Aspen had taken to Lucy almost immediately and both Rafael and Olivia felt comfortable leaving the children with her while they went to the ACS meeting.

They got there fifteen minutes early and were seen fifteen minutes later than scheduled but neither of them complained as they waited, whispering to each other.

"Barba and Benson?" The ACS worker called.

They stood and followed him through the building.

He stopped in front of an office and gestured at two chairs, "Mia Fletcher is the case worker for the boys. She'll be with you in just two minutes."

They thanked him and he was on his way again.

"They're always so busy here," Rafael mumbled.

He was worried, a lot of people at ACS hadn't forgiven him for prosecuting that case years ago.

"It's okay," Liv took his hand and brought it to her lips, pressing a soft kiss to his knuckles.

They'd both taken to doing this as a sign of adoration and comfort for the other. It was a small and very meaningful thing.

She kept hold of his hand and just closed her eyes and rested her head against the wall.

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

The door across from them opened, "hi, I'm so sorry for the delay. I'm Mia Fletcher. I'm the caseworker for the Delgado twins."

Olivia got up quickly and rushed forward to shake her hand, "I'm Olivia Benson, this is my partner, Rafael Barba."

Rafa shook the woman's hand after Liv and they were guided into the office.

"As I'm sure you're both well aware, this is an incredibly unprecedented case. We're honestly just trying to do what's best for the boys at this point," Mia began, "their father has signed off his parental rights, though, and the DNA has come back as matches to both of you."

"We agree that we just want what's best for the boys," Rafael nodded, "we just moved into a larger apartment to accommodate this rapidly growing family of ours. Our daughter, Aspen, born of the same circumstances recently came to us as well."

"I also adopted my son, Noah, a few years ago. They'd be coming into a home full of love and two older siblings who are already determined to meet them," Olivia added.

"Your incomes support these changes and the ability to care for four children?" Mia inquired, digging through a file.

"I'm a defense lawyer," Rafael explained.

"And I'm the Commanding Officer at Manhattan Special Victims Unit."

"Oh! That's where I recognized your name," Mia smiled as she looked toward Olivia, "I attended a high school you spoke at a handful of years ago now."

Olivia smiled.

"Alright, well, financially it seems you're well equipped and you said the two older kids are excited to meet them?"

Rafa nodded, "they were very upset we were leaving them with the nanny but we wanted to be sure we didn't overwhelm the boys with meeting all four of us at once."

Mia flipped through the file a bit more with a nod, "well, there is one question I have."

Rafael's hand found Olivia's.

"It says here that there was an incident a few years ago that led to a trial," her eyes fell on Rafa.

His entire demeanor shifted, guilt and sadness appearing on his features.

Olivia opened her mouth to speak but he squeezed her hand.

"Yes," he nodded, pursing his lips, "there was a very, very sick child and beyond a miracle he wasn't going to get better. I'm not trying to use that as an excuse, just to lay out what happened. The child was in pain everyday and the mother…"

Olivia gave his hand a squeeze as she heard his voice crack slightly.

"I did what I did to try to save both the mother and father from the guilt and pain that accompanied the decision," Rafa's voice was barely a whisper at this point, "it was not something I did lightly and it's not something I ever, ever want to have to do again."

Mia nodded slowly, her brow furrowed a bit, "I understand."

His eyes fell closed and he took a deep breath.

"I can tell that that is a weight you still carry," she looked at him sadly, "if this were an adoption, that would be a major bump to surpass, but because we're trying get your children to you, I don't think it will cause too many issues."

Liv squeezed Rafa's hand, "I think it's important to note that Rafael doesn't have a harmful bone in his body. He is a very good man and he's very good with children."

Mia nodded and smiled, making a note, "I'm glad to hear that coming from you, Miss Benson. I know that you, in your line of work, wouldn't allow anyone you consider a threat to be anywhere near your children."

Rafael looked at Liv and gave her a weak smile, it was clear that he was struggling with the fact that a choice he had made and had felt the guilt of since he'd done it could possibly cause issues in this matter. He didn't want to be the reason these boys couldn't come home with them.

"Why don't I take you to meet the boys? The foster mother they've been staying with brought them in."

"Does that mean you're going to allow us to take them home?" Liv inquired.

"If this meeting goes well, likely you'll be able to leave here with your children today. If they seem nervous or uncomfortable, you may have to have a few more meetings with them to see if they warm up to you."

"No one has been willing to tell us their names yet," Rafa admitted.

"Maddox Ellis and Felix Jensen," she smiled, "they're identical and will cause trouble with it eventually, I'm sure of it. They're wonderful boys, though."

"First and middle names?" Liv asked to clarify.

Mia nodded.

"Okay, let's go meet them," Rafa sounded nervous but excited.

The couple was led by the case worker to a large room that had a table and some toy boxes. The boys were playing quietly with Legos.

"Hi, boys," Mia greeted as the three adults entered.

"Hi, Miss Mia," they said in unison.

"I want you to come meet some people, would you be alright with that?"

Both boys stood and came forward, their hair was a darker brown like Rafael's, their noses were closer to his as well, but the eye shape and mouth shape was all Olivia. The eye color, however, was what made the two boys stand out. Their eyes were brown closer to the pupils but turned to Rafa's green at the outside of the irises.

Liv was fascinated and somewhere deep in her memory she pulled the term "central heterochromia."

"Hello," Rafa crouched, "I'm Rafael and this is Olivia. It's wonderful to meet you."

"I'm Felix and that's Maddox," he pointed at his brother, "are you the people Miss Layla told us about? Our new mom and dad?"

Liv glanced at Mia and then back to the boys, "would that be okay with you?"

Maddox looked toward Rafa and then toward Olivia before leaning over and whispering in Felix's ear, he cupped his hand around his brother's ear so none of the adults could hear what was whispered.

Felix nodded, "do you know how to make plátano maduro frito?"

Rafael's eyes went wide as he listened, "I do, sí. ¿Hablas español?"

Both boys nodded.

"Their mother was Cuban," Mia whispered to Olivia.

Rafael was chatting with them in Spanish and had an excited smile.

Maddox and Felix both looked comfortable and happy to be having a conversation in Spanish.

"Was Spanish their first language?" Liv inquired quietly.

"I'm honestly unsure, but I believe it's likely they were taught both simultaneously."

Olivia nodded and looked back at the young boys.

"I think they'll be happy to go with you today," Mia smiled, "this is the fastest they've taken to anyone since I met them."

"Would you like to meet your brother and sister?" Rafael inquired softly.

The boys looked at each other and then to Olivia and back at Rafael.

"Do they speak Spanish?" Felix asked.

"Noah knows some," Olivia offered.

"We can teach them, if you'd like?" Rafa smiled, "I was hoping to teach them at least some, already. Maybe you can help me?"

Both boys nodded excitedly.

After Olivia had taken some time to fill out the paperwork that they needed, the couple were on their way to bring the twins to their new home.

Rafa and the boys chatted excitedly in Spanish on their way up in the elevator.

Liv was placing an order for pizza and chicken wings for dinner as the meeting and paperwork and spending some time with the boys had taken them well past lunch time.

Maddox froze as the elevator opened and shifted his duffle bag on his shoulder.

"Is everything okay?" Olivia inquired.

It had become clear over the last several hours that Maddox was a bit quieter and more shy, while Felix spoke out… often for both of them.

Rafa noticed the bonding moment and offered to take Felix over to the hall window to look at the view.

Liv crouched in front of Maddox, "are you nervous?"

The small boy nodded and looked up at her, "what if the others don't like me?"

She gave a reassuring smile, "I assure you that won't be the case, honey, those two kids in there are incredibly sweet and they have been desperately excited to meet you and your brother since we found out about you."

"Really?"

"They haven't stopped asking when we could pick up the twins," she carefully took his chin, "I think they're both in there just as nervous to meet you."

"Okay," he nodded and gave her a small smile.

"Are you ready? It's okay if you need a little longer, we can wait right here as long as you need."

He reached up and took her hand from his chin and held it tightly, "will you hold my hand?"

"Of course," she ruffled his short, kind of curly hair.

"Okay. I'm ready then."

She nodded, "let's head in, then."

Standing back up straight, she kept his hand in hers and looked toward Rafa.

"Ready?" Rafael smiled at both boys.

Felix nodded excitedly and Maddox nodded uncertainly.

Liv gave the boy's hand a small squeeze to reassure him.

Rafael opened the door to the apartment and led Felix in, Olivia and Maddox followed more slowly and closed the door behind them.

"Momma? Rafa?" Noah's voice called down the stairs.

"We're home," Rafa replied.

Maddox hid a bit behind Olivia's legs as the sound of footsteps began on the stairs.

Noah got to them first, while Aspen trailed a bit behind with Lucy. She appeared nervous, too.

"Hi! I'm Noah and that's Aspen," he greeted standing before the small group that had just arrived.

"I'm Felix and that's Maddox," Felix pointed toward where Maddox was hiding.

Noah looked at Olivia and then toward Maddox, "hi, Maddox. Do you like Legos?"

Maddox peeked around Olivia's legs and nodded some.

"Do you want to play? Both of you?" Noah's eyes stayed on Maddox, though he was offering it to both of them.

It was evident that Noah recognized how nervous Maddox was and was trying to be open and kind to the younger boy.

"I would love to," Felix nodded excitedly and then looked toward Maddox, "come on, Mads, we'll go together with Noah and Aspen."

Noah held a small hand out toward Maddox.

The younger boy looked up at Olivia before releasing her hand and grabbing Noah's.

"We can also show you your room before we play so you can put your bags down," Aspen added quietly.

And the four of them disappeared up the stairs.

Lucy smiled after them, "I don't think it'll be any problem to watch over the four of them."

"Really?" Rafael looked at her.

The younger woman shrugged, "Noah was very helpful with Aspen, he made sure she followed the rules and they just played with Legos mostly."

Olivia's heart swelled with pride as it always did when she heard that Noah was doing well.

"So you'll be able to stay with the four of them tomorrow?" Rafa inquired, "I'll be able to come home and help for lunchtime."

Lucy nodded, "that sounds great.

She went back upstairs to introduce herself to the twins and spend some time with all four children before tomorrow.

Rafael and Olivia sit in the little sitting area by the front door as they wait for the pizzas and wings.

Once everyone had been tucked in, read bedtime stories, and received the nightly check-in, Olivia and Rafael settled down on the couch in their bedroom.

His feet were up on the table and she was curled into his side with her head on his shoulder.

Liv had promised Maddox she'd check-in again in fifteen minutes to make sure he was asleep, and if he wasn't he could come watch tv with she and Rafa.

"Are you sure that's a good plan? He may stay awake just to come watch."

Liv shook her head, "I think he's going to try to sleep, but it's okay if he does that, too. He's nervous and that is okay and understandable."

Rafa smiled and moved to kiss her head, "I know you're right."

"I can't explain how full my heart is," she whispered to him.

"I think I understand," he looked at her adoringly.

She brought one hand up and rested it against his cheek, her thumb brushing against his cheekbone, "it's nice to see your face, Raf," she whispered before kissing him softly.

He tugged her closer and kissed her just a softly but with a hint of need behind it.

Their small make out session was only disrupted by Liv backing away and mumbling, "it's been fifteen minutes. Let me go check on him."

He kissed her again quickly, "I may be a bit disappointed if he's still awake," he teased and pressed another small kiss to her before settling back into the couch to wait for her.

Liv quietly made her way to the bedroom near the stairs and put an ear to it, listening before she peeked in.

Maddox turned to look at her from his bed across the room, putting a finger to his lips and pointing at Felix.

She nodded and gestured to ask if he wanted to come watch television.

He looked toward his brother and then nodded, grabbing his stuffed otter and quietly making his was to her.

Once the door was quietly closed again, "I really did try to sleep."

"It's okay, sweetheart," Liv ruffled his short, sort of curly hair.

"Are you sure it's okay if I come watch television with you and…"

"You can call him Rafa, Rafi, or Rafael or whatever you'd like."

The boy was quiet for a moment, "you and Rafa?"

"It's absolutely okay," she smiled as she led him to the bedroom door of the master suite.

"Hey, buddy," Rafa greeted as the door opened, "come on in!"

Maddox clutched his stuffed otter and shuffled into the room and then climbed up next to Rafa.

Liv closed the door and joined them on the couch, sitting on Maddox's other side.

"What would you like to watch?" Rafa asked Maddox quietly.

"Can we watch cartoons?"

"Of course we can," he smiled at the young boy and changed the channel to put cartoons on.

Maddox had pulled his knees up to his chest and was hugging his otter tightly.

"Can I ask you something, Maddox?" Liv inquired.

"Okay."

"Could you tell me what's making you so nervous?"

He considered for a long minute, his eyes focused on the small stuffed otter.

Rafa's arm stretched on the back of the couch to Olivia.

She shifted to take his hand as they both waited for the little boy to speak.

"I'm afraid of…" he looked up at Olivia with his mouth pressed into a line and then looked at Rafa, "I… saw what papa did to mami… I didn't let Felix see. He was asleep, Felix always sleeps through the yelling. But I woke up because papa was yelling and I peeked and watched what happened. Felix woke up when the table broke when mami fell… and I saw him coming toward the door and I wouldn't let him leave the room."

Olivia's heart sank.

"I told him that we shouldn't leave the room because papa was angry. He went back to sleep because I told him everything was okay."

Rafa didn't know what to say, his heart felt like it was breaking.

"Mami gave me Pebbles," he holds up the otter, "when we turned five. That was last summer."

"Oh, honey," Liv finally managed to breathe out.

"When I close my eyes I see mami again, she was really hurt," he whispered, his lower lip trembled, "there was… so much…"

"It's okay," Rafa said softly, "you don't have to talk about it anymore if you don't want to."

"I knew she wasn't going to wake up," little tears started to fall from his eyes, "the police lights were so bright outside the window that it woke Felix up again and I told him mami went to be with the angels and he didn't know what I meant but I remember that's what papa said when abuelita went to sleep too. That she was with the angels."

Both adults knew this boy was too smart for his own good, that he'd seen too much far too young.

"I'm nervous that more people will go to sleep with the angels," he said with a sort of final tone.

"I think that that is an understandable thing to be afraid of, Maddox," Rafa said, he took a slow, deep breath, trying to slow the tears that had started falling, "you're a very brave boy, you know that?"

The little boy hugged Pebbles the otter back to his chest, nodding a little as he looked back at the cartoons on the tv.

It didn't take long, snuggled between Rafa and Liv for him to fall asleep.

The two of them stayed there a while longer to ensure he was asleep before Rafa scooped him up gently and carried him toward his room.

Liv went along and opened the doors for him and they tucked him in carefully and then she kissed his head.

Back in their room, Rafa turned to Liv, "I wish I knew how to help him more."

"I think we should work on finding him a counselor or a therapist, someone who can help him with these thoughts and feelings. They're all incredibly valid but I don't want them to hinder him."

He nodded, "maybe we should get all of the kids into counseling. Both so he doesn't feel singled out and because I'm sure all of them could use it."

"Noah's already been to one," Liv considered, "but I'm sure he wouldn't argue about going again. There's been so many changes for him and for all of them, honestly. Maybe we should."

"We can talk about it more tomorrow after work."

She nodded and curled up onto his side in the bed, taking a deep breath and letting his scent calm her once again.

"I love you, Raf."

"I love you."

"I'm really glad you're here and we can do this together."

"Me too, my love, me too."

AN;

check me out on twitter for pics of rafa and liv's apartment... at least as well as i could make on the sims. and the spotify playlist i listen to while writing this story! both are available there.

@silverdracolich

stay safe. 3