Two hours later the entire site is on edge. They're so close, but this is the most tedious delicate work. One wrong move and everything they've done up until now could come tumbling down.
Amanda, Elliot and Fin are by the barrier, just outside the work zone. Several ambulances are standing by, and Amanda is forcing herself to ignore the contractions that have been steadily getting closer and closer together. She's incredibly good at hiding it…the second any of them realize it they will surely force her out of here and she has absolutely no intention of having this baby without Sonny Carisi at her side.
Amanda wonders if maybe she should tell Elliot, in case she ends up delivering this baby right here, and then a voice calls out from down in the pit.
"I've got her"!
All three of them crane their necks to try and see, but there's a shadow and they can't make out what's happening. And then, she appears. Her gorgeous head of hair covered in dust, clothes that look like she's been lost in the woods for a week, but she….seems to be okay. She's being supported as they maneuver over boulders by one of the military medics, but appearing to be able to walk on her own is Olivia Benson.
Elliot pushes the metal barrier out of his way to run to her. Amanda can see her face when she sees Elliot. He holds his arms up for her to jump down and the medic holds her steady until she does. Elliot gets her in his arms and the two of them embrace for what seems like five minutes.
"Thank God". Fin squeezes Amanda's shoulder. "I'm sure he's coming up next. You know Carisi, he woulda made them take Liv out first". Amand bursts out a laugh, with tears streaming down her face. She still feels her heart in her throat. Relieved Liv is okay, but she won't be alright until she sees Sonny walking that same path.
"We need a medic"! The voice from the pit cries out and the one who'd helped Liv scrambles back over the broken concrete.
Amanda's blood runs cold. A medic…..he's hurt….but alive. He's alive. Alive. No way would Liv walk away if he wasn't alive…..
Elliot's walking Olivia to them, and Amanda breaks past the barrier as well. Olivia bursts into tears when she sees her, motioning to Amanda's swollen belly.
Before she says anything else Liv puts her hand across her heart and says "He's okay…and they're getting him. He made them take me first".
And Amanda knows it's gonna be okay.
"I can't believe you didn't tell me"! Olivia flings her arms around Amanda, squeezing her so hard that Amanda can't breathe for a few seconds.
She has her arms around Olivia too, both of them crying. Elliot's hand is supporting Liv's back.
"I know…..I'm sorry…..I'm never gonna let that much time go where we don't talk". Amanda holds on for dear life, her eyes still on the pile of rubble, waiting for them to walk him out.
Liv laughs. "Well, you have had quite a bit on your plate…..new husband….new job…..new house"...and they both laugh.
Finally, they separate and Amanda really takes in how tattered and tired Olivia looks.
"Are you okay? Is…..is Sonny really okay"? Liv smiles and holds her hand, Elliot's arm going around her shoulder.
"He's gonna be okay Amanda. That's one good man you've got there".
Amanda doesn't miss the 'gonna be' there and her brow furrows.
"C'mon we should get you to a hospital Liv". Elliot tells her.
Liv looks back at him and shakes her head, letting him hold her hand.
"I'm not going anywhere until Carisi's out El".
They hear a rumble coming from the pit and the sound of metal grinding against metal.
"We gotta go now! Now"! Someone screams from down in the depths.
All four of them turn as something collapses, and a giant plume of dust engulfs the whole site.
Amanda doesn't realize the sound she hears next is coming from her own mouth. She feels Liv and Fin holding her upright and the anguished scream is her soul crying out thinking after all this…..has she lost him? Her entire world is flipped and she's fighting them, scratching, pushing, shoving, until she breaks free and runs like hell towards the pit.
She can hear people barking out orders, and makes out some kind of movement up on one of the biggest chunks of concrete. She feels someone try to pull her back and jerks away, another contraction hitting her at the same time causes her to double over, and Liv is immediately at her side asking her if she's okay…but then she hears him.
"Amanda"?
She looks up, and through the cloud of dust she can see three figures. Even through the haze she recognizes that mop of hair on the tallest figure in the middle.
"Sonny"...she manages to croak out, half choking on a sob and half trying to breathe through this contraction.
"Amanda"...Liv grips her by the shoulders and makes her look her in the eyes. "Are you…..are you in labor"?
The two men help Dominick Carisi down, his leg in some kind of makeshift splint they were trying to finish before the whole thing came down around them. Once he's on solid ground, Sonny makes a beeline for her, not caring about the pain shooting up his leg, or protocol, he just has to get to her.
Amanda wrestles away from Liv, Fin and Elliot and the pain of her contraction and takes off.
They crash into each other, Sonny lifting her up off the ground, into his arms. She feels his beard scratching her skin as he buries his face into her neck. For the first time since this all began, she feels safe again. His strong arms around her…..there's nowhere else in this world she ever wants to be. Her own arms are so tight around his neck if they stay like this he won't be able to breathe. She's telling him how much she loves him between sobs.
Honeysuckle and orange blossom…..he takes a deep breath and savors it as he holds her tighter than he ever has before. Forgetting for a few moments just how pregnant Amanda is, until the rest of his senses come back to him and he feels her belly against his and sets her gently back down on the ground.
She leans back and puts her hands on his face, his neck, his arms, slowly taking him in. Making sure he's really here and okay. Then she sees his leg. The blood, the splint.
"Oh my God, are you okay? What happened? Did you"-
"I'm fine. You shouldn't be down here…it's not safe…this whole place is"-
She pulls him back into an embrace, this time her arms around his waist, her face buried against his chest.
"I was so worried…Sonny…I love you so much"...
Sonny wraps his arms around her again, closing his eyes and breathing deep.
Wanting to give them a little bit of privacy, Liv, Elliot, Fin and the medics step away to give them a moment.
"The whole time all I could think about was you". Sonny's voice breaks and she squeezes him tighter. He could feel as much as hear Amanda crying, her tears staining his shirt.
"I just had to get back to you".
Sonny pulls away from her to cradle her face in his hands, bringing her lips to his. He could taste her tears. He kissed her nose, her cheeks, then back to burying his face against her neck, nuzzling his nose against her jaw.
"I don't wanna stop kissing you…I never wanna stop"...Amanda runs her fingers through his hair, holding him to her.
"Well….you might wanna wait on that Dominick Carisi". He pulls back when she uses his full name. She sees the confusion.
"We could both use a shower", she points to him and he chuckles. "And….my water just broke".
The look of pure panic on his face actually makes her laugh.
"Your….hold on…wait…..what"!?
Liv hears the panic in his voice and leads Fin and Elliot back.
"She's in labor"!? Olivia's shock gives way to a little anger as she looks at Elliot.
"She's what? I didn't know that"! El's hands are up in surrender.
"Ambulance. Now"! Liv corrals all of them up to where several ambos are waiting.
Amanda lets the EMTs take some vitals, allows them to set her on a gurney, all the while gazing at her rumpled, exhausted, dirty, beautiful, adoring husband. He refuses to let anyone check him out, insisting on just being at her side. They just keep looking into each other's eyes, ignoring everything around them. Both of them fully appreciating what they came so very close to losing.
When they finally get Amanda into the ambulance, Carisi tries to hop up with her. The EMTs refuse, pushing him back and telling him they can't ride in the same one.
"Try and stop me". He says, nodding to Elliot to help him up. Liv smirks at the frustrated tech.
"By the time you lose this argument, you could've gotten them to the hospital" she says.
The tech rolls her eyes and allows them to slam the door shut. Carisi is sitting next to Amanda, cradling her in his arms as best he can.
"You really need to let someone take a look at that leg…..it definitely looks infected".
Carisi isn't paying any attention to the EMT, everything has fallen away except for her.
"We're gonna have a baby today". She reaches out for his hand and sees tears in his eyes.
"We get to meet our son". He takes her hand and thinks back to the video he had Olivia record. His phone was lost in that pile of rubble somewhere. Thank God he'd never need to show that to Amanda.
"Dominick Carisi the third". Amanda tells him, decisively. He raises his eyebrows, they had been having an argument of sorts for months. Sonny didn't think the baby needed to be named after him, but Amanda liked it. Wanted it.
"Oh, did we decide? I don't remember that". He smirks.
"After the last few days", Amanda starts, bringing his hand to her lips, kissing him. "I decided. Well, the baby and I decided".
He sighs, brushing the hair back away from her face. He can't even remember why he was against the name. None of that mattered anymore.
"Okay. Dominick the third".
"I missed you….Sonny….I….I never gave up but"... Amanda's overwhelmed by her emotions. Nearly losing him…
"Shhhhh shhhh…..me too". He smooths her hair, calming her.
"Everyone else thought…..they told me there was no way you survived…but I knew…I just knew"...she starts to cry again.
"Oh my God we've gotta call your parents! They still think"...Amanda starts trying to dig through her pockets for her phone.
As they pull up to the hospital, Amanda hears Serafina pick up her phone assuming it's Amanda. Even when it's not on speaker phone, the tech can also hear Sonny's mother's screams when she realizes it's her son on the phone. They can't make out exactly what she's saying but she's clearly calling out for the whole family, and then when he tells her that he and Amanda are heading to the hospital because Amanda's about to have the baby…..well all hell breaks loose in the Carisi house, in the best way.