A/N: This idea just popped in my head, so I decided to go ahead and write it into a small one-shot. I hope you guys like it, and please let me know what you think! :)
Molly's, Matt's POV:
I open the door into Molly's, and find it nearly empty. Nothing new. I sit at the bar and Hermann walks over to me, grabbing my favorite beer on his way. He pops it open and places it in front me.
"Am I really getting that predictable?" I wonder, smiling as I take a sip.
"Afraid so, Lieutenant," Hermann answers, nodding as he smiles back. "Dawson isn't with you tonight?"
"Nah, she and Shay are having a girl's night out." I tell him. He thinks about his choice of words before answering me.
"I know it's none of my business, but are you two alright? You guys bickered a little the other day during shift, and some of the other guys have noticed some tension, too."
"Yeah," I assure him, nodding a little. "She's just been stressed out about her physical test, that's all." I shrug and take another sip of my beer. He nods, about to say something more but the door opens once again, and he turns his attention towards the customer.
"Just you tonight, Ruzek?" Hermann asks the man, and I turn around to look at the new customer.
"Yup," The man, Ruzek, replies, nodding as he walks over. "Mind if I sit here?" He asks me, pointing to the bar stool next to mine.
"Not at all," I tell him, shaking my head.
"What can I get you tonight?" Hermann asks as Ruzek sits down.
"I'll have what he's having," He answers, nodding at my beer.
"Coming right up," Hermann promises, walking down the bar to get him a beer. Meanwhile, Ruzek turns to me and holds out his hand.
"I'm Adam Ruzek, but a lot of people just call me Ruzek." He says, and I nod, shaking his hand.
"I'm Matt Casey, but you can call me Casey." I tell him, sipping my beer again. "So how do you know Hermann?"
"I come here a lot of nights after work with the guys." He explains, sipping his own beer once Hermann slides it over to him.
"Gotcha, what do you do for work?" I wonder curiously, adjusting my body position slightly to talk to him easier.
"I work in the Intelligence Unit for CPD," he tells me, sighing a little.
"Oh, so you work with Voight," I state with a hint of hostility in my voice when I mention Voight's name.
"I'm guessing you're not a fan of him," he chuckles, shaking his head. "Not many people are."
"For good reason," I say, rolling my eyes at just the thought of the dirty cop. "He tried to have my fiancée and I killed a year ago."
"Somehow that doesn't surprise me. What did you do to piss him off?"
"I got his son arrested," I say, sighing as I spin my beer bottle in my fingers.
"Oh, you were that guy, huh? You must have also been the one to put Voight behind bars?"
"Yup, that was me," I sigh, nodding. "But I never could have done it without Antonio. The only thing that sucks is that he got out of prison eventually." I take another sip of my beer, needing it just at the reminder that Voight gets away with everything he does.
Adam just nods and takes another sip of his beer as well. "So you're good friends with Antonio?" He asks a minute later, and I'm thankful he changed the conversation.
"Yeah," I nod. "He's a real good guy. I'm dating his sister, actually."
"I thought you said you were engaged?" Adam wonders, looking at me curiously.
"I was engaged to somebody else, for a little while," I sigh, itching the back of my neck. "That's a long story, actually."
He shrugs, smiling a little at me. "I like long stories," he says simply.
"Alright," I chuckle, shaking my head as I take another sip of my beer. "I guess I'll tell you what happened." I take a deep breath, getting ready to tell this stranger everything. "I was with this girl for seven years, Hallie was her name, and I eventually proposed to her. We were happily engaged for a little while, but things started getting complicated. She really loved her job, and that became her main focus, and I started noticing I was gradually being pushed away by her. We broke off our engagement for a few months, but decided to try and work on our relationship again. She put the ring back on her finger, and for a couple of more months, all was well again. But I realized I wanted a family, like right away, and she didn't want that. She was too focused on her damn job. So we really broke up that time, and almost right away she went to South Africa to do some Humanitarian job. While we were apart, I started hanging out a lot with Gabby, Antonio's sister." I smile just at her name, then continue with my story. "I started getting strong feelings for her, and I just couldn't shake them. She invited me to her cousin's big Christmas party, and I happily accepted her invitation. I even called it a 'date'. While we were there, she tried to kiss me, and I gave her a kiss on the cheek like an idiot." I shake my head, mentally punching myself for the decision I made over a year ago. "Things weren't really the same after that. We went back to being friends, but I could tell she was still hurt by my move, and the only reason why I kissed her cheek is because I was dealing with a ton of family issues at that time. If things in my life had been different, I definitely would have kissed her back. Anyway, after my family issues went away a little, I decided I was going to make my move on her. But then I found out she was seeing somebody else, and I didn't want to mess that up for her, so I backed away the best I could. It was hard, though, my feelings never went away. But one night, right after we got finished installing that door that Gabby and I picked out," I briefly point to the door, smiling a little as I remember when Gabby and I got our picture taken in front of it. "Hallie comes walking right in." I continue. "We made small talk for a little while, and then we went for coffee. She asked if I had anything going on with Gabby. I told her I didn't, and she was genuinely surprised. She always knew that Gabby had feelings for me, and I also had feelings for her, I just didn't realize it. I denied it, of course, and she seemed to believe me. One thing led to another, and that night we ended up hooking up and getting back together. About a week later she was murdered." I sigh, shaking my head and taking a sip of my beer.
"Whoa," Adam says, letting out a deep sigh. He claps my shoulder, shaking my head. "I'm sorry for your loss, man." He squeezes my shoulder in reassurance before dropping his hand and taking a sip of his beer.
"Thanks," I mumble. "I was pretty distraught for awhile, I went kind of crazy and turned into a cop for a little while trying to track down her killer. Once I did, the realization of her death really hit me and I broke down. But Gabby was there for me to help me pick up the pieces, and let me stay at her father's favorite fishing spot so I could get myself straightened out. Her and her boyfriend broke up about a month before I left, by the way."
"And let me guess, when you got back in Chicago you realized how much she has been there for you and you just couldn't deny your feelings anymore. Am I right?" Adam says, smiling a little at me.
"Spot on," I tell him, smiling as I nod. "We've been together for about four months now."
"I'm happy for you," he says sincerely, smiling at me. "But I have to ask you one question, for my own sake. Did you have feelings for Gabby while you were engaged to Hallie?" He's almost worried now, as if he can relate to my story somehow.
"Yeah," I answer, studying him. "I think I always have had feelings for Gabby, but ignored them because of Hallie." He nods, sighing a little as he takes a sip of his beer. "Why do you ask?" I wonder, still studying him.
"I'm engaged right now, but lately I've noticed myself thinking a lot about another woman." He admits, sighing again.
"Want me to offer you some advice?" I ask, taking a sip of my beer.
"Please," he says, nodding.
"Don't ignore your feelings for that other woman like I did. If you're unhappy in your engagement, break it off. If you're thinking about another woman, break it off with your fiancée. I wish I broke it off with Hallie a long time ago, and I know that may sound harsh because she's not here anymore, but I was unhappy with her for the last couple of years. Don't get me wrong, I loved her, but what I have now with Gabby is amazing. I love Gabby like I love to breathe, and I never thought I was capable of that amount of love for someone before we got together. She's my everything, I just wished I would have realized that sooner. But Ruzek, if you think you can live a happier life with that other woman you're talking about, my advice to you is to go after her before it's too late."
Adam's POV:
I nod as I listen to Casey speak, taking a sip of my beer. I had related to his story quite a bit, and as I listen to his advice, I know I need to follow it. I've been unhappy with Wendy for quite some time now, and whenever Burgess and I spent time together, I felt my heart beat just a bit quicker.
"So I should break it off with my fiancée before I come to regret it," I say, and he nods a little. "And I should just follow my heart?"
"That sounds like such a cliché, but yeah, that's pretty much what I'm trying to get you to realize." Matt says, smiling as he nods again.
"Thanks man, I'm glad I met you tonight." I tell him honestly, holding up my beer bottle. He clinks his bottle with mine, smiling.
"I'm glad I met you, too." He says, nodding. The door opens again, and we both turn our heads to see two women, one blonde and one brunette, walk inside.
"Hey babe." The brunette says, smiling as she walks over to Matt and kisses him. I watch as he smiles and kisses her in return. The blonde woman rolls her eyes at them butsmiles anyway. Matt wraps his arm around the brunette and turns to me, still smiling.
"Ruzek, this is Gabby, the one I was talking about. Babe, this is Adam Ruzek. He works with your brother," Matt says, smiling at the both of us.
"Nice to meet you, I hope my brother isn't a pain in the ass," Gabby says, smiling at me as she extends her hand. I shake it, chuckling as I shake my head a little.
"No, he's great, don't worry." I assure her, smiling and taking a sip of my beer.
"Good," she smiles, before turning her head towards Matt. "So you were talking about me, huh?"
"I was telling him how much I love you," He tells her, smiling brightly as he kisses her again. She smiles and kisses him back before turning back to me.
"Is he telling the truth?" She asks, still smiling.
"Yeah, he loves you very much." I tell her, nodding as I smile.
She turns towards Matt again, smiling as she kisses him yet again. I watch as they interact, noticing how happy they seemed to be together. And suddenly, I know what I have to do if I want a relationship like theirs. I have to break it off with Wendy, and tell Burgess how I really feel, before it's too late.
"I gotta run guys, there are a few things I have to take care of. But it was really nice meeting you," I tell them, laying down money to pay for my beer and standing up. "And Casey, thanks for the advice. It helped man, it really did." I say, smiling as I gently clap his shoulder in appreciation.
"I'm glad," He says sincerely, smiling at me. "I hope your decision makes you happy."
"I'm sure it will," I promise him, smiling before walking out of the bar and into my new future.