#ada lawsuits

[adasitecompliance]

How To Avoid a Website Accessibility Lawsuit

Every day, thousands of people are unable to use and interact with websites because of web accessibility issues. This can lead to a website accessibility lawsuit for you or your company. Over the past few years, certain regulations and guidelines to prevent this have emerged – more specifically, the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA).

The Act was carried as a civil rights legislation, which passed in the US to protect the rights of people with disabilities, as well as prohibit any discrimination against them. As per the ADA website rules, all people with disabilities have to have equal opportunities to participate in programs, receive services, seek knowledge, and express themselves freely.

Why Is Web Accessibility Important?

Website accessibility refers to the ability of people with a wide range of physical and mental disabilities to access websites, products, systems, services, and facilities featured on a website. For instance, web accessibility means that visually impaired or blind people can purchase tickets, use apps, recharge transportation cards, and use other services offered online.

Web content should be accessible to people, even ones using screen readers and other assistive technologies and automated tools. In times when around 1 in 5 people in the U.S. lives with one or more disabling conditions, statistics show that there are more than 50 million people in the United States and around 1.3 billion around the world who have a certain form of disability.

At the same time, improved digital accessibility benefits everyone. The features that would be designed for 20% of the population can also be used by the other 80% – we all know that anyone can be affected by a disability, which is why equal access matters. Adhere to these new standards for the disabled or you are likely to face a website accessibility lawsuit soon.

Digital Accessibility Features That Can Benefit Everyone

Some of the most important digital accessibility features that can benefit everyone include the following:

Text-to-Speech and Voice Recognition features, help people access online services on a mobile device when driving, or when their hands are full.

Features that enable captions on media content, can help when you are in a noisy environment or in situations when you don’t want to distract others.

An option to easily magnify text by screen magnifiers, which can help disabled and people with vision impairments and difficulties, but also people who suffer from temporary eye injuries.

Besides regular business compliance, an ADA site can improve the overall marketing of the company, especially when using the right tools that are known as popular in this manner. These can assist you in avoiding a website accessibility lawsuit.

About ADA & The Web Accessibility Guidelines

Web accessibility guidelines have existed for two decades. They aim to bring usability and user experience design together, removing barriers for people with disabilities and enabling more users to complete tasks online.

Generally speaking, these guidelines are designed to provide a sufficient level of detail for any person interacting on the web. Some guidelines involve discrete and identifiable criteria (for example, embedding images and link areas with appropriate text) while others require greater amounts of professional discretion (the use of code to improve navigability, predictability, compatibility with certain software, etc.).

Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)

Establishing a legal framework around digital accessibility ensures that companies give equal access to content to disabled users, and make their services accessible to a large audience. Over the past decade, companies have been rushing to embrace accessibility in order to strengthen their financial and ethical benefits. The legal requirement came into effect in 2010, known as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

This legal framework outlines all the digital accessibility requirements for every company profile in the United States. Basically, ADA compliance ensures that a set of laws is put in place to prevent any discrimination against people with disabilities. It is applicable in all areas of public life including work, school, education, and transportation services. Established by the Department of Justice, ADA compliance requires websites to enable people to use the Internet as well as online services.

Who Needs To Follow The ADA Requirements?

There are three main titles within ADA, where Title I applies to all businesses with at least 15 full-time employees. Title II of the ADA applies to state and local government compliance. Lastly, ADA Title III refers to most businesses as well as non-profit business entities in the “accommodation” and “public spaces” categories.

Online services and digital information are also considered public accommodations and require ADA compliance. Below is a summarized list of companies, businesses, and organizations that are required to comply and are at risk of ADA lawsuits in case of violations:

State and local government offices

Private business entities employing 15 or more people

Corporations that operate for the benefit of the public

Banking Institutions

Hotels and travel/tour agencies or businesses

Hospitals and healthcare institutes

Schools, universities, and educational institutions.

WCAG

A document known as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) is what has been the globally accepted standard defined by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The regulations spread through three levels of accessibility for both online and digital services, including:

Level A is the minimum level of accessibility that is required for individuals to make digital content accessible to people with disabilities.

Level AA is the medium level of accessibility that is required for individuals to access and interact with digital content, navigating it without any barriers.

Level AAA is the maximum level of accessibility that is required for individuals, where digital content needs to be accessed but also has an additional interface layer, providing the most convenient experience.

Many types of web content are unable to reach Level AAA. On the other hand, Level AA compliance is the minimum required level in order to make a website accessible.

Why Are WCAG 2.0 And 2.1 Created?

The WCAG 2.0 and WCAG 2.1 guidelines have been created to provide a clear methodology and a unique standard for digital accessibility that meets the needs of all individuals, companies, and governments. The standard applies to a broad range of web technologies, implemented by a set of web development and web design techniques, as well as tested by a range of automated tools.

In times when many businesses or website owners don’t understand how people interact with their websites or mobile apps, having an ADA website that conforms to the regulations can help you prevent accessibility lawsuits.

Moreover, a website designed as per the latest website usability and accessibility reviews is a good way to expand your reach to a broader target audience, improve your marketing efforts, and ensure that every user has equal access to your information, products, or services.

Here, it is important to prepare the digital content including text, audio, video, graphics, and illustrations with alternatives, as well as use formats that are supported by the users’ assistive technologies.

Still, the remaining challenges include the lack of skilled developers that are trained in accessibility, as well as the lack of awareness about ADA compliance and how to build an ADA-compliant website or mobile app and avoid a website accessibility lawsuit.

U.S. Rehabilitation Act

The U.S. Rehabilitation Act is a federal law that prohibits any discrimination on the basis of disability in programs conducted by federal agencies. The rule applies to programs receiving federal financial support and includes the following two sections designed for website accessibility compliance:

Section 504 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act, protects children and adults with disabilities from discrimination in schools and workplaces. There are specific accessibility criteria for online educational resources.

Section 508 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act, where government bodies and federal services are required to make electronic and information technology (EIT) accessible to all people, including disabled people.

ADA Lawsuits Are On The Rise: Is Your Website At Risk?

While many still don’t understand what accessibility is and why it is important, advocates are everywhere writing guides and helping website owners understand and implement these digital accessibility rules. However, website accessibility lawsuits are on the rise and make the news nearly every day in the United States. This happens mostly because there are still no enforceable regulations for website accessibility.

The set of regulations is under Section 508 by law, where federal websites in the U.S. are required to check and meet these standards. In order to prevent ADA lawsuits, most simply follow Section 508 or the WCAG 2.0 and 2.1 AAA guidelines.

Accessibility laws are changing and are different in many countries. Besides the U.S., the UK and Canada are also starting to enforce accessibility. However, we will stick to the site accessibility lawsuits and how to prevent them by complying with the law while making your website accessible.

Popular Website Compliance Lawsuits & Settlements

Statistics from Seyfarth show that in 2018 alone, there were a total of 2258 website accessibility lawsuits to the federal court, which was a 177% jump from the previous year. In 2019, the number of cases also increased, most of which were in the retail, food service, entertainment and leisure, travel/hospitality, self-service, and real estate industries.

One of the first federal court lawsuits filed against a big name occurred in 2006, when the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) as the plaintiff sued Target, a U.S. supermarket chain, for its inability to comply with ADA rules.

In the hospitality industry, Domino’s Pizza was one of the companies which received a lawsuit filed in federal court. In 2016, a visually impaired man sued the popular chain because his screen reader was incompatible with their mobile app, so the device could not read aloud its contents.

In 2012, the National Association of the Deaf (NAD) filed a lawsuit against Netflix, for not providing closed captions in its online TV and movie streaming services. The plaintiff has taken legal action against the popular streaming service and the case quickly arrived at federal court.

Education facilities have not been exempt from lawsuits, too. Two federal class-action lawsuits were filed against Harvard and MIT by the National Institute of the Deaf (NAD) for not providing captions in their online content and courses. After four years of legal action on federal court grounds, Harvard was made liable to pay $1.5 million in litigation and attorney fees.

In most of these cases, big names could have saved themselves from litigation costs and bad publicity by simply adding some accessibility features to their website to reduce the risk of such lawsuits.

Recent posts show that even today, the number of lawsuits filed against companies in federal court actions is increasing. Many small to medium-sized businesses are on the radar, too. Among all states, New York, California, and Florida seem to be hotbeds for legal ADA-related lawsuits.

How to Comply With The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines

If you want to prevent an ADA lawsuit, the only route is to plan for, design, as well as build an accessible website. This form of inclusive design should optimize content and help the visually impaired, as well as people with other disabilities, to use and interact with your website.

In fact, every business with a website, mobile app, or internet software application should hire an accessibility specialist to go over the site and ensure full ADA compliance. In order to have an ADA-compliant business website optimized for people with disabilities, you will need to hire these experts who know what needs to be changed and how to ensure compliance.

For instance, if you apply ARIA with HTML5 or your image alt tags are not written properly, you could be facing a lawsuit. However, the source of most ADA lawsuits is the actual inability to access web pages or mobile apps, especially for visually impaired or blind people who use assistive technologies.

There are some builders that are integrated within content management systems and help website owners make the site ADA-compliant. Elementor, a popular WordPress theme-building, and page design plugin are one of them. The plugin helps incorporate parallax, dynamic content, and animations that comply with the accessibility guidelines. There is also the creation of new themes, headings, and footers with full developer control.

What Can You Do To Create An Effective ADA Website And Comply With WCAG: Checklist

The WCAG guidelines outline a set of principles and techniques that make web content “perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust.” In other words, users should be able to access content, use interactive elements, navigate through web pages and apps, and use the content on their device of choice.

There are three vital ways to achieve the goals for website accessibility:

Correct use of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript

Organization of content properly and logically, so that both humans and assistive tools can interpret its layout, including the use of text alternatives for visual content (YouTube is a good example of this – the platform was designed to automatically add captions to videos uploaded on the network).

Extra attributes are added to HTML and other code so that assistive devices can be used effectively, complying with the existing web accessibility standards.

From Braille readers used for hearing and reading text or images to screen readers and magnifiers for blind or visually impaired users and keyboard/joystick navigators for people who can’t use a mouse or other input controls, all of these ways ensure compliance.

How Do You Test Web Accessibility Across Different Devices?

There are two main ways to test how content shows on a website or mobile app.

The first is automated testing, which involves running a test against the latest WCAG principles. With this method, you can identify 20% to 30% of the compliance issues. That is why developers use it as a starting point when familiarizing themselves with the WCAG requirements set by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Second is manual testing, which is obviously more detailed and complex and will deliver the BEST RESULTS. Here, the testing should identify areas of partial compliance with regulations. Common tests use keyboard-only testing schemes to identify where certain issues occur for people who cannot use mouse or touch interfaces. We specialize in manual testing and correcting all errors.

Within manual testing, there is also the practice of testing pages and case scenarios with a screen reader or an emulator that shows how a webpage will respond to a user who wants to access content with text-to-speech technology.

Run a FREE SITE SCAN with us today to test the accessibility of your website.

Facing An ADA Lawsuit? Here Are 4 Steps To Make Your Site Accessible

As we mentioned above, the purpose of the ADA is to ensure that any disabled person has the same opportunity and rights as others in ensuring that digital content is accessible. Violating ADA can land you a lawsuit and some serious fines (up to $20,000 or more), and the best way to avoid potential litigation for a violation is through the four steps below.

Identify Your Barriers – Examining your business site and any of its features that could be a barrier to people with disabilities is usually the best place to start. Know that having more text is never a bad idea, as more people use assistive technologies nowadays. Put yourself in the shoes of an impaired person and try to understand whether your site is designed so you can freely navigate through its pages.

Understand The Requirements – Understanding the ADA requirements is equally important for everyone. New websites are already being designed with web accessibility in mind, and seeing what these rules require can only help you visualize and plan for new content in a better way.

Train Your Staff To Assist – If you work with a web design specialist, make sure that person is familiar with WCAG and able to align your content and marketing tools to support the ADA laws.

Hire A Professional – If you have multiple websites, or find it difficult to optimize your company website to comply with web accessibility laws, you can always seek our professional assistance to prevent an ADA lawsuit.

Hiring expert ADA consultants to audit the level of your website’s accessibility, provide guidance on remediation, and maintain accessible design is recommended if you want to lower the risk of a potential lawsuit.

Final Words

The bottom line of complying with web accessibility is that it offers a number of ways to build a reputation but also targets a broader audience. Users deserve to have equal access to content online, and many of their common tasks have been identified by regulators as essential for modern living. Therefore, it is vital to take advantage of these services and opportunities, and doing that would also prevent accessibility lawsuits.

Every organization, whether large or small, should ensure that they are aware of their accessibility obligations. In doing so, they will mitigate any risks of facing an accessibility lawsuit, but also maximize their revenue potential. In the end, wider accessibility equals a better online experience for everyone.

How good is your web accessibility? If you need help making your company website or mobile app accessible and complying with U.S. Federal regulations, contact us today. We will carry out a full audit and suggest the best ways to help your business site ensure full ADA compliance and prevent lawsuits.

[rubyroboticalt]

reminder to people who do not use mobility aids such as but not limited to wheelchairs, canes, crutches, walkers, rollators, braces, service dogs; you do not get to choose how we, the people who use them, deserve to be accommodated. my wheelchair could be strapped to the top of a van and be just fine. as long as you are treating the owner of the service dog with respect, i.e. not petting or pestering the working animal, no one will have an allergic reaction to its fur. if they do, they will know that they will have one, and further accommodation for both service dog owner and allergy haver is easily discussed without your input.

[arctic-hands]

T.I.L that there is no "grandfather clause" in the Americans with Disabilities Act, and Baltimore has no such flimsy-ass excuse in being as inaccessible to those with mobility issues and devices as it currently is and always has been

[aeldata-usa]

Explore our guide to ADA demand letters to understand their structure, purpose, and how to respond effectively to ensure compliance.

[we-re-always-alright]

I’m off work today but I’m thinking about it anyway and I’m thinking, you know, what cottage lawsuit industry is going to pop up next (if it hasn’t already) and my guess would be on CCPA/CPRA etc violations for small businesses

[irreplaceable-spark]

California Businesses on The Verge of Going Under Because of Frivolous Lawsuits | Victor Gomez

Siyamak sits down with Victor Gomez, the executor director of "Citizens Against the Lawsuit Abuse" https://cala.com/ He’s going to tell us how some trial attorneys in California have found a way to make a lot of money of small businesses for their mistakes using the law. "I see California businesses fleeing the state. 750,000 jobs are lost every year. A lot of Vietnamese immigrants, a lot of Latino immigrants come here with an entrepreneurial spirit. They put all of their money to open up that taco shop, to open up that boqueria... That's their only income."

[fuck-customers]

I have a doctors note from my neurologist to take out the lights above my desk or let me wfh because the lights make me have violent migraine attacks. They denied wfh because “no one can” but took out the lights above my desk. That lasted three days before someone whined its too dark (its not) and they put them back. Good to know i dont matter. Im quitting tomorrow with no notice

Sounds like they want to be hit with an ADA lawsuit. There are quite a few lawyers that will wait to be paid from the settlement (kind of like accident lawyers).

-Rodney

[fruit-sy]

"Change of plans. Redo everything."

"B- But sir-"

"And call Dr. Paige to my office too."

"...! Please, sir I- I can finalize it if you just give me more time, please you can't-"

"Did I not make myself clear, Dr. Ian?"

GRRRR HES SUCH AN ASSHOLE *SMASHES HIM WITH A HAMMER*

Though with the way I framed it here, he's kinda forced to do this by the health secretary's decision to cut the NHS' budget. However, I also think Edega's kind of a fucking idiot because WHY did he ever think firing nearly almost all his staff and putting all his hopes on the rhythm doctor treatment being the "cure-all" was a good idea?

The way I see it, he's really bad at managing the hospital's finances and resources which is why their hospital is so backed up into the corner. Also he's way too quick to jump the gun, gambling on a "miracle treatment" that's too good to be true.

He's also bordering on malpractice, with the way Lucky got his shit fucked up in 5-2N thanks to Edega pushing the prototype treatment onto him. Thankfully nothing bad happened so he avoided a lawsuit for now

I'll leave it up for interpretation whether he fires Ada or not, but a smarter decision would be to keep her in the team because she's the backbone of patient care in the hospital right now :p The staff really needs to unionize, seriously...

Anyways, this man is a trainwreck and I am endlessly morbidly fascinated with him lol-

Back to my art notes, this started cuz I wanted to give a hand at drawing my interpretation of edega's face, but I ended up making it an illustration and planned out a more interesting composition :p

I started with trying out the parted bangs he has in a couple of his official art, but it wasnt rlly clicking to me for some reason

I'm just way too used to drawing him with his bangs down lol

Also fun fact, the headline for the article is indeed real. This was written in 2016 but the problem is still very relevant today. I'm not too familiar with the NHS, so I can't really comment much on it unfortunately

Extras, wo paper:

[decolonize-the-everything]

I'm so tired of logging on seeing queer discourse (among other kinds).

They are banning books, self expression, and HRT outside. You realize this? Our government is building cop cities, increasing police budgets, and bloating the military budget. They dropped affirmative action, disability lawyers don't want to bring forward lawsuits because they don't want to provide the supreme court an opportunity to gut the ADA because even they know it's hostile towards disability rights, NYPD interrupted BLM over their permit to celebrate Juneteenth.

I do not know how to make it more clear that literally none of us have room to fuck around and those of us are that are seriously wanting to make some change are watching y'all like teachers in a room full of kids that haven't got the hint to be quiet.

And before y'all say "we can care about 2 things"

Good for you, but as a community if one thing has been made very clear it's that as a collective we can not split our focus. When we do shit like this happens:

And that's just the attacks on queer rights! And that's just this year so far.

That averages to over 100 bills per state targeting the queer community and our rights.

•••

Can we please focus on our collective oppression and solidarity instead. We all have shit to work on okay? Nobody is a perfect ally, even people in your community and yeah that's messed up! But maybe we can set that aside for the sake of our literal rights and lives. At least for a bit.

like is it just me or does it seem tone deaf as fuck to be calling members of your community ignorant bigots for having internalized xyz (that they weren't even fully aware of) when there are powerful, financially backed think tanks and white supremacist orgs currently spending every dime they have on elections and to spread as many hateful policies as they can? Esp when those policies are having devastating real life effects on real people and costing lives?

Like idk.

Yeah the lesbian cashier who assumed my gender is an asshole, but I think it'd be a better use of my time to address the crowd outside that's discussing whether or not to blow up the Queer Store I'm standing in. I will have my whole life to check queer assholes and educate and accuse other people of not being good enough allies to me specifically, but that's only if I do everything I can to save both our lives first.

For the record, because I know someone is reading this in bad faith: I'm not saying the transphobic lesbian should be let off the hook or ignored. I'm saying that her education is secondary to the much more urgent need to work together and save our lives.

Likewise I'm so fucking tired of seeing of the transphobic lesbian whine and complain about how her space is being invaded by evil trans customers when there is literally a crowd outside that wants to kill them both.

[adasitecompliance]

Benefits Of Website Accessibility

Emphasizing the advantages of making a website accessible to a diverse audience, this description covers the positive outcomes for both users and businesses!

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Lisa Needham at Public Notice:

It’s been barely a week since conservatives on the US Supreme Court radically upended the balance of power between the branches of government, giving the federal courts the exclusive power to interpret statutes rather than deferring to agency experts. And we’re already seeing impacts on the ground. Right-wingers have been in the habit of running to their preferred courts to get regulations overturned, but the decision in Loper Bright v. Raimondo, which officially destroyed agency deference, will make it easier — even routine — to block every Biden administration rule they don’t like.  Lawsuits to invalidate specific rules had been proceeding through the federal courts before Loper Bright, generally arguing that agencies exceeded their authority in promulgating a rule. These lawsuits exist in no small part because the Supreme Court made it clear they would destroy Chevron deference for years now, with Justice Neil Gorsuch having led the way well before his appointment to the Court. 

Trump appointee Sean Jordan, who sits in the reliably hard-right Eastern District of Texas, was so eager to block a Biden administration’s overtime rule that he dropped his decision the same day Loper Bright came out. It runs 36 pages and mentions Loper Bright multiple times, which means either Jordan was so confident of the Supreme Court decision that he either wrote it in advance or he hurried to stuff Loper Bright into his already-written opinion. Jordan’s opinion also rests heavily on dictionary definitions rather than expertise from the Department of Labor, which issued the rule. So now, the rule that would have made 4 million more Texas workers eligible for overtime, and thus more pay, is blocked thanks to a hurried read of a SCOTUS opinion and Webster’s Dictionary. 

What this mean is that anytime a business doesn’t like a federal rule, it can just sue. It promises to be a free-for-all. Three hospitals in New Jersey sued HHS the day Loper Bright came down, saying the agency’s interpretation of a statute governing Medicare reimbursement is unlawful. In another case, filed before Loper Bright, a trucking company challenging the Biden administration’s rule that addressed misclassification of independent contractors filed a memorandum on July 2 arguing that Loper Bright means the court should not defer to the Department of Labor’s interpretation of the law. The next day, Trump appointee Ada Brown of the Northern District of Texas enjoined enforcement of the Biden administration’s rule prohibiting non-compete agreements but limited the injunction to the plaintiffs, which are various pro-business groups like the Chamber of Commerce. 

[...]

Bigotry from the bench

Unsurprisingly, much of the assault on administration rules relates to any regulation that would protect transgender people. Four days after Loper Bright was handed down, another Trump appointee, Judge John W. Broomes in Kansas, enjoined the Department of Education from enforcing its Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs rule in Kansas, Alaska, Utah, and Wyoming. The Department of Education spent two years finalizing the rule, which would have prohibited discrimination based on gender identity under Title IX.  The unofficial text of the rule, which runs 1,577 pages with supporting material, is jam-packed with legal analysis. Hundreds of pages are spent explaining how the DOE considered and addressed public comments and the document details the mental health impact of discrimination against LGBTQ students. 

Broomes’s expertise is in natural resource law, a background that does not lend itself to a detailed understanding of Title IX, sex discrimination, or gender identity. But none of that matters. His opinion sneers about “self-professed and potentially ever-changing gender identity” and insists that things like using correct pronouns for students and allowing them to use the bathroom that conforms with their gender identity is an issue of “vast economic” significance. Given that the only costs of the rule are things like updated administrative guidance and perhaps hiring additional Title IX staff, the idea it is a vast economic question is, to put it politely, a reach. Instead, Broomes sided with the conservative plaintiffs, including Moms for Liberty and an Oklahoma student who asserted that using the correct pronouns for other students violated her religious beliefs. Because of this mix of conservative state litigants, private anti-trans groups, and an Oklahoma student, the extent of Broomes’s injunction is even weirder than the patchwork blocking of the HHS rule.

Besides blocking the rule entirely in four states, the rule is also blocked for the schools attended by the members of two private plaintiffs, Young America’s Foundation and Female Athletes United, and all schools attended by the children of members of Moms for Liberty. So now, if you are a transgender student unlucky enough to attend school anywhere in the country where a child of a Moms for Liberty student also attends, you’re out of luck. If your school is free of children of book-banners, you get the protection of the federal rule — unless you live in Kansas, Alaska, Utah, and Wyoming, in which case it doesn’t matter what school you go to.  Over at Law Dork, Chris Geidner has a good rundown of not just how the courts are sledgehammering LGBTQ rights, but also how having courts, rather than regulators, make these decisions results in an uneven patchwork of rulings over a Health and Human Services rule that prohibited health care providers from discriminating based on gender identity. Only five days after Loper Bright was issued, three separate federal courts issued rulings blocking parts of the HHS rule. There’s no chance that William Jung, a Trump appointee to the federal district court for the Middle District of Florida, hadn’t already written most of his decision before Loper Bright was issued, but the case gave him far more ammunition. Fung’s ruling in Florida v. Department of Health and Human Services blocked part of the Nondiscrimination in Health Programs and Activities rule from going into effect — but only in Florida. 

The Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo ruling by the judicial activist MAGA Majority on the Supreme Court is having devastating consequences.

[lapolilla]

Today I was feeling bad about myself because of the normal things: not making as much money as Id like, messing up a mock up and feeling incompetent at my job, etc.

Then I saw Elon Musk publically try to humiliate a disabled employee he'd fired, disclose this person's confidential health information to millions of people, and admit this man's muscular dystrophy was the reason for his firing. Only to walk it all back after realizing he was facing a massive lawsuit for a $100,000,000 broken contract and violating the ADA.

God, I feel better now.

[whydoifeelthisquiet]

It’s July 4th and it’s still Disability Pride Month.

In honor of today being the fourth, I would like to share some information regarding the Americans With Disabilities Act. Today’s homework is to read (or at least skim) the links and facts I’m including. Disabled people in America are not granted the freedoms many are celebrating today.

Is the ADA enough? By Andie Mosley

The impact of the ADA: Research Results—Dr. John Frank (please skim this one!! it shows how unreliable the ADA is. This was published in the early 2000s & I would argue that the ADA’s reliability has decreased since then, based on my experience and the experiences of other Disabled people in my life. Disabled tumblr users, please reply to this post with your opinion on that, I’m curious!).

30 Years After a Landmark Disability Law, the Fight for Access and Equality Continues—Abigail Abrams

Chicago Cubs prevail in lawsuit alleging Wrigley renovations violated accessibility requirements for wheelchair-bound fans—Robert Channick (I know the title used ‘wheelchair-bound’ which is an inappropriate way to refer to wheelchair users, but this gives an explanation of how the Cubs technically followed ADA, but still made the seats inaccessible).

Many of these articles are great, but there is still an underlying sense of “well at least we have the ADA even if it’s not perfect” and while I partially agree, the ADA is faulty. Businesses and public spaces only have to meet the bare minimum requirements so they don’t get sued. In my experience, they often put their “accessible” features of the building in the most inaccessible places. For example, a building at my college has an automatic door and elevator, but you have to walk around the building (often through the grass) and then down a ramp to get to it. I couldn’t do that so I put myself in danger and pain trudging up the stairs every day. That isn’t accessibility. It had negative impacts on my academic performance and overall learning experience. In my opinion that should be a violation. If I were to sue, I’d probably lose the lawsuit because they “met” the legal requirements.

Today I stand with all marginalized communities that aren’t truly granted freedom in America. You are such a beautiful and valuable part of this country and I will continue to speak up for you until Justice is served. Your resilience is so admirable!! ♥️

I do all of this work for free because it is my passion. But, I’m also an unemployed, struggling Disabled girl. It’s not necessary, but I would greatly appreciate any support on my ko-fi. Thank you & happy pride !!! :’)

[novaksupremacy]

The Veiled Law of Affection- Chapter 3

The Veiled Law of Affection Chapter 3

by PKJ @novaksupremacy

Word Count: 5232

Read Part 2

         A sedan pulled up into the black tar parking lot of the Seaside Heights motel. Fin ran up to meet it as ESU got ready to set up in one of the rooms. He pulled the door open and helped Casey out, her face paler than usual, her heart sunk somewhere underneath the cab.

         “I told them you’re here to make sure everything’s done by the book,” Fin whispered in Casey’s ear as he fitted the ADA for a flak jacket. “Not sure if Liv told you but I won’t be your Judas on this one Case, I’ve got you and Liv’s back.”

         She turned and showed him a look of gratitude as he finished strapping her vest. Liv had briefly mentioned their copy room encounter and after a short panic attack, she had been reassured that Fin wouldn’t be ratting them out to their superiors any time soon. “Thank you” she mouthed and placed her hand on his shoulder.

         Eckerson went rushing passed them following ESU as they set up their mobile command in one of the adjacent rooms. “Is that?” Casey started to ask.

         “Yeah,” Fin curled his lip, “but don’t worry. Ain’t no love lost there,” he rolled his eyes putting his hand on top of hers to lead her into the building.

         “Where are we with the fiber optics?” Eckerson commanded, “I need a picture up, now!” He brushed passed Casey. He looked at her up and down and kept moving.

         “One more minute,” Fin said shaking off his vest, “room phone is disconnected plus we got a generator in case we gotta cut the juice.”

          Eckerson nodded, annoyed at the delay, “Who’s the chick?” He tossed his head in Casey’s direction. She could immediately feel herself tense up. If he tried to kick her out, she’d die, she was a raw nerve as it was with Liv in the line of fire.

          “That chick is ADA Casey Novak. She’s here to make sure you don’t screw anything up. Even if he is an escaped convict all the NYPD needs is another damn lawsuit on its hands” the detective clapped back. He looked over at Casey and nodded, a simple “I got you”

          “Fine,” the deputy marshal shook his head, “just, stay over there.”

          “There’s a limited view into the room.” One of the ESU officers stated as the video feed went live.

           “What’s his count?”

           “Three. All moving.”

           “Pictures up!”

           Olivia’s phone started ringing as Mike, the man who had escaped from prison only the day before, rushed to her, gun aimed at her sternum. “Hand it over!” he growled. “Who’s calling?” He flipped the phone towards her, the gun in his other hand never wavering.

           “It’s my partner. They want to negotiate,” the brunette detective spoke calmy as she tried to keep the tension from rising.

           “I don’t want to talk,” the convict said with his voice full of distress.

           Casey felt herself break out into a cold sweat as the escaped convict smashed Olivia’s phone into the cheap dirty carpeting of that motel room. A deep sense of dread setting in that at any moment she may watch them shoot the one person she’s ever cared for this much right in front of her eyes.

          “The Marshal’s are gonna have sharpshooters all around us, you’re going to have to talk.” She kept her tone consistent.

          “That’s all right, they gotta know I’ve got a pretty marshal as a hostage. They’re not gonna fire on one of their own.”

          The fiery ADA felt the knife twist in her gut when he called Olivia pretty, it made her sick to hear her objectified in the slightest especially by a deranged gunman.

          “I’m not a marshal,” Liv offered, “I’m a detective with the NYPD. My name is Olivia Benson. I’m gonna show you my shield.”

          “You’re gonna keep your hands right where I can see them,” Mike shouted reminding her he had a gun pointed at her.

          She looked towards, Lee, the other hostage. “Hurting Lee isn’t going to help you.”

          “Lady, I don’t want to hurt him,” he said through gritted teeth, “I just want him to talk to me.”

          “Okay, whatever it is you need, I can help.” She said soft spoken, all of her negotiation training coming to a head in this moment, “I just need you to trust me, okay?”

          “I don’t need you,” the gunman snarled, the barrel of his gun now pointed at his ex-stepson, “Go on, get the hell out.” He tossed his head in the direction of the motel door.  

           “What?” Liv asked as she tried not to react.

           “LEAVE!” he shouted. “I’m not gonna stop you.”

           Benson refused to move as Mike grabbed her and threw her towards the door, “I’m not leaving.”

           Casey’s heart sank in her chest, “Not like this, please not like this”, she couldn’t breathe. “Come on baby get out of there.” She could feel her face trembling and she brought her hand up to it to try and hide her quivering lower lip.

           “Greenlight, take the shot. Through the wall?” Eckerson commanded trying to get one of his snipers to take the gunman out.

           Cragen walked in just as this was happening, “What the hell is going on?”

           Fin breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of his supervisor, “Cap’n”

           “You can’t shoot with her in there,” Cragen commanded. Out of the corner of his eye he caught a glimpse of Casey standing in the corner, clearly distressed.

           “That’s my call,” Eckerson scoffed,

           “And that is MY detective in there,” the captain raised his voice, the way a protective father would. “You need to negotiate!” He moved towards Casey and put a hand on her shoulder, she jumped but relaxed once she saw it was Cragen.

           “Hey,” she said quietly.

           “Hey Casey, what are you doing here?” He asked her in a low, soothing tone seeing how upset she was by what she was witnessing.

           “I asked her to come, Cap” Fin offered up, “figured the PD could do without another lawsuit.”

           Cragen looked at Fin, then back at Casey, he knew that couldn’t be the whole story but for now he took it at face value. He gave her a soft smile, “She’s real tough, kid. She’s gonna be just fine.”

           Casey looked up at him still halfway holding her trembling lip steady, half chewing the skin around her nails. She couldn’t even speak at this point, she just looked at him and nodded silently, a single tear sliding down her face.

           All the attention turned towards the screen as Liv’s voice became audible again over the arguing, “Listen to me Mike, you’re not a murderer. Don’t become one. Your mother loves you and wants to see you again, so why don’t you put the gun down and walk out of here with me.”

           “Mackenzie’s got a shot.” The deputy marshal uttered excitedly.

           Fin’s eyes got wide, “Don’t do it.”

           “It’s not your call.”

           “They’re talking,” the detective stressed.

           “Give her a chance,” Cragen reiterated.

           Eckerson saw that Olivia had actually calmed down a bit and rolled his eyes, “Mack, hold your position.”

           After a few more minutes of back and forth, Liv gets Mike to agree he’ll walk out after talking to his son. The phone call went well until the other hostage, Lee began getting agitated and accusatory. The brunette stepped in between them and managed once again to de-escalate.

           “I’m gonna take the gun Mike, okay.” She said, a slight twinge of panic was noticeably.

           The convicts face softened as he lowered his weapon and Liv covered it with her hands to retrieve it. As she did so Eckerson gave the signal to fire and a rifle shot rang out.

           Casey covered her face upon hearing the shot, too afraid to look. She heard someone yell “Go! Go!” She sank to her knees fearing the worst. As she opened her eyes, she was alone in the room. She darted her attention to the AV screen, Liv was okay. She sat back against the wall and let all the emotions flow out through silent sobs.

*******

           The redhead paced back and forth in the parking lot, she wasn’t truly going to believe Liv was okay until she saw her with her own two eyes. She watched as they loaded Mike onto a stretcher and into the back of a bus and ESU got in their vehicles and exited the parking lot. Her stomach was killing her, still no Liv. What felt like an eternity later, Fin and Cragen emerged from the stairwell. Casey thought she was going to pass out, she only saw the two of them. As they got closer to her side of the parking lot though, through the gap between them, she finally saw her and was able to take a deep breath. Liv was walking towards her, hair tossed about, flak jacket still on. Before she could even speak Casey threw her arms around Liv’s neck and hugged her tight. She didn’t care if Cragen knew, she just needed to know she wasn’t dreaming.

           “Casey, Casey I’m okay. Casey you’re squeezing me and I still have this vest on. I can’t breath” she chuckled, patting the redhead on the back.

           “Shit, sorry” she pulled back. Liv could tell she had been crying.

           “Hey you look like you could use some lunch.” The brunette gently grabbed Casey’s arm and looked towards Fin and Cragen. “Okay?”

           The captain was starting to piece the scenario together and nodded, “Yeah I have your statement, we’ll meet you back at the stationhouse.”  

           “I’m not really hungry,” the younger woman said quietly once they were in the car. “I just need to look at you for a minute.” She cupped Liv’s face in her hands and stared deep into her eyes and kissed her, just in case it was all a dream and she was still in that motel room with the marshals. She gave a faint smile and grabbed Liv’s hand as they drove off.

*******

           Subsequently upon returning to the precinct and realizing that the evidence pointed to Jeremy, Lee’s cousin, Andy Eckerson and Liv paid him a visit and questioned him.

           Jeremy smirked, “You’ve got to be kidding me, let’s see you prove it.” He bucked.

          The deputy marshal saw red and grabbed the young man by the throat throwing him up against one of the support beams of the warehouse. “You son of bitch, you’ve been lying for ten years.”

          “Andy!” Liv scolded.

          “An innocent man almost died because of you”

          “Andy! Let him go!” Liv raised her voice, “that’s enough.” She pulled him off the suspect and dragged him towards the door.

******

          “So this whole time it was the cousin?” The redhead asked twirling her pasta on her fork as they ate a quick dinner before both having to get back to the office. This case had kept them at the office way longer than either of them would’ve liked. “Need me to get you a warrant for DNA?” she asked taking a bite and then reaching for her cellphone.

          “About that,” the brunette sighed cutting into her chicken parmigiana. “We’re gonna have a problem there. Andy…”

          “Andy, what?” her face dropped as she stopped dialing.

          “We were questioning Jeremy and he got really smug and Andy grabbed him and choked him up against one of the columns. I practically had to drag him out of there. I couldn’t get him to stop.”

          Casey put the phone down, “It’s not your job to make sure the fed doesn’t lose his cool.” She quipped and went back to her dinner.  The rest of the meal was pretty quiet until they returned to the office. The red head mostly pushed her food around her plate, her stomach in knots.

          “I have some DD-5s for you at my desk.” Liv finally broke the silence opening the door for Casey.

          “Okay babe, I’ll follow you.” The redhead felt bad for being so quiet throughout dinner. She wasn’t mad at the detective, she was still shaken up from earlier and shaking mad at Eckerson who not only put her person in harms way but was now screwing up their case. When they got back to the desk he was there waiting for them.

          “Can you get us a warrant to test Jeremy’s blood.” Andy asked, practically staring daggers at Casey.

          The redhead rolled her eyes as she put the briefs and Liv’s DD-5s  into her bag, “Are you sure you want me to?” she snapped.

          “Why wouldn’t I?” he retorted.

          “Because I’d bet my paycheck,” she shifted her attention towards him. She had lost any patience she had left for this man, “that Jeremy will counter with a brutality complaint.”

          Liv rested her glare on Eckerson which was very “I told you so” in demeanor.

          His face dropped as he turned his anger away from the ADA and towards the detective, “What the hell did you tell her?!”

          “The truth,” Liv stated bluntly.

          Casey stared at the brunette as she gave him what for, “God she is so gorgeous when she’s riled up”, her thought interrupted by more complaining from Andy.

          “The truth is he’s a liar and a rapist!” His voice was getting louder.

          The younger woman turned on her heel and lit into him, “Okay I’m trying to protect you and the integrity of this investigation.” She brought her tone back down as she faced Liv. “I suggest you try to make your case without a warrant for Jeremy’s DNA” Casey leaned closer as she said this and put her hand on the brunette’s arm. She made her “I’m super serious right now, this will bite everyone in the ass” face and walked out of the squad room towards her office.

          Olivia looked at Eckerson who was just standing there with this dumb founded look, “typical testosterone driven male”, she thought. She rolled her eyes and stormed off in the opposite direction as Casey but then made a loop around and headed towards her office.

          “Hey,” she rapped softly on the door frame, “I’m sorry about the warrant. Andy is...”

          “What? Your ex-boyfriend? A hot head?” Casey quipped. The fiery young woman was clearly distraught, tossing folders around her desk, closing drawers a little too hard.

          “Hey, hey, Casey!” Liv walked over and tried to place a gentle hand on her arm to still her.

          She yanked her arm away, putting her hand up, palm out. “No,” her eyes were full of tears as she tried to choke back sobs, “I don’t care about him! Do you understand that I thought I was going to watch that man shoot you today? I thought I was going to lose you Olivia!” She had been holding it back all day. It all just came bubbling up to the surface.

          “Case…” Liv’s eyes filled with tears, “I…”

          “Why didn’t you leave when he offered to let you go?” Her face was red, the tears started to fall, she couldn’t contain it anymore.

          “I will never leave someone in the direct path of danger. At that moment both Lee and Mike were in danger from different perspectives. I couldn’t…That’s just who I am Casey.” She stepped towards the redhead again to comfort her.

          Casey backed up again putting her desk between them, "Even if it leaves you in the path instead?" Her eyes were so bleary she could barely see.

          "That's the job, Casey! You should know that better than anyone."

          The younger woman leaned her palms against the desk, making eye contact with Liv, her tears now flowing freely. “I was terrified!” She slammed her hand against the desk. “I heard that gun go off and I couldn’t, I couldn’t look.” She started to hyperventilate. “I know we haven’t been seeing each other very long but if you died,” She was hysterical. She stepped out from behind the desk, trembling, her lower lip shaking uncontrollably, “I��I might.” She threw her hands down at her side unable to stop crying.

          The stoic detective closed the gap between them, her heart aching at the redheads unwavering display of sentiment for her, and wrapped Casey in her arms, “Shh honey, shh I’m right here.” She kissed her temple and held her tight. “It’s okay, I’m right here. Let’s sit for a minute.” She lead the counselor to the sofa and sat down with her, “Come on baby just take some deep breaths for me.”

          Casey laid her head across Liv’s lap and pulled her feet up on the couch. She inhaled deep through her nose and out through her mouth, trying to match her breath pattern with that of her lover’s. It didn’t take long for her to pass out from sheer exhaustion. Liv stroked her hair away from her face in a soothing pattern.

          A little while later there was a gentle knock on the door, “Hey Counselor,” Elliot started as he walked through the door.

          Liv waved her free hand trying to get his attention without waking Casey. She put her finger to her lips to signal him to quiet down.

          The other detective was highly confused, a pile of DD-5’s in his hand. “Is she okay?” he mouthed.

          “Rough day,” his partner frowned and mouthed back.

          Elliot quietly placed the stack on Casey’s desk and walked back towards the door. He furrowed his brow. If anything, he figured Benson would be the one out of sorts after earlier. Then again, they were way more used to that type of situation than the litigator.

          “Goodnight Liv.” He mimed and headed out.

          It was about 10pm when Casey finally started to stir. She sat up sharply, not realizing she was still in her office. The day’s events flooded back to her. Panic set back in until she laid eyes on Liv. 

          "Hey, it's okay, you just dozed off and I didn't want to wake you." Liv said softly, reaching out for her hand to soothe her.

          "You stayed this whole time?" she said groggily.

          She rubbed her thumbs over Casey's hand and pulled her back into the crook of her arm. "Of course I did. Why wouldn't I?"

          "I just...I know I yelled a lot earlier." She snuggled against Liv’s chest and listened for her heartbeat.

          Liv chuckled, "Casey, my sweet Casey, if you thought that was going to make me leave you alone on a couch in your office, you've got me all wrong. If anything, it just showed how much you care about me.

          The redhead pulled her tighter, "I do care about you, very much."

          "I know Case, I care about you too." She kissed the top of her head. "You need some sleep and I have to interrogate Lee in the morning and try to get him to tell us the truth since Andy screwed up the warrant. My place is closer, why don't you stay and let me take care of you? I don't like the thought of you going uptown this late by yourself."

          Casey looked up at her with wide, puppy eyes and smiled, "Okay, but only because I'm not letting you out of my sight lest you run off into a hostage situation again." She placed her hand on the brunette's chin and took her into a deep, passionate kiss which the detective returned and then lifted the ADA to her feet.

********

          Casey was still out of it from her earlier panic attack when they got to Liv’s apartment. She was reserved, quiet. The brunette took her jacket from her shoulders and hung it on the hook, “You want some tea, honey?”

          “Huh?” Casey snapped out of her daze, “I’d love some, umm I need to wash my hair, the salt from the shore...” she started getting choked up again thinking about being at the motel earlier.

          “Shh, let me run you a bath,” Liv said softly squeezing the counselor’s hand and then walking towards the bathroom. The redhead pulled her back. The brunette turned back, “What’s wrong baby?”

          “Don’t go,” Casey whimpered.

          “Oh honey,” the detective frowned, “here.” She sat the young ADA down at the dining room table and moved to the sink to fill the kettle. She stood behind Casey’s chair and massaged her shoulders.

          The redhead rolled her neck, she loved Liv’s touch, it seemed to be the only thing that brought her comfort these days. Then the kettle whistled and she almost leapt 3 feet off the chair.

          “Shit Casey! I’m so sorry baby.” The brunette bolted and turned the stove off grabbing the kettle with a towel and taking it off the heat. She fixed a cup of tea and took Casey’s hand, “Come on let get you cleaned up honey.” Liv sat her down on the edge of the tub and put the cup down on the sink. She knelt next to the redhead and turned on the bath faucet, adjusting the temperature to make sure it was comfortable. “Let’s get you out of these clothes, beautiful”

          Casey looked down at the detective who was looking back up at her tenderly, “Thank you,” she said barely able to make sound, “I’m sorry.”

          Liv lifted her shirt over her head and let it fall to the floor. She lifted her hand to brush the ADAs cheek, “For what honey?”

          Casey grabbed her hand and held it against her face, “for being a mess, for being a burden.”

          “Baby you are definitely not a burden. I want you here, I want to take care of you. I know what I said earlier, and yeah it is the job, but I worried I wouldn’t see you again either.” The brooding woman’s eyes welled up. “I…I want you here.” She knew what she really wanted to say but she couldn’t bring herself to get the words out.

          The red head leaned down still holding Liv’s hand to her face and took her other hand and put it on the nape of her lovers neck and leaned forward. She kissed her with every fiber of her being and then rested her forehead against her lover’s. “I…wouldn’t want to be anywhere else” They both knew what they weren’t saying and for now that would be enough.

          The detective finished helping her get undressed and eased her down into the tub. She placed the tea down on the side where Casey had been sitting. “I’ll be right in the bedroom, okay? I’ll give you some privacy, but I’ll leave the door open, sound good?” 

          The redhead nodded as she started to wash up, “Thank you.”

          Liv leaned her head against the door frame, “I’ll be right out here if you need me.”

          A little while later Casey emerged from the bathroom, her hair damp and wavy, wearing one of the brunette’s old NYPD Academy t-shirts and some sleep shorts.

          The detective looked up from her book, “There she is,” she smiled, “hey beautiful.”

          The redhead laughed, “Hey yourself.” She walked over to the side of the bed and ran her fingers through Liv’s hair. The brunette gently tugged Casey down to the bed, scooting back and making room to spoon her. Casey pulled her arms tight around her almost as if she was trying to make sure she wouldn’t disappear. After a few minutes she turned to face Liv, studying every detail, not wanting to forget a single line, a single inch of her face. “Liv,” she whispered.

          “Yeah, Case?” she whispered back.

          “Touch me please.” She kissed the brunette, soft and slow, a sense of urgency in her voice, “please?”

          “You sure?” She wanted nothing more than to quell Casey’s every desire, but she needed to check in and make sure this wasn’t brought on by the trauma of the day.

          “Please baby,” the young prosecutor whimpered, her lip shaky, “I need you.” She reached for the detective’s hand and brought it to her body, “please.” Her breath hitched as Liv penetrated her. She pulled Liv’s free hand under her shirt to her breast and slid her tongue softly into the brunettes mouth. Casey moaned quietly as Liv’s tongue explored her with a gentle passion. She could feel herself tighten as her lover’s fingers grazed against her hardened nipple.

         “I need you too,” the brooding cop whispered in quiet breaths. Casey reciprocated, bringing her hand to her lover’s heat matching her pace.

         Their eyes locked on each other, both quietly mewling, hot gasps full of desire. The redhead nodded, letting out long moans as if to say, “now”. As she did both watched each other’s expression as they climaxed, crashing over the edge simultaneously. The lover’s suckled on each other’s fingers tasting themselves and then dove into a long, passionate kiss. Their bodies entangled.

        Casey smiled as she stared at Liv again and then pressed her face tight to her chest to listen to her heart beating. She was calm again and allowed herself to bask in the afterglow. They always held each other close after but something was different tonight, there was more than just wanton need for physical touch. Something changed.

       “Don’t go anywhere, okay?” she said quietly.

       “What? It’s my apartment.” Liv giggled.

       The redhead snuggled her closer, “If I close my eyes, don’t go anywhere while they’re closed.”

       The brunette kissed the top of her head, “I promise,” she whispered, “I’ll hold you tight until we get up tomorrow.

*******

       Liv woke up hours before the alarm and just watched Casey breathe in and out, who was still clinging tight to the brunette, head against her chest. She reached over a few minutes before it was set to sound and switched off the alarm. After the incident with the kettle last night, she didn’t want Casey going through the ceiling. She kissed the head of the gorgeous woman in her bed and stroked her hair. “I,” she started to whisper but the redhead stirred.

       “What baby?”

       “Huh? Nothing Case honey, it’s just time to get up, we both have early days today.”

       “Mmm 5 more minutes.” She brought her hand up to stroke Liv’s face and consume her with a kiss.

       “Just 5.”

       “Mhm just 5.”

       “I can think of a better way to spend the next 5 minutes”

       “Oh?” she giggled as she kissed the brunette again and rolled herself on top of her.  

*******

       The case was finally over, Lee had confessed, Mike was going to be a free man after his stay in the hospital and finally got to meet his son. Olivia was just staying to finish up the paperwork before heading out. Andy walked up to her desk announcing that he was going back to his post in Virginia.

       “I could stay a couple more days?” He leaned over Liv’s desk.

       “Andy,” she sighed, she spoke quietly, “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

       “How about one drink before I leave?” he sat on the edge of her desk, still trying to plead his case.

       “Its not gonna work between us.”

       “Why not.” He pouted like a petulant child.

       “Because I have enough insanity in my life, and I have someone right now who brings me peace. Stability.”

       “Is it serious?”

       “Yeah I think it is.” She smiled down at her desk and continued to write her notes.

       It was right about then that Casey walked up to the squad room and upon seeing them talking decided to hang back as to not have too much further interaction with the deputy Marshall. She was leaning on the door frame to the squad room as he turned from Liv and began to walk out.

      “So much for not interacting,” she thought to herself.

       “Hey,” he stopped as he was leaving, “You and Olivia seem pretty close, am I right?”

       “Sure,” the ADA nodded and shrugged her shoulders.

       “She said she has a pretty serious boyfriend, any idea who the guy is? Is it Elliot?” he inquired in a serious tone, he sounded like a wounded dog.

       Casey had to control her urge to hysterically laugh in the man’s face. “What no, of course its not Elliot! He’s married! With four kids! Liv said she had a boyfriend? Her exact words?”

       “Well, no she said she was seeing someone who brought her ‘peace’” he made a face and mimed air quotes with his hands, “and that it was pretty serious. So that sounds like her having a boyfriend to me.”

       Casey looked down and smirked, licking her lip. She tried really hard not to blush and then looked back at Eckerson, “Yeah, sure does. I have no idea though.”

       He shrugged, “Oh well. Goodnight.”

       “Goodnight,” she had already stopped paying attention as he walked past her and turned her attention to the beautiful detective at the desk, only lamp still on and sauntered over.

       “So Detective,” she spread her arms out and leaned over the desk to kiss the brunette’s forehead.

       “Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes,” Liv cooed smiling up at the redhead.

       Casey chuckled, “Thank you,” a sly smile stretching across her face, “rumor has it, Detective Benson, that you have a top-secret boyfriend and that things are ‘pretty serious’” she made a face and mimed air quotes, mocking Andy.

       Liv smiled, her mouth agape, like that first night at the bar when Casey asked her if she liked women, “I didn’t say I had a boyfriend. I said I had someone who brought me peace and that it was serious. I was talking about you Casey. You may be the SVU ADA but you’re my ADA.” She stood up, grabbed her jacket off the back her chair and moved towards Casey.

      Casey wrapped her arms around Liv's waist and pulled her closer. “Is that so detective?” she kissed her hard, deep, knowing they were the only two in the squad room. It felt like they were the only two people in the city in that moment. She took her finger under the brunette’s chin and ran her thumb across her lower lip, “Mmm my detective”

      Olivia’s chest swelled with emotion at the sound of being Casey’s detective, “What do you say we grab a bottle of something and enjoy the pleasure of each other’s company for the rest of the evening, Counselor?” She turned the redhead around towards the door, holding her around the waist from behind. “Preferably with you on top of me,” she kissed the nape of prosecutor’s neck, “naked.”

     Casey closed her eyes and leaned into it for a moment, “Mmm I don’t know, Detective. Your serious boyfriend might get jealous.”

     Liv tightened her grip and then smacked the redhead on the ass. “That’s it Novak, you’re so punished.”

     The younger woman bit her lip and pretended to run away from Liv who playfully chased her all the while still holding on to her hips. She pulled the brunette to her side and wrapped her arms around her waist again as Liv wrapped her arm around Casey’s shoulder and lightly kissed her temple as they walked out.

     Cragen, whom neither woman had realized was still in his office watched the whole exchange through the blinds. He stood there, shaking his head, chuckling to himself. “Good for Liv, she deserves to be happy. Those kids make a cute couple.” He grabbed his keys and jacket and turned off the lamp on his desk.

Read Part 4