L&O SVU Fanfiction: In the Ghetto, Chapter 7
Title: In the Ghetto
Author: schnullybaby
Pairing: Elliot/Olivia
Spoilers: none
Rating: K+
Disclaimer: These characters do not belong to me.
Summary: EO. On her way home, Olivia finds a little girl who has been raped. Unable to find her parents Olivia takes her into her home to be her foster mom. Deals with Self-harm in later chapters! Please read and review: This is my first L&O: SVU FF
Chapter 7
This chapter is for iheartnickcath for all her support and being there for me... :)
And in the following chapters everyone who supported me the last two weeks will get a chapter :)
And here we go:
Don Cragen's office: Thursday December 27, 9am
Cragen was sitting at his desk, doing paperwork when he heard a quiet knock on his door.
"Enter."
Olivia went into the office.
"Hey Liv, great to see you. How are you? Where's Lindsay?"
"I'm fine, thanks. I'm a little exhausted, Lindsay is a very lively child but everything else's okay. I took Lindsay to Elliot's house. Kathy's keeping an eye on her and I think she's playing with Lizzie and Dickie."
"That sounds great. I'm sorry but I don’t have much time as I had hoped because we have a new case and Novak will be here soon. But I think we should talk about your plans… Olivia, just so you know, I really support you but I don't think it's the right thing you do… I mean - and I'll keep saying this - you can't save every victim you find. And every victim we have has gone through awful things."
"Yeah, I know. Like I mentioned Tuesday on the phone I want to change my working time. I'll go and talk to ACS and talk with Mrs Johnson there. I'll tell her that I want to be the new foster home for Lindsay and that I am also willing to work less. I thought about it again yesterday and I really would like to do desk duty. Then I can choose my working hours and can go home to Lindsay if I need to. I also thought about coming everyday from 9am to 5pm. Then I can take Lindsay to school every morning and be home by dinner time. Do you think there's a possibility of that happening?"
"I think there may be a possibility. Look, tomorrow I'll talk to the team about it and then I'll call you. You'll need a new work contract and I think you also should talk to the boss of the 16th precinct about it. I'll also write you a reference if it is needed and tell ACS that I think you will be able to manage both. I mean you're not the only mom in this precinct," he said with a smile on his face.
"Thank you so much for your support, Don. I promise I'll do my best to get both done. I called Mrs Johnson this morning after breakfast and I have an appointment with her in two hours. I'll tell her I can reduce my working hours and I really hope she will say yes. Thanks for being there for me."
"You're welcome, Olivia."
In that moment there was another knock on the door and Casey entered the office.
"Hey Liv, how are you? Great to see you. I heard about Lindsay. How is she?" Casey said.
"She's fine, thanks. She's starting to trust me, which is really good. Maybe I can get her to talk to me… but at the moment I am really busy trying to apply to be her foster mom."
"Don't tell me about being busy… it's hectic around here as always… but I wish you luck."
"Thanks Casey. It's great to know I can count on you. If you want I can call you as soon as I have some news."
"Yeah that would be great. But right now I have to talk to Don about our case."
"Yeah of course. I have to go anyway. I don't want to disturb you any longer. Thanks for your help and I'll call when I have news." With that Olivia hugged both and went out of the office where she met Elliot. She hadn't talked to him since the phone call at Christmas and she was happy to see him.
"Hey Liv. Glad to see you. How are you and Lindsay?"
"I'm fine. And Lindsay is staying at your house with Kathy and the twins. I needed a babysitter and when I called you, you had already left for work. But Kathy said she didn't mind looking after one child more and so I took Lindsay to her. I hope that's alright?"
"Of course. And what did you talk with Don about?"
"Don't be so curious, El", she said with a cute smile. "I talked to him about my new working contract. I really want Lindsay and so I'll do everything to give her the home she needs. Please El, believe me when I say I am doing the right thing. It's what I want to do…. I'm sure we'll all work together to find a solution that everyone fits."
"I know you need to do this, Liv. But I think I'll miss you when we arrest a suspect and you call him an SOB."
"Maybe Don will let me do some interviews and then I'll still have the chance to tell those rapists what bastards they are."
"Yeah maybe."
"El, I'm sorry but I have to go now. I don't want to be late for my interview with Mrs Johnson. And I don't know how much traffic is downtown…"
Yeah of course. Can you call me when you're done there?"
"Yes of course. I already promised to call Casey and Don and I think I should come by and tell everyone at once."
"I think that's a good idea. When will you pick up Lindsay?"
"As soon as I'm done at ACS."
"If you want I can bring her over to your place as soon as my shift is over. Then we'll have some time to talk about everything and yeah… just because."
"El, that's a great idea. Thanks. If I am not at home by then you'll find a second key on the - "
"- lamp left of your apartment door. Liv, I know… it's not the first time I've needed the key.
"Sure… sorry." she said with a blush. "I really have to go now. Till later."
"Yeah bye."
They gave each other a quick hug and Olivia left the precinct.
Mrs Johnson's office, 11:30am
"Good morning", Olivia said
"Good morning, Ms Benson. Please take a seat. How are you today?"
"I'm fine thanks. And so is Lindsay."
"I heard and read in your application to be her new foster mom. We already talked at the hospital about it and, as I told you then and I am telling you now, I don't think you will fit in the system. You work too much, your apartment is probably too small and you're too old."
"I don't want to start a fight because that won't give me any bonus points but really think you should give me a chance. You haven't asked me what I want to change or what I am willing to do to be her foster mom. I am living in a three-room apartment with 82m² and I've spoken to my boss about reducing my working hours and only doing desk duty. So I would be able to take her to elementary school in the morning. I would arrange a nanny, babysitter or Au Pair, whatever is needed to make sure Lindsay has someone to pick her up and look after her in the apartment and I can be home by dinner time. Please give me a chance."
"I still have your papers here from when you applied for adoption. And it's a puzzle to me why you didn't offer those things last time. I mean it seems you really want to be Lindsay's foster mom and when you had this interview in the past with one of my colleagues you never mentioned anything like that. I am not the bitch I always seem to be and so I am giving you a chance. I'll come by tomorrow morning and look at your apartment and I'll also talk to your boss and colleagues and friends. Then we can talk about it again and maybe I'll change my mind and you'll get Lindsay. But you have to know it's a long road ahead. Especially in the beginning when I have to come very often to check on both of you. And Lindsay will have to talk to loads of people and to a psychologist. Do you think you're ready for it?"
"Yes I think so. And I'm more than grateful to get that chance. And believe me I'll do everything in my power to do what's needed. But looking into Lindsay's face makes me very sad. She went through so much and I want her life to be great from now on. She deserves it."
"Every child we put into foster homes deserves a better home than it had before. And I think Lindsay's case is especially difficult as we still don't know what happened and where she lived before. And please be aware, as soon as her case is solved and we find her former home you may have to give her back."
"I know. What happens if I am turned down again?"
"Then we'll have to send her into a foster home we already have in the system and if we can't find one that fits her then we would have to take her to an orphanage. I'm sorry Ms Benson but those are the rules. And in both cases you wouldn't be allowed to stay in touch with her."
"Okay. I'll just hope for the best. Thanks for giving me the chance."
"You're welcome. I just need to know if you want me to come tomorrow at a certain time or not."
"Umm… if possible between 8 - 11am then I could take Lindsay to the playground in the afternoon."
"Yeah of course I'll try to be there. Where's Lindsay today? Who's looking after her?"
"She's at the house of one of my colleagues. His wife is looking after her and she also has playmates there."
"That's great." And with one last look at her papers Mrs Johnson said "Okay I think we're done here. I wish you and Lindsay a great day and I'll see you tomorrow. Bye."
"Bye, and thanks again."
"You're welcome."
Both women gave each other their hands and then Olivia left the office of Mrs Johnson to drive home and wait for Elliot.
----------------------------EO----------------------------------------
3:30pm, that afternoon
Olivia was sitting on her couch when the doorbell rang. With a last look on her watch she opened her door.
"Hey El, hey Lindsay, honey, how was your day?"
"Really great Liv." And with that she ran into her temporary bedroom to play with her dolls.
"El, you're late. I was worried when you didn't pick up your cell when I tried to call you half an hour ago."
"I'm sorry Liv but we were stuck in the traffic. My shift ended at 2pm but then I had to drive home and have a shower and Lindsay wanted a few minutes more to play with Lizzie before coming back and yeah… now I am here. I'm sorry if I scared you. It won't happen again."
"That's okay."
"How was your talk with Mrs Johnson?"
"It went better than I thought it would be. You wanna come in and have coffee with me? Then we can talk about it."
"No, I am sorry, Liv but I have an appointment at the dentist in an hour and as I mentioned the traffic is awful today. I'm not sure how long it takes and Kathy told me this morning that we have to talk about Maureen when I get back. Something's going on at her college. I'm free tomorrow, what do you think about me coming by with Lizzie tomorrow and then we could go to the playground, the girls could play and we could talk."
"Yeah, I think that's great. Hope it doesn't hurt too much at the dentist. I hate going there."
"Me too, but this time it's only a check up."
"Okay have fun. Bye"
"Bye."
And with that Elliot turned around and went down the stairs.
When Olivia went to Lindsay's room she saw her playing peacefully on her bed and didn't want to disturb her so she went back to her couch and read the next chapter of her book.
tbc.
A/N: So this is Chapter 7. I hope you like. I'll try to update ASAP again (before I am going to England next week, I still haven't decided if I'll really go)and yeah... nothing left to say... those who are my mutual friends know what's going on at the moment and why it took me so long to update.
Enjoy reading it and please keep the reviews coming :)
Author: schnullybaby
Pairing: Elliot/Olivia
Spoilers: none
Rating: K+
Disclaimer: These characters do not belong to me.
Summary: EO. On her way home, Olivia finds a little girl who has been raped. Unable to find her parents Olivia takes her into her home to be her foster mom. Deals with Self-harm in later chapters! Please read and review: This is my first L&O: SVU FF
Chapter 7
This chapter is for iheartnickcath for all her support and being there for me... :)
And in the following chapters everyone who supported me the last two weeks will get a chapter :)
And here we go:
Don Cragen's office: Thursday December 27, 9am
Cragen was sitting at his desk, doing paperwork when he heard a quiet knock on his door.
"Enter."
Olivia went into the office.
"Hey Liv, great to see you. How are you? Where's Lindsay?"
"I'm fine, thanks. I'm a little exhausted, Lindsay is a very lively child but everything else's okay. I took Lindsay to Elliot's house. Kathy's keeping an eye on her and I think she's playing with Lizzie and Dickie."
"That sounds great. I'm sorry but I don’t have much time as I had hoped because we have a new case and Novak will be here soon. But I think we should talk about your plans… Olivia, just so you know, I really support you but I don't think it's the right thing you do… I mean - and I'll keep saying this - you can't save every victim you find. And every victim we have has gone through awful things."
"Yeah, I know. Like I mentioned Tuesday on the phone I want to change my working time. I'll go and talk to ACS and talk with Mrs Johnson there. I'll tell her that I want to be the new foster home for Lindsay and that I am also willing to work less. I thought about it again yesterday and I really would like to do desk duty. Then I can choose my working hours and can go home to Lindsay if I need to. I also thought about coming everyday from 9am to 5pm. Then I can take Lindsay to school every morning and be home by dinner time. Do you think there's a possibility of that happening?"
"I think there may be a possibility. Look, tomorrow I'll talk to the team about it and then I'll call you. You'll need a new work contract and I think you also should talk to the boss of the 16th precinct about it. I'll also write you a reference if it is needed and tell ACS that I think you will be able to manage both. I mean you're not the only mom in this precinct," he said with a smile on his face.
"Thank you so much for your support, Don. I promise I'll do my best to get both done. I called Mrs Johnson this morning after breakfast and I have an appointment with her in two hours. I'll tell her I can reduce my working hours and I really hope she will say yes. Thanks for being there for me."
"You're welcome, Olivia."
In that moment there was another knock on the door and Casey entered the office.
"Hey Liv, how are you? Great to see you. I heard about Lindsay. How is she?" Casey said.
"She's fine, thanks. She's starting to trust me, which is really good. Maybe I can get her to talk to me… but at the moment I am really busy trying to apply to be her foster mom."
"Don't tell me about being busy… it's hectic around here as always… but I wish you luck."
"Thanks Casey. It's great to know I can count on you. If you want I can call you as soon as I have some news."
"Yeah that would be great. But right now I have to talk to Don about our case."
"Yeah of course. I have to go anyway. I don't want to disturb you any longer. Thanks for your help and I'll call when I have news." With that Olivia hugged both and went out of the office where she met Elliot. She hadn't talked to him since the phone call at Christmas and she was happy to see him.
"Hey Liv. Glad to see you. How are you and Lindsay?"
"I'm fine. And Lindsay is staying at your house with Kathy and the twins. I needed a babysitter and when I called you, you had already left for work. But Kathy said she didn't mind looking after one child more and so I took Lindsay to her. I hope that's alright?"
"Of course. And what did you talk with Don about?"
"Don't be so curious, El", she said with a cute smile. "I talked to him about my new working contract. I really want Lindsay and so I'll do everything to give her the home she needs. Please El, believe me when I say I am doing the right thing. It's what I want to do…. I'm sure we'll all work together to find a solution that everyone fits."
"I know you need to do this, Liv. But I think I'll miss you when we arrest a suspect and you call him an SOB."
"Maybe Don will let me do some interviews and then I'll still have the chance to tell those rapists what bastards they are."
"Yeah maybe."
"El, I'm sorry but I have to go now. I don't want to be late for my interview with Mrs Johnson. And I don't know how much traffic is downtown…"
Yeah of course. Can you call me when you're done there?"
"Yes of course. I already promised to call Casey and Don and I think I should come by and tell everyone at once."
"I think that's a good idea. When will you pick up Lindsay?"
"As soon as I'm done at ACS."
"If you want I can bring her over to your place as soon as my shift is over. Then we'll have some time to talk about everything and yeah… just because."
"El, that's a great idea. Thanks. If I am not at home by then you'll find a second key on the - "
"- lamp left of your apartment door. Liv, I know… it's not the first time I've needed the key.
"Sure… sorry." she said with a blush. "I really have to go now. Till later."
"Yeah bye."
They gave each other a quick hug and Olivia left the precinct.
Mrs Johnson's office, 11:30am
"Good morning", Olivia said
"Good morning, Ms Benson. Please take a seat. How are you today?"
"I'm fine thanks. And so is Lindsay."
"I heard and read in your application to be her new foster mom. We already talked at the hospital about it and, as I told you then and I am telling you now, I don't think you will fit in the system. You work too much, your apartment is probably too small and you're too old."
"I don't want to start a fight because that won't give me any bonus points but really think you should give me a chance. You haven't asked me what I want to change or what I am willing to do to be her foster mom. I am living in a three-room apartment with 82m² and I've spoken to my boss about reducing my working hours and only doing desk duty. So I would be able to take her to elementary school in the morning. I would arrange a nanny, babysitter or Au Pair, whatever is needed to make sure Lindsay has someone to pick her up and look after her in the apartment and I can be home by dinner time. Please give me a chance."
"I still have your papers here from when you applied for adoption. And it's a puzzle to me why you didn't offer those things last time. I mean it seems you really want to be Lindsay's foster mom and when you had this interview in the past with one of my colleagues you never mentioned anything like that. I am not the bitch I always seem to be and so I am giving you a chance. I'll come by tomorrow morning and look at your apartment and I'll also talk to your boss and colleagues and friends. Then we can talk about it again and maybe I'll change my mind and you'll get Lindsay. But you have to know it's a long road ahead. Especially in the beginning when I have to come very often to check on both of you. And Lindsay will have to talk to loads of people and to a psychologist. Do you think you're ready for it?"
"Yes I think so. And I'm more than grateful to get that chance. And believe me I'll do everything in my power to do what's needed. But looking into Lindsay's face makes me very sad. She went through so much and I want her life to be great from now on. She deserves it."
"Every child we put into foster homes deserves a better home than it had before. And I think Lindsay's case is especially difficult as we still don't know what happened and where she lived before. And please be aware, as soon as her case is solved and we find her former home you may have to give her back."
"I know. What happens if I am turned down again?"
"Then we'll have to send her into a foster home we already have in the system and if we can't find one that fits her then we would have to take her to an orphanage. I'm sorry Ms Benson but those are the rules. And in both cases you wouldn't be allowed to stay in touch with her."
"Okay. I'll just hope for the best. Thanks for giving me the chance."
"You're welcome. I just need to know if you want me to come tomorrow at a certain time or not."
"Umm… if possible between 8 - 11am then I could take Lindsay to the playground in the afternoon."
"Yeah of course I'll try to be there. Where's Lindsay today? Who's looking after her?"
"She's at the house of one of my colleagues. His wife is looking after her and she also has playmates there."
"That's great." And with one last look at her papers Mrs Johnson said "Okay I think we're done here. I wish you and Lindsay a great day and I'll see you tomorrow. Bye."
"Bye, and thanks again."
"You're welcome."
Both women gave each other their hands and then Olivia left the office of Mrs Johnson to drive home and wait for Elliot.
----------------------------EO----------------------------------------
3:30pm, that afternoon
Olivia was sitting on her couch when the doorbell rang. With a last look on her watch she opened her door.
"Hey El, hey Lindsay, honey, how was your day?"
"Really great Liv." And with that she ran into her temporary bedroom to play with her dolls.
"El, you're late. I was worried when you didn't pick up your cell when I tried to call you half an hour ago."
"I'm sorry Liv but we were stuck in the traffic. My shift ended at 2pm but then I had to drive home and have a shower and Lindsay wanted a few minutes more to play with Lizzie before coming back and yeah… now I am here. I'm sorry if I scared you. It won't happen again."
"That's okay."
"How was your talk with Mrs Johnson?"
"It went better than I thought it would be. You wanna come in and have coffee with me? Then we can talk about it."
"No, I am sorry, Liv but I have an appointment at the dentist in an hour and as I mentioned the traffic is awful today. I'm not sure how long it takes and Kathy told me this morning that we have to talk about Maureen when I get back. Something's going on at her college. I'm free tomorrow, what do you think about me coming by with Lizzie tomorrow and then we could go to the playground, the girls could play and we could talk."
"Yeah, I think that's great. Hope it doesn't hurt too much at the dentist. I hate going there."
"Me too, but this time it's only a check up."
"Okay have fun. Bye"
"Bye."
And with that Elliot turned around and went down the stairs.
When Olivia went to Lindsay's room she saw her playing peacefully on her bed and didn't want to disturb her so she went back to her couch and read the next chapter of her book.
tbc.
A/N: So this is Chapter 7. I hope you like. I'll try to update ASAP again (before I am going to England next week, I still haven't decided if I'll really go)and yeah... nothing left to say... those who are my mutual friends know what's going on at the moment and why it took me so long to update.
Enjoy reading it and please keep the reviews coming :)