After All This Time

A Waiting Game

"What happened? I was gone for barely an hour!" Kathy said as she rushed into the waiting room.

"They said something about hemorrhaging in his brain. It all happened so fast." Olivia tried to explain. "I'm sorry, Kathy." She whispered, trying not to let her voice crack.

"It's not your fault, Olivia." Kathy whispered back, giving Olivia a small, tight smile.

There was a moment of silence before Olivia spoke again. "So, what have you been up to?" She asked, not knowing what else to talk about.

Kathy smiled softly. "Traveling a lot. We've been to England, Spain, Paris, you name it. We've been living in Italy for the last five years, actually. Eli is the only one still living with us, the other kids have their own lives. We're grandparents, ya know." She said softly, smiling.

"Wow, that's incredible." Olivia whispered, smiling softly.

"Yeah, Maureen has a little boy and now they're expecting a girl." Kathy said as she brought up a picture of the whole family on her phone to show Olivia.

"Wow." Olivia whispered, in shock. "That's amazing. I'm so happy for her."

"Yeah, I'm still trying to wrap my head around it." Kathy laughed softly.

Olivia laughed with her. "I bet. Thankfully, Noah is still young. I'm trying to hold onto that as long as I can."

"Cherish every moment as much as you can, Liv. Before you know it, you'll be chasing after your grandkids." Kathy said, rolling her eyes jokingly as she laughed once more.

Olivia smiled. "I will." She said softly.

There was another silent moment before Kathy spoke again. "Ya know, I was the one who convinced Elliot we should go to your awards ceremony." She paused for a moment. "He told me you didn't know he was back on the job."

"He's right. I had no idea." Olivia said softly, shaking her head slightly.

Kathy shook her head. "Wow." She whispered, a little in shock. "He, uh, he told me he loves you...and I have to say, I'm not really all that surprised."

Olivia's eyes widened. "What?" She whispered, in disbelief. "Kathy, I swear, I never knew. And even if I did, I would never try anything." She rambled quickly.

"I know." Kathy said, reassuring her. "I just always wondered, all those long hours and nothing happened?"

"Never ever happened." Olivia said firmly. "I would never do that to you or the kids." She whispered.

"I know." Kathy replied, giving Olivia small smile. "I still can't believe you didn't talk for ten years." She whispered, more to herself than to Olivia.

Olivia gave her a small smile and a shrug and was about to speak when a surgeon came into the waiting room. "Mrs. Stabler?" He asked.

"Yes?" Kathy asked, walking up to the doctor.

"There was a clot that had developed in your husband's brain but we managed to decompress the swelling a little and clear the clot. However, I would prefer to keep him in a medically induced coma until the swelling in his brain goes away completely. I can take you to him if you'd like." The doctor said.

Kathy nodded at the doctor and started to follow him when she turned around to face Olivia and smiled gently, nodding slightly. Olivia smiled back, a little nervously, and followed her and the doctor to Elliot's room.

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Kathy took a seat in the chair next to Elliot's bed while Olivia stood next to her. She stayed silent as she watched Kathy talk to her unconscious husband, her heart breaking for the blonde.