#firefighterreader

LIVE

Words: 897
Warnings: ? tan tan taaaaaaan
A/N: Here we are! Final part of What Could Have Been… Thank you everyone who kept up with the series =) It was really nice and fun to write!

Jay has no idea how many traffic laws he broke or how many red light he ran on his way to the hospital, but he can’t find it in himself to care as he parks the car by the entrance, running to his brother, who grabs his shoulders in an attempt to calm him down.

“Jay, stop, take it easy!” Will raises his voice, holding his younger brother in place as Jay looks behind him frantically. “She’s ok, calm down!”

Jay’s gaze finally focuses on Will, his heart beating against his chest.

“Why did you call me?” Jay’s eyes switch frantically between Will and the hallway behind the older Halstead, confusion and panic all over his face, tears brimming his eyes.

“I called you because her condition has changed.” That sentence makes Jay’s blood run cold, and he sees it in Will’s eyes that he must have paled significantly. “Not in a bad way Jay, I already told you! She woke up.”

Jay almost chokes on his next breath, freeing himself from Will’s grasp and jogging towards your room. He stops at the door, listening to the female voice inside and recognizing it to be Stella’s. Everything falls quiet and he hears a chair scrape the floor, followed by footsteps and the door opening, revealing Stella and Severide. Severide nods at Jay, a silent recognition and sign of respect over what he knows happened, and Stella pats his shoulder and winks at him before the two of them make their way down the hallway.

Jay takes a deep breath before he walks inside, his hands shaking as he closes the door once he’s inside. The noise makes you perk up, and the shaky breath you hear gives you a good idea of who just entered your room.

“Jay?” You call out, prompting him to reveal himself. He moves towards your bed, sitting on the edge and you rest one hand on his thigh. “Hello there.”

“Hey… how’re you feeling?” He manages to rasp out, his eyes already glossy as you adjust yourself.

“I’m feeling fine, physical therapy sounds like a pain in the ass though.” You say, making him chuckle. “And how are you doing? You seem tired and a bit pale.”

“Yeah, I… We were working on the case. Pretty nerve-wrecking. But I think it’s all solved now.” You nod, understanding what he’s transmitting through the vagueness of his answer.

“Alright.” You say, giving him a cheeky smile. “I do recall you have a promise to keep, Detective.”

He chuckles and scoots closer to you, leaning down as your noses almost brush together.

“I love you.” The three words leave his lips, sounding as soft as velvet, and you cup his face, the two of you sharing a kiss long overdue.

You look at Jay as he stands by your stove, staring intently at the food inside it.

“Jay, honey, the turkeys won’t cook any faster through the pressure of your stare, you know?” You tease, getting a couple of beers from the fridge. You open them both, giving one to Jay. “Why did you agree to even host the Intelligence Christmas Get-Together when you knew that you don’t have space for it in your apartment?”

“Because I have an amazing girlfriend with a big apartment that loves me very much and also happens to like my coworkers?” He says cheekily, taking one of the beers from you as you laugh. “Also, I have a gift for you that comes with them.”

You raise a brow at him, hearing the doorbell ring as if on cue. He runs for it and whispers something, spiking your curiosity as you go the living room, getting a look at the front door and seeing Jay blocking most of the door, talking to a petite blonde woman. She laughs as she points at you and Jay turns around, a sheepish grin on his face as he steps aside and allows you to see the dog sitting at your door, which you recognize as Kayla.

“Look, Rachel told me Kayla failed out of PD K-9 training because she was too friendly, but she was so good on the search and rescue that I thought she would be a nice gift, you can even take her with you to the firehouse when you’re cleared again, you know she’s got what it takes, she’s trained and she doesn’t have to be intimidating to be with the FD.” Jay rants, making you walk across the living room and shutting him up with a kiss. You feel the wet snout of the dog against your leg and you pet her, taking the leash from Rachel, who waves you goodbye. “Are you mad?”

“Are you out of your mind?” You chuckle, kissing him again. “I might even love her more than I love you, I mean, she was the one that found me.”

Jay makes an offended look and you burst out laughing, yelping when Kayla gets on her hind legs and supports the front ones on your shoulders, licking a broad stripe on your cheek and prompting Jay to start laughing.

“This is going to work out.” He says, kissing the top of your head and tucking you to him with his right arm.

“Jay. The turkeys.” You say, making him curse and dash into the kitchen as you fall into a laughter fit.

@babi-correia

Wed, 11 Nov 2020 22:54:48

Words: 1655
Warnings: Poorly written medical stuff, mention and treatment of injuries, PTDS (kinda?)

When you come to, you’re having trouble breathing, and if that isn’t enough, the previous events rush to you all at once and your thoughts spin out of control. Suddenly, you’re not in a building in the middle of Chicago anymore; you can feel yourself being blinded by the scorching sun from Afghanistan, you can see the dust in the air, feel the sand under you.

“No, no, this isn’t happening.” You panic, feeling the searing pain on the right side of your hip. Your breathing picks up and your hands start shaking. “I’m in Chicago, I’m in Chicago, I’m not a Marine anymore, Deft Hawk is over.”

You repeat it to yourself like a mantra, shutting your eyes and feeling the tightness in your chest increasing.

“Get me out of here!” You manage to shriek, feeling a scratch in your throat. “For the love of everything, get me out!”

Jay looks at Kayla as she stops dead in her tracks, her ears perked up as she presses her nose to the floor.

“You got something there, girl?” He asks, giving her more lead as she moves around and starts whining. “Good girl! Can you find an entrance?”

He unlatches the leash as Kayla searches around, stopping by a displaced slab of concrete. He hears a faint voice coming from under the rubble and his heartrate picks up as he crouches.

“I got something here!” He calls out as he grabs the concrete slab and shoves it out of the way slightly, creating a tiny gap that exposes the hallway underneath.

The firefighters gather around him, someone calling out orders that Jay doesn’t listen; his mind rests solely on the fact that you’re probably down under the rubble, and he must find a way to get to you.

The firefighters join him in moving the concrete slab, opening the gap more and more until a person can go through. Before anyone can process what’s happening, Kayla jumps in and starts barking and running. Jay curses and thinks for a moment before jumping after her, ignoring the calls from the firefighters behind him.

“Halstead!” Severide calls out, making him look up. Jay sees him and Stella peeking into the hole, concern stamped on their face. “Are you out of your mind?”

“I heard her, and I’m not leaving her down here alone.” He says, his jaw clenched tight.

“Wait a bit.” Stella says, earning a confused look from Severide as she gets up and calls someone over. “Move back!”

A bag falls to the floor in front of him, and he recognizes it to be medical supplies.

“Look, we can’t send anyone else in there, it’s too unsafe. We’re going to secure everything the most we can and help you get her out, but for now you’re on your own.” Severide informs, looking glum. “That’s why you shouldn’t have jumped in.”

“I don’t care about that.” Jay says, picking up the bag from the floor and hearing Kayla bark in the next hallway over.

“I’m going to be on channel 3.” Will’s voice comes through before he peeks from the hole too, his red hair disheveled and sweat dotting his forehead. “Be careful, Jay.”

“Always.” He mutters, turning around and calling for Kayla. The dog comes to him and he clips the leash back on her vest before petting her. “Good girl, c’mon, let’s find her.”

The dog runs ahead of him, expertly dodging the debris and apparently following a pre-determined path. Jay slows down as he sees a firefighter’s helmet on the floor, the “3” in the front staring at him and making his heart skip a beat.

“C’mon Kayla, find her, c’mon.” He mutters to the dog, who looks back at him with big eyes and blinks. “You have to find her, I don’t know what I’ll do with myself if you don’t.”

Kayla whines and moves forward, turning a sharp corner and pulling at the leash, making Jay follow her. His breath hitches in his throat once he turns the corner, seeing you laying on the floor with a metal rod stabbing through your stomach and a nasty gash on your right leg. He hooks Kayla’s leash around one of his belt hoops and rushes forward, kneeling by you and removing your SCBA mask, wincing at the amount of blood sticking to your face and his hand shooting to your neck after a pulse. He sighs in relief when he feels a steady heartbeat, switching the radio’s channel with his free hand before pressing down on the button.

“Will, are you there?” Jay asks, flicking the button to leave the radio open. “I found her, but there’s a lot of blood everywhere.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean she’s impaled by a metal rod, her face is bloody, and she has a pretty deep laceration on her right thigh.” Jay says, undoing the front of your turnout coat and cutting it free from the rod with a pair of scissors from the medical bag.

“Expose the wounds the most you can, stabilize the rod, and do a tourniquet on her leg. Then, you’re going to start an IV for plasma, you have it on your bag. If you need more, come back to the hole and we’ll drop some more bags in.” Will says, the strain in his voice letting Jay know he’s dealing with other patients as they speak. “Let me know when you’re about to start the IV so I can talk you through it.”

Jay puts on the disposable gloves and cuts away the shirt around the rod, exposing enough skin to let him look and stabilize it. He feels himself paling as he sees the exit point of the rod, his hands fumbling around the bag in search for tape and gauze. He quickly stabilizes the rod, watching as the gauze quickly becomes red with blood, but moving on to your leg.

He unlatches the suspenders in the front and gingerly sets them out of your shoulders, pointing upwards. Kayla lays down by your head and licks your hand, whining as you don’t respond.

“You did good, girl.” Jay reassures, carefully pulling the turnout pants down. He peels away the fabric of your regular pants and winces at the blood coming out. “Oh, that does not look good.”

“What’s going on?” Will asks, reminding Jay his radio is open.

“There is a lot, and I mean a lot of blood coming out of the gash on her leg.” He mutters, fishing the tourniquet out of the bag and tying it around the very top of your thigh. “I don’t know how many plasma bags you have here, but either Severide stabilizes this fast or it’s not going to be enough.”

“Stabilize her for now, then we’ll see how to proceed. Focus on the task at hand, Jay.”

Jay nods to himself, securing a big wad of gauze against the gash.

“I’m ready for the IV, Will.” Jay says, checking everything in the bag again. “What do I need?”

“Take a cannula with a 16-gauge needle. A cannula is a little plastic thing that looks like a cross. The needle’s color code should be gray.” Will instructs as Jay rummages through the bag, making a victory noise when he finds the materials. “There’s a vein that leads to her middle finger, find it. If you can’t find it, grab her wrist until her veins pop up more. Clean the injection site, disinfect a wider area to make sure the dressing will adhere to her skin and not the dust. Once that’s done, insert the needle right atop the vein.”

Jay takes a deep breath, getting a small square of gauze and alcohol and disinfecting most of your hand before searching for the vein. He finds it fairly easily, but his hands are shaking when he places the needle in place. He clenches his jaw as he pushes the needle in.

“Inserted the needle, now what?” Jay asks, unable to keep the shakiness out of his voice.

“Above all, stay calm. You see the green thing at the end of the needle? It’s the catheter, push it forward slightly. It’s normal for blood to come out, it means it’s in the right spot. After that, take off the needle and connect the cannula to the catheter.”

Jay does as instructed, releasing a breath he didn’t know he was holding when a small stream of blood comes out into the catheter. He removes the needle and inserts the cannula, grabbing some modified tape to secure it against the back of your hand.

“Done. Now what?”

“Get the plasma bag, place the bag somewhere above her and let it drip into the tube. Make sure there’s no air, and then connect it to the cannula.” Will says, his voice steadier than Jay feels himself. “You’re doing great. After that you can see if you can get her to regain consciousness.”

Jay sets up the plasma bag on a small ledge of concrete, watching as it drips down the tube. Once he makes sure there’s no air in the tube, he connects it and sighs, feeling a weight come off his shoulders.

He gently wipes some hair off your face, getting a gauze and dipping it in antiseptic, beginning to wipe most of the blood from your face when a loud crash makes the whole structure shake.

“What the fuck was that!?” Jay asks, getting silence for a while before the radio comes to life.

“Some part of the access you went in through came down.” Severide’s voice comes through. “Everything is very unstable and we’re doing the best we can, but clearly we can’t rush it or everything might crumble down.”

Jay lets out an irritated groan, sitting down on the floor as he looks at you and Kayla, the dog’s muzzle resting on your shoulder as she lazily licks your neck.

@babi-correia

Sun, 25 Oct 2020 22:25:18

Words: 1715
Warning: Explosions, fire, injury, being trapped.

It’s been 6 hours into your shift and there hasn’t been a single call yet, making you uneasy.

“Don’t you guys find it weird to be this quiet?” You ask the remaining members of Squad, being shushed almost instantly.

“Don’t jinx it!” Cruz says, looking at his cards before playing.

“For real though, it’s December, there’s a blizzard, there hasn’t been a shift with 6 dead hours for months.” You continue, looking out the main gate and watching the icy roads. “We should at least have a kid slipping and falling on the ice or something like that.”

You frown at the dismissal, getting up from the chair and heading towards Chief Boden’s office. You catch Casey’s eye and gesture at him to come with you.

“What is it, (Y/L/N)?” He asks, stopping you in the middle of the hallway. “You look frazzled.”

“Aren’t you at the very least intrigued that we haven’t received a single call since the start of the shift? In December, with icy roads and dumb kids running around freely.”

“Yes, I’m finding it odd but at the same time I’m thanking the opportunity to rest. Shifts have been hectic.” He admits, running a hand through his face.

“What if there’s a problem with the dispatch or the communications or something? What if we’ve been getting calls but they don’t come through?”

“That’s… concerning, to say the least.” Casey muses, looking lost in his thoughts. “Let’s talk to Chief and see what he says.”

The two of you march to Boden’s office, knocking before entering, finding him sitting on his chair with his arms crossed and a stoic look on his face.

“Chief, you have a second?” You ask, stepping inside in front of Casey. Boden nods and Casey closes the door behind him, coming to stand by your side. “We’re finding it weird that we haven’t had a single call today.”

“Yes, I’m a little confused as well.” Boden says, looking at the two of you from above his glasses. “I’m going to call the Emergency Management Main Office and see where we go from there.”

“Chief, do you mind if we do a little drive around to check on the community in case the dispatch really is down?” Casey asks, prompting silence from you and Boden for a little bit.

“Yes. Take all the rigs and the ambo, communicate between yourselves.” He says, dismissing you both.

You make your way back into the floor and towards the Squad rig, taking off your boots and prompting weird stares from your crewmates.

“Chief said for us to do a drive around and check if the community is ok.” You say, hearing the men groan as they drop their game of cards and get up from the table.

You’ve been out for a couple of minutes, heading south, when the radio comes to life.

“We need backup at the University’s Labs.” Casey says, sounding distressed. “We have a fire.”

“Squad 3 responding.” Severide replies as Tony turns the rig around and heads for the University.

The truck comes to a stop and you hop out, looking at the fire consuming part of the building for a moment before putting on your SCBA and your helmet.

“Go in and check the building for people.” Casey shouts, helping to hook the hoses. “They say most people are on the main floor and on the underground labs.”

“Let’s start from the lowest floor.” Severide says, jogging inside with the four of you on his tail. “Divide and conquer.”

You jog down the stairs and split up, all five of you heading off into different hallways.

“Me and (Y/L/N) are wrapping up the last underground floor, get everyone out of the main floor.” Severide says into the radio as the two of you reach the point where the hallway splits into two. The one on your side is a dead end with a couple of doors and Severide’s leads back to the stairwell.

“I’m taking this side.” You say, pointing at the dead end. Severide nods and heads off, leaving you to turn around and start knocking on doors. “Chicago Fire Department!”

You quickly reach the door at the end of the hallway, grabbing the handle as your radio turns on.

“All clear from my side, (Y/L/N) is finishing up and about to come up too.” Severide’s voice says. You press the button on your radio to reply.

“I’m checking the last room and will be up soon.” You say, opening the door and feeling your blood run cold when you see the strings connected to the door. The blast wave knocks you into the wall and you black out.

Trudy makes her way into the bullpen hurriedly, phone pressed against her ear as she snaps her fingers to catch everyone’s attention.

“Chief, I’m going to put you on speaker with Intelligence.” She says, doing so. The detectives slowly gather around her, curious to see what is happening.

“The dispatchers are having issues and can’t work, we did a sweep around and UIC’s Labs were on fire, we responded, and something blew up.” Chief Boden’s voice echoes around the bullpen and Jay feels his blood run cold. “I have people trapped inside and need every ounce of manpower you can get me.”

Jay doesn’t wait for anyone’s orders, grabbing his jacket and beanie and rushing out of the bullpen and precinct, hearing the hurried steps of his friends and coworkers behind him. He gets into his truck and Adam and Kim follow him, both of them looking at him worriedly.

He turns the key and revs the truck before he pulls out of the parking spot, turning on the sirens and speeding towards the UIC campus, his mind running wild with thoughts of how you are.

“She’s most likely ok, Jay.” Kim tries to reassure, watching Jay’s jaw clench. “She’s tougher than you know.”

“I know she is.” He admits, his hands in a vice grip on the steering wheel. The truck screeches to a stop once they reach the front of the labs and he quickly turns the car off, opening the door. “But I still care and worry about her.”

Voight stops his car behind Jay’s truck and rushes out, making his way towards the building with the rest of his team behind him. He reaches Chief Boden, the man looking stressed but relieved to finally see someone come to help.

“What’s the current situation?” Voight asks, shaking Boden’s hand.

“We have 4 firefighters trapped inside, we managed to speak with 3 of them and they’re fine.” Boden says, pursing his lips before continuing. “But one of our Squad members is trapped in the first underground floor and we can’t establish contact.”

“Who?” Jay blurts out, the sympathetic look Boden gives him telling him everything he needs to know.

“(Y/N) (Y/L/N). We think one of the doors was rigged to an explosive device.” Boden says, looking directly at Jay. “Many people were injured in the blast and we can’t handle all of this, we’ve called Med and asked for a Trauma team on scene. Even with them, I don’t know if it’s going to be enough.”

“Atwater, Rojas, call Med and ask for an update on the trauma team, if needed go and get them. Ruzek and Halstead, help with the victims, and Burgess, come with me for crowd control.” Voight directs, moving towards the perimeter set by a few good samaritans and firefighters.

Jay rushes towards the building, Adam hot on his trail.

“She’s ok, isn’t she?” Jay says, sarcasm dripping from his voice. “So ok that she’s unreachable under the rubble.”

“Jay, don’t.” Adam cuts him off. “It’s a delicate situation, and that attitude does absolutely zero to help. You want to get her out, so focus on the task at hand instead of being sassy and holding grudges.”

Jay clenches his jaw as he reaches the firefighters on the building.

“Casey, where do you need us?” He asks as the Captain looks around, visibly distraught.

“Uhhhh… Pick up a heat cam and see if you can find anyone under the rubble.” He says, pointing at the devices on the floor. “We’re finishing up freeing Cruz and we’ll be right there.”

Jay grabs one of the heat cams and turns it on, pointing at the floor near the stairwell, but stopping shortly after as his phone starts ringing.

“Halstead, take the radios, I don’t want to risk losing communication.” Voight’s voice comes through very briefly before the call goes dead.

“Ruzek, go back to my truck, our radios are in the trunk, get them. The cell towers are getting jammed.” Jay calls out, watching as the other man does what he asks in record time.

Jay hooks the radio on himself quickly as he sees a CPD K-9 truck pull up, the officer moving quickly to get the dog out. Jay’s eyebrows shoot up when he sees not one, but two dogs hopping out of the back and the handler waving him over. He rushes over and shakes the woman’s hand.

“Rachel Wyatt, Sergeant Platt called about needing all hands on deck.” She introduces herself, giving Jay a firm handshake. “I brought my own K-9, Fido, and another K-9 from training, Kayla. They say Kayla is too friendly and focuses too much on fetching rather than attacking, she’s probably going to be failed from the K-9 training, but I thought she’d be a great fit for this situation. Her commands are in English, and she’s very easy to handle.”

“What do you mean?” Jay asks, looking at the doe eyed red Belgian Malinois sitting in front of him, her tail wagging like crazy. “I’m supposed to take Kayla?”

“Yes. She’s very excitable but very easy to manage.” She says, pointing at the German Shepard at her feet. “I’d take them both, but Fido is a bit jealous when on the field.”

Jay gingerly takes the leash from Rachel, leading the dog into the building and finding Adam staring at him with a funny face.

“Since when are you a dog handler?” He asks, petting Kayla.

“Since Officer Wyatt decided it was a good idea.” Jay mutters, pulling slightly on the leash and redirecting the dog. “C’mon Kayla, let’s find her.”

@babi-correia

Fri, 23 Oct 2020 00:00:21

Words: 1063
Warnings: Arguing?
A/N: About the requests I have in, (they’re 17 if I’m not mistaken?) I’m writing them, guys! I haven’t forgotten! It’s just going slowly, because I work full-time in front of a screen and sitting down in front of another one after clocking out isn’t quite appealing. Nonetheless, I’m writing them! I’ll try to go on a writing spree this weekend, hopefully things will smooth down then! :)

You stop by the kitchen window on your way back, watching the road and prompting Jay to get up and do the same. He stands right behind you, shirt still on his hand as you both watch the black SUV parked behind Jay’s truck. You move quickly, slipping on some shoes and grabbing your gun from under the kitchen island, noticing how Jay’s eyebrows rise in surprise.

“Whoa, (Y/N), wait up.” He says, scrambling to put his shirt back on as you walk out the door with purpose on your step. He runs after you, his hand on his own gun as you cross the street.

The SUV’s doors open and Jay sighs as he sees Adam and Kim get out with their hands raised.

“Sorry, sorry!” Adam says, pointing at his badge as Jay reaches you, your gun lowering slowly. “We just didn’t want to interrupt something since Jay wasn’t answering his phone and his truck is here… and we saw him shirtless through the window.”

Jay shoots him a look as you tuck your gun into the waist of your pajama pants, looking at them sternly.

“They work with me, Adam Ruzek and Kim Burgess.” He introduces, watching as you nod in understanding, recognizing the woman from the anthrax call.

“Why are you here, then?” You ask, turning on your heel and walking back towards the apartment building. “We can have this conversation inside, it’s cold out.”

The four of you make your way back into your house, gathering around the kitchen island as you put the gun back in its’ hiding spot.

“We got an unsettling package after Jay left the precinct.” Adam says as Kim sets a folder down on the table and opens it gingerly, spreading the contents on top of the marble.

Your hand shoots out and grabs a large wad of paper, your hands shaking as you skim through the pages and recognize it as the report from your last mission in Afghanistan. You turn it away from everyone, knowing its’ contents and not wanting them to see, but the look on Kim’s eyes lets you know she already did. You slam the wad back on the island, looking intently at Adam and Kim.

“How do you have this?” You say, looking at the pictures Jay is spreading across the table and seeing some from your last shift along with one taken minutes ago, when Jay knocked on your door. “What the hell?”

“Eric.” Jay mutters, making you turn to him. “It’s my fault, I should have just gone home.”

“Who’s Eric?” You ask, running your hands through your hair.

“The guy from the anthrax. I’m really sorry (Y/N), I shouldn’t have come here, I put you on the line.”

“That’s not true, Jay.” Adam clears up, waving a piece of paper. “He left this note in the package, detailing how he was entranced by (Y/N) when he saw her yesterday, and how he felt angry and betrayed that the two of you know each other.”

“That bastard winked at me yesterday, when he ran away.” You mutter pressing the heels of your palms to your eyes. “Do you have anything substantial about him?”

“Not quite.” Kim admits, looking between you and Jay. “He hides his tracks very well; we’re having trouble with pinning him down to make a bust.”

“What if you lure him out?” You suggest, earning shocked looks from the three cops on your kitchen. “I’ve done it before in much worse circumstances, and it worked. And I’m not about to stop my life just because some bug-eyed psycho decided he wanted to mess with me.”

“Absolutely not.” Jay interjects before anyone has a chance to speak, making you raise a brow at him. “He’s incredibly suspicious, and he knows you hang out with cops. He won’t fall for it.”

“He also knows I’m ex-military, and yet he’s still pulling this.” You counter, watching as Jay shakes his head again.

“No, you’re not going into the line of danger like that.” He says stubbornly, and you feel your blood begin to boil.

“I’m a grown-ass woman with a military past to make many pale in comparison, I think I can handle being in the line of danger.” You snap, watching as Jay’s face hardens.

“Yeah, last time I saw you do that it didn’t go over too well.”

“It went well enough, clearly, since I’m still alive.”

“Voight would never approve it, and I’m not about to watch you do that when it can be prevented. Last time I couldn’t do anything, but now I can.” He growls, his knuckles becoming white as he grips the marble top of the kitchen island. “It’s not happening.”

“Look, (Y/N), we know what you’re capable of, we had to read the folder.” Kim intervenes, noticing how angry the two of you are getting. “But we also know what Eric can do, and we don’t want to put anyone in that position.”

“He tied me to a pole in a room full of anthrax, fully intending to expose me to it once he was done interrogating me.” Jay says, crossing his arms. “I’m not risking losing you again, (Y/N).”

Your scowl softens with his confession, being replaced with a look of confusion. Adam and Kim retrieve the contents of the package, placing them back on the evidence box as you stare at Jay.

“We’ll be in touch, but we have to return to the precinct now.” Kim says, nearly dragging Adam out the door with her.

The door closes and you lean against the counter, watching the man in front of you as you wait for him to elaborate his previous statement.

“What?” He asks, shifting as he feels uncomfortable under your stare.

“You don’t know half of what we lost, Jay. Both as individuals and collectively.” You mutter, shaking your head as you turn back around, rinsing the mugs on your sink.

“Care to enlighten me?”

“What for? It’s lost to the time, stuck in the past. It’s no use musing about what was or could have been, because it’ll never be. It’s irrelevant now.” You dry your hands, turning to find him looking at you with pleading eyes. You run your hands through your face, feeling your eyes heavy. “I think it’s better if you go now, I’m tired and want to sleep some more.”

@babi-correia

Tue, 20 Oct 2020 23:35:12

Words: 1719
Warnings: Bruises?

The end of the shift doesn’t come soon enough, and you bolt up when the buzzer sounds out. You move to the locker room, quickly changing into your civilian clothes and leaving the firehouse, deciding to walk home.

You put on your headphones and adjust your beanie before starting your route, glad that your apartment isn’t very far from the firehouse.

When you notice, you’re standing in front of your door and you unlock it, stepping inside and kicking off your sneakers. You shake the snow off your coat into the street and remove your beanie, hanging them both on the coatrack by the door.

Turning on the kettle, you lean against the kitchen counter and nearly jump when your phone starts buzzing in your pocket. You frown, looking at the caller ID before answering the call.

“Hey!” Mouse’s voice sounds cheery on the other side and you rub a hand through your face.

“I don’t know how you manage to be so chirpy so early in the morning, but please tell me.”

“I heard you had a crazy shift, how are you doing?” You press your lips into a thin line, staring out the window.

“Well, I’m fine. Your friend was worse off than me.”

“Whoa there, ‘my friend’? What’s up?”

“Don’t play dumb, Mouse. You know what happened, I’m sure Jay told you.” You cringe when you hear your own voice so cold and hard. “Sorry, last shift was stressful.”

“I can imagine. Anthrax must not be easy to deal with.”

“Yeah, it’s not. Can we talk later? I’m really not in the right mindset for a conversation right now.”

“Sounds like a plan to me. Talk to you later, then.”

“See you, Mouse. Take care.”

You end the call and pour some of the warm water and a tea bag on a mug, warming your hands on it before taking a sip and heading to your room, setting the mug on your night stand and changing into a pair of fluffy, comfy pajamas.

You sit on the bed and lean against the headboard, retrieving the mug and drinking some more.

“How are we on Eric?” Voight asks, standing in the middle of the bullpen.

“He has more hideouts than the ones I was in.” Jay says, holding an icepack to his cheek. “We have no idea where he might be, but at least we managed to secure the anthrax.”

“I thought I told you to go home, Halstead.” The Sergeant’s voice is harsh, but Jay doesn’t relent.

“And do what? Stare at the wall while you guys are here trying to catch him?”

“Halstead. Go home.”

Jay clenches his free fist, engaging in a stare-off with Voight.

“Jay, man.” Adam calls, forcing him to divert his gaze. “Go home, or to the hospital even. You need to rest.”

The rest of the unit nods in agreement and Jay scowls, getting up and grabbing his jacket before storming off the bullpen. He only stops once he’s in his truck, turning on the heating as he sits behind the wheel, staring at the road in front of him as he recalls what happened in the last 24 hours.

He turns the key and the truck comes to life as he pulls out of the parking space, only stopping in front of the familiar apartment building. He knows he’s probably going to regret what he’s doing, but he parks the truck and exits, locking it up before he heads towards the door.

He stops in front of the door, debating mentally if he really should do this or not before he finally knocks. He hears rustling on the inside before the door opens, revealing you in a set of fluffy pajamas wiping the sleep off your face. Your eyebrows furrow when your sight focuses on him and you can’t hide the hurt that flashes on your eyes; it makes his heart clench and his mind fill with regret.

“What are you doing here, Jay?” Your voice is raspy and sounds tired, and he kicks himself mentally: he probably woke you up when he knocked. “Is everything ok?”

“I know I shouldn’t be here, but I had to say I’m sorry.” He blurts out, making you blink a couple of times in confusion. “I shouldn’t have acted the way I did the other day, I was stupid, I’m sorry. If it got you in any trouble with Carl tell me and I’ll talk to him, it was my fault-”

“Carl and I broke up.” You cut him off, your voice neutral as if you are stating that the sky is blue. “Nothing to do with what happened between us. He had been cheating on me for a while.”

“What?” It’s his turn to be confused. “Carl cheated on you? On what grounds?”

You open the door a little wider and step aside, gesturing at him to come inside. He enters and shrugs off his jacket, hanging it in the coatrack next to yours.

“Want coffee, tea?” You offer, going into the kitchen. He promptly follows you.

“Coffee would be nice, haven’t slept since yesterday.” He sighs, looking at you as you calmly prepare the coffee machine to brew a fresh pot.

“He cheated on me on the grounds that he didn’t want to spend the rest of his life with a veteran who became a firefighter and who risks her life on the job. You know, the usual.” You say, shrugging as you grab a mug from the cabinet. Jay feels like his mouth is hanging open when you turn back around, a conformed look on your face.

“That makes no sense, why didn’t he just talk to you?” He cringes as he hears the shock on his voice. You shrug again, pouring the freshly made coffee into the mug and giving it to him.

“Ask him, I sure as hell didn’t ask for an explanation. I told him to get his stuff, gave him the ring back and sent him on his way.”

“It was the best thing you could have done.” He says, noticing how you’re examining his face. “What?”

“Did you clean that cut on your forehead?” You ask, crossing your arms. “It doesn’t look too good.”

“I kind of denied medical care.” He says, making your eyebrows shoot up before scrunching down again.

“Are you out of your mind?” You almost shriek, stalking out of the kitchen and returning with a first-aid kit. “You should be more careful, and not deny medical care.”

You grab a gauze strip and pour some of the antiseptic solution on it before wiping his wound gently, inspecting it up-close before stepping away.

“They tested if I had any anthrax on me and when it came back negative, I walked. It’s just a few bruises on the ribs and that cut.” He says, making her huff.

“Show me the bruises.” You command, your face hardening when he just stares at you. “Halstead, show me the bruises. It could be something more than simple bruising, you can have cracked or even broken ribs.”

“I’ve had five of those before, and I’m fine.”

“I’m pretty sure that you had proper medical care too, or else you wouldn’t be.” You grumble, crossing your arms. “I’m waiting.”

Jay sighs as he removes his shirt, goosebumps forming on his skin as the cold air hits him. You scrunch your nose as you see the bruises marking his chest, your fingers brushing lightly against his skin as you examine him.

“Halstead!” Your voice is slightly panicked when you see him and the rest of the reckon team come back with blood on their uniforms and bruises and cuts on their faces. He’s limping, supported by another Ranger that looks like he could use some help, so you rush forward and grab Jay from the other side, easing him onto your shoulders and carrying some of his weight. “What happened?”

“We found some friends during the reckon.” A Ranger replies, shrugging. “Nothing we couldn’t handle, ultimately.”

You walk Jay to the barracks, helping him sit on his bed before you kneel in front of him, examining his face.

“I’m fine.” He says sweetly, grabbing your hands. “It’s just some bruising.”

“Are you sure?” You ask, your eyes scanning his face. He nods, one of his hands leaving yours to gently cup your cheek.

“I’m fine, sweetheart.” He grins at you. “With all our plans now, do you really think I’m going to let some bruises get in the way of making a life with you?”

“Do you experience any shortness of breath or severe pain when breathing?” You ask, tracing one of his lower ribs in an attempt to feel for a crack and snapping him out of his flashback. “Did anything make a cracking noise?”

“No to everything. It hurts if you press on them, as bruises usually do.” He sasses, hissing when you poke one finger into a bruise with an unamused expression.

“Who would’ve thought!” You say sarcastically, turning back to the little pouch and taking a tube of cream out, unscrewing the cap before squeezing some onto your palm. “This is a very specific balm that helps bruises drain faster. It was my best friend during the academy and some of the harder weeks on the job.”

You gently massage it into his bruises, one by one until they are all covered in a thin layer of cream and the room smells lightly of menthol. You notice how he’s still freckled, but also how the number of scars on him has increased. You screw the cap back in and hand him the tube.

“It’s ok, I don’t need it.” He tries to argue as you turn your back to him and gather the rest of the things back into the bag, zipping it up.

“Take it, Jay.” You say, taking the bag back to the bathroom.

@babi-correia

Sun, 18 Oct 2020 23:48:56

Words: 1353
Warnings: Canonical violence, probably a poorly written response about hazmat shit
A/N: I’m sorry for taking so long guys! I’m starting a new job and shit’s chaotic right now :(

You’re nursing a cup of coffee when Chief Boden comes in the mess hall, a grave look plastered on his face. He’s not even fully stopped before he starts talking.

“Everyone, get to your rigs!” He shouts, prompting everyone to stop and drop what they are doing to rush to the floor with him rushing after you. “Sergeant Voight called me, they found hazardous material on a scene and need our help securing it. CDC is meeting us there. Make sure you’re airtight, as far as we know, we’re dealing with anthrax.”

Your blood runs cold, but you put on your turnout coat and grab your helmet before rushing inside the Squad’s rig seconds before Tony floors it out of the firehouse.

“Something went sour and part of the building is on fire.” Boden’s voice comes through the radio. “It’s not the room with the anthrax, but Squad, as soon as you hit the scene, get inside, get everyone out, try to secure the anthrax and make sure the fire doesn’t reach it. Engine, you’re backing up Squad with fire suppression, and Truck is fighting the fire directly. Ambo will be on stand-by for potential victims.”

You arrive to the scene and find several police cars stopped in the middle of the road. You and Severide exit the rig before it comes to a complete stop, securing your SCBAs and grabbing halligans before you run towards the building, Capp and Cruz hot on your trail as Tony secures the rig.

“(Y/L/N), with me on the left.” Severide calls out. “Capp, Cruz, Tony, take the right. Open radios, everyone.”

You quickly flick the dial on your radio, almost immediately hearing Chief’s voice coming through.

“We don’t have an exact location on the room the anthrax is in, but it’s in the general area that Squad is in right now. Intelligence will also be on this channel, as you may encounter some perps still inside and they’ll help you.”

“Chief, with all due respect, but I think Intelligence coming in is not a good decision, no matter what.” You say, busting down a door and finding an empty room, moving on to the next one. “They don’t have the adequate gear to deal with a possible anthrax outbreak, they could be needlessly contaminated. I’ve seen what anthrax does to people without the adequate gear, and it’s not pretty.”

“Is this the same firefighter that found the bodies?” You hear Voight’s gruff voice coming through the radio.

“That would be me indeed, Sergeant.” You reply. “Other than being Squad and having training in dealing with hazmat, I’m a former Staff Sergeant in the Navy with three tours under my belt. I’ve dealt with this before. How long until the Haz-Mat Unit, Chief?”

“They’re on route. Keep on working until then, and keep your eyes peeled. Be careful.” Boden’s voice sounds concerned, and you knock down another door, finding yet another empty room. A loud crash diverts your attention to the hallway and you rush out of the room, finding Severide leaning against the wall as 3 men run away. You lock eyes with the lankier man, the look on his face making your stomach churn. He winks at you before he disappears through a side door.

“Severide!” You call out, rushing to him and checking the integrity of his turnout and SCBA. “What was that!?”

“They were in the last room I checked. The anthrax is there two, along with your… friend.”

“My friend?” You mutter, watching as Cruz and Capp go inside the room Severide was in and bring out a bloodied man. Your heart sinks, worry settling on your chest. “Oh God.”

“Brett, we need a gurney!” Cruz calls out into the radio as the three of them move down the hallway.

You, Severide and Tony are dousing the barrels of anthrax with water and sand in an effort to keep the barrels from burning as the Engine crew douses the surrounding rooms when the radio comes to life.

“Get away from the anthrax!” Casey’s voice comes through, sounding stressed. “Part of the fire is leaking into a gas tank and it’s going to blow!”

You rush out of the room, pushing Tony and Severide ahead of you into the hallway, closing the door behind you in a mute effort to stop anything from getting into the barrels before rushing down the hallway.

The blast wave knocks you all down and you scramble to get up, your mind reeling out of control. You manage to get on your feet and urge everyone else to do so as well, helping Severide get up and out, supporting him. You notice everyone else up and moving, sighing in relief, but the clench in your heart doesn’t relent.

You make it outside, finding the H.I.T. crew with a decontamination circuit ready for you.

“Squad, Engine, don’t touch anyone who wasn’t inside with you, we don’t want to risk any possible cross-contaminations.” A man calls out, pointing at the decontamination circuit. “You will all go through there with your full gear, as you are wearing it now.”

You slowly move through the decontamination circuit, removing your helmet and SCBA after they’re decontaminated and sighing in relief, wiping your hair off your forehead. You see Stella rushing towards Severide once he’s out of the circuit and smile to yourself; at least your best friend has a good relationship with her boyfriend.

You grab your gear and head off to the Squad rig, hanging the coat on the door to finish drying, slumping against the side of the truck and taking a deep breath. You see Boden and Voight coming towards you through the corner of your eyes and curse internally, realising maybe you shouldn’t have talked to Voight the way you did. You peel yourself from the rig once the two men are in front of you, holding up a finger before they start talking.

“Let me just say something before you guys start.” You ask, seeing Boden nod and Voight cross his arms. You turn to the Sergeant. “I’m sorry if I was out of line, but I think you understand I was acting in everyone’s best interest. It probably cost you your suspect, but I think that having a team that’s not fighting for their life from anthrax poisoning is better. And if they had come in and accidentally shot one of the barrels, we surely wouldn’t be here and having this conversation.”

“I understand.” Voight says, giving you a curt nod. “I wasn’t thinking as straight as I should have been, but I had a man trapped inside and just wanted him out, and for the people that got him there to pay.”

“Trust me, I understand the feeling.” You say, giving him a smile that doesn’t quite reach your eyes. He nods, clapping your shoulder before he goes back to his unit, and you make eye contact with a short woman, pale, with brown straight hair. Her face is hardened, probably from everything that she has seen during her time as a cop, but her eyes are kind and understanding. Her lips are pressed in a straight line and you’re confused as to why she’s looking at you like that, but Stella jumping onto your arms distracts you from her.

“Are you ok?” She asks, grabbing your face and inspecting you, making you laugh.

“I’m fine, Stella. Weren’t you examining Severide?” You ask, raising a brow and smirking.

“I’ll examine him better later.” She says, winking and making you laugh. “But seriously, are you ok?”

“I’m ok, trust me.” You smile at her and she nods, resting her hands on your shoulders.

“I should be thanking you, so thanks.”

“What do you mean?”

“Severide told me you got him out.”

“Oh, no, it’s not like that, he was just having some difficulties with regaining his footing and I helped him. It was nothing.”

“(Y/N/N), seriously. Thank you.”

“Stells, cut it. I’ll accept those thanks when you come by my apartment again to finish the rest of the booze.” You laugh, feeling slightly uncomfortable with the conversation.

@babi-correia

Tue, 13 Oct 2020 21:14:36