Chapter 33: worried

(Narrator POV)

The following week after returning back to New York, Edgar, Olivia, and Noah were completely settled in the house and worked together like a well oiled-machine. Even Olivia was in great spirits.

"Mom, I'm ready to go!"

"I'll be out there in a second!" She quickly grabbed her purse, ran out the room. "Thanks honey."

"Thanks Edgar!" They both took their lunches from Edgar, then sprinted out the door. "Love you!" They yelled.

"Love you guys too!" He didn't have to be at work until 9:00. He had been think about quitting his practice for a while now. He would still be the owner of the firm just as a chairman or board member. There was an opening at a local high school to be the boys varsity head coach. He had always dreamed of being a basketball coach, hopefully one day he had a child who wanted to play basketball. Tonight he would bring it up at dinner just to see how Olivia would feel about that. He had it all planned out all he needed was for Olivia to support him.

Throughout the day Edgar and Olivia talked to each other here and there. She had been really happy and upbeat today so tonight would be a good night to bring it up as far as he knew. Little did he know Olivia was mildly stressing over her latest case. "Hey liv." Garland knocked on the door. "Why don't you call it a night. Have fresh eyes for in the morning. You need your rest." She tried to protest be he spoke before she could. "I'm telling you... go home. It's almost 11, tomorrow you can stay as long as you need- within reason."

"Fine, but can we talk about this desk duty?"

She packed her things up.

"No, there is no discussion there."

"At least until I'm 20 weeks."

"No. Look, if something ever happened to you pregnant or not, Edgar would never let me hear the end of it. I still get hell from when you got shot with your vest on, from him. So no light desk duty until 28 weeks then strict after that." Olivia sighed, she couldn't do her job affectively if she has desk duty hanging over her head. But Garland was not budging. "Come on I'll walk you out." Garland made sure Olivia got to her car safely then they proceeded to go where they belong. 20 minutes later Olivia pulled up in her driveway. She entered quietly knowing Noah would be asleep by now. All the last were off but she could still smell food cooking. "Hey baby." Edgar came out the room and flipped the light switch on.

"Hey. What's cooking?"

"The crockpot. Made a roast, it's just keeping it warm right now. I didn't know how late you were gonna be. Also we need to talk." Olivia made a shocked, confused face.

"What's going on? Is it something I did? What do we need to talk about?"

"No, no, I should have phrased that better. I need to ask you something. It's something that we need to discuss together."

"I'm gonna change, get some food, then we can talk." Edgar nodded his head. 15 minutes later they were sitting on the couch watching whatever was on the tv. "What did you need to tell me?"

"Uhh well, I'm just gonna say it. I wanna quit my practice and become a boys basketball head coach. There is already and opening at cardinal Hayes in the Bronx. I just need a yes from you and it's mine."

"You wanna quit your practice? Edgar high teachers barely get paid enough to make ends meet, let alone a basketball coach. We have this huge house and my job isn't gonna pay for all of it. And we have two babies on the way. I don't know if you should completely drop your practice."

"Look I understand your concerns but I have always wanted to be a basketball coach. And I knew you were gonna that all of that, you don't have to worry about money. I am still the owner of the firm. My name is still on there, I'll be another member on the board and that's it. I'm still getting paid the same and I get to do what I want." Olivia took some time and collected her thoughts. He really though this all through. She put her plate next to her and took his hands sitting cris crossed.

"If this is what you really want to do, baby. Then I'll support you 100%. But if you have any second guessing, I don't want you to quit until you have your mind made up. But I'm by your side 100% of the way."

"I really want to do this. There's not a doubt in my mind."

"Then I guess you better call them tomorrow." Edgar's face lit up with excitement and joy. He hugged Olivia until she couldn't breathe. "Edgar, I'm living for three. I need air." She laughed, patting his shoulder.

"I'm sorry. I'm just- wow finally after all these years I get the girl, the family, and the job of my dreams. Thank you! I have to call me parents. They'll probably be mad at me but who cares."

"Wait why would that be mad?" Olivia didn't understand.

"Well half of the reason I'm a lawyer is because my parents forced it on me. They didn't want me to 'waste my talent on a stupid sport." Truth is I've never wanted to be a defense lawyer. In high school I have offers to play basketball at some really good schools but my parents said no and I went to Howard University to study law. A few years after I graduated law school I was asked to coach at Syracuse for the women's basketball team but I let my parents talk me out of it. So if I do this, take this job. My parents probably won't talk to me for a while. Which I'm okay with, now that have you and Noah. I'm tired of living my life according to them."

"You could have been a pro player as it sounds. I know you didn't want to be a lawyer but just think. If you were 4 hours away in Syracuse coach basketball we probably never would have met. So at least some good came out of it. I don't think your parents would stop talking to you if you tell them how you really feel. You're older and more mature."

"No, I know my parents. But anyways how was your day?"

"Long and stressful. It's this case it has everyone strained apart. There was young girl maybe 14 who was assaulted."

"I saw that on the news earlier. They shot the kid who was trying to help her.

"Yeah. When policed arrived on the scene there was Black boy maybe 16 holding her with his jacket around her, as seen on the police cam. Police arrived on the scene he waved his arm for them to come over there. Both officers pull their guns out. They say that got a call from a lady saying that you were assaulting this young lady. The kid says help she not breathing. Officers tell him to get on the ground. He doesn't because she had a deep stab wound as he says clearly to them. They point their guns at him, het finally gets up, one of them shouts gun. Bam he is shot twice before paramedics got there. There was no gun anywhere on the scene or in the victims pocket."

"Of course there was no gun. Let me guess the officers said they were frightened for their lives."

"Yeah. Carisi and Fin were at each other throats all day. I'm getting hell from 1pp. There is pending lawsuit on the NYPD from the boys parents. We were able to talk to Michael in the hospital he told us everything that we saw on the camera. He was really trying to help that girl. And now the top headlines are two white cops shoot an unarmed black male. And all of it hanging over my head."

"I'm sorry. You didn't do anything wrong honey. You did what you thought was right. This seems pretty open and shut. So why are they stressing you out so much?"

"It's not them so much that's stressing me out. I'm stressing myself out. I could help but think about our kids. What if one day they are caught in the wrong place at the wrong time just for doing good. Trying to help someone. And something happens to them because their father is African-American-"

"I'm actually Bahamian."

"Shut up." She laughed. "But seriously I'm worried that my kids in the future are gonna be treated differently because they are biracial. I'm worried that one day something might happen to you. I don't know just things I have thought about today." He pulled her in to his embrace so that he was holding her.

"It's alright to worry. I worry about you everyday you have hard job. That can be scary but I don't let it consume me. Just remember there are a lot more good people in the world that bad." She wrapped her hand around the back of his next and reached up to kiss him. "That was nice."

"There's a lot more where that came from." She stood up and took his hand, then raced into the bedroom. "Wait how long has Noah been asleep?"

"Since 9:30, he's out for the night." Olivia's phone rang. "Let it ring." Olivia took off his shirt. "Those crazy, sexy hormones. I like it"

Her phone rings again. Olivia answered frustratedly. "What is it Kat!"

"We need you down At Bellevue. Fin was shot."

"What?"

"Olivia you're his next of kin since Ken left. They need you down here." Olivia pushed Edgar off of her quickly.

"I'll be there as soon as I can." She hung up the phone. "Edgar I have to go to the hospital. Fin was shot."

TBC...