AN: Hola! Before anything, I just want to say thank you to all the people who reviewed chapter six (i love you). I admit, I have been feeling a little lost on this story because I didn't have a direction when I started it. I just wanted to start a story with Mama Liv and Papi Rafael with teenage (mutant ninja turtle) Rollaro. Still, sort of feeling lost so I'd love it if you made some suggestions of scenes you'd like to see them in. You can either PM me or leave it in a review, totally up to you. I'm reading what you're saying and I take your feedback into every chapter (because I need all the guidance I can get, lol). Oh, and thanks for being patient with my updates :)

Please read, enjoy, and review!

Save Room

7. Other Side

Pushed hard against the wall, Nick's heart palpitated and his lungs gasped for air. Blinking back to reality, he was no longer seeing retribution in the form of his girlfriend's rapist; he was seeing two detectives holding him back and telling him to calm down. It was only then that he started feeling the sharp pain shooting up his arm, the blood running from his sore knuckles. One of the detectives eased up on his shoulder, tilting his head to look him in the eye.

"Nick, you listening?"

"Let's get him out of here," said Detective Munch. "And let's get Barba on the phone."

At the mention of his father's name, the probable consequences of his actions paralyzed him. He had just launched himself at Eric – someone who deserved every punch – but at the forefront of his mind, he pictured himself getting arrested and taken in the back of a squad car. Instinctively, his fists clenched, which caused another electrifying pain to zap through his nerves. Questions ran through his head. What was going to happen next? Who was accused of rape and then charged with a separate count of assault in the span of one whirlwind of a morning?

"We need to call a nurse," Munch declared, escorting Nick toward the door. He was still a little dazed; not really understanding what was going on or where they were taking him. Were they arresting him?

Fin looked over his shoulder at the other kid, who had his hands over his nose to stop the bleeding. "Do we have to call them or can we just leave him here?"

Munch tried to hide his amusement and shook his head at his partner.

From the hospital bed, Eric whimpered in pain, crying out for someone to help him. As they were leaving, Eric picked his head up from the bed and called out his attacker. "She wanted it."

"Tell me I didn't hear you right." Fin advanced to the bed, hovering menacingly over the kid.

Eric scoffed at the detective and spit out some blood on the sheets. "Maria wanted to get fucked." He kept his eyes on Nick's. "Ask her yourself."

It took all of Fin's restraint not to sock the kid on the side of his skull. Instead, he psyched him out before he jammed his fist on the nurse's call button. Meanwhile, Munch pushed Nick out of the doorway before he could launch himself into another blind rage. But Nick, surprisingly, didn't resist or fight back. He backed himself on the wall, his hand covering his mouth to subdue the shock that was running through his whole body.

Eric Price, the senior captain of their soccer team and his good friend, raped his girlfriend and claimed she wanted it. His blood boiled and his fists clenched in spite of the pain. He wanted so badly to go back in the hospital room and knock him out cold; but a small voice in the back of his head told him to stop letting the anger take over and heed the direction of the detectives.

Munch slowly approached him, placing a hand on his shoulder. Nick jerked back, and Munch pulled his hand away, raising his arms up in surrender. "Kid, let us take you to the station –"

"Are you arresting me?" Panic struck across his face.

"No," Munch answered.

"Am I being detained?"

The detective sighed and tried to place a comforting hand on his arm. This time, Nick didn't pull away. "Look, we don't have to process you. But I do want to keep an eye on you until we can get into contact with one of your parents. You're going through some stress and trauma right now and I would suggest you get your head clear before you, uh –"

"—Do something stupid," Fin finished for him.

Nick ducked his head, following the detectives all the way to the unmarked police car. From the hospital, they drove back to the 16th precinct, which was becoming more and more familiar to him. Upon arriving at the SVU squad room, he noticed that Detectives Benson and Stabler were away from their desks. They bypassed the interview and interrogation rooms until they led him down the end of the hall into the bunks. After leaving him in there to "take it easy", Fin and Munch returned to the bullpen to take care of matters. Before Munch closed the door, he assured him they weren't going to let Eric press charges after he did something so much more reprehensible to Maria.

Sitting down on one of the bunks, Nick buried his face in one hand while he slowly spread his fingers out on his right hand. He winced as he inspected the damage – dried blood, cuts and scrapes just above the bone, and purple bruising spreading across his skin.

The door slammed shut. Nick lifted his head to see Amanda standing in front of it with an icepack in her hand. She walked across the room and extended it out like some kind of gift or peace offering. "I heard you were back."

"Thanks," he said, applying the ice over the bruise.

"Did you feel better after hitting him?"

Nick chuckled softly. "Yeah, a little bit."

Amanda smirked. She slowly walked across the room, intertwining her fingers and casting nervous glances toward him. With a deep breath, she finally spoke up. "Look, everything was rushed and crazy back there with my mom and your dad… and then your mom came," she trailed off, shaking her head at the absurdity of it all. She sank down on the bunk across from him, fidgeting with her hands."I don't really know what happened but I heard enough, and I'm sorry about what happened to your girlfriend."

He lowered his head and twisted his mouth in a frown. "Yeah… I'm sorry, too, that I accidentally ratted you out to your mom."

"Whatever," she said, throwing him a smile. They stayed sitting across from each other in silence for a while, neither one of them certain what to say next. As Nick iced his hand and studied the swelling, Amanda stood up from her bunk and sat next to him. "Can I see?"

He arched a brow before he set his right hand down on her open palms. She bent down slightly to inspect his hand, and then she took the ice and applied it for him.

"Why didn't you tell me you had a girlfriend?" Amanda asked the question point-blank.

Nick's mouth opened slightly but he hesitated on his response. "Y-you never asked."

She cocked her head to the side and raised a brow.

"It just never came up," he started, and then he chewed on his lip and gave her a sorry look. "But I should've told you anyway –"

"—Before I kissed you, right?" Amanda intended to look him in the eye, but she couldn't keep her eyes locked on his so she averted her gaze down to the floor. Nick felt bad about possibly sending her the wrong signals, but there was that voice in the back of his head telling him that he had no ill intentions and he wasn't trying to send any sort of signal in the first place. He was just being himself. And yes, he left out the part about Maria but mostly because she hadn't crossed his mind that entire time he was with Amanda.

The admission, even though it was all in his mind, was a bit too much to acknowledge giving the current circumstances. There was a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, and it felt like guilt.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be." She smiled up at him, a pink blush creeping up her cheeks. "I had a good time hanging out."

He returned the smile despite the doubts of indiscretion; it was just a harmless smile. "Me too."

As soon as Rafael received the phone call from Sergeant Munch, he called upon a higher power to split the pavement and swallow him whole. Not again, he thought to himself before he instructed the cab driver to turn around and head back north toward the midtown precinct. During the drive, he got in touch with his assistant, who was quite miffed to be appointed a task on a Saturday. She connected him to Eric Price's lawyers, a pair of name partners at one of the most prestigious firms in the city. Considering the Price family's political legacy, they only hired the best; and they also agreed not to press assault charges as long as the DA's office and NYPD kept to their word and ceased all investigations pertaining to their client. By no means was it an ideal situation, especially for the victim. But it did keep his son out of an orange jumpsuit, and that was Rafael's priority.

Upon arriving at the squad room, Fin directed him down the hall to the bunks. The seasoned detective updated him on what exactly happened in the hospital room, adding that he had no issues with what Nick did to that "sick son of a bitch." Fin reached for the door, pushing it open to reveal two laughing teenagers. Seated side by side on one of the bottom bunks, Amanda held an icepack over his right hand.

They looked up simultaneously, their smiles faltering at the intrusion. Rafael caught his son's dark eyes before he looked down and away. Pulling his hand away and taking the icepack from her hands, he scooted forward and hunched his shoulders. "Dad, I'm sorry for dragging you back in here. I don't know what came over me."

Fin lifted his chin up at Amanda. "Come on, baby girl," he said, suggesting that the father and son needed some privacy to talk. She stood up and passed by the two men, casting a glance and a comforting smile at Nick before Fin draped his arm over her shoulder and ushered her down the hall.

"How's your hand?"

"A little banged up but it's fine," Nick explained simply, rising from the bed and walking toward the center of the room.

"I spoke to Eric's lawyers and they said their client won't press charges."

Nick scoffed and shook his head. "They're only saying that because they know he's guilty, and if we go to court the truth's going to come out that he raped Maria."

Rafael nodded once then let out a heavy breath. "The department and the DA's office have decided to end all investigations on this case as per the Grazie family's request. I'm sorry there isn't more we could have done for her." Hesitantly, he placed his hand on his son's shoulder and steered him toward the door. "I spoke to your mother on my way here and we agreed that it's best if you move in with me today. I'm sure you wouldn't want to see your room after –" he stopped himself and decided to change course, - after CSU went through it."

Shrugging his shoulders, Nick followed him from the bunks and back out to the squad room, where they saw both Fin and Munch catching up on some paperwork.

"Stay out of trouble, kid," Munch called out from his desk.

"I will," Nick told him, a small smile across his lips to express his gratitude for speaking some sense back into him.

As they crossed through the room, Rafael stopped when he noticed the two empty desks that belonged to Stabler and Benson. He glanced down at her desk and stared intently at a five by seven photograph of Olivia and her daughter. It looked like it was taken in Washington Square Park sometime in the fall as the leaves on the trees had taken on a warm hue.

"Dad," Nick said, breaking his reverie and capturing his attention. "Are you looking for someone?"

Rafael's head jolted up just in time to see a knowing smirk on his son's face.

The weekend went by swiftly for Amanda. The aftermath of the party had been like a tornado but after the case was dropped, everything seemed to settle down, leaving behind some debris.

Straight away, Olivia had enough on her plate with a new, high-priority case that had landed on her desk. She and Elliot were out all weekend to chase leads on a woman accused of kidnapping her sister's newborn. By Sunday night, they had located the woman and the child, who was thankfully unharmed. Even with all the madness of the job, Olivia made sure to remind Amanda that she was grounded.

Not that Amanda wanted to leave the house anyway.

By Monday, as soon as she reached her locker at school, Wes and Claire surrounded her to hound her with questions. They had heard rumors that the police were called into the party because a girl was raped. Apparently no one knew who it was because the authorities had swept it under the rug to protect the victim's identity. Even if Amanda did know who was raped and she trusted her friends wouldn't tell anyone else outside their circle, she kept her lips sealed. Sure, she had no ties to Maria – never even met the girl – but Amanda felt for her in a way her own mother still found challenging to accept. If Maria didn't want to be a victim, then she could make that choice. Amanda firmly supported that.

By lunch, questions about the party had gotten old and Wes and Claire finally got the hint that she wasn't going to give up any details about the case. Instead, they shifted their questioning to the topic of the guy with who she rode bikes and trespasses rooftops. Neither of her friends knew his name, and Amanda wanted to keep it that way.

"What's his first name?" Wes asked, supporting his chin with his hands as he leaned over their lunch table. "First letter of his first name?" He asked again when she didn't budge.

"It doesn't even matter." She waved her hand dismissively. "Turns out he has a girlfriend."

His mouth opened in surprise. "He didn't tell you?"

Nonchalantly, she lifted a shoulder in response and then proceeded to eat her burger that tasted more of cardboard than ground beef. It still beat her mother's proposed packed lunches.

"When did you find out?" Wes asked. She felt like she was handcuffed to a table in an interrogation room. "Have you talked to him since the party?"

Amanda realized her mistake. No one could know that they had talked. She didn't want anyone knowing that Nick was picked up and brought to the precinct for questioning.

"Hold it," Claire interrupted, looking up briefly from her phone that had been in her hands the entire lunch period. Nothing about it seemed out of place because Claire always had some sort of technology attached to her like an extra limb, whether it was her phone, her tablet, or her laptop. She flipped it around to show them a Facebook profile. "This is him, right? I remember that face. He's the guy who left the party with you."

Amanda ground her teeth and gave Claire a harsh look. Seeing Nick's profile picture, she sighed and lowered her head in defeat. Her mom was a detective; turned out so was her best friend.

Wes took the phone and arched his brows in approval as he studied the action shot of Nick throwing a football. He swiped left at the next picture where he was dressed in a suit and smiling at the camera; it looked like it was taken at a wedding or some gala. "Mmm… yes," said Wes, licking his lips. He swiped again and then his mouth twisted into a scowl. He turned the phone to the two girls and pointed at the picture. "That's her, right? That's the girlfriend."

When Amanda was picturing Nick's girlfriend, she secretly hoped she wasn't gorgeous. She knew how wrong it was thinking that way knowing what Maria had gone through; but there were some thoughts she just couldn't help. Looking at the picture, she bit down on her lip as she took in the sight of the ridiculously attractive couple. His arm was draped over her shoulder while her arm was wrapped around his waist. They looked happy. They looked perfect together.

"She's all right, but you're so much prettier than her," Wes stated. She knew he was trying to make her feel better, but if only he knew what really happened then maybe he wouldn't have made the superfluous comparison.

"I agree," Claire said, pursing her lips and nodding. "She looks like one of those girls who has major resting bitch face when she's not smiling."

Amanda took the phone and set it face down on the table, earning startled looks from both of her friends. "Enough." She grabbed her tray, suddenly losing her appetite, and rose from the bench. "I'll see you guys after school," she said before stalking out of the cafeteria.

Out in the empty halls, Amanda headed into the girls' bathroom for a smoke. She usually didn't do this at school but after getting the third degree from her friends and hearing them compliment her at the expense of Maria, she was feeling more anxious than usual. She pushed into the last stall and stood over the toilet to prop open the window. Climbing down, she looked through her backpack for her cigarettes and just as she was about to light up, the bathroom door opened and three girls strolled in.

She leaned her head against the tile and groaned when she recognized the owners of those high-pitched voices. Kayla and her posse of mean girls stood by the sink in the middle of another vapid conversation about hair and nails. Amanda looked through the tiny gap through the stall and watched as they primped in front of the mirror and pointed out each other's flaws.

"Did you guys hear about the St. Francis party on Friday?" asked Leslie. She was Kayla's lapdog, the one who followed her around and agreed with everything her master said. She was also the biggest gossip in school and hated the fact that Wes knew everything about everyone without even really trying. Wes just couldn't help that he was a social butterfly and people liked to give him the scoop. "I heard it got really wild."

"Yeah, I heard the police came," added Vanessa. She was the only one in the group who was actually intimidating since she was captain of the girls' rugby team. That, and the fact that she had been kicked out of her last school for tearing off a chunk of hair from a girl's scalp. Vee, as most of her friends called her, also dated a lot of older guys, which Amanda thought was gross and, not to mention, illegal. She had a theory that Kayla was secretly jealous of Vee and she was just keeping her close because it was the best way to keep tabs on her frenemy. "Turns out, the cops found coke and X. Damn, I wish I could'a been there."

"Not only that," Leslie added, pointing her mascara wand. "A girl was raped."

Kayla and Vanessa turned to Leslie with stunned expressions. "Oh my god, really? Tell us!"

Leslie smirked, obviously pleased with herself that she knew information that could make the queen bee happy. "It's this St. Francis girl… I think her name is Maria Grazie."

"No way!" Kayla's jaw dropped. "I know her… I mean, I've heard of her."

"Do you know who did it?" Vanessa asked impatiently.

Leslie nodded quickly, her eyes wide as her mouth curled up to a mischievous smile. "My cousin goes there and she texted me this morning saying that Eric Price came to school with his face all busted up. He was there with his parents to meet with the principal and when they left, everyone was talking about how he was transferring out to boarding school up in Connecticut."

"That doesn't prove he did it though…." Vanessa replied skeptically. "But wait, who beat him up?"

Leslie's brows crinkled as she tried to recall the name. "It was Maria's boyfriend. Nick something…"

"Nick Amaro," Kayla finished for her.

From inside the stall, Amanda's hand flew over her mouth to suppress the gasp. She was willing her heart to stop beating so violently beneath her chest, in fear that they could hear it. She wanted nothing more than to get out of that bathroom but she couldn't do that with the girls standing right outside. The unlit cigarette quivered between her fingers, her anxiety firing through all her senses.

Leaning over the sink to apply lipgloss, Kayla casually added, "And I don't think Eric raped that girl. They were sneaking around and fucking each other all summer at the Hamptons. I'm sure she wanted it."

"What? How do you know this?" Leslie asked incredulously.

Kayla sneered and gave her friend a once-over. "You think you're the only one who's got sources, sweetie?"

Olivia was at the courthouse all afternoon forced to listen to a defense attorney cast doubt on the testimony of a young girl. She was already terrified of taking the stand against her foster father, a man who sexually abused her for the last six months. She didn't need some egotistic rape apologist to scare her into a refusal to testify. Even though Amanda hadn't been in the exact situation, the trial still hit close to home. Olivia desperately wanted to call it a day, head home, and hug her daughter.

After the judge called for a recess, Olivia followed the stream of people out of the courtroom. Glancing down at her phone to check for messages, she didn't realize that she had nearly run into someone walking the opposite direction. He was also looking down at his phone. "I'm sorry. Excuse me," she said quickly, stepping aside. But then she stood rooted in place, her brown eyes fixed on the green ones that belonged to Rafael Barba.

"Detective Benson," he greeted her, a tight smile on his lips.

"Counselor," she returned the greeting with an equally straight face.

"Here to pick up my son? I'm afraid he's in school at the moment."

Olivia sighed, shaking her head. She just wished they could bury the hatchet with the ADA but she could tell that swallowing his pride was not something Rafael did on a regular basis. "I'm actually here for the Goren trial."

"Oh." He looked a bit stumped. "I heard about that. How's the girl doing?"

"The defense is fighting hard, but only because they know they're losing the jury's vote. As far as the girl is concerned, she's hanging in there. Her new foster family is supportive."

"That's good to hear," he said. His hands gripped tightly on his briefcase, swinging it slightly toward the door.

It looked like he was ready to part ways when he stalled, gazing at her with softened eyes. "I apologize for questioning your ability to do your job, detective. I've come to realize that I was carried away by my protectiveness – a side of myself that I honestly thought I didn't have." He closed his eyes and slowly shook his head. "Anyway, I am… sorry."

Olivia's eyes widened, her mouth gaping slightly. She studied Rafael and observed that appeared visibly uncomfortable to say those words. But she was stunned that he had proved her wrong in demonstrating that he could swallow his pride and apologize. He wasn't just another haughty, Harvard-educated lawyer; he might actually have a heart underneath that expensive three-piece suit.

"Right," he said when she didn't respond. "I have to go."

"Wait." Olivia reached out for his arm but quickly pulled back just as soon as her fingertips brushed over his gray jacket. "I just wanted to say… about the protectiveness thing – all of us parents have it. Honestly, I would have done the same if it were Amanda."

The corner of his lips curled up into a small smile.

"By the way, how has it been?" She asked, walking alongside him as they crossed the hall toward the elevator. "I heard from Munch that he moved in on Saturday."

"It's an adjustment," Rafael said hesitantly, pressing the button to the ground floor. "He was cooped up in his room all weekend and only went out to the kitchen every couple of hours to get food. I didn't realize they could eat so much."

Olivia laughed. "He's sixteen? Yeah, I can imagine."

"Problem is by Sunday afternoon, I ran out of food so we ordered Chinese and he got five things off the menu," he said, scratching his temple. The elevator doors opened and they stepped out. "But I know I can't keep this kid alive by feeding him take-out and junk food. What does Amanda like to snack on? Can she cook? Do you let her use your stove?"

Olivia's laugh was even heartier this time around. "Of course I let her use the stove. She's fifteen. I mean, Amanda's no budding chef and she doesn't have the patience for baking, but she can cook bacon and eggs on toast if she's hungry. She likes sweets – donuts, cakes, and pastries – but I try to limit how much I buy and I go for healthier snacks instead."

Rafael knitted his brows together. "I guess I could start buying groceries…"

"Hey," She said, pulling a pad of paper from her purse. She ripped the sheet on top and handed it to him. "This was my grocery list last week. You can probably get some idea of what to buy."

He looked over the list. There were a lot of food groups that belonged in the bottom half of the food pyramid, and a lot of different types of greens that he always thought were one and the same.

"If you need any quick, simple recipes, I can always email them to you," she added sincerely. Olivia liked the idea of sharing her excitement raising a teenager with someone else. Most times, she felt a little clueless, maybe even a little insecure, because she hadn't raised Amanda since she was a baby. Talking to Rafael about parenting made her feel confident about motherhood; it was nice having someone else looking to her for advice.

"Thanks," Rafael said, placing the list inside his jacket.

"You're welcome," she replied. They stood there at the courthouse steps with faint smiles on their faces. Olivia felt a blush rise to her cheeks and she lowered her head and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Well, I better get going. It was nice running into you, Counselor."

"You too, detective," he said, stepping out to the edge and raising his arm up to hail a cab.

When it stopped at the curb, he gallantly offered it to her. The flush on her cheeks deepened as she shook her head with a smile. "I drove."

"Oh, ok… Well, good night." He slipped into the car and closed the door, his eyes never leaving hers, even when the cab driver asked him for the address to his destination.

She stood at the sidewalk and did a small wave as the car drove off. Olivia exhaled, silently cursing herself for feeling remarkably flustered over their new ADA. Beaming inwardly, she walked down the block where she parked her car. Her daydreams interrupted by a vibration in her coat pocket. She pulled the phone out and read the name on the screen. It was as if her conscience was bringing her back down from the clouds and snapping her back to her commitments.

"Hey, Brian."