A/N: I want to thank my awesome beta Talia345 who has been helping me edit this and with Herrmann's response at the end! She 's absolutely amazing and I wouldn't have been able to get this chapter done without her! THANK YOU SO MUCH TALIA345! This was also inspired by When I Make It Shine's story, Home Is Where the Heart Is. Go and read it. It's a great story! Just the concept of Christi and Kelly's relationship.
Christina Herrmann looks up as a firefighter down trauma call came into Lakeshore Medical Hospital. She pulls on her trauma gear and runs out to the ambulance bay with her team and her fellow trauma doctor who was on call that night, and she looks up as the ambulance comes flying in and screeches to a halt, leaving the smell of burnt rubber on the ground and in the air. She looks up as the back doors are flung open revealing Dawson and Kelly trying to keep Casey alive. She freezes in place seeing Kelly.
"I don't care about our past or what happened right now but please just save him and help him." Kelly begs her as they pull Matt out of the back of the ambulance.
"Of course." She said then sprang into action yelling out orders, and what to do, and what to get her and everything she needed.
Everyone heads back to the ER Surgery waiting room and they all take a seat and Kelly looks over at Herrmann, "Hey Herrmann?" He looks over, "When were you going to tell me your sister was back in town and working here in the ER?" Kelly asks Herrmann.
"Our dad was sick for a while there two years back and she came home to help out with him, and that she was missing home badly. She wanted to come back but was too nervous about running into you and how things ended. I told her I would keep my mouth shut about her being back until she was ready for everyone to know until she was ready to let people know." Herrmann explains.
He was still pissed at Kelly for hurting his baby sister. After they had went through with everything he watched, as things slowly fell apart. Kelly got so needy to be on squad he started obsessing over it and taking up every extra shift he possibly could until he reached his max hours for the week; she got sick of it and left.
Kelly nods and leans back, remembering the Herrmann family patriarch was sick two years ago. At times they weren't sure if he was going to pull through or not but he did. He took a guess as it was because they had a doctor in the family and she kept a close eye on him while he was sick while also watching over the other doctors' shoulders of who took care of her father.
A couple of hours later Christi comes out looking utterly exhausted and worn out. Chief Boden looks up and sees her and he nudges a few of the guys awake who proceeded to wake everyone else up.
"So what's the news on him Firefly?" Kelly asks her using the nickname he dubbed her with in high school; he had been the only one allowed to call her that. She was a flier on the cheerleading team in high school and she was spark of energy so he called her Firefly.
She paused on her intake of breath and only stared at him for a moment with wide eyes before she went a deep red in the face and neck at being called her old nickname. She quickly composed herself and said, "He's out of surgery and we were able to get the subdural hematoma. He's in recovery and can only have two visitors at a time so as not to overwhelm him, and only a few minutes at a time as well. We'll keep him here for a week or two just to make sure he's doing alright. I'll have a nurse come and get you when you can go and see him. Any questions before I go and check on my other patients?" she asks.
They all just shake their heads, muttering their thanks in relief and she nods and starts to head down the hallway, only to have Kelly chase after her and grab her hand to stop her and turn her around.
"Thank you." he says and she nods with a humble, tight-lipped smile, "I mean it Firefly. Thank you." Kelly said looking sincere.
"It's my job Cowboy." She said using his nickname as he used to be the star quarterback and was fast as hell on the field- kinda like a cowboy- so she called him that.
Christi smiles gently at Kelly then turns and heads down the corridor to go and check on her other patients that she had. Kelly watches as she goes and watches as she stops at the nurse's station and then pulls her arms above her head, stretching. He looks at her side and squints a bit and he sees his zodiac sign with his initials still on her side. He smiles a bit and rubs his right shoulder where he had her zodiac sign with her initials. They had gotten them right after they had gotten married; a gift to each other. He turns and goes back to the rest of the guys as they waited to see Matt.
"Hermann, where has she been all this time? Where has she been hiding out? Catch me up man, please. I know I screwed up majorly with her back then and I realize that man, but you gotta tell me, please. Is there anything I can do to get her to listen and give me a chance? I know she's only being nice because she doesn't want to make a scene in front of everyone. But if we get alone she's going to give me the side of her that used to terrify me and still does." Kelly says looking at his ex-brother-in-law.
The look Hermann gave him was not one he was hoping for. He didn't say anything though, just looked. His eyes pinched together, his lips tightened- like his sister's. He was hoping he'd help him. If not, he'd have to make a call to Antonio.
"Look Kelly, I know you two had a thing- obviously. But I don't think it's appropriate for you to suddenly care so much after so long. I mean, we didn't hear from her for a while, didn't see her for even longer. Give her, her space and let her live and breathe for a little while. You want that information?" He asks.
Severide looks at him for a moment and runs his fingers through his hair and wipes them down his face in an exasperated sigh, "Yeah" he says to the ceiling before looking to Hermann again, "Yeah, I want it."
"Gain her trust back" came Hermann's response. Kelly sits back in the chair and looks straight ahead, "Let her tell you when she's ready." He finishes.
Kelly nods. Antonio it is.
