Chapter Text
His ears are ringing.
He’s been in the hospital enough times in his career to know without opening his eyes that he’s in one. He hears the steady beeping of a heart monitor, distant footsteps in the hall, and a handful of background noises.
Then the pain hits him and he groans. Everything’s sore, from a dull ache in his temples to a throbbing in his leg. He groans and reaches a hand toward his head.
When Elliot opens his eyes, he has to blink a few times for his eyes to adjust. At first the light is obnoxious, but then he realizes the blinds are pulled shut and it’s actually not that bright in the room.
“Elliot?”
A gentle hand settles atop his and he turns his head to the side to see Olivia sitting in the chair by his bedside. There’s a bruise running down her temple, but she looks otherwise unharmed.
Still, it’s not enough to stop the panic that grips him and he suddenly feels more awake. “Liv. Are you-”
“I’m fine,” she assures him quickly. “The bomb did go off, but I guess it wasn’t as powerful as the ones before it. I don’t know. The bomb squad just said they had some type of equipment that absorbed some of the damage. It could have been a lot worse.”
He nods, licking his dry lips. Olivia notices and opens a bottle of water that’s sitting on the nightstand. She hands it to him and he takes a long sip from it, sighing in relief.
“You’re okay?” he asks again, nearly crumpling with relief when she nods.
“Yeah. Bumped my head, but nothing serious.” She looks him over. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I got blown up.”
“What a comedian.” She rolls her eyes, but the corners of her lips give way to the hints of a smile. “You have a concussion, a fracture in your leg, and some cracked ribs. You’ll be out of commission for a few weeks, but you’ll be back on your feet eventually. You’ll just need to take it easy for a while.”
“I just wanna get out of here. Get some rest in my own bed,” he grunts, shifting in the uncomfortable hospital bed.
Olivia laughs, shaking her head.
Some things never change.
He’s hated hospitals for as long as she can remember. Every gunshot, every injury that’s landed him in a hospital bed, he’s always begged to go home the moment he’s conscious.
“Maybe tomorrow,” she proposes. “They need to keep an eye on that hard head of yours before they let you go home.”
He snorts and scratches at the clunky cast on his leg. “We’ll see about that.”
“Of course.” Rolling her eyes, she looks down and realizes her hand’s still on top of his. A long breath escapes her and suddenly she feels exhausted, even as she lets herself feel relief that he’s going to be fine.
Elliot hears the tremor in the huff she lets out. “What is it?”
Even after all these years, he still knows her well.
Olivia starts to protest, but she knows he’ll see through it and she just sighs. Her jaw tightens a bit before she responds to him. “You could have died,” she finally replies. Her fingers grip his hand a little tighter. “
We
could have died.”
“But we didn’t.” His voice softens. He turns his hand over, letting their palms touch. Olivia’s gaze shifts back to their hands and she slowly laces her fingers with his.
“I know. I know that it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. We both made it out alive, and that’s what matters.” Her voice still clenches as she speaks and she swallows hard when a lump grips her throat.
Something’s still bothering her. Elliot knows by the way she refuses to meet her eyes and the way her grasp on his hand tightens a little. “Olivia…”
A breath catches in her throat. Olivia forces it out in a ragged sigh. “The entire time we were in there, when that bomb went off… El, I was terrified that I was going to watch you die.”
Elliot remains silent, hanging onto every word. He strokes her hand with his thumb and watches as she pauses, her eyes shining a little.
“And I don’t think… I don’t think I could have handled that,” she whispers. “Watching you die, having to tell your kids…”
“Come here.” Elliot motions for her to lean closer, and when she does he winds an arm around her. She doesn’t resist and leans into him, breathing shakily as she takes in his familiar scent.
She closes her eyes tightly and focuses on him, on his hand smoothing over her back and the thrum of his heart against his ear. It’s a steady beat, reassuring and reminding her that he’s here.
Several minutes pass before she finally speaks again, slowly raising her head from his chest. She takes his hand again and grips it tightly. Elliot reaches up and cups her cheek in his hand.
His thumb brushes at a stray tear, gently wiping it away. “I couldn’t have stood there and watched you die, either.”
She smiles ruefully and lets herself lean into his hand. “I guess we’re both still just as hardheaded as we always have been.”
“Yeah…” He smiles back, letting a sigh of relief pass his lips. “Did you stay here last night?”
She shakes her head. “I stayed for a while, but I went home to see Noah. I just… it was something I had to do. I came back here as soon as I took him to school.”
Elliot nods, understanding entirely. “You’re a good mom, Liv.”
She smiles a little and lets her thumb rub against his hand. “It helped. Going home and hearing about his day at school, ordering pizza for dinner… even fighting with him about fractions for twenty minutes.” She laughs, shaking her head. “It just helped after everything that happened yesterday.”
As she talks about her son, her eyes light with a warm affection that makes Elliot smile. “I know what you mean. After a bad day, when a case would hit too close to home or something, it always helped to go home and see my kids. Even if it was just long enough to tuck them into bed.”
“Noah still likes for me to read with him before bed. We try to read a chapter or two together before we turn out the lights. I know he’ll outgrow it soon, so I always try to be there for bed time.”
“At least he’s not a teenager yet. Just wait until that kicks in.”
“Believe me, it’s coming soon,” she chuckles. “He actually asked about you last night.”
Surprised, Elliot arches a brow. “What did he ask?”
“Well, he wanted to know what happened at work. I didn’t want to scare him with all the details, so I just told him we had an accident and you were in the hospital. So then he wanted to know what you’re like.”
“And?”
“I told him you were the most stubborn man I know,” she deadpans, but he sees the amusement in her eyes. “But I also told him that you’re my best friend. That you’re protective of the people you love and I trust you.”
At her words, Elliot feels his heart skip a little. “What did he say to that?”
“He liked that.” Her smile widens a little. “And then he started playing 20 questions about our friendship. He asked why we haven’t been on a date yet.”
Elliot’s eyes never leave her and he feels himself trying to fight back a goofy smile when he hears the suggestion in her tone. “So what did you tell him?”
“I said it was something I had to think about and then told him it was time to stop being nosy and go to bed,” she snorts, letting out another soft laugh. “But it made me think about that dinner date we were supposed to go on last night.”
“Yeah. Got distracted and forgot to cancel our reservation when I realized we were stuck in a room with a bomb.”
Shaking her head in amusement, she squeezes his hand. “I think we were both more focused on not dying than making it to dinner on time,” she teases. “But once you’re out of the hospital…”
“You want to do something?”
“I know you won’t feel up to going out any time soon, but…” Her face softens with affection as she brushes a hand over his cheek. “How about we have some dinner at your place? I’ll bring some takeout and a bottle of wine.”
Elated, he breaks into a grin. “This weekend?”
“This weekend,” she confirms.
“It’s a date.”