Antonio loved his job. He craved the action, the satisfaction of putting yet another criminal behind bars and making Chicago safer for his kids. Surprisingly, he also loved the long hours they spent trying to solve puzzles that had neither cheats nor hints; unless some witness was particularly helpful. Usually, that witness was benefiting from telling them the information.
However, some challenges were harder than others and Antonio had no doubt that he'd never figure out the sheer stupidity of some murderers. While some murderers were so discreet that Chicago's finest had to work for at least a gruelling month until they cracked the puzzle and managed to get their hands on them, others were totally absent-minded - to the point of forgetting to leave the murder scene.
The dead girl was lucky, as far as dead people's luck went. She had been instantly killed; a simple gun-shot wound to the head, a poor mimicry of the execution style. There were some macabre carvings on her, but the EMT had already confirmed that they were done post-mortem - she hadn't felt any pain. Kelly Andrews was simply another casualty of domestic abuse.
Antonio bowed his head in respect, uttering a quick prayer for her soul before Jay tapped him on the shoulder. They were the only two on the scene. It was not shocking, especially considering that it was rush hour and that it was snowing; not many walked to their schools or workplaces when flakes were falling relentlessly from the sky. They only made it so early because Jay had picked Antonio up and the crime was close to where they usually swung by to buy their morning coffees.
A small sound, barely audible even in the shrouding silence, jarred Antonio out of his musings. He immediately straightened, drawing his gun at the same as Jay shooed away the forensic team, prioritising their safety above everything else.
"Closet?" Jay's hand was still on his shoulder, fingers curled around the thick fabric of his jacket.
"Yeah." Antonio inched forward, tension coiling his muscles as he and Jay settled on each side of the door. Antonio lifted his arm, counting down from three before suddenly wrenching the door open.
A guttural shout shook the air before a fist landed in Jay's face, sending the younger detective staggering before Brian Andrews zapped past them and to the fire escape, gangly limbs easily passing through the window as he slid down the ladder.
"Jay?" Antonio crouched next to Halstead, relieved when he saw no blood on his face.
"Go after him, I'm fine. I'll alert the others and follow." Jay pushed himself to his feet and Antonio didn't waste any more time. He quickly jumped down the fire escape, feeling a burst of adrenaline pour in his blood when he caught sight of their murderer resting against a wall, clearly antsy.
He bolted before Antonio could even yell the necessary "Chicago PD! Freeze and put your hands up!" He yelled it anyways, even if the phrase wasted precious oxygen.
The frigid air numbed his lungs as he raced after the other, his shoes thankfully providing traction against the frozen and slippery streets. Brian was insanely fast and Antonio pushed himself further, gaining a bit more ground on their murderer as Andrews blindly crossed streets and turned corners; knocking aside any pedestrians that got in his way. Antonio tuned out the indignant horns of surprised drivers, easily sliding over the bumper of a car that had not quite managed to stop before it got in his way. He hit the ground running, making sure to not lose Andrews as he rounded an immensely familiar corner.
The corner leading to the firehouse.
His lungs burned, unable to cope with his frantic pants.
His heart thundered in his head, unable to keep up with him.
His legs had long since gone numb, footsteps echoing in his ears; the echo was muted though, as if it was coming from a tunnel.
He had to call for backup.
His fingers closed around the walkie-talkie in his pocket, pulling it out and holding it close to his mouth with difficulty.
"Suspect is getting close to the firehouse. Send back up ASAP!" His sentence was forcibly halted by his body's demand to breathe and Antonio shoved the radio back in his pocket, giving himself one last push as Andrews ran into the firehouse, his energy clearly ailing as he staggered. It was the opportunity that Antonio needed. He dove low, tackling Brian Andrews from his torso and landing them both straight in the middle of the kitchen.
Brett felt the floor beneath her feet shake when the two men impacted with the ground, even if they recovered in mere seconds as the man underneath Antonio threw out an elbow and caught the winded detective in the jaw, throwing him off with the hit. Antonio rolled, quickly regaining his footing and blocking the next punch.
Fists blurred in the air, too fast for Brett to keep up as blood started to appear on both of their faces until the foreign assailant changed his tactics and kicked Antonio in the stomach, pushing out all of the detective's breath with an audible wheeze from the latter as he doubled over. The other fire-fighters were all seemingly inching forward, as if searching for a way to help without injuring their friend. However, there was no way to get in between them as they danced around each other without pause; kicks and punches flying relentlessly. At least, they were flying persistently until Antonio managed to lock his arms around the other's body, only for the suspect to elbow his way out of the restraining hold and daze Antonio with a well-aimed punch. The detective staggered backwards and Brett watched in horror as the other grabbed the detective from the front of his shirt and quite literally threw him over a table, eliciting a shout from Antonio before he crashed in an unmoveable heap on the floor.
"EVERYBODY BY THE COUNTER, NOW!" The deranged man didn't give the fire-fighters time to even step forward -let alone attempt to apprehend him-, before moving to stand by the door and waving a gun at all of them. Brett briefly wondered where it had come from. Had he shot Antonio? No, they would have heard the bullet, right? Antonio's holster was empty. Oh, that's where the gun came from.
"I SAID, EVERYBODY BY THE COUNTER! This ain't time for heroics or funny business lady, you hear me?"
Brett froze, watching silently as Gabriela padded to her brother and obscured him from her view by her frame. Gabby crouched next to him, one arm between his shoulder blades and the other sneaking to his neck, undoubtedly checking for a pulse.
Brett pondered on the notion that he could have broken at least a rib or two with the way that he had landed on the chairs before slamming face down on the floor.
"He's my brother, let me just make sure he's okay." Gabby's voice was neutral, not a shred of command in it.
"Do I look like I care? Move." The hand holding the gun waved impatiently in the air.
"What do you want, man? We don't have any money here." Casey didn't move, but he did his best to get the attention off of Gabriela and give her time to check over Antonio.
"I need to leave. I need to flee. I didn't mean to do it. I never did." There was an edge of hysteria in his voice. It was clear that his self-control was slipping; the mask of rage cracking and revealing raw panic and fear that Brett only saw in people who knew that they had no chance of surviving. In a way, the man in front of her had no chance to live a normal life anymore.
She doubted he'd have much of a life in prison.
"That won't work much in court, Andrews. Hands where I can see them, get down on your knees." Jay suddenly rounded the corner, his pistol aimed squarely at Andrews' chest. "Lower your weapon, Andrews. You're under arrest. Anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law."
Brett watched in muted horror as Andrews' eyes shot towards every possible exit, evidently noticing that he'd get caught immediately no matter which way he tried to go. She exhaled in relief when Andrews slowly crouched, the gun now inches from the floor.
Jay moved, grasping one of Andrews' arms and wrenching it behind his back. Andrews seemed to suddenly realise his life was going down the drain, and Brett found herself frozen in place as the murderer released a cry of absolute desperation before he grabbed the gun and fired directly in her direction.
Unknown by Andrews, Antonio wasn't actually unconscious. He had let Gabby fuss over him, never opening his eyes until he had heard Jay's voice and the rattle of the handcuffs.
He noticed what was about to happen only a millisecond before Brian Andrews actually fired. He didn't even think before shoving Gabby aside and jumping across the table. His only focus was reaching the wide-eyed Sylvie before the bullet did.
He knew he succeeded when the bullet slammed into his back and caused both him and Brett to topple to the floor; the blonde safely encompassed in his arms. However, wrapping his arms around her had left him with nothing to break his fall. His forehead cracked against the tiles, the collision only partly broken by Sylvie's shoulder.
He didn't have time to think about how he had probably crushed Sylvie with his weight before his consciousness fled.
"ANTONIO!" Various worried shouts overlapped as Gabriela raced to her brother, Jay only a few steps behind her as he cuffed the suspect and threw him against the wall, making sure that he wouldn't escape by threading the chain of the cuffs through the iron bars. Nobody took notice of the bloody hole in his shoulder - Nobody really cared. At least it would stop him from firing at more people. Not that he really would; Jay wished he could knock him out just to stop the pitiful whining and sobbing as Andrews realised the full extent of his actions.
They always realised a bit too late.
"SOMEBODY ROLL HIM OVER. CHECK HIS BACK FIRST." Brett's voice rung out harshly in the silence, jarring Jay and Gabby into action. They gently patted Antonio's back, surprised to feel the thick material underneath and the lack of blood.
"Son of a bitch, he had a vest." Jay couldn't help but laugh as he gently rolled Antonio over, the other's reason for unconsciousness becoming blatantly clear as they saw the bruise already colouring his forehead. A small cut oozed blood from near his hairline.
"And still managed to get hurt." Gabby kneeled next to her brother, brushing a hand over the bruised skin and causing Antonio to stir, dazed eyes blinking open as he tried to decipher what had happened.
"Gabby?" He frowned, a grimace shadowing his features.
"Hey bro. Stay still for a moment, will you?" Gabby opened her brother's jacket and let Jay remove the bulletproof vest, the latter undoing the Velcro and slipping it from beneath Antonio's frame with relative ease.
Antonio, clearly uncomfortable with the scrutiny and still not completely lucid, was doing his best to bat Gabby's hands away from his chest. Jay saw Antonio's eyes widen as some sort of realisation dawned in them and immediately moved to hold Antonio down as the detective jerked upwards, clearly having intended to sit up. A grimace flickered on Antonio's features as he jarred his potentially broken ribs - Vest or no vest, bullets still impacted harshly, especially from such a short distance.
"Where's Brett? Is she hurt?" He tried to twist beneath Jay's hands, growing anxious until a familiar mop of blond hair appeared at his side. Sylvie lied a hand across his cheek, forcing him to look in her direction.
"I'm okay. I'm fine, focus on you for once." She forced one of his hands back to his side, subtly keeping track of the racing beat beneath her thumb as he released a deep breath with a wince.
"Well, nothing's broken. Come with me to the ambo so we can do a thorough check, just in case. " Gabby sat up, dusting her trousers just as Hank and Olinsky arrived, shocked to find Antonio prone on the floor.
"Halstead, what happened to Dawson?" Voight's gravelly voice immediately quieted the station, and Jay threw the key of the handcuffs at Olinsky before turning to his captain.
"Just a bit roughed up, he'll be fine. Gabby's going to check him over." Jay grasped Antonio's hand as he spoke, pulling the other detective to his feet and swiftly inserting himself underneath Dawson's arm so as to make sure that he didn't fall back down.
"I can speak for myself you know. I'm fine, I don't need a check-up." Antonio huffed, trying in vain to push Jay away.
"Antonio, go get checked out. We'll take this garbage back to the precinct." Hank hoisted Andrews up, cringing at the snot that was hanging down his face.
"And hey, go straight home afterwards. Paperwork can wait; your back will thank you if you rest it as early as possible." Olinsky said, running a critical eye up and down Antonio's frame and then pointedly eying the damaged vest on the ground.
"Don't worry, he will." Jay let Antonio's arm go, raising his eyebrows when the other detective promptly stumbled over his own two feet before regaining a semblance of balance. Jay couldn't help the smile when Casey and Kelly automatically lunged forward, stopping only a hair's breadth away from Antonio.
"Take care of yourself. Come on Olinsky, the others can help with the report." Voight pulled at their perpetrator, uncaring of his sobs and misery.
"Come on Antonio, this won't take long." Gabby sauntered to the ambulance, fully aware that both Brett and the two detectives involved in the skirmish would follow her.
"Yeah, you always say that." Antonio rolled his eyes but still followed her, taking a seat on the gurney and removing his shirt, not refusing Jay's help when it came to pulling it over his head.
A few hours later Jay sat on Antonio's couch, nursing a beer and watching a game while Antonio dozed, head resting on Jay's thigh. He had gotten off relatively easy; a black eye, a horribly bruised back and rib, and other cuts and bruises scattered all over. There was no concussion, no need to go to the ER, and Brett had promised to stop by later to make sure he was okay.
Jay shifted slightly, making sure that the ice-pack on Antonio's face wasn't dislodged when Antonio turned on his side, throwing one arm over Jay's knees. Jay couldn't help his snort; Antonio only revealed how close he was to someone in his sleep, and it was endearing to watch him latch on to someone like a koala.
Well, unless that someone happened to need to urinate.
Then it became terrible.
Jay removed the ice-pack, noticing that the 10 minutes had already passed, and surveyed the bruising. It was absolutely horrible, and Antonio's somewhat tanned skin did nothing to hide the blues, purples, and greens that surrounded his eye and jaw, courtesy of both the punches and his impromptu fly over the table.
At least it wouldn't take long to heal; only a week according to Gabriela.
Antonio groaned as he twisted, undoubtedly plagued by pangs of pain that managed to drag him back to the world of the living. Dark brown eyes blinked wearily, flicking around the room before landing on Jay's face. Dawson smiled at the younger detective, acknowledging his presence and thanking him for not leaving him alone with the simple gesture. Jay slid a hand underneath Antonio's back, giving him a gentle push to help him sit up. Antonio yawned, the action cut in half with a grimace.
Jay took a sip of his beer, knowing that Antonio needed at least a few minutes to collect himself before he even thought of speaking.
"You know, I never thought that a bet would save my life." The light-hearted comment broke the silence and Jay snorted in his beer, almost choking on the beverage.
"See, this is why you should bet against me; I knew that you'd be in danger of eating a bullet in the near future." Jay retorted, a grin easily evident on his features.
In reality, he had never been so glad of the bets he made with Antonio as a joke. Their latest one had resulted in Antonio wearing a bullet-proof vest for a whole day and actually saved him from yet another extended stay at the hospital due to GSWs.
"I'm still not wearing it for a day again. That damned thing weighs a ton and makes you sweat buckets." Antonio grabbed the bottle from Jay's hand, taking a swig himself before dropping it on the table.
"Try to not get directly into the path of bullets and you won't need it." Jay laid a hand on Antonio's shoulder, squeezing gently to convey his relief that Antonio had escaped such a close call.
"I'll do my best." Antonio's scoff was cut off by Brett, her distinctive pattern of knocking easily recognisable. Jay emptied the bottle before taking his leave, making sure to not squeeze too hard as he hugged Antonio, relishing the warmth of the body in his arms.
They really had too many close calls in their life.
Antonio smiled when he saw Brett in the doorway, a plastic bag full of food in her hands. His swollen side refused to cooperate, so he assumed that his face was currently half-way between a grin and a grimace, but she'd understand. She always did.
He almost pulled her into a hug before she pushed him back, her smile diminishing the second that Jay closed the door. Antonio inhaled sharply, taken aback by the furious expression on her face and doing his best to hide the pain that twanged in his chest.
"Don't you ever dare to do that again." Her voice was deadly calm; Antonio would have been less terrified if she started screaming at him.
"You thought I'd let him shoot you? I had a vest, you didn't. He would have killed you." He stepped back, making sure that he was further away than the length of her arm so that she wouldn't be able to slap him.
"He could have killed you too! The vest almost didn't protect you enough, and you had no way of knowing if it would hit your vest or your neck." She dropped the food on the coffee table, and the delicious smell wafted into Antonio's nostrils.
"I've been in enough gunfights to know that the bullet would not hit my neck, Sylvie. Give me a little credit at least." Antonio raised both arms in a pacifying gesture, attempting to mellow down her temper.
"You would have done it even if you weren't wearing a vest at the time." Her anger completely disappeared, allowing Antonio to confirm his suspicion about Brett's true emotions; she was petrified of witnessing his death right in front of her.
"I would." Antonio couldn't help but sigh, knowing full well that she was right.
"Did you even think about how this would affect me?" Her voice cracked, but she collected herself quickly, still standing ramrod straight in front of him.
"I only knew that I couldn't just stand by and let him shoot you in front of me. That shot would not have killed me straight even if I didn't have a vest, but it would have been fatal for you. I know what it's like to witness your partner dying in front of you, and you should know that I'd do my best to never let you see that. Besides, if something were to happen to me; you'd know what to do to help me. I wouldn't." Antonio said, purposely softening his voice so he wouldn't come across as defensive or else completely ignorant of her own emotions after his close call.
"You'd probably make me die faster." Her dry sense of humour was a welcome reprieve and Antonio snorted despite himself, releasing a breath of relief when Brett stepped forward and hugged him, squeezing him gently so as not to pain him. "I won't ask you not to do it again."
"You know I wouldn't be able to promise that. But hey, I can promise to try and be more careful about bullets. How's that for a deal?" He grinned in her hair, feeling her huff against his shoulder.
"You're an idiot. And I got you something for your bruises, so take off that shirt and sit." She pulled back, digging her hand into her bag and revealing a small tub of something.
"What's that?" Despite his scepticism, he knew that Brett would never do anything to hurt him, so he eased the shirt off and reclined on the couch, throwing one arm over the back.
"It's an ointment that will make your bruises fade faster. Come on, turn around."
He presented his back to her, willing himself not to tense as her fingers danced on the bruises. However, his will immediately shattered when she pressed down, rubbing the ointment gently but surely.
"Warn a man next time, will you?" He exhaled from between gritted teeth, forcing himself to relax his back again.
"Don't be such a baby, I'm almost done." He could hear the smirk in her voice, and couldn't find it in himself to come up with a mocking reply of his own; If this was her idea of karma for what had happened, then he'd take it. "Face me now."
He turned, immediately coming face to face with her. Her hair was dishevelled, tiny strands coming out of her braid and others falling on her forehead. He automatically pushed the strands behind her ear and was delighted to see the faint blush that dusted her cheeks in reply.
"You know you're much more attractive when one side of your face doesn't look like someone spilled their paint on it." Brett said, tracing the outline of the bruises.
"Well, looks like you have some paint-remover, so I guess we can both be happy." Antonio raised his eyebrows, failing to hold his laughter as Brett let loose an unwomanly snort that had her dabbing at her nose.
"You're still going to get punished for what you did, being cute won't get you out of it." Brett slapped his shoulder, glaring at him in good fun.
"I thought this was my punishment! That ointment hurts you know." Antonio replied, mock-horror leeching into his voice.
"You're just a baby."
Her hand suddenly cupped his jaw, thumb running in soft circles over his sensitive skin. Antonio closed his eyes on instinct, letting his girlfriend rub the ointment into his eye as gently as she could. Given that his eyelid was swollen to twice its size, there was no way that she could avoid causing him pain, but he could tell that she was being as careful as possible.
When she finished, she let her hand rest on the line of his jaw, fingers softly pulling the hair that she could reach.
"Thanks, Sylvie." He smiled at her, inclining his head into her hand before kissing the inside of her wrist in appreciation.
She huffed before pulling his face towards her, meeting his lips with her own in one of the softest kisses that they had shared since getting together. There was no hungriness behind it, no urge to tear each other's clothes off and fuck on the nearest surface or else devour each other's bodies in fleeting kisses of adoration and heat.
No, this was a tender kiss, one that expressed her relief that he was sitting in front of her, more or less in one piece, and able to kiss her back.
Antonio brought his hand up to cup her face, running a thumb over her cheekbones as she pulled back, breaking their kiss but remaining in contact by resting her forehead against his. Blue eyes stared right into his soul, reading his own fear and relief over the day's events, and seemed to soften even more.
"I love you, Antonio Dawson." Her voice was low, a mere whisper, but the phrase echoed in Antonio's ears, dispelling the cloud of silence that had wrapped them up before.
"I love you too, Sylvie Brett." He bumped his nose against hers, evoking a giggle from the girl in front of him before she pulled back completely and almost hopped to the kitchen, where the sound of running water belied what she was doing.
"I'm also hungry, so let's dig in. You love Chinese, right?" She jumped back onto the couch, pulling the bags into her lap and distributing the containers.
"Not as much as I love you." She paused momentarily before turning to face him with the most incredulous face she could master.
"Please, how many times has that line actually worked?"
"Well, you're here aren't you?" He grinned, pulling her back to him as she sighed, shaking her head and muttering something about whoever invented pick-up lines.
"So I am. I've been dying to watch Narnia again, want to be my companion as we travel through a magical wardrobe?" She turned to him, her excitement once again bubbling.
"I will stop myself from saying another supposedly cringe line and just say yes. That better?" He grabbed one of the containers, blatantly realising how hungry he was as his stomach gurgled loudly when the smell hit him.
"Much." She grinned, stealing a piece of his lemon-chicken before curling up next to him with her own container, evidently relishing the food.
Neither of them saw how the movie ended. Brett had fallen asleep hugging his torso, but still somehow managing to not press on any of the bruises. Seeing this, he had managed to switch off the television without waking her up and laid down, pulling her to lay by his side. It was a tight fit on the sofa, but he managed to make it work when he tucked her into his arms, inhaling the shampoo smell in her hair before dropping off to sleep himself.
A/N: ''Cringy'' line Antonio was about to say: "Anywhere is magical as long as you're there with me."
This a story submitted for the badthingshappenbingo tumblr page!
Haya guys! I'm still getting back into writing, but I started a new series (MacGyver (2016)), so that might spur my inspiration as well!
I hope you like this, even though I teased with whump and then barely offered anything - Have been waiting to pull that trick for ages XD THIS IS THE ONLY TIME I'LL DO IT PROMISE!
Anyway, feel free to leave any comments regarding what you think - Was Antonio's attempt at flirting okay? How was their fluffiness? I haven't written couply fluff in ages XD Again, I'd love to hear your opinions guys!
Disclaimer: I do not own Chicago PD, nor am I making any profit from this.
Kudos to you for reading my works mate,
Chrisii.