Just when Casey Novak was sure that her morning could not possibly get any more annoying, she heard thunder rumble, low and ominous, through the sky. Oh, of course, she silently grumbled with a roll of her eyes and a resigned sigh. She would have bet money this morning that the entire universe was conspiring against her.

It had been months since she and Elliot Stabler and Olivia Benson all had the same day off together. It had been so long in fact that she had sort of forgotten that when the three of them did get a chance to spend time together outside the office, the two detectives tended to gang up on her as if she were their whiny kid sister.

And today was no exception. In the hour that the trio had been together, Casey had already been taunted, teased, mocked, and given a flick or two. Now it was thundering, which meant that the lightning and the rain and the wind were not all that far behind.

Not that she cared about the storm. The storm was going to do whatever it was storms did, and that was just fine with her. It was just that she now knew what genre of movie the detectives were going to choose to fill their junk-food-and-movie day.

She wandered over to one of the floor-to-ceiling window panels at the front of the video store and stared out at the dark clouds that were rushing towards her. The storm was indeed rolling in and when it hit, it was going to be enormous.

“Oh, come on, Novak,” a harsh voice whispered in her ear.

Casey gasped out loud and spun around to face Elliot Stabler, who was grinning widely at her. She placed one hand over her pounding heart and smacked the detective’s shoulder with the other. “You suck,” she muttered as she tried to catch her breath.

Elliot’s teasing grin grew wider. “You’re not afraid of a little thunder and lightning, are you?”

Before Casey could respond, Olivia stepped up to the pair with a kind smile on her face. “Nah, Casey’s not afraid of storms.”

Casey thanked the detective for sticking up for her, but she spoke too soon.

“She is, however, afraid of scary movies,” Olivia continued, holding up the DVD she had chosen. “And I can’t think of anything better on a dark and stormy … well, morning than a scary movie.”

Casey groaned inwardly when she realized that the detective had selected a slasher flick. She swallowed hard and attempted to stammer a denial. “I’m not … I mean, I don’t--”

Elliot laughed before raising his eyebrows at Olivia. “Oh, I’m so getting in on this,” he said as he began to make his way back over to the horror section. Casey shot Olivia a murderous glare, but the detective just smiled sweetly before joining her partner.

Casey sighed. Yes, just as she had expected: the detectives were going to force horror movies on her. Though she had expected Elliot to choose a scary movie simply because of the atmosphere outside, she had not in any way been prepared for Olivia to sell her out to her partner.

And besides, Olivia had it wrong. Casey wasn’t exactly afraid of horror movies, per se. She just didn’t like how she felt after she watched one: how all her senses were heightened, how she was more in tune with every single sound around her, the way the shadows and the light played tricks with her eyes. It simply wasn’t her idea of fun. But she had a funny feeling that attempting to get the detectives to understand the difference between not thinking something was fun and being afraid of it would be pointless, especially at this juncture. So she didn’t even bother.

Casey had already chosen her movie: Clue. One day while discussing movies, Casey had come to discover that Olivia had never seen Clue, a fact which Casey proclaimed “a travesty that needs to be rectified.” Today was the perfect day to rectify it, Casey had decided. Now she was just waiting for Elliot to make his choice and for Olivia to make her other one. Olivia had been given the privilege of choosing two movies since she had offered up her apartment to host the small get-together.

Knowing now that the detectives were choosing horror movies, she felt a little silly for hanging onto her cheesy mid-‘80s comedy, but she was determined to stand her ground. She really thought Olivia would appreciate the humor and if she was going to be forced to watch the detectives’ three horror movies, they could surely sit through her comedy for an hour and a half. She even nodded slightly to herself, affirming her resolution to stick to lighthearted fare.

After standing at the window for another long moment, she supposed that it was time to track down the detectives. Slowly she headed over to the horror section. She found them huddled close together reading the back of the one of the DVDs and engaged in deep conversation. Upon looking up and locking eyes with the approaching Casey, Olivia elbowed Elliot in the ribs, cutting their conversation short.

In an instant Casey was mentally thrown back to seventh grade. She stopped walking, her breath catching in her throat, but the memory passed just as suddenly as it attacked. It was another second or so before Casey was able continue forward with a smile on her face. Hopefully her pause had come and gone fast enough for the detectives not to have noticed. “All right, what the hell are you two planning on subjecting me to?”

Elliot shot her a faux-sweet smile and held out his choice for her inspection. Event Horizon, which she’d already seen. She let out a small breath of relief through her nose and was about to mention that she’d seen it before but then stopped herself. Why should she give Elliot not only a reason but also a chance to find a movie she hadn’t seen? Instead she nodded without saying a word before turning to Olivia.

To Casey’s immense relief the detective had put back the slasher flick she’d chosen before but to her disappointment she had instead picked two ghost stories: What Lies Beneath and The Frighteners. Casey hadn’t seen either of them and her concern must have shown in her eyes because Olivia gave her a barely noticeable but comforting smile. She relaxed slightly with the knowledge that Olivia wasn’t planning on forcing something on her that would completely weird her out.

“The more important question, Counselor, is what you’re planning to subject us to,” Elliot said, reaching out to snatch the DVD from Casey’s hand before she had a chance to react. He glanced at the cover and rolled his eyes, snickering, before handing the plastic case back to her. “Clue? Our day is going to consist of three horror movies and Clue?”

“Well, Olivia’s never seen it and--” She stopped mid-sentence and frowned. Why the hell was she attempting to justify herself to Elliot? “Yes, our day is going to consist of three horror movies and Clue,” she said instead, setting her jaw. “You have a problem with that, Detective?”

“No problem,” Elliot answered, holding up his hands in surrender. He caught his partner’s eye before turning a smile on the ADA. “I respect the fact that you’re too much of a baby to pick out a scary movie of your own.”

“I’m not afraid of scary movies,” Casey said through gritted teeth. Unfortunately a loud clap of thunder chose that moment to boom overhead and poor Casey jumped a mile at the sudden sound. Elliot snorted in amusement and Olivia had to bite her lower lip to keep from laughing out loud. Groaning and suddenly annoyed, Casey turned her back on the detectives and began heading for the front of the store.

Why on earth was she being so sensitive to the detectives’ teasing? It wasn’t as if they were being overly mean today; in fact, the ribbing they’d been giving her all morning was much milder than usual. As the seconds passed, she started to feel a teensy bit guilty for getting huffy with them.

Just as she was about to step up to the register to pay for her movie, Elliot sidled up beside her and dropped a large box of Whoppers on top of the DVD in her hands. “Malted milk balls are your favorite, right? My treat.”

“Yes,” Casey answered, smiling at the detective. “You remembered.”

He gave her a slight nod. “I’m sorry for giving you a hard time.”

“No, you were fine,” Casey assured him. “I’m sorry. For being oversensitive.”

“Oh my God,” Olivia spoke up from behind the two of them. They both turned to face her. “Now that you two have hugged and had your Dr. Phil moment, could we just pay for this stuff and move the day along a little, please?”

Casey snickered. Leave it to Olivia to inject humor into the situation. “Sounds like a plan to me.” To be honest she just wanted to get back to Olivia’s before the three of them got caught in the storm. By all appearances the skies were going to open up any moment now.

With a wide smile, Casey dropped both her DVD and the box of candy into Elliot’s hands. “Since you’re already buying me candy, you can pay for my movie, too.”

Olivia raised her eyebrows and grinned as Casey stepped forward, leaving Elliot frozen in surprise for a split-second. After shaking off the initial shock, he smiled his approval at the ADA. “Well played, Counselor.”

Casey simply grinned at him. She figured, what the hell? If they were going to treat her like a bratty little sister, she might as well act like one.

-----

As Elliot and Olivia raided the kitchen while putting together snacks and drinks, Casey stood at the window in the living room. The lightning and thunder were almost continuous now and the harsh wind whipped the rain against the windows.

Luckily the downpour had held out long enough for the trio to finish their business at the video store and stop off at the grocery a block from Olivia’s apartment. There they picked up enough candy, chips, and soda to feed the entire squad for the next few days.

Moments later Olivia emerged from the kitchen carrying in one hand a bowl of freshly popped buttered popcorn--the real stuff because Olivia would not hear of buying “that microwave crap”--and a bowl of barbecue potato chips in the other. Elliot was right behind her holding two small bottles of soda and a glass of iced tea.

“You sure she’s not afraid of storms?” Elliot asked Olivia, gesturing with a mischievous grin towards Casey.

“I’m not watching the storm,” Casey said over a rumble of thunder. “I’m watching the rain.”

“It’s rain, Casey.” Olivia raised an incredulous eyebrow at the ADA. “Are you honestly that fascinated with water falling from the sky?”

Casey heaved a faux-frustrated sigh as she turned away from the window. “Never mind.”

After taking her bottle of soda from Elliot’s outstretched hand, she flopped down on the couch and tucked her legs underneath herself. Elliot settled in Olivia’s easy chair and Olivia let out a soft sigh as she made herself comfortable on the other end of the sofa. “So what movie are we putting in first?” Elliot asked as he took a couple of potato chips from the bowl.

“Well, the thunder and lightning will really complement the mood of Event Horizon,” Olivia said, thinking out loud. She placed the bowl of popcorn on the middle cushion between her and Casey. “I say we start there and work our way up to the comedies.”

“Wait, comedies?” Casey asked, her surprise obvious. “Plural?”

“The Frighteners is more of a dark comedy than a horror movie,” Olivia answered with a soft chuckle. “Come on, Casey. Michael J. Fox is in it! How scary did you think it would be?”

Casey shrugged. She hadn’t paid any attention to who was in the movie, just what it was about. “So it’s not scary?”

The tiny hopeful smile on Casey’s face was so adorable that Olivia actually felt physical pain at having to burst her bubble a little bit. “It’s not completely scare-free,” she allowed, “but there’s a lot more comic relief than in your standard horror movie, so it balances out.”

“Hold on a second,” Elliot interrupted, partly because he actually had a question and partly because he didn’t want Olivia to give Casey the whole plot outline of a movie they were going to be watching in a few hours. “What do you mean, ‘the mood of Event Horizon?’ You’ve seen this before?”

“Yes.”

“Why didn’t you tell me that?”

“Because you really wanted to scare the crap out of Casey and I knew that Event Horizon would.”

Casey felt her jaw drop open. So, wait, the two of them had conspired to freak her the hell out? “Well, you two are shit out of luck because I’ve already seen it, too.”

The detectives stared at each other. Casey just grinned, enjoying her little bombshell. “You’ve seen this?” Olivia asked incredulously. “Casey, you could barely handle Casper!”

“Okay, for one thing? I am not that much of a wuss,” Casey argued. “And two, you think you guys are the only ones who’ve ever forced horror movies on me?” She clucked her tongue in disapproval.

“Just for that, I say we make her get up and put the DVD in,” Elliot said to his partner, who nodded her agreement.

Casey pouted but she knew that arguing would be pointless. After a swift roll of her eyes she set her drink down on the end table and forced herself off of the sofa.

Of course the DVD in question would be the one at the bottom of the bag. She dug it out and slid the disc into Olivia’s player. On her way back to the couch she handed the remote control to the detective, who accepted it with a smile. Once Casey was situated back in her seat, she pulled open the box of candy and popped a couple malted milk balls into her mouth.

Even though Casey remembered the plotline of the movie and how it ended, she’d only seen it that one time. Years ago. She found herself inching closer to Olivia as the tension and creepiness on the screen built. It wasn’t until Olivia reached out and grabbed her hand that she realized she’d been holding one of the throw pillows tightly against her chest.

“You okay?” Olivia whispered, tightening her grip on Casey’s hand.

“Yeah.” Casey squeezed Olivia’s hand in return. “I-I just forgot some of this stuff happened.”

“Is she wigging out yet?” Elliot asked, a joking yet still hopeful smile playing across his lips.

Casey was about to murmur a denial when Olivia said, “A little.”

Immediately Casey pursed her lips and pulled her hand from Olivia’s grasp. Just whose side was Olivia on, anyway? She’d been acting as a double agent all morning, seemingly going easy on Casey and then turning on her to join Elliot’s teasing. And of course, there was the matter of Casey falling for it each and every single time so far.

She heard both detectives exchange a soft snicker and rolled her eyes. Honestly, they were being so childish! She released a soft groan to let the two of them know she was getting aggravated. Yes she was being passive-aggressive and no she didn’t care. Staring straight ahead at the television, she ate a few more pieces of candy.

The detectives seemed to take the hint; for the next few minutes, everything was quiet. Despite her promise to herself not to, she again found herself inching closer to Olivia. It was the added atmosphere from the storm, Casey decided. That was why a movie she’d already seen was making her so tense and on edge.

Olivia glanced to the side and smiled to herself when she saw Casey closing the space between them. For someone who has seen this movie before, Olivia thought, Casey sure is getting rather freaked out. She lifted her foot and nudged Elliot’s knee with her toes.

He started, not expecting the contact, as he turned his head to meet his partner’s gaze. She grinned at him and gave a slight head gesture in Casey’s direction. Upon seeing Casey reach down to squeeze the throw pillow, Elliot chuckled out loud.

“Oh, you two suck,” Casey whined without removing her attention from the television.

The detectives laughed. “You scared, Counselor?” Elliot teased.

“Shut up.”

“I’m taking that as a yes,” Olivia said.

Both detectives laughed again when Casey grunted aloud before reaching out and smacking Olivia’s arm.

-----

In the kitchen, Olivia refilled her glass of iced tea before pulling another bottle of soda out of the refrigerator, Elliot’s request. Casey hadn’t wanted anything else to drink, so Olivia emerged from the kitchen with just the bottle and the glass in her hands.

She set her glass down on her empty coaster before handing the soda to her partner. Since she was the one up and not comfortably settled on the furniture, she took the liberty of ejecting the just-finished Event Horizon from the DVD player and inserting What Lies Beneath in its place. As she turned around to reclaim her spot on the sofa, she noticed for the first time that Casey was slumped into the corner of the couch, her face scrunched slightly in obvious pain. “You all right?” Olivia asked, frowning in slight concern.

“Yeah … just getting a headache,” Casey mumbled, nodding. The motion must have sent a fresh shot of pain through her head because she squeezed her eyes shut for a quick moment.

“Too much candy?” Olivia picked up the almost-empty box of malted milk balls, shook it once, and tossed it onto Casey’s lap with a grin.

Casey gestured towards the two empty soda bottles and the one that was half-full sitting on the end table. “Too much soda,” she corrected with a rueful smile.

Olivia returned the ADA’s smile with a gentle one of her own. “Would you like some aspirin or something?”

“Please?” Casey asked. “Better to catch it now before it gets worse.”

The detective came dangerously close to ruffling Casey’s hair but she resisted the urge. Though she and Elliot had been treating Casey like a younger sibling all morning, an action such as tousling the ADA’s hair was a touch too patronizing-older-sister. She settled for giving Casey another smile as she made her way to the bathroom.

Olivia pulled open her medicine cabinet and immediately frowned. Oh, right. She was out of aspirin. She’d been meaning to pick up a new bottle but with her work schedule of late, she hadn’t found time to get to the pharmacy. She supposed she could have picked a bottle up when they were at the grocery earlier but she simply hadn’t thought of it. Oh well, Casey’ll have to deal with Tylenol, Olivia thought as she fished two pills out of the bottle.

Once back in the living room, Olivia dropped the white pills into Casey’s waiting palm and handed her a small Dixie cup she had filled with water from the bathroom tap. “Thank you,” Casey said after she’d swallowed.

“You’re quite welcome.” Olivia sat back down on the sofa, nudging Elliot as she did so. “Have you seen this movie before?”

Elliot picked up the DVD case and squinted at the back of it. “I’m trying to remember. I know Kathy wanted to see it, but I don’t remember if we ever actually made it to the movies.”

“Wow,” Casey spoke up, her tone playful. “You can’t remember if you’ve seen a movie or not? The memory really is the first thing to go when you get old, isn’t it?”

“Shut up, Novak” Elliot said, tossing one of his empty soda bottles at her. The bottle bounced off her kneecap and clattered to the floor.

“Hey!” Casey whipped an empty bottle of her own at the detective. When it caught him square in the chest, she snickered.

“Children!” Olivia yelled over Elliot’s protests. “Do I have send you to my room?”

“The both of us?” Elliot asked, raising his eyebrows mischievously. “At the same time? That’s kind of kinky.” Casey clapped a hand over her mouth to muffle an embarrassed giggle.

Olivia just shook her head. “You two are absolutely impossible.”

“Oh, you know you love us,” Casey said, smiling coyly.

“I’d love you both even more if you’d shut the hell up.”

In a final fit of childish pique, Casey stuck her tongue out at Olivia. In return, Olivia gave a gentle kick to Casey’s leg.

Casey and Elliot continued to trade barbs back and forth through the beginning of the movie, but after another shush from Olivia, they both settled. A few minutes later, Casey curled up on her side and made herself comfortable, pulling her knees towards her chest. Olivia glanced over at her and frowned in sympathy when Casey shut her eyes and pressed her hand to her forehead for a quick moment.

The next hour passed in almost-silence. It had actually grown so quiet that Olivia was startled when Elliot asked her to pause the movie. “What’s the matter?” she asked as she hit the pause button on the remote control.

“Nothing,” he answered with a shake of his head. He rose from his seat on the easy chair. “I just want another soda. Want a refill on your iced tea?”

“No, thank you.”

Elliot smiled at her and appeared ready to turn the question on Casey. “What about--” He stopped mid-sentence and grinned. “Uh oh. We lost Casey.”

Olivia followed his gaze and smiled. Casey was lying still with her eyes closed, both hands tucked underneath the throw pillow. Her shoulder was rising and falling in time with her deep, rhythmic breathing. “Looks like we lost Casey a while ago,” she said quietly. “She’s very asleep.”

Again, Elliot mischievously raised his eyebrows. “Want to stick her fingers in a bowl of warm water? Or! We could give her a mustache and beard if you have a Sharpie or something.”

“What are you, ten years old?” Elliot simply widened his grin and Olivia rolled her eyes. “Go get your soda. I’ll wake her up.”

After waiting for Elliot to slip into the kitchen, Olivia shifted position on the sofa and tapped Casey’s knee in an effort to gently rouse her. Casey didn’t move, didn’t even flinch. Olivia frowned and tried again, this time shaking Casey’s shoulder while calling her name.

But all of Olivia’s efforts were useless. Casey was sound asleep.

Elliot stepped back into the living room in time to see Olivia draping a blanket over the still out cold ADA. “I thought you were waking her up.”

“She’s completely out,” Olivia explained with a shrug. She pressed the play button on the remote control and settled back into the soft cushions of the sofa. “She’s not waking up for anything right now.”

“Which makes it a perfect time to put some shaving cream in her hand and tickle her nose.”

“We’re not twelve and at summer camp, Elliot.”

“So?”

Olivia gave a frustrated sigh as she shook her head but she was unable to hide the tiny smile on her lips. “Leave her alone. Hopefully she’s sleeping off her headache. I’ll try again to wake her when the movie’s over.”

Elliot slumped back down in his seat, undoubtedly bemoaning the missed opportunity. “Speaking of the movie, it’s not half bad.”

Olivia smirked. “A glowing review from Elliot Stabler.”

“I’m just saying,” he said with a shrug. “It’s kind of chick flick-y, but it’s pretty tense.”

Olivia nodded and allowed a comfortable silence to fall between the two of them as they both became drawn back into the movie.

She only tore her attention from the film once, just before the climax. She had happened to notice in her peripheral vision that Elliot was squirming in the chair. She gave a cursory glance over at Casey, hoping that maybe she had awakened by now, but no such luck. Damn, Olivia thought. The ADA would have pounced at the chance to give Elliot hell for his reaction.

“Holy shit,” Elliot muttered when the credits rolled. “I wasn’t expecting much out of this, to be honest, but it was really quite unsettling.”

“They knew how to work the tension to their advantage,” Olivia nodded. “A lot of silence and a lot of waiting for something to happen.”

“Well, color me impressed,” Elliot said. He stood to stretch his muscles. “It’s a shame Casey slept through it. She’d have been cowering in the corner of the couch, but I really think she would have liked it.”

Olivia debated calling attention to Elliot’s own cowering from the film’s climax all the way through the end credits, but she decided against it. Better to tell Casey about it and let her have first go. Once she was awake, of course. “I’ll make sure to force it on her again soon,” she said instead.

It was at that moment that Casey whimpered softly. Her brow furrowed and she wrinkled her nose in her sleep before curling herself into a tighter ball. “Nightmare?” Elliot asked with a small but concerned frown.

Olivia gave a shrug as her only reply before standing from the couch and crouching down next to Casey. She rested a hand on Casey’s knee and had to call her name twice before Casey’s eyes snapped open. The ADA sat up with a gasp. “Shh,” Olivia said gently, tightening her grip on Casey’s knee. “It’s all right.”

A still-disoriented Casey narrowed her eyes at Olivia in obvious confusion, but within a few seconds it dawned on her where she was and what must have happened. Her embarrassed eyes first met Olivia’s gaze and then Elliot’s. “Oh God, I passed out on you guys, didn’t I?” she asked, placing her hands over her face. “I’m so sorry.”

Olivia couldn’t resist reaching out and tugging on a lock of Casey’s hair. “Don’t apologize to me. You’re the one who had the nightmare because you decided to fall asleep during a ghost movie.”

When Casey’s cheeks flushed even redder than before, Elliot snorted in amusement. “You really are a wuss, aren’t you?”

In one swift motion Casey swiped her other empty soda bottle off the end table and tossed it at Elliot. Unfortunately her aim was off and the bottle sailed harmlessly past his shoulder and smacked into Olivia’s wall instead. When the detectives both burst out in laughter, Casey just sighed.

-----

“Every time I try to make kettle corn, I end up burning it,” Olivia said with a frown. She peeked over Casey’s shoulder at the pot of vegetable oil beginning to simmer on the stovetop.

Casey fished two kernels out of the jar of Orville Redenbacher popping corn Olivia had purchased that morning and dropped them into the hot oil. After checking to make sure the oil was bubbling around the edges of the kernels, she stepped back and leaned against the counter while waiting for them to pop. “You must be putting the sugar in too early. I burn it, too, if I put the sugar in before the kernels start popping.”

“Oh.” Olivia crossed the kitchen and leaned back against the refrigerator. Though Casey had her attention focused on the popcorn in the pot, Olivia had her attention on Casey. The ADA had offered to make a batch of kettle corn before the three of them put The Frighteners in and Olivia had happily given the younger woman free reign of the kitchen. Since the detective had never made a successful batch of kettle corn herself, she wanted to observe what Casey was doing. “You know,” she spoke up quietly, “you look rather at home standing there in front of the stove.”

Casey choked back a laugh. “You think so? Unfortunately popcorn, scrambled eggs, and grilled cheese sandwiches are about the extent of my stovetop cooking skills. I do, however, bake a mean chicken and stuffing casserole.”

The two test kernels snapped and flew out of the pot. Casey retrieved them from their landing spot on the opposite burner and popped one in her mouth before handing the other to Olivia. Then she poured in enough kernels to cover the bottom of the pot in one even layer.

Olivia smiled as she ate the fresh piece of popcorn. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Casey put a lid on the pot, tilting it slightly to allow the building steam to escape.

Again the two of them were left with nothing to do but wait on the popcorn. “How’s your headache?” Olivia asked.

“Much better.” Casey smiled at the detective. “The medicine and the nap did the trick.”

“Good.”

Once Casey heard the unmistakable sound of the kernels popping open, she removed the lid just long enough to sprinkle two palmfuls of sugar onto the kernels and the oil. Then she began shifting the pot back and forth over the burner. “You look like you’re making Jiffy Pop,” Olivia teased.

“Oh my God, Jiffy Pop!” Casey exclaimed, laughing. “You remember that stuff? My mom used to make that on treat night. I haven’t thought about Jiffy Pop in years.”

When the time between pops lengthened, Casey lifted the lid and peeked into the pot before removing it from the heat. She poured the freshly popped corn into a plastic bowl, sprinkled a little more sugar and a pinch of salt over it, and then tossed it in the bowl to evenly coat all the kernels. After eating a piece to test the flavor, she triumphantly handed the bowl to Olivia. “Ta da! Piece of cake.”

Olivia tested a piece herself and smiled. “Damn, Counselor, you make one fine batch of kettle corn.”

“Why, thank you,” Casey said, bending her knees ever so slightly in a tiny mock curtsy. She opened Olivia’s refrigerator and helped herself to a bottle of water. “You don’t mind, do you? I’m thirsty but if I have any more soda, my head will pretty much explode.”

“Of course I don’t mind,” Olivia said before making her way out of the kitchen. As she plopped back down on the couch, she handed the bowl of popcorn to her partner. “You need to try this. Casey’s some kind of miracle worker.”

“All I did was make kettle corn,” Casey said as she settled back down in her seat. “Hardly what one would consider a miracle.”

“Yeah but like I said, every time I try to make it I burn it. It’s not easy to make.”

“You’re putting the sugar in too early if you’re burning it,” Elliot said before testing a couple pieces of popcorn himself.

“So Casey tells me.”

“This is really good, Casey,” Elliot said as he fished another handful out of the bowl. “Closest I’ve ever tasted to the real stuff at carnivals.”

“Thank you,” Casey smiled.

“So who’s going to put the movie in?” Elliot asked, passing the popcorn bowl back to Olivia.

“It’s your turn, Detective,” Casey said. Olivia nodded her agreement.

Elliot looked from the ADA to his partner and then sighed. That was what he got for opening his mouth. He forced himself out of the easy chair and pulled the next DVD in line from the bag. “The Frighteners. I know I’ve seen this one before.”

“So there’s no chance you’ll be squirming in your chair during this one?” Casey asked, a smile turning up the corners of her mouth.

“What are you talking about?” Elliot asked.

“And you’re making fun of me being a wuss.” Casey clucked her tongue, shaking her head. “You were the one freaking out during a Michelle Pfeiffer movie.”

The detective narrowed his eyes at the ADA. He wasn’t going to deny that he maybe possibly had squirmed a tiny little bit during the final act of What Lies Beneath, but there was no way Casey could have known that. Casey was asleep and the only way she could have known was if--

Elliot met his partner’s eyes and frowned. “Traitor.”

Olivia smiled sweetly while giving him a tiny shrug. “I just thought it’d be nice to even the playing field a little. We’ve been all over Casey all day. She needed a little ammunition of her own.”

“Fine, but she can’t use the ammunition you gave her.”

“Why can’t I?” Casey asked with a pout.

“You didn’t actually see any of this alleged squirming yourself. If you didn’t witness it, you can’t reference it.”

“What?” Casey asked, her nose wrinkling in confusion.

“It’s hearsay,” Elliot further explained.

“Does this look like a courtroom to you?” Casey waved her hand, gesturing for him to look at their surroundings. “Besides I’m not in Lawyer Mode today.”

“Doesn’t matter. It’s the principle, kind of like how you’re not allowed to quote movies you’ve never seen yourself.”

Casey raised an incredulous eyebrow at the detective. “What are these, Elliot Stabler’s Rules for Living? I’ve never heard of either of those rules.”

“No, they’re like Everyone’s Rules for Living.” Elliot frowned at Casey before switching his gaze to Olivia. Obviously he was expecting his partner to back him up.

Olivia glanced at Casey then gave Elliot a playful smile. “I hate to tell you, but I’ve never heard of those rules either.”

Casey laughed. Elliot shook his head in disbelief as he sat back down in his chair. “My own partner, going rogue.”

The women shared another laugh before Olivia hit the play option from the DVD’s menu. As the three of them settled down to watch the movie, Casey leaned over and whispered to Olivia, “You promise this isn’t too scary?”

“It’s not that bad,” Olivia assured her. “It’s actually pretty funny. Even a scaredy-cat like you will like it.”

“Hey!” Casey cried, her jaw dropping indignantly.

“All right!” Elliot nodded his approval. “I knew you weren’t a traitor.”

Casey snatched the bowl of popcorn from Olivia’s lap and put it on the end table next to her bottle of water. “Now you two don’t get to eat any of the popcorn.”

“Uh oh,” Elliot said, giving Olivia a sidelong glance. “She’s getting hardcore now.”

The detectives snickered and Casey groaned. “Fine, have it your way.” She set the bowl back on the middle sofa cushion. “I’m just going to ignore then both of you and sit here and watch this movie. And I won’t be frightened by The Frighteners.”

“Casey, seriously?” Elliot said. “Worst pun ever.”

Casey pursed her lips and decided to shut up before she unwittingly gave the detectives any more ammunition. With Casey’s silence, the three of them settled down and began watching the movie.

After a while Olivia poked her finger into Casey’s shoulder. She noticed Casey start at the contact but she didn’t say anything to call attention to it. Instead, when Casey’s eyes focused on her own, she said, “You know we only tease because we love, right?”

Though Casey had indeed known that the detectives only made fun of her because they felt comfortable enough with her to do so, it still touched her to hear Olivia say that to her. “I know,” she said with a smile.

“Okay. Just making sure.”

Olivia returned her attention to the movie, but Casey held her gaze on the detective a moment longer. What had made her decide to explain their actions then? Did she think that Casey’s exasperation was masking hurt feelings? If so, Casey was sorry she’d given her that impression.

After inhaling deeply and letting the breath out in a soft sigh, Casey turned her head and refocused on the movie. She hoped that Olivia was right and that it wouldn’t weird her out too much. But even if it did, she had her own movie to look forward to next.

“You’re not getting scared already, are you, Novak?” Elliot asked, startling Casey back to attentiveness.

Oh crap. She must have been squirming. “Yes, Elliot, I’m terrified,” Casey said, her voice deadpan. No way in hell she was going to admit to anything anymore. “I think I’ll need to sleep with the light on tonight. Hold me.”

The detectives met each other’s eyes and tried and failed to hold back their laughter. “She’s getting the hang of it,” Olivia said, nudging Elliot’s leg with her toes.

Casey continued to stare straight ahead in an attempt to make it appear as if she were ignoring the detectives, but she couldn’t hide the wide smile on her face.

-----

The opening chords of “Don’t Fear the Reaper” were Casey’s cue to release her tight grip on the corner of the throw pillow. As the credits at the end of The Frighteners began rolling against the black screen, Olivia couldn’t help but steal a glance at Casey out of the corner of her eye. She was just fluffing the poor, abused throw pillow back into shape before replacing it in its rightful place against the arm of the sofa. Then her shoulders visibly relaxed as she released a heavy breath.

Olivia snickered and nudged the ADA with her elbow. “So what’s the verdict? That wasn’t too bad, was it?”

“Actually, it wasn’t,” Casey said, although it was obvious that she was just trying to save face. With her hands finally free and her attention not fixated on the screen, she realized she was thirsty. She snatched the bottle of water from her coaster on the end table and took a large sip.

Elliot smirked. “I think the throw pillow might disagree with you.”

Unable to argue with the detective, mostly because she knew that he was right, Casey relied on the old but childish failsafe of sticking her tongue out at him. “Olivia was right, though. There was enough comic relief to balance out the creepiness and the only thing that really weirded me out was the part in the old asylum.”

“Oh, you know, a good twenty minutes’ worth of material,” Olivia teased. “But that was the only thing.”

Casey opened her mouth to defend herself, but was there really any point? She’d certainly figured out by now that no matter what she said, the detectives were just going to turn it around and use it to make fun of her. Instead she slumped back in her seat without another word.

“I need to get something else to drink before we put in Casey’s ridiculously cheesy pick,” Elliot announced, rising from his seat. “I’m completely soda-ed out. You two want anything else?”

“I’ve still got plenty of water,” Casey said, indicating her almost-full bottle. “Thank you, though.”

“I’ll take a water since you’re going in there anyway,” Olivia said.

“One nothing and one water,” Elliot replied, winking as he committed the order to memory. “Got it.”

Once Olivia and Casey were alone, the detective tapped the ADA’s shoulder to get her attention. “So,” she said in a tone that made Casey slightly nervous, “I couldn’t help but notice at the video store this morning that you sort of flinched when you came to find Elliot and me.”

Casey closed her eyes for a second and let out a breath through her nose. She’d been hoping that neither of them had noticed, but she should have known that at least one of them would have. There was a reason the two of them were detectives, after all. “It’s nothing,” she said with a half-hearted shrug that she hoped would indicate that the conversation was over.

But when Olivia frowned, Casey realized that she was not going to be allowed out of the talk that easily. “I promise, it’s nothing. It was … something about seeing you two standing there, obviously talking about me and then shutting up when I came by.” She cleared her throat to dislodge the lump that had unexpectedly formed and Olivia’s frown deepened. “Look, I don’t like getting into it. Let’s just say that I didn’t have the easiest time of it in junior high and I was just mentally thrown back there for a second.”

“I’m sorry,” Olivia said quietly, her eyes searching Casey’s.

“Oh, don’t be,” the ADA assured her with a smile. “Neither you nor Elliot is Anna Horsford, so it’s really okay. It was just a mental hiccup on my part.”

After a moment small moment of silence, Olivia asked, “That was her name? Anna Horsford?”

“Yep.”

“Sounds like a total bitch.”

Casey laughed, the tension released. “She really was.”

“Who really was what?” Elliot asked as he returned to the living room. He handed Olivia her bottle of water before again plopping into the easy chair.

“Anna Horsford was a bitch,” Olivia answered. At Elliot’s confused frown, she and Casey both giggled. “Never mind.”

Elliot shook his head. The two of them were obviously sharing some inside joke that he would never understand. “Whatever. I say it’s Casey’s turn to get off her ass to put the movie in.”

Again Casey opened her mouth to argue but she decided it wasn’t worth it. She wouldn’t win anyway. All three of them had already gotten up once to start a movie and she’d certainly learned through her childhood that a little sister was just barely a step above a slave in the eyes of the older siblings. “I still can’t believe you’ve never seen this, Liv,” she said instead as she forced herself off the comfortable sofa.

“Actually, neither can I.” Elliot frowned at his partner as if trying to mentally work out just how someone went through life without having ever seen Clue. “This is … well, it’s not exactly a classic. More like a cult classic, but it’s popular enough.”

“I guess I’m just not as worldly as the two of you,” Olivia replied with a roll of her eyes.

Casey snickered as she inserted the DVD. “I first saw this when I was in elementary school. It actually scared me back then and before either of you jump all over my case for that, keep in mind I was eight years old.”

“So you always were a wuss,” Elliot interjected, completely disregarding Casey’s warning.

The ADA simply made a face at him before reclaiming her seat on the couch. “Anyway. When I got older, I obviously appreciated the humor much more. I still find myself quoting it every now and then when I get together with my friends from school.”

Olivia raised her eyebrows at her partner and he gave her a slight nod. “You still quote cheesy ’80s cult classics, Case?” she asked, clucking her tongue. “You’re a wuss and a geek.”

Casey simply sighed. She realized she’d set herself up for that one, but she still pouted slightly and crossed her arms over her chest. Apparently Bonding Time was over and it was once again Making Fun of Casey Time. She heard the detectives share a snicker and couldn’t help but chuckle herself. Elliot and Olivia had the ability to drive her crazy like no other people she’d ever met, but that was just part of their charm.