Chapter Text
Sitting on the little bench Olivia watched as Noah ran round the playground, it was a welcome break in her day when she found the time to spend an afternoon or so watching her son and have her mind taken off the horrors at work. The weather was perfect, the late September sun casting a warm glow over the city, the leaves on the trees slowly turning shades of orange and red showing Autumn was on its way. Noah was running around playing in the jungle gym. Standing up so she could see him a little better as he was hidden she stepped forward.
“Watch out!” a voice called.
Looking up she could see a little girl on a bike heading straight for her as if in slow motion. She didn't have any time to react before the bike careered into her sending her coffee flying down the front of her white blouse and the little girl wobbling falling off her bike hitting the path with a bump.
A man came running up to them.
“Kathleen are you okay”
“I’m Fine dad, but I think I spilled that lady’s drink. It was an accident I just couldn't stop”
“Its fine” the man smiled looking his daughter over “why don't you go and play over there and I will check on the nice lady”
“Okay” Kathleen smiled, running off in the direction of the jungle gym.
Turning his attention to Olivia he walked over
“So…” he paused, trying to read her face. “I am so sorry about that. She has only just come off her training wheels and is still learning about how to brake”
“Its fine” Olivia smiled dabbing at the wet patches on her top “so long as she is not hurt, My coffee didnt get on her did it”
“She is fine” Elliot smiled “Tough as anything is Kathleen” he said looking over at where his daughter was playing.
“That's good” she smiled watching as the little girl was playing with Noah.
“Can I get you a new coffee, make up for the one you are now wearing”
“Umm “ she paused, her job had taught her all about accepting drinks from strangers. At that moment her phone rang loudly from her bag."Excuse me a minute". Grabbing her phone she could see from the caller ID this was not going to be good,
He couldn't hear much of what she was saying but he had figured out that Coffee was not on the cards
“Right we will be there in a bit” she said, dropping her phone back in her bag. “Sorry, that was work I have to go”
“Its fine.” he smiled
He watched as she walked over to the sand box where her son was playing with his daughter and as they walked back the little boy crying as playtime at the park had been cut short.
“Maybe we could take a rain check on coffee, I feel bad, I know coffee is a must when running around after little ones” he smiled “Maybe I could get your number?”
“I umm” Olivia paused. “Sure” she said reaching into her bag pulling out one of her business cards, scribbling her personal cell number on the back she handed it to him.
“Captain Olivia Benson NYPD” he read the words outloud
“ Yeah” she half smiled “so what shall I call you? You know my name.”
“Its Elliot” Kathleen said coming up behind her father “Elliot Stabler and im Kathleen ”
“What she said” Elliot grinned
Olivia Laughed “Well it was nice to meet you Elliot, And you Kathleen i hope your knees are okay”
“They are fine, Bye Noah” she called.
Within minutes her phone buzzed in her pocket. Pulling it out the caller ID displayed an unknown number
“Hello Captain Benson” the voice came down the line.
It was louder than she had expected turning she could see Elliot on his phone
“Just checking you had not given me the number for a dodgy chinese restaurant in china town
She laughed “well you also had my work cell, and where I work”
“Could be fake” he laughed “anyway now you have my number so you know there won't be any weird messages”
“Okay I got to go now” she smiled.
Clicking on the number she added it to her contacts under ‘ cute park guy’
The walk across the park to where her car was parked took less than 5 minutes with a short detour so Noah could say goodbye to the ducks on the pond. She dropped Noah off with his nanny, Lucy before heading into the office. She grabbed a clean shirt that she always kept in her office in case of emergencies. The coffee had seeped through onto her under shirt as well.
“What happened to you?” Amanda asked walking in to her office
“A 6 year old on her bike for the first time with out training wheels and a hazelnut mocha”
“Sounds fun, was the kid okay?”
“Yeah thankfully and my coffee was almost cold as I forgot about it.” Olivia smiled butting up the last button. “Anyway what have we got”
“Incedent at Hudson prep. 2 Juniors have made allegations against several seniors. Fin and Carissi are at the house now trying to see if there is any evidence but give it was a party then it's just a biological soup”
“Right let's go and talk to them” she said, making sure her shirt was neat before re-clipping her badge to her belt.
Sitting in her office several hours later Olivia sighed she was trying to make sense of this case, their 2 victims had been lured to a party by the so called popular girls in the school where boys in the senior class had assaulted them and left them in an abandoned house.
They would be speaking to the school on Monday as it was a Saturday. This was awkward but the girls couldn't give any more information other than they had been invited to the party by a girl called Savannah Grace. The girls who had not been part of the in crowd throughout the whole of middle school had gone excited to be included in something not realising it was a cruel prank.
“You look like you need a caffeine boost” a voice came from the door
Looking up she was surprised to see Elliot standing at the door
“Umm Hi” she said, rearranging the papers on her desk covering all the sensitive information “what are you… how did you find…”
“Your precinct is on your business card” he smiled “and I thought you may need a coffee fix about now, considering most of your other one is went all over you”
“Thank you” she smiled, taking the extra large cup. And taking a sip, somehow he had gotten her the perfect order, a hazelnut mocha latte with extra hazelnut. “This is perfect just what I need.”
“Good, I also wanted to ask if you wanted to go for dinner”
“Cap we have someth…” Amanda said walking in “oh hello sorry i didnt realise you had company…”
“I was just leaving.” Elliot said softly
“Thanks for the coffee. I’ll message you about that other thing” Olivia smiled watching as he left
“Who was that” Amanda said watching as Elliot walked up the corridor her eyes scanning him from behind
“Remember how I said I had an accident involving a 6 year old on a bike this morning, well that was her father,”
“And he is already bringing you coffee and asking you to dinner”
“He offered earlier but i was called in” olivia sighed “What was it that you actually wanted” she said trying to change the subject
“Oh yeah as suspected the house was DNA soup but techs did manage to pull DNA from the mattress, they are running it now”
“Thats good.”
“So are you going to go for dinner?” Amanda asked
“With the man I just met in the park?”
“Why not he is gorgeous”
“Amanda” Olivia sighed
“Come on Liv, it's been 2 years. You deserve some happiness”
“Dont,” Olivia turned looking at the photo on her desk, the three people in the frame looked so happy.
Lying on the bed Next to Noah Olivia turned the page of the book
"Where are you going, little brown mouse, come and have lunch in my underground house” she said “it's terribly kind of you fox but no im having lunch with a gruffallo….” her voice changed to a squeaky yet know it all voice
Noah laughed, “I like it when you do the voices” he said.
“I know.” she smiled “a gruffalo whats a gruffalo” her voice changed sounding sly and cunning.
“I made a new friend at the park today” Noah said proudly
“I know” she smiled the image of her son playing with Kathleen appeared in her mind
“Her name is Kathleen and she is in the 1st grade and she knows all about dinosaurs and everything”
“Does she” Olivia smiled it was always so simple being that little
“Yeah she was amazing” Noah said “can we see her again”
“Noah, it's a big city with lots of people. They may not even live in the city”
“I hope we do see them again. I liked kathleen”
“Okay buddy” Olivia said sitting up and pulling the blanket “time to go to sleep” switching on the star lamp next to the bed.
“Night mommy” Noah said
“Goodnight sweet boy,” she said, kissing the top of his head, before turning the main light off and heading out pulling the door closed with a soft click.
Heading into her room she pulled a photo album from the back of the wardrobe. She curled up on the bed opening the pages looking at the photos stuck on the pages. Her with Noah when she first brought him home, photos of Paris in front of Notre Dame and the eiffel tower it was a happier time she was happier she had love in her life and someone to go home to. Even after 2 years the hole in her heart was still as raw and it was missing a huge piece.