It was almost Christmas time, and Rosa was almost buzzing with excitement. Before Tom left the house to pick up a sled for his son, she was bouncing around him on the tips of her toes. He almost rolls his eyes as she dances around with a bushel of holly in her hands.

"Calm down, girl." Tom chuckles as gathers up his coat and hat, watching the giddy girl continue to skip around the room. She grins before going over and tucking a piece of holly into his suit pocket, and has a matching piece pinned to her blouse. She smiles and pecks him on the cheek before her wide grin returns.

"Are you going to get me something for Christmas?" She quips as she returns to the vase which will hold her bundle of holly and white roses, which she is gifting to her mama. Tom chuckles again before grabbing the bouncing girl and hugging her tightly, and she grins before returning the tight embrace.

"I'll get you something you like, I promise." He murmurs into her dark hair and she smirks before pressing her chin against his shoulder and staring at him.

"There is only one thing I want," she whispers. He cocks an eyebrow and waits for her to elaborate, but she just smiles. "You'll just have to guess." She says before kissing his cheek and spinning out of his grip, and then out of the room. And that is just what she does, twirl into his life and leave him wanting to grasp on to her, but knowing she will always slip away with a smile and a twirl, and he will just have to wait until he sees her next. He is guessing that will only be the next day and he looks forward to it.

But he had no idea how wrong he could be. His life had been turned around in an instant when he got the news that his beloved papa had been shot. He felt his heart stop when Virgil Sollozzo told him, and tears sprung to his eyes.

"Yeah we got him outside of his office, just about an hour after we picked you up. That little girl of his got in the way but we took care of it. Kids, eh? Here, drink it," The greasy man says as he pushes a flask of alcohol into his hands. He then proceeds to tell Tom that it is up to him to convince Sonny and the other two kids to side with Sollozo, who is being supported by the Tattaglia family. Tom knows well the violence could lead to a full scale war between the families. Tom has a lot of work to do and a lot of decision to makes, so he shoves the ache out of his chest and knows he must focus on protecting the family members that are left.

He nearly cried when he got the news that both papa and Rosa were alive. Papa was in critical condition, but they're all praying for him to pull through. Rosa was never supposed to be there, but she liked visiting the fruit salesmen and joined her papa in the car without him evening noticing. He doted on her so much and was happy to let her join, but if only he had known what events would take place only ten minutes later. She was not severely hurt at all, like Sollozo thought. She had been hit in her forearm and grazed over her leg, but certainly nothing close to life threatening.

She was stitched up and mama was eager to get the girl home and away from the public. The assassination attempt had taken a toll on everyone, but mama in particular. She no longer trusted anyone who was not family and collapsed back in on herself and wanted everyone home and for everyone to stay there.

Tom had not been able to visit papa or Rosa in the hospital because he had been so busy keeping Sonny on a leash and trying to keep a handle on this situation, but it has been so hard. When he eventually leaves the makeshift conference room, he is exhausted and weary eyed.

He gently pushes open the door to her bedroom and the sight makes his heart drop. He walks over to the bed, where Rosa is lying, tears in her eyes as she quivers from the pain. A thick bandage is around her arm but is visible under her thin nightgown. She looks up at the door and holds a hand out for him, and he crosses the room and kneels down, taking it and holding it tightly.

"Make it stop hurting…" she murmurs and tears roll down her cheeks as he tightens her hand. He bites his lip as he reaches up with his other hand and rubs his thumb over her forehead, and she squeezes her eyes shut. He can feel how warm her skin is, and the thin sheen of sweat covering her.

"Oh, Rosie. I'm sorry." He mumbles and presses a kiss to her cheek. He can tell she is weary and tired, obviously, but she still manages to force her famous smirk and chuckle ever so lightly. She doesn't smell like herself either, no hints of summer roses or wine, just blood and medicine and bandages.

"You missed," she sighs and he raises his eyebrows in response.

"Missed?"

"Yes. You missed with your lips," she mutters and turns her face closer to him. He gulps as he realizes what the weary girl means, but if he could make her feel better in anyway he will. He leans forward and gently brushes his lips against hers before angling his lips against hers. The kiss was small, gentle and very meaningful, but then it grew more intense. She tasted tentatively with her tongue as she traced it across the bottom of his lip, and her good hand slipped up to go through his soft blond hair. However, when she moves the wrong way, a wave of pain makes her scream. Tom jumps and reaches around so he can gently push the girl back on to her bed and keep her there.

"I liked that. Let's do it again sometime," she says through gritted teeth. He shakes his head and kisses her forehead before standing up, pulling the cotton blanket over Rosie's body. She looks up at him, frowning. "You're leaving me?" She whispers as he reaches for his suit jacket which he left in a heap on the floor.

"I have to get back to work. I'll come back to check on you later, your mama will be in soon. Let me know if you need anything, Rosie," He says as he gives her a final kiss on the forehead. "Rest now. Nothing will happen to you here." He assures and she smiles, closing her eyes and nodding, feeling safe for the first time since the assassination.