Author's Note: Apologies for the sucky summary. So I probably shouldn't have written this, but since the promo for last week's episode, I started getting some ideas for a story playing off of the current plot. Then with the actual episode last week and the promo for this week, I got even more ideas, and spending yesterday writing this was a lot more appealing than cleaning my apartment. Wow, typing that out I feel like I grew into an irresponsible adult. I cooked dinner last night, that at least counts for something, right?

I'm digressing though. The point is this story is based on 6x16 The One That Matters Most, and I've pulled something from the promo for 6x17 Put White On Me. At least one of my ideas also comes from the press release for a future episode so depending on how long it takes me to write and post the rest of this, there may be more spoilers. Consider yourself warned.

I was originally thinking I could turn these ideas into a one shot, but as usual it it turned out to be way longer than I was expecting. I was aiming to have the whole story be not much longer than this first part. What can I say? I don't know how to be anything less than verbose. I really wanted to post something before what happens on Thursday makes this whole thing OBE. So between that and the fact that I'm not done yet, it is definitely not a one shot any more. At this point I picture this being probably a three part story, but we'll see. I'm trying to keep this from getting too crazy and taking too much attention away from Worth Fighting For.

I should mention that this first part isn't like what I typically write. It's very much pulled straight from the show with my adding thoughts and narrative to establish the background for this world I'm creating. No plagiarism or anything is intended. I just didn't think this would work so well if I started after the last episode. And I added in a few extra Dawsey scenes. Things that I'd like to imagine happened and that we just didn't get to see them.

I think that does it for me so enjoy, and when you get to the end, please let me know what you think.

Chapter One

Gabby leaned against the doorway to Matt's office, waiting for him before shift started. Cruz had called last night, worried after Otis seemed to have trouble feeling and moving his toes. After getting off the phone, they'd decided that as Otis's captain, Matt would go see him before shift this morning. Gabby had wanted to join him, but they'd been concerned that they could overwhelm Otis, that if too many people showed up he'd see it as them being worried and worry even more so she'd reluctantly sent Matt off on his own this morning.

"Hey, how's Otis?" Gabby asked as she saw him approaching. When he reached her, she handed him a cup of coffee and a bagel, knowing he hadn't had breakfast at home.

"Thanks," Matt offered her a small smile as he took the food before answering her question.

"They don't know what's going on yet," he explained as he sat down on his bed and motioned for his wife to join him. "They're running tests this morning, and Dr. Choi has a plan. As Hermann and I told Otis, we just have to trust that they'll figure this out and think positively."

"Hermann was there?" Gabby questioned. Maybe she could have gone with Matt this morning after all.

"Yeah," Matt replied as he took a bite of his bagel. "He didn't know how about the numbness or anything. Just wanted to stop by before shift."

"You think Otis would like it if Brett and I stopped by when we're at Med today?" she figured Matt would have some read on Otis's mood.

"I'm sure he would," Matt answered.

They sat in silence for a minute, Matt eating and Gabby just looking at him. Her thoughts were on Otis, but she wasn't blind to what appeared to be going on with Matt.

"What's got you thinking so hard?" she asked.

"Just thinking about how shift is going to go. The floater who's going to be filling in for Otis is starting today. No one's going to want this guy here, not with everything that's happened. It would be one thing if this guy was filling in while Otis had the flu or something, but with Otis getting shot, nearly dying, and now maybe being paralyzed, everyone is going to resent the guy. We haven't exactly had the best luck with floaters, and now this. Whole thing is just one big powder keg," Matt explained. It did feel good to get it off his chest.

"And you will handle it like you always do. You're a great captain Matt. I'm not just saying that because I love you. I saw it, I experienced it, when I was on Truck. You're a good leader, and your men will gladly follow you. They respect you so you set the tone, you let them know that as much as this whole thing sucks, they need to be professional, and they will be. I have complete faith in you," she leaned in and gave him a quick kiss. "You're gonna make me proud today. I know you are."

Matt simply offered her a small smile in response.

"Roll call will be starting in a couple minutes. We should get going," Matt took the last sip of his coffee.

"After you Captain," Gabby teased.

Matt did get off the bed though. He threw his coffee cup and the bag from the bagel in the trash and paused, waiting for Gabby. Getting off the bed, she followed him out of his office. They walked together through the bunk room and towards the briefing room, trying to distract themselves from everything that was going on.

Gabby stood next to Matt while Boden made his announcements. She hadn't been looking for the floater, and she didn't notice him standing there by the Chief; she didn't really want whoever the guy was here anymore than the rest of the house. She understood why Matt had been worried about how the house would react. To her, this guy represented what had happened to Otis. She imagined that was true for the rest of the house too. Still, she was not going to let this get out of control for her husband. She'd support him as he dealt with however this went. She would put her resentment aside, put on a fake smile, and welcome some stranger into 51 for a few shifts for Matt and because deep down she knew it was the right thing to do. It didn't mean they cared about Otis any less.

Her lack of awareness came back to bite her when Boden did introduce the floater. She was completely caught off guard at the sight of the familiar face standing there. She knew they both worked for the CFD and that meant there was a chance they'd run into each other from time to time despite the fact that as far as she knew they worked on opposite sides of the city and were unlikely to wind up on the same call. But she certainly hadn't expected to find herself working in the same house with him again. Last she'd heard of him, which was admittedly years ago, he was firmly entrenched at Firehouse 129, and she'd never imagined he'd wind up a floater. If anything, she thought he'd rise up the ranks. He must have done something to really piss someone off.

"Gabby Dawson," Jake Cordova, the floater, said with a smile as he approached her.

Despite his outward appearance, on the inside he was a little tentative. He wasn't quite sure how she'd react to him, and honestly, he wouldn't be surprised if she decked him. She had last time they'd seen each other, and she'd always been hot headed. He hoped that hadn't changed over the years. Her hot headed nature had been so different from Diana's calm demeanor, and he'd found it intriguing back when they first met. It was one of the first things that attracted him to her. That and the fact that on her first day at 129, he'd walked into the locker room unaware that she'd gotten puked on during her first call and needed to change. She'd never known he'd walked in while her chest was covered in nothing but a blue lace bra that barely covered anything. Little Jake had really liked the sight of it though, and by the end of that shift he was determined to have her.

Looking at her now, he couldn't help but think that she was even more beautiful than he remembered. Once she was out of his life, he'd tried not to think about her, but he'd failed, especially after his divorce. As things started to fall apart with Diana, he'd come to think he'd only married her because while Gabby had found out about Diana, Diana had never found out about Gabby. Thus, Gabby became the one that got away, and he found himself thinking about her more and more, wondering how different his life would be if he'd made different choices back then. Now here she was standing in front of him. It was as if fate was giving him a second chance, and he was going to seize it. He'd have to do everything he could to make sure this wasn't just some other temporary assignment. He needed to stay at 51. Not just because he needed something permanent if he was going to rebuild his career, but because he knew it would take time to get her back in his bed.

"Hey. Good to see you again Cordova," Gabby replied as she put on a smile and acted like she was glad to see him. With everything that was going on, she figured they'd get through these couple of shifts easier if the guys didn't have another reason to hate him.

Truth be told though, she wasn't really sure how she felt in this moment. She would have been perfectly happy never seeing him again, but she found that after all this time, the anger she felt towards him had dulled significantly. She supposed she shouldn't be surprised by that. He hadn't been more than a fleeting thought for years, and she was really happy. Her life had turned out for the best, and she wouldn't have this life if they'd actually worked out. What she did know though was that she felt a perverse form of pleasure when she noticed he wasn't wearing a wedding ring. She'd kept in touch with one of the medics at 129 who'd supervised her training shifts. While the woman had no idea that anything had happened between Gabby and Jake, about a year after she'd ended things with him, the woman had mentioned that he and Diana were engaged. She was glad to see that either the engagement or marriage hadn't worked out. It wasn't that she wanted him back. Even if she wasn't very happily married, she wouldn't want him back. Not after what he'd done to her and especially what he'd done to Diana. She couldn't imagine any circumstance where she'd want to be his girlfriend again, maybe not even his friend. It was more that after all that, she didn't think he deserved a happy ending, and while she'd never met Diana, she had to imagine the woman deserved better.

Feeling Matt's eyes on her, she knew he was wondering how she knew the floater.

"We worked together for a few shifts when I was right out of training," she explained. It may not be the whole truth, but it was still true. She told herself it was okay to leave it at that. She wasn't about to reveal her dirty laundry in front of the whole house, and Matt wouldn't want her to. Besides, their relationship wasn't a big deal. They'd ended long ago, and she certainly didn't still have feelings for the guy. That had ended the moment she'd found out the truth. And he was probably only going to be here for a few days. Then he'd be out of her life again.

"So what can you tell us about the floater?" Brett asked as she, Gabby, and Casey sat at the long table in the common room right after he'd walked into the room. While they hadn't seen much so far, Cordova certainly seemed to be rubbing people the wrong way, but she couldn't be sure how much of it was the circumstances that surrounded his arrival and how much of it was him.

"Ummm…he's a good guy from what I remember. Bit of a cowboy," Gabby replied because she figured it was the right thing to say. She knew he was a good firefighter. Maybe she should have just said that, but she didn't want to contribute to the tension. The more she played her response over in her head though, the more she decided it was most likely true. Sure, he'd turned out to be a lousy boyfriend, but she had no reason to believe the things that had attracted her to him in the first place were an act. The man she'd liked had been real. She believed that, and as long as it was true, he was a good guy.

Her eyes drifted towards Matt. Sure, they'd had their problems over the years, but he had been a good boyfriend. He was a good husband, and he was definitely a good guy. He was the complete package, and he was hers. When she had all that, was there really any point to holding onto a grudge from the past? If Jake wasn't here, what happened between them wouldn't be taking any of her energy so why waste energy on it now? Her energy would be better spent on the people she actually cared about. She decided she'd forget their past and try to make sure he felt welcome at 51 for however long he was here.

"So you two are married?" Jake asked as he stood next to Gabby, getting lunch, after 51 returned from the hospital. He'd heard rumblings about their union this morning and needed it confirmed so he knew what exactly he was dealing with. He just hoped it came off as him checking in with an old acquaintance.

"Yeah. Yeah. We got hitched a year ago," Gabby was beaming as she turned towards Matt and discovered a smile that matched her own. It may have been a little over a year, but there was a part of her that still couldn't believe that this was her life and Matt Casey was actually her husband. That didn't make her feel any less proud or happy to acknowledge it though.

"Guess they weren't kidding when they said the gang at 51 is close," Jake tried to play it off, act like he didn't really care, like the words didn't fill him with jealously and resentment. Here was Captain Casey, acting all high and mighty, not giving him anything meaningful to do. That guy had not just the career that should have been his, but the girl that should have been his. It was completely unfair. He was one of the best; he should have been fast tracked. He would have been if it hadn't been for one mistake, and it wasn't even his fault. How was he supposed to know that the woman he'd met at a bar one night five years ago, the woman who Diana had caught him with, was a week away from marrying the deputy fire commissioner's son. One day he was on the verge of making lieutenant and the next he was being told he'd supposedly failed the exam and was getting bounced from 129 and into the floater pool for some made up infraction. None of that would have happened if he'd just had Gabby. He wouldn't have felt a need to get well his needs met elsewhere. He didn't have Gabby though. Casey did, and he decided he hated him for it. Well, that and not taking him seriously when he'd asked not to be sidelined next time. He promised he'd knock the captain down a few pegs before he was done here.

It hurt a little. Part of him had been expecting her to say no, that he'd misunderstood. It's not that he'd been expecting her to wait all this time for him, especially when she was the one to end it, but it took away the fantasy that she saw something in him, that she felt enough for him, that she cast away her criteria for him. He'd had to ask her out four times over the two weeks she was doing her training shifts at 129 before she said yes. The first three she'd turned him down claiming that she had no interest in workplace romances. He'd believed her, especially when she'd finally said yes on her last day even if she'd claimed she was only agreeing to the date to get him to stop asking her. And it's not like that had been their only date or the end of it. In fact, on their third date, she'd admitted that the fact that they both worked for the CFD made her a little nervous. It had worked to his advantage though when it gave him grounds to suggest they keep their relationship secret. He'd assumed that once she'd ended things with him, she'd kept her romantic life out of the CFD, but she'd clearly either no longer held that view or made an exception for Casey.

It didn't concern him though. Sure, the fact that she was married complicated things, but it was an obstacle he knew he'd be able to overcome. He'd still get her back. She hadn't been able to resist him the first time and he couldn't imagine she'd be able to now.

"Don't take it personally," Gabby told Jake. Chief had just informed everyone that Otis needed at least two months of rehab before he could be reinstated and that Cordova was now on 81. The house had understandably not reacted well, but she felt bad for the guy. This was not an easy situation to walk into. Things would have probably gone more smoothly if someone else had been here for a few shifts before he took over, like when Brett took Shay's spot or Mills took Andy Darden's, but it was what it was.

"I know. I'm sorry about Otis," he said, taking note of how Gabby was sticking up for him. That had to be a good sign so he turned back towards her. Before he could say anything else though, Casey was clearing his throat and standing up.

"Okay. Before we start feeling sorry for ourselves, let's remember, this could have been a lot worse. Otis is okay so let's just be thankful for that. And I know it hurts to see him laid up like this cause we're a family," Casey began.

Jake listened, trying to act like he cared. He didn't though. What he cared about was the look of pride and encouragement that filled Gabby's face as her husband spoke, a look he wished was directed at him. There was definitely a sense of jealousy building within him.

"My point is Otis isn't going to be around for a while so we need to make sure we show up, give 100%...and make sure we show up and give 100%," Casey started to stumble and Jake had to do everything he could not to smirk.

"You said that already," Cruz pointed out.

"Yeah I did…what really matters," Casey turned to Boden for help, unable to finish the speech.

Now Jake was full on smiling inside. This guy wasn't all that. How much competition could he really be? He was too caught up in his own glee to notice that the look of love never left Gabby's eyes.

The pizza had yet to arrive when Gabby saw Matt head out of the bullpen and past the common room. Wanting to talk to him, she got up from her spot at the table and followed him. She was about to call out to him when he passed the bathrooms and turned the corner. Realizing he was likely heading towards his office, she figured she'd wait and just join him there. They could speak more privately in there anyways.

When she reached Matt's office, she found him sitting in his chair and picking up his pen. He must have just sat down.

"Hey," she called as she walked into his office.

"Hi," Matt smiled as he looked up and dropped his pen.

"I'm proud of you," Gabby said as she leaned against his desk.

"For what?" Matt wasn't following.

"For what you said in there, the way you stepped up to calm things down after Chief's announcement. Things could have gotten ugly," she explained.

"Cause I did such a great job. Couldn't even figure out what to say in the end. If I didn't know the guys so well, I would have thought I was making a fool of myself," he protested.

"Hey, there is no way anyone, even if it wasn't just the guys, would have thought you made a fool of yourself," Gabby took his hand. "So you stumbled a little towards the end. Everyone appreciated what you said and that you were trying to rally everyone. I know they did. You started off strong, and you'll get the hang of it. Hopefully, there won't be a lot if situations that call for someone to give a speech like that, but eventually you will get the hang of it. I'm sure of it. I mean you manage to find the right thing to say to me all the time. How much harder can it be to find the right thing to say to a room full of our friends?"

"A lot harder than you'd think," Matt muttered.

"Seeing you step up and give it your best, it's one of the reasons I fell in love with you. You deserve that white shirt Matt. I know you're harder on yourself than anyone else so I want you to know that I am so proud of Captain Casey. For today, for how you've handled everything since Otis got shot and before that, since your promotion. This house is really lucky to have you," Gabby insisted.

"Thanks babe," Matt replied. "And thanks for how you've handled everything with Cordova. It's good to see some of the house extending a hand. I know you know him so that probably makes it easier to be welcoming."

"I knew him. It's been a long time since I've seen or spoken to him," Gabby said. This was her opening. Her chance to explain her past with Cordova. Matt had a right to know, especially since the guy would be sticking around. He wouldn't be a big fan of Cordova after what she had to say, but he wouldn't treat him differently on shift simply because of it, especially not when he needed to focus on getting Cordova integrated into Truck 81. At 51 at least, he'd be professional and put the personal grudge he would likely hold aside. He was too good of a leader not to. And she certainly didn't want him finding out from someone else. Keeping things from each other had always led to trouble between them, and she was determined not to go down that road again. She just wasn't quite sure how to say it so she was in the midst of contemplating where to begin when they were interrupted by a voice in the bunkroom.

"Kelly," Kidd called. Severide must have headed into his own office at some point as well. As far as Gabby knew he'd been at the Squad Table with the rest of his men when she'd left the common room. "Pizza's here."

"Guess we should go get food," Matt commented as he started to get up.

"Guess so," Gabby replied as she realized her opportunity had slipped away. At least it gave her time to figure out what to tell Matt.

"Hey," Gabby approached Jake as he was leaving. One thing she'd decided as shift wore on was that she should probably give him a heads up that she was going to tell Matt about their shared past. She'd been putting it off, not sure how that conversation was going to go, but she was determined to tell Matt before next shift so it was now or never.

"Hey there," he replied as he turned around, glad to see that she was interested in talking to him even though shift was over. Add that to the list of signs that she wasn't just trying to be a nice coworker, that she hadn't written him off.

"So here's the thing…ummm…I didn't tell Casey yet cause you were only gonna be here for a couple shifts so what's the point, but now that you're sticking around for a while I need to say something," she explained.

"You tell him now that's gonna make it even harder for me to get a fair shake at 51," Jake figured that was true enough. In two shifts he'd seen the bond in this group, and he had no doubt that once people knew, they wouldn't just hold the fact that he'd taken Otis's spot against him, but they'd hold what he'd done to Gabby against him too. The fact that Gabby had seemingly put it all behind her wouldn't really matter to her friends. As for the Captain, he'd especially have it out for him. If someone else had hurt Gabby the way he had, he'd want to make them suffer. There was no reason to think her husband would feel any differently. Maybe he'd get somewhere if she was his only ally, but there was no guarantee that would be how it played out. What's more he figured there was more upside to her keeping silent.

"Jake, I'm not gonna lie," she protested. That was his department, not hers.

"I'm not asking you to, but at least give me a couple of shifts to prove myself as a firefighter. Then you can tell him whatever you want," he tried to play it off. He'd probably have to come up with some other reason in a week or so to get her to put it off again, but at least he'd hopefully bought some time while letting her think he wasn't asking a lot. Truth was he wanted her to keep this from her husband and not just because of his own career. It would probably be easier to steal Casey's wife if the man had no reason to even suspect that was what he was after, and if it somehow did come out, the longer Gabby stayed silent, the more likely it was to drive a wedge between them. Then he'd be able to pick up the pieces, pretending to be just a friend at first of course, as the couple fell apart. Maybe if things weren't progressing fast enough in a month or so, he'd find some other way to get the news to Casey.

Gabby was silent as she thought it over. Her instincts told her that this was a bad idea. She was about to say so, but it seemed Jake took her silence for agreement.

"Thanks," he said before turning and heading out.

Now Gabby felt like she was stuck between a rock and a hard place. She'd apparently unintentionally promised to wait to tell Matt, and she wasn't a fan of breaking promises even if it was to Jake. She was one of the only people trying to be on his side so far. Would he feel like he was alone here if he felt betrayed by her? Did he even have a right to feel betrayed by her after what he had done to her? She certainly didn't owe him anything. If she owed anyone anything in this situation, it was Matt. He was her husband. She loved him. Those were the two most important facts in all of this. Trust, honesty, and openness were important parts of any relationship. That was one of the lessons of their broken engagement from several years ago. So was waiting to tell still lying? There had to be reason her instincts had told her to say no, and she would have said no if Jake had given her the chance. He'd misunderstood. How much weight did that get in all of this?

Jake paused for a moment outside Molly's. He'd never been here before. Sure, he'd been tempted over the years. After Diana left, he'd often thought about coming here and seeing Gabby, maybe being able to rekindle things with her. He'd always chickened out though. Not wanting to see how she'd react to his presence because he figured there were three options. She'd be glad to see him, and he'd actually have a chance. She wouldn't give a damn about him and would just see him as another customer. Or she'd still be filled with anger, and while that meant she still cared, considering how much time had passed, it also probably meant that she would never forgive him. He'd always been afraid of walking in on the last two and discovering that he would never again have a chance. Now though he realized there was a fourth scenario though that he'd never actually considered, that she'd be happy with someone else. From what he'd seen over the past two shifts, he was pretty sure it was a combination of that scenario and the first one he'd walked in on. Apparently, he should have come in years ago. Then maybe he wouldn't have a husband/boss to contend with.

Now though coming to Molly's served his purposes. It would help him ingratiate himself into 51, and hopefully, it would allow him to start taking on a role in Gabby's life beyond coworker. There was no way she'd ever leave her husband for him if he couldn't earn her trust and respect back. So he opened the door and walked into the bar. Looking around, he decided that it was a pretty nice place. Not that he'd expect anything less with Gabby as one of the owners.

His gaze quickly drifted towards Gabby though. She was standing behind the bar, her head thrown back in laughter. It was a truly gorgeous sight. At least until he noticed the person sitting in front of her, the person who had likely caused that laughter. Casey. He felt bile build in the back of his throat at the thought of a happy moment between the couple. He may not know how exactly he was going to split them up yet, but he could at least stop whatever was before him from continuing.

He took a deep breath and headed towards the bar, stopping when he was practically leaning over Casey and figured Gabby had a good view.

"Cordova," Gabby looked up surprised. This was yet another place she hadn't been expecting to see the man. She didn't think he'd ever been here before. Although she supposed if he was going to be at 51 for a while, he probably figured it made sense to hang out here and get to know the guys off shift. She wasn't thrilled by it, but there was probably no reason to worry. It's not like he was going to tell Matt. He'd made clear earlier that he'd prefer if Matt didn't know yet after all.

The thing was she hadn't told Matt yet either, and now here Jake was, not just a coworker but someone who was socializing with them. It wasn't that she hadn't tried to tell Matt. By the time she'd gotten home, she'd decided that she hadn't really promised Cordova anything so there was no reason to even consider keeping this from Matt any longer, and there were several occasions throughout the day where she had intended to tell him. The problem was every time she'd found an opening in their conversation or was about to ask him to sit down so they could talk and she could tell him, she hadn't been able to get the words out. She tried to justify it by telling herself that she still didn't know what exactly she should say, but that felt like a feeble excuse. Truthfully, she was beginning to wonder if she really wanted to tell Matt. When she did, she knew she wouldn't lie to him about it and tell him the same half truth that she'd told everyone else. She'd be completely honest about the whole situation, and she'd never been completely honest about it with anyone. When the whole thing had gone down, she'd been too ashamed. Then time passed and she had no reason to talk about it let alone correct the story. Was she now too embarrassed by it to tell Matt? Was there a part of her that was worried he'd judge her or see her differently? She had complete faith in his love for her, but the longer she put off telling him, the more she began to wonder.

"Dawson, Casey," Cordova greeted in return pulling Gabby's thoughts out of her own misgivings.

"Hi," Matt added.

"What can I get you?" Gabby asked, reminding Cordova that she was the bartender and not just standing there for him to ogle at.

He ordered a beer and just as he was about to sit down next to Casey, he heard an unexpected and familiar voice.

"Cordova, that you?" the voice belonged to Atkins, a firefighter out of Firehouse 26, the last place he'd been as a floater where he thought he had a shot at a permanent spot. He'd spent a little over a month there about a year and a half ago, and as he recalled the men from the firehouse often hung out here. In fact, he'd turned down several invitations to come with them to Molly's, and he'd told them the reason why. Of course, he had never mentioned when he was with Gabby, and the guys didn't know he was divorced so Atkins would have only been able to make a completely wild guess as to the timeline.

"Yeah, it's me," he replied.

"I thought you didn't come here cause you used to date on of the owners," Atkins said as he approached.

"Yeah, well, I'm over all that," he lied.

Meanwhile, Gabby tensed as she saw the look of shock and hurt that crossed Matt's face. She knew that was enough for him to put the pieces together, it's not like Hermann or Otis or Shay would have been his ex and Molly's hadn't had any other owner, at least not while it had been Molly's, and she silently cursed. She cursed Atkins for spilling the beans. She cursed Jake for coming here in the first place and admitting he'd dated her; Atkins wouldn't have said anything if Jake hadn't done both of those things. You'd think he wouldn't have gone around telling people that considering the circumstances. Most of all though she cursed herself for chickening out and not telling Matt earlier when she had the chance. Now he'd heard it from someone else.

"I…I just remembered I need to pick up some supplies for my job tomorrow," Matt stammered. The look on Gabby's face told him that not only had she indeed dated Cordova at some point but also that she'd chosen not to tell him. In fact, she'd lied about their history, claiming she only knew him from working a few shifts with him. That combined with the fact that Cordova had been avoiding this place because of Gabby had him thinking that it wasn't just some fling either. It must have been pretty serious. Now the man was back in her life, working with both of them, and she'd kept it from him. What did that mean? He thought she was being nice to Cordova on shift because that's who she was and she was trying to make things easier not just for Cordova but for him. Now though he wondered if there was more to it. Regardless, Molly's was beginning to feel stuffy. He needed air and to get away from all this so he was going to leave.

"Matt," Gabby reached for him, but he didn't pause or turn. He pulled away and just kept walking.

"Matt," she called again to no effect. With that though she was quickly out from behind the bar and following him out the door. She wasn't just going to let him walk away. She was going to do everything she could to stop it.

When she reached his truck, he was opening the door.

"Matt," she tried again. She sounded desperate, but she didn't care. Unfortunately, it didn't help as he continued to ignore her, getting in his truck and driving off.

"Damn it," she called as she watched him round a corner. This was not how any of this was supposed to happen.

Author's Note: So? Thoughts?