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As the grass was illuminated by the flashing sirens of the police car, Noah became consumed with fear.
He was screwed.
As the two police officers parked and exited the car, he shared a fearful look with an equally alarmed Jesse
Scratch that. They were both screwed.
“Are you aware that this land is not for public use?” One of the cops asked as they reached them.
Noah shifted awkwardly.
“We are,” Jesse replied quietly, looking down at her shoes.
“Criminal trespassing is a crime,” one of the officers said. “Unfortunately, you both are under arrest on the charge of criminal trespassing-” she began, but was stopped by the other officer who was about to handcuff Noah.
“I just smelled a whiff of something,” he said. “We should have them take a breathalyzer, we might be arresting them on another charge as well.”
Noah’s heart sank to the floor. If he wasn’t screwed before, he definitely was now. He shared a panicked look with Jesse.
Most kids of cops could expect a break when it came to the minor offenses that they were picked up for. Unfortunately, Noah and Jesse weren’t most kids. Their parents had made it abundantly clear that if they ended up at a police station and weren’t dead, they’d be dead when they got home anyway.
Noah blew into the breathalyzer, his heart sinking as he saw the .04 appear.
“We just had one drink each,” he said quickly, seeing that Jesse had the same result.
“Doesn’t make it legal,” the female officer said grimly as she began handcuffing him again. “You both are under arrest on the charge of criminal trespassing and underage drinking. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.”
Noah met Jesse’s eyes as they were led into the car.
“Shit,” he muttered.
“We’re screwed,” she whispered back.
The ride to the car was silent as both teenagers were consumed with the ungodly fear that only the thought of an angry Olivia Benson, Amanda Rollins, and Alexandra Cabot could inspire in a person.
“If they offer the death penalty, I’m taking it,” Noah whispered to Jesse. “Still better than facing Mom.”
Jesse nodded fervently in agreement.
“I wonder if Mama is going to represent me,” Noah said wonderingly. “Depends on whether Mom lets her I guess.”
“Probably not, knowing your mom,” Jesse replied. “Uncle Sonny might represent me if I ask nicely.”
“Not if your mom says no,” Noah said. “Uncle Sonny is scared of both your mom and my mom, so if either of them doesn’t want him to, he definitely won’t.
“You’re probably right about that,” Jesse replied, sighing. “This was such a bad idea.”
“Yeah,” Noah said.
“We’re idiots.”
“I know.”
The rest of the car ride was silent as Noah and Jesse contemplated their grim fates. Sooner than they would have preferred, the car stopped in front of the station.
“Get out,” one of the officers said. They were then both led inside a holding cell, probably for questioning.
“Do you need to call someone?”
Jesse and Noah looked at each other for a long second.
“I would like to call my lawyer please,” Jesse said finally.
She was then led to the phone, where she dialed a familiar number, putting it on speaker so Noah could hear.
“Hello?”
“Uncle Sonny, I’m sorry if I woke you up.”
“Jesse? Why are you calling me so late? What phone are you calling me from?”
“The police station. It’s in Manhattan. Noah and I have been arrested.”
“Arrested? What for?”
“Criminal trespassing and underage drinking.”
A beat of silence.
“Do you know how much trouble you’re in?” Sonny asked slowly.
“Yes,” Jesse replied, her voice breaking a little.
“I’m going to have to call your mom sweetie. And the Capt. Liv’s going to murder Noah,” he said.
Noah silently nodded in agreement.
“Could you represent me?” Jesse asked softly.
“Probably,” Sonny replied. “As long as your mom is okay with it.”
Noah mouthed to Jesse, “Alex.”
“And Noah wants Aunt Alex to represent him.”
“That’ll be an uphill battle,” Sonny said with a little laugh. “But I’ll try.”
“Thank you,” Jesse said, her voice breaking again.
“Love you kid,” Sonny replied before hanging up.
Jesse put down and sighed. Noah squeezed her hand.
“I feel so bad,” she said softly.
“There’s nothing that we can do now,” Noah said in defeat as they were led back to the cell.
Olivia was woken up by a ringing phone. “God, it’s 12 am,” she muttered blearily. “Must be work.”
Alex shifted beside her, obviously also having been woken up by the unwanted disturbance. “Tell them to go away,” she directed into the pillow.
“Benson,” she greeted.
“Hey Capt,” a familiar voice greeted her.
“Carisi?” she asked in surprise. “What do you need?”
“Just to tell you something,” he said, his tone obviously nervous.
“What is it?” she asked apprehensively, sitting up.
“It’s Noah. He’s been arrested."
“What?” Olivia’s tone had taken on a dangerous tone. “As in, my son is in a holding cell somewhere?"
"Yes,” Carisi replied quietly. “With Jesse.”
Olivia felt Alex sitting up beside her, obviously concerned.
“What did they do?” Olivia asked, a horrible feeling arising in her stomach.
“Criminal trespassing and underage drinking.”
“I’m going to murder him,” Olivia said hollowly.
“I believe he’s aware of that. He said he wants Alex to represent him,” Carisi relayed.
“Fine with me,” Olivia said.
“Really?” Carisi asked, unable to mask his disbelief.
“Yeah,” Olivia said. “He’s paying her fees though, and she isn’t cheap.”
She ignored Alex poking her in the side.
“That makes more sense,” Carisi replied. “We’ll meet you at the precinct?”
“Yep,” Olivia said, resigned.
Olivia felt as if she was in a trance as she put down the phone.
“Noah was arrested,” she relayed to Alex, who looked as if her fears had been confirmed.
“I figured,” she replied. “He wants me to represent him?”
“Yeah,” Olivia said. “I wasn’t joking about him paying your fees though.”
“I figured,” Alex replied. “I can’t believe Noah got arrested though, this is so unlike him.”
“And Jesse too!” Olivia said. “I bet Carisi is representing her.”
“Makes sense,” Alex agreed.
“I guess we should go to the station then,” Olivia said as she stood up and began looking through her closet.
“This is not going to be fun,” Alex said as she pulled on some clothes. “You do know I don’t actually have fees right? I’m a prosecutor, not a defense attorney.”
“Of course I know that,” Olivia replied as she changed. “Noah probably doesn’t though.”
“You’re mean,” Alex said, hastily brushing her hair.
“He’s the one that went and got himself arrested!” Olivia exclaimed indignantly.
“I know,” Alex said, sighing as she checked herself in the mirror. “You ready?” she asked.
“Barely,” Olivia replied as they left.
As the drove to the station, a heavy silence descended upon them, occasionally punctuated by Olivia’s muttered threats outlining the creative ways with which she planned to punish Noah.
“He is just a kid Liv,” Alex said, trying and failing to abate Olivia’s anger.
“He’s still responsible for his actions though,” Olivia retorted. “He knows the difference between right and wrong.”
They parked in front of the precinct, where Amanda and Carisi were waiting for them.
“Hey,” Amanda greeted them weakly.
“I’m going to kill him,” Olivia said.
“You’ve already said that babe. Many times,” Alex replied.
Amanda looked sympathetic to Olivia’s sentiment though. “Drinking? What were they thinking?”
“They weren’t,” Olivia said. “What if they had gotten hurt? I’m glad they got arrested, its better than them roaming the streets at all hours of the night!”
Amanda nodded in agreement as they went inside.
“Hi, we’re here for Noah Porter Benson and Jesse Rollins,” Olivia said to the desk clerk.
“They’re in the first holding cell,” the clerk said, pointing.
Olivia marched over to the cell, where the arresting officers were watching the two teens.
“Mom, Mama,” Noah said softly.
“Noah Porter Benson,” Olivia greeted him, fury boiling in her voice. “What the hell did you do?”
“I’m so sorry,” Noah replied, as Amanda and Jesse engaged in a similar conversation.
“Are you the parents?” a familiar voice asked.
Olivia raised an eyebrow as she realized who was prosecuting this case. “Trespassing and underage drinking. Isn’t this a little bit small fry for you Casey?”
“Normally, yes.” Casey replied. “I’m Manhattan's Bureau Chief for Juvenile Crimes, but after I heard who was involved in this case, I knew I needed to see this for myself.”
“Does my misfortune amuse you?” Olivia asked, a smile dancing on her face.
“If the misfortune includes the child of the Commanding Officer of Manhattan’s SVU and Manhattan's EADA, yes.”
One of the arresting officers let out a small gasp as they recognized the high profile of the teenagers they had arrested.
“I’m assuming you're not going to ask me to go easy on them?” Casey asked Amanda and Olivia.
“Absolutely not,” Olivia replied. “I never want this to happen again. Plus I kind of want to see you go up against Alex and Carisi. The battle of the Manhattan ADAs and all that.”
Alex made a protesting noise at that, which Olivia predictably ignored. “I really doubt that this is going to turn into a court battle Liv,” she said.
"Anything can be a court battle if you try hard enough," she retorted.
Alex let out a long-suffering sigh but chose not to respond.
“We’re going to be questioning them then, would you both like to be in the rooms?” Casey asked.
“Yes please,” Olivia and Alex answered in tandem. Casey nodded, before asking Amanda and Carisi the same question.
The arresting officers then split up and one led Noah into an interrogation room, Alex and Olivia following.
“Would you mind recounting your memory of what occurred before the arrest so that we can get the clearest picture of what occurred?” the officer asked.
“Jesse and I went to a homecoming afterparty,” Noah began. “At first, everything was chill, no one was drinking, but then after a few hours, beer and some harder stuff got passed around.”
“Was the party at another student’s house?”
“Yeah,” Noah replied.
“Were there adult chaperones?”’
“No, Evan’s parents are staying in the Hamptons for the weekend. The house was empty.”
The officer took some notes before responding. “You can continue.”
“So, at first Jesse and I decided not to drink, but after a while, we decided to try since neither of us has drunk alcohol before. We didn’t drink a lot, I think we had a beer each.”
“Didn’t drink a lot,” Olivia scoffed. Alex sighed and placed a calming hand over Olivia’s tightly clasped ones.
Noah sighed as well, before continuing. “After we had the two beers, we decided to get out, so we walked around for a little bit. We walked for a little, but then we got tired and decided to chill at the grassland for a little bit. We didn’t know it was a protected area, otherwise, we wouldn’t have gone in.”
“That’s all?” the officer asked.
“Yeah,” Noah replied.
“We’ll have you and your friend wait in the holding cell overnight, you’ll be sentenced tomorrow morning.”
Noah nodded and was led out. After he was out of earshot, Olivia let out a long sigh. “I really cannot believe this,” she said quietly. “My son committed a crime and is staying the night in a holding cell. What did I do wrong?”
“Nothing,” Alex reassured her quietly, grabbing her hand as Amanda and Carisi approached. “It was just Noah and Jesse being stupid teenagers. We’ve all done stupid stuff, it’s no reflection on you.”
“I feel so bad,” Olivia said quietly. “It was Noah’s influence that got Jesse arrested. She’s only 15.”
“She was a willing participant,” Amanda interjected. “She knows the difference between right and wrong.”
“Still,” Olivia replied softly. “My own son, a criminal. How ironic is that?”
“He’s not a criminal Liv. He’s just a kid, don’t be too hard on him.”
“He made a conscious decision and will receive the consequences,” Olivia said quietly. “He knows better.”
“Which is why he probably feels bad enough already,” Alex said.
Olivia shrugged.
Olivia grimaced as they entered Casey’s office the next day. “What’s the damage?” she asked wearily.
“We’re going to be charging them with the underage drinking but we’ll drop the criminal trespassing since they were intoxicated and it was dark.”
“That’s generous,” Olivia muttered.
“Liv wants 4-5 years in prison,” Alex clarified.
Olivia rolled her eyes. “No I don’t, I just want Noah to face the consequences of his actions.”
“I feel like we’ve established that at this point, putting Noah in jail for a few months, while Liv calms down, would probably be an act of kindness,” Alex whispered to Casey.
“I agree,” Casey said. “Which is why we are sending them home with a $50 fine and 15 hours of community service.”
Olivia looked displeased.
“And the charges will be expunged after the sentence is completed.”
Olivia’s displeasure visibly increased.
Casey laughed a little. “You are possibly the first parent who’s ever been disappointed at the lightness of her son’s sentence.”
“I doubt it,” Olivia replied. “And I don’t think I’m being mean-”
“You are,” Alex interrupted.
Ignoring her, Olivia continued. “I just think that Noah did something stupid and illegal and should be punished for it.”
“Which you’ve stated numerous times,” Alex reminded her. “Also, you didn’t mention that you want to make sure he knows full well that his parental connections won’t get him any special favors.”
“He should already know that,” Olivia said. “I’ve informed him of that several times.
“You don’t think it hurts for it to be put in practice though,” Alex extrapolated.
Olivia nodded. “It definitely doesn’t.”
“Feel free to pick Noah up,” Casey informed them.
“Thank you,” Alex and Olivia said in union.
“Just doing my job,” Casey replied with a smile. “See you guys soon.”
“Have fun with the juveniles!” Olivia responded.
They smiled at the waiting Amanda and Carisi on their way out of Casey's office.
“We’ll wait for you both in front of the precinct before we pick them up,” Olivia informed them.
“Sounds good,” Amanda responded.
Noah woke up to the sound of the holding cell’s door opening.
“You two are free to go,” the officer informed them.
“Thank you,” Noah and Jesse responded in unison as they retrieved their confiscated phones.
Noticing their parents, they went over to greet them.
“Hey Mom, Mama,” Noah said in greeting.
“Hey sweetie,” Alex replied, hugging him. “Don’t ever do anything like this again, you hear me?”
“Yeah,” Noah responded softly. “I’m sorry.”
“I know,” Alex murmured before releasing him.
Surprisingly, he was immediately hugged by Olivia.
“You know I love you, right?” she asked.
“Yeah,” Noah replied.
“I hope you learned your lesson.”
“I definitely did Mom, I promise.”
“Good,” Olivia said, releasing him. “Next time you pull anything like this, I’m telling the ADA to send you to Rikers.”
“I know,” Noah replied. “But I’m not pulling anything like this again.”
Olivia turned to Amanda and Carisi. “See you guys later,” she said.
“See you Liv,” Amanda responded at the same time that Carisi responded, “See you Capt!”
Olivia smiled and left, Alex and Noah following.
“I’m taking a shower,” Noah announced immediately after they returned home. “I feel gross.”
“Just think of the many people who have slept in that holding cell before you,” Olivia supplied helpfully.
“Ew,” Noah said, his face twisting in disgust. “That really didn’t help Mom.”
“It’s what I’m here for!” Olivia called after him.
Dinner that night was quiet, with Noah too busy eating to talk, and Alex and Olivia both lost in their own thoughts.
“So, you didn’t eat at the party?” Olivia asked, attempting to make conversation.
“I did, it’s just been 24 hours since then,” Noah replied.
“Was it really Evan’s birthday party?”
“Yeah,” Noah replied.
Olivia sighed. “Did Jesse say she was sleeping over at our house the way you said you were sleeping over at Amanda’s.”
Noah looked embarrassed. “Yeah,” he replied.
“You know better than that,” Alex reminded him sternly. “We don’t lie in this house.”
“I know,” Noah said. “I’m never going to again, I promise.”
Olivia snorted. “You’re not going to get the chance to. You’re on house arrest for the foreseeable.”
Noah nodded gloomily. “I figured,” he replied.
As they finished eating, Olivia started clearing the plates before pausing. “Noah,” she said quietly.
“Yeah Mom?” Noah replied.
“I love you honey, you know that right?”
“Yeah Mom,” Noah replied. “I love you too.”
Alex opened her mouth and Noah hastily added, “and you too Mama.”
“Don’t ever scare us like that again,” Olivia said, her voice soft.
“I won’t,” Noah reassured her, and Olivia pulled him and Alex into a hug.
That night, Alex and Olivia watched Noah silently as he slept.
"He looks so little," Olivia said wonderingly. "So peaceful."
"Yeah," Alex said in agreement. "Hard to believe that he's a hardened criminal."
Olivia rolled her eyes. "I don't think that my reaction was unreasonable," she defended herself.
"I never said it was," Alex replied innocently. "Just implied that you acted as if he was arrested on drug charges instead of underage drinking."
"Because that's so much better than outright saying that my reaction was unreasonable," Olivia replied with a small laugh.
"If it makes you feel any better, your reaction might have been unreasonable, but it definitely was hot," Alex said, whispering the last part in Olivia's ear.
"I'll forgive the unreasonable part, if you can find a way to make it up to me," Olivia said, turning so that her lips were inches away from Alex's.
Alex was about to respond when she heard Noah stir in his bed. "I love you Liv, but we are not doing pillow talk in front of our son. I don't care if he's asleep, it's too weird for me."
Olivia pouted for a second, but just snaked her arm around Alex's waist. "Fine. Later," she said.
"Love you," Alex replied, and they stood silently together, watching Noah sleep soundly.