I have made the executive decision that Olivia and Lucia will now bond over how much they both miss Rafael and will take solace in each other and she will be the grandmother to Noah that Sheila could have been but the writers decided to muck up.

Settle down, it'll all be clear
Don't pay no mind to the demons
They fill you with fear
The trouble it might drag you down
If you get lost, you can always be found

-Phillip Phillips (Home)

He just stared out the window as the plane began to make it's decent into New York city. He hadn't set eyes on the city in almost a year. He took a deep breath as the view of the skyline approached. The nerves and fear had settled in his stomach since he had gotten on his final flight in Atlanta. He sat at that gate, just staring at the sign reading his final destination. A few times he almost got up and walked away, but the wrath of his mother wasn't something he wanted to deal with. She had been so gracious. Angry, but understanding about why he had to go so suddenly. Why he had to stay away. Why he had to have limited contact. But when she finally insisted that she had to lay eyes on him, he knew he had to come home.

He ran his fingers through his hair as the pilot came on, saying they were in their final descent. He knew she was going to give him crap for how long and shaggy it was. The wheels hit the ground and he did his best to push the stress of the city out of his system. He had discovered a love/hate for New York City while he was gone. He always thought that he would never be able to walk away from this place. But he did. And he discovered more of who he really was outside of this place than he ever had while he had been in it.

He picked up his carry on from under his seat, thinking about how he always had been working toward something here. Getting out of the barrio. Getting into law school. Working his way up the ladder. Becoming a judge. Maybe run for office. Not that any of that was happening now.

"Welcome to New York" the flight attendant said as he walked past her. He gave her a quick nod, walking up the ramp into the airport. He stepped to the side when he got to the exit, watching the people. The din of the airport, the speed at which everyone was moving. It had been a long time since he had moved at that speed and been at that volume. He stayed to the sides as he walked through the airport toward luggage claim. He hoped to be just another face in the crowd. To get a little lost while he was here, however long that was going to be. He didn't have a return ticket to anywhere at this particular moment, but he could change that.

He rode the escalator up toward luggage claim and the exit, pulling his phone out of his pocket. His mother knew he was coming in today, but he never told her which airline or when. He preferred it that way. He would grab his luggage and an Uber and decide where to go from there. And he would do his best to not think about… her. Her apartment, her office, her favorite coffee cart. He could only pray that she was well. Thriving. Living her best life.

He stepped off the escalator and took two steps forward, looking for where his luggage would be when he stopped, realizing that not thinking about her was a thing of the past.

Because in this sea of strange faces and fast paced speed, he was met with warm brown eyes, shimmering with unshed tears.

"You're in the way!" someone yelled at him and he took a couple of steps to the side, unable to rip his gaze way from her. Thank God her brain seemed to be working as she moved toward him. She stopped just out of arms reach from him.

He just stared at her, standing there in leggings and a long sweater, tennis shoes, no makeup. He wasn't sure he had ever seen her look more beautiful.

She looked down at herself and then back at him. "It's the best I could do on short notice" she choked out. He barked out a laugh, still not being able to talk. She took a step forward.

"How…" he whispered.

"Lucia. She finally gave in last night when I started questioning her about why she was being so cagey."

"But I didn't tell her…"

Olivia nodded. "Yeah. I may have called in a few favors with security and TSA here to get someone to finally tell me what flight you were going to be on. I only got that information about 90 minutes ago."

"Cause you're a trained detective."

She shrugged. "Basically." He should have known he couldn't hide from her. Why he thought he could slink in and out of town without her finding out he would never know. And in this moment, he didn't care. He dropped his bag off his shoulder and grabbed her, pulling her flush to his body, holding her tight. He felt everything he had been fearing melt away the moment she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, holding on just as tightly as he was. He was worried his demons would come back when he set foot on the ground here, but she was here. His demons didn't stand a chance.

She pulled back just enough so she could look at him. Forearms resting on his shoulders. A smirk on her face.

"Nice hair."

"My mother is going to hate it."

"She really is."

He leaned his head to one side. "So, what? You two hang out now?"

A look of sadness slid over her face. "We do, Rafa. It just started as a coffee one day when I was leaving the office and she was there. Turned into a weekly thing. Coffee turned to lunch turned to Sunday dinner turned to holidays with Lucia Barba. If we can't have you…" She trailed off, swallowing hard. "Let's just say, it has helped, the two of us together."

"I thought you would hate me."

"Never, Rafa. Never. I was sad for a long time. Dealing with things that I had ignored for years. Kicking myself for putting you in that position. Hating McCoy and Stone for putting you through that. Having to now be nice to Dworkin. Any idea how hard that is?" He laughed.

"I have missed you, Liv. So damn much."

She sighed, leaning forward, resting her forehead against his. "Then tell me you are home. Tell me you aren't leaving again. Please." But before he could respond, she gave him the biggest reason of all to stay – she pressed her lips to his gently, lightly. It felt like the part of his heart that was hers had been walled off till this moment. The walls fell down the instant she pressed her lips to his.

She pulled back just a breath. Just enough so he could see her eyes. "Stay" she whispered.

"How about I just promise you that I have no return ticket to anywhere at this point in time and we go from there?"

She nodded. "I'll take it. Come on, let's get your bag. Once I told Lucia I had figured out when you would be here, I was given strict instructions to deliver you to her office."

He glanced at the time on his phone. "It's 10:30 on Wednesday, Liv. Don't you have to work?"

She shook her head. "No. Turns out I have all this leave that I never used while you were around. I've taken the rest of the week off so I have all the free time to convince you that you need to stay. For good."

He grinned at her, widely. "How exactly do you plan to do that, Olivia?" She tightened her hold on him, leaning in to line her mouth up with his ear. "Part will be the epic guilt trip placed on you by your mother and Rita. Some will be my adorable son begging you to be here for his soccer tournament next week. And some will be me and you, behind closed doors. Probably not a lot of actual talking happening during that time, but I can be convincing in other ways."

She took a step away, running her hand down his arm, linking their fingers together. He had absolutely zero words. She had possibly fried his brain. And she knew it, based on the look on his face.

"Can we please get out of this airport and go home?" He finally shook himself back into the moment.

"Please. If only to get to that last part you were talking about." She laughed, dragging him in the direction of his baggage claim.