In Season 3, Episode 3 of "Law & Order: Organized Crime," Stabler and his new partner Detective Whelan (Brent Antonello) question a woman who's connected to rat-bite Kenny (Michael Drayer). After they exit the house, Whelan tells Stabler he thinks the woman is lying about her relationship to their suspect. "No way two people are that close for that long and don't sleep with each other," Whelan says. Without skipping a beat, Stabler comes back with, "You sure about that?" This throwaway line is anything but, as it's obvious to longtime fans that Stabler is referring to his platonic relationship with Benson.
"This line killed me," @yocuayyaj tweeted. "Literally the best line of the night!! And that smile and little shrug from Elliot when Jamie said 'what's that mean?' I'm dead," added. It was just enough of a Bensler tease to keep shippers of the non-existent couple going until they can see them on screen together again. "Oh Elliot. Always thinking about Liv," @WendyLynHall1 wrote of the moment. Other Bensler fans continued to suggest we'll see a coupling soon, hopefully by the end of each show's current season. To bring Stabler back to the "Law & Order" universe and not have him and Benson get together would be a real letdown.
