blues and greens (barson)

xxiii.

It was still pretty light out, as it was only mid-afternoon by this point.
The outdoor bar was beautiful, there were lights hung all around in the beams of the overhang and on the beams of the pergola over the bar, not far off from where they sat.
The group of five got a picnic table, both couples sat across from one another and then Elliot pulled a chair over to sit at the end of the table. The table they'd picked was under a bit of an overhang.
They got a round of celebratory shots before ordering their usual drinks.
Elliot and Amanda each got a beer, Olivia a glass of wine, Rafael a double of scotch neat, and Carisi went for whiskey on the rocks.
They chatted while they sipped at their drinks, informing Stabler of more specific incidents that had occurred with Maria Benito that had led to where the court was at with her by his time on the stand.
"Damn," he mumbled as he polished off his bottle, "that's a level of delusion that I can't even begin to comprehend."
"Fin emailed me some of the files  and articles on her," Amanda said, pulling out her phone and beginning to skim through.
"Anyone need a refill while I'm up?" Stabler asked as he stood.
Rafa raised a finger, "if you don't mind?"
"Not at all," Elliot smiled at him, "scotch, double, neat?"
Rafael nodded, "thanks."
"Liv? Rollins? Carisi?"
"Yeah why not," Carisi nodded.
Elliot listed his order for confirmation, too.
Liv held up her barely touched wine, "I'm alright. I've gotta drive us home in a while."
"Same for me," Rollins agreed with Liv without looking up.
"Alright," Stabler nodded and headed toward the bar.
Rafael was the most disturbed by the display put on by Maria Benito, having experience as a defense attorney. He couldn't stop seeing her absolute confidence up until her motion to dismiss had been denied and then the lost floundering she did.
"So, it looks like her inability to provide real cross examinations and produce defense witnesses is not new," Amanda began.
"Really?" Carisi leaned to look over her shoulder.
"The case that got her disbarred in Florida was criminally negligent homicide by Armani Sull-" She looked up, "her younger brother, Armani Sullivan. She supported perjury and falsified evidence, she created a late investigation alibi for him. Paid a girl a lot of money to claim she was with him."
"And California?" Carisi inquired.
"I don't see anything yet," Amanda said as she kept scrolling on her phone.
"Where's Stabler with those drinks?" Carisi looked up.
Rafael hadn't been paying attention, he'd been texting Lucy to see how the kids were.
Olivia had been watching Elliot at the bar, "I think we might've lost him," she said.
Everyone looked toward the bar.
Stabler was laughing at something a woman next to him was saying, he leaned toward her an said something and she started laughing in kind.
They could only see a side profile but she looked to be very pretty and maybe in her mid-fifties or so. Her hair hung in long sheets of silver past her hips, it was pin straight. She was wearing a pale, teal colored, sundress and a pair of sandals with a cork, wedge heel. She had a light colored sun hat on and the bow matched her dress. Her crossbody purse was a pop of orange that beautifully contrasted the rest of her outfit.
Elliot shook the woman's hand with the famous Stabler smile, dimples and all, on his face as his mouth formed the words 'I'm Elliot.'
Rafael reached over and took Liv's hand, as a reminder that he was there.
It was clear to Liv that this sign of support was Rafa's way of saying it was okay if she had any sort of negative feelings in regard to Elliot flirting with the woman at the bar, but she didn't... which surprised her. She was happy for him, happy that maybe he'd found someone that could make him as happy as Rafa made her.
Elliot made eye contact with Liv as he laughed again and seemed to realize he was supposed to be getting drinks for the group.
Liv shook her head and gave him a go ahead gesture, "I can go grab the drinks for you guys."
"Do you think you could order some of those nachos they make?" Carisi asked as he was engrossed in reading about Maria Benito over Amanda's shoulder again.
Liv and Rafa laughed before she said, "sure, Carisi. Anything else?"
"Maybe some of the nachos and an appetizer platter?" He added.
Amanda stopped scrolling and looked at her partner, "you hungry, counselor?"
"Yeah, it sounds delicious," he finally looked up at Liv, when he saw the amused look on her face, a smile broke across his, "should I go?"
"No, I got it," Liv laughed, "it's just funny, the way you disappear into things reminds me of an ADA I used to know that would order way too much Chinese food because he wouldn't be paying attention and I would order everything he'd list."
"Oh, come on," Rafael said, "I wasn't that bad."
"Should I remind you of the $150 bill and the leftovers you were eating for days?" Liv commented as she stood and headed toward the bar.
Ensuring to stay a bit away from Elliot, but close enough to eavesdrop for a moment as she placed the order.
"No, no. I swear," the woman was saying as Elliot sipped a beer, "it was crazy, how fast everything happened. The tornado was maybe a mile east."
"And that didn't matter to you?" Elliot asked.
"No, it was exactly why we were there. We spent months trying to get that close to one," she explained as she was talking with her hands, a bit of her drink spilled over the lip of the glass which made her laugh again as she apologized profusely for the drops on Elliot's dress pants.
Elliot laughed too and ensured her he wasn't upset, "keep telling me about this storm chasing, it's fascinating."
"Your drinks," the bartender said to Liv, "we'll have the food brought to your table when it's done."
"Thank you," Liv took the two glasses and went back toward the table.
"You did the cop thing," Amanda commented without looking up as Liv sat the drinks down.
"What do you mean?" She took a sip of her wine.
"Standing just close enough to 'overhear' but far enough to not draw attention to your presence," Carisi also didn't look up.
"Hear anything interesting? Her name, maybe?" Rollins asked.
"No, no name, but it sounds like she was a storm chaser, maybe?" Liv looked over.
Rafael sat forward and looked at the woman, "wait a minute. A storm chaser?"
"Something about tornados and trying to get close to them?" Liv shook her head and shrugged.
"I knew I recognized her," Rafa pulled his phone out and started typing on it.
"Is that a bad thing?" Carisi looked up.
"No, no. The opposite."
Amanda put her phone down.
"Years ago, a man I was..." Rafa glanced at Liv, "involved with..."
Liv smiled, "go on."
"He took me to this photographer's exhibit in SoHo. The photos were stunning, some of them were terrifying showing houses actively being ripped from their foundations or cars lifted off the road," he put his phone down on the table, the photos on it, "I've never been much of an art man, but the lighting and the composition, each one told a story."
"Quoting the man you were involved with?" Liv bumped her shoulder playfully against his.
He wrinkled his nose playfully as he smiled at her, "maybe. He was a nice guy, a bit too poetic and rose-colored glasses for my tastes, but it was fun. Art galleries and... I never did lose my taste for Broadway after him."
"Yeah, we remember you ditching an interrogation to go see Hamilton," Carisi said as he lifted his glass to take a sip of his whiskey.
"Margaret "Maggie" Lowell," Amanda read the name on the article Rafael had pulled up, "storm and nature photographer. Known for her up close photography of nature's wrath, Maggie, is an artist with an impeccable eye for capturing the way nature tries to reclaim it's space from human influence."
"That's beautiful," Liv turned to look at where Elliot and Maggie were still laughing with each other.
"She's very pretty," Amanda was looking at the photographer's photo on the screen at the bottom of the article.
Liv glanced at the photo and it was, absolutely, the woman Elliot was speaking with.
"I spoke to her at her exhibit," Rafael said, "she was a bit of an adrenaline junkie but she told fascinating stories of her travels all over the world and the people she met."
"They seem to be hitting it off," Carisi commented.
"Good," Liv felt like this really was good for Elliot, she liked how happy he looked.
"An adrenaline junkie would be good for hi-" Rafa paused, "sorry, that was unkind. I'm still trying to move past everything he did."
"Forgiveness isn't linear, just like healing," Amanda said, "it'll take time."
"Exactly," Olivia agreed, "give yourself time and if you want him around less, all you have to do is ask."
"No, no. It's okay," Rafael put a hand on top of Liv's on the table, "I want good things for him, I want him to heal from his losses. I just still find myself making-"
"Classic sassy Barba comments?" Carisi offered.
"Yeah," Rafael swirled his drink around his glass, his eyes on it. For a brief second there was a doubt in his head, that his comments were seen as a bad thing.
Liv seemed to notice and leaned over, pressing a kiss against his shoulder, "and we love your sassy Barba comments."
He looked over at her and gave her that crooked smirk that always made her skin prickle with heat.
Their food was delivered not long later. Time was passing and the sun was growing lower in the sky.