Hello Tuckson Fans! Here lies a new fic...the beginning of an entirely new journey. This is set approximately a year after that break-up scene that shall not be mentioned. Ed and Olivia have both attempted to move on, but as many soul mates have found, it isn't that simple. This will not be a quick and easy fix, but I promise the end result will be worth it.

So, let's go! #Tuckson #Endgame

It was just after five on a Thursday night and Olivia Benson sat nursing a glass of red, waiting on Chief Dodds to show up. SVU was in the middle of a high profile case, and it had been grueling. Olivia found herself working all hours, despite the option of using her rank to go home at a decent hour, and was nose deep in accusations against a group of police officers. In fact, over the last week, she had maybe been home in time to put Noah to bed once. And despite feeling like she would make it in time tonight, Chief Dodds had summoned her to dinner, presumably to scrutinize the case even more. So, as usual, she had phoned Lucy who was more than happy to stay longer, but promised to be home by bedtime.

Letting out a little sigh, she checked her phone, noting the time and also the beaming picture of Noah that lit up her background screen. He had just turned four this past month and he was growing before her very eyes. She had enrolled him in a pre-K program that was focused specifically on speech and communication, and it had made all the difference in the world. Her happy little boy was now talking more and more, which was just music to her ears.

All of a sudden, the dinging of bells signaled another patron entering the bar, jarring Olivia out of her thoughts involving Noah. Looking up, she gave a tense smile at the Chief who was making his way over to their table.

"Lieutenant," he greeted, hanging his suit jacket on the back of the chair and loosening his tie a bit. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Got stuck on a call with 1PP. You know how that is."

"I do," she allowed, taking another sip of wine and leaning back in her chair. "Why don't you order your drink and then we can get down to business?"

"Sure," he said, a little surprised at her wanting to jump right in. "You don't want to have a bite as well?"

She shook her head slightly.

"No," she said. "My goal is to get home before bedtime for once this week…"

"Oh, of course," Dodds said, maybe a hint of disappointment in his voice, but also understanding.

The waitress came over, took Dodds' order and asked Olivia if she'd like another, which she agreed to, then briskly walked away, leaving the two alone again.

"Okay," she said, leaning forward and folding her hands on the table in front of her. "What's the latest? Anything that's going to help us nail these guys?"

"Unfortunately, no," Dodds said, a little contempt in his voice. "That is what the call was about. 1PP is wanting us to let it go…says the witness isn't credible…"

"What?" Olivia asked, shaking her head a bit. "What do you mean 'isn't credible'? We have photos of bruises, a log book saying the officers were in her apartment questioning her at the time of the assault, and we have DNA!"

"Look," Dodds said, leaning forward a bit and lowering his voice. "It's not that easy…"

"It should be that easy," she retorted, rubbing her forehead in frustration. She opened her mouth to say something else but again, the jingling of the door caught her attention. Looking up to see who the latest patron was, her mouth slacked open a bit and her stomach plummeted.

In walked Ed Tucker in his usual dark gray suit with a red tie clipped to his crisp, white button down shirt. Only he wasn't alone. Coming up beside him, as he spoke quietly to the hostess, was a woman who Olivia assumed was mid-forties. Donning a knee length red dress and heels, the woman slipped her arm through Ed's and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Benson, did you hear me?" Dodds asked, before turning around to see what had caught the brunette's attention. "Oh," he said quietly, turning back around and touching Olivia's arm to get her attention. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she said, shaking her head a bit and snapping her attention back to the topic at hand. "I'm fine."

"Reservation for Tucker," Ed said to the hostess, as he felt an arm slide into his. He stiffened a bit, still not used to the feel of someone other than Olivia on his arm, but Beth seemed like a good person. She was smart, funny, and open to new adventures. Just what he was looking for, or so he thought.

"Yes," the hostess said, gathering menus and heading towards the back. "Right this way."

Ed removed his arm from Beth and signaled for her to go ahead. He strode behind her in his usual tall, Tucker-like fashion, his eyes scanning the restaurant and landing on a familiar silhouette.

He stopped briefly, his heart jumping into his throat, as he observed Olivia Benson sip a glass of red and converse softly with Chief Dodds. It looked to be strictly professional, her demeanor was stiff and her blazer was still on, but he couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy.

Ed continued to stand there until she looked up, their eyes catching briefly, causing his mouth to run dry. Unsure of what else to do, he nodded slightly at her before turning and catching up to Beth, who was now already seated, looking perplexed.

"See someone you know?" she asked softly, looking over at the table where Dodds and Olivia sat.

Ed took a few gulps of water before he cleared his throat, and allowed the words to slip off his tongue.

"Yeah," he said. "Just someone from the past."

Chief Dodds was still rambling on about all the reasons 1PP needed SVU to back off of this case, but Olivia hadn't heard any of it. Her eyes were downcast, watching the tiny amount of wine in her glass swirl around, while her thoughts were full of Ed Tucker. It wasn't until the waitress approached again, asking if she wanted a third glass, that she snapped out of it.

"No thanks," she said, her voice almost coming out in a croak, causing Dodds to raise an eyebrow. "Just the check."

"I got this, Olivia," he said, still eyeing her, giving away that she was obviously acting funny.

"Thank you," she said. "I just…I'm gonna run to the ladies' room."

Olivia quickly stood up and scurried across the restaurant as Dodds pulled out his credit card and watched Ed Tucker's eyes follow Benson as she made her escape.

Closing the door to the single stall restroom, Olivia turned the lock and fell backwards against the door, allowing her head to rest on the wood as she closed her eyes and took some deep breaths.

Ed Tucker was the last person she expected to run into in this neighborhood, in that restaurant. Not only that, she never in a million years would have thought she would see him with another woman.

Well, you've been split for about a year, she thought to herself, talking herself down from an unfamiliar feeling of jealousy and sadness. Despite it having been a year since she let Ed walk out of her apartment, and essentially out of her life, she still missed him. Doing what she did best, Olivia had thrown herself into work, fighting for victims and relentlessly pursuing cases. Little did she know that by doing that, she wasn't spending any more time with Noah. Which was why she was determined to get home to him tonight.

Splashing some water on her face, she admired her reflection in the mirror.

You can do this, she said to herself. Put your game face on, end the night with Chief, and go home to your little boy.

Standing up, she straightened her shoulders and once again, squashed her bubbling feelings for Ed Tucker, before exiting the restroom and confidently returning to the table.

"Better?" Dodds asked, watching as she downed her last sip of wine and gathered her bags.

"Much," she said. "And I assume you will keep working with 1PP to allow us to investigate this?"

"Absolutely," he assured her, motioning for her to go ahead and lead him to the exit.

"Ed?" Beth asked, putting her martini glass down and waving her hand in front of his face. "You okay over there?"

"Oh, what?" he said, shaking himself a bit and returning his eyes to the blonde in front of him. "Yeah, sorry."

"What's going on?" Beth asked, head cocked to the side.

Ed looked at her and narrowed his eyes a bit. Beth was perfectly nice and they seemed to have a lot in common. They both loved the Yankees, had a relatively dry sense of humor, and she didn't work all hours. She had weekends off, as did Ed, and they were able to get out and enjoy a sunny day when it came around. They had been seeing each other for a few months now, and though she seemed ready to go a bit further, he was still hesitating and couldn't quite figure out why.

"Its just been a while since I've seen her," he admitted, leaning forward a bit and playing with the napkin in front of him. Beth knew about his previous relationship with Olivia, and while he hadn't gone into much detail, she would likely see immediately that his feelings were not totally gone. Never the less, she continued to ask for an answer, and he was left with no choice.

"Who is she?"

"Olivia Benson."

"Lucy," Olivia exclaimed as she clambered through the door and dropped her bags by the entry table. "Thanks for staying. I got out of there as soon as I could."

"Oh, it's not a problem, Liv," Lucy said from where she was perched on the floor playing cars with Noah.

"Mommy!" he exclaimed, jumping up and running into her arms.

Olivia scooped him up and held him close, kissing his hair and swaying softly.

"My sweet boy," she whispered, kissing him once more before pulling back and touching his nose, eliciting a giggle. "How was your day?"

"Good," he said, playing with the collar of her burgundy blazer. "Goed to park wiff Lucy."

"Your favorite," she said happily, then looked at Lucy. "Do we need a bath?"

"No baff Mommy," Noah said, shaking his head hard as Lucy chuckled.

"We haven't taken one yet, but he did roll around in the dirt…"

Noah gave Lucy the stink eye, which she returned, causing him to break into a smile and a giggle.

"I stinky!" he exclaimed, before resting his head back on his mother's shoulders and giving a resigned sigh. "Otay, I take baff."

"Why don't you go grab your jammies, and I'll be right there," Olivia said, setting him down and watching as he ran to the back towards his room. She let out a sigh and turned to Lucy.

"Good day?"

"Yep," she allowed, standing up and gazing at the older woman a bit. "He's still a little congested, so we didn't stay outside long. You okay? You look…rattled."

Olivia let out a little laugh and rubbed her eyebrow a bit. She wasn't quite sure how to answer that, and despite wanting to give her usual 'I'm fine', she found herself admitting the evening's event.

"I ran into Ed at the restaurant," she said softly, her voice coming out shakier than she anticipated. "He was there with…another woman."

Lucy's expression fell a bit and she moved over near Olivia, putting a comforting hand on her upper arm and rubbed it a bit.

"I'm fine," she said, giving the young woman a little smile. "It just caught me off guard."

"That's understandable," Lucy offered, not really sure what else to say to the woman.

Luckily, Olivia wasn't up for any more than that, so she grabbed her purse and handed Lucy two twenties.

"Looks like it might rain," she said. "So let me pay for your cab home?"

"Oh, you don't have to do that," Lucy said, waiving off the cash, but Olivia insisted.

"No," she said, shoving the money into her hands. "I insist, especially since I've been working so much lately."

"Thanks, Olivia," she said, grabbing her stuff and heading to the door. Before departing, she looked back over her shoulder. "You can call me, or talk to me, anytime. If you need to."

"Thanks, Lucy," she said. "We are lucky to have you."

Lucy nodded and left, the door clicking closed behind her. Olivia moved to lock them in and turned around to admire the toys scattered throughout her apartment. Allowing herself a few seconds to wallow in the absence of Ed, she finally took a deep breath and headed back towards the bathroom. She had a little boy to focus on.

Well, what do you think so far? Should I continue?