Passing

There Again

Later the afternoon

It was just past 12:00pm, and Olivia has just gotten her hair dried after taking her shower. She had received a message from Alejandro that morning, saying that he wanted to meet her somewhere, 'somewhere secluded' he had said.

So they both agreed on a place. A place that she thought that she would never go again. A place that changed her whole life 28 years. A place where she 'died'. They were meeting at the same warehouse where he had her 'killed'.

Olivia has to admit, even she thought that she was out of her damn mind to agree to meet there, specifically. Why would she do that to herself? That place held her baddest memory! But, closure, she decided. It would bring her closure.

As she made her way downstairs to leave, she stopped in the kitchen where Noah was helping Celia prepare lunch.

"¿Oye, mamí? I was gonna go out for an hour or so, and was wondering if you could maybe watch Noah for me, please? I won't be too long and he won't give you any trouble, right Noah?" she turned to Noah.

"Yes, mommy." he replied.

"Sure, Lupe. This little niño is no trouble for me at all. He has been very good." Celia pinched Noah's cheek. She turned back to Liv. "But, uhm, where are going?"

"I uh, I was just gonna go and familiarise myself with this place again. It's been so long and I just wanna...remember."

"Well, don't you think Noah would love sightseeing? This is his first time in Cuba."

"Oh, he gets bored so easily," Liv started.

"No, I don't," Noah chimed in.

"YES...you do," she gave him a knowing stare and he just nodded his and bowed his head, sadly. Celia saw this, but said nothing. Liv turned back to her mother.
"Plus, this is something I need to do on my own."

"Entiendo (I understand)." Celia said.

"¡Gracias, mamá!" she went to give Celia a hug and a kiss on the cheek, which the woman rerurned warmly. She the hugged Noah.

"You be a good boy for grandma, ok? Mommy promise to show you Cuba tomorrow, ok?" Noah nodded.

"Okay, mommy."

"Okay, then. I'll see you later." she kissed his forehead and then turned to leave, throwing a '¡Adiós!' over her shoulder.

...

Back in New York

MANHATTAN SVU
16TH PRECINCT
SQUAD ROOM

"So, Liv left you in charge, huh?" Amanda Rollins asked Fin as he sat in Liv's chair in her office. Amanda was sitting across from him.

"Yes, as you can see," he said, not looking up from his paperwork.

"And she decided, on a whim, to go on vacation? And to Cuba, at that, just after a cuban lady came in here the other day, cussing her out
That same lady she called 'Mamá'?" Amanda made air quotes with her hands. "What's the story there, Fin?"

"I don't know nothing," he shrugged his shoulders.

"Oh, cut the crap, Fin! I know she told you. She tells you everything!"

"Look, just know that it's a long story, and it's not my story to tell."

"Come ooooon, Fin. Not even a little bit? You know I'm gonna bug you until you tell me, right? And I can be real fucking annoying, you know that." she smiled devilishly. Fin, knowing she right, gave in.

"Well damn! Okay!" he dropped his pen onto the desk. "You might wanna make yourself comfy in that uncomfortable chair, because this is a long one."

"It started in Cuba, the year 1991..."

....

Back in Cuba
Abandoned Warehouse

Olivia walked into warehouse and immediately the flashbacks of that fateful night started coming back. Alejandro wasn't there yet, by the looks of it.

She was so lost in thought that she didn't hear someone come up behind her. She only came back to reality when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She whipped around so fast, punching whoever the hand belonged to, square in the face. The man fell backwards.

"¡Hijo de puta! (Son of a bitch!)" the man exclaimed. She immediately recognized the voice.

"Alejandro?!" she immediately helped him up.

"Obviously! We agreed to meet here, didn't we?" he asked.

"Yes, we did, but don't you know NOT to sneak up on a cop?!" she asked him. "Comemierda." she mumbled under her breath.

"¡Oye! I heard that!", he looked at her for awhile, took her face in his hands, then leaned in to kiss her. "Welcome back to Cuba, Lupe." he said. She just looked up at him and smiled.

"Thank you. It feels good to be back," she said, then leaned up to kiss him again.

...