Chapter Text
One Year Later
They both hear tiny feet heading down the hallway and they pull apart just as Noah knocks on their door.
“Momma? Papa? Are you awake?”
Liv holds a finger to her lips, signalling for Rafael to stay quiet. They lay stalk still, waiting to see if he’ll try again or head downstairs.
Noah knocks again only this time a little louder.
Rafael chuckles, burying his face in her chest.
“What is it, babe?” Liv calls.
“You are awake!…I’m hungry; can I have a banana?”
Sifting her fingers through his hair at the nape of his neck, Liv sighs as his lips trail down her body. “Sure, you can have whatever you want just-”
“-no knives or anything that plugs in. I know!”
His tiny feet bound down the stairs and Liv sinks back into bed. “We’ve got 5 minutes, tops.”
“Challenge accepted,” Rafael smirks up at her, before disappearing under the covers, making her giggle.
. . . . . . . . . . . .
“Ok, everyone knows the plan?” Liv questions, strapping Luca into his highchair at the table.
Noah carefully carries his plate, sliding into his chair next to his brother. “Yep! Papa is going to drop me off at school.”
Liv nods, cutting up a banana onto Luca’s tray. He smiles happily, immediately shoving a fistful into his mouth. “And after school?”
Taking a bite of his pancake, Noah takes a minute to recall the plan. “Lucy’s gonna pick me up and we’re gonna go to the museum!”
With a pancake on his spatula, Rafael drops it onto Luca’s tray much to the baby’s delight. He takes a few minutes to tear it apart into more bite sized pieces. “Right. And after the museum?”
His feet swing back and forth as they dangle from his chair. “Grandpa is going to take me to dance class.”
Rafael makes them both coffee, grabbing both their plates as he heads to the table too. Pressing a kiss to the top of her head, he sets her’s on the table in front of her, sliding into his seat opposite Noah. “Right again. Luca, what’s the plan?”
Luca perks up at the sound of his name, shoving pancake into his mouth. “Mmmm, Papa.”
Noah giggles. “Papa’s pancakes are good.”
“Lucy’s coming over,” Rafael answers smiling at Luca, earning a scrunchy, toothy grin in return.
“Ce Ce Ce,” Luca babbles around his pancake.
“Papa, what’s the plan?” Noah questions him.
“Drop you off at school, then put some bad guys in prison.”
Noah grins at this. “Momma, what’s the plan?”
“Catch the bad guys so Papa can put them in prison,” Liv answers, sipping her coffee. “What’s the last part of the plan?”
“Spaghetti!” Noah exclaims.
“S-Geeeee!” Luca imiates.
. . . . . . . . . . . .
Slipping under the crime scene tape, Liv approaches carefully through the markers CSU has placed all through out the alleyway, Bruno and Amanda on her heels.
“Captain, over here,” Melinda calls.
Maneuvering through CSU workers, she kneels down next to Melinda. “What have we got?”
“Tenant found her mixed among the garbage.”
“Time of death?”
“I’d say sometime this morning. There’s more.”
Melinda pulls back the blanket to reveal what’s left of the young woman’s face, and Liv exhales through her mouth slowly. “How badly was she burned?”
“Just her face. Whoever did this, didn’t want us identifying her.”
Rising to her feet, Liv nods. “Ok.” Turning to her detectives, she takes in the alleyway. “Bruno, start with canvasing the building, see if there’s security cameras.”
Bruno nods. “On it Cap.”
“You thinking what I’m thinking?” Amanda questions.
“He’s escalating,” Liv answers, watching the press begin to litter the street. “We need evidence.”
Amanda nods. “You better call Barba then.”
. . . . . . . . . . . .
The judge looks between the two of them. “You know, you both are starting to get quite the reputation around here.”
Rafael looks over his shoulder at her briefly before sliding the paperwork for the warrant across his desk. “You’re not admitting to the office gossip are you, your honour?”
Judge Bertucco gives him a look, sliding the warrant towards him. “I would never.” Scrawling his signature, he holds it out to him. “You better be right.”
Taking the warrant, Rafael nods. “You know better than to doubt Captain Benson.”
Looking past him to Liv whose already reaching for the door, Judge Bertucco nods. “I do.”
“Thank you your honour.” He follows Liv out, handing her he warrant. “Go get your guy.”
She smiles, pressing a quick to his lips before jogging towards the elevator.
. . . . . . . . . . . .
“Not only did detectives at the Manhattan Special Victims unit find cans of gasoline in the trunk of the defendants car, CSU found traces of the victims blood in his apartment and on his clothing.”
The judge looks over the evidence provided. “How does the defendant plead?”
“Not guilty, your honour,” the lawyer answers. “The vehicle in questions is not registered to my client and the victim is known to Mr. Carver; there is a reasonable explanation as to why her blood was found at my clients apartment.”
Rafael rolls his eyes, shaking his head. “Surely the defence isn’t going to imply that the two litres of blood CSU recovered from the defendants pipes was the victim simply cutting herself.”
The judge frowns. “No need for theatrics, Mr. Barba…people on bail?”
“Remand, your honour. The defendant has been on a spree the past two weeks, assaulting dozens of woman and terrorizing others.”
“I agree. The defendant is to be remained to Rikers until your court date. Good day.” Banging his gavel, court officers escort Mr. Carver out of the courtroom.
Gathering his brief case, he finds Liv waiting for him in the gallery.
“Well done, counsellor,” she smiles.
He gives her his trademark smirk, threading his fingers with hers as they head out of the courtroom together. “You gave me the evidence, making the case.”
“We make a good team, then.”
Rafael walks her to the exit. “The best.” Checking his watch to see how much time he has before his next arraignment. “I need to go.”
Squeezing his hand, Liv nods. “Love you.”
He squeezes her hand back. “Love you.”
. . . . . . . . . . . .
Noah’s soccer ball and bike lay forgotten on the front lawn, and Rafael grabs the handle bars, pulling it towards the side of the house. The plants Liv had insisted on getting for the porch are well passed dead and he had questioned then who, exactly, was going to water them, to which she responded, ‘I will.’
They hadn’t stood a chance.
Letting himself in, Rafael toes out of his shoes, leaving his briefcase by the door. The smell of garlic and tomatoes fills the air, along with fragments of the conversation Liv is having with their son.
“Babe, I think it’s a bit early to put up the Christmas tree,” Liv tries to reason. “The leaves haven’t even changed colour or fallen off the trees yet.”
“Can we get pumpkins then?” Noah attempts to barter.
Rafael can hear the amusement in his wife’s voice. “The pumpkins aren’t ready yet either, Sweet boy. Summer is just getting over.”
As he enters the kitchen, Luca spies him first from where he’s perched on Liv’s hip. His hand reaches out towards him as he grins. “Papaaaa!”
Noah’s face lights up as he hops off the counter, running towards him. “Papa!”
Luca is wiggling in her arms and she sets him down, letting him crawl towards him.
Rafael catches Noah first, wrapping him in his arms. “Mmmmm it’s so good to be home.” Noah rests his head on his shoulder. ‘Did you have a good day, Mijo?”
“Grandpa and I saw this really big spider and it crawled super fast like this.”
Noah mimics the spiders legs with his fingers across his chest and Rafael shivers. “That’s pretty fast.”
Luca is at his feet, pulling at his leg. “Papa, up! Up! Up!”
Kneeling, he manages to scoop him into his other arm and Luca immediately leans in to give him a wet kiss. Rafael chuckles. “Thank you, pea. How was your day?”
The baby babbles about nothing in particular and he crosses the kitchen towards where Liv is tending to the spaghetti sauce, listening attentively. “You don’t say, huh?”
Noah giggles from his other side, settling back on to the counter when he sets him down. “How was your day, Papa?”
“I had a great day; I got to work with Momma.”
Liv smiles softly at him over her shoulder. “I had a pretty great day today with you too.”
. . . . . . . . . . . .
Rafael tugs the pyjama top over Noah’s head, and the little boy smiles, brushing the curls from his eyes.
Slipping his arms through the sleeves, Noah’s blue gaze holds his. “Papa?”
“Mmmm?”
“Can we put up the Christmas tree on the weekend?”
Smiling, he turns down the covers to his bed. “What did Momma say?”
Sighing, Noah climbs into bed, flopping down on his pillow. “She said it’s too early.”
Rafael tucks him in, kneeling down by his bedside. “Momma might be right on this one, buddy.”
“Momma’s always right.”
He chuckles at this. “Even when she’s wrong.” Pressing a kiss to his forehead, he turns out the light. “Maybe we can put some lights in your room. How does that sound?”
Noah smiles. “The twinkly ones!”
“I’ll run it by Momma. Sleep well. I Love you.”
“Love you too.”
Closing the door behind him gently, Rafael heads down the hall towards the nursery where Liv’s settled in the armchair breastfeeding Luca.
He’ll never tire of the sight.
She’s so beautiful like this, he thinks.
The way Luca’s hazel gaze stares up at her, the way he sighs contentedly knowing that he’s loved.
Dimming the lights, Rafael heads to the dresser gathering a diaper and wipes. “Noah seems pretty keen to put up the Christmas tree.”
“He saw an add on his iPad earlier about Christmas in July and hasn’t let it go.”
“I may have told him we could hang some lights in his room as a compromise.”
“Which really means there will be a small tree in his room next week,” she teases him.
Rafael smirks, nodding. “You’re probably right.”
Luca finishes and Liv brings him from her breast to her shoulder. He lets out a few burps as she works the gas up and Rafael reaches for him, taking him towards the changing table. Pressing several kisses to his cheeks, he lays him down gently, careful not to jostle him too much from the milk induced sleep he’s fallen into.
Liv takes the opportunity to pump on her other breast, settling back into the armchair. She watches as he unzips the sleeper, maneuvers Luca’s feet out. He speaks gently to him in Spanish, lulling him further into sleep as he makes quick work of changing his diaper.
He had been a natural.
Woke up with them both during the night and had risen with Noah most mornings to get him off to school. Had settled their son in the crook of his arm and drank his coffee with the other. Never missed an opportunity to tell her what an amazing mother she was to their boys.
Showed her how much he loved her in all the little things. Kissing her forehead when she wanted to cry from exhaustion. Running her a bath when everything seemed to ache. Making sure she ate and rested and told her daily how beautiful she was.
Loved on their boys in ways neither of their own fathers could.
Zipping his sleeper back up, Rafael settles Luca on his shoulder, swaying with him as he sings gently. It doesn’t take long for him to fall asleep, and he places him gently into his crib as Liv finishes up pumping. Leaning down into the crib, Rafael presses a kiss to Luca’s forehead. “Sleep well, Hijo.”
Sliding a hand down his back, Liv brushes her finger down Luca’s cheek. “We love you, Sweet Pea.”
. . . . . . . . . . . .
With the baby monitor on the table in front of them, Liv settles into his side on the swing in their backyard. The sun is hovering just above dusk and the outdoor lights they had strung along their fence twinkle on. Rafael makes sure to tuck the blanket around her feet as he brings it up over them both.
Swinging them gently, he presses a kiss to her forehead. “You ok?”
The images of the young woman, burned and left in the alleyway have lingered with her all day, creeping up on her now as her mind begins to settle. “…she was someone’s daughter. Someone’s entire world.”
Rafael rubs her back. “Life can be cruel.”
Being here with him, their boys safe and loved soothes the cynicism that always creeps up on her after cases like this. His fingers sift through her hair, down her back and Liv closes her eyes.
The day melts away until all she feels, is the peace, the rest, the love, the hope, that he’s pouring back into her.
“Rafa?”
His lips press to the top of her head. “Mmmm?”
“I love you.”
“I love you too, Liv….in this lifetime and the next. This and every parallel universe. Always.”
The End