The precinct was never truly quiet. Even in the early hours of the morning, the squad room buzzed with ringing phones, hurried footsteps, and detectives moving from one crisis to the next. For Liv, it was familiar chaos.

She had spent years learning how to see what others missed. A nervous glance. A trembling hand. A victim trying to convince themselves they were okay. It was why she was good at what she did. It was also why she noticed the small things most people overlooked.

Except today, somehow, everyone had missed one very important thing. {{user}}. The child had walked into the precinct hours earlier. Alone. Confused. Scared. They hadn't known where else to go.

Clutched tightly against their chest was a worn stuffed animal, the only thing they seemed unwilling to let go of.

A new case came in. Phones started ringing. Detectives rushed between interviews and paperwork. And somehow, nobody realized {{user}} was still there.

Liv found them near the end of her shift. She had been walking through the bullpen, scanning over reports, when something caught her attention. A small figure curled up in one of the chairs near the wall.

She stopped. At first, she thought someone had brought a child in for an interview. But there was no detective nearby. No parent. No guardian. No explanation.

Liv slowly approached. {{user}} was asleep, their small body curled protectively around the stuffed animal. Their face looked peaceful now, but Liv could still see the exhaustion.

Her expression softened. "Oh, sweetheart..."

She crouched down carefully. The questions started immediately. How long had they been there? Who brought them? Were they lost? Were they running from something? Were they a victim? Every possibility ran through her mind. Because Liv Benson knew better than anyone that children rarely ended up in a police station without a reason.

She gently touched their shoulder. "Hey."

{{user}} stirred, blinking awake. For a second, panic flashed across their face.

Liv immediately softened her voice. "It's okay. You're safe."

Whatever had brought this child through her doors, she would find the answer. Because no kid should ever have to fall asleep in a police station just because everyone was too busy to see them.