After All This Time

I Got You

Elliot sighed softly as he walked further into the room and sat next to Eli on the bed. "You know you can talk to me, bud. I'm always here for you, no matter what."

Eli hesitated for a moment before he responded. "I just miss her so much." He confessed as tears pooled in his eyes.

Elliot tried not to cry as he took his son into his arms and held him close. "I know you do. I'm so sorry, buddy." He whispered. "She'll always be with you, though. In your heart. As corny as that might sound." He joked, trying to lighten the mood a little.

Eli smiled lightly then hesitated for a moment again before he spoke. "I wasn't sure if I was gonna tell you or not but...I had a dream about her the other night and she said that. That she'll always be with me in my heart." He whispered.

Elliot smiled softly. "It's true." He whispered as he rubbed his son's shoulder. Then, they pulled back from the hug. "How 'bout some breakfast?"

Eli smiled and nodded as he followed Elliot out of the room to join everyone else. He just prayed that he would be able to get through the day without breaking down completely.

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"Ready to go?" Olivia asked once they finished their breakfast and got ready to go to the park.

"Ready!" Noah replied as he finished brushing his teeth.

"Let's go." Olivia smiled as she helped him put on his jacket and shoes and they left.

A few minutes later, they arrived at the park and sat on one of the benches. Olivia was thankful it wasn't too cold out since the funeral would be outside. She tried not to think about it in front of Noah and make him sad. She wanted him to have a fun time with his friend. She was taken from her thoughts when she heard Noah's excited shouting.

"They're here!" Noah beamed as he watched Andrew and his mother, Paige, walk up to them.

"Hey, Noah. How are you?" Paige asked as she smiled at Noah and Olivia.

"I'm good. Hey, Andrew!" Noah greeted as the two boys ran off into the playground a few feet away.

"Well, okay, then." Paige said, laughing with Olivia as they sat on the bench together and watched the boys play.

"Noah was so excited for this. He actually scared me this morning because I went in his room to say good morning and he wasn't there. He was sitting in the living room looking nervous and when I asked why he was out there and not still in bed, he asked if he could hang out with Andrew. I was worried something was actually wrong." Olivia chuckled softly as she shook her head.

Paige chuckled with her. "Gotta love 'em." She replied with a smile.

Olivia smiled back. "Always." She whispered.

There was a moment of silence before Paige spoke up. "He looks just like you." She commented with a smile as she watched the boys play.

Olivia was taken aback by that comment but of course Paige didn't know that Noah wasn't Olivia's biological son. "I actually adopted him when he was almost a year old." She responded as she smiled.

Paige's cheeks blushed from embarrassment as her eyes widened slightly. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know." She apologized.

"It's okay." Olivia reassured Paige as she smiled.