Lawyers, Drinks, and Broken arms

"What am I doing here, Cabot?"

Casey squinted into the bright lights, making out a white ceiling until a blonde head appeared over her, blocking the brightness.

"I could be asking you the same thing, Novak." Alex smirked, moving out of Casey's view and letting the white lights blind her again.

Sitting up gingerly, Casey squinted, wondering why her left temple was throbbing, why her surroundings smelled so sterile, and why she couldn't remember what happened over the past few hours. She struggled to get up, feeling dizzy. A firm hand was on the small of her back, helping her sit up.

"Take it easy. You took quite a tumble earlier…"

Casey clenched her teeth, a hand to her aching forehead. She jumped at the sharp jolt of pain, feeling the wad of bandages, damp. She took her hand away, eyes narrowing at the sight of blood on her fingertips. "What…"

"Casey, hey. Lean back. That's what the hospital bed's for after all." Alex eased the girl back and felt relief when Casey's facial features relaxed. "You got four stitches but the doctor cleared you earlier for any major problems. He said you'll probably have a headache for the better part of the weekend."

For a second, Casey just lay there, the spinning receding, the room finally staying still. She saw the drawn curtain, the hospital machinery at her side, and Alex Cabot, now occupying the foot of her bed. Casey's eyes stayed on Cabot, her mind doing a mental check, and found it didn't match what she usually saw. The blonde assistant district attorney was dishevelled, her blouse untucked, her pantyhose ripped, and worst of all, a white cast extended from her forearm and encased her left hand.

"Alex, what happened?" Casey tried to sit up again, but the room started to spin, feeling her stomach starting to churn. Alex stood up, and gently eased Casey back down with her good hand.

"Casey, don't worry about me. It's not a big deal. I'm right handed." Alex smiled weakly, adjusting her glasses. There was a fine crack in the left lens, but Casey could still see the woman's ice blue eyes as clear as day.

"I love how you see broken bones as no big deal, Cabot." Casey closed her eyes briefly, letting the pounding subside. "I'm so sorry about this. I don't even remember what happened." Casey wracked her brain for memories, but everything was a blur.

"All you need to know is that it was an accident. We were both at my apartment and I was sending you home when-"

Casey interjected with all the strength she could muster. "Wait. We were at your apartment? How did we get there?" The prosecutor furrowed her brows, but images flooded her and came back in fragments. They were almost dream-like, surreal. She remembered the elevator, the drunken whispers, and...Alex's supple lips.

Alex looked away. "I propositioned you…and you took me up on my offer."

It took Casey a few moments to paste Alex's words and her blurry 'memories' together. She blushed, feeling flustered. "I-I…I don't know what happened."

"It was all my fault. I made an ass out of both of us. If it weren't for me, we probably wouldn't be at the ER on a Friday night." Alex smirked, reaching out and laying her hand atop Casey's as she tried to reassure her.

The redhead resisted the urge to flinch at the feel of Alex's smooth fingers on the back of her hand. It was one thing to wake up at the ER with a head injury, but it was another to wake up finding out that she had engaged in an illicit sexual relationship with Alexandra Cabot. In an alcohol induced stupor nonetheless. She wondered how far things went along.

Suddenly, she was curious.

"And…if we weren't at the hospital, where would we be, Alex?"

"Well, you would probably be in a taxi on your way home, and me...I would be on my couch, watching CNN with a bottle of wine. You did let me down pretty harshly." Alex wore an unreadable expression, twirling a lock of blonde around her finger as she offered Casey a neutral smile, masking any emotion.

Casey made a face. Let her down? But she distinctly remember what they did. It was nothing short of her throwing herself at the gorgeous woman.

Or was that a dream?

"Stop straining yourself. The doctor said your headache would worsen with stress."

Ignoring the prosecutor's comment, Casey made that face again. "So, what happened between us?"

Alex sighed, shaking her head, but kept a smile on her face. "Nothing, Casey. Nothing at all. We had gotten to my place, but after a while, you burst into tears."

The redhead was skeptical. "Third base?"

The blonde chuckled. "More like second. Clothes stayed on, no hands in inappropriate places. Nothing happened like I said."

"And why was I crying?" Casey felt like cross-examining her companion, wondering how much of it was the truth. Sure, she had the occasional crying fit when she was drunk, but was she drunk enough to let Alex take her to bed? The facts fit. She certainly wasn't accusing her fellow ADA of rape, but she simply wanted to know whether or not she had sex with Alex Cabot.

Casey blushed at the thought.

"I wouldn't really know why you were crying, but I think it had to do with your suspension and all the stress at work. You blamed me and thought what I did tonight was just another way to demean you. After your...outburst, I felt bad, so I invited you out for a cup of coffee to talk about everything." Alex knew where Casey was coming from, knowing how it felt to lose everything. She knew a three year censure wasn't exactly the same as witness protection, but she and Casey were the same kind of person. They were both married to their jobs. Law was all they knew in their lives.

"Alex…" Casey watched Alex's expression, wondering how the woman in front of her could be the same hostile bitch that everyone at the DA's office feared and respected. She did like this Alex a little bit better.

"I'm sorry about everything, Casey. I knew you had too much to drink. I shouldn't have pushed you. I should have done the right thing and made sure you got home safely." Alex shifted in her chair, taking her glasses off as she massaged her nose bridge. She felt a headache coming on. Alcohol induced? Guilt induced? Alex wasn't sure.

Again, the newly reinstated ADA watched Alex. She was perplexed. "Are you sure nothing happened? You seem to have an obvious guilty conscience, counselor." Casey prodded, but without malicious intent.

"I do feel guilty. It was a momentary lapse in judgement. I completely embarrassed myself in front of you. I coerced you into all this and I don't even think you like me." Alex sighed again, exasperated.

Casey did like her. Maybe more than both women knew. "You keep saying that you pushed me, coerced me...Alex, that's not true. I'm sure was I was sober when I got into that taxi with you. It's not like I don't know how to say no. After all, we both prosecute sex crimes, don't we?" Casey smirked, finally feeling better to know that Alex Cabot was indeed human.

"Casey...I don't want you to get the wrong idea."

Casey arched an eyebrow. "You mean you weren't trying to seduce me or ruin our professional relationship?"

"I was. I-I mean. Not in those words exactly, but something along those lines." Alex groaned, thinking of a better way to rephrase while Casey looked on in amusement, a smug grin on her face. It wasn't every day that she got to see the great prosecutor at a loss for words.

"I like you, Casey. I never meant for all of this to happen. I took an interest in you and I...went with it. We have a lot in common and it's refreshing to finally find someone who understands what we do for a living." Alex stared into Casey's striking green eyes, pleading with the woman to hear her out.

"What are you asking me to do, Alex?" Casey chose her words carefully, trying to hide the excitement she felt at having elicited something short of a love confession from Alex, her rival, her mentor, her supervisor.

"Nothing that you would be uncomfortable with."

Casey contemplated that answer, knowing that it was open ended enough to mean anything. Alex was always skilled at choosing the right things to say.

"Let's have dinner next Friday night."

Casey mentally berated herself, wondering how her brain had jumped into that without any segway.

Alex blinked, confused, wondering if Casey had hit her head harder than the doctors had thought.

"You heard me, counselor. It wasn't a question. We're going to have a normal dinner and then...maybe I'll be more sure of what's going on after I have some time to think about it." Casey flashed Alex a wry grin, waiting for a reply.

"That seems to be the best decision you've made all night with a rather logical explanation." Alex returned the grin.

"That's what you think, Ms. Cabot, but I would beg to differ. I think the best choice I made tonight was when I let you buy me a ridiculous number of drinks."

Alex stifled a laugh, a smile spreading across her lips. "You're right. Now let's get you discharged. The doctor said if you woke up and was able to have a coherent conversation with me, you'd be alright." Alex moved to help Casey up. "I do have an early morning tomorrow and only God knows how long it'll take for me to unbutton and button my shirt."

Casey laughed, sitting up slowly as she reached out to Alex for support. "I'd offer to help you unbutton your shirt, but I'm afraid it'll come out sounding like innuendo."

"I'll take you up on your offer and agree to ignore the innuendo." The blonde pulled Casey up. "After all, I think you owe me after pulling me down the stairs with you…" Alex whispered the last part under her breath, not expecting the dazed prosecutor to hear her.

"Oh my God. It was my fault." Shock registered on Casey's face and she vaguely recalled reaching out in desperation as she lost her balance on the stairs. If her broken memories served her correctly, they tumbled down half a flight of stairs. Casey felt the guilt in the pit of her stomach.

"How's this? I'll forgive you if you become my personal slave for a week." With a smug grin, Alex helped Casey to her feet and into her shoes.

The guilt dissipated from Casey's expression at that. "For a second, I almost felt bad." Casey said as she rolled her eyes.

Unsteady on her feet, the younger woman leaned on Alex for support. Casey grasped the blonde's good arm, feeling juvenile with her heart racing from just touching her. "Your offer almost sounded appealing though. I must still be drunk..." Casey cast a sidelong glance at Alex. The gentle expression on the lawyer's face made her melt.

It seemed like a lot of things about Alex were just so alluring, but she refused to feed the woman's ego with these thoughts.

"Alright, let's get you out of here. I'll call you a cab and I'll cover your fare too." Alex supported Casey with a steady hand.

"Wait, Alex."

"What's wrong?" Alex stopped and Casey was surprised at how easily she could read the concern on the woman's face.

"I…" Casey closed her eyes, taking a breath before she continued. "I didn't say no to coming over to help you out. Only if you were serious about that."

Alex was speechless, swallowing hard and trying to hide her surprise. Emotions were never her strong suit and her poker face was undoubtedly the best, but at the moment, Alex was flustered, taken aback, and intrigued.

"What? Were you joking about that?" Casey let out an exasperated laugh. "Boy, do I feel embarr-"

"No." Alex fixed her gaze on Casey. "I want you there."

They stared at each other, communicating through their eyes.

"I'm not expecting anything, Casey."

They shared a moment of understanding.

There were no more words between them after that. Casey filled out the appropriate paperwork and in minutes, the two prosecutors were in a taxi on the way to Alex's brownstone.

A/N: Wrote this one last year, but never had a chance to post it. One of my greatest loves. SVU was so good in the earlier season and Alex was certainly my favorite character, justice incarnate. A cold hearted bitch, but she still got things done.

Hope you all enjoyed this.

This is officially my first non-anime fanfiction that I've posted :)

Drop a review if you liked it :)