Disclaimer: I do not own Law and Order: SVU or any of its characters.

And For Bonnie Annie

He asked her about it at night. Annie didn't answer. She climbed into bed with him and showed him her phone. It had a picture with Rafael's face photo-shopped to that of Grumpy Cat.
"Hilarious", he deadpanned.
"I know", she grinned, "Sonny thought the same"
Deflecting techniques? Seriously, Annie?
Being a lawyer wasn't the only advantage he had over her. He knew her like he knew his own skin.
"When you and Aunt June were talking, I kind of overheard", Rafael said, "Everything. It was curiosity, that's all. Mostly because you never talk about your childhood"
"I don't, because most of my childhood memories include my ex. You don't like to admit it but you have a jealous streak"
"I do not"
"Really?", she turned to him, "You are all PDA with me in front of Sonny and my male colleagues. You just stop short of peeing in a circle around me, marking your territory"
"That is gross", he said, "And you are changing the subject"
"Okay"
"Okay what?"
She leaned her back against the cushioned headboard.
"Today, I shall make a clean breast of it all. I'll tell you everything there is to know"
He sat up too.
"I'm listening"

With her vivid and descriptive words, Annie took him to the very depths of her life. Born of an absentee mother, she was raised by her vagabond father.
"He was a high school dropout, and a born wanderer", Annie smiled, "Imagine being a conman and a single father. He raised me all by himself. He was so funny. And really good looking. His hugs were the best too, felt like I was wearing a warm coat. After my birth, he stopped duping women. Gay men sometimes, but never women"
"What a gentleman", he commented.
"He thought it would be bad karma that would somehow extend to his daughter. He was really smart, and a quick learner. He started posing as an Italian three days after we set foot in the country. Learned the language & the mannerisms in two days. Can you believe it?"
"It does explain a few of your talents", he said, "Did you never ask him about your mother?"
"He told me himself. Dad never lied to me, never thought me stupid because I was a kid. It was one of the things I loved about him"
"Who was she?"
"You're wondering if my mother was a hooker"
"No, I...", no use lying.
"She wasn't. She was in a cult, don't ask. The girls were supposed to get pregnant by "aliens" i.e. people outside the cult, when they turned 21 and then raise the kids in the cult tradition. My Dad helped her get out of there and start a new life. She wanted to do that without me. Dad didn't mind. When I was a kid, I used to blame her for my looks. All I wanted then were blue eyes and golden hair like my father"
"Sorry I brought her up"
"No. It's fine. And honestly, I didn't care if I had a Mom. He was enough. We were enough. Happy. He gave me this beautiful name: Annabella. Home-schooled me. Didn't teach me his trade though. He would tell me, 'Stick to books, Annie. Study. You should never have to use anything but your brains to get ahead in life'. We were like Lone Wolf and Cub", her smile faded, "We spent 4 or 5 years in Italy after the FBI got him on their radar. But around my twelfth birthday, I had this really bad seizure. I don't remember it but I still remember Dad's face when I came to. He was petrified. He wouldn't let any doctor near me, didn't trust them. But this was serious. So we came back to the States. He took me to his childhood doctor in Boston. That's where they caught up with him. We fled to New York. They nabbed him there. All the time during his trial, he would tell me, 'Never let them see you cry. Crying is for marks. Even if these idiots put me in jail, they can't hold me in there for long. I'll come back and we'll go to Germany this time'. He was already working on his German"
She revealed,
"They shot him when he tried to break out of prison"

Annie was twelve when she was entered into foster care. She held Rafael's hand while telling him about the Williamsons and their boy.
"You were molested? Why did you never tell me?"
She seemed offended.
"I thought it wouldn't matter to you"
"It does matter to me, Annie. He hurt you"
"There's no point going after him. Michael beat him near to death on my fifteenth birthday. Said it was his present to me", she smiled.
Rafael rubbed his temples with his thumb and fingers. He was doing all he could to contain his anger.
"And Aunt June came to tell me that Michael was going to break up with me, as you overheard, you sneak"
"Why did she come all the way here to tell you that?"
"She is old world, wanted me to know I had her and his blessing too apparently"
"For what?"
Annie looked lovingly into his eyes for a moment. She seemed to be committing his face to her memory.
"All right", she said.
Rafael was astounded as Annie sat before him on her knees. She took his hands in hers. He shot up in bed when tears spilled out of her eyes.
"I want to be your wife", she whispered.

A thousand words to say but not one came to him. Her tears were as contagious as her laughter was though.
"I know it's just a formality, just a title. But I want it. When I saw you in the hospital, I couldn't help but think of how close I was to losing you forever. Of growing old without you, while you stayed the same in my memory. We might not care for what people think but I want them to say 'Hey. That big-shot editor is Rafael Barba's wife'. I want to-to wear a cheesy ring on my finger with your name on it. I want the world to know that I'm yours and you're mine, in every which way two people can belong to each other. Please"
"Annie, don't cry", he whimpered.
"I'm sorry", she sobbed.
"No. You have nothing to be sorry for. I... I just want to show you something. Wait"
He got out of bed and knelt on the floor. By moving the nightstand, he uncovered a safe. There was a small jewelry box inside. Back in bed, he told her,
"Not that it's too expensive, I just didn't want you to find it. And I know you don't like diamonds or swanky jewelry..."
He opened the box to her eyes. It was a gold ring, with a single tiny heart engraved on it - as cute and simple as the woman it was made for.
"That's my heart on a ring, and I want you to carry it on your finger. I hope that's cheesy enough"
Annie was speechless. He cleared his throat.
"Annabella Philomena Dalton..."
"Who told you my middle name?"
He smiled,
"Will you allow me the great honor of becoming your husband?"
Annie looked from the ring to him. She wiped her eyes full of tears and shrugged, as if she hadn't asked him first.
"Somebody's gotta do it. What the hell. Yes"
He slid the ring on her finger without wasting a second, and sealed the deal with a kiss.

Annie ultimately broke down into his arms crying. He kept kissing her, telling her how happy she had made him.
"Thank you"
"Hey. No. Sshh"
"You don't know how much I love you, Raf. You don't", she wept against his chest.
"I know. Believe me, I do"