Thanks to darkclocks for this idea...currently a one-shot, but I could be convinced to make it a two-shotter.
Set generally where the show is currently, separate from my on-going series.
Enjoy, and send me your one-shot requests if you have them. I make no promises, but I will try.
#Tuckson
"Snow!" Noah yelled from his secured Graco car seat in the back of Ed Tucker's Honda Pilot.
"I see, sweet boy," Olivia said, straining her neck a bit to try and get a good look at the clouds rolling in, despite their lack of daylight. "I thought it wasn't supposed to snow for another few hours," she murmured to Ed.
"So did I," he said, his hands gripping the steering wheel and his jaw setting in concentration. He had surprised his girlfriend with a weekend excursion to Camelback Lodge in the Poconos after she had closed her last major case.
Ed had carefully researched family-friendly getaways while Olivia slept at the precinct, in hopes of catching one of NYC's most elusive serial rapists. After a brief rough patch in their relationship, Ed finally convinced Olivia to let him care for Noah while she was working so much overtime. He had packed a bag and gone to stay at the Benson apartment for three days, much to three year old Noah's delight. He just loved having his "Cap'n" sleepover, especially since he made him waffles every morning.
Olivia would breeze in once each day to shower and change clothes, but then she would rush back out the door after a quick kiss and cuddle from her two boys. By the third day, Noah was clearly out of sorts from the entire process, so Ed decided to put his plan into action. He and Noah debated back and forth about which hotel would be the best 'prise for Mommy, and ultimately Noah's excitement about an indoor waterpark won out. So once Olivia sent him the "case closed" text, Ed hit book on their long weekend away, bundled up Noah, and they went down to the precinct with Noah's hand-made card.
"MOMMY!" Noah had yelled as soon as they stepped off the elevator. The little tyke took off towards the Lieutenant's office and jumped into his mother's waiting arms as she came out to greet him.
"Hi, baby boy," Olivia cooed softly, burying her nose in his hair and taking in his little boy scent. "Oh, I missed you so much, Noah. So so much."
"I miss you too, Mommy," he said from where his face was planted in her neck. "You done wiff work?"
"For now," she said softly and lifted her eyes to see a smirking Ed Tucker walking her way. "Hey there."
"Congrats, Lieutenant," he said, gently reaching out to twist her hair in his hands and restraining himself from kissing her in front of her detectives. "We thought we'd come give you a little celebration present."
Olivia just eyed him, her face growing into a smile before she turned and led him into her office.
"Rollins, hold my calls for a bit?" she yelled over her shoulder, before closing the door and collapsing onto the office couch with her son.
Ed went to sit next to her and rubbed her a back a bit.
"You must be exhausted," he said, his eyes pouring over her face as if he were re-memorizing all of her features.
"I am," she sighed out, leaning into his side and basking in the embrace of his strong arms. "So tired."
"We gotted you a 'prise, Mommy!" Noah said, sitting up with wide, excited eyes.
"A surprise?" Olivia asked with as much enthusiasm as she could muster, while eyeing Ed. He just nodded encouragingly for her to open his card.
"Yep," Noah said as he handed her the red construction paper card and bouncing up and down, hardly able to contain himself. Olivia just smiled and opened the card, her eyes growing wide and sparkling as she looked up at Ed.
"Poconos?" she asked, her voice having gotten a little more pep in it just then.
"Thought we might wanna get away after this past week," he murmured, his arm still securely around her shoulders and his other hand moving to ruffle Noah's hair. "And Noah helped me pick the place."
"You did?" Olivia asked, as she looked through the brochure packet they included in Noah's card. "This looks really nice…"
"We leave tomorrow after work," Ed said softly. "I already talked to Chief Dodds, and we are all set to go away for the long weekend."
"Perfect," Olivia responded and leaned up to give him a quick kiss, then turning and doing the same for Noah. Years ago, she might have been upset at a boyfriend for going over her head and asking her boss for some time off. But not anymore. With Ed, it made her appreciate him even more. "Just perfect."
Now that the trio was on the road, Ed was beginning to get nervous at the snow that was pelting their windshield. He had checked the weather meticulously as they prepared to depart Manhattan that afternoon, but apparently the forecast had been wrong.
"How far out are we?" Olivia asked, picking up her phone to try and use the GPS. "I don't have a signal…"
"Well, we are past the Delaware Water Gap, so it can't be more than 45 minutes," Ed said, turning the defroster on full blast and slowing the speed of their travel in an attempt to have better road vision. "But I can barely see a thing."
"Just…take it slow," Olivia said, trying to mask her nerves. They knew a snowstorm was set to hit later that night, but it wasn't expected until after midnight. Instead of rescheduling the vacation, they thought it might be even more beautiful to be away in the mountains for the storm. It just seemed that the storm beat them to the punch.
"Shit!" Ed said, jerking the car to the right a bit as some kind of large, wooden object appeared suddenly in the middle of the interstate. Ed somehow avoided the obstruction, but heard a pop as he tried to regain control of the SUV.
"Ed," Olivia said, her hands gripping the arm rest as her head whipped back to check on her son, who was wide eyed and clutching his blanket.
"You guys okay?" he asked gruffly, turning off on the exit ramp and taking some deep breaths.
"Yeah," Olivia breathed out. "Noah?"
"I otay," he said softly. "Dat was scary."
"I know baby," Olivia said. "But Captain did a good job, and now we are going to stop to see if the car is okay."
As soon as Ed made a turn at the end of the exit ramp, he immediately regretted getting off. It was desolate.
"Where the hell are we," he muttered under his breath as the car very clearly was sputtering down the street. It finally came to a dead stop and he cut the engine off. Ed then proceeded to slam his hands onto the steering wheel in frustration.
Olivia reached over and rubbed his thigh in an effort to comfort him, though she was nervous herself.
"Calm down, babe," she said. "Maybe it's just the tire…"
Ed reached into the backseat and got his jacket, hat and gloves then turned to Olivia.
"Keep the doors closed, so we keep as much heat in the car as we can," he said before leaning over the console and kissing her. "I'm gonna check this out."
"Cap'n, you fix da car?" Noah asked from the backseat, wanting to be clued in on the situation.
"I'm gonna try, bud," he said, leaning back to pat his little foot. "You keep mommy company okay?"
"Otay."
Ed quickly hopped out of the SUV and closed the door, hoping to keep the two precious souls inside of it warm while he figured out the mess he got them into. Walking around the car, he noticed immediately part of the problem. The front, right tire was blown and the axel was bent at a near 90% angle.
"No wonder it wouldn't drive anymore…" he mumbled to himself as he took a deep breath. Ed turned his head up and down the desolate road, in hopes of seeing any sign of life within walking distance. Squinting, he barely made out a flashing red sign that read "MOTEL", about a quarter of a mile ahead. "That will have to do for now…" he said, climbing back in the car and turning to Olivia.
"We need a mechanic," he said. "But there's a motel up the street – so let's grab our stuff, bundle up, and see if we can use their phone."
"We fixed?" Noah asked innocently, but Olivia shook her head and rotated around to talk to him.
"No, baby," she said. "We are going to get all your warm stuff on, then walk up the road to a hotel where we can call for some help okay?"
"I make snow-man?" he asked.
"Not yet," Ed replied, cutting off the car and going to open the back door. "Maybe later okay?"
"Layyyyterrrrr," Noah mumbled to himself as he allowed Ed to undo his car seat, bundle him up, and hoist him onto his shoulders.
"Hold onto me, okay bud?" He instructed him. "I need to grab some bags."
"Here, I got them," Olivia said, saddling herself with two duffel bags and Noah's backpack. "This should be fine in case we have to stay the night…"
The trio trudged their way down the two lane road, snow blowing across the street in front of them, for about twenty minutes until they reached the parking lot of the motel. Ed's heart sank as he saw the run down condition it was in, but decided not to voice that yet. He just tightened his grip on Noah's feet and marched them confidently to the little office.
"Hello?" Ed called out as they finally got inside and began to shake off the snow. Olivia took Noah from Ed and rubbed her hands over his little cheeks to try and warm him up.
"I cold, Mommy," Noah said, sniffling a little bit.
"I know, baby," she said. "You'll warm up soon okay?"
"Hello?" Ed called again, ringing the bell at the front desk until an older, overweight man finally appeared from the back.
"What?" He asked, clearly not well-versed in customer service.
"Hi, I'm Captain Ed Tucker, NYPD," he said, flashing his badge, though the clerk didn't seem to give him any mind. "We broke down up the road, and I'm wondering if I can use your phone to call a mechanic."
"Here," he said, shoving a phone book to him and handing him a rotary dial telephone.
I didn't even know these still worked, Ed thought to himself as he turned to the yellow pages and began to dial down the list of mechanics he could find.
Unfortunately, he got nowhere and was down to one last phone number.
"Say a prayer," he muttered to Olivia, who was looking increasingly worried as time after time, Ed would hang up the phone having reached no one.
"Yes, hello…Captain Ed Tucker, NYPD, how are ya…..fine, fine. Listen, we had a little accident on I-80 and pulled off at exit 306…can you get a mechanic out here?"
Noah curled into his mother's chest as she sat in a nearly broken chair and tried to figure out how Ed's phone call was going.
"Sure…sure….yeah, I understand," his voice was resigned. "Well, we are at this little motel….yeah, that one. Okay. Yep, first thing in the morning. I understand. Thanks a lot…."
Ed turned to Olivia, who was steeling herself for the news they were stranded for the night. She knew that Ed felt terrible and was working to push her fears of the situation down to make the best of it for him and for Noah.
"Let's just get a room here," she said softly. "We can relax, be together, and regroup in the morning once the storm passes."
Ed just sighed and shook his head, knowing they didn't have another choice.
"Okay."
"Well, this is….nice…" Olivia said softly, as Ed held the door open and she herded Noah into the room. He shut and double locked the door, before joining Olivia to look around. There were two double beds, both of them somewhat lopsided, with burnt orange bedspreads on them and a nightstand in between. The thick, velvet material curtains were also burnt orange, but a slightly different shade. There was a tall, dim lamp in the corner next to a wooden chair. On the opposite wall was a wooden dresser with a box television on it, antennas sticking up in a few directions.
"Dis da water park?" Noah asked softly, his nose scrunched up as he noticed there was also a slightly strange odor to the room.
"No, bud," Ed said, squatting down to look him in the eyes. He held his little hands and bounced them back and forth. "Since the car is broken, we hafta stay here for one night. Then tomorrow they will come fix our car and we will be on the way!"
"Otay," Noah said. "It smelly in here."
"Well, Mommy came prepared," Olivia said, opening her duffle bag and producing Clorox wipes and disinfectant spray. Ed just looked at her in shock.
"You travel with cleaning supplies?" He asked, a smirk growing on his face. Olivia just nodded.
"Yep," she said. "Even the nicest resorts can sometimes creep me out. Here, take the wipes…I'll spray it down."
Ed just laughed at his girlfriend and followed her orders, like any sane man would do in that situation.
Forty five minutes later, the trio was perched on one of the squeaky, ugly beds teaching Noah to play Uno. After a few failed attempts, Ed scooped him into his lap and let him help play his hand.
"Otay Cap'n, we pay dis one," the boy said, pointing to a card. Ed gave it his approval, so Noah pulled it out and laid it down. "You gotta take FOUR more cards, Mommy!"
The adults couldn't help but laugh at how gleeful Noah was with that move. Through her giggles, Olivia drew four more cards then smirked at Ed.
"You'll pay for that later," she said, causing his cheeks to blush a bit.
"I sure hope so…" he said under his breath, moving his one hand to brush her kneecap. "But definitely not in this bed."
Olivia just cracked up and shook her head.
"No, definitely not," she said, looking at her watch and yawning. "Okay, Noah-Bear, it's almost ten! Way past your bedtime!"
"I don't wanna go to sweep here…" he said softly as he looked around and cuddled further into Ed's chest. Ed just pulled him tighter into his body.
"Why don't we put a movie on the iPad," he suggested, eyeing Olivia who nodded her approval. "Then we can all lay here together okay?"
Noah considered the suggestion, as he knew the sole purpose was to get him to fall asleep. But eventually the little boy must have been convinced it was a good idea, because he curled himself into Ed, popped his thumb in his mouth, and waited for Olivia to turn on a movie.
"You sweep too, Mommy?" He asked, a little slurred with his thumb in the way, but Olivia just smiled and laid down so Noah was sandwiched between them.
"Yep," she said, looking up into Ed's sparkling blue eyes. "We are all gonna sleep right here, safe and sound."
"Yep," Noah said, soothing himself into a slumber. "Mommy keep me safe and Cap'n keep Mommy safe. It all otay."
"You're right, bud," Ed said softly, but looking at Olivia while he stroked her cheek. "I'm gonna protect you and your Mommy. Always."
Olivia swallowed the lump forming in her throat at Ed's words. She knew that she was falling in love with him, harder than she had ever fallen before. And even though they had gone through their rough patches: Father Eugene, Dodds' death, his job transition, and the walls she subsequently threw up later on causing them complications, she knew they were strong. For the first time in her life, she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Ed Tucker meant the word "always". He wasn't going anywhere.
It was pushing four in the morning, and Ed was still laying on his back with his eyes wide open. He refused to fall asleep in the dump of a motel he had them in, and though Olivia made it until about three, she eventually drifted off and was snoring lightly on the other side of a passed out Noah. Ed turned onto his side, so he was facing the two of them, and just admired the view.
Never in his wildest dreams did Ed Tucker think he would wind up in this position; in bed with Olivia Benson and her adorable three year old son. Even when she first accepted his offer for a drink, he was still convinced she would never be able to forgive him for their past and actually let him into her life. But here they were, laying side by side, with a healthy and happy little boy in between them. He vowed, right then and there, that he would never let anything come between their little family. Come hell or high water, Ed Tucker was going to be the one constant in their life that they could count on. Unconditionally.
Unable to stop himself, he reached out and stroked Olivia's cheek as she rested, his eyes raking over her relaxed features. He smiled gently as he thought about how her eyes would sparkle when she laughed and the way her nose would crinkle when she was smiling at Noah's antics. Or the way her cheeks would flush after he kissed her deeply and the way her lips would be slightly puffy and swollen after a late night tryst in the bedroom. Then he thought about her voice and her laugh, her infectious laugh. Never in a million years did he anticipate being the one to bring that smile and that laughter to Olivia, but now he was.
As his fingertips lightly brushed over her lips, Olivia let out a little sigh and opened her eyes slightly, smiling at the sight of Ed gazing over at her.
"Can't sleep?" She asked, her voice low and husky from her estimated hour of slumber.
"Nah," he replied, not taking his eyes off of her. "Too much precious cargo in my care at the moment."
"Ed…" she sighed out, her heart constricting at just how open and raw he was being with her in that moment. Here they were, in a rundown motel in the middle of nowhere Pennsylvania. Their car was broken down and still on the side of the road and they had no cell phone service. Yet she had never felt more content. More safe. More loved. As she kept her brown eyes locked on his blue ones, her heart rate began to go up just a little bit. She was longing to say those three words to him, but just didn't know how.
Little did she know, that while her mind was churning about whether to say "I love you", so was Ed's. Only for him, he didn't want the first time he told her that to be in a rundown hotel room, in a town they didn't even know. But, he thought, maybe that was how it should be. Maybe it signaled that their love was stronger than anything force the world could throw. That even when things weren't perfect, especially when they weren't perfect, their love would still be there. And they would be okay.
Olivia's hand reached up to grasp his, as he cupped her cheek and ran the pad of his thumb along her jaw. He leaned over Noah to give her a few eskimo kisses, before pulling away and looking deep into her soul.
"I love you, Olivia."
Her breath caught in her throat and tears began to burn her eyes. She'd been waiting to hear those words for her entire life, and even though other men had said them, no one meant them the way Ed Tucker did.
After taking a moment to let his love just wash over her, she nuzzled her cheek further into his hand and gave him a small smile.
"I love you, too."
By noon the next day, the trio was back on the road and Noah was humming in the backseat as Ed drove the remaining half hour to their resort destination.
"Dis hotel not smelly, right Cap'n?" Noah asked as he bopped his head along to the Hamilton soundtrack that played through the speakers.
"Not at all," Ed responded with a smile. "No more smelly hotels for us. In fact, I'm gonna ask for an upgrade just to reward you for being so good last night."
"What dat mean?" Noah asked, his nose scrunched up in confusion. Olivia just laughed.
"It means our room will be nicer," she said. But just shook his head.
"Nope," he said with a sly grin. "It means we will have a view of the water park!"
"Whoa," Noah said, his eyes big with excitement as he began to bounce in his seat. "We dere yet?"
Olivia just rolled her eyes and leaned her head back, refusing to engage in Ed and Noah's little game.
It wasn't any time before they were standing in the lobby, waiting on Ed to get them checked in and set up.
"Captain Tucker," the receptionist said. "I'm so sorry for your ordeal. We have upgraded you, compliments of the hotel, and the staff has put a little extra something for your son in the room."
Ed just smiled and thanked the lady, not bothering to correct her about calling Noah his son. If he were honest with himself, it felt good to hear that said out loud. Even if it never became an official thing, he loved Noah as if he were his own.
Olivia hoisted Noah onto her hip, as Ed grabbed their luggage and led them to the elevator. Once they arrived at their room, Noah's eyes got wide.
"WOW!" he said, making a beeline for the gift basket on the coffee table. Inside the basket was a swim mask, snorkel, flippers, beach ball, and various other pool toys for him to use.
"MOMMY! CAP'N! LOOKY!" He yelled, turning around and holding up the large, red beach ball with the hotel logo on it. "A BALL FOR DA POOL!"
"Wow," Olivia said, fully in awe of the room they were in. "This place is beautiful, Ed. Thank you."
She turned around and wrapped her arms around his waist, standing on her toes to reach his lips with her own. Ed sighed into her mouth as he wound a hand into her hair and the other wrapped around her back to pull her closer. Nibbling on her lips a bit, Ed smirked into the kiss before thrusting his tongue into her mouth and fully tasting her. Olivia's body relaxed into his, as the grownups momentarily forgot about the three year old that was also in the room.
"Mommy!" Noah said, tugging on her sweater and causing her to reluctantly pry her lips off of Ed's.
"Yes sweet boy?" she asked, looking down at him and catching her breath which was hard, since Ed was not releasing her from his grip.
"You stop kissing Cap'n and we go fwimming, otay?" he said in his only little demanding voice. Ed just chuckled, released Olivia, then lifted Noah up into the air and pretended to fly him around the room.
"Swimming huh?" He asked as Noah squealed in delight and stuck his arms out, pretending to be a plane.
"Cap'n!" he shrieked in between giggles. "Fly me to da pool!"
Olivia just smiled at the scene and went to get their swim suits out. Noah could have his pool time with them for now, but later on tonight, she planned to put their two bedroom suite to good use. Sauntering past the boys, she reached out and slapped Ed's behind with a wink.
"Come on boys," she said. "Let's go to the pool…then maybe we can…take a nap."
Well? Leave me some love...