And so we begin again. This is the next installment to Another Chance. If you haven't read it yet, click on my name and head to my page and read. IT's a pretty ok story and it should clarify any confusion you may have. Otherwise, I'M BACK!!! Miss me? ;) I have officially completed my second of year of college and I didn't attempt to kill myself once. (Although crawling in a hole and dying did appeal to me many times). I was so busy I couldn't write, but I'm hoping to get at least this story done by the summer's end (I should), and on to the next story. I have tons to share, but no time to write, so I'm going to crank out as much as I can during the small amount of free time I have. I make no promises though, but I will do my best. Now on with show! Oh and disclaimer: Not mine, but I don't think Dick knows what he's doing with them. I might start a petition to have them sold to me. :Grins evilly: And big thanks to Amy, because without her I would be a complete smuck in the mud. Love you Ames. Now. ON WITH THE SHOW!!!!!

So many days had passed that he had lost count, and considering his new beard and how tired he was, he figured it was about two weeks. Two weeks since he last saw her eyes, her smile, heard her voice. It was driving him insane, but with every passing day Olivia had gotten stronger. Slowly the doctors had removed whatever apparatus she had been hooked up to and her brain started to show some activity. They had taken her off the ventilator the day before and he knew it would be any day now. Any day now she would open her eyes, tell him she loved him again, and they would just move on with their lives. He was going to ask her to marry him. Once he brought her home and they had settled in with their daughter, he was going to get on one knee and ask her to be his for the rest of their lives.

"Elliot."

He turned to the voice that had awakened him out of his day dreams. "Don? What are you doing here?"

"Came to see how my best detective was doing. Any change?"

"No." He sighed and looked back at her. Everyone had taken turns coming to see her but the evenings and late nights had mostly been his shift.

"When was the last time you went home? Had a decent shower? A good night's sleep?"

"I shower and sleep fine. Besides, she's going to wake up soon. Someone needs to be here. I need to be here."

"Elliot, go home. Spend some time with your daughter. Her mother can't be with her right now and she needs her father. You have her staying with a person that's virtually a stranger."

"Maureen's her sister. She's not a stranger."

"But Kayla had never met her before two weeks ago. She knows the daycare lady better. To her Maureen is a stranger, and I'm pretty sure that at this point she could use her Dad."

Elliot looked at Olivia and knew she would want him to be with Kayla right now. It's true that he had probably spent a total of five minutes with her since everything had happened. "Ok. But can you sit with her tonight?"

"Sure. Go home. I got it covered here."

"Thanks…Don't leave her alone."

"I won't. Go ahead."

*~*

Going home seemed to be exactly what he needed. After a long hot shower and a decent shave, he had taken Kayla from Maureen and she had remained clung to his body the rest of the day, grip tight on his grey T-shirt. His guess was that she missed him. She sat in his lap quietly while he ate and watched the news and eventually fell asleep against his chest.

He stood and walked into her bedroom and laid her in her crib and simply stared at her. She looked so much like Olivia and at this point it was heart breaking. If Olivia didn't make it he wasn't sure he would be able to look at their daughter the same again. He loved her and always would, there was no doubt about that, but every time she smiled he knew he would think of her. He could tell already that she was going to be her mother's spittin' image, and her other characteristics seemed to mirror her mother as well. He just wasn't sure if it was all Olivia or a mixture of both them. They were both so similar. He leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead then headed to Olivia's bedroom to sleep.

*~*

The next morning he sat around the table feeding Kayla her Gerber oatmeal for breakfast. Very little of it was actually going in, and most of what went in was promptly spat out, but he kept trying nonetheless. They had been having a hard time getting her to eat ever since Olivia had been in the hospital. He supposed it was the dramatic switch from breast milk, to well, everything else, but he didn't have a choice. The effects of the switch were starting to show. She had dropped a couple pounds, but not much, although it was enough to concern him.

His cell phone rang and he picked it up and cradled it against his ear. "Stabler."

"Elliot, it's me. She's awake."

Elliot frose midway to giving Kayla another spoon of oatmeal. "I'm on my way."

"Elliot wait. There's-"

"I'll be there in a sec. Cap. I'm on my way." He closed the phone and stood hoisting Kayla up with him. He handed her off to Maureen and grabbed a few things before rushing out the door.

*~*

Elliot jogged down the hall to where Olivia's room was and glanced at her through the small window in the door to her room. She was sleeping, and the tube that had been in her mouth had been removed. He walked in quietly and took a seat on the edge of her bed. She shifted and opened her eyes to stare at him with familiar brown eyes.

"Hey," he whispered to her before leaning in and covering her lips with his. He expected to feel her sink into his kiss. To have her arms come up and caress him. To feel her tongue probe his mouth. What he wasn't expecting was the stinging flesh of his right cheek. He pulled back immediately to find wild eyes staring back at him laced with fear, anger, and confusion.

"Who the hell are you?"

Thanks for reading. Your Reviews are welcomed. Also if you big up this series a bit I would really appreciate it. This is my greatest work so far and I want as many people as possible to read it. Thank you for all of your continuous support. I means a lot to me, and I hope yuou guys are ready for the rest of the ride. ;D