didn't do?"
"If you're talkin' about Kathy filing for a divorce, that was all Liv's doin'. She wouldn't stop trying to pursue me."
"Bullshit! Maybe Kathy got tired of your shit."
Don heard what was going on in the Squad Room, so he came out of his office."
"Officer, get your stuff and get out of here! You're not supposed to be causing a scene."
"Go to hell! This is all your fault in the first place. You need to stop showin' favorites within this unit. Liv apparently can do no wrong in your eyes."
"She came to me and wanted a new partner because she couldn't work with you any longer. What was I supposed to do, ignore it? Your behavior towards her was inappropriate. You of all people should know that because it's what we deal with every day. You're the one who never seems to do anything wrong and everything is always someone else's fault."
Olivia heard what he said, so she came out of Cragen's office. She had her jacket on and zipped up, so her growing bump was covered.
"You have a lot of nerve blaming me for any of this. You're the one that threatened Hank. You're the one that texted me multiple times that night and then showed up at my apartment the next morning when I didn't respond to your many text messages. You asked me if I had slept with Hank and when I told you that was none of your concern, you asked if I'd go to bed with you. That was inappropriate. I went to Cragen because I didn't want to work under those conditions. I talked to Kathy out of respect to her. Then all of a sudden, you had a temper tantrum and accused me of threatening her, which I never did."
"I'm sure you told her to divorce me."
"She told me she was thinking about it but I had nothing to do with it because I simply don't care what happens to you. You deserved it, just like you deserved to be demoted."
"Are you with him?"
"None of your damn business!"
Then Hank, Justin and Erin were standing behind Olivia. Hank had his arms folded in front of him and he was glaring at Elliot. Both Justin and Erin were glaring at him too.
"Of course you are. Why doesn't that surprise me? You're always gonna compare all of the men in your life to me. You'll never be happy or find 'the one' for that reason."
"Trust me, this is the happiest I have ever been and I have found 'the one'."
Elliot then saw Olivia's left hand.
"Don't come cryin' to me when this relationship doesn't last, just like the rest of them. You'll be divorced just like me."
"I won't. Hank and I love each other very much and he treats me better than you ever would. Kathy should have divorced you a long time ago. You're the one that gets jealous whenever I have someone in my life. You need to quit that."
"No one is good enough for you, Liv. Don't you get that?"
"And you are?"
"As a matter of fact, I am."
Elliot started caressing Olivia's cheek.
"We could be so good together. Tell me you don't think about me when you're screwing him. You have no idea what you do to me."
"You're sick! Go to hell!"
Olivia slapped Elliot across the face as hard as she could.
"Stabler, get your things and get out of this Precinct!"
"Kiss my ass, Cragen!"
"Should I have you written up for insubordination and call Tucker? You are already on thin ice."
Elliot got his stuff from his desk, slamming things around the entire time and they he went to his locker. He got everything out of that, slammed it shut and punched it. He then punched Hank, knocked some of the files off one of the desks, glared at everyone and left with a smirk on his face. Justin and Erin followed him and Justin punched him. They went outside with him and told him not to mess with their family. Erin shoved him into the side of the car and then he took off like a bat out of hell. By the time they went back upstairs, Hank had ice on his face.
"Pop, you ok?"
"I'll be fine."
"What did you two do?"
"I punched him, Erin shoved him into the side of the car and we told him not to mess with our family. If anyone wants to arrest me for assaulting a police officer, fine but that son of a bitch deserved it for the way he spoke to Olivia and punched Pop. I'm not sorry I did it."
"At this point, I'd overlook it."
"I think any of us would.
"Liv, you ok?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. They're really kicking though."
"I wanted to slap him so bad for how he was talking to you."
"He's not worth it but I'm glad I slapped him and I'm glad the kids did what they did. Thank you both."
"You're welcome."
Hank took her back into Don's office and started rubbing her belly as he kissed her on her forehead.
"Better?"
"Yeah. Thank you."
"You're welcome. I just don't want you getting worked up. Do you think about him when we're together?"
"No, I don't. You're the one I wanted that entire weekend. I will admit that I was pissed at him that morning but everything we've had was real because we had an instant connection. I don't regret anything that happened that weekend here, that week I spent in Chicago or any of it. He's just being an ass, which is nothing new for him lately. I love you and I love our babies more than anything. I have never been this happy. Don't let him get to you. He wants to split us up."
Olivia kissed Hank as he continued rubbing her belly and then everyone else came in.
"If I had known he was just going to show up, I would have made sure you were safe from him."
"He's an ass! I'm glad I punched him. No wonder his wife divorced him."
"Yeah, really."
"He's always been an ass."
Then Tucker came in.
"Hey, Olivia."
"Hey."
"How's the new job?"
"So far, it's ok. I'm just answering calls. They may be starting SVU the first of the year. I may still be part of Intelligence but whenever a case deals more with sexual assaults, then I will take the lead on them."
"Stabler was just here."
"I noticed that. When I pulled up he was driving off like a bat out of hell. I stopped by to see if he ever came to clean out his desk and locker."
"I threatened to call you and I told him I was about ready to write him up for insubordination."
"He still won't get his psych evaluation done."
"Probably because he knows he won't pass it."
"And because he doesn't want to work Patrol."
"You're probably both right."
Olivia told Ed what Elliot had said to her and what he did to Hank. She also told him what Justin and Erin did.
"He's a dumb ass!"
"I second that, Tucker!"
"No arguments from me."
"I'm glad someone punched him. Sergeant, you ok? If you wanna file charges, I'll be more than happy to."
"I'm fine. He's not worth it. That piece of shit will get what he deserves."
Olivia went to the washroom and ended up breaking down because she was so frustrated. When she was done, she washed her hands and opened the door. Hank was waiting for her.
"I'm sorry I doubted you."
"I don't blame you. I won't deny I cared for him because we worked so closely for as long as we did but I have never thought about him in that way. Ever. I have never been as happy as I've been since I've been with you. He just wants to see this relationship fail. I want us to be together for life. I love you so much."
"I know you do. I love you too."
Hank wrapped his arms around Olivia and held her as she cried again.
"I'm beginning to think it was a big mistake coming here. I can tell you one thing, if Stabler ever shows up in Chicago or comes near you again, I'm puttin' him in the Cage or I'll bury him alive."
"Is this the side of you I don't want to see but I've heard about?"
"Yep. I just don't like people messin' with my family. I'm proud of the kids."
"I am too."
"I'm actually glad that you're at the 21st where I know you're safe. Even if I'm not there, I know Trudy will keep an eye on you."
"Pretty soon there will be more of me to keep an eye on."
"Exactly."
Hank took Olivia's hand and they headed back to the Squad Room. Ed was on his phone when they came back but then hung up.
"Everything ok?"
"Stabler was in an accident with a truck. Both vehicles burst into flames on impact and were fully involved by the time the fire department arrived on the scene. No one survived."
"Do they know for sure it's him?"
"The first cops on the scene ran the plates. Witnesses say the driver of the car was the one that caused the accident. The ME's office was on their way."
"I want to go with you when you go talk to Kathy."
"Of course."
"Damn! Karma is a real bitch, ain't it?"
"Yeah, no kidding."
"If he loved me the way he claimed he did, then why was he acting the way he was? I was almost afraid to be around him. We were both at Marlowe's office when Petrov was taken into custody and he seemed fine but he barely spoke to me."
"His outbursts of anger had been happening too frequently lately. I don't need that type of behavior from one of my detectives."
"He's pretty much the reason I'm the way I am with SVU. Why do you think I made the comment I did when I arrested you for the VanDyne murder? I expected it to be him I'd be arresting and not you."
"Trevor Langan pretty much said the same thing when he came to central booking to say he was my lawyer. He said he figured he'd run into my partner there and not me."
"I admit I can be a bit of a hothead and sometimes I like to do things my own way. I'm usually one of Internal Affairs' least favorite people but I'm trying to be better because of Olivia. If I had a female partner, I would never treat her the way he treated Olivia. When he asked Olivia if she and I had slept together after we went out to dinner and when she said it wasn't any of his concern, he should have dropped it but instead he asked her if she'd sleep with him."
"He then tries to put the blame on me by saying I pursued him and threatened his wife. He doesn't respect anybody except himself. It was always about his ego. I've gotten along a lot better with Tucker in the last few months than I ever have."
"I have too. He's the one that came to me about what Stabler was accusing you of."
"I had a hard time believing that you would do that but after hearing your side of the story, it was all too clear to me. Stabler always had to make himself look good and he didn't care who he hurt in the process. Liv, is right. It's always about him and his ego. Cragen made it perfectly clear that he didn't want him back with SVU. I figured movin' him to Patrol in one of the other boroughs would be better, so he didn't end up workin' at a scene with anyone from SVU. I had made it clear to him that once he passed the psych evaluation, he could go back to work. His family still gets his pension though."
"Usually with you, we're guilty until proven innocent."
"It seems like it but I take allegations against any officer seriously. I did with this, didn't I?"
"You did but you never liked Elliot anyway."
"That's no secret."
Don got a call and then Munch, Fin, Rollins and Amaro all left.
"Are Rollins and Amaro workin' out?"
"So far. Amaro reminds me a little bit of Elliot but hopefully he won't give me as much trouble. I wouldn't say that Rollins reminds me of Liv because there is no one that can compare to her."
"Thank you. I appreciate that."
Then Kathy came in.
"Olivia."
"Hey. I'm surprised to see you here."
"I figured you'd be here. You look good. Being pregnant definitely agrees with you."
"I'm looking forward to them being born."
"I think the twins were my worst pregnancy and Eli wasn't much better."
"Mine is already risky but so far, they're healthy. We had the amnio done. This is Hank. Hank, this is Kathy Stabler."
"It's nice to meet you."
"You too."
"This is Justin and Erin. Justin and Erin, this is Kathy."
"Nice to meet you both."
"You too."
"I got a weird call from a neighbor who works for the FDNY. He said El was in a bad accident.
"Yeah, actually, he was. I got the call from the first Patrol officers to respond."
Ed told Kathy what he knew and that they were waiting on the confirmation from the ME's office. Olivia could tell Kathy was visibly upset but it was probably more for the kids than anything else. Olivia took Kathy into Don's office and then Melinda came in. She told Ed it had been confirmed. Don said Kathy was in his office with Olivia, so she went in there.
"I don't know how Olivia really feels about all this. I mean the guy has been an ass to her ever since I came into the picture but she worked with him for a long time, so it's understandable if she's upset by what happened. She's a mixed bag of emotions right now anyway because of the pregnancy."
"I don't even know how I feel about it to be honest. I was his Captain for a long time but he's caused a lot of issues for me and the rest of the unit."
"This is the part of my job I hate the most."
"Which was probably why Liv said she'd go with you. I probably would have too. I think this whole thing with how Elliot was treating Liv actually brought her and Kathy closer. She always respected Kathy but Kathy was always jealous of her because of the amount of time she spent with Elliot. People can say whatever they want about Liv and Elliot but I never thought there was anything more going on between them. He got jealous whenever she'd be dating someone though. It's almost like he wanted to be the only man in her life. He told her that she was always going to compare any of the men she's with to him. I don't think he wanted her to find someone. I think deep down he knew his marriage was falling apart and he wanted to be with her more than she wanted to be with him. I'm glad she met you and this is the happiest I've seen her as long as I've known her."
"After my first wife died, I really wasn't sure I wanted to go through all this again but I'm glad we worked on that case together and I'm glad I met Olivia. Her biggest critic would have been this guy but he took to her pretty quickly, which surprised me."
"Like I said before, she reminds me a lot of Mom."
Olivia, Melinda and Kathy came out of Don's office and then Hank wrapped his arms around Olivia. Ed told Kathy that if she needed anything to call him and then he left. Melinda went back to the ME's office and then Hank, Olivia, Erin and Justin left and headed back to the hotel. All Olivia wanted was to be in Hank's arms. Erin and Justin went to the pool for a while. Kathy stayed and talked with Don for a while before she headed home to break the news to the kids. Later on, everyone including Kathy and the kids, met for dinner.
The rest of the weekend ended up going quickly.
A month later…
It was time for Olivia's baby shower. Melinda, Kathy and the kids headed to Chicago to join Erin, Trudy, Meredith and Lexi for it. It was the first time any of them had been there. They had arrived on Friday evening and went to get checked into the hotel before they headed over to Hank and Olivia's. When they arrived, they went to ring the doorbell. Olivia and Justin were the only ones there. Hank was working on a case. Olivia was upstairs, so Justin went to answer the door.
"Hey, Justin."
"Hey. Come on in."
Everyone came in and Justin took their coats.
"Dickie decided he wanted to come and figured you two could hang out."
"Sounds like a plan to me. I can show you around if you want. I have to be at work by 2 though."
"Yeah, sure."
"Elizabeth can come too if she wants."
"I might do that. You can call me Lizzie if you want."
"Where is everyone?"
"Mom is upstairs asleep and Pop is workin' on a case, which means Erin is too."
"How's Olivia doing?"
"She's worn out even by sittin' at a desk all day."
"Being pregnant with twins is a lot worse."
"I was actually a twin but my sister was a stillborn. Pop is a little nervous about this because of that. My mom died from ovarian cancer, so he would have had to worry about that with my sister too had she lived. I'm lookin' forward to being a big brother. He's gone to all the appointments with her and everything looks good on the ultrasounds. They just had an appointment today. That last trip to New York took a real toll on her though."
"I can believe it."
"She's blaming herself for what happened."
"That was not her fault at all. Even the kids had mixed feelings about all that. They supported my decision to file for the divorce but he was still their father. I just think Elliot didn't want Liv to be truly happy and he got worse ever since Hank came into her life."
"Pop and I didn't have the best relationship after my mom died but we're both tryin' to be better and our relationship has gotten better in the last 6 months that they've been together. My grades have drastically improved too. I'm not sure I want to go to college though. School has never really been my thing, so I may do the Army or somethin' once I graduate."
"What year are you?"
"Junior. I turned 17 just before we went to New York this last time."
"We graduate in the spring. Lizzie got accepted at Northwestern, Loyola-Chicago and NYU but I'm not sure where I want to go. I may do the Army thing too. I wanted to join before I was old enough but Dad wouldn't let me. I don't even know if I really want to do that anymore. Maybe I'll do a community college or something for right now. I'm all of a sudden the man of the family."
"Wow! Northwestern. That's pretty impressive. Loyola and NYU are good schools too. What's your major going to be?"
"Right now I'm thinking Pre-Med. I'm actually leaning towards coming one of the schools because I want to get out of New York."
"What type of medicine do you want to get into?"
"I haven't really decided. I've started watching crime shows on TV and they all deal with Medical Examiners. That looks kind of cool."
"That's what I do. It's not as cool as it looks. It's a lot of work to get there and once you become a Medical Examiner. You also have to have a strong stomach. You don't just deal with what happens at a crime scene. If someone dies at home and they've been dead for several days or even longer before the body is found, there are some pretty nasty odors. Sometimes you're only given a body part or bones and have to figure out who the person is based on what you're given. I had to do a lot of that with 9/11. Not only that, there is a lot of tests that need to be run. If there's a multi-vehicle accident with fatalities, you'd get called for that. Being a Medical Examiner is a lot like being a Detective because you can get a call at any time day or night and it's long hours."
"I remember Dad would get calls in the middle of the night all the time."
"I think if I hadn't become a Medical Examiner, I might have gone into transplant surgery."
"I still really need to think about it."
"If I can be of any assistance, let me know."
"I will. Thanks."
"Sure."
"Can I get anyone anything?
Justin told them what they had to drink and after everyone told him what they wanted, he went to get it. He then went upstairs to check on Olivia. She was awake.
"Mom, everyone from New York is here."
"Ok. I'll be right down. Have you heard from your dad at all?"
"Nope."
"They've been working on this case all day."
"I know how he gets when he works on one case all day. He's usually tired and cranky when he gets home. I'm surprised he went to the appointment with you."
"I am too. I told him if he couldn't go, he couldn't go. He made the time. Antonio, Al and Erin survived without him. I just don't want him so involved in a case when the babies come that he misses it."
"You'll have me even if I have to miss school."
"I really appreciate that. Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Justin kissed Olivia's cheek and then he went back downstairs, while Olivia went into the bathroom. After she was done, she came downstairs.
"Hey, everyone."
"Hey."
Olivia hugged Melinda, Kathy and the kids.
"How is everyone?"
"We're managing and quit blaming yourself for what happened to El. It's not your fault. He had issues for quite a while and as you know, were having problems for a while too and that goes back to even before Eli was conceived. Bernie said thank you for the invitation but she's getting over a bad cold and didn't want to travel. Not that she would have anyway but she sends her love."
"Give her mine."
"I will."
"I never wanted to be the person that broke up your marriage. I always respected you and the kids and I always considered you to be one of my friends. Like I told you before, when he asked me if I'd go to bed with him, I had to remind him several times that he was married. I wouldn't want him if you two had divorced or you were dead. I'd have to be completely desperate to ever go that route with him. I know you always assumed there was something going on and Dickie once asked me if I ever slept with my partner. I said no. I loved Elliot but not in a romantic sense. I would never love him the way I love Hank or our family. He couldn't understand that. He obviously wanted more. Working as closely as we did, we always had each other's back or so I thought and I appreciated everything he did to get me out of jail that time. Just because I decided I wanted to work with Hank during that case, that's when Elliot turned on me. Like I also said before, if I loved him romantically, I could have made a move when you two were separated. I did not. We worked undercover as a married couple many times."
"I know you two worked undercover a lot because it was part of your job. You've been more honest about the extent of your relationship than he ever was. I felt like I owed you so much for helping to deliver Eli during such a stressful situation. I consider you a friend too."
"At one point, I considered Elliot to be my best friend but he's the one that tried ruining my career because of his jealousy. I don't need people like that in my life. I'm glad you and the kids are still a part of my life though."
"We're glad too."
"Captain Cragen, Munch and Fin send their love as well and Trevor Langan said to say hello to you too."
"I usually try to talk to Cragen once a week or once every couple weeks. When did you hear from Langan?"
"I saw Trevor this morning. I was at the Precinct and he had come in. The boys said to give you their love and he had asked if I was going to be seeing you. I said I was headed to Chicago to see you for the weekend, since I was coming here for your baby shower. He said to tell you hello from him. I always thought he liked you."
"A Defense Attorney? Really? He's sexy as hell I'll give him that."
"I don't get how that man is still single."
"Me neither. Maybe if he had asked me out at some point, I would have said yes. Although I would probably choose him over Elliot any day. That would have pissed Elliot off for sure. When he was representing me after Tucker arrested me for VanDyne's murder, he came in and said he always expected to see my partner in central booking instead of me. He was never a fan of Elliot's."
"You can't blame him for saying that nor can you blame him for not liking Elliot. Some days were better than others."
"No, you really can't and I know. I don't know how I worked with him as long as I did. Truthfully, I don't know how Kathy stayed married to him as long as she did."
"Sometimes I don't either. I had started the divorce but he never actually agreed to it. I just got so tired of everything always being about him."
"That did get old after a while. I always had to hear about what was going on at home whether I wanted to or not. Usually the only child he wasn't bitching about was Lizzie."
"He was always bitching at me about something."
"Me too."
"He tried blaming me for Kathleen's issues. She gets that from his side, so how is that my fault? Nothing was ever his fault. I hope you don't mind Dickie tagging along. He figured he and Justin could hang out. They seemed to hit it off when they met the last time we saw you."
"I don't mind at all."
"Dickie and Lizzie, do you two wanna grab a pizza and go bowling or somethin'?"
"Mom, is that ok?"
"Sure."
"Don't stay out too late."
"We won't. Pop will hunt me down and kick my ass if I do."
"You got that right."
"Excuse my language."
"Don't worry about it."
"Do you two need money?"
"Don't worry about it. I have money for pizza and I work at the Bowling Alley anyway."
"Ok, great. Thanks."
"No problem."
Justin kissed Olivia's cheek and then the 3 of them left.
"He's a good kid."
"He really is. I wasn't sure how things were going to go between us but we really hit it off."
"When did he start calling you Mom?"
"After we got back from New York."
"I wonder if this is the start of a long distance relationship. She usually can't stand hanging out with anyone her brother hangs out with. They both have their own groups of friends. Both of them seemed to hit it off with Justin and she thought he was cute.
"Actually, Justin thought she was cute too. I doubt Elliot would have allowed it."
"I do too. What happens if they end up getting a little too close?"
"Mom, we don't even know if they like each other in that way."
"No but he could be the deciding factor on which school she chooses to attend."
"What does she want to study?"
"Right now she's thinking Pre-Med but that could change at any time. She has already been accepted at NYU, Northwestern and Loyola-Chicago. She said she's more than likely leaning towards one of the schools here because she wants to leave New York. I'm not sure I'm ready for one of them to completely leave home and be on her own in a strange city."
"If she would choose one of the schools here, she's welcome to come here whenever she wants."
"I appreciate that. Thank you."
"You're welcome."
"He isn't working tonight?"
"Someone else needed to switch nights with him, so he's off tonight and working on Sunday instead. He works tomorrow too. He works more hours on Fridays and weekends usually. He works 5 to close when he works during the week, so he has time to do his homework and then he goes straight from school on Fridays. He really only works on Wednesdays."
"What does he do there?"
"The rental counter mostly. He got the job right after we came back from New York but we told him that if his grades suffer, nothing lower than a C in anything, then he has to cut down on his hours."
"So basically only Fridays and the weekends."
"Exactly."
"Justin said he wanted to show Dickie around Chicago before he went to work at 2."
"That was nice of him to offer. Hank has seen a big improvement from the last school year, so he said he thinks that's my influence on him because I'm the one that's home more. Hank had gotten a call from Justin's Guidance Counsellor and they are very happy with his improvement so far this year. We went to Parent-Teacher Conferences and they are all happy with how he is doing so far this year. Hank said for once he was glad to go to the Conferences."
"I've seen a bit of an improvement in Dickie since Elliot's death. He's not constantly being criticized for everything he does."
"How about everyone else?"
"The only one we're not too sure about yet is Eli but he is only 3. The girls seem to be coping pretty well and Bernie seems to be taking it pretty well considering."
"It's been hard but we're helping each other get through it. My friends have been really supportive."
"Mine have too.
Everyone talked for a while and then Olivia showed them around the house. About an hour later, Hank came home. He took off this jacket and went to kiss Olivia.
"Hey, Babe."
"Hey, Honey."
"Hey, everyone."
"Hi Hank."
"How'd the case go?"
"We finally got the son of a bitch in custody."
"That's good."
"Where's Justin?"
"He, Dickie and Lizzie went to the Bowling Alley for pizza and bowling about an hour ago. He and Dickie are going to hang out during the shower. Justin mentioned showing Dickie around the city."
"Good. How is everyone?"
"Good."
"Us too."
"Glad to hear it. Are you up to goin' out for dinner?"
"Yeah, sure. Your babies are hungry and so is their mama."
"Let me go up and get cleaned up. Then we can go."
"Ok."
Hank kissed Olivia on top of the head and then he went upstairs. Once Hank was done, they all went out for dinner. After dinner, Hank and Olivia went home and everyone else went back to their hotel. Kathy let Lizzie and Dickie know that the rest of them were at the hotel, so they had Justin drop them off at the hotel. Everyone went to bed.
The next morning, Hank had gotten up, went downstairs and made breakfast after he went into the bathroom. Then Justin got up and went to the bathroom before he went downstairs.
"Mornin', Pop."
"Mornin'"
"I found out they want me to work all day today. I feel bad because I told Dickie that I'd show him around."
"Did you let him know this?"
"Yeah. They told me when I was there last night. He said he understood but I just feel bad. You know?"
"Yeah, I get it. Al was planning to take Lexi to one of the museums, since she didn't really want to go to the shower. I told Kathy I could take Eli for her, so she didn't have to worry about him and she liked the idea. Maybe I could take Dickie too."
"So, you're not goin' to the shower?"
"It's here anyway, so it's not like I need to be there to get the stuff home. We get the job of puttin' everything together."
"Oh, yay!"
"Man to man, what do you think of Lizzie?"
"I like her and I kind of wanna ask her out but I'm probably way out of her league. It's a little hard when I'm here and she's in New York."
"I anyone gets that, I do. Her mother seems to think that you could be the deciding factor on where she goes to school. Since you have to work today, why don't you call her and take her to breakfast?"
"I could do that."
Justin called Lizzie and invited her to go out to breakfast. She agreed and then Justin went up to take a shower, while Hank talked to Kathy about taking Dickie with them. Olivia had woke up, went into the bathroom and went downstairs.
"It's just us for breakfast. Justin is taking Lizzie out. He has to work all day, so I am taking Dickie with me. Justin feels bad that he has to work when he promised to show Dickie around the city."
"Thank you for doing this."
"You're welcome."
Hank kissed Olivia and finished fixing breakfast. Once it was ready, they ate. After Justin was ready, he got his jacket and left to pick up Lizzie. After breakfast, Olivia went back upstairs, while Hank cleaned up. When he was done, he went to join Olivia in the bedroom. They ended up making love before they went to take a shower. While they were in the shower, Erin, Trudy and Meredith had come over to decorate for the shower. Once Hank and Olivia were out of the shower and dressed, Hank kissed Olivia and got ready to head to get the boys from Kathy. He went outside and saw Justin's car. He saw Justin and Lizzie making out in the car. Hank knocked on the window and then he waved at them. He left to go to the hotel, while Justin and Lizzie went into the house hand in hand. Lizzie helped decorate, while Justin went upstairs. Lizzie snuck upstairs and then she and Justin made out for a little while longer. Olivia had come out of her and Hank's room and saw them even though the door was somewhat shut. She cleared her throat.
"Justin, you're as bad as your father and unless you two are ready for one of these, be careful."
"Got it."
Olivia went downstairs just as the doorbell rang. It was Melinda, Kathy, Maureen and Kathleen.
"Come on in."
Everyone came in and Olivia noticed that Justin's door was shut all the way.
"Excuse me."
Olivia went part of the way up the stairs.
"JUSTIN RICHARD VOIGHT, DON'T MAKE ME COME UP THERE!"
Kathy didn't see Lizzie anywhere, so she knew what Olivia was getting at. Olivia had come back down and then Kathy went part of the way up.
"ELIZABETH BERNADETTE STABLER, GET DOWN HERE NOW!"
Kathy went back down and shook her head. Olivia had her hands on her belly.
"Will you two please stop fighting?"
"Dickie and Lizzie fought all the time too. Do you think Justin and Lizzie are having sex?"
"Right before I came downstairs, they were on his bed kissing. I told them that unless they were ready for one of these, they needed to be careful."
"Liv, do you want me to go up there and kick his ass?"
"No, Erin. That won't be necessary."
Justin's door opened and they came downstairs.
"I'll call you."
"I hope so."
Justin kissed Olivia's cheek, kissed Lizzie and then he went outside to leave for work.
"Lizzie, what happened between the two of you?"
"All we were doing was kissing. I told him that if things go any further, I want us to be safe."
"He's a hottie."
"He is. We want to see where this is going to go."
"I really don't want you to be like me. Your dad and I were 17 when your sister was born."
"I know that, Mom. I know I eventually want to take that next step with Justin. How upset would you be if I didn't become a doctor?"
"Sweetie, that's your choice. I will support you no matter what you choose to do. If you still want to come here for college and so you can be closer to Justin, that's fine. It's not like you'd be completely on your own, since Olivia is here and she said you can spend as much time as you want in their home."
"Thank you. I really appreciate that."
"I also appreciate Hank spending time with the boys."
"You're both welcome. Justin felt bad that he couldn't show Dickie around the city and Hank offered to spend time with both boys. Al was taking his daughter to one of the museums, so I had a feeling that Hank was going to go with them."
"Dickie never had the best relationship with Elliot and I'm sure Eli wouldn't have either. Hank seems like he is such a great guy."
"He's amazing. I really lucked out when I met him. I can't wait for these two to be born and see him with them."
"Have you come up with any names yet?"
"We've discussed it as a family. We kind of like Riley Olivia and Spencer Henry."
"Those are great names."
"We knew we wanted Olivia and Henry as their middle names or we could also use my middle name, which is Margaret, for her."
"I think Riley Olivia sounds better."
"That's what I said too."
"Those are such cute names."
"Thanks."
They finished decorating and then they got the food out. They ate and had a good time. Olivia opened all the gifts and they had cake.
"Thank you to everyone for the gifts. We appreciate them more than you will ever know."
"You are very welcome."
"Thank you for inviting us."
"I wouldn't have had it any other way. Things could have gotten weird between us after what had happened."
"I don't blame you for any of it and neither do the kids. This was all on Elliot.
The girls all agreed with Kathy.
"I just never thought he'd turn on me the way he did."
"I think Bernie was about ready to kick him out of her house and she even asked me how I stayed married to him as long as I did."
"I've often wondered that myself and how I worked with him as long as I did."
"She even questioned that too."
"He only started acting like he was after Hank came into my life. It's ok for him to be married but it's not ok for me to be in a relationship?"
"That's basically what we all said. You know that no matter what happens and like I told you before, I will always be grateful to you for helping me deliver Eli. Thankfully he is too young to really realize what's going on."
"I'm glad I was able to help
A little while later, Hank, Al and the kids arrived at the house.
"Hello."
"Hey."
They came into the living room.
"Wow! Look at all this stuff."
"You and Justin get to put it all together."
"Al can help me take it upstairs."
"I'll help too."
Hank kissed Olivia and Al kissed Meredith and then the two of them and Dickie started taking the big stuff upstairs. They left the clothes downstairs, so they could go into the laundry.
"Were you a good boy, Eli?"
"Yeah. Ice ceam."
"You had ice cream?"
"Yeah."
"Did you have fun, Lex?"
"I always have fun with Uncle Hank. Dickie is cool too. He's a lot like Justin. Aunt Olivia, did you like all your presents?"
"I did. Thank you so much for your gift."
"You're welcome. I picked it out and wrapped it myself."
"Wow!"
"Mom said I can help with the babies."
"Yes, you can, since she will have them most of the time anyway, which I really appreciate by the way."
"It's no big deal. I watched Justin too."
"Camille was a teacher, right?"
"Yes. I'm glad Hank is happy again."
"Me too. Justin really took to you too, which I never would have expected."
After the guys finished moving stuff upstairs and everything got cleaned up, everyone hugged Olivia and then they left. Erin was the only one that stayed. Hank fixed dinner for the 3 of them. The others grabbed dinner and then went to the pool.
The next day, Melinda and the Stablers were leaving for New York in the afternoon, so Justin spent time with Dickie and Lizzie before he went into work and they headed to the airport. He and Lizzie agreed to keep in touch and they would try to see each other when they could.
The next week was Thanksgiving and then everyone got ready for Christmas. After spending Christmas with Hank, Olivia and Erin, Justin went to New York and spend a little bit of time with Dickie and Lizzie for New Year's before they went back to school, since he was able to get some time off from work. He had even stayed with the Stablers.
January 21st…
Kathy and Lizzie had come back to Chicago to check out both campuses again and she had decided on Loyola to major in Psychology. They had planned to visit the Voights while they were there. Justin knew they were coming in, so he asked for the weekend off. Lizzie was off from school on Friday, so they headed to Chicago and once they arrived, got checked into the hotel before they did their campus tours. Once she decided on Loyola, she had met with Admissions and discussed financing. They then headed over to Hank and Olivia's. Olivia had been on bedrest, so she was home. Justin was home from school already. When Kathy and Lizzie arrive, they rang the bell.
"Hey, you."
"Hey, yourself."
Justin kissed Lizzie and then he invited them in. Olivia was in the living room. Justin took their coats and went to get them something to drink as they sat down after they took their boots off. When Justin came back, he sat next to Lizzie and they laced their fingers together.
"Hey, Liv."
"Hey. What did she decide?"
"She decided on Loyola and she wants to major in Psychology."
"I've been thinking about wanting to get into counseling."
"What type?"
"Maybe rape counseling but I may also want to work with kids."
"I will be very happy to work with you some day."
"I'm looking forward to working with you too. I know it's not an easy subject to talk about."
"It isn't. Especially for children. If you need anything, I'm here."
"Thanks."
"I'm glad you're comin' to Chicago."
"Good, since you're part of the reason."
"How are you feeling?"
"I'm ready for this to be over with. It could be any day now."
"I need to ask you something and you can say no of you want. Three weeks from tomorrow, which is the Saturday before Valentine's Day, we are having a Valentine's dance at my school. Would you like to go?"
"Yeah, sure."
"Great. I'll get the tickets. I also need to go shopping for a dress."
"We can do that or one of your sisters can take you."
"Also, Olivia, Dickie and I want you, your husband and Justin to come to our graduation if you can fit it in to your schedule."
"I'll probably want to come to New York, so everyone there can meet the babies, so I could schedule that for whenever your graduation is. I'll talk to Hank. If he doesn't want to go to the ceremony, then he can stay with the twins. If he will go, maybe I can get someone to watch them. I'm sure Don would."
Then Hank came in. He took his coat and boots off and joined everyone in the living room. He kissed Olivia and sat down on the side of the recliner she was in. They also laced their fingers together.
"Hello, ladies."
"Hey."
"How was your day?"
"The same as it always is. How were the tours?"
"They were fine. She decided on Loyola and she's planning to major in Psychology."
"Good for you."
"Pop, Lizzie invited me to the Valentine's dance at her school in 3 weeks and I told her I'd be there."
"Ok. Will he be able to stay with you again?"
"Yes. That's fine. He and Dickie got along fine when he stayed with us for New Year's. The dance is on Saturday and if he wants to come in on Saturday and just stay the one night, that's fine."
"We were invited to their graduation. I wanted to go out there anyway, so everyone could meet the babies. If you don't want to go, fine. You can still come with and babysit. If you want to go, then I can see if maybe Don can watch them or maybe even Melinda."
"Maybe we can bring Erin and she can watch them."
"That too. We still have time to think about it but that would be a good time to go out there. I'd like to go, since I have known them for so long and I was also invited to Maureen and Kathleen's graduations. I know Justin wants to go too."
"Ok."
"Pop, can I talk to you about somethin' for a few minutes?"
"Yeah, sure."
Justin and Hank went to talk, while Olivia, Kathy and Lizzie continued to talk.
"Can I ask something?"
"Of course."
"Justin and I have been discussing the possibility of taking our relationship to the next step sometime in the near future. With me turning 18 soon and with him still 17, how does that work? Would we have to wait until he's 18 for something to happen?"
"Actually, 17 is the minimum age of consent both here and in New York. Anything younger and then there would be a problem. Just please be careful. I'm not completely sure he's ready to be a dad yet especially while he's still in high school."
"I'm guessing you're not either."
"Not really but I know I want this to happen with him. I love him."
Justin and Hank had come in and Justin heard what Lizzie said.
"I love you too."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I knew it when we met."
"I think I did too."
"You wanna go grab a bite to eat?"
"Sure."
"I'll drop her off at the hotel later."
"Ok."
Justin got both of their coats and then they left.
"I have to say, that boy has really grown up lately."
"He's a good kid."
"Honestly, I think that has a lot to do with Olivia. He seems to listen to her more than he does me."
"Should I assume he was talking to you about the next step in their relationship?"
"He was, which kind of surprised me because he usually doesn't want to know my opinion of anything."
"I seriously doubt we would even be having this conversation if her father was still around. If he had his way, he wouldn't let her have a boyfriend at all."
Olivia rolled her eyes.
"Our entire family likes Justin. Even Bernie. The next 4 years will be the big test in their relationship, since they'll be in the same city."
"I never would have thought that Justin would have taken after me and ended up falling for a beautiful girl from New York."
"I have no regrets."
"Me neither."
Hank kissed Olivia and then he went to see what he could fix for dinner for the 3 of them. Once it was ready, they all ate. They all talked for a while and then Kathy went back to the hotel. Justin and Lizzie had dinner and went to a movie before he took her back to the hotel. He went home and Hank and Olivia were already in bed by the time he got there.
During the night, Olivia was starting to become very uncomfortable. She got up and went down to try to fall asleep in the recliner with her feet up but nothing she did was helping. Her back hurt and she was starting to have contractions. An hour later, Hank had woken up and noticed that Olivia wasn't in bed with him. He got up and went downstairs. He saw her in the recliner.
"You ok?"
"I think labor has started. I can't get comfortable, my back hurts and I am starting to have contractions about every 10 minutes for the last hour."
Hank sat next to her and started rubbing her belly.
"I love you, you know that, right?"
"I know. I love you too."
Hank then got on the floor and kissed her belly.
"Daddy loves you both so much."
"I'm looking forward to this being over with so we can make love again. It has been a while."
"I know it has."
They kissed again and then Olivia's contractions were now coming 5 minutes apart.
"They're now 5 minutes apart."
"I'll go get your stuff."
Hank went up to get Olivia's stuff just as his phone was ringing. He answered it. It ended up being about a case. He called Antonio and told him what was going on. He said Olivia was in labor and her contractions were already 5 minutes apart. Antonio said he, Erin and Al had everything under control but to keep them informed about what was going on with Olivia. He said he would. He hung up and went downstairs. Olivia was having another contraction and had her hands on her belly.
"I got a call about a case. I called Antonio and told him you were in labor. He said he, Erin and Al had everything under control."
"Good. I was hoping that when this did happen, you wouldn't be at work."
Hank's phone rang again. This time it was Erin. She wanted to know how Olivia was. Then Hank hung up.
"That was the big sister checkin' in."
"Good."
Then Olivia's water broke.
"My water just broke."
"Ok. Let me go tell Justin."
Hank went upstairs to let Justin know what was going on. Justin got up, put some clothes on and then he drove them to the hospital. Hank called the doctor on the way. By the time they arrived, there was a wheel chair waiting for her and then she was taken in to get registered, while Justin went to park the car. Once she was registered, she was taken up to her room. The doctor then came into check her out. She was already at 4cm but it could still be a while. Justin found them.
"Do you need me to contact anyone? Erin? Al?"
"They already know. I got a call about a case and called Antonio. Erin called me and wanted to know how things were going. She is already at 4cm but said it could still be a while."
"I just want this over with."
"I know, Babe."
Hank kissed Olivia and then she had another contraction. He took her hand and allowed her to squeeze it as tightly as she wanted. He assured her they were in this together. Justin went to the waiting room and fell asleep. A couple hours later once Intelligence did what they could for the case, they called it a night and Erin headed to the hospital. She told Al and Antonio that she would let them know when the babies arrived. Al said they may come whether Olivia had given birth yet or not. When she arrived, she went straight to the waiting room and saw Justin. As soon as she sat down next to her brother, she pretty much fell asleep.
Around 8 o'clock in the morning, Riley Olivia and Spencer Henry came into the world. They were both placed on Olivia's chest and then they were taken to get weighed. They both weighed just over 6 pounds. They were bought back to Olivia's room and then Hank took them to meet Justin. Little did he know was that there were more people than Justin in the waiting room. Erin, Antonio, the Olinskys, Trudy, Lizzie and Kathy were all there.
"This is Riley Olivia and Spencer Henry."
"They're beautiful."
"Thanks.
"How's Mom?"
"She's exhausted. She fell asleep pretty much right away after they brought her back to her room. I have her phone, so we can send pictures to her friends in New York. I think besides Cragen, Munch and Melinda, she mentioned Trevor Langan and Tucker too. The Stablers were originally on that list but since some of them are here, we don't need to include them."
"I'll send pictures to Dickie and the girls. They are beautiful."
"Thanks."
"You did good, Hank."
"Thanks, Trudy."
"Congratulations, Man!"
"Thanks, Al."
"They are precious."
"Thanks."
He told them their weights and lengths and then everyone took pictures of the babies. Erin ended up taking them with her phone, Hank's phone and Olivia's phone. Erin took Riley and Justin took Spencer. Hank took pictures of his 4 kids with the 4 phones and then they switched. He then sent the pictures off to New York with their stats. Kathy sent pictures to Dickie and the girls. Justin said he was going to go home and grab a shower. He asked Kathy and Lizzie if they had had breakfast yet and they said they hadn't. Justin invited both of them to breakfast. Hank said he would probably go one and do the same thing but he didn't have a car, so Kathy said she would take Justin home. Justin left his keys with Hank and then they left after he handed Riley back to Hank. He and Erin took them back to Olivia's room and put them down.
"A year ago, I never would have thought this would be my life. I fell apart after Camille's death and I know Justin did too."
"I know you both did. I was there. Camille wanted you to find love again and she told Justin that if you ended up falling in love with and marrying someone, she wanted him to love that person the way he loved her and to not give you a hard time."
"Our relationship definitely improved after Olivia came into our lives. I've never seen him this serious about a girl before either."
"He's finally growing up."
"That he is. Too fast for me sometimes. He has become a lot more responsible too."
"I've noticed that."
"He has also been takin' his school work more seriously. Olivia is home with him more regularly than I am and gets him to get it done. I know the college thing may not necessarily be for him but I want him to at least consider his options. He can't work at the Bowling Alley forever. If he and Lizzie do end up together, she's plannin' to attend Loyola in the fall and major in Psychology, so she will probably be around a lot more. She's talkin' about becomin' a counselor for rape victims or children. Not that I'm sayin' that he needs to be the one to support their family because Olivia could be makin' more money than me someday if she decides she wants to climb the ranks, which I have no interest in but I would like to see him contribute somethin'. I hope he will at least take a two-year school into consideration. I know he has mentioned the Army too. He loves to work on his car, so even if he decides he wants to be a mechanic or somethin' like that, he can be makin' money while doin' somethin' he likes."
"No doubt. The City employs mechanics for the Squads or even a Car Dealership."
"Exactly."
They continued talking and then Erin stayed with Olivia, while Hank went home for a while. Everyone else had gone home too. Once Hank came back, Erin went home and Justin, Lizzie and Kathy had come back. Kathy stayed with Hank and Olivia, while Justin and Lizzie spent the day together. Olivia had gotten text messages back from everyone in New York congratulating them on their new arrivals. They were all looking forward to meeting them. Olivia nursed both babies for the first time
The weekend ended up going by quickly. Justin and Lizzie had a hard time saying goodbye to one another but would see each other in a few weeks. Lizzie and Kathy left for the airport for their trip back to New York and then Justin and Erin spent the day at the hospital with their family. Everyone else came to see them again as well.
By Monday, Olivia and the babies were released from the hospital. Hank had decided to take a couple weeks off to spend with his wife and their newborn twins. This was all a big adjustment for Olivia but she knew Hank would help her through it.
A couple weeks later, Chicago had had a blizzard and Hank was glad he was home with his family instead of out in the snow. School had been closed and Hank told the Unit to stay home, so Erin was with the family during the blizzard as well. They celebrated Olivia's birthday as a family and that next weekend, Justin went to New York to take Lizzie to her dance. Things between them were going well considering the distance but they decided they weren't ready for the next step in their relationship just yet.
Reviews are appreciated.