A/N: HEY! So, I heard 'Wildest Dreams' by Taylor Swift on the radio and naturally, my mind went to Naley and Linstead. And suddenly this whole one shot was created in my head, so I've been frantically writing since the moment I got home today. Hope you like it.
PS: 37 DAYS TILL CPD!

Enjoy!


Say you'll remember me, standing in a nice dress, staring at the sunset babe.
Red lips and rosy cheeks, say you'll see me again even if it's just in your wildest dreams.


"Erin" she heard her name whispered as a small patch of skin on her back tingled.
"Er, come on you gotta wake up" She heard Jay speak as he kissed her shoulder, moving his lips to the crook of her neck leaving a lingering kiss on her soft skin.
Erin smiled as she turned her body in Jay's arms, burying her head into his chest.
"I don't want to" she whined as Jay chuckled
"Well you have to, I have things planned" Jay said rubbing his hand down her back

Erin's head popped up and she raised an eyebrow "What plans?" she asked
Jay smiled mischievously "Well if I told you then it wouldn't be a surprise like I had planned" he simply replied kissing the top of her nose before getting out of bed. He slipped on his track pants which had been discarded the night before, and headed to the kitchen to make breakfast.
"Halstead! Can I at least have a clue of how to prepare myself?" she yelled as he walked down the hallway
"wear something different than normal today Lindsay" he yelled back as he disappeared from her sight.

...

Erin sat in Jay's car, her hands fiddling together as they sat in her lap. She pinched and pulled at the fibres of the cotton fabric of the white dress she wore.

She had originally worn a simple jeans and tee, thinking Jay's definition of 'different' was 'not what you wear to work'. He had instantly walked back into her room and rifled through her closet until he saw the dress Camille had given her for her 17th birthday before she passed, telling her it was perfect for the occasion. She watched as the trees move past the window. It was now 9:45 am. They had been on the road for almost two hours, and Erin still had no idea where they were going.

She was interrupted from her window watching by Jays hand reaching over to take one of hers, kissing her palm before placing their combined hands on his thigh.
"Relax Erin, don't you trust me?" he said taking a quick glance at her before reverting his eyes to the road.
Erin sighed as she looked towards him "of course I do, I'm just not a big fan of surprises. They never really worked out for me in the past" she said
Jay smiled sadly and looked back at her as they reached a red light "Milwaukee. That's all you get" he sighed, slightly disappointed.

Erin leaned over and kissed his cheek. She wasn't normally this affectionate - with any guy. She knew that Jay had obviously been planning this day for a while, since they were given their mandatory three days leave due to the amount of sick days they both had by piling up by Commander Perry over three weeks ago. She loved that even though Jay wanted to surprise her, he respected her past enough to know that telling her something was more important that keeping his plans intact.

"Thank you" she whispered before moving back to look out the window, enjoying the last 3 miles of the 92 mile journey they had left.

...

Jay pulled up at a large, cottage-like house. He put the car in park and looked at Erin before he got out of the car, racing over to open the door for her. She smiled as she stepped out
"Jay Halstead, ever the gentleman" she teased
"You know you love it" he smirked as he moved to the boot of his car, collecting the picnic basket stored in there before taking Erin's hand and walking around to the back of the house.

"You do know this is private property right?" Erin said as they walked past the sign indicating so.
Jay chuckled as he opened the gate to the backyard "Relax. This is my grandfather's holiday house" he replied
Erin frowned as he led her through the large backyard, the garden at the lower half spanning out up to the little docking area at the rivers edge.
"I thought that was Wisconsin?" she asked as they walked through the garden, the purple wildflowers brushing gently against Erin's leg.
"This is his other one. My grandfather made some wise investments when he was young" he said as way of explanation.

They reached the dock and Jay stopped, causing Erin to bump into him as he was still holding onto her hand behind him.
He let go of her hand and placed the basket on the bench of the wooden picnic table, opening it up and pulling out a red checkered table cloth.

He set up the table, Erin watching him in curiosity as he worked, moving around the table and pulling out various contents from the basket before placing them down. He finished within a few minutes, the end result being a cute little lunch for the two, with a little vase in the middle. Jay quickly walked to the edge of the garden and pulled a few wildflowers before racing back to place them in the vase. He indicated for Erin to sit down before taking his place across from her.

They ate and talked, about anything and everything. Jay explained his family and Erin shed some light on why her mother had made surprises not so great for her as a child. They talked about work, and their friends. Erin showed him the photos of Hank Jr that Justin had recently sent, the one year old now just starting to walk. Jay showed her his sister and her husband and his brother and his latest fling. They talked for hours, enjoying each other's company and the knowledge that they could be free to be together without Voight or anyone else walking in and breaking them from their moment.

"So" Erin said as jay put his family photos back in his wallet "What made you do all this?"
Jay shrugged "Can't a guy just do something nice for his girl?" he asked, hoping that the labelling of Erin as 'his girl' would distract her from her line of questioning. He knew his answer could potentially be too much.

Erin leaned in, resting her arms on the table as she looked Jay in the eyes "You know, your right eyebrow always lifts when you're lying. It's slight, no one really notices. And you try to label me or say something you know will distract me when you want to avoid a situation" she said, grinning widely "nice try Halstead, spit it out"

Jay sighed "Promise me you're not gonna freak out and go all 'commitment-phobia' on me ok"
Erin rolled her eyes at the mention of the apparently 'legitimate' medical term for her reluctance to tall Voight about their relationship "Fine" she said
"Do you remember a few months back, just after we had gone to the sex club when trying to bail out Antonio?" he started as she nodded her head "We somehow got onto the dating game conversation and I was telling you about the first dates I'd had, and to this day I've never forgotten your reply " he said as Erin's mind clicked where he was going.

"I never got to have a normal date growing up Halstead. The guys I dated, their ideas of dates were the of the two minute variety and were normally in the backseat of a car. I always wanted one of those dates in the movies or on TV. For a guy to take me somewhere special. I get to wear a nice dress, he dresses in a button up shirt and jeans. Casual, just lunch or dinner. I want a date where someone actually gets to know me. Where all they want from me is to talk. And at the end of the date a simple goodnight kiss" Erin told Jay as they sat in the diner around the corner from the district, still in their clothes from their mission earlier.

Jay smiled sadly before taking Erin's hand in his "I promise Erin, you're going to find a guy who will take you on that date. And it'll be worth the wait. Believe me" he squeezed her hand gently as she looked into his eyes

"I can't believe you still remember that" Erin whispered as she broke out of her reverie.
Jay chuckled softly "I remember a lot more than you think Erin" he looked into her eyes "you like to act like a tough person, but I see you. I see the other side of you, and I wish you wouldn't hide it. I love that part of you"

She got up and walked around to his side of the bench before sitting next to him and leaning her head on his shoulder. Jay wrapped his arm around her waist, settling his hand against the little slit on the side of the white dress, feeling her skin against his palm.

"So, why is this place so special?" she asked him, remembering the 'criteria' she had set for the date way-back-when
Jay smiled fondly at the memories stirring within him "When my mum was sick, she brought me and my siblings here. She wanted to show us where she had grown up. Will and Rachel and I were playing inside with Grandpa and Grandma, and I spotted mum out here by herself" he felt tears prick his eyes at the thought of his mother.

"I came out here and sat with her. She just watched the river, holding my little body in her arms for about ten minutes before she spoke. She told me that this spot was her favourite place in the world, It was where she felt the safest and the most free. I remember she told me 'One day Jay, you're going to find a girl that means the absolute world to you, just like you, Will and Rachel are to me. She'll be your best friend, and you'll love her so much. And I won't be with you to tell you that she's the one, so you bring her here to meet me. And I'll be there. No matter what, if you feel like you've lost me, just come here. I'll always be here with you'." he finished, taking a large breath as he felt a flood of emotions hit him at once. He looked down at Erin before speaking again

"I know we've only been together a few months, but you're my partner and best friend above all of it Erin. You mean the absolute world to me, and so that's why I brought you with me. Because this is the one place in the world I've ever truly felt at peace because I know she's here with me. And I know my mum would've loved you, so I brought you here so she could at least be with us in spirit"

Erin smiled as she kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck, her hands joining to rest on his back. He wrapped both his arms tighter around her waist pulling her body closer to his as he felt their kiss escalate. They pulled back after a few minutes, both taking in some much needed air
"I love you" she whispered "I don't know what's ahead for us, but I do know that no matter what I love you and I always will Jay Halstead"
Jay smiled brightly as he leaned in to kiss her again, whispering just as their lips touched
"I love you too"


Erin woke with a start.

She clutched her chest as her she felt heart heartbeat calm down. She glanced around the empty bedroom.
Jay was gone. So was Nadia.
Nadia was still dead, and Erin had still quit. Quit intelligence, her old life, and their partnership.
Their One Day.

She still wanted that. To be as happy as she had been in her dreams. She wanted him to remember her that way, not like this. Not the mess of emotions she currently was.

She closed her eyes for a minute, taking in a deep breath. She felt her blood boil. She was coming down from her high, big time. She reached in to her bedside drawer, eyeing the pills that lay next to the photo of that very same day she had been dreaming about. She looked between the photo and the pills.

They'd make her feel good for a while, but they couldn't replace the hole in her heart.
A space that only her family could fill, that only he could help heal.
And she knew it. She needed him

She looked at her phone, the time on the screen flashing 1:45 am.
She knew it was early, but she needed to do it. He had promised her...
"Just tell me when you want to come home Erin, I'll be there whenever you're ready. I promise you"

She held the phone to her ear as she waited for the ringing to cease.
"Hello?" his comforting voice filled her mind.
"I'm ready Jay" she stated as she let the next words sink in

"I want to come home"

A/N: so for anyone who is confused, basically the whole thing was a memory that Erin was reliving in her drugged up dreams. BUT it does force her to see what's been right in front of her the whole time. The ending was not exactly how I wanted it to sound, but it's almost midnight here and my brain can't think much more.

I hope you liked this one-shot, PLEASE leave me a review and let me know what you thought.

- Maddie :)