Immature

Epilogue

Olivia Benson’s Apartment

9:30 AM Friday

Maureen knocked on the door to Olivia’s apartment and her father opened up.

“Hey dad,” she said as she hugged him juggling a bag of groceries in her arm.

“Hi sweetie,” he said to his eldest daughter as he took the bag from her. “Thanks for coming over.”

“No problem,” she said as she took off her coat. “How’s Olivia?”

“Liv’s up right now, but she’s sore,” Elliot said as he ushered Maureen into the living room. “She’s still a little loopy from the anesthesia too, so…”

“Well, I’ll get some breakfast started,” she said. “Now I hope Olivia’s not too picky an eater because if she’s that worried about gaining weight, I have turkey, soy, whole grain bread, and organic, fresh eggs.”

Elliot scratched the back of his neck. “I’m not too sure…I guess she’ll be okay with everything else except the soy.”

Maureen laughed. “It’ll be two years that you and Olivia have been together, and you don’t know what she likes to eat?”

“I know she likes Hoagies and foot long hotdogs,” Elliot chuckled. “I mean…we don’t ever really eat much…except when Kathleen and the twins are at the house. Otherwise, she doesn‘t really eat much at all.”

Maureen smirked as she took out the groceries.

She looked so grown up, which she was, but it became painfully obvious to Elliot that Maureen was no longer a little girl and that there was no rewind button to make sure that she stayed little for all eternity.

“Don’t you think it might be a good idea to take her on a real date?” She asked, and he leaned against the doorway.

“Olivia doesn’t like all that,” he said.

“That’s a cop out dad, and you know it,” she snorted and he frowned at her. “What? I’m just saying that, perhaps, when she gets better, you should go out on a dinner date or something. Just don’t call it a date. An…outing. Just to get to know her better. I mean, you know each other but you don’t know each other, you know?”

“Yeah, I get it,” Elliot chuckled.

Olivia opened up the door to her bedroom, and she began to trudge her way down the hall. Elliot immediately turned his attention to her.

“Liv, hold on,” he said as he went over to her.

“El, I’ve got it,” she said quietly with a soft smile.

Her hand was on her lower abdomen as she walked cautiously to the living room.

“Hey Olivia,” Maureen said as she went into the living room and fluffed the pillows for Olivia on the sofa. “How’re you feeling?”

“Uncomfortable,” Olivia remarked. “I can’t sleep in my bed…it’s too plush.”

Olivia sat down slowly and then reclined against the pillows, now exhausted from the effort and feeling dizzy.

“I hate this,” Olivia groused.

“That should be an incentive to sit down and try not to tire yourself out,” Elliot said. “The more you rest the faster this eight weeks will go by.”

Olivia groaned and closed her eyes.

“Are you hungry, Liv?” Maureen asked from the kitchen.

“A little,” Olivia said. “I think I just want some toast and fruit.”

“I can do that,” Maureen grinned.

Elliot made sure that Olivia was comfortable before he kneeled next to her on the floor and pushed a strand of her hair back behind her ear and kissed her.

“I wish kisses really could make everything better,” she said with a slight grin. “I miss staying at the house.”

“Yeah, but I want you to relax,” Elliot said. “Too much going in and out at my house.”

“But I miss Kathleen and the twins,” she sighed.

“I know,” he said. “I’ll bring them over for Thanksgiving, if you’d like.”

“Yeah,” she smiled. “I love you.”

Elliot smiled. “I love you too.”

“Even with one ovary?” Olivia joked.

He laughed and smoothed over her hair. “Yeah…you’re not less of a woman when things like this happen, you know that right?”

Olivia shrugged. “I guess…but, if we…take our relationship further and you wanted another child…I don’t know if I’d be able to give you that. I mean, I’m almost forty…and as you can see, my body…it’s not what it used to be.”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,” he said with a grin. “I’m just glad that you’re healthy, and that you’re a part of our family. That’s what’s important.”

Olivia closed her eyes. “So, are you getting a new partner?”

“Actually, Cragen gave me on yesterday,” Elliot mentioned as Maureen came into the living room bearing a plate. She handed it to him then he gave it to Olivia.

“Thanks, Maureen,” Olivia said as she sat up a little.

“You’re welcome,” Maureen said as she began to tidy up for Olivia. “Would you like me to dust?”

“Oh would you?” Olivia asked. “Thank you so much…it was driving me up the wall.”

“Okay,” Maureen chuckled.

“So, who’s your partner?” Olivia asked as she tore off the crust of the bread and ate it.

“My temporary partner’s Roxanna Giardi,” Elliot said and Olivia stopped eating. “She’s a real snob about her name.”

Olivia looked at her crumby hands and tried not to feel the stirrings of a strange combination of indigestion, jealously, and, for some odd reason, hurt.

“You-your temp partner’s a woman?” Olivia asked, and it became so quiet, a pin falling to the floor could be heard.

Maureen stopped dusting the pictures in the hallway to listen.

“Yeah,” Elliot said as he got up and went to sit in the armchair. “Why?”

Olivia shrugged. “Hope she watches your back, that’s all.”

“Liv.”

Olivia began eating again and without words, indicated that the conversation was now over.

Rox-ah-nna, Olivia thought bitterly, then she flipped it around to a different perspective. O-liv-ia. Damn.