Chapter Text
After putting Noah to bed, Olivia came back out to the living room and plopped down on the couch next to Elliot. He had a beer in his hand and was watching some sports channel that went over the highlights of recent football games across the country. He was lounged with his feet on the coffee table and Olivia raised an eyebrow at him, making him grin and remove his feet.
“Gonna punish me, too, mama?” Elliot asked with a grin, and Olivia slapped him lightly on the arm.
“Not funny yet,” she muttered.
“Ok,” Elliot said. “So, how’d it go?”
“God, El,” Olivia began. “I am so fucking tired. I haven’t put him to bed like that since he was nine. He actually wanted to cuddle for a bit, even though he didn’t call it that. He’s exhausted, too. He’s carrying so much… I think I need to get him a therapist.”
“Probably not a bad idea,” Elliot said neutrally, taking a swig of his beer. “Wish I had gotten Kathleen one earlier. Could have saved some pain.”
“Elliot Stabler advocating therapy,” Olivia muttered. “Never thought I’d see the day.”
“Well, in our younger years, I think we both had some preconceptions,” Elliot observed. “Me because of my mom, you… I don’t know, but I remember a few cases involving mental illness you pushed pretty hard in. You hated that one lady, Rebecca Hendrix? The one who consulted on a few cases when Huang couldn’t.”
Olivia laughed out loud at that and said, “I didn’t hate her because she was a psychiatrist. I hated her because of how she looked at you.”
Elliot chuckled and said, “You never had anything to worry about. You know, I actually saw her for some anger management way back in the day.”
“Really?” Olivia asked. That was truly surprising to her.
“I felt myself slipping, losing the barriers that kept things in check. It was brief, but it helped,” Elliot mused.
“And yet you were so resistant after what happened with Kathy,” Olivia said softly.
“I didn’t want to lose my edge right away after that,” Elliot reflected, a sharp pain penetrating his chest for a moment. “I thought I might need it, and so much had happened between seeing Rebecca and losing Kathy. I was long overdue, I guess, but I didn’t want to get myself help. I wanted my anger, and I didn’t think I deserved help.”
“Oh, El,” Olivia said, grabbing his hand.
“It’s ok,” he said. “Things are different now, but yeah, I think therapy is a good option for Noah.”
Olivia nodded, looking at her hands for a moment. “It’s probably overdue for him, too. I think - I think I just wanted to be enough for him, you know? I think I wanted to believe that loving him, raising him right, would be enough to overcome his past. That was foolish.”
“Not foolish,” Elliot said. “You’re a great mom, Liv. Things just get more complicated as kids age, regardless of their past.. We’re ancient now, so it’s hard to remember, but adolescence is intense. I’ve just had a bird's eye view five times in a row since my own teen years. This is your first time watching a kid go through it.”
“Yeah,” Olivia agreed thoughtfully. “You know, talking to Noah tonight, it really hit me how right adoption was for me, how much I can relate to him. I wasn’t adopted, but I have at least as many questions as I have answers about my past, too. We talked about that a bit tonight. Neither of us chose where we came from, but I think we made the best of it.”
“Definitely,” Elliot agreed.
“And it’s so complicated,” Olivia continued, "because I know that all things being equal, no kid would choose adoption. Adults do. Kids don’t. Kids would choose a stable family, biological connection every time if they could. They wouldn’t choose the trauma that always precedes adoption in some way.”
“No,” Elliot said thoughtfully, “maybe not, but in less than ideal circumstances, they also wouldn’t choose an abusive family, a family unable to care for them, having no one when they lose their parents. I think what you’re doing, helping Noah find the connections he can to his past but still being the strong and steady mom he needs is exactly right.”
“Hard, but right,” Olivia muttered.
“Yeah,” Elliot agreed. “Hard but right. So… what did you decide about his choices in seeking this out - that fake ID, leaving the city without telling you?”
Olivia laughed a little at that, the other facet of this, Elliot’s focus on the traditional parenting aspect of this veritable minefield. Honestly, Olivia had been tempted to avoid any punishment discussion given the emotionally charged nature of what Noah was holding, but she knew that wasn’t right, either.
“He’s grounded,” Olivia said, “for the next month and a half, but it’s not a traditional grounding. We reached out to his dance instructor, and he’s going to spend the next six weekends helping teach a dance class for underprivileged grade schoolers. I figure that’s a better use of his time than being confined to his room, moping. You know? Giving back.”
“Yeah,” Elliot agreed, impressed at the strategy. “Yeah, that sounds a lot better.”
“He’s also not getting an allowance anymore, since he spent it on that ID. He’s going to have to look for ways to earn money, if he wants it - mowing lawns, getting a weekend job when he can, things like that. Then, he needs to put that money in an account I can access to see how it’s being spent. And, I’m going to check his phone weekly for a while.”
“Ok,” Elliot said. “That part’s always hard, but it sounds like you’ve got a good handle on it.”
Olivia laughed and said, “Even with one rather than five, I’ve had some experience.”
“I’m sure,” Elliot agreed with a smile. He wondered about her past experiences with similar but smaller issues. He wished he was there to hear about them, to help. Again, he focused on being there now, supporting her, listening to her.
They were quiet for a while, and then Elliot remembered something. “I forgot, Liv. I picked up a couple of extras at Milano’s.”
“Extras?” Olivia asked with a grin.
“Yeah, just wait,” Elliot said, hurrying into the kitchen. He came back out with an uncorked bottle of wine, an Italian red blend, and a piece of Godiva chocolate cheesecake, whipped cream to top it, two glasses and two forks.
“You know me too well,” Olivia said, smile genuine. She let Elliot fill the glasses with heavy pours and even feed her bites of the cake, as ridiculous as that felt. When they finished the cake and most of their glasses, Elliot leaned forward and kissed Olivia firmly, right on the couch. She tasted sweet, and he wanted all of her, everything she could give.
It didn’t take long for Elliot to find himself laying on top of Olivia, sucking softly on her neck and pushing his hands up her shirt. Olivia pushed her pelvis up against Elliot’s leg and he groaned as he felt himself respond.
Eventually, Olivia pushed Elliot off a bit and said, “Bedroom.” She didn’t think it likely that Noah would come out of his room that night, but she didn’t want to test fate.
On the bed, Elliot removed Olivia’s shirt and then pants. He never seemed to tire of the sight of her naked body, and her large breasts spilling out of a black satin bra hit just right. She moved forward to kiss him and rub his budding erection through his pants, but he shook his head.
“Let me take care of you tonight, Liv,” Elliot said, voice deep. “You’ve had a stressful day.” At the sight of her nod, he guided her back on the bed, pushing her knees up. Her panties marched her bra, and he spent time teasing her with his mouth over the soft barrier.
She released a series of soft moans and begged, “Stop teasing, El.”
He pulled off her underwear to find her wet and ready. He licked around her small bud before sucking it firmly into his mouth, flicking it repeatedly with his tongue.”
“El!” She exclaimed, already so damn close, she knew she wasn’t going to be able to hold back much longer. He gently pushed two fingers inside her, stroking hard, and she came after the third stroke, her legs shaking around him. As she lay panting in the aftermath, he took off his clothes and positioned himself over her, kissing her firmly again.
She grabbed his erection as he held himself over her, stroking it several times as he groaned.
“Push yourself inside and fuck me, Stabler,” she said directly into his ear, and he did. The sex was perfect, hot, satisfying, and comforting. They fell asleep in each other’s arms in the aftermath, despite the sticky mess they’d made of the sheets.
Olivia woke some hours later in the comfort of Elliot’s arms. She couldn’t see the clock to tell the time. The light told her it wasn’t yet dawn. Despite the terror, the brief trauma of the day before, she found she was content. Her ass was pushed against Elliot’s pelvis, and his arm was heavy across her chest, pulling her to him. She realized that she had done what she could for Noah the previous day. She was committed to continuing to help him through what could be a rough period of self-discovery, and feeling Elliot behind her, she realized she didn’t have to do it alone. Finally, she felt like the pieces of her life had fallen into place.