Back to You

Ch.12

"Captain..." Elliot breathed out as he turned around to find Olivia, giving her a panicked expression.

Olivia moved towards the door to take it in for herself, she rested a hand on Elliot's back, trying her best to calm down his breathing, "Don..."

Former Captain Donald Cragen moved his eyes between her and Elliot, feeling slightly confused and flustered, "Hello, Liv. I ... uh .... wanted to come and see you. I stopped by the precinct and Fin told me you were on leave, so ... uh... here I am," he looked down at his feet, shifting awkwardly. "It's been a while, and ... um, oh!" he said as he pulled a stuffed teddy bear out from behind his back, "Good news travels fast," he held out the bear to her, the corners of his mouth lifting up into a smile.

Olivia was overcome with emotion as she reached out to take the teddy bear from him, moving her hand to play with the ear. She looked back up at the man who had become her father figure and went to him, hugging him tight, grateful when the hug was returned, "I've missed you, Don."

He rubbed her back, and kissed the top of her head, "I've missed you too, Liv."

Elliot just stood there, taking in the sight of the pair. He was happy that at least when he left, it seemed as though their captain had really taken over for him, and taken care of her.  

Once they separated Olivia  wiped away a bit of moisture that had formed in her eyes, "So we ordered breakfast and it should be here shortly and Noah should be waking up any minute. If you have time I'd love for you to stay a while."

Cragen smiled from ear to ear, "There's no place I'd rather be," he replied taking off his jacket.

"Great, would you like some coffee? We just made a pot," she told him as she made her way towards the kitchen, getting worried when Elliot wasn't in there.

"Thanks, that would be great," he replied as he took a seat on the couch.

She took him his cup and looked around, still unable find Elliot, "Would you excuse me for a second? I'll be right back."

Cragen nodded and watched her as she walked down the hallway. He had so many questions and concerns regarding Elliot. The last time he saw him was the night of the shooting and the last time he heard from him was when he called to tell him he was turning in his badge. That was one of the hardest days for him. Not only losing a great detective and someone he considered family, but also having to break the news to Olivia that he wasn't coming back was heartbreaking. He knew how much it affected her, even though she tried to hide it. Elliot was like a son to him and he missed him as well, but it couldn't even come close to what Olivia had went through. He was happy to see Elliot again, even under the circumstances, but he wasn't going to just let him off the hook that easily, he had a lot of explaining to do.

Olivia walked into her bedroom and saw Elliot sitting on the bed with his head between his legs taking deep shallow breaths. She moved to him and sat down next to him on the bed, rubbing his backs, "It's okay. I know this has to be a lot for you," she whispered into his ear.

He was still breathing heavily, "Just ... give me a minute," he managed to get out in between breaths.

"Okay," she said as she stopped her movements, "Do you want me to leave you alone?"

His head shot up as he grabbed back her hand, "No," he said almost franticly, "Just sit with me...please?"

She moved her hands to his face, running her hand through his hair. She kissed him softly and then rested her forehead against his, "Okay, I'm not going anywhere."

Elliot kissed her again, forever grateful he had her, "Thank you."

Olivia just held his hand as they sat there for a moment in a comfortable silence. She squeezed his hand, "Do you want to talk about it?"