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“Would you ever marry my mom?” Noah asks as Elliot is driving them back to the city from Woodstock.
The car jolts a bit in Elliot’s shock.
“Your mother has normalitis, remember? But honestly…Yes. I’d marry her tomorrow.” He answers simply with a small laugh, wondering if he should go deeper into that topic, or simply leave it be.
Noah makes the decision for him.
“You’ve loved her for a very long time, haven’t you? I can kind of tell.” The question and statement so innocent on the preteens tongue.
Elliot just stares straight ahead but nods.
“Yes, I have. There was a time when my wife and I were separated, stuff had happened with a specific case and it made me realize just how much I love your mother. Of course, I was the good Catholic boy and worked on my marriage instead, and maybe it was for the best.”
They reach a stop light and Elliot looks over at Noah.
“I hate how I hurt your mom. I never plan to hurt her or leave her — or you, ever again. Though, I do think had your mother and I pursued something back then, it wouldn’t have worked out. I think time and distance was good for us, even if I hated the way I went about it. It took a while, but we are stronger now than ever before. Now we are able to love each other properly without guilt.”
~~~~~
Later that night, after Noah is gone to sleep, Olivia and Elliot lay entangled in each others arms, breathing heavily as they come down from the high of their lovemaking.
Olivia looks up at him, a smile spreads across her face. “I have normalitis, remember?” She asks gently as she caresses his cheek. He looks down at her, confusion crossing his features.
“I’m trying to ask you to marry me, but I have normalitis, so I used my son to ask and feel it out.” She states, her cheeks flushing at her embarrassment. She knew it was a ‘middle school’ tactic, getting the best friend to ask your crush out for you, but she couldn’t help herself. Some part of her brain thought it was amusing, and Noah was all up for asking.
The brave, carefree preteen who still had life lessons to learn about asking such questions himself beamed with joy when she told her son the idea one night over FaceTime after enjoying a glass of wine.
“Do you still want me to ask Elliot to marry you? Cause I will.” the boy had asked his mother earlier that day as she sat in her office at work, having a moment to herself and using it to call her son.
Olivia barks out a laugh. “I forgot I asked you to do that. Actually, yeah. Find out what he has to say for me. You know I love him. It’s scary, but I’m thinking about it more these days. The first time in so many years.” She confesses, hand on her chest as if she was trying to stop her heart from exploding at the idea.
Elliot laughs as he shifts his body toward her, eyes locked on hers.
“Well, I already gave him my answer. How about you ask me instead?” He asks with a playful grin, challenging her.
She gets up and pushes him to his back, straddling him and smiling shyly at him.
“Elliot Stabler, will you make me the happiest woman on the planet and be my husband?”
Elliot grins widely, his heart thumping out of his chest.
“Can I marry you tomorrow?”
Olivia’s eyes widen, she removes herself from her position on top of Elliot, removing herself from their bed as she gets her robe and leaves the room.
Elliot panics, thinking he’s gone too far, until she returns to the room, phone in hand with her calling someone on speaker.
“Liv? Everything alright?” Fin asks as he answers the call.
Elliot bites back a laugh.
“Yeah, everything’s good. Listen, would you be able to take care of morning meetings for me? I have an appointment tomorrow I completely forgot about and it cannot be canceled.” Olivia requests gently, not believing how easy this fib is coming off.
“You and Elliot are staying up late tonight, huh?” Fin quips with a smirk in his tone.
Olivia laughs at that. Nobody besides Noah knows her and Elliot are even together. They’ve been hiding their relationship and the fact that they practically live together for months in an attempt to take things slow.
Though she knew tomorrow, if she told Fin about what the appointment really was, she’d be called out on their ‘Taking things slow’ bullshit.
She smiles as she thinks about the banter she was surely in for, knowing Fin would be more than happy to hear their news.
“You wish. Thanks Fin, love you.” She says before hanging up.
She gets back in the bed and smiles at the man laying there waiting for her.
“So, becoming Mrs. Olivia Benson-Stabler tomorrow, huh? I love the sound of that” She says as she cups Elliot’s cheeks, pulling him in to a loving, passionate kiss.