"Eli! Eli!" I heard my name as I slowly woke up to see Luca standing next to me with his mom and his dad standing at the end of my bed. They didn't need to say much because the looks on their faces told me almost everything I need to know. My uneasy feeling was right and something was terribly wrong.

I sat up quickly, "What is it? What's wrong?"

I felt the bed dip a little as Mrs. Rossi sat down on the edge; she took my hands into hers, "Eli, there's been an accident. Your Mom. She—she—" She choked back sobs as she tried to speak.

I instantly broke out in tears, "she what? What happened?"

She used her fingers to brush away the tears quickly falling down my cheeks; her actions reminding me so much of my mom, "she was injured—" She turned to look at her husband not able to finish.

David took over, "she was injured in a car exp—," he paused looking over at his wife, who nodded, "explosion, a car explosion. Your Dad—"

I quickly cut him off, not completely processing what he had already said, "Dad? Dad was injured too?"

"No," he shook his head, "your dad wasn't injured. We don't know much more than that because he had to rush to the hospital. He said he would call when more updates were available."

"Eli?"

I felt my breath quickening as my brain processed what it was being told. Mom. I took a sharp breath, feeling my heart trying to beat out of my chest. Injured. My eyes were starting to lose focus as everything around me seemed too bright. Car explosion. My hands and feet were starting to tingle as my breaths quickened. Muscles tightening as my body was starved for oxygen. I couldn't breathe as the world tried to smother me in fear and in darkness. My brain was on overdrive, unhinged as the uneasiness I had been feeling for days swirled around in my head. I knew it. I had known it for days. I should have stopped them. I should have—. In the distance, I could hear someone calling my name, but I ignored the voice, unable to process what the person could possibly want, not when my mom had just been injured. My breath quickened even more, in an explosion. I shook my head as things started going black, in New York. I had to get to New York. I had to get to my mom. I knew my brain was giving the command to move, but my body was stuck, shackled by the fear and the pain of knowing life would never be the same again.

~SVU/OC~

Time seemed to stop as I waited for Dad to call with an update. Stella tried her best to comfort me, helping me to recover from what she had explained to be a panic attack. She tried to hold me tight as I calmed down, but I just pushed her off. I couldn't stand to be held right now. I couldn't stand being mothered, when my own mother's life stood in the balance. It didn't make any sense. Who would want to hurt my mom? She baked cookies, volunteered at my school, and helped out with soccer practice; she wasn't someone who did anything to deserve that kind of fate. She had recently talked about seeing what she needed to do so she could be a practicing nurse here in Italy. I had almost forgotten that she was a nurse back in New York; she just wanted to help people and be a good mom.

"Eli?"

I looked up to see Luca standing in front of me. I was outside on the balcony of their house, "yeah?"

"Your Dad," he looked at me solemnly, "your dad is on the phone." I jumped up quickly and rushed inside; Luca following close behind. "In the kitchen," he added as I stopped for a brief second trying to figure out where to go.

I nodded my head, and rounded the corner into the kitchen. Without saying a word, David reached the phone out to me.

"Dad?"

I heard him swallow as if something was choking him, "Hey bud." I could hear the pain in his voice, and the way he was trying to hold back his tears, "Eli, Mom was in an accident. She-there was—"

He paused, and I could hear another female voice that I didn't recognize urging him forward in a hushed whisper, "Elliot, you need to tell him. He needs to know; she's his mom."

"You're right," he whispered back, and then swallowed before resuming what he was saying, "there was an accident." He stopped again, and I could almost hear his thoughts determining how many details he should tell me. "Mom is seriously injured; she's had surgery to repair some of the damage from the—" He swallowed, "the explosion."

"Is she, is she going to be okay?"

"She-Eli, she," I could hear the pain in his voice, "she's a fighter Eli."

I knew by the sound of his voice that he really didn't know the answer to my question. I sank down slowly into the dining room chair. Mrs. Rossi walked up behind me, and started rubbing my back offering comfort. I turned to look at her as the tears started falling from my eyes, "she's my mom." I let the tears fall before I sat up, "I want to come there. I want to come to New York."

I heard dad clear his throat, "Eli, right now you need to stay where you are. It's not safe for you here right now. Mom and I talked very briefly, and she wants you to stay there."

"But Dad," I wanted to throw the phone to the ground, but I resisted. I wanted to go to my mom. No one seemed to really know if she was going to be okay, and I couldn't even be there to see her. I didn't understand what he meant about it not being safe for me either, was it COVID? Was COVID the reason I couldn't fly to New York to be with my mom? He couldn't even truly answer if she was going to be okay or not, and I couldn't go be with her? My mind raced with confusion, hurt, sadness, and anger, "Dad, let me come to New York. Please, what if—" I couldn't finish my thought as the tears fell from my eyes.

"Eli, I have to go, but promise me," he paused again, "promise me you will stay there. Stay with the Rossis, and stay off social media."

Confused I questioned him, "social media?"

"Eli, please." I could hear the worry and urgency in Dad's voice. I honestly can't remember if I had ever heard him like that before.

"Okay, Dad." I quickly agreed, "but I want to come to New York. I want to be with Mom."

I could hear him let out a deep sigh, "I'll work on it, Eli." I could hear the voice again say something I couldn't understand, "I have to go."

"Okay."

"Eli?" His voice sounded so broken, "I love you son."

I choked up, "love you too Dad. Tell Mom I love her."

"I will." He paused, "I'll call you when she wakes up again. it will make her happy to hear from you, but I'll tell her too."

With that he hung up, and I sat there staring into space. I felt the tears began to cascade down my cheeks as the pain and fear closed in around me, pulling me under. How did this happen? Why did this happen? I wanted to understand. I wanted to know. I wanted to go home. I wanted Ollie. I wanted my mom. Before I knew it, I had collapsed into Mrs. Rossi's tight, comforting embrace as she held me while I cried. My head fell onto her shoulder and my tears soaked her sweater. I could hear her soothing voice, "I've got you, Eli." Maybe, I did want comfort after all because in the blink of an eye, my world had just fallen apart.

A/N: Sorry it has taken me so long to update this! Eli lost his voice there for a bit, but he's back with more to say!