#choosejoyangel | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

saiilorstars · 3 months ago

Text

Ch. 62: The Little Big Words

Previous chapters // Montserrat’s masterlist

Fandom: SVU // Pairing: Rafael Barba x OC

Warnings: Due to the nature of the series’ plots, I do have to rate this as ‘mature’ for constant mentions of rape.

Taglist: @ocappreciationtag @arrthurpendragon @maaaaarveeeeel @stareyedplanet @averyhotchner @abzidabzy @hellofutur @foxesandmagic @xovalliegirlxo @sam-i–am @kmc1989 @midmourn @choosejoyangel @rebeccapineapple @duckybird101 @caplanbuckybarnes

[If you’d like to be added to this specific OC’s stories/edits, send me a message

"Didn't I say no working?" Montserrat thought it was too early to be this kind of mad but Rafael had found a way each day since they left the hospital. Each morning he would find a different way to do something he shouldn't be doing; today's attempt was trying to work on a case in the living room.

"Did you?" Rafael didn't even attempt to sound surprised by Montserrat's presence and reaction to him. He was flipping through pages on the couch.

Montserrat walked up behind the couch and reached over Rafael to take the papers out of his hands.

"Hey!" He went to reach for them when his side said absolutely not. "Ow…" he jerked back in place.

"It's like you want to be stupid on purpose," Montserrat shook her head at him. She skimmed a few of the lines on the first paper in her hands. "Wait, is this the Avery Jordan case we dealt with months ago?"

"Yeah," Rafael said, struggling to get up on his own. He refused to let Montserrat do that for him. She already did so much for him, this one was on him, one way or another.

"I've been so negligent keeping up with her," Montserrat said, scrunching her nose. "She's how far along now?"

"About 7 months," Rafael said, coming around the couch slowly. He was putting his best efforts not to place his hand over his injury. It had become like a custom that he really wanted to break. It would be less of a reminder of what happened. "Her trial's finally got a date."

"Finally," scoffed Montserrat. "Meanwhile, this woman's been living a constant hell."

"Which I'm trying to put an end to," Rafael said, plucking his papers out of Montserrat's hands. "But you won't let me."

"Nice try," Montserrat said, promptly taking back what he stole. "But you're not working until you get an 'all clear'. So put it away before I start hiding them."

"A challenge I'm more than willing to take."

"Stop," warned Montserrat, pointing at the stupid grin on Rafel's face. She hated it. He was smug at all hours and it was getting on her last nerve. Her scotch bottle was almost done and it had only been two weeks since she bought them.

"Buenos dias," Rafael said promptly, leaning over to place a kiss on her lips. "Breakfast?" He moved around her and headed for the kitchen.

"I hate you," Montserrat nodded to herself and followed after him, ignoring his very proud "No you don't".

It was an hour after breakfast — and more bickering about the things Rafael should and shouldn't be doing — that someone knocked on the door. Montserrat practically stalked up to the door and opened it up. The sight of the young waitress Clara took her by surprise.

"Clara?" Montserrat blinked at the woman.

Clara sheepishly waved. "Hi, morning. I'm sorry for being early — I have class later. Were you guys asleep?"

Montserrat scoffed. "Yeah, he's a bat," she said, nodding back to Rafael who rolled his eyes in response. "He doesn't sleep. Come in."

"Thanks." Clara walked in slowly, both hands on the top of her purse — a sign of nervousness. "How are you feeling?" She asked Rafael.

"Good, thanks," he replied, "I'm better than what everyone else thinks."

"Don't start," Montserrat warned him. She looked at Clara suddenly. "Are you going to stay here?"

"Uh, well, I suppose —"

"Great," Montserrat nodded, "Because I need a break."

"What?" Clara watched the redhead rush over to the coffee table to grab her purse.

"Thanks so much for this!" Montserrat exclaimed. "What do you say — 17.50 an hour?"

"Montserrat," Rafael deadpanned the woman he so called his girlfriend. The title was in jeopardy.

Montserrat stared at him thoughtfully then looked at Clara again. "For your trouble…$25.50."

"Huh?" Clara blinked.

"Montserrat!" exclaimed Rafael.

"Oh, pipe down," snapped Montserrat. "I need a break from you. Your mother was right. You're driving me nuts."

"As are you to me," Rafael promptly replied. "Have a nice break."

Montserrat smiled sarcastically sweetly at him. "Likewise." She left the place without looking back.

Clara watched after Montserrat, having no idea what just happened. "Um, are you guys okay?"

Rafael laughed. "Yeah, don't worry. She's right, we do need a break. We're driving each other insane."

Clara still had no idea what to make of that. "I thought you guys were good…?"

"We are," nodded Rafael, "We're not afraid to tell each other our truths. It's against our programming. She has a big mouth, I can't stop countering. Nothing else."

Clara nodded slowly. I guess that's a good kind of relationship…

She would decide later.

"So, what's going on?" Rafael asked her. "Are you okay?" He'd given Clara his address in case she needed something in the future. After what happened, he owed her a lot.

"Sort of," Clara said, moving along as he proposed to, "I stopped by the precinct taking care of your case."

Immediately, Rafael knew why Clara was there. He was eternally grateful Montserrat left.

Clara didn't notice his expression changing. She was too busy being confused. "And I spoke to Sergeant Benson. She said the case has gone cold."

"Yeah…" Rafael said slowly, calculating Clara as much as he could. He was sure the meds he was taking were causing him to be slower. He couldn't be exactly sure what Clara was going to say next.

"After she explained what that meant, I thought I should come see how you're doing with the news," Clara said, offering him a small smile.

It was fairly quick how much guilt settled on Rafael's shoulders. He already carried another load for lying to Montserrat about it. Up until now, all she knew was that the case was simply going slow. He offered Olivia the chance to tell Montserrat himself that the case was "officially" a cold case.

"I'm…I'm okay," he told Clara. "You don't have to worry about me, Clara. I'm sure you have a lot more things to worry about given your career choice. Lots of exams…?" He looked at Clara until she smiled.

"Midterms," she corrected.

"There we go. You have enough on your plate."

Clara's shoulders rose together. "Maybe but I can't just forget about this either. You're sort of like my first real patient. It's my duty to make sure you're feeling okay."

"I appreciate the sentiment, and believe me you have done your obligations with me. I'm still here." Rafael smiled when Clara chuckled. She seemed far younger when she did. It was nice. "Look, you should just focus on your midterms and your work. I'm okay."

Clara wasn't entirely convinced. "But can't they do anything else about this?"

"I will be looking into it," Rafael lied swiftly and easily. "But if you need anything else from me, please feel free to call or stop by. Montserrat told me you're not working at the coffee shop, anymore?"

Clara shook her head, smiling sadly. "Too traumatic. I got a job at a little restaurant two blocks from there. Maybe you'd like to stop by. It's Chinese."

Rafael chuckled. "You don't say? We love that."

Clara chuckled. "Yeah, well, you can stop by anytime you'd like."

"We will," Rafael promised, "Once I'm out of house arrest." As it turned out, Montserrat was a lot stricter than he previously thought.

~0~

Montserrat picked at the plate in front of her, making a mental note to pick up strawberries before leaving. Across from her, Kara laughed at Montserrat's unfortunate tales.

"It's really not funny," Montserrat said, picking up her fork to try the pasta Sonny had graciously made for them for lunch.

"It's funny that you thought this wouldn't happen," Kara said with a shrug. "You've been staying with Rafael for, what, a week?"

"Two weeks,"Montserrat corrected. "Two weeks straight and I discovered we are complete opposites. He is a morning person — a very early person — and I'm normal. He likes his coffee as black as the frikin night and I'm…normal."

Kara laughed again. They even heard Sonny laugh to himself in the kitchen.

"Shut up, Carisi," called Montserrat, leaning back in her seat, "And where's the sides you promised?"

"Oh calm down," Kara waved a hand at her best friend to get her attention. "You're just learning more about Rafael."

"Well if he doesn't stop showing me so many new things about him, I might kill him," Montserrat said, scrunching her nose.

Kara laughed, even more delighted now that Sonny was coming around with a fresh new serving of pasta. "You should follow my lead," Kara said to Montserrat, "Mine just likes to cook."

Montserrat rolled her eyes. Kara grinned up at Sonny and happily accepted his kiss.

"Hey genius," Montserrat called, "your boyfriend's about to spill blazing hot pasta on your lap."

The way Sonny was holding the sizzling pan was indeed threatening to drop the pasta on Kara's lap.

"Whoops! Sorry, doll," Sonny said, quickly dumping the pasta on Kara's plate. "Little distracted…"

"I'll say," Montserrat shook her head. "Can I get more for take out? I need to bring Rafael something back."

"Thought he was pissing you off," Kara reminded.

"He is," Montserrat nodded. "But he still needs to eat."

Kara had to laugh. "You're ridiculous. Both of you. But you do have to learn how to live with each other if you're actually living together."

"We're not living together," Montserrat said quickly, sounding defensive about it too. "I'm just staying with him until he's okay."

"So you're coming back?"

Montserrat deadpanned her best friend for a long minute. "Please, try to be more disappointed about it."

Kara chuckled.

Sonny came back around with a to-go dish for Montserrat. "I think Kara's right," he said, ignoring Montserrat muttering 'of course'. "You need to learn how to live together. It's very different from just staying the night to being together for 2 weeks straight."

Montserrat's shoulders slumped. "I guess." Her hand tugged at a few of her curls. "I don't know, I guess I'm just not used to this kind of stuff anymore. Plus, none of my boyfriends have ever been shot before. I'm still coming down from that whole experience."

Sonny and Kara agreed with that statement.

"You said you talked to Olivia today, no?" Kara asked.

Montserrat nodded, her whole demeanor changing again. "I went before coming here." She let out a long sigh. "The case has gone cold."

Kara's eyes widened and she immediately looked at Sonny. The latter nodded. "That's terrible," Kara gawked. "Why?"

"The guy never showed his face and neither Rafael nor Clara can identify anything special about him," Montserrat explained. Her fork went in circles in her pasta. "Liv said they're trying but there's only so much we can do, right?"

"We are trying," Sonny assured her. "Sooner or later we'll get something."

Montserrat managed a little smile. What would she do without her partner? "Anyways, I should just focus on making sure Rafael's okay in the meantime." And learn how to manage my overall anxiety. Montserrat supposed those were really big things she should work towards.

~0~

Montserrat's trip to SVU was a complete bust since Olivia had not been around and no one else seemed to know what was going on, she didn't blame them. They were short staffed again and with new cases coming in every day. On her way back, she got a call from her father asking her to come over. When she tried to explain she was heading back to Rafael's place, her father insisted that it would just be for a moment. Either Montserrat went over, or he would find a way to her instead.

Montserrat arrived within fifteen minutes at her father's home after that. She certainly wasn't expecting to find her brother there as well, along with her two nieces.

"Don't look at me, he was just babysitting," Gael said when Montserrat threw the idea that this had been a set up. Of course when her five year old niece Ivannah came running up to her, Montserrat forgot all about it in favor of the little girl.

"Auntie Montse! You're here!" Ivannah very easily jumped into her aunt's arms.

Montserrat laughed lightly at the excited girl. "Well, if everyone greeted me like this, I wouldn't mind."

"What, your new boyfriend is tired of you already?" Gael smirked.

Montserrat deadpanned her older brother, keeling her not so nice words to herself solely for the five year old in the room. "Dad, what is this?"

"It's just a coincidence, I promise," Thomas said with his hands raised in front of him. "He stopped by with the girls afterwards."

"Yeah! Are you going to stay with us and grandpa!?" Ivannah bounced in Montserrat's arms to get the woman's attention.

"Uh, no sweetie, sorry," Montserrat gave a light pat on Ivannah's back. "I've got to head back soon. Dad, what did you need?"

"You weren't answering your phone…" Thomas said, giving his daughter a sharp look. "I got worried."

"I'm sorry. I've been a bit busy," Montserrat said, "But we're okay. Rafael's doing better now. He just…can't move a lot…"

"Would he be okay if we visited some time?" Thomas saw the way his daughter stiffened, alarmed with his question.

"What?" Montserrat was speechless.

Gael laughed at her. "You're that afraid we'll embarrass you, huh?"

Montserrat sent her brother another glare. "Shut it!"

"Dad, can you stop being so mean to aunt Montserrat?" Juliana walked out from the hallway. She came straight to Montserrat and hugged her aunt. "Hi auntie."

"Hi there sweetheart," Montserrat greeted the teenager with a warm smile. "How are you?"

"Okay," Juliana shrugged.

Montserrat playfully rolled her eyes — it was the universal teenage response. "What about Abby?"

"We joined Key Club," Juliana said, "Getting volunteer hours. It looks great on college applications."

"That's great. Are you two—"

"Is it true you have a boyfriend now?" Juliana cut her aunt right off.

Montserrat blinked at the girl then went back to glaring at Gael. "You really have the biggest mouth in the world — no, galaxy."

Gael smirked. "You told dad I was dating Marlene Forbes!"

"Settle down you two," Thomas said, motioning his children to stop yelling.

"So, aunt Montse, do you have a boyfriend?" Juliana asked again, more curious than ever.

Montserrat sighed and gave in. "Yes. Thanks to your dad, I bet the whole of New York knows it by now."

"Give me half an hour," Gael said with a mischievous grin.

"Dad," Montserrat called, leading Gael to snicker.

"Go sit down," Thomas ordered the two. "And give me my granddaughter before you influence her the wrong way."

"No! I want to stay with my aunt Montse!" Ivannah clung her arms around Montserrat's neck.

Montserrat walked over to the couch and sat down with Ivannah on her lap. Juliana scurried to her aunt's side and plopped down on her knees.

"So who is it!?" She leaned on Montserrat's arm, absolutely eager to find out the answer. "Do we know him!? Is he a stranger!? Where'd you meet!?"

"You seem a bit too knowledgeable here," Montserrat remarked and gently pushed Juliana back. "Maybe you should tell us if you're seeing anyone."

"Not until she's 30," Gael said promptly. Juliana rolled her eyes at her father. "And in all seriousness, Montserrat, I'm happy to hear Rafael's doing better. Also glad he's the one you're dating."

Montserrat scoffed. "Please, you just like him because he put up the 5 grand for your bail."

"Not true," Gael said, shrugging. "It's a contributing factor but not a big one. I like his attitude."

"I honestly don't know if that's a good or bad thing," Montserrat said, shaking her head.

"Wait," Juliana said suddenly, scrunching her nose, "I remember that guy. He works with you and aunt Casey. He used to make you mad a lot."

Montserrat scoffed again. "'Used to'? He still does. Eighty percent of the time."

"Bet that's what he says about you." Gael walked up to Montserrat and gently took his daughter out of her arms to carry her himself. "The guy gets s-h-o-t and you're the nurse? Poor guy."

"Gael!" Montserrat exclaimed.

"Oh my God," Juliana made a horrified face, "Aunt Montse, is he okay?"

Montserrat shot her brother a look for his loose lips. "You want to keep going while your daughters are here?"

Gael motioned Juliana to head for the hallway. He then set Ivannah down and told her to go wash her hands for dinner.

"No, wait," Juliana said despite getting up from the couch, "Aunt Montse, is your boyfriend okay?"

"Yes, thankfully yes," Montserrat assured her.

"But was he like, shot-shot…?" Juliana leaned closer to her aunt's side, "As in like a lot of blood and—"

"Juliana, go help your sister wash her hands, now," Gael ordered her.

Juliana rolled her eyes. "As if I won't find out sooner or later," she told Gael before ushering Ivannah into the hallway.

"Great going," Montserrat turned on her brother, "You and your big mouth."

"It slipped," Gael frowned. "You think I wanted my daughter to know that somebody went and shot your boyfriend?"

"I'd believe you if you didn't keep saying it out loud!"

Gael raised his hands in front of him. Montserrat shook her head at him.

"I need to get back," Montserrat said, "Dad?"

"Yeah! Here!" Thomas made way to the kitchen. Montserrat glanced at her brother helplessly then followed after Thomas. He had come up to the kitchen counter where a paper bag stood. "I know that you're probably stressed and still coming out from all that's happened so I thought you could take some ready-to-go meals."

"What?" Montserrat blinked. Thomas motioned her to take a look inside the bag. When she did, she saw a couple trays with sweet smelling food inside, many of which she recognized from when she was a child. "Dad, you made all these?"

"I had the time," Thomas smiled at her, "And I figured that's what you don't have right now. Take 'em."

"Where's my cooked dinner?" grumbled Gael.

"Oh be quiet," Thomas said, "Your sister needs the help. And listen," he looked at Montserrat, "When Rafael is all better, I think it would be great if we could all sit down over some dinner."

"Oh, Dad…" Montserrat breathed in, "That's…that's a while away…"

"I know," Thomas said, assuring her that he didn't intend on that dinner being tomorrow. "But I want you to have the idea in your head so it's not a complete surprise when I force you to do it later on."

Montserrat's smile waned the more her father went on about their future plans. She couldn't be more grateful when he has to go tend to a phone call from work. Only then was she able to breathe again…until Gael spoke up.

"What's with you?" He eyed Montserrat's demeanor with bemusement. "Don't tell me you're that nervous about dinner?"

"No, I — it's not that," Montserrat sighed. "I can't believe I'm going to tell you this." And even then it took her another minute to be able to explain. "Rafael and I are in a bit of a…struggle."

"Struggle how?"

"Struggle as in we are close to not standing each other," Montserrat said, her face scrunching, "He is getting on my last nerves. He's as stubborn as they come. He doesn't want to stop working, he doesn't want to take his medication when he should and he wants to keep moving around when he should be resting. I'm so close to grabbing duct tape."

Gael smiled for a moment before the laugh won out. Montserrat did not appreciate it.

"I shouldn't have told you anything," she muttered. She moved to leave Gael alone but he grabbed her arm and gently pushed her back to her place.

"It's just funny," he told her, "Because I bet that's exactly what he's saying about you right now."

"Me?" Montserrat pointed at herself, indignant of such an accusation. "Why? I'm helping him."

"Except by the way you describe him, and the little that I know about him, it sounds like he's the kind of person who doesn't like help. He's not used to it."

Montserrat lowered her head. Those were some familiar thoughts she had herself a while back. It just went to hell when Rafael was shot and he was close to death.

"Montserrat, ever think of just being a bit more laid back nurse?"

"I can't be laid back with this," she argued, "He has a bullet wound, Gael. He just can't do some stuff. Period."

"Okay, but working from home isn't exactly lethal—"

"Physically no but mentally?"

"Have you ever considered that without his work, all Rafael has on his to-do list is think about what happened to him?" Gael knew the answer as his sister ducked her head. "What happened to him was pretty traumatic. I bet he doesn't want to think about it so he wants to bury himself in work."

"I don't want him to think about that stuff either," Montserrat mumbled. She more than anyone knew how moments like those could consume the mind.

"Find alternatives," Gael suggested, "And just take it easy. Coddling is no good either. Bet you would have less stress too if you weren't such a stickler right now."

Montserrat deadpanned her brother. "Gael."

"Living together is no joke. You have to compromise somewhere," Gael patted Montserrat's arm.

"We're not living together, I'm just…staying over until he's okay…"

"So you're living together right now," Gael concluded, "Compromise is key. Trust me."

Montserrat felt like she had no choice, not when Gael made sense. Maybe her nurse-mode was too strong right now and that's not what Rafael needed right now. He certainly didn't need the constant bickering.

"Thanks, Gael," she ultimately said to her brother. For once, he was just helping her out.

"Anytime," Gael said, "I already told you I like the guy and not—" he pointed at Montserrat, "—because he helped complete my bail money. Think it's about damn time someone puts you in your place every so often." Montserrat shoved him back, but no one could deny the smile that marked her face. Gael fixed his crinkled shirt with a laugh. "Just saying."

"Well stop saying more stuff," Montserrat playfully berated him and after a moment she added: "But thanks for your help."

Gael nodded and brought a hand over Montserrat's arm. "Of course. And I can't wait for that dinner."

"Mm," Montserrat's brow raised. "That's still up in the air." She patted her brother's cheek and side stepped around him.

~0~

On the way back to Rafael's, Montserrat couldn't stop thinking about her guilt. She felt absolutely horrible by the time she unlocked the door. She stepped inside quietly, immediately scoping the living room out. She didn't immediately see Rafael so she placed the bag of food on the coffee table. Rafael came out of the kitchen with a mug in hand soon after that.

"Hey, you're back," he remarked, his smirk widened and present, "Get your break? What, too short?"

Montserrat felt her stomach churn. You're horrible. She felt horrible. "I-I'm sorry, I'll be right back." She hurried into the hallway, leaving Rafael puzzled.

Had he said something wrong? For some reason, he felt like he needed to go check on her.

~0~

Montserrat had dumped her bag on the dresser and paced back and forth for a bit. "Calm down, calm down, you're making things worse!" She hit her head with her hands and forced herself to stop. "Get changed, and go out and talk."

She needed to follow her own advice before things got worse. Things couldn't get worse. She couldn't ruin things, not when her feelings had grown tenfold.

Her heart already hurt just thinking that she could end up pushing Rafael away from her. Was this self sabotage?

Dr. Weslin had already mentioned that a little after Montserrat admitted to being in a new relationship. Self-sabotage was a form of escapism in which victims often tried hard to push away people for fear that things wouldn't work out for them.

"No, no, no, no," Montserrat told herself over and over. She headed for her drawer and pulled out a t-shirt for sleep, along with a pair of pants. She set them both on top of the dresser then grabbed her own shirt from the bottom. She was pulling the strap of her bra when the bedroom door opened.

Rafael had come inside to check in on Montserrat. She whirled away from him, clutching her shirt against her chest.

"Montserrat! Sorry!" In his attempt to turn away immediately, Rafael felt his side communicate once again that he wasn't ready for which movements. "Argh!" His hand moved over his side while the other sustained his balance on the doorknob.

Montserrat instinctively turned back to now see his back, hunched over with his injuries. "Raf — what's wrong!?"

"Fine! Fine!" He waved a hand at her to stay put. "I'm sorry for coming in without knocking. I thought — you seemed upset — I didn't know —"

Montserrat felt her face warm up and quickly turned herself away from him. "It's my fault," she muttered.

"What? No it's not, you're…" Rafael looked over his shoulder and saw Montserrat had turned away again. He was going to do the same, by God he really was, but something on her back caught his eye.

At first glance it would be like a normal mark on skin — almost an odd birthmark — but with his experience he knew well enough that it wasn't the case. And he just couldn't help it. The instinct to protect overwhelmed him…along with a familiar anger.

"Montserrat, what's that on your back?" Even when her back was to him, Rafael saw the way Montserrat's body stiffened.

"I-I need to get changed now," she said, or rather sounded like she was pleading with him to forget about it.

Rafael couldn't do that — they would literally have to finish the job and kill him for that to happen.

Montserrat let out a light gasp when she felt a finger gently graze her lower back. Rafael had come up behind her to see the mark better.

"Why didn't you tell me about this?" He asked quietly.

Montserrat wasn't sure if it was better that he didn't sound angry at her for it because the alternative was that he felt sorry for her. She swallowed hard. "It wasn't important to any of our conversations…you already know what happened…"

"But this is different — this is a literal scar from…from what?" Rafael didn't want to think about the movements that led to such a mark on Montserrat's skin. It was medium-sized and oddly shaped like whatever Montserrat was pressed against had been broken in some way and ended up in a sharp piece. The pain of something like that had to have been unbearable…

"There really is no point in discussing it anymore," Montserrat said, raising her arms to bring her shirt over her head.

Rafael was incredibly sorry for it but he pulled her arms down. He couldn't just let it go, not this time. "Montserrat," his voice was stern, "what is this?"

"It's just a mark, what else?" Montserrat whirled around, clutching her shirt to her chest. "None of that experience was pleasurable. Did you think a scar would be?" As soon as the words left her mouth and she heard them, she knew she'd been harsh.

Yet, Rafael didn't look the least bit phased by her attitude. He seemed used to that kind of stuff, and he was. It just made Montserrat feel even worse.

Instead of speaking, his fingers hooked under her chin and tilted her head up at him. Her breath hitched when his other hand came around her bare back, stopping precisely over her scar. His hand dropped from her chin as he pressed his forehead against hers, eyes shut.

Montserrat felt herself calm with his warmth against her. Her eyes fluttered close the more she focused on them and their closeness. It didn't even matter the way she was, her hard attitude — Rafael made her forget about it all. And without even having to speak too.

His talent is undeniable. She felt herself start to smile.

"You're okay," Rafael finally spoke a few minutes later, his voice quiet and soft. "You're here with me. You're safe."

Montserrat opened her eyes to see him already looking at her. The fondness in his eyes almost made her break down there and then.

Rafael offered her a little smile of encouragement. Believe me, he said. "There's no more danger." Not on his watch. He'd take another bullet for her anytime, anywhere.

Montserrat actually felt an ache in her heart when his fingers lifted off her back. She longed for his touch again, even if it was over the scars she would rather forget about. He could make even that seem pointless.

"I'm going to get you something to drink, okay?" Rafael said, giving her a small kiss on her cheek. "Just relax and finish getting changed."

Montserrat nodded silently and watched him step back until he turned to leave. Something was caught in her throat and the fact he was about to leave her made it feel even more urgent. His touch, his wordless help, his fondness and his care — she wanted all that. She wanted him.

"I love you," the words tumbled out of her mouth.

Rafael froze in his spot. The first thing that popped into his head was the blaring idea that he had absolutely heard wrong. Those little words — those little big words — had been a long lost notion to him. The last person who said that to him had promised so many things with that confession and in the end, she left him aside for an allegedly better man.

But the stretching silence helped warm him up to the idea that he wasn't insane. He had heard right which meant Montserrat was waiting for him to react. Silence probably wasn't viewed as a good lead.

He turned around and met her nervous eyes. She felt nervous and almost sick standing in her spot, still clutching her shirt to her chest. She was at her most vulnerable, and yet she'd somehow mustered the courage to say words she didn't think she would ever be able to say again.

Without saying anything, Rafael strode back (as much as he could in his condition) and slid his hands over Montserrat's cheeks to kiss her. He tilted her head up to deepen their kiss, not wanting her to get away for anything.

Montserrat wouldn't consider such a thing. She brought an arm around Rafael's neck, pulling him down. At the same time, Rafael lowered a hand down to her waist, his fingers pressing against her sides. Little by little, they traveled around her back until they splayed against her skin. Everything about her was so soft and warm — it was a whole temptation that Rafael wasn't sure he could resist.

He parted from her lips enough to speak but kept his forehead pressed against hers. "I love you too," he whispered.

Montserrat's breath hitched. Her heart raced about a thousand beats in just a minute. "You mean that?"

Rafael smiled at her. "Yes."

There was a moment where Montserrat wondered if this was real. "I'm — are you sure?"

Rafael had to laugh. "Yes. Why do you keep asking?"

"Because I've been so mean," Montserrat sighed, drawing away from him.

"Mean?" Rafael gave her a look. "What are you talking about?" He was close to laughing.

With a sigh, Montserrat pulled her t-shirt over her head to finish getting dressed. "I've been snarky and just plain ole mean to you while you're, you know…" She made a gesture at his side. "I'm sorry."

As much as Rafael wanted to laugh, and he did, the fact Montserrat looked pretty serious about the matter left him confused. "Again, what are you talking about? I'm okay. I know I'm a pain in the ass. Frankly, I'm surprised you've lasted this long without murdering me."

"Raf, I'm being serious," Montserrat crossed her arms. "You're hurt. I'm supposed to be helping you—"

"And you are," Rafael said, smiling out of sheer confusion. "You're doing more than you should. I told you from the start that you didn't even have to stay with me."

"Don't say crazy stuff," Montserrat rolled her eyes at him.

"Then you shouldn't either," Rafael countered, "Do you know why I like you so much? Why I love you so much?"

Montserrat faltered. "Why…?"

"Because I can't get enough of your personality. Where I'm mean — and I am mean — you're more. You always have something to say, especially when I say something first. You don't let me get away with anything. You keep me on my toes and I love that."

"You do?"

Rafael felt like this was a conversation they already had at some point. "Yeah, why wouldn't I? It would be boring if this was just one sided." He gently tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Where is this coming from?"

Montserrat drew in a small breath. "Just…thinking…" She gave a light shrug of her shoulders. "I felt awful for how I left this morning. I was so mean and—"

"Tired? You've been taking care of me non-stop. I assume you're tired, Montse. You're right. You need breaks. No one in their right mind could be my nurse and survive…except for you."

"Oh, shut up…"

"It's true. You're the only one who can handle me and keep me in my place," Rafael insisted, grinning. "You might find this hard to believe but there are women out there who think I'm a little scary."

Montserrat laughed on the spot. "You don't say?"

"Yeah, I don't get it…" Rafael shrugged, "But in truth, I'm scared of you."

"Stop," Montserrat pointed at him, barely holding her next laugh in. "You're trying to be funny with me."

"Not right now, promise. It's just the truth. This would be a very difficult relationship if things weren't so easy."

"You think this is all easy?"

Rafael chuckled. "For the most part, yeah. I didn't have that before — now I know what it's like and I can't get enough of it. You gotta believe me here." He took Montserrat's hands in his and squeezed them. "Do I need to make a case or something?"

Montserrat scoffed. "Nu-uh, you're not going to use me as an excuse to keep working."

"Well then I hope it stuck now," Rafael said, gently tugging her close to him. "Would you like some dinner then?"

Montserrat nodded. "I'd like that." She made to leave but Rafael pulled her right back into a kiss. Her squeak barely made it out before his lips crashed against hers.

It took her a second to catch up with him and even then Rafael was in control. She felt his fingers subtly creep under her shirt, gently crawling around her back. He'd found a new favorite place for sure and she didn't have any protest. She could stay like that forever…

But she also needed air.

She parted slightly, taking in an immediate breath, and blinked up at him. "Dinner?"

Rafael remembered his idea and had no choice but to nod. "Yeah." He pulled his hands off Montserrat and passed a few fingers through her hair. "Are you okay?"

Montserrat gave a nod of her head. "I will be now."

Rafael loved to hear that. "I love you."

Montserrat felt her heart skip. She bit her bottom lip, growing excited in just a few seconds. "I love you too." The words were such a novelty to her that she wanted to say them over and over, get her tongue used to them.

Rafael could see the joy practically radiate from Montserrat's eyes. He always wanted to see that, no matter what the reason was. She deserved to be happy. No one had any right to take that feeling away from her, not her happiness nor her sense of security.

#ocapp #fd: svu #svu #rafael barba fics #rafael barba imagines #rafael barba x oc #rafael barba imagine #rafael barba fanfic #rafael barba fanfiction #svu fics #svu imagines #svu fic #svu fanfiction #svu imagine #rafael barba fic #oc: montserrat novak #fic: dare to forget me #ochub #allaboutocs

18 notes · View notes

saiilorstars · 5 months ago

Text

Ch. 61: What Comes After...

Previous chapters // Montserrat’s masterlist

Fandom: SVU // Pairing: Rafael Barba x OC

Warnings: Due to the nature of the series’ plots, I do have to rate this as ‘mature’ for constant mentions of rape.

[If you’d like to be added to this specific OC’s stories/edits, send me a message

"Just be careful. Slow steps, okay?" Montserrat guided Rafael into his apartment.

"I got it," he muttered for the third time since they walked into the building. The only reason he didn't yell is because he physically couldn't do it without bursting his stitches and, well, it was Montserrat. She got lucky on both sides and she knew it.

And she knew it too.

It wasn't like she was doing it entirely on purpose. She was just so ecstatic to have him out of the hospital and on the road to recovery.

"Welcome home," Montserrat said, truly content. For the first time in a long time, she felt like she could actually breathe. She had to kiss Rafael on the spot, just to solidify the fact that they were home and together.

Rafael could feel her anxiety. It didn't help his state at all. "You need to relax, Montserrat. Please." He cupped the side of her face. "I'm the one on meds but you're the one freaking out."

"Can you blame me?" Montserrat said, bringing her hands over his shoulder. "You've gone through the ringer these past days."

"I'm good," Rafael insisted. "You might be the one who needs a rest."

Montserrat shook her head. "No, I'm good. I'm just going to head to the precinct to grab some of my stuff and the paperwork piling on my desk. If I can, I'll talk to Olivia about your case—"

"No," said Rafael immediately, "Because I asked you to keep your admittedly nice nose out of it."

Montserrat deadpanned him for a couple seconds before smiling. "Thank you for the backhanded compliment, but I still want to know."

"You are not allowed to know, my dear, because you're my girlfriend. Did you forget that?"

"Nooo, but I can still ask as your girlfriend and not a detective."

"All you do is keep talking and twisting my words and I don't like it."

"Why not? That's literally your job. I'm just learning from you."

"Oh," Rafael laughed very lightly as it still hurt his side, "You're learning from me now?"

"Mhm," nodded Montserrat, beginning to smile as she battled a laugh. "Aren't you proud of me?"

"You are something else," Rafael shook his head at her, simply loving the moment now. He reached a hand over to take Montserrat's hand, using his hold to bring her up to him.

Montserrat had no problem with that. Any chance she had to be close to him was like God's gift. He brought his hand to her cheek, his fingers brushing over her skin.

"Can I ask you something?" Rafael said in the moment.

"Anything at this point," Montserrat blurted, then laughed with a flushed face.

Rafael pulled his hand off her cheek then took one of Montserrat's hands. At first, she basked in their continuing touch. A couple minutes later, she realized he was studying her – her hand.

"What are you—?"

"Have you gone to therapy recently?"

The question came out of nowhere for Montserrat. "What?"

Rafael hated to have to ask her this but just seeing her hands pained him. Her fingers were practically destroyed with how much she'd been picking at her skin. "Montserrat, you know I don't stick my nose into that part of your life. I listen whenever you want to share about those sessions and I'm okay with that, but this…?" He raised her hand between then, moving his fingers around hers to show what he was talking about. "This right here tells me you've been neglecting that – you've been neglecting yourself."

"You're crazy. I just haven't had time recently," Montserrat said, pulling her hand out of his.

"So when is the last time you went?" Rafael asked, making it a point that he would wait to hear her accurate answer.

Montserrat did not like it one bit. He was right. She was so used to him not directly asking her about her therapy sessions, only making it his point to make her aware that he would listen and talk with her about those sessions whenever she wanted to.

"I'll go soon," she said with a shrug.

"'Soon' is not an appointment," Rafael replied, knowing word tricks very well.

"What, you want me to make the call right in front of you or something?"

"I'm not going to make you do anything you don't want to," Rafael said, "I think we're way past beating around the bush here. I'm so sorry that my situation made you feel bad enough to do that to yourself."

"Don't say that—"

"I'm saying that you need to take care of yourself. Don't stop for anyone, not even for me."

"You were shot," Montserrat said unusually hard, all shyness and smiles gone. "Don't you stand there and tell me that I shouldn't have stopped doing anything because you don't know what it felt like when I got that call! You don't know what I felt not knowing whether or not you were going to make it!"

"Okay, okay, that's not what I meant," Rafael cut in quickly, seeing Montserrat getting worked up. Ironically, this is exactly what he meant about neglecting herself. She was clearly more anxious than usual, more easily anxious.

"I'm sorry," Montserrat took a long breath. "I'll give you one point because I haven't been sleeping well."

"I figured, but you realize this is very important. It's important to you and it's important to me. Por favor," Rafael cupped her face, "Please, start taking care of yourself again."

The last thing Montserrat wanted to do right now was argue, and especially over something that she knew he was right about. "Okay," she relented, "I-I know I've ignored some things, I'll start focusing again."

"Thank you," Rafael said, pressing a gentle kiss on her lips.

"What if I don't go to the precinct today and instead go to the store to buy some things for dinner?"

"Tempting…" Rafael said, beginning to smile again.

"And then we can turn in early," Montserrat finished, "I think we can both use it."

"Yeah." Rafael at the memory of the stupid hospital bed he was confined in just earlier. He was already a terrible sleeper and that bed was made of bricks. It had to be. "I can go with you—"

"Absolutely not," Montserrat wagged a finger at him. "You want me to take care of myself? I'm going to ask that you do the same. You have stitches and you're on medication, so you're taking it easy. That means no work, no excessive walking and definitely no alcohol."

"Yes, ma'am," Rafael said, giving a mock salute. "Not like I can beat you to the door or cabinets anyways."

Montserrat chuckled. "No you can't," she teased. She was about to give him another kiss when someone knocked on the door. "You expecting anyone?"

"Yeah, because I definitely invited people over in my spectacular condition," Rafael retorted, smirking when Montserrat deadpanned him.

"...you're lucky you're on medication," Montserrat muttered after nearly losing the battle against the urge to smack him. She turned and headed for the door. When she opened it, she found Lucia and Catalina on the other side. "Hi!" Montserrat greeted them slightly louder than planned, completely thrown off guard.

Lucia barely gave an audible greeting. "Hello," she said rather coldly on her way in, which she didn't exactly wait to do.

Montserrat glanced just as Lucia walked past her. "Hi…" She was sure that Lucia either ignored her or walked by too fast (on purpose) to hear it.

"Hola," Catalina said sweetly, in turn. She reached a hand on Montserrat's arm, giving the woman a gentle squeeze. "How are you?"

Something about Catalina just seemed to ease Montserrat's nerves. Montserrat had noticed it these past few days while Rafael was in the hospital. The elder woman was just so sweet and kind — nurturing. Montserrat was very aware of the lack of female nurture in her life but…she just couldn't find it in her to put boundaries. Catalina was not her grandmother nor anything of the sort. She had her own grandmothers, one in Slovakia and the other…in an unknown location.

"How'd you know I was out of the hospital already?" Rafael asked his mother who'd already sat him down on the couch.

"I called the hospital," Lucia replied. She threw a quick, brief glance in Montserrat's direction. "That's the only way I would find out, of course."

Montserrat pursed her lips together. There was the first jab. There were sure to be others on the way.

Rafael glared at his mother. "I just got out an hour ago. Both of us were a little busy to call straight away."

"Mhm," Lucia disregarded the explanation. "Ya comiste? Did you eat already?"

"We just got here," Montserrat said. She helped Catalina come in and saw Lucia giving her a sour smile. After that, Montserrat figured there was no point in talking much. Her voice alone seemed to irritate Lucia.

"Lo sabía, I knew it," Lucia went straight into the kitchen.

"Don't listen to her," Catalina whispered to Montserrat. Of course it was impossible for Montserrat. How could she not listen?

"Mamá," Rafael wanted to go after Lucia but it was such a challenge getting up from the sofa.

"Sit down," Montserrat warned him, knowing what he wanted to do.

"I forgot my bag downstairs," Lucia came out of the kitchen shaking her head. "I'll be right back." Once again, she ignored her son's call. Rafael suspected she was taking advantage of the fact he couldn't keep up with her at the moment. He didn't expect anything else from her.

"Maybe I should go do some grocery shopping right now," Montserrat said, keeping her sigh as quiet as possible. She helped Catalina walk over to the couch, helping her sit down beside Rafael. "I don't think she'll want me around."

"You do not have to run out of here," Rafael told her, reaching towards her arm. "I will talk to her right now and get this fixed."

Montserrat chuckled. "There's nothing to fix here. Your mother hates me. That's my fault. I messed up."

"It's not your fault," Rafael said slowly. His eyes kept flickering down to Montserrat's hands — more precisely her fingers. Another suspicion he had was his mother's role in Montserrat's anxiety levels rising.

"Lucia's always been more hot-headed. No le hagas caso. Don't worry about her," Catalina said, offering another sweet smile towards Montserrat. The latter appreciated it.

"It's fine. I had to go do those errands anyways," Montserrat insisted. "She's probably one of the few people I can trust to take care of you. I'll be back soon, okay?"

It was a sticky situation no matter what Rafael chose to do. He did tell Montserrat to go take care of herself and one of those errands was (hopefully) her taking time to herself. On the other hand, she was now going to use that time to practically run away from his mother.

Montserrat could see the cogs working in head and chuckled. "I'm okay," she reiterated to him, "Call me if anything happens or if you need anything."

Rafael had no choice but to agree. He squeezed Montserrat's hand. Montserrat smiled as he gave a gentle kiss on the back of her hand. It was ridiculous what that one gesture did to her — it was something she missed dearly.

She cupped his face, smiling softly. Certain words wanted to slip out but she bit her tongue to make sure that didn't happen. She settled for placing a simple kiss on his lips. "I'll be back soon," she promised, then straightened up. She looked at Catalina and before she even asked, Catalina knew.

"I'll keep an eye on him."

Montserrat thanked her for it and grabbed her things to go. She had only been gone for a few minutes when Lucia walked back in.

"She left," she said in a musing way, like she'd known that would inevitably happen, and went back to the kitchen. It just irked Rafael more.

As much as it physically pained him, he pulled himself up from the couch (ignoring Catalina's calm warning).

"You don't have anything," Lucia remarked as she went hunting through the cabinets.

"Montserrat actually went to go do some shopping," Rafael said, watching how his mother reacted to the information. Montserrat was being helpful and yet all Lucia did was give a shrug. The verbal response is what got him.

"Not like she'll know what to get." She had just opened up a new cabinet when Rafael slammed it shut. The jab he felt on his side didn't even hurt.

Lucia blinked at the action then very quickly looked at her son. "That was rude. Don't you dare do it again," she warned like only a mother would do. And she had done it plenty of times before.

Still, Rafael planted a hand on the cabinets just as Lucia went to open them again.

"Qué—"

"Stop it," Rafael said sharply. The glare was on command, and brazen. It was the last part that Lucia focused on.

"I don't know who you're talking to like that, much less looking at like that, but it better not be me," she warned. They were like mirror reflections of each other.

"It is you," Rafael confirmed. "Because you know exactly what I'm talking about."

Lucia rolled her eyes. "Y qué quieres que haga? What do you want me to do? Forget about it?"

"You have nothing to 'forget' because you are not a victim here. Leave that for my cases."

"She didn't tell me anything!"

"Because she was a little perturbed with the situation! You can understand that she wasn't thinking about much details in those moments. Truthfully, I wouldn't either! My only focus would be about whether or not she was okay!"

"I am your mother. I have a right to know when you're in a hospital."

"Agreed," nodded Rafael, "Which you did know about when Montserrat had a chance to breathe."

Lucia looked away, obviously not wanting to concede.

"Ya están peleando otra vez?" Catalina walked slowly into the kitchen. "Fighting again."

"I am not arguing, I'm simply telling her to stop treating Montserrat the way she is," Rafael said, "Otherwise, you can forget about coming over."

Lucia gaped. "Qué?"

"My body is literally aching. I'm not going to add more nonsense stress to the situation. I plan on healing from these stitches as quick as possible so I can get back to my pending work so either you get a new attitude or you can't come over."

It was like Lucia had heard blasphemy. "Qué te pasa!?" He'd never spoken to her like that, not even at his angriest.

"No, what's wrong with you?" Rafael responded. "I'm not dealing with that and I'm letting you know beforehand. You're making her feel bad and for nothing."

"I would hardly call this 'nothing'," huffed Lucia. "You were shot. Imagine my reaction to that and then hearing it happened hours before I got the call?"

"Fair enough," Rafael conceded and would only do it for that point. It, of course, didn't mean Lucia had won. "But you're missing the big picture here."

Lucia scoffed. "And what would that be?"

"She made me the priority. She made me her priority." Rafael laughed at the irony (up until it physically hurt him to laugh). "She didn't think about anything else, no one else, except for me. No one's done that in a very long time, or maybe ever…"

"Don't you say that," warned Lucia, crossing her arms. "Of course I would make you my priority. Soy tu madre. I'm your mother, it's a given."

"Then can you please listen to what I'm saying?" Rafael challenged. It was funny how even when he was off the clock, he could still twist words around to suit him.

Lucia hated that. Her eyes narrowed. "Eres un—"

"I don't care what I am, but I will care if you keep being rude to Montserrat. She's going to come back later and if you're still planning on being here, I suggest you change your treatment. This is the only time we're having this conversation." With that, Rafael turned and started walking – with a limp – away.

"Where are you going?" Lucia called after him.

"To shower — I smell like a hospital!"

"You can't—you can't shower! You just got out of the hospital! You have stitches!"

"Watch me!"

"¡Oh por Dios!" Lucia groaned, throwing her hands up in frustration. "I have the most stubborn son in the world."

Catalina smiled wryly. "He gets it from somewhere, right?"

Lucia didn't appreciate the comment. "I don't have time for this."

"Don't even try it," Catalina said when Lucia went after Rafael. "He's doing it and that's that. You have bigger problems to handle."

"Oh, what? Tu tambien me vas hablar de la —"

"Careful," Catalina raised a finger, "He has ears like a hawk."

Lucia scoffed. "So, what? All of a sudden I'm supposed to cater to his caprichos?"

"Esto no es un capricho," Catalina said sharply, "It's not a tantrum we're dealing with. He's not a child anymore. You know him, and if he says something it's real. If you keep this up, he won't talk to you anymore."

"Am I not supposed to be upset!?"

"You can be," nodded Catalina, "But at the same time, what are you so upset about?"

"Did you not hear?"

"Yes, but you did get the call. It doesn't matter when, the fact that Montserrat remembered about us in those moments is touching enough. She's sweet, Lucia," Catalina said, "All the things she's done for us and without even knowing us — you're just going to forget that because of this? Doesn't it seem pointless?"

"I am upset and I shouldn't feel invalidated for it," Lucia insisted, crossing her arms once again.

Catalina shrugged and shook her head. "Well then, deal with the consequences but don't include me in this," she raised a finger, "I like her. She's very different than the last one – remember?"

Lucia's arms uncrossed to dangle on her sides. "Oh c'mon, Yelena wasn't that bad."

"She left Rafael for his best friend," Catalina reminded Lucia of the 'small' detail with a huff. "That alone marks a huge difference, don't you think?"

"Oh, you never liked Yelena anyways." Lucia let out a long sigh. "It's just…ella era mas…" her hands couldn't make a specific gesture to help explain herself, "She understood us. She came from the same place that we did. This one—" she made a pass to the side, "—is from the other side of the world. She doesn't have the same customs, the same values."

"Y para qué le sirvieron los valores a Yelena si de todos modos traicionó a Rafael, hm?" Catalina moved past her daughter, wearing the most disgusted expression she could form. "Yelena had all the same values as us and she still betrayed Rafael. She cast him aside for ambition. At least 'this one', as you call her, bothered to go to the hospital. Bothered to show some tears too."

"Mama," Lucia turned around, frustrated once again.

Catalina smiled proudly knowing what she was doing. She came around the couch and sat down slowly, leaving her cane on the side. "Que? You know what I'm saying is true. Stop being so stubborn already. You're going to lose here. I like Montserrat and I personally can't wait for the day they get married and maybe even a grandchild."

Lucia groaned. "Mamá—!"

"Oh, just one!" Catalina exclaimed, raising a finger in the air. "I'd be fine with just one!"

~ 0 ~

Montserrat knew that she was late coming back. She honestly didn't intend on spending so much time out even if it meant dealing with Lucia's jabs every so often. She knew Rafael perfectly well enough to know that by now, he had done something that he wasn't supposed to do – whether it was exertion or working or something else, she didn't know, but he did something.

"I'm sorry I'm late," she said upon coming into the apartment and finding Catalina in the living room. She struggled to close the door with her arms full of bags and a couple folders stuck between her left arm and side. "Turns out I fell a bit more behind than I thought."

Olivia was too kind to tell her that stuff. Montserrat stopped by the precinct to pick up her paperwork and ask (very kindly) if she could work from home. Olivia agreed on the spot and even offered Montserrat some time off. Montserrat refused saying her income couldn't possibly stand more time off and stuck to her paperwork routine.

"Don't worry about it," Catalina smiled kindly at the redhead. "Let me help you."

"Oh God no!" Montserrat exclaimed as soon as Catalina attempted to stand up. "I've got it." She did, however, have to sort of wobble over to the coffee table to let down her papers. They sprawled over the table, making Catalina chuckle. Montserrat sighed. "I swear I'm more collected than this."

"I'm sure you are," Catalina nodded. "But you've been under great duress, haven't you? Taking care of my grandson."

"I—I really haven't...I mean...that was the hospital..." Montserrat set the bags down on the floor beside the table and took a moment to breath in and out. "But nothing a good night sleep won't fix for me." Her eyes swept over the quiet apartment. "Where is he?" She asked suddenly, eyes narrowing.

"In his room, sleeping," Lucia answered as she emerged from the hallway. As much as her presence made Montserrat nervous, Lucia's answer struck Montserrat even more.

"Sleeping?" Montserrat checked the time on her phone. It was too early for Rafael to ever turn in. "Are you sure? I wouldn't put it behind him to stick paperwork under his pillow to do it while we think he's 'sleeping'."

Catalina laughed softly. "You know him so well."

Montserrat bobbed her head. "Learned some of his tricks pretty quickly."

"Don't worry, I checked," Lucia said sternly, though Montserrat swore she saw a ghost of a smile on Lucia's face. "He's not hiding any paperwork in that room."

"...thanks," Montserrat said quietly, clearing her throat. "I'm going to, um, put these things away…" She started picking up the bags she left on the ground, making sure not to spill anything.

"That's a lot of things," remarked Catalina, "What did you buy?"

"Oh, things to eat, things to, I don't know, keep him entertained?"

"Is that scotch?" Lucia recognized the bottle all too well.

Montserrat flushed. "Uh, yeah. It's for me…" she bit her bottom lip, "I figured I'm going to need a glass here and there if I'm going to be arguing wtih Rafael about what he can and can't do."

Catalina laughed again. She looked at Lucia with an 'Didn't I tell you?' expression. Montserrat knew him well.

This time, Lucia had to crack a smile. "That's…that's a fair point. So…you're staying here?"

"Um, well, I mean…yes. I'm going to make sure that he doesn't push it until he's ready," Montserrat said, "I know you're working full time at the school and, well…I want to."

Once again, Catalina glanced at Lucia and mouthed 'See?'

Lucia sighed. "I can do some evenings," she said suddenly.

Montserrat almost spilled what was in a shopping bag. "Huh?"

Lucia made another noise akin to a groan and walked around the couch to help Montserrat with the bags. The redhead was like a statue as Lucia pulled some shopping bags from her wrist. "I can do Wednesdays and Fridays during the evenings. If I know my son, and I like to think that I do, he's going to drive you nuts. You're going to need a break."

Montserrat openly gaped at Lucia. "Umm…"

Lucia started for the kitchen, leaving Montserrat behind to process things.

Montserrat's eyes flickered to Catalina on the couch. The latter made a motion for Montserrat to follow Lucia, and so she did. Whatever was happening didn't involve jabs which was a thousand times better.

Lucia was already putting things away in the cabinets and the fridge. "What are you cooking tonight?"

"What?" Montserrat had absolutely no idea what was happening.

Lucia closed a cabinet and looked at Montserrat. "Look, I'm still upset, but…I'm trying to be appreciative. I…don't think I've really noticed what-what you do for my son."

"Uh, thank you…?" Montserrat still wasn't sure where this conversation would end. She could never know when it came to Lucia, apparently.

Lucia sighed. "Look, how about we try to just keep each other informed about this situation? Maybe I overreacted — of course I won't be getting the first call anymore…" she looked Montserrat over, noticing the light flush on the latter's face. "But could I at least get a call within the same day?"

"Y-yeah," nodded Montserrat, "That seems fair…"

"Well c'mon," Lucia gestured Montserrat to hand over more things from the bags, "If you're going to be here for days straight, you'll have to cook or something. Do you know how?"

"Yeah, of course," Montserrat said, "Just because I didn't have a mother growing up doesn't mean I never learned menial stuff."

"That wasn't my intention," Lucia said, keenly aware of her mistake and genuinely trying to backtrack from it. "Just want to know where to start."

"Start what?" Montserrat eyed the older woman suspiciously.

"Rafael does have favorite dishes. You could try making some of them…?"

"Oh…" Montserrat blinked, "Uh, I mean…are you–are you offering to teach me…?"

Lucia nodded slowly. "Yes, what else?"

"Right…" It took a lot for Montserrat to realize this was actually happening. Once she did, she accepted the offer.

While they finished putting things away, Montserrat asked Lucia for one favor. "I just need someone to come in this Thursday afternoon. I, uh, have an appointment that I really can't cancel."

Lucia nodded. "Yeah, alright. I can leave work early one day."

"Thanks," Montserrat said, still weirded out about this 180 behavior from Lucia. I'll be stupid if I question it. She would just take it and hope that it stayed this way.

12 notes · View notes