Unrequited

Chapter 4

"It won't take long," he pipes up stepping towards her. The movement catches her attention and their eyes are locked on each other again. There's something there. It's familiar and foreign at the same time. The air between them was thick with years worth of regret, anger and something else neither are willing to admit.

She's missed him so much and hates herself for it. He wants her to stay. That's evident. What's not clear is why. No explanations could make up for his absence for the past five years. Elliot Stabler had been filed under "been there, done that, moved on-well try to move on" and she needed to keep going in that direction. It wasn't worth reopening that wound. While her mind went through everything they were still there. Just standing. Staring.

God, he missed her. There was so much to say and although this wasn't the time he just needed to know that there would be a time. Sooner or later. Whenever.

Pippa cleared her throat and they both jerked their heads to look at her.

"Olivia actually has to get home to her son," she says pulling his arm back in her direction.

Son? She had a son?

He blinks rapidly letting the thought sink in. She has a child. A son. Motherhood was something she always wanted and now she has that. So much has changed. Cragen had never mentioned him.

"Yeah," Olivia jumps at the out she's just been given. "I need to get home my sitter is already there so....." she pauses not quite sure how to end this. "I will see you later Pippa. Bye Elliot."

"No wait." The panicked words are out of his mouth before he realizes it. She can't just leave. He steps closer to her, freeing his arm from Pippa's grasp. "Can you give me your number and we just....talk? Catch up?"

It sounds innocent in theory but her nervous stare quickly shifts to an angry glare. "Actually my number is the same. It never changed." There were things about her that had changed and her firm stance when she was angry was not one of them. "I need to go. Goodbye."

Before anymore words can leave his mouth, her long strides took her halfway across the restaurant. Olivia Benson had walked away from him but he was determined to make sure it wouldn't be for long.

"Noah one more story and then it's time for bed ok?" Bargaining with a two year old to go to sleep was not easy but Olivia had become used to it. The toddler's eyes rolled back in his head giving away his exhaustion but he was fighting sleep with everything in him. As she read him another story in a soft lulling voice, her hands caressed his mop of brown hair and he was soon drifting off.

"Goodnight stars. Goodnight air. Goodnight noises everywhere," she finishes and places a kiss on Noah's forehead. She tiptoes quietly to his bed and laid him down, careful not to wake him. Kissing him again, she watches him for an extra minute basking in his presence.

Olivia was still amazed that she was a mom. And that she managed to create a little family of her own.

"Good night sweet boy," she whispers walking to the door and shutting it quietly. Standing in the hallway, she takes a deep breath and leans her head back into the door. The day is winding down. There are some work emails to catch up on and a call or two to make but her mind shifts to the events of a few hours ago. The events she effectively put on hold until she got home and settled.

Elliot.

Elliot was back.

Elliot was divorced and on a date...with Pippa.

She shook her head trying to clear the pictures from her mind. Overthinking was her specialty in these types of situations. Breaking down the way he looked at her, his body language, what he said and with Elliot most importantly what he didn't say was something she needed to ponder.