Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters of the show, nor any rights to it. I only own the plot, Nora and any other person of my own imagination. Enjoy and let me know what you think

Chapter 1

It was another sunny afternoon in the Windy City. The blonde woman smiled as she got out of her car and took the basket with the foods out of the back. She walked up to the station her uncle worked at, dressed in loose jeans, shirt, cardigan and trainers.

Firehouse 51 had been her home for ever since she could remember. All men of her family had been firefighters. But that only went for Nora's father, uncle and grandfather.

The young woman lost her mother to cancer when she was six and her father when she had just turned fifteen at an apartment fire. Since then she had lived with Christopher Herrmann, her only living relative besides the family of her mother.

In the garage the spaces were vacant of the trucks and the ambulance, which meant they were out on a call. Knowing her way around the blonde walked up to the door and went inside the break room and over to the kitchen area.

Anita, one of the Firehouse administrative staffs smiled at the niece of Herrmann. The dark skinned woman had worked there for a while and everyday the young woman brought food and treats for the whole station with her.

"Hello dear. How have you been?" she asked standing in front of the stove looking over at Nora.

The 26-year old shrugged her shoulders and grinned at the dark skinned woman. "Oh you know, same old."

Laughing Anita left the room and let Nora work in the kitchen until the guys would get back to the station.

She was nearly done with the food when the trucks rolled back into the garage, making her look up as she heard the loud voice of Andy Darden. Smiling, Nora put the plate down and walked over to the door, giving the members of 51 their usual warm welcome.

"I hope you all brought a big case of empty stomachs with you, cause I made you loads of food." she said, leaning against the doorway and watched the teams get out of their gear.

Herrmann looked up as he heard the voice of his niece calling to them, as well as Andy, and the two Lieutenants Severide and Casey. "What you got, honey?"

"The usual, uncle C." Nora said and went back inside the common room.

Otis grinned, looking over at her and pointing at her shirt. "Did you really bake us cupcakes?"

Snorting she turned and moved out of the bay. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

Once everyone had changed, they followed the blondes lead and entered the room, each walking over to the kitchen part and grabbed a plate.

The usual for them was meat with loads of vegetables. Usually Shay and Dawson just took to the veggies and the guys all went for the steaks.

"Baby girl, why don't you work here, cooking for us all the time instead of going back to that crappy diner." Otis asked, grinning over at the blonde, a bit of the sauce staining his mustache.

She lightly hit his head and went on to serve the rest of their food. "Because I need the money to pay rent and the tips aren't too bad."

Andy pulled her down to sit on the free chair next to him. "Let him talk, Nora. How have you been?"

Herrmann leaned over, sitting next to his niece, putting his arm over her shoulder. "Well considering I offered her a room to stay at, she's well off."

The blonde smiled, laying her head on her uncles shoulder. She nodded and looked around the table. Shay and Gabby smiled at her, while Kelly had an unreadable expression on his face.

"Have you heard anything from that guy you dated? Liam?" Matt Casey asked her, making everyone turn to Nora.

She shook her head, looking down at her folded hands atop the table. "He just up and left with the money I put on the side so I could open my cafe. That guy's probably somewhere getting his drugs or whatever. The police couldn't do a thing, cause he left the country."

Andy grinned, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry so much. I know a few guys that would kill to be with you."

Of course his words earned him a dark look from Herrmann. Everyone at the station knew that he was very protective of his niece, always looking out for her.

Just as she wanted to tell Darden and the rest how wrong they were, the dispatch alarm sounded.

"Squad Three, Truck Eighty-One, Ambulance Sixty-One, Battalion 25, house fire, 1314 West Washburne Avenue."

Every one at the table groaned and ran out of the break room, Chief Boden following them, giving Nora an apologetic glance.

"Be careful and come back in one piece." she called out as the trucks rolled away from the station and off to do their duty.

Sighing Nora went back to the kitchen corner, putting the food away in the fridge and left them a note, saying that she left the cupcakes in the fridge with the rest of the food.

She always was afraid when the team left the firehouse. Every time they were out on a call, there was a chance that one of them wouldn't come back again.

Anita smiled as she saw the young woman leave the station, knowing Nora had to get to her job. The older woman felt sympathy for her having to work at such a place. It was the talk around town that the men were leering at the waitresses and always trying to feel them up.

Nora didn't want to impose on her uncle and live with him, his wife and his kids, as the house was already too small for them. So she decided to just take the proffered job, making better money then at the drug store down the street from her apartment or the book store across town.

Having loved to spend her time with her grandmother in the kitchen after her mother died, Nora knew from the beginning she wanted to do it herself. Opening her own cafe would have been a dream come true and even her uncle Christopher and aunt Cindy would have approved of it.

But her ex-boyfriend Liam was the one putting a damper on her dreams. She had met him at one of the firehouse grill outs. They hit it off rather well and everything was fine at first, but then Liam changed drastically. He always needed money or was gone every night. Both Herrmann and Shay talked to Nora about it, but she didn't want to see it.

Only when she found him in the bathroom having another woman on her knees in front of him and Liam smoking weed and having other drugs on him did Nora see his true colors.

She found out that he took all her money that the blonde had saved to open her cafe and used it to buy drugs, at least that's what CPD told her but they couldn't do anything as he already left America and they didn't find any trace on where he went.

A few days later found Nora sitting with the team in the break room. They had just gotten back from a call, looking grim and dirty. Herrmann had taken her aside and told his niece what had happened.

"It's Andy." he spoke softly and the blonde saw him swallowing hard.

She already had a feeling that something bad was about to happen, but had put it aside as just her nerves going off the edge again.

"There was no vent and he went inside. Casey wanted to stop him, but when the fire flared Andy was already in the house." her uncle said pulling her into his arms.

Nora felt the tears burning her eyes as she threw herself at Herrmann. Andy had always been a close friend to her like he was for Kelly and Matt. When she had the tough time with Liam, he was the first one that knew, even before her uncle, because she knew he wouldn't judge her.

Over his shoulder she saw both Severide and Casey slumped in their chairs, not looking at the other. Nora made a mental note to talk to them later, once everything had cooled down.

On the day of the funeral the sky had darkened over the city, just like it had felt the mood of all the people attending the service for Andrew Darden. His wife Heather and their sons Ben and Griffin stood next to Nora holding onto her black dress and weeping softly over the casket of their father. The blonde wanted her to know that she was still there for her and would help Heather and her sons.

Christopher Herrmann felt his heart swell with pride, as he saw his niece supporting Darden's widow. He knew Nora was able to cope with the lifestyle of a firefighter, him and her father being one, but he never wanted her to end up with one as her husband. The pain and heartbreak it would cause her would be her undoing, that much he knew.

He saw it every day, when he looked at his wife. Even seeing Hallie, Matt's fiancée, waiting at the hospital when they all would fill in and ask if he was alright.

Chief Boden walked up to Heather, who held the American Flag to her chest, sobbing softly, while her two sons held onto Nora. They knew her from when they visited their father at the firehouse and had hit it off with the blonde rather well.

"My sincerest condolences, Heather. I wish I wouldn't have to stand here and do this, but things like this happen on a daily base. We all take the risk every day and I know that we all pray to get back in one piece, but sometimes things happen, that we have no say in."

Herrmann's niece tightened her grip on the children, pulling them closer to her side as their mother wept in the chief's arms.

She knew it must be hard, telling the loved ones the firefighters left behind, that they were good men and women and died in the line of duty, helping and saving the lives of those that needed it.

Once Boden left them Nora told Heather that she had cooked something to eat at the firehouse, but the widow denied her wish to join in. She looked over at Kelly and Matt and felt the pain flare up again. Heather felt that they were to blame for what happened with Andy, so she made sure they would know.

Sighing, the blonde watched as she left with her sons and went back to join her uncle and the rest of Firehouse 51. "I hope that at least you guys are hungry." she said, giving them all a hopeful look.

"Of course, we'd never pass up on having you cooking for us." Otis said, putting his arm around Nora's shoulders, hugging her tightly.

The following weeks the tight situation with Kelly and Matt increased, making them both act so out of character and always being at each others throats. Nora's uncle lost their house to foreclosure. She wanted to help her family by letting them stay at her apartment, but Herrmann said that it was too small living with Cindy, Lee Henry and Kenny together with her, so they moved to the house of her uncle's in-laws.

"Come on girly, let's get back inside." Nora said as she lightly pulled on Pouch's leash. She had taken the dog outside to get some much needed air, as both Severide and Casey were at it again.

Shay and Dawson were out on a call, so she didn't have anyone else to talk. Once Nora got back to the firehouse, she saw a young, dark skinned male walking up to it and looking around. Smiling Herrmann's niece made her way over to him and tapped him on his shoulder.

Startled he turned around and looked at the blonde with surprise. "Uh, hi."

"Hey, can I help you?" she asked taking off the dog's leash.

"Yeah, actually I'm lookign for the chief or someone who can take me there." he said, scratching the back of his head.

Nora smiled and gave him a sign to follow her inside to the front of the station. Joe Cruz sat outside on one of the picknick tables grinning at the two.

"Yo, what you got there, Nora?"

The blonde smiled at him and truned back to the young man she brought with her, while the dog ran off inside the building. "This is uh"

"Peter Mills."

"Peter Mills and he wants to get to the chief."

Joe nodded his head and jumped down from the table, leading them both inside, where the rest of the team was supposed to be.