Disclaimer: I own nothing.

A/N: I wrote this as an EO oneshot but it has no real paring, so I just thought I’d post it as a free standing story. It is Chester/Olivia friendship.

Her eyes had snapped shut the moment the gun had gone off, but she could still vividly remember the sound of the bullet passing through Lauren’s skull and the smell of the fresh blood as it spattered on the wall. Olivia had closed her eyes and in that moment she knew that all of her defenses were failing her. She had reached out for Elliot as her body shook with sobs, only to find that he was not there. Instead Chester grabbed her hand not really trying to reel her body in closer to his. She would always remember that, as she thought back to her breakdown, and she would always respect him for that. Most men would have tried to force some comfort upon her but he had known that she was so broken at that moment that there was only one person in the world that could possibly bring her an ounce of comfort. And that person was not there with her. He was always there, standing just off to the side of her and a few steps back but this time…he was gone. She had never felt as alone as she did at that very moment.

Her heart ached, and she thought of Elliot. She thought of his strong arms and the warmth that they provided. She craved his touch, she wanted to bury herself deep in his arms and never resurface. Then she would have to face the world, and she did have a strong liking for the world at the time.

She had been sitting in the same spot for hours—how many she was not sure—but long enough to make her backside go numb. She could hear footsteps in the hallway and expected them to keep going, but they stopped right outside of the doorway. Olivia could not force herself to look up at the person who had torn away at her silence. A silence that had been threatening to choke her since the last detective had walked through the door.

Of course there was no need for her to look up at the person who had come to save her from herself. It was not like there were many people that knew her well enough to know she would still be right where they had left her, or many people that cared.

She was slightly surprised to find that it had been Chester to come looking for her. She had expected Munch or Fin, maybe even Casey, but not the new guy. She had yet to decide if she really liked him, and at that moment she was still undecided. He had come to force her to stop wallowing in her own grief, which was a kind gesture but also, an invasion of her privacy.

For a moment all she could do was sit and look up at him, willing him to simply turn and leave, but eventually she broke down for the second time that say. Or was it still even the same day? How long had she been sitting there? Olivia shook away the questions and buried her face in her hands, trying to hide her tears. They were a sign of weakness, and she was not weak. She was anything but weak, and yet she could not get control over herself.

Chester had sunk down to the ground and was now sitting next to her. For a few awkward moments all he could do was look at her, unsure if this time she would allow him to comfort her. She needed to be held and told that it wasn’t her fault, she needed someone to lean on as she dealt with all of the emotions swarming inside of her.

Eventually he slipped his arm around her shoulders, the other one he placed on the small of her back, and he drew her closer to him. At first she resisted but eventually she gave into him and buried her face in his chest and continued to cry.

He wanted to say something; he wanted to break the silence that was threatening to suffocate them, but he could come up with no words that seemed right. So he let go of the simple idea and held her in his arms, hoping that she would stop crying soon. He knew that things would never be the same between them again, and this was only adding to the problems.

Chester closed his eyes and he thought about that moment, the split second after the gun had gone off. The scream that had escaped from Olivia’s lips had been terrifying and it had spoken every emotion that had flooded through hid body. He could hear all of her anger, frustration, anguish, horror and guilt in that one sound. It was a sound he knew he would never forget one that he could not let himself forget. They had not been able to save Lauren, this thought kept resurfacing in his mind but he did not try to push it away. Instead he held onto it, hoping that by doing so he was setting himself up for success in the future.

“C’mon,” Chester whispered, his hot breath against her cool skin. “I’m going to take you home, get you something to eat and then get you to bed.” Olivia did not try to protest, instead she allowed for him to lift her to her feet and then slowly they made their way outside to his car.

A part of him knew that he should have called Elliot, but he also knew that it did not really matter what he had done. She just needed someone to support her so that she did not tumble to the ground. He was willing to be that someone, even if she would rather it was Elliot.

END

A/N: So…any good?