If Your Faith Is Strong Enough

It was the annual NYPD vs FDNY hockey game and Carisi was picked for a spot that came open. He was so excited to finally make the team and was driving everyone crazy the weeks leading up to it with his diet and health routine.

The day of the game had finally come and the squad with Remi and Rafael were grabbing lunch before it. Olivia was hoping the outside world would chill enough so they could make it through the game for Carisi. She was also hoping the fallout from their latest case where they had to arrest and charge two gang unit detectives for rape. Remi had to bribe Barba into going and keep the snide comments to a minimum by agreeing to go to an opera with him the following week.

“Alright tell me the truth, why do you not like Carisi?”

“It’s not that I don’t like Carisi. It’s-“

Rafael trailed off and Remi could tell something was bothering him.

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I’m sorry if I brought up a tough subject.”

“His enthusiasm reminds me of when I was younger before a lot of hard truths came to light. Also Fordham.”

“What about Fordham?”

“A long time childhood friend that I kinda looked up to went there while I went to Harvard. I worked my ass off for that scholarship and everyone except my abuelita made me feel like shit for wanting to go. I went, only coming back to see her and made something of myself in her eyes. I made sure she was taken care of and mom. Then I found my place which I lucked out on. When I couldn’t deal with those clients anymore, I joined the DA’s office in Brooklyn. When I couldn’t get any more done there, I moved here and here we are. “

“Ever thought of telling Carisi you give him so much shit because of bad associations? Not saying tell him all of that. “

“No. I don’t want to open that door. He can be persistent when you let him have a chance.”

“Yeah that’s true. Maybe let one or two go every so often. “

“Maybe. This is not my ideal weekend activity.”

“Yes but we support our family. I know you hate hockey, well sports of any kind-.“

Rafael reached out and grabbed Remi’s hand, pulling her back to him.

“Rem, honey, it’s not that I hate it, it’s the attitudes that come from a lot of the fans. Especially in New York and this one is worse. I like hanging out at home with you, listening to you complaining about the coaching or idiot plays, even though I have zero clue what’s happening. You know some of my history, what I loved didn’t matter and any effort I made was thrown back at me.”

“Rafa, I'm sorry. We can go home and watch it or anything else. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“We’re already here and no one will buy it if we try and get out of this now.”

“How about this, if you want or need to leave early, ask me if my headache is back and I’ll say yeah. “

“Thanks Rem. I don’t stand out too much?”

“Nah hoodies and jeans are pretty standard.”

Remi and Rafael joined the squad outside, as it was insanely busy at the diner near the rink and they all couldn’t seat together. They headed over to the rink to get to their seats and when the squad got seated they all noticed their seats were near the gang unit, who kept trying to get the SVU squad to retaliate with thinly veiled digs and insults throughout the game. With about seven minutes left in the game, it was getting beyond chippy on the ice and everyone on the teams were going at each other. Carisi had stayed out of the fights with just a few roughing calls. When the puck dropped back in play, Carisi went behind the FDNY goal to grab the puck and the firefighters collapsed on him to cut off the passing lanes. Carisi and a firefighter got into a board battle for the puck, and before he knew it, Carisi was hit from behind hard.

Carisi smacked his head off the glass and crumbled. He was out before he hit the ice. In the scrum he was hit more with the bodies around and sticks still going for the puck. From the stands the squad saw the NYPD teammate come flying in and hit him with his elbow and go one playing like nothing happened. The rink went quiet seeing a teammate take one of their own out. Rafael was the first one up and yelling at the gang unit, recognizing the player’s name. Fin and Liv had to hold him back before he started a fight in the stands

“Barba, man, it's not going to help anyone getting your ass beat and in trouble.”

“I don’t care.”

“Yes you do. Look around everyone is watching.”

Remi worked her way to stand in front of Rafael.

“Rafa, please stop. Don’t let them bring you down to their level. “

“Yeah let your little bitch hold you leash. Your boy fucked around and paid the price.”

Fin had let go of Rafael and he, Rafael, and Rollins all lunged forward to go after the gang cops. Remi was lucky she was in position to wrap up Rafael and he was still aware enough to not fight her much. Olivia grabbed a hold of Rollins’ and was just able to grab ahold Fin’s jacket to catch his attention. Others in the crowd helped her and held back the gang unit.

“You two knock it off. Let’s go check on Carisi. Barba let’s go.”

“Rafa, don’t do it. Nothing will be accomplished other than you getting in trouble. Rafa? Raf come on.”

Remi continued holding on to Rafael to make sure he didn’t go after the other cops.

“Come on, let’s go check on Sonny.”

Remi watched the emotions play on Rafael’s face, anger being the most obvious one and saw his restraint win out.

“Your guy is going away for that. You don’t fuck with our family.”

Rafael turned and stormed off, Remi following him and calling Fin to know where to find them.

“He’s headed to Bellevue. They don’t think any permanent damage happened, but worried since it’s a head injury.”

“We’ll meet you guys there. It took a bit to get Raf to leave them alone. “

“Damn I hoped he would punch one of them.”

“It was us two against their unit, no thanks. “

“He’s already drawing up charges isn’t?”

“Probably.”

“See you there.”

As Remi hung up and caught up to Rafael. She heard him muttering in spanish.

“Rafael, honey, you need to take a second and calm down. We can’t go to the hospital like this.”

After some pacing Rafael took a deep breath and turned to Remi.

“I’m alright now, let’s go.”

They went and grabbed a cab to get to Bellevue and found Olivia and the squad. Remi noted that they didn’t seem worried.

“Good news?”

“He had regained consciousness when they took him back for scans. It’s encouraging. Now we’re just waiting.”

Rollins and Fin went to get coffee and passed them out to everyone and rejoined the others waiting. After a few hours the doctor came out and asked for Carisi’s family.

“Here doctor. How is he?”

“Mr. Carisi is doing ok. Nothing concerning. He does have a concussion. We’re going to keep him a couple days to keep an eye on him to be safe. He’s going to need quiet and low light for a bit after he’s released. We’re going to set him up with a neurologist for follow ups. I don’t foresee any permanent damage. He is resting right now and the best thing would be to come back in groups of two about an hour before visitation is over tonight. We can allow one to stay overnight with him.”

“Thank you doctor. We’ll come back then.”

When the doctor left, everyone took a minute to let it sink in. The adrenaline wore off and Rafael was visibly tired.

“Let’s head to yours and chill and rest up to come back later.”

“Yeah that sounds good. Bobby will need to go out too. “

“I’ll walk him. It’ll be surprising if you’re awake when we get home.”

“Home?”

“Hush Fin. You know damn well we both call each other’s places home.”

“Uh huh.”

Olivia drove Remi and Rafael to his place, while Fin drove Rollins home. By the time they got there Rafael was almost asleep.

“Raf, wake up. Five more minutes and you can crash in your bed.”

“Do you need help with him?”

“Nah we’ve got it. Thanks Liv, we'll see you later.”

Once they got up to Rafael’s place, they greeted Bobby and Remi got him leashed while Rafael went to his room to sleep. Remi ordered a pizza while she was out with Bobby and when she got back in and it was delivered she put it in the oven to keep warm for when Rafael woke up. She left a note that there was a pizza in the oven in case he woke up before her. Remi laid down on the couch and turned on the speakers in the living room on low playing a relaxing playlist. She fell asleep not long after.

The January weather was barely tolerable for people to stand, Rafael was on his way after a long day in the office.The current case was a nightmare, new evidence and witnesses found every day, contradicting the other.

He was walking back from the bodega on the corner, tuning out the noise of everything around him. He was about to walk into his building when a pained cry got his attention. Rafael backtracked to head down the alley. He took a few steps in and found a small snow dusted puppy with what looked like a hurt leg or paw.

Rafael picked it up and brushed off the snow. The puppy tried to lick Rafael’s face, but he didn’t want it to get anymore hurt so he wrapped him close to his body under his coat, Rafael pulled out his phone and looked up close by vet offices to get the little guy checked out.

Twenty minutes later Rafael was in the waiting room with a wiggly puppy, trying to fill out paperwork. He had to fill in a name so he filled in Bobby. A tech called Rafael back to the exam room and he filled her in on how he found the puppy and ended up there. The tech carefully took the puppy and went to weigh him and scan for a chip. Rafael started to protest but was quickly reassured Bobby would be fine and back in shortly.

Rafael took the time to quickly finish the form and found himself fidgeting waiting for them to come back. He had no plans to keep the pup at first but the longer he spent with him, Rafael was warming up to the idea. The tech came back fifteen minutes later, carrying Bobby who got excited when he saw Rafael again.

“He seems to be underweight. The Doctor will be in soon for the exam. We did some x rays and he's looking them over. There wasn't a chip or known lost dogs matching him. If you want to keep him just let us know if you do or if not we’ll contact a local rescue.”

“How long do I have to decide?”

“Ideally until we’re done today, but as long as you need.”

“Ok thank you.”

The tech left Rafael in the room until the Doctor came in. He held Bobby a bit tighter to keep him from getting hurt worse. Bobby whenever Rafael stopped petting him would start licking his cheek and gently holding Rafael’s nose in his mouth for a few seconds.

“You’re going to be a handful aren’t you?”

Bobby just yipped at him in response. The Doctor came in then.

“So we have a stray hmm. Let’s have a look, we will have to put a cast on his leg. It’s broken and he is a little underweight, i’d say he is about five months old.”

Hearing the Bobby had a broken leg and was starved, Rafael made the decision then that he was going to keep him.

“You poor guy. Go ahead and get him all his shots and everything. I’m going to keep him.”

“That’s good to hear, the rescues are usually overwhelmed.”

The doctor took some blood and performed a physical exam and he and the tech took Bobby to put the cast on. Rafael took the time to look up and make a list of all the things he needed and of the closet pet store to get it all. The doctor and tech came back with a now casted Bobby, who went happily back to his new dad.

“We put a rush on the blood test. If there are no problems we’ll give him his shots tomorrow. I would recommend getting a high protein puppy food for him. He should only need it for a short time. There’ll be no charge today, we’ll see what we are looking at after the blood test.”

“Thank you doctor. Will I need to make an appointment for tomorrow?”

“I’ve set you in as a place holder as the last of the day. That way we can have the results back and check them. If they don’t come back tomorrow we’ll just pull it and call you when they do to get those shots.”

“That’s fine. Um do I need to make sure he stays still or something with the cast?”

“Just keep him calm. No jumping or anything like that. He’ll still run as best he can, that’s just being a puppy. If possible I would suggest keeping an eye on him tomorrow as he gets used to the cast. He can’t go to a pet daycare yet with no shots.”

“Well it looks like you’re going to met the others at the precinct tomorrow.”

“One last thing, if you are going to let him sleep on your bed or couch hold off. He can sit with you on the couch but not alone. Not until the cast is off.”

“Thank you again doctor. Let’s go get you some supplies and get settled.”

Rafael left to go to the store for all he needed for his new charge. When he got there and started looking he realized he had grossly underestimated the ease of getting some basics and getting home. He figured he looked obviously lost when a younger woman who was working the dog section came up to him.

“Is this your first dog, sir?”

“That obvious?”

“A little. Are you needing everything or do you have some things for him?”

“Everything. Just came from the vet and he needs hgh protein puppy food.”

“Alright, we’ll get everything for this little guy.”

She showed Rafael the different options for food and ones that most customers went with and why. Rafael knew he was going to be one of those pet owners that checked into everything before letting his puppy have it. He ended up with three bags full of things for Bobby and knew he needed some help to get it all home. He called Remi knowing she loved animals and wouldn’t give him too much shit for this.

“What’s up Rafa?”

“Um, could you meet me at New York Pet near my place?”

“Why are you there?”

“I’ll tell you when you get here.”

“I’ll be there in twenty.”

“Thank you. See you then.”

“No problem. See you in a bit.”

Rafael hung up and just killed time looking at the other things just to see what he might want later on. He ended up making two more impulse purchases for Bobby. The first was a Harvard ID tag with Bobby on the front and Rafael’s information on the back. The other was a little suit for a dog. He had thought if Bobby had to go to work with him, he could look the part. He didn’t plan on leaving it on him all day. He really only wanted to see what the squad would say. Five minutes later Remi walks in and sees Rafael holding a puppy looking around at toys.

“What the hell did you do?”

“Surprise?”

“Rafa what?”

“I was almost home and heard some crying and went down the alley and found this little guy. We went to the vet and about ten minutes into the visit I decided to keep him and I came here to get what he needs and didn’t think about that I couldn’t get it all back by myself. Remi meet Booby.”

“Hey sweet boy. Your Papi is crazy. I think he went overboard.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Do you mind helping me get this all home?”

“Not at all. So you’ve got a doggy daycare set up?”

“Not yet. He has to wait on his shots so we are working at the precinct tomorrow.”

“Be forewarned, Rollins and Carisi will be all over him.”

“I know. Also he’s going to be dressed up for his first day there.”

“Oh god a monster has been created.”

“I’m not going to leave him in it for the whole day. Just to get a rise out of the squad and to try and to try and convince Liv to not mind us taking over her interview room.:

“Let me call her and give her a heads up.”

“Fine.”

Remi grabbed her phone and dialed Olivia.

“Remi what’s Barba done now?”

“Funny you should say that.”

“I was kidding. What did he do?”

“Do you mind if we take over your interview room tomorrow for work?”

“It depends.”

“Well we can’t work in ours cause Rafa has a new addition that some will frown on being in the office.”

“He has a baby?!”

Remi replied chuckling, “Not a human one. He’s a dog dad now. He found a hurt stray outside his building and he can’t go to daycare yet.”

“He cleans up any mess it makes and pays for any damage done.”

“I’ll tell him. Thank LIv, he’s a rather cute little guy.”

“You think all four pawed and furry animals are cute.”

“What’s your point?”

“You can’t be trusted. I’ll reserve judgment until tomorrow.”

“Thank Liv, see you tomorrow.”

“Does she have any issues with it?”

“No, you’re just responsible for any messes or damages he makes.”

“I figured that.”

They got back to Rafael’s and he let Bobby investigate his new home. Rafael went about putting down pads and then set out food and water in the newly washed bowls. Remi got the tag on the collar and let Rafael get it sized right and on Bobby.

After a while Bobby curled up on Rafael’s lap after having exhausted himself exploring, as Remi and Rafael continued watching the movie they settled on. Not long after Remi brought up dinner and when she got no response from Rafael, looked over at him and she found him asleep with a sleeping Bobby snuggled on his chest. Remi couldn’t help but take a picture of them. Shen went ahead and ordered a pizza to be delivered along with some drinks.

The adorable picture was disturbed when the delivery guy knocked on the door. Remi went to open the door and got the food and Rafael was confused for a second as to why he had a barking puppy on his lap. He held Bobby until the door was closed and set him down.

“Thanks. Sorry I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you.”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s been an exciting day. Quick question though.”

“Hmm?”

“Are you going to sleep with the door shut to keep him from accidentally falling down stairs?”

“Shit. I forgot about that. I guess for tonight and get a gate for the door tomorrow.”

“That’s probably the safest bet. Let’s eat, wrap this cutie’s leg in plastic wrap and give him a bath. Then call it a night.”

“That works for me. Remind me to spray down here with the flea spray.”

“Will do.”

After dinner, Remi wrapped the cast and helped Rafael bath Bobby in the sink. As Remi went to shower and change in the guest room, Rafael sprayed everything with flea spray. He was startled a bit when Bobby yipped at him.

“What’s wrong Bobby?”

He get a quick three more yips back.

“Let’s take you out for a quick walk. Rem, I’m going to take Bobby out for one last walk for the night.”

“Alright. Thanks for the heads up.”

Rafael picked Bobby up and grabbed his leash . As he waited for the elevator to let them off he attached the leash and loving on him the rest of the time. When Rafael let Bobby down, it didn’t take long for him to take care of business. Rafael let him sniff around before taking him back in. When they got back in, Remi was on the couch waiting for them watching tv.

“Do you mind watching him before you go so I can grab a shower?”

“Sure I figured i’d stay the night so I can help you get his stuff to the precinct.”

“You’re a god send.”

“Go Rafa, I’m going to spoil your dog.”

“Oh god.”

Rafael went and took a quick shower and came back downstairs, drying his hair. He paused when he heard Remi talking.

“You’re such a cutie. Please take it easy on your Papi, he might take a bit to get used to your energy. We’ll have to work on your training.”

“What are you going to train my dog to do?”

“Rafa, he's an Australian cattle dog. He’s going to need running time as he gets better.”

“So I’ll get up earlier and add another mile to my morning run.”

“That’s half of it, but you’ll have to do some training or something like it. I’d see if Liv could get you with one of the K9 handlers and have them help train him. That way he can use their resources to so he’ll be working in a sense. I’d invest in decent chews now for him .”

“He’s going to run me ragged but he’s so damn cute.”

“I’m heading to bed, I’m not going to get your coffee if you stay up all night.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Rafael noticed she did take some toys and a couple pads to put in his room.

“Thanks Rem.”

“No problem Raf.”

In the morning Rafael and Remi were awoken by a consistent Yipping.

“Raf, get your dog. It’s too damn early.”

“Oh now he’s not so cute.”

“Nobody is cute this early.”

“So that’s a no on you taking him out while I run?”

“You’re paying for lunch.”

“Thank you Rem. Love you.”

“Uh huh. Move it pal.”

“Don’t forget the poop bags.”

“I hate you.”

“No you don’t.”

As Remi dragged her way to grab Bobby and leash him, she bumped Rafael in the back of the head.

“You’re lucky I haven’t done my hair.”

“The fuck do you do to it?! Other than comb it?”

“My bangs get attention,” Rafael huffed under his breath as he went to change.

“Do you want us to save you breakfast?”

“Coffee and a bagel please.”

He heard Remi complaining to Bobby about his Papi’s bossiness in the mornings. All he could do was shake his head chuckling. Rafael finished getting ready and grabbed his phone and earbuds. He waited to use a group of people to blend in so he wouldn’t get Bobby all excited. By the time Rafael got back forty-five minutes later, Remi was ready and had a bag ready to go to the precinct.

“Coffee will be ready when you're changed.”

“Thank you. I’ll be ready in fifteen, then I need to put his suit on him.”

“He needs a hockey jersey.”

“I don’t watch hockey.”

“I know despite all attempts I have tried.”

In fifteen minutes exactly much to Remi’s annoyance, Rafael was dressed, ready to go with Bobby dressed and ready as well. They loaded up Rafael’s Audi and headed to the precinct. When they got there Olivia was waiting for them.

“Let’s see the newest Barba.”

“He's going to be a hyper little thing. Liv meet Bobby, Bobby meet Liv.”

LIv took the pup in her arms and pet him some. Then Rollins and Carisi walked in.

“Finally got Noah the puppy he wants.”

“Ah no. He’s Barba’s.”

“Barba’s?”

“Yes, Carisi.”

“Aww what happened to the little guy?”

“Not sure. He was already hurt when I found him yesterday. He can’t go to daycare yet so we relocated.”

“He’ll have fun today, even though he’s dressed like Daddy.”

Remi gave Rafael a look that said, “see told you so.”

“Leave it Rem. Just make sure Liv doesn’t throw us out you two. His name’s Bobby.”

Rafael went to put all his stuff down in the interview room. When he came back not ten minutes later, Sonny and Amanda had taken off the suit and had Bobby sitting in Sonny’s police vest taking pictures.

“This fits you so much better. Don’t let your Daddy tell you any different.”

“Umm what the hell do you two think you’re doing?”

“Taking adorable pictures of the newest addition to the squad.”

“Raf leave them alone, we have work.”

It ended up being a fairly quiet day with only one call out for them. When Rafael was able to leave at what should be his normal time, he and Remi headed to the vet. Remi could tell Rafael was getting nervous the closer it got to leaving and even more so in the waiting room. “

“It’ll be ok Rafa. He’ll get his shots and be good in a few weeks when the cast comes off.”

“But what if-”

“Don’t think like that.”

Remi reached over and took his left hand.

“Come on, take some deep breaths. He’s sensing your anxiety.”

Rafael took some deep, steadying breaths and Remi let his hand go so he could pet Bobby. Remi let her hand rest on Rafael’s thigh to still offer support. Not long after they were called back and the doctor was already there since it was the end of the day.

“Mr. Barba, how's Bobby doing after his first day indoors?”

“He wants to run around but the cast makes it awkward.”

“That’s typical. Did he eat ok?”

“He’s eating every last bit.”

“Good. His blood work came back clean. He’s a very lucky boy. We’ll get him his shots, chipped if you’d like and set up an appointment to take off the cast when it’s ready. Then you all can be on your way.”

“Thank you doctor. Yes, I’d like him chipped.”

When they were done Remi talked Rafael out of his keys and started driving away from the way back to Rafael’s.

“Where are we headed?”

“Food. You grabbed lunch and this is to celebrate Bobby is officially yours.”

“Ok but where?”

“It’s a surprise Raf.”

When Remi pulled into a parking spot, Rafael looked around and wasn’t sure of the intended place.

“Come on you two.”

Rafael finally got out holding Bobby. Remi realized that she would have to guide him. She went over to Rafael and slipped her arm into the crook of his arm and walked him about a quarter mile down the sidewalk and came to a stop in front of a Cuban restaurant.

“You know we could have gotten Cuban take out closer to home.”

“We aren’t getting take out smartass. This is a dog friendly Cuban place. Come on.”

Rafael followed Remi in and sat down taking in the environment. He did like the laid back atmosphere. It wasn’t too busy yet and they were able to get a table with space for Bobby to sit beside Rafael, having been tired out at the vet. When they sat down, Bobby snuggled into Rafael’s side. As they were eating, seemingly enjoying the dinner, Remi took in Rafael’s subdued demeanor.

“You look exhausted, Rafa. I’ll drop you guys off and get you a gate. Get some rest.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to make this your problem.”

“Bobby is not a problem. We always help each other out. I’ll drop you two off and grab one. I’ll bring it up before heading home.”

“Thank you so much Rem. Don’t knock, use your key please. I may pass out on the couch.”

“Will do.”

They grabbed the take out Rafael got for Bobby later after he rested some more and headed to Rafael’s. Remi pulled up in front of his building for him to head up. When Remi came back forty five minutes later, she walked into Rafael’s apartment to find music playing low and Rafael asleep on the couch. Bobby was once again asleep on his chest. Remi leaned the gate against the wall near the tv and pulled out her phone. She took a couple quick pictures of them. Before leaving Remi covered Rafael with a blanket and left a note on the coffee table.

Raf, he’s definitely a cutie. Yes there’s photographic evidence of you two cuddled up.