Simply Sonny: An SVU love story

Chapter 23: Friends

"Hey," Sonny says when I answer the door to my apartment. He's wearing a suit like most of the times I've seen him before and his hair is slicked back as usual too. He's got a smile on his face that is contagious.

"Hi, Sonny." I say back, opening the door a bit further, "you look nice, as usual." I say like an idiot.

He chuckles, "you look amazing. These are for you." He pulls his hand out from his behind his back and hands me a bouquet of Sunflowers.

I take them from him with my cheeks flushing red, "they are beautiful. Thank you." I say before turning around to put them in a vase of water, "can I get you anything?" I ask him as I try to quickly put them down.

"Nah, I'm okay." He responds and waits for me at the door, "ready?" He asks, opening his arm once I am back at the door with my jacket on.

"Ready." I accept and wrap my hand around his arm, the butterflies still in my stomach from when I called him the day before, "it was really nice of your sister to invite me back over. I really like her." I tell him as we walk down to the car.

He opens the door for me and answers once inside and buckling up, "she's a real pistol. When I told her you said you'd let me know she would not stop texting me asking what I did to scare you off." He laughs as he pulls away from the street.

"I just had to think about--" I stop, not wanting to tell him what Detective Rollins said, "nothing. I'm here now." He eyes me suspiciously so I quickly change the subject, "those sunflowers were beautiful but they're not exactly in season."

"I picked them up special. I know this little shop in Queens." He tells me.

"Queens?" I eye him.

He just gives me a look as if to say 'why not' and I decide not to ask further. On the way to Bella's apartment, we talk about our favorite kinds of food, music, television, and books. We both like pop music but have a soft spot for old jazz as well. He binge watches reality TV when he's at home cooking and loves to make anything with pasta. He rings up to her apartment and she quickly buzzes us in. We walk up and knock on the door. She answers it in a huff, "hey Dominick, Hi Addison. Come in!" She rushes back to the kitchen to take care of whatever is beeping.

"Thanks for having us over Bella." I kind of call into the kitchen after her. Sonny takes my jacket and leaves to put it away. I make my way to the kitchen, "can I help you with anything?" I offer.

She gives me a job to do without even turning, "will ya mash those potatoes?" She points to the pot of boiling water on the stove. I quickly turn the gas oven off and remove it to the sink that's already waiting with a colander. I pour the potatoes in to drain and return them to the pot to get them mashed.

I look around the kitchen counters for the potato mashers but can't see it, "Bella, what do you want me to mash them with?" I ask her, as she lifts her baby into her arms to try and soothe her from crying.

"Sonny! Can ya get the masher from the drawer!?" She calls out.

Sonny quickly comes into the kitchen and in 2 swift movements the masher is plugged in and in front of me, "let me." He offers to take care of it for me.

"No, that's alright. I don't mind." I say back, taking it from his hand.

"Suit yourself. Tommy gets real cranky if there are lumps in his potatoes." He smirks at me.

Bella quickly jumps in "don't lie, that's you who can't stand lumps!"

Sonny winks at me with the same smirk before walking to his sister to take Anastasia from her, "come here, princess!" He coos and leaves the kitchen.