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Rafael Barba huffed, he lowered his gaze from the window to the items sitting at the table. He regarded a picture of Olivia in her uniform and beamed. A sigh escaped him and he let his hand fall to his side, the other sweating in his pocket. He turned and walked to the captain’s couch, but found he couldn’t relax against the cushion.
Barba cleared his throat, hunched over settling his elbows on his knees. Rubbed his palms together.
Captain Benson’s office held her scent, it hit him when he arrived, he smiled in recognition. The air contained her energy, yet it wasn’t enough for him. He preferred Olivia’s office with her inside it.
Rafael ran a hand over his mouth, movements slowing as he sensed his beard. What would Olivia say about it? A smirk. If he were honest, he had grown fond of it.
His green eyes raised to the world outside her window. New York wore a beautiful night sky, the weather outside chilly but not unpleasant.
Barba observed the black purse on the desk when footsteps approached. There was knocking on the glass.
A man stood in the doorway, he glanced up from his cellphone and frowned. He spotted Rafael and the creases on his forehead deepened. “Hi,” he said. “Do you know where Captain Benson is?”
“No idea,” said Barba.
The man puffed, he shifted on his feet, glanced at the squad. “How long have you been waiting for?”
“Not long,” Rafael replied. He stood.
“Are you family of one of the victims?” prompted the man.
Barba scoffed. “Thank God, no. I’m a friend of the captain’s. Barba.”
Blue orbs sized the attorney from head to toe. The stranger extended his hand. “Stabler, Organized Crime.”
A tug in the back of Rafael’s mind, his brow furrowing. “SVU and Organized Crime working together? I hope you catch the bastards fast.”
Stabler smirked, shook his head, crossing his arms in his chest. “No, I’m not here on police business. Not today, Liv is an old friend.”
Rafael stood tall, he studied the man’s features. “Stabler,” he said. “As in Elliot Stabler?”
Their eyes met. “Yes, that would be me.”
“You were Olivia’s partner before Amaro.” the counselor went on.
“You worked with Benson?” questioned Stabler.
“I was an ADA for SVU for six years,” said Barba.
Elliot’s eyebrows rose. “Six years? That’s a lot. In my time we kept changing ADAs.”
“I heard as much. SVU isn’t easy.” Rafael said.
“It isn’t.” Stabler scratched his chin. “Why are you here?”
Barba put his hands in his pockets. “Stopping by to see Olivia, really.”
Something shone behind the blue irises, the detective lifted his head. “Benson has time to see anyone these days?”
“Captain life isn’t easy, but she makes it work. It’s Olivia, after all.” Rafael said. “I heard you had retired from the force.”
Stabler shifted, held the other man’s gaze. “I came back a couple of years ago, been working Organized Crime.”
“Did Olivia know?”
A stretching moment of silence. Elliot narrowed his eyes. “No, we hadn’t been in contact. How did you know about my retirement?”
“Your file came up one time IAB was around,” Barba replied. “I was leading an investigation in one of them for the DA’s office, checking their record with SVU. Your name came up.”
“Was it Tucker? That one had it out for us,” said Stabler.
“The situation with IAB changed after a while here,” said Rafael. “Unfortunately, Captain Tucker passed last year.”
The detective paused. “Tucker died?”
“Brain tumor,” replied the former ADA. “Shot himself. Captain was upset about it, but...”
“Benson?” questioned Stabler. “Why?”
Rafael blinked. “You really were out of her life, weren’t you?”
“Why?” insisted Elliot.
“It’s not my place to tell you,” said Barba.
“What? Is he the father of the boy or something?”
The counselor regarded the man. “You met Noah.”
“Yes, good kid. Thought he was Porter’s.”
Rafael shook his head. “Olivia has yet to catch you up, I see.”
“We’ve been getting to that,” said Stabler. “You seem to have been on the loop, though.”
“We’re good friends,” he said.
“Why did you leave SVU?” Elliot questioned.
“I needed a fresh start,” he said. “Why did you?”
“Family,” he shot. Barba saw there was more to it, but chose to let it go. “How did you make it? Benson lives for the job.”
Rafael shifted on his feet. “She’s dedicated, but since Noah, she has been trying to get balance in her life.”
“How close were you?”
The attorney scoffed. “Close enough, we keep in touch.”
“Benson doesn’t keep in touch with people.”
Barba shrugged. “A lot has changed since you were part of the unit, detective.”
“So it seems.”
Footsteps headed their way, the two men turned to the sound. Captain Benson watched Elliot with a raised eyebrow, but Rafael had her frowning.
“You were supposed to be out of town,” she said, beaming at him. “What are you doing here?”
“Came by to see my captain,” he replied.
Olivia faced Stabler. “Detective Stabler, I take you met Rafael Barba.”
“Yes, we got to talk,” said Elliot.
The captain passed to her desk. “Now, what are the two of you up to?”
“I’m not here for business,” Barba announced. He tipped his head. “I’m actually here to take you to dinner, we need to catch up.”
She opened her mouth.
“No. I called Lucy, she said it’d be fine,” Rafael said. “You’re not escaping me tonight, Captain.”
Stabler scoffed. “Wow.”
Benson faced Stabler. “And you?”
“Just wanted to let you know that we’re closing Kathy’s case,” he said.
She beamed. “Good. That’s very good to hear, El. How are the kids?”
“Getting better,” he replied. “Apartment search is the situation now, exhausting.”
“You’ll find something in time,” assured the captain. “Rafa, didn’t your mother know someone working real state?”
“I’ll get the detective his number,” nodded Rafael. He chewed on his bottom lip, faced Olivia. “I’ll wait for you in the garage, okay? I’m sure you have matters to discuss.”
He stepped out.
Stabler watched him, turned to Benson. “Dinner?”
“It’s our thing, we do it sometimes,” she said.
“Haven’t seen you befriend ADAs since Cabot, even her wasn’t like this,” he said. “His whole face screams ‘puppy’ when he sees you.”
“Rafael is a great man, Elliot.”
“And you’re not denying he’s into you.”
“That’s a discussion for me to have with him, detective.” she declared.
Elliot raised an eyebrow. “He didn’t lie, a lot has changed.”
“It happens, ten years is a long time,” she said. “I’m happy for you, Elliot, I am. I wish it could bring Kathy back, but… Go home, stay with Eli, it’ll be good for you.”
“And you?”
“I’m having dinner with my friend.” She grabbed her things. “Go home, detective.” Headed out.