Olivia hadn't been able to sleep comfortably ever since Amanda told her about the rape. Olivia questioned herself for not realizing sooner. She had noticed small changes in Amanda's behavior but she ignored them If only she had done something sooner. Tonight, Olivia had fallen asleep while holding Amanda. It was the only way Amanda felt safe. It was hard for both of them to get to sleep. Any amount of sleep for Amanda was a win because her nightmares were getting the best of her. Olivia pulls herself away from the blonde gently and slowly moves away. Amanda had been laying on her arm, making it impossible for her to actually get any sleep.

As soon as she moves away, Amanda whimpers lightly. "Please. Don't hurt me."

"Amanda please calm down. Please, honey. I'm not going to hurt you. No one is going to hurt you."

"Don't touch me. Please. Don't hurt me." Amanda was trapped again in a mix between reality and a dream. She tried to get Olivia away from her. Olivia sighed and walked into their bathroom to retreat a wet cloth to try and help the woman wake up. Unbeknownst to Olivia, Jesse had entered the room. She rubs her eyes and sees her mother crying.

"Mommy?" Jesse asks, climbing onto the bed with her mom.

"Please. Don't hurt me!" Amanda begs closing her eyes.

"I won't hurt you. I promise." Jesse reaches out for her mom. Amanda is quick to react. She kicks out and ends up knocking Jesse to the floor. Jesse screams and Olivia rushes back from the bathroom.

"Jesse! Oh my god! Are you okay?" Olivia lifts the small girl in her arms and looks her over for injuries. Jesse is covering her eye with her hand. Olivia can see blood seeping through.

"She hurt me." Jesse cries. Olivia moves her hand away to see Jesse's eyes. It's red and bleeding.

"She didn't mean to. She was having a really bad dream and it made her scared. I promise she didn't mean to hurt you."

"I hate her!" Jesse screams out. Olivia doesn't know what to do. Amanda is still thrashing around on the bed and Jesse is having a full meltdown. She sets Jesse on the counter in the bathroom. She gives Jesse a small damp towel to hold on her eye.

"I'll be right back, baby. Don't move." Olivia goes back into the bedroom to try and calm Amanda down.

"Olivia. Please don't leave me here. I don't want to stay with him."

"Hey. I'm here. I won't leave you" Olivia says to Amanda trying to soothe her. A loud knock on the bedroom door frightens Olivia. Noah sleepily walks into the room.

"Are you okay, Mom?"

"Yes. Mama is just having a really bad dream. Can you please check on Jesse's eye. I think she's scared right now." Noah nods and goes to the bathroom. Olivia can hear him whispering calming words to Jesse and she smiles to herself. Noah was becoming so mature and helpful; around the house. She honestly didn't know what she would do without him.

"Mom. Jesse wants you."

"Okay, honey. Give me a few minutes." Olivia says. Amanda has relaxed in her arms quite a bit but the younger woman is still mumbling to herself as she sleeps. Olivia lays her gently on the bed, deciding that she is no longer a danger to herself or anyone else. Olivia goes to the bathroom and lifts Jesse.

"Let me see your eye, Jess." Olivia says and Jesse moves the small towel out of her face. "Oh, honey. Does it still hurt a lot?" Jesse nods, leaning onto Olivia's shoulder. Olivia can feel the shaking from the small girl. Olivia walks out to the kitchen and sets Jesse on the counter. There is sunlight coming brightly through the window and she groans. They would have to go to work soon.

"Mama, Why did mommy hit me?" Jesse asks. "Is she mad at me?"

"No. I swear she's not angry at you. She was having a very scary dream and she thought you were someone bad."

"I'm not bad, mama."

"I know, honey. It was an accident." As Olivia looked at Jesse's eye, she realized that her eye was fine. There didn't seem to be any bruises on her eyelid. There was just a small cut, what she presumed was from Amanda's nails, was on Jesse's eyebrow. She places a gentle kiss on Jesse's face. The bruise would only get worse over time and she was worried about having to explain the bruising to the people around her. What would she say? Would they try to call CPS on her, like when Noah was hurt?

"Mom. Can I have a poptart? I'm hungry." Noah asks, holding up a package.

"Okay. Can you make one for Jesse, too?" Noah nods and puts two poptarts into the toaster. Olivia puts Jesse down and Jesse runs to Noah's side to try and help him. Olivia looked at them sadly. She desperately hoped she wasn't screwing them up.

"Liv." Amanda whispers to Olivia. Olivia looks the woman over. She had put her hair into a ponytail and changed her outfit completely. Amanda was still looking spooked from the dream that she had. "Jesse! What happened to your eye?" Amanda asks, rushing over to her child. She tries to pick Jesse up but Jesse doesn't let her.

"I tried to give you a hug but you didn't let me. Mama says you were scared of a bad man hurting you. I'm not bad, mommy, I promise." Amanda pulls Jesse into a tight hug. Jesse hugs her mom back. She's young but she can still tell when something is wrong with her mom.

"I know, baby. I won't hurt you again. I'm so sorry. Do you forgive me?"

"Yes." Amanda smiles and lets go of Jesse. Amanda rushes off to her and Olivia's bedroom and closes the door. Olivia puts the poptarts on the plates for the kids and puts it on the counter for them to eat. Jesse and Noah eat happily. Lucy uses her key and opens the door to the apartment.

"Lucy!" The kids yell happily.

"Hey guys. How are you?"

"Good." They both say in sync.

"Go get dressed. We don't wanna be late." The kids scurry off to their room and get ready for school.

"Is everything, okay?" Lucy asks. Olivia hasn't even realized that she had been staring distantly.

"Actually. No. I'm going to tell you something but I don't want you to tell anyone about this. Especially not Amanda." Olivia whispers.

"Okay. It stays between us." Lucy says.

"I think someone is hurting, Amanda. Well...I know someone is. She told me. She said it was a one time thing but I'm not convinced. I mean, she's been acting strange for a while now. I just...I didn't really know why then but it makes sense now. She had bruises on her body and when I asked about them, she told me that it was from work or some other excuse. I was dumb enough to believe her and I didn't look into it more. I'm just worried that someone is still hurting her."

"Oh. Wow. I'm sorry that's happening. Is there anything I can do?"

"Not really. I think I just need to talk to her. I'm thinking of calling off today. Have you...Have you noticed anything unusual?"

"I don't think so. I mean, she has been acting a little different lately."

"One day last week, when Jesse had an accident at school, I came here to get a change of clothes for her. Amanda was in the bathroom crying. I tried talking to her but she just told me to go away but that's all."

"Okay. Thanks, Lucy. I really appreciate it." Olivia says genuinely and as if on cue, Jesse and Noah come out of their rooms dressed. Lucy gets everything they need and then they leave for school.

Ever since Lucy left, Olivia had been racking her brain for anything that would help her find Amanda's assailant. It didn't make sense. Amanda said that she had gone out but Amanda hadn't gone out by herself in months. Why was Amanda lying to her? Why wouldn't she let Olivia help her? Amanda walks out of the room dressed in black slacks and a tucked, blue button down shirt.

"Why aren't you ready? We're gonna be late." Amanda says to Olivia who is sitting on the couch. Olivia knows that this isn't going to go well. If there was anything that Amanda hated, it was calling off of work.

"We need to talk. I already called in for both of us. We're taking a personal day." Olivia says honestly.

"Why?" Amanda asks nervously. She sits on the couch with Olivia.

"We have to talk about what happened to you. I can't just pretend like it never happened. I refuse."

"I told you what happened already. It doesn't make any sense to keep talking about it. Nothing has changed."

"I was just going over your story in my head. It doesn't make sense. I know you must be scared but I am here for you. Just tell me what really happened to you?"

"I'm not lying. I met a guy in a bar and I flirted with him. Things got out of control. I told you!" Amanda yells angrily.

"I know it's not true. It doesn't make any sense. You said it happened three months ago. You haven't been out later than me in three months. We always come home at the same time. We have been since Jesse was born. The only times we are not together is work, when you go to meetings, and when you go to therapy. Is someone from there hurting you?" Olivia says. She couldn't believe that Amanda was lying to her.

"NO! Why won't you listen to me?! I don't want to talk about this anymore." Amanda says practically in tears.. Her heart was racing and she didn't know how to stop it. Olivia was poking holes in her story that she had tried to perfect.

"I do. And if things happened the way you say they did, you are about three months pregnant, right?" Olivia asks.

"Yeah." Amanda mumbles.

"Maybe you're forgetting that I was with you during Jesse's pregnancy. When you were 2 months, it was noticeable Amanda. You are not showing, now." Olivia says.

"That doesn't mean anything. Pregnancies can be different every time. You haven't been pregnant, so you wouldn't know." Amanda says angrily, hoping that making Olivia mad will make her stop trying to talk to her. Olivia just shakes her head and chooses to not be angry at Amanda because she knows that the younger woman is just hurting.

"You're right. I don't know. Let's go to someone who does know. I called your OB and asked if she could see you today. She can take you at noon." Olivia gets up and attempts to walk to the bedroom.

"You have no right to do that. Stop trying to control me!" Amanda yells and steps in front of Olivia. Olivia can see the fear and hurt in Amanda's eyes.

"I'm not. You said you weren't lying. Why won't you go?" Olivia asks gently. She didn't want Amanda to feel like she couldn't control herself but she needed to figure out the truth. It would help both of them.

"Because you don't own me. I will go by myself and bring you the paperwork. I don't want you there." Amanda says.

"Fine but I want to see all of the paperwork. I do not own you Amanda, I just want you to be happy." Olivia says trying to reason with her.

"Fine, but I'm going in to work today. I do not want to stay in this apartment with you." Amanda says and leaves the apartment. Olivia sighed. She hated to see Amanda like this. She didn't want Amanda to be upset but she needed to know what happened. It was the only way to help.

Thanks so much for reading. Please leave a comment about what you liked and what you want to see next. I will try to incorporate some ideas. Thanks

~BubblesMariska