What if Liv and Elliot had one steamy night together before he left SVU, changing his number and dropping off the face of the earth. Liv has no way to tell him that they have a child together, so she just doesn't.
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Sunlight spears through the canopy of leaves, dappling the dirt path beneath Olivia's feet with a mosaic of light and shadow. The air thrums with the lazy buzz of bees, their dance a ballet of industry amongst the vibrant orange blossoms blanketing the orchard. The scent of citrus hangs heavy, a sweet and tangy perfume that fills her lungs with every breath.
Spring has painted the Tuscan landscape in vibrant hues. Rolling hills, carpeted with a patchwork of emerald green vineyards and ochre-coloured fields, stretch out towards the distant horizon. Here, amidst the rows of perfectly pruned orange trees, the world seems to shrink to just this moment, this perfect afternoon.
Each tree is laden with fruit - emerald green globes slowly giving way to a blush of orange in the warm Tuscan sun. She reaches out, fingertips brushing the cool, smooth skin of a nearly ripe orange. A gentle breeze rustles the leaves, sending a shower of fragrant white petals floating down around her like confetti.
"Mommy," Isabella giggles as she toddles behind a blur of golden fur as Primrose runs circles around her excitedly. Both the child and the dog love being outside.
"Yeah?" Liv grins, watching Isabella. It is just the two of them this afternoon. Ivy is at school, and Elliot has taken Bernie and Lizzie to a hardware store to find some paint for their new converted cottage.
"I runnin!" Isabella giggles, pottering along in front of her mother. The gentle buzz of the bees gets louder, and Liv swats them away gently with her hand, hoping she hasn't made them angry. Isabella yelps, her big blue eyes filling with tears as she holds her arm. "Bad," she cries, looking at her mother.
A bee has stung the small child, and it is still stuck in her arm by the stinger. "Oh, baby girl," Liv gasps, bending down to her daughter and pulling the bee out of her arm. "Shall we go home?" Liv suggests, picking Isabella up and cuddling her as she cries. "It's okay, baby."
They turn around and start walking back through the orchards, Primrose following slowly– unhappy that her daily walk has been cut short. Isabella sniffles in her mother's arms as they walk. "You're getting heavy," Liv notes, approaching the house. "Too heavy for mommy to keep carrying," she says as she walks in the front door. She removes Izzy's coat and sits her on the sofa, her eyes red from crying.
"Do you want a drink?" Liv asks, smiling at her daughter, who nods tiredly. "Okay, I'll be right back," she says breathlessly, the twenty minute walk back, and the heaviness of her daughter has taken it out of her. That and being eighteen weeks pregnant.
"Mommy, I sick," Isabella says, and Liv hears her retching. She runs with the cup of water and finds her daughter has vomited on herself.
"Oh sweetheart, okay, let's take your clothes off," Liv smiles, pulling her sweater over her head. As she does so, she notices that Isabella's lips are swelling, and her eyes look puffier, way puffier than from just crying. "Izzy, do you feel okay?" Liv asks, starting to worry as she gets her phone out and googles the symptoms for anaphylaxis.
"I, no feel good," Isabella gasps, grabbing her throat. Liv panics and dials the number for the Italian emergency services, 112. She knows basic medical training, and she remembers things from her police training. But she doesn't know what to do right now. She calls and tells them to meet her at the local doctors surgery. It is a short drive, and she thinks she can make it there much quicker than the ambulance will make it to her.
Olivia grabs a half-naked Isabella, who is gasping, and she grabs her car keys. She shakily straps her daughter into her carseat and calls Dr Rossi, her GP and good friend. She explains the situation as she drives, and she drives as fast as she can down the dirt track from their house to the main road. When she arrives, Dr. Rossi is already waiting outside for her. Liv doesn't know what to do. Everything seems to blur into itself as she watches the doctor unstrap her daughter and carry her inside.
Liv sits in the car for a moment before the ambulance sirens snap her out of her trance. She gets out of the car and follows the paramedics inside, watching as Dr Rossi administers an epi pen, and Isabella gasps for air, her face bright red.
Tears spill down Liv's face as she shakily calls Elliot.
"Hey," he answers.
"El, something's happened to Izzy, you need to meet us at the hospital," she says, watching as the paramedics check the two year old and decide she should get checked out in the hospital just to be safe.
Liv watches them load her into the ambulance before they help her up, too. She can't process what is happening. She is so scared right now.
"Signora, signora. Quello che è successo?" the young female asks, looking at Liv as she stares at her helpless daughter. She is asking what happened, but Liv doesn't know how to explain. She considers herself fluent in Italian, but right now, she can't find the words. "Signora?"
"Sorry," Liv says, "I don't know what happened. Non lo so."
She reaches her shaky hand out to Isabella, the small child is crying, and she looks terrified. "Mommy is here, baby girl, Mommy is here."
When they arrive at the hospital, a nurse takes over and begins to check Isabella. She also asks what happens, but Liv can't speak.
"Liv!" Elliot calls, running over with Elizabeth and Bernie behind him. She immediately hugs her husband and bursts into tears.
"I thought she was going to die, El," she sobs. "She got stung by a bee and..." she gasps, tears soaking his shirt.
"Signore, sa cosa è successo?" the nurse asks Elliot. Did he know what happened.
"A bee?" Elliot asks Liv, and she nods. "Uh, ape," he says, remembering how funny Ivy thought it was that a bee was called an ape in Italian. The nurse nods in understanding and goes back to Isabella, who has Bernie and Lizzie by her side now.
"She got stung by a bee?" He asks, rocking his wife in his arms. "Then what happened?"
"Her eyes and lips... they got puffy... a-and she couldn't breathe..." Liv cries, holding Elliot tight. She isn't copying well. Nothing like this has ever happened before. Ivy isn't allergic to anything, and she didn't know that Isabella was. She feels like she has failed as a mother.
"This isn't your fault," Elliot says, kissing her forehead. "You didn't know."
"She couldn't breathe," Liv sniffles again. "She needed my help, and I couldn't do anything."
"You got her help," Bernie says, coming over and rubbing Liv's back. "She's okay. She's hungry," she smirks. "Like nothing happened."
"The nurse said she will get an epipen for us to take home, show you how to use it, and then we can go," Lizzie explains. "Izzy is fine, Liv."
Liv wipes her eyes, looking at Elliot. "I'm sorry," she sniffles.
"Olivia, you did nothing wrong," Elliot says, cupping her cheeks and looking into her eyes. "She is okay. This is going to be okay. Let's go and see her."
Liv nods, taking Elliot's hand and walking with him to their daughter's bed.
"What wrong, mommy?" she asks, completely fine– unphased by everything that has happened.
"Nothing baby," Liv smiles, brushing Isabella's damp hair away from her face and kissing her chubby cheek. "I love you."
"I love you too, Mommy!" she grins. "Can I have ice cream?"
Olivia laughs, stroking her daughters face and looking at Elliot. "Sure thing, princess," she says, feeling instantly calmer.
