A/N: So instead of working on the fics I already have going, I start a new one? Sure. This will be a short fic. I got the idea from a movie I was watching while avoiding doing homework.
"But Liv…it's macaroni night…"
Liv bit her lip to keep from chuckling at her boyfriend's pouty tone coming through the speaker of her office phone. Outside in the squad room, Carisi stifled a laugh with Fin, having overheard the ADA through the open door. She sent them both a withering look over the burning desk lamp.
He would have been pissed if he found out anyone other than her had heard him. He was funny about his personal life, not wanting anyone other than his closest family and friends to know the little details about him and the life he lived outside of work.
Since that basically boiled down to her and his mother and Noah, and the fact that he didn't have many close friends anymore, it wasn't hard to do so. Liv picked up the receiver and rested it against her shoulder and ear as she opened an incoming e-mail message with the phone records she requested just an hour earlier. There was an all-out manhunt going down in the city tonight, one SVU would be heading since their suspect, out on bail, decided to go on a spree in the city.
She had been itching to nail this guy for the past two weeks and now that he'd tried running for it, she ordered the city on lockdown and was in the middle of organizing six different departments and well over 400 officers. There was no way this guy was going to make it out of the city…not on her watch.
Unfortunately, that meant she had to miss macaroni night and spending an evening with her stressed out husband. She'd made plans just two nights before, deciding they needed a weekend to themselves before the trial would start. That more than likely meant working and building their case all day, but at least they would be in their pajamas, cuddled up on the couch while and drinking coffee.
Now, those plans were shot and they'd more than likely have to appear Monday morning in court.
"I'm sorry, hon," she truly did feel sad and distraught over missing something as simple as macaroni night. Every opportunity she had to spend with her little family made, she would take. Even if she saw her son every morning before pre-school and every night before bed time, it still wasn't enough in her book. The same went for her husband, because even if they worked closely with each other, professional lives were separated from personal ones.
"It's alright. We'll have plenty of other macaroni nights. That is, of course, if you don't do anything stupid on this manhunt across the city. Did I mention that I hate your job sometimes?"
Liv opened her mouth to defend the career she had, but she knew he was half-heartedly joking. When they first met, she knew he thought of her job as nothing more than placating victims and annoying him until he got her what she wanted. As their relationship progressed, he saw the gritty and surreal things she dealt with on a daily basis, and a respect between them formed.
When they started dating, suddenly, he started to see what her career was really like. He was privy to hard moments, shared between them or just things she experienced on her own, and he was always the shoulder to lean. He became so protective, having witnessed her battered and bruised and wasn't afraid to argue with her when she ended up doing something stupid that could have gotten her killed.
He respected her job and what she had to do, but that didn't mean he had to like it.
"I promise to make it back in one piece. You'll need me for when we have to track down a judge tomorrow morning and rush him into trial."
He laughed, agreeing with her, "The majority of them definitely like you more than me, that's for sure."
"Yeah, right," she scoffed, "They were lawyers before they were judges and lawyers tend not to agree with me."
"I better not be included in that list," he said with the same warning tone he used in the office. It was meant to be intimidating, but to her, it only served to make her shiver. Another thing they planned to do during their weekend off involved them being locked in a bedroom and Noah being shipped off to Lucia's for a sleepover.
"Mmm, well you are probably one of the only lawyer's that handle me."
"In more ways than one."
Liv closed her eyes, desperately wishing she was going home instead of sitting at her desk, waiting for six department Captains to show up in her squad room. She was really, really, going to nail this guy and make him pay. She couldn't wait to cuff him.
"Alright, enough of that. I have a huge mission to be planning right about now and you're distracting."
She could practically hear the smile on his face along with the banging of pots and pans in the background. It was nearing seven now, a little later than she would have preferred Noah eating, but it was what it was. Everyone's night had been derailed, it seemed.
"I'll let you go, then. I'm on daddy duty anyhow."
"Daddy duty, huh?"
"I hate how good that sounds coming out of your mouth."
Liv barked out a laugh, garnering the attention of the detectives sitting crowded around Amanda's computer and she turned around in her chair, facing towards the window displaying the darkened city.
"Don't give me any ideas now, Rafi," she lowered her voice, knowing what it did to him when she talked to him like that. She was getting treading into dangerous territory and she knew it, but she enjoyed getting him going, even if she couldn't do anything to alleviate the problem he was going to have.
"Ok, now I really have to let you go because this isn't doing either of us any good."
She giggled, "I'll try and make it out before midnight, but I'll be lucky if that happens," she turned back around to face her closed door and windowed office. She sighed a little, hoping that she would be able to make it home before then, but she knew it couldn't be promised.
"I know. Don't work yourself to death, though. It's not on you what happened," he said reassuringly. She could hear Noah yelling for him in the background and she smiled, her heart always doing a little flip when the two interacted, even three years later.
"I know. I'll let you go. You're on the job, Daddy," she giggled at the low growl he sent her.
"Call me Daddy again and you'll be in for a treat when you get home," he whispered through the phone, letting her know he was either seriously turned on or their son was within earshot. Liv felt a spark of arousal and quickly shot that idea clear out of the sky.
She had work to do and she needed a clear head to get through the night ahead of her.
"Mmm…don't tempt me," she warned, twisting a lock of hair around her finger. She peeked out into the squad room, noticing Fin, Amanda and Carisi all preoccupied by something or another and clearly not paying attention to her.
"Don't work too hard," he sighed, realizing it was probably time to let her get off the phone so he could get their rambunctious five-year-old fed, bathed and off to sleep the night away.
"I won't, baby," Liv said softly, not wanting to hang up and cursing the fact she was going to be stuck searching for this criminal all night.
"I love you."
"I love you, too."
Liv hung up the phone, feeling a little down at the prospect of having to get back to work and the possibility that she would be there past midnight, but it was important for her not to lose focus. She looked up to see a few incoming faces, more officers than usual milling around the squad room.
She quickly grabbed up her laptop and files she needed, heading out to the crowded squad room to begin.
It was half past 11 when he finally finished his notes and Rafael downed the last of his scotch. It was warm, having sat there as he delved deep into the work spread out on coffee table. He unloaded his brief case after Noah fell asleep, intending to get at least half of his overflowing workload done before the weekend was over. Unfortunately, as he switched to the nightly, local news, he caught the story of his wife's manhunt and the details from the connected murderous rampage their suspect had been on only hours before.
His eyes drifted back and forth from the work on his lap and the television screen, hoping to take his mind off the situation happening in the city and the fact that his wife was out there with her team, tracking down some psycho who was lucky enough to be bailed out of jail.
The search had only intensified the longer it went on. As of now, as he packed away his notes and files, news reports were flooding in from everywhere. Sightings being phoned in to the local television stations with reports of more than one suspect running amuck had the authorities urging people to stay inside.
It was truly turning into a shit show and Rafael felt the slow swirling in his stomach. It was a feeling he got right before something bad usually happened. Like, the death threats that slid across his desk a few years ago or last year, right before his wife was involved in a shoot-out and a bullet grazed her forehead.
Sometimes, he cursed that he fell in love with a woman who had such a dangerous job. It caused nights like this, where he wasn't going to get any sleep until she was in their bed, in his arms and fast asleep. But those curses were short lived and never held any truth to them. He loved his wife, no matter what, but that didn't mean he couldn't worry about her.
Again, authorities are urging citizens to stay in a safe place tonight. If you come into contact with these suspects, do not approach them. Turn the other direction and contact police immediately…
He shook his head and pulled his phone out of the pajama pants he wore, not seeing any missed calls or texts. Liv probably had her phone off and that's how he wanted it anyway. He didn't want her getting distracted while she was out in the field and vulnerable.
Still, he kind of wished for a text telling him that she was ok. He had faith that she was going to be alright and come home to him unscathed, but there was always that realistic possibility that whispered to him that maybe, this was the night she wouldn't.
"Daddy."
Rafael looked towards the staircase that lead to the upstairs of their brownstone, moving boxes and various law texts still loitered the steps since they hadn't quite finished moving in yet. Noah had his little hands curled around the wooden poles of the railing, eyes tired and blinking wearily.
"Yeah, buddy," he said softly, standing up and setting his briefcase behind the couch. Noah rubbed at one of his eyes and yawned before he said anything.
"I'm thirsty," he said, licking his lips to emphasize that point. Rafael just nodded and told him to go back to his bed, watching as he adorably tripped over a stair in his sleepy state and disappeared out of sight.
…grizzly murders took place between 9:37 p.m. and 10:20 p.m. tonight. These murderers are still on the run as of right now and believed to still be in the city. Police are confirming that the original suspect has at least two others helping him. All are considered highly dangerous…
Rafael moved through the kitchen, one ear on the television still playing the news, live on location just outside of the 16th precinct. He went about searching the cabinets, grumbling about Liv moving everything around on him so he could find a cup with a straw for Noah to sip from.
He eventually found them stacked in a near the fridge and filled it up with a couple of ice cubes and water straight from the fridge. The noise was loud, cutting through the current interview with one of the officers he'd seen around the lobby a few times on his recent visits. He didn't pay him much mind as he walked back through the living room and up the stairs.
He found Noah on his side, sleeping soundly again with his blankets kicked off and his feet hanging over the edge. Rafael moved quietly through his room, stubbing his toe on the edge of a heavy box and he cursed silently to himself. He made a mental note to get their son's room unpacked, at least.
Rafael placed the cup on the bedside table just in case he woke up again. He went about adjusting the boy comfortably back into the pillows and tucking him in with the stuffed dinosaur he slept with every single night.
"Daddy," Noah's slurred speech stopped Rafael's tucking in and he sat on the edge of the bed, Noah's eyes looking up at him, half-lidded and tired. Rafael smiled, running his hand through the boy's short hair and running comfortingly down the side of his little face.
"Go to sleep," he whispered, leaning down to kiss Noah's forehead. Noah nodded, blinking slowly a few times before he asked, "When is mommy coming home?"
Rafael held in his sigh and just stared down at the rapidly closing eyes of his son. He asked about his wife's whereabouts earlier, looking a little sad about the fact that she wasn't there to give him hugs and kisses like he was used to. Rafael had jokingly told him he felt the same, missing his wife's hugs and kisses just as much and that made the boy feel slightly better, but it didn't alleviate the want for her comfort.
"She'll be home soon. Now go back to sleep and when you wake up in the morning, we're all going to go out for breakfast."
"To McDonald's?"
Rafael laughed and leaned down, giving the boy another kiss on his head before he stood up, pulling the heavy quilt over the boy's body again and watching as he fell back into a deep sleep almost immediately.
He slipped out of the room, checking to make sure the night light was on and the blinds to his room were closed before he shut the door behind him. He briefly entertained the thought of trying to catch some shut eye as his eyes traveled over the spotless looking bedroom holding their comfortable bed. He was tired, but he wasn't going to be able to lie there and think about his wife still crawling the streets looking for that guy.
Rafael turned away from the bedroom but stopped at the sudden sound of a door opening and shuffling feet, then the door closing with a soft thud. He smiled, feeling relief flood his chest that his wife was safe and home now. All he wanted to do was hold her and kiss her and let go of the worry he'd been holding onto since the phone call that ended just a few hours ago.
He quickly walked down the steps, seeing the empty foyer but he could see the outline of her moving towards the darkened kitchen. She stopped as soon as her name fell from his lips.
"God, I'm glad your home. I was starting to really get worried, Liv."
Rafael rounded the corner of the stairs, socked feet sliding a bit across the hardwood floors as he walked up to the figure that stood in the dark in front of him. She was wearing bulkier clothes and he confused for a second when he saw that she was dripping wet, water falling and hitting the floor in soft splats. He stuttered in his movements when he stepped on some water.
"Liv? I didn't know it was raining."
He moved his feet and stepped to the side, not wanting to risk getting his feet anymore wet. He glanced behind him at the television and looked back towards Liv-
Rafael's head snapped back to the television, taking in the face of his wife speaking to the news anchor, her mouth moving rapidly and her eyes focused on the camera. She was retelling the same warning they'd been playing on the news all night. Her voice was filled with authority as the news anchor continued asking her important questions.
His green eyes only watched his wife's face for a moment before they were drawn up to the corner of the television screen where the word LIVE was flashing in red. Rafael felt the sudden drop like a hammer in his stomach, the hair's on his arm standing up on end. There was a rustling of fabric and shuffling feet behind him. The sound of heavy boots squeaking against the wet hard wood floors drew closer to him and he had the instinctive urge to run to Noah's room.
He had to get to Noah.
But he was frozen in place, eyes watching as his wife left the interview and the camera focused back in on the news anchor still reporting from the scene.
"Liv," he breathed out, his words sounding weak as he called to his wife to help him. He stood paralyzed as a cold barrel of a gun pressed against the warm skin of his neck. He felt water droplets from the metal slip down into the collar of his plain shirt, absorbed by the fabric. The next words he heard were uttered and foreign to his ears. He did his best to stay still as warm breath hit his left ear and his entire world came to a stop in that moment.
"My name isn't Liv."