One Year

by Sincerely Tiffany

Sequel to Cat and Mouse that follows the first year of Erin and Jay as parents.

4. Four Months

Walking along the pathway leading to the minor league baseball game for children, Erin anticipates the moment she'll get to see her nephew. She absolutely missed him; Danny had reminded her of Justin and when she was in his presence, it felt like she was with him. With Olive living half an hour away, she only saw them every other weekend; all the adults were too busy with work, a social life and kids to see each other during the week. Erin wanted to change that. She wanted Haven to know her big cousin; she wanted her little girl to feel as connected to Justin as she does. Even though they're cousins, she wanted them to form a sibling relationship –one that is much closer and firmer than the one she had with Justin. The couple arrives to the bleachers; Danny is currently sitting on the sidelines while Voight berates the coach for not putting him in the game. Pushing the stroller up to Voight, he manages to give the poor coach a break to give the attention to his granddaughter, "You guys made it," Hank leans into the stroller and lifts the four month old out of it, "Danny will be glad to see you all here!"

"It may have been on the other side of town," Lindsay responds, approaching the cage and wrapping her fingers through it, "but we couldn't have missed this for the world."

The bleachers were sprinkled with relatives of the little boys and girls playing out on the field. They silently cheer in their seats, leaving the loud cheering to Voight and Olive. Seven year old Danny sits on the sidelines of the game; his eyes remain relaxed on his mother until he sees her approaching Erin –his aunt- he jumps to his feet and waves excitedly at her. Lindsay waves back at him just as enthusiastically. Olive pries the four month old from her father-in-law's hands, "I'm assuming Jay chose her outfit today," she mentions, noticing the baby is decked out in Cubs' colors –her onesie, the cap on her head and the socks covering her feet were all Cubs gear.

Halstead nods proudly, "I sure did. They play later today and I'm raising this one to be as big of a fan as I am. It's the first game of the season."

"Guys, guys," Erin calls out excitedly, bouncing up and down as she watches Danny approach the base, "Danny has the bat; he's about to swing." Jay rushes over, along with Olive and the baby; they're all lined up at the fence, silently cheering Danny on. He swings once –it strikes out. Erin takes a deep breath and continues watching her nephew, "Come on," she talks to herself in a tone barely above a whisper, "You can do it," she watches him swing again –it strikes out. And for the last time Erin's fingers clench around the cage of the fence; she's stressed as she watches her seven year old nephew swing the bat again and unfortunately it doesn't make impact with the ball, "That's alright," she enthusiastically cheers, "You tried your best!"

With his head hung low, he goes to take a seat on the bench as his next teammate approaches, holding his bat. She draws away from the fence, seeing Olive already sitting down, playing peek-a-boo with Haven while the baby sits upon Jay's lap. She enjoys the game; it's one of her many favorite things to do. As Olive continues to play the game of peek-a-boo, her daughter continues to coo and react every single time Olive reveals herself from behind her hands. As Erin takes a seat next to Jay, Voight goes back to the gate, calling orders and insults towards his grandson's coach. Erin's face goes from one of amusement at Voight's overbearing grandfatherly actions to shocked when the baby is suddenly placed in her lap; she immediately looks over at Jay, "Sorry, I have to go use the restroom," he glances at Olive and nods appreciatively when she points out the direction of the restrooms. Erin chuckles as she watches her husband walk away. Her hands are intertwined over her daughter's tummy, her head leant gently against the top of her four month's old head, and they're facing the direction of the game. The baby is in a good mood; her gummy smile beams as her chin is covered in drool. She's teething. That first tooth is struggling to push through, irritating her gums and increasing the amount of drool that soaks the top of her onesie. Her neck muscles are still being developed. As of right now, her head is leaned back, resting between her mother's bosom and below Erin's chin. She's content.

Jay departs the restroom, tosses the paper towel into the outside trashcan and then turns, suddenly bumping into a woman a few feet shorter than him. He reaches his hands out to steady her, the impact with his chest caused for her to stumble. Her face is flushed, "Thanks," she grins; the woman looks at him –from top to bottom, up and down- and she smiles even wider; he's attractive and his hands are stilled wrapped around her upper arms, "I'm Jennifer," she introduces herself and extends her hand the second he unwraps his from around her.

"I'm Jay," he replies, shaking her hand in return.

She nods her head in the direction of the field, "Are you here for the game?"

"Yeah," he answers, tucking his hands into his front pockets.

"Cool," she runs her hand through her naturally curly red-hair, "I am too. Which one is yours?"

"None of them," he comments, squinting over at the far away game, "I'm here to support my nephew. He's number twenty. What about you?"

"Both of mine are out there. My eight year old," she points to a little girl with a long red ponytail, "is number nine and my seven year old," she points towards a little boy, "he's number seventeen. It seems we're rooting for the opposite team Jay."

"It seems so."

"I'm sort of," she twirls a strand of her red hair, "my kids' good luck charm so we'll be winning this game. I always bring luck wherever I go, normally it's because I always get what I want."

"I take it it's hard for people to say no to you?"

She blushes, "Of course," Jenifer notices his eyes occasionally glance over towards the game; he's preparing to head over, that is until she sparks another conversation, "I see you're a Cubs fan."

Jay points towards the Cubs cap on top of his head, "What gave that away?"

"And you're funny," she flirtatiously hits against his arm.

"At least someone notices it."

"Whoever doesn't is just missing out."

"My sentiments exactly…" he laughs, tucking his hands back into his pockets, "Well, I should be getting back to the game. I need to check the score and see if we're beating your team."

She runs her hand back through her curly, red hair, "I highly doubt it."

"Do I sense a bit of nervousness?"

"Why would I be nervous?" She puckers her lips in a seductive pout, "And to prove I'm not nervous, how about we make a bet?"

"I'm listening."

"If your team wins, what do you want from me?"

She approaches him and waits to hear his response; he clears his throat and answers, "I want you to treat my nephew to some celebratory ice cream."

"I can do that," Jennifer takes another step closer, "And if my team wins then you have to treat me to dinner at a restaurant of my choice."

Jay slowly shakes his head, a smile still stretched across his face contradicting his gesture, "I normally wouldn't back down from a bet, but I'm going to have to back down on this one."

"What? Are you scared?" She mocks.

"I'm hardly ever scared."

"Then what is it? You don't like what I'm wagering?"

He scratches the back of his head, "Not really," his hand slides down the back of his head before running it across his neck, "and I honestly don't think my wife would like it either."

"Ah," she gets it; it all settles in and she nods in complete understanding of his behavior, "Why am I not surprised? All of the good men are either gay or taken."

"Hate to disappoint," he chuckles, eyes occasionally glancing over at the baseball field to watch the game, "…and look at the bright side, you always have your kids' dad."

"My children's fathers," she corrects, holding up two fingers to annunciate her point, "and let's just say they're out of the picture right now," Jennifer moves in closer.

And Jay takes an awkward step back, "Well, I should be getting back to the game."

"I'm hoping I'll see you later."

"It was nice meeting you Jennifer," he extends his hand to keep the distance between their bodies.

She holds his extended hand a little longer than usual, "Likewise." Jennifer regrettably releases it. She smiles, watches him walk away before turning to head into the restroom.

As Halstead walks back over to the stands, he sporadically takes a look over his shoulder –Jennifer is no longer watching him. By the time Jay reaches the stands, Danny is now on the in-field and he's guarding first base. He approaches the bleachers, spots his wife sitting in the second row; her feet are on the first row stand, her legs are closed and the baby lies on her back in her mother's lap. Erin is distracted from the game; she's playing with the baby in her lap while the baseball game continues in front of them. Jay climbs the bleachers and takes a seat next to his wife; his own attention divided between the game and watching Erin play with Haven. While the infant lies on her back on her mother's lap, Erin would spiritedly lean forward and give the baby an Eskimo kiss; she would lean over, become eye level with the baby, and rub her nose against hers and then lean back. Each time, the baby would smile and release a loud and excited squeal of delight.

Before Erin leans forward again to rub noses, the baby sneezes, "Bless you," Erin coos, watching the baby grin in response to her sneeze. She leans in forward, and begins rubbing noses while her daughter's little hands grab her mom's face; smiling, she opens her mouth and places the wettest of open-mouthed kisses upon her mother's nose, "Ew," Erin giggles, pulling her head back; the baby kicks her legs around wildly as she smiles and squeals at her mother's reaction. Lindsay leans back in to rub noses with the four month old and just as before, she gives her mother the exact same reaction. The baby cups her small hands around her mother's face when she leans in again and just like once before, Erin rubs noses with the infant and she kicks out her legs excitedly in reaction. Lindsay suddenly draws back when she hears her husband cheer; he stands to his feet and claps as her nephew's team scores. She looks over at her husband, waiting for an update, "We're still behind, but we're catching up."

She nods, sitting the baby up and turning her around in the direction of the game, "How is Danny doing?" Her question raises his brow, "…not good, huh?" Erin adjusts the baby in her lap, leaning her against her bosom as they face the baseball game. Haven, being a baby, is looking around everywhere but the game. As her mother adjusts the small Cubs socks around her little feet, she begins gnawing upon her hands.

The baby sneezes and smiles once again. The past couple of days she had been getting over a cold; now she's starting to feel much better. With her head focused in the direction of the game, her peripheral vision has the main focus. She sees Olive having a discussion with two of the other mothers. She tries to ignore it; she tries to focus completely on the game and not eavesdropping on their conversation. Olive is standing at the refreshment table, filling her plastic cup with Gatorade while responding to the women's complaints, "They're just kids and it's the first game. They're all doing so well out there."

"I guess…" one of the mothers –Wendy- roll her eyes.

"It's just a game."

"Ha, you're joking, right?" One of the other mothers –Irene- cackles, lightly covering her heart with the palm of her hand, "Look Olivia, is it?"

"Olive," she corrects.

Irene lays her hand gently against Olive's shoulder, "Well Olive, this isn't just a game. It's a way of life. These kids start off small and then with practice and hard work, they make it big."

"My son is just doing this for fun."

"And you wonder why my husband won't put him in the game more?" Wendy retorts after taking a small sip of her water, "My little Gavin has yet to miss a ball. He's the best the team has to offer."

Scooping the baby up and flushing her against her chest, Erin stands. She notices her husband's wandering eye watch her as she steps down from the bleachers. He tunes back into the game, watching the kids play and listening to Voight shout at the coach for keeping Danny out of the game. He starts clapping his hands when the team goes to the in-field; Danny is now back guarding first base. Voight is content, knowing his grandson is back in the game and actually doing something useful. He steps back to cheer on the sidelines. Meanwhile, Erin is carefully stepping down the bleachers with the baby resting on her hip. She walks over, with the fake intent of getting something to drink, and as she approaches, she sees the pleading look on Olive's face, requesting assistance, "Danny is doing great out there Olive," Erin compliments, walking over to the group of women, "I'm so proud of him."

Irene grunts, "He can do better."

"He's trying," Erin defended.

"Well, he needs to try harder."

"What's your problem?"

"Excuse me?"

Erin switches the baby to her opposite hip, "I've been listening to you two berate these kids from the sidelines! Cut them a break! They're kids. Let them be kids!"

"You don't understand," Wendy chimes in.

"No, you don't understand!" Erin argues, cutting the woman off, "You're putting pressure on your son. You're turning an innocent game of baseball into some crazy competition. The players aren't getting paid. The players aren't getting drafted. They're playing to have fun, not to be drilled and hounded by some crazed obsessed mother in the fucking stands! And since you're such a professional in the game, won't you go out there and play?"

Wendy holds her head up obnoxiously high as she crosses her arms over her chest, "Cursing in front of your baby, how mature?"

"You of all people shouldn't be offering me parenting advice."

Olive grabs her friend's arm, "Alright Erin, let's go." She pulls her in the direction of the fence after noticing Erin's irritation grow heated at the current exchange. She yanks her towards the sidelines and breathes out a sigh of relief, "You don't know how much I've wanted to say that to her at every practice."

"Why didn't you?"

"You know I'm not that type of person."

Erin shakes her head, completely unaccepting of her response, "Well sometimes you have to be or people like her will walk all over you."

Olive nods, not wanting to speak further on the issue; instead, she looks up at the scoreboard, sighing at the numbers she's reading, "And we're losing."

"It's just the first game of the season," Erin responds, looking up at the scoreboard; she knows there is no way that Danny's team will catch up in time, but she remains looking at the bright side, "And it teaches good sportsmanship. You have to know how it feels to lose so you can appreciate it when you win."

Wrapping her fingers through the wires of the gate, Olive sighs, "Maybe baseball isn't the game for him?" She watches her son fail to catch the ball in his mitt.

"Was it your idea that he played?"

"No, he came up to me because his school friend is also on the team."

Erin approaches the gate, "So why did he want to play?" She switches the baby to her opposite hip and leans against the fence, facing Olive and watching as she observes her son.

"I don't know. I guess to have fun."

"Well, is he?"

Olive slowly nods, "It looks like it."

"So leave it at that. It was his idea to start, let it be his idea to end. None of these kids care about the scoreboard; they're just having fun, don't take that away from him."

"Kids can be mean Erin," Olive worries, sighing as she watches the other team score.

Erin nods in the direction of the other mothers, "It seems to me that the only two mean people out here are Thing one and Thing two."

Olive looks over and smiles, watching as the two mothers angrily grumble and pace at the score on the scoreboard. If she had to look for the one good thing about her son's team losing, it had to be the reactions of Wendy and Irene. Olive moves closer to Erin, throwing her arm around her shoulder and squeezing her tight, "Justin was right."

Erin glances over, "Right about what?"

"You," Olive simply answers, drawing her arm from around Lindsay's shoulders, "When we first started dating, all he talked about was Voight, Camille and you. He bragged about you all the time; my sister, the cop, the walking and talking personification of a badass. I can see it now though. I can see what he was referring to," she stared at Erin, watching her reaction and the second a tear slipped from her eye, Olive immediately began regretting her words, "I didn't say that to make you cry."

She wipes her eyes, "I know and Olive thanks for inviting us. I appreciate it."

"Of course; you're family. And I really want Danny to know his dad's side," Olive replies, "I want him to know stories about Justin growing up that only you and Voight can give him."

Erin chuckles, "And I have plenty," she regathers her arms around the baby, flushing her up closer and setting a light peck against her daughter's temple, "Afterwards Jay and I are going home, I'm making dinner and we're watching the baseball game; you can join us if you want."

"I work the night shift. Can we get a raincheck?"

"Of course…I'll be holding you to it."

Cheers of applause and groans of disappointment ring out as a team scores; Erin eagerly looks over at the scoreboard, noticing the increase in the other team's score. At this point they know Danny's team will not win, but they at least wanted to close in the gap between scores as much as possible. They didn't want to lose with such a big difference in numbers. Wendy runs up to the gate, "Come on guys!" The coach's wife aggressively wraps her fingers around the wires of the fence and shakes it, "Play like you want to win. You'll walk away either as winners or losers; it looks to me like you'll be walking away as losers if you don't get your act together!" She draws her hands away and claps loudly; her eyes hidden behind her sun glasses but from the creases in her forehead, everyone is aware of the scowl on her face, "Come on team! Did you come to lose because that's what it's looking like?! Play like you want-"

"Would you fucking quit it?" Erin snapped, silencing Wendy with the angered expression plastered on her face. When Wendy gets the hint, grunts and storms off, Lindsay exasperatedly turns back to face Olive, "Alright seriously," she whispers to her nephew's mom, "don't tell that witch, but I do need to stop cursing in front of the baby. The last thing I need is for Haven's first word to be a curse word. I wouldn't hear the end of it from Jay."

"Speaking of Jay…" Olive nudges.

When Olive points him out, Erin's curiosity is sparked, forcing her to take a glance over in his direction. Jay remains sitting on the bleachers, watching the game; the only difference is this time there's a red-headed woman sitting next to him, talking, giggling and flirtatiously batting her eyes, twirling her hair and tossing the dangling strands over her shoulder. Erin turns her back to the game, leaning against the fence with her baby moved from her hip to rest and lean on her chest, "Who is that?" Jay does seem to entertain the conversation the woman is having with him, but he's hardly paying any attention; he's focused on his nephew and the game their unfortunately losing.

"I only know about her through word of mouth," Olive answers, leaning her own body against the fence to watch the woman, "At the last practice, when the parents found out who the kids are playing against they all shared this look. One of the moms showed me a team picture and that's Jennifer; apparently she has broken up more marriages than one could count. Both of her kids playing today have been with married men. She throws herself at absolutely everyone in search of Mr. Right. She hasn't had any look in finding him, but she doesn't seem to be giving up any time soon."

"Hold her for a sec," Erin speaks up, passing the baby to Olive, "I'll be right back," and before Olive can stop her, call her back over, or try to see what Lindsay's going to do, she's already gone, approaching Halstead and the woman, "Hey Jay." She doesn't sit beside her husband, but purposefully takes the seat on the opposite side of the woman, leaving the lady sitting between her and Jay. Erin extends her hand towards the red-head when she notices her confusing expression, "Hi, I'm Erin."

She shakes her hand, "I'm Jennifer, are you Danny's mom?"

"Aunt."

She looks from Erin to Jay –back and forth twice, "And how do you two know each other?"

The expression Lindsay gives her husband is questioning; she's wondering if she was even mentioned at all. Jay picks up on it; he looks over when he doesn't hear Erin answer Jennifer's question, and he can tell by the look on his wife's face that she isn't happy. She's eyeing him suspiciously, questioning him with her eyes on why Jennifer doesn't know about her, however Jennifer does, she just hasn't made the connection, so before Erin can call him out, he immediately answers, "This is my wife."

"Oh, she's the wife."

Erin nods, portraying a stretched-out and forced smile, "I'm the wife."

"Well you're a lucky lady," Jennifer sighs, jokingly nudging Lindsay's side.

"I sure am."

"So," Jennifer speaks up, clasping her hands and turning to face Erin, "how long have you two been married? If you don't mind me asking…"

Erin draws her eyes away from the game, "This year it'll be seven years."

"Wow, a few years shy of the big ten."

"Yep," Erin squints at her suspiciously. Meanwhile, Jay remains entranced in the game, dividing his attention between the baseball game and his wife's conversation.

"How did you two meet? If you don't mind me asking…"

Erin sighed, "We work together." She found it odd how interested and invested Jennifer seemed to be in the current conversation; her kids were out there playing and currently winning the first game of the minor league baseball season, yet she was more preoccupied with Lindsay's relationship with Jay.

"That has to be messy."

"Only if you allow it to be," Erin responds, preparing to further her explanation while turning back to the game, "We're both adults and we're both able to be professional. We started out as friends first and then started a relationship. Work is work and we're partners on the job, personal stuff can wait."

"So you two are pretty strong?"

"Yeah, we're just like every other married couple."

Jennifer continues to pry, "And the kid? How does she fit into all of that? If you don't mind me asking…"

"What's with all the questions? If you don't mind me asking…" The irritation is evident in Erin's voice.

"I'm just curious."

"You're curious about my life? Or are you just curious about my life in regards to my husband?" Erin asks, clasping her hands together as she leans her arms against her lap, awaiting Jennifer's response. She watches and waits, observing the thought process of the woman as she thinks about how to react. She isn't intimidated. She goes for what she wants –the bigger the challenge, the better. She notices the possessiveness in Lindsay's eyes and after shoving a strand of curly red-hair behind her ear, she finally responds, "Cute...the whole jealous wife thing, you're definitely cute for that."

"And you're sad," It was the only way Erin could think to respond; she has never been called cute in such a condescending way before, and when she shifts in her seat to respond further, she notices Jay forcing himself to focus on the game instead of on her conversation, "Do you pride yourself in coming after married men? Or has that just been a thing of the past?"

With a roll of her eyes and a glance in the direction of Olive approaching holding a baby decked out in Cubs paraphernalia, she says, "I see you've been talking to some of the other moms about me. All good things I hope?"

"Just for the record," Erin utters, watching as Olive approaches holding Haven securely in her arms, "my husband isn't interested." And Jennifer merely gives her a mocking grin and salutes. Without taking her eyes off of Jennifer, she scoops the baby from her friend's arms, nods when Olive informs her that she's going to the restroom and then stands the baby on her legs.

Her hands gripped securely around the baby's waist; the infant's feet rest unsteadily against her mother's thighs, but with Erin securing her weight and holding her up right, her legs continuously give in, causing the four month old to bounce. She's smiling, revealing her drooling gums as a tooth works to protrude through, causing the baby significant discomfort which is eased either by her hand, the teething ring or the teething ointment they picked up from the pharmacy. The baby is leant forward –hands on mom's face- while her feet remain wobbly implanted on Erin's lap. Recently, the baby found herself regularly giving open-mouth kisses where she'll grab the face of whomever lap she is on, leans it and sloppily sets a wet and slobbery open-mouth kiss onto their face. Lindsay chuckles when the baby's kiss collides with her cheek, "You silly girl," she coos, drawing back, "Ick," she laughs, using the back of her hand to wipe the drool off her cheek.

"Cute baby," Jennifer compliments, watching the adorable interaction, "looks just like her dad."

"She's probably ready for a bottle," It's the first time Jay speaks up since Erin came over. He was aware of the conversation, he could hear every word, but he just chose not to add to it. His wife could handle herself especially when she's up against someone of Jennifer's caliber. However, when Olive brings the baby over, he's forced to give it his undivided attention; he didn't want Haven brought into the middle of anything. Jennifer's backhanded compliment of the baby sends an annoyed expression across Erin's face; it was intended to be an insult; the backhand of it came across like a compliment but when heard in its entirety, it was meant to offend her. Jay scoops the baby from his wife's hands, her own eyes focused on Jennifer as her husband carries Haven towards her stroller.

Jennifer doesn't even notice the roll of Erin's eyes; her own focus is on Jay feeding a bottle to the baby lying in his arms. She watches in envy, sighing as he bounces the little girl, "There's something about seeing a guy with a baby that makes him ten times more attractive," she watches him as he watches the game; it's soon to be over so she wants to take as much of him in as possible, "It's sexy."

As Haven drinks her bottle, one hand rests on top of her father's hand as the other touches and explores the side of his face. Her eyes on him; she takes in every blemish, freckle and crease in his face. With every day that passes, she recognizes him more and more; she enjoys the moment he walks in after work. The whole day she misses him and for today, she gets to spend the entire day with her parents; it's a moment that doesn't come too often since they both started working. She coughs, and he pulls the bottle back, places her on his shoulder and gives her back a pat. She continues to cough –the milk obviously going down the wrong metaphorical pipe. His attention is no longer on the game, but tending to her. Jay sets the bottle down in her stroller in order to have both hands free, patting her back and rocking her side to side, he waits for the burp and doesn't get upset when spit up follows. He simply grabs a wipe out of her diaper bag, maneuvers her to one arm and wipes his shoulder down.

Erin observed Jennifer as she watched; her hand cupping her chin and her elbow resting against her thigh as she practically drools over watching Erin's husband tend to his content baby; she sighs dramatically and only turns her head away when Lindsay speaks up, "I know you probably love seeing it with your kids and your husband." From her conversation with Olive, she knew Jennifer wasn't married and that Jennifer is not with any of her children's fathers, but since Erin absolutely doesn't like her at all, she had no problem bringing any of it up. There was no hesitation or reluctance.

"I would if I was married. However, I'm single and looking."

"Well maybe you should start looking elsewhere because he's taken," Lindsay reminds, standing up to walk down the bleachers. She doesn't give Jennifer any more attention as she tucks her hands into her back pockets and approaches her husband. Jay remains holding the baby, once again feeding Haven the rest of her bottle as she lies comfortably in his arms, "What was all of that about?" He wonders, rocking the baby in his arms as his wife approaches, "You look like you're seething."

The forced smile on her face stretches even wider, "I'm fine. I'm not upset. I'm so fine. I'm definitely fine. Why wouldn't I be?"

"You're jealous."

She shakes her head, "Maybe…possibly, just a little," she starts nodding, giving in, "She was practically undressing you with her eyes."

"Don't you think you're seeing too much into this?"

"Nope, not at all," Lindsay crosses her arms, turning to face the game, "She likes you and I can't blame her, but she needs to get it through her thick head that you're taken and you're not interested."

Jay chuckles; he sets the empty bottle down into the cup holder of the stroller, "You're insane."

"Ha, if I'm insane then you're blind."

Holding the baby in one arm; his arm wrapped around her stomach and her back flushed against his chest, he approaches his wife, uses his free arm to wrap around her shoulders, "You're impossible."

She smirks up at him, "And you're enjoying this, aren't you?"

Without verbally responding to her comment, he leans his head down and presses his lips against hers. His arm slides down her back, lightly roams over her waist before falling down to grasp her hand. He lifts it, ignores the buzz of the scoreboard as the game comes to an end, and pecks the open palm of her hand. The game was over. And he didn't let go. He keeps their hands firmly joined together as they watch the two teams leave the field, walking and running to see their family and friends on the bleachers. Danny's team lost and the mood is clearly implanted on the whole team's face. He's dragging his feet, walking over to his mom's opened arms. Erin watches, covering her heart with her free hand, "Aw look at his face," the young couple walks over as Danny is hugged tightly and pecked twice on the cheek by his proud mother. She's congratulating him and holding him securely in her protective arms while he continually whispers to her about the fact that he lost the game; he's sad, completely disappointed and at a loss of words. Erin releases Jay's hand and stoops low behind Danny, tapping his shoulder to gain his attention, "That's okay buddy; there's always the next game."

"I wanted to make you and grandpa proud."

Erin pulls Danny into her arms, hugging her nephew close, "Well if that's the case then you succeeded."

"I did?"

"Definitely kid," Voight squeezes his shoulder encouragingly, "You're a winner to me and you tried your best. That's all that matters. Better luck next time, right?"

"Right."

"That's what I'm talking about," Jay cheers, raising his free hand and laughing when Danny jumps into the air to give it a high five. Their hands slap together and the little boy is suddenly in a much better mood. He jumps back into the air, trying to take a look at the baby in Halstead's arms. When he's unable to get a good peek, he grabs Jay's arm to lower it, "I want to see her."

"Be careful Danny; don't grab his arm like that," Olive reprimands while nervously watching her son tug on Jay's arm that is holding the baby against his chest.

As the family walks out of the field and towards the parking lot, he lowers the baby. Holding her up, arm beneath her bottom and his other arm around her stomach as her feet dangle. Erin is pushing the empty stroller as Danny animatedly tells her and Haven about school, his toys, baseball and his new friends. He's practically skipping on his feet, so excited to be surrounded by his family and more specifically his aunt and baby cousin. He's being very helpful as he talks about his school grades; he takes the car keys from Erin and races over to her car to pop the trunk. Jay makes eye contact with his wife as she speeds up to catch up to him and when Halstead prepares to do the same, he hears his name being called out, "Jay!"

He turns to see Jennifer running over, waving him down, "My team won," she brags.

"Congratulations," he dryly responds.

"Unfortunately, you backed out of our bet."

Erin closes the trunk after folding and placing the stroller inside. Danny tosses his aunt the keys and takes a hold of her hand as they walk over to Jennifer and Jay who continues to hold the baby. Lindsay pulls her hand out of Danny's grip and places them upon his shoulder, she's talking to him as they walk over but no one can hear what's being said. The little boy is laughing, clenching his stomach and chuckling at a joke that was definitely not that funny. Soon enough, they reach the talking duo, "Hey babe, you ready?" She grins when her husband nods and then looks over to the woman he's talking to, "Hi Jennifer."

"Erin, it's nice seeing you again," Jennifer replies, straightening her posture and calmly pushes a strand of hair behind her ear, "I'm looking forward to the next time our teams play each other. Hopefully we can make another bet Jay," she winks at him and Erin suddenly gets the feeling that there's an inside joke or discussion between the two. She doesn't look at Jennifer for the answer, but her eyes do rest upon Jay, "Bet? What bet?" And when Jennifer's kids call her over, she uses the opportunity to back away quietly, leaving the two to continue their conversation.

"It's not important. It never happened," he shrugs it off and resumes walking towards the car.

She attempts to accept his response and whispers, "Hmm," she nods.

Lindsay stands beside her nephew, feet planted firmly on the ground as she watches her husband approach their car. He opens the backdoor, leans in to strap the baby in her car seat, and when she's about to approach to possibly probe further into the bet, her nephew's arms are thrown around her and his head buries into her back, "I'm really going to miss you!" His words are smothered by his face being pressed into her back as he embraces her tightly, "Since you had Haven, you stopped visiting me."

"I told you it's because your Aunt Erin has been pretty busy," Olive makes her presence known as she walks over; Voight following closely behind.

Danny lets go and steps back, "Too busy to see her favorite nephew?"

"I'm sorry buddy; you're right. I need to do a better job. How about on my next day off and your mom's next day off we go to the batting cage and you can teach me some of your baseball moves?"

"Okay," he nods disappointedly, "if you want, but I'm not that good."

"You're better than me."

"…then you must be horrible," he says, earning laughs from his aunt, mother and grandfather. He ends up smiling as well, giving in and chuckling at his own comment.

Erin's laugh dies down, "So do we have a plan?"

"Is the baby going to come?"

"Do you want her to?" Erin looks over at her car, observing Jay get into the driver's seat and wait patiently for her to join him. She averts her attention back to her nephew as he rocks forwards and backwards while shaking his head, "No," he murmurs, "I just want you, mom and grandpa."

"Why?" It's Olive who speaks up next, wrapping her hands around her son's shoulders.

"She takes all the attention. It's not fair." Danny grumbles, "She can't even play baseball. She doesn't even know how to play. I love her, but I don't want her to come."

"Then we'll be the only ones there kid," Voight assures, stooping low to be eye level with his grandson, "Haven will stay home with her dad."

Danny steps forward and wraps his arms around his aunt once again, holding her tight and inhaling her scent. He missed her. He always saw his grandfather at least once a week, but recently it became rare for him to see his aunt. Danny feels Lindsay's hand run over his back, before she leans over to peck the top of his head, "This isn't goodbye. It's see you later," she looks over at Hank, "Are you heading home?"

"No, I'm going to treat this guy to some yummy ice cream."

"Ice cream?" Danny immediately steps out of the hug, "YES!" He excitedly jumps into the air. He is no longer upset over his aunt leaving; he's ready to leave and get ice cream. Danny waves goodbye at Erin, every prior sad emotion he felt was forgotten at the thought of being brought ice cream. He's ready and grabs his mom's hand and his grandfather's wrist and begins tugging them towards the car, "Drive safe guys." Olive shouts, waving as she's pulled away. She chuckles and proceeds to walk to the vehicle.

Waving at her baby in the back seat before hopping into the passenger seat, she straps herself in and turns to her husband as he steers the car out of the parking lot. She hears the baby cooing in the backseat, holding her feet as her babbles fill the silence of the car. Erin is unable to see her since the front of Haven's car seat is faced towards the back of the car; the baby's hazel eyes traveled around her nearest surroundings. She's in her own world, kicking her feet out and occasionally gnawing upon her teething ring. Lindsay looks over to her husband, watching him steer the wheel with one hand as the other rests upon the armrest in the center. The passing trees are boring to watch as they ride upon the highway; she doesn't watch the scenery, she has seen it all on her way here. Instead, Lindsay watches her husband, "So," she clears her throat, speaking over her daughter's babbles, "I'm curious to know what this bet with Jennifer was all about?"

"Are you jealous?"

"No."

"You're jealous," he teases.

"I'm curious," she corrects, pointing her finger at him assertively, "and who knows, maybe I want to get in on the bet?"

"I doubt it."

"Come on," she pleads, turning completely around in her seat to face him, "are you going to make me beg? I want to know. Tell me."

Jay laughs, "You're too much sometimes. If Danny's team won, she was supposed to treat him to ice cream," he notices her brow rise, waiting for him to continue, "and if her team won then I would have to treat her to dinner at a restaurant of her pick."

Lindsay rolls her eyes, "That woman is persistent, I'll give her that."

"You're not mad?"

"Why would I be mad? You turned her down."

Jay shrugs, "I don't know," he reaches his free hand over to grab hers, "I know how we get sometimes."

"You're right, but since the Tyler incident," she hesitates and sighs; it's a brief moment to gather herself together before continuing, "I put myself in your shoes. It's not your fault that she finds you attractive. You turned her down and that's all you can really do. I understand." He squeezes her hand. And when an intense mood fills the car, she decides to change the conversation, "We need to stop at the grocery store," her voice perks up as if seconds ago it wasn't filled with a somber tone, "I'm going to make some homemade chicken noodle soup and I need to pick up the ingredients."

Jay simply nods without uttering a word. The subject of Tyler always changes the atmosphere. The mood always drastically shifts when he's brought up. There are a lot of unresolved issues and feelings when it comes to him. Since going back to work, Erin cut back on her visits with Dr. Charles; she only had sessions once every two weeks. They're both trapped in their own minds and by the time they focus back on the present, on reality and their surroundings, they are parked outside of the grocery store. Lindsay goes to retrieve a cart as Jay sets and carries the baby in the carrier strapped to his chest. His hand toys with one of hers as her head rests idly against his chest; she's cooing and babbling to herself as her legs dangle. He holds his hand against the back of his daughter's head, pressing his lips against it before looking both ways and crossing the street, "Hey babe," he calls out, picking up his pace to keep up with her, "The game comes on in half an hour."

She smiles, "I'll make it quick."

"You're the best," he announces, following closely behind her as they enter the store, "Haven and I thank you. She's excited to watch her first Cubs game with her dad," he pulls the baseball cap off his head and sets it on top of his daughter's head; she grins when the cap practically covers her head; it's huge in comparison to the size of her head. As they follow her mom through the store, he plays with the infant, continuously pulling his hat off her head and then placing it back down. She smiles and coos every time.

By the time Erin is ready, he checks the time and realizes his wife managed to grocery shop in fifteen minutes –completely impressive since it normally takes her at least an hour. As they stand in line, he sets the baseball cap back down onto the baby's dirty blonde hair and quickly pulls it off, she smiles once again, this time it's even bigger, revealing some of the deepest dimples in her cheeks causing him to lean his head and peck her dimple. She squeals and kicks her feet excitedly. And everyone within the immediate vicinity hearts swell; the sight is absolutely adorable. Lindsay watches her little family and the only time her attention is pulled away is to pay for her groceries. She grabs the two grocery bags and followed her husband out of the store. He was walking faster than normal, trying to speed up the process so they can get home and he can turn on the game –it'll start in ten minutes. The groceries are placed in the backseat and Erin runs the cart back while Jay straps the baby inside her car seat. She's wide awake, kicking her little legs and balling up her small fists, "You're excited about the game too princess?"

"I'm ready," Erin hops into the passenger seat, "Let's head home."

Within seconds, he hops back into the driver's seat and pulls the car out of the parking spot. Fortunately, the streets weren't crowded. Most of the public were home, preparing to watch the game. She sees the enthusiasm in her husband as he excitedly –and impatiently- drives home; if they were in a cop car, she had no doubt that he would put on the sirens. It seemed to be their luck –or lack thereof- because they seem to make every red light on their way home. The ride was growing too long for all of them, more importantly the baby, she started to kick her legs and whine. Erin was seated in the passenger seat and couldn't tend to the infant during the ride, so for now, she sat shifted in her seat and talking to her baby from the front, "We're almost there Hav."

"She doesn't want to miss the game," Jay replies, turning the car onto their street, "Isn't that right?"

Erin rolls her eyes, "You two haven't missed much. Baseball games are so freaking long and it just started fifteen minutes ago. There is so much of the game left to watch."

"Havie, your mom doesn't understand," Jay calls out to the backseat; his voice quiets the baby, "She's a baseball fan, but she's not one like us. I've tried to explain the importance of the games to her, but you'll just have to do it when you're older."

The moment the car is placed in park, Erin hops out, "You get the bags and I'll get the baby." Jay doesn't put up any argument; his mind was set on making one trip, carrying all the bags on his arms and rushing to the front door, only setting them down once to unlock the door and for good once he made it to the kitchen. By the time Erin reaches the front door –holding the baby on her hip- Jay is already laid out on the couch watching the baseball game. She walks into the kitchen, shaking her head, "Men and their sports," she mutters, maneuvering the baby around in her arms as she pulls her little Cubs sweater over her head, "She'll be in here with you while I cook," she tells her husband, setting the baby in the swing.

Jay hears everything she has said, but he's too preoccupied with the game to verbally respond –he simply nods. As he watches the game, he slides her swing over closer, angling her towards the television. They're both decked out in their Cubs gear; he's relaxing on the couch, legs wide open with his back resting against the cushion. His Cubs cap remains on his head and he turns it around so the snapback is backwards; he watches the play on the screen and only briefly turns away when his wife brings him a beer, "Thanks babe," he winks.

"You're welcome," she replies before disappearing again. With such an active household, Jay has learned the art of drowning out other noises when he's focused on his sports. His wife is humming in the kitchen as she prepares dinner and his daughter is babbling to herself as she gently swings back and forth. Jay doesn't hear either noise, especially when he shouts out annoyingly at his team for making a bad play. The baby finds interest in her feet, tugging the socks off her feet and bringing them to her mouth to gnaw down upon. Jay doesn't notice until the babbling stops, until he no longer hears her imitating speech with sounds like baba while squealing in delight every time she hears her own voice. Halstead notices her gnawing on her Cubs socks, drying her mouth as her saliva seeps into its fabric. With his eyes still on the game, he leans over to grab the socks from her, "Thank you," he slides the socks out of both of her hands. Haven's whole teething process had been painless; the parents had heard plenty of stories involving screaming and irritated infants growing teeth, but they've yet to experience it to that extreme. The first teeth that are slowly penetrating through are the two middle ones at the bottom, center of her gums. Gnawing on a teething ring, her hands and apparently socks seem to soothe her swollen and red gums where the two teeth are trying to cut through.

The game continues to play on the television as the aroma of his wife's homemade chicken noodle soup swarms the house. His stomach growls as he waits for the call that dinner is ready. Jay tunes back into the game, drowning out the sounds of his daughter's squeals, coos and gurgles, his wife's humming and tapping feet as she dances around in the kitchen while cooking and the doorbell ringing. Holding the large wooden spoon in her hand, she skeptically walks towards the door, "Were you expecting company?"

"No," he answers distractedly, his eyes still focused on the baseball game.

As she walks, her arms swinging and the spoon swaying back and forth, "Normally people call to give us a heads up if they're coming over," she approaches the door and takes a peek outside of the side window, "She looks familiar but I'm not sure where I've seen her from," Erin calls out to her husband before opening the door, portraying her best smile she greets the woman, "Hi."

"Hi, I'm here to see Jay."

"Come on in," Lindsay responds, using the wooden spoon to wave the woman inside, "Jay, you have company!" She shuts the door behind the guest and waves for the woman to follow, "He's watching the baseball game."

"Still the biggest Cubs fan I know," the woman chuckles, and then suddenly stops walking, "Oh, I am so rude," she extends her hand, "I'm Aly…an old friend of Jay's."

Lindsay shakes her hand, "I'm Erin."

"I've heard so much about you from my parents."

"All good things I hope."

"Definitely," Aly agrees; the smile on her face unexpectedly stretches ten times wider when she spots Jay walking into the kitchen, "Hey stranger."

He hugs her, "Hey Aly! What are you doing here? I haven't seen you in-"

"Forever," she finishes.

Lindsay steps away from the conversation in order to resume cooking dinner. She rinses off the spoon and approaches the pot to continue stirring the broth, listening in closely as Aly and Jay catch up. He pulls out of the hug and takes her in, "I wasn't expecting this visit, not that I'm complaining."

"I was in town to visit my parents and they mentioned that you're a dad now."

The smile on Jay's face is priceless; his expression is filled with love as he thinks about his little girl in the next room. Beaming proudly from ear to ear he nods enthusiastically, "I sure am. Little girl," he holds up four fingers, "four months now."

"Congratulations," she exclaims, patting his back before looking over at Erin, "to you too."

She looks up from the homemade soup, "Thank you Aly."

"I need to be at the airport in an hour and since your house was on the way, I figured I should stop by," Aly explains, rubbing her hands together eagerly, "And I did miss you Jay, but in all honesty, I came to meet your little angel. I want to see the little girl that stole the heart of the high school kid who used to flirt with anything that wore a skirt and sweet talk his way out of detention." This perks up Erin's ears and she listens in more intently, "I mean my dad used to always joke around and say that since you were such a ladies man with such an innocent face that you were going to end up with a daughter."

He waves for her to follow him into the living room, "Let's just hope he was wrong about the whole reap what I sow aspect when it comes to my kid," he smirks, leading Aly up to the swing, "I can't have my mistakes affect her. It wouldn't be fair."

Aly was one of Jay's first relationships in high school. The two started out as friends and had decided to try out an actual romantic relationship. After everything went down with her brother, they decided to call it quits and they have remained friends ever since; she had seen him in school. He never used women or was the stereotypical high school jock with girls lining up around the corner, but he was the pretty boy in high school. He was the gentleman; he was the guy that every girl wanted because he was so kind –a jokester, yes- but he had a heart of gold. Her dad used to always make jokes and comments about how Jay would unknowingly lead the girls on and by the time they realized he didn't want a relationship, a trail of tears and broken hearts would be in its wake. Her dad would warn him, saying something along the lines of it's always the ladies' man that ends up with a daughter who may reap what the parent has sown. As they reach the swing, Aly's eyes grow wide at the sight of her, at the view of baby Halstead swinging gently back and forth while gnawing upon a teething ring, "Oh my gosh, I still can't believe you're a dad," she watches him lift up the baby from her swing, "Hi gorgeous," Aly waves.

"This is Haven," Jay introduces, holding the baby in his arms. His muscular arm wrapped around her stomach and his opposite arm is beneath her bottom, holding her up.

"Oh Jay she is just a darling, I mean look at her," Aly gushes, toying with the little girl's free hand, "She looks just like her mama."

He looks down at the baby in his arms, "You think? I think she looks a little like me."

"She has your eyes," Aly responds, looking back and forth between the father and daughter, "but she has Erin's dimples, beauty mark, lips and nose. I think she has your ears though." He accepts her explanation; many people seem to agree because most, if not everyone, they've run into had said the same thing. Jay nods for her to follow him towards the couch and once she takes a seat, he places the baby onto her lap.

Haven has not yet reached the age where she experiences stranger anxiety. So far she remains to be comfortable being held by new faces. Aly lifts the toy beside her and uses it to toy with the baby. Haven drops the teething ring from her hand in order to direct her attention on the toy being dangled in front of her. With her back leant against Aly's chest, one hand goes into her mouth while the other scratches against the bright red, yellow and green toy being held in Aly's hand. Her attention is torn away from the toy being held by Aly when her dad lifts up another toy and extends it towards her. She reaches out for it, but her arms are too short. Aly readjusts her hold on the baby to ensure Haven didn't fall in her attempt to stretch her hands out for the toys in her and Jay's hands, "So," she clears her throat after taking a quick glance over her shoulder, making sure that Erin was not in ear shot, "my mom filled me in. Erin was attacked last year?"

He nods, eyes glancing down to the baby in Aly's arms, "It was a serial killer –a cop, and he was one of us. He used that trust and that badge to weasel himself into our unit and I almost lost my wife and my baby because of it."

"Jay, I'm sorry."

"Tyler is locked up and he's not going anywhere," Jay assured, shaking the colorful toy in front of his daughter; she reached out and tried to grab it, but her little hand couldn't take a grip of it, "We're just trying to put that year behind us, so let's talk about something else. Since you moved to Arizona, I haven't seen you in…years! What have you been doing?"

She chuckles and extends her hand, flashing the diamond ring, "I'm engaged."

"Who's the lucky guy?"

"Megan."

His brows furrow, "That's a weird name for a guy."

"That's because she isn't a guy," Aly chuckles, holding the baby while using her free hand to dig into her pocket, retrieving her cell, "I met her at work. We've been dating for almost two years."

"Congratulations Ally," he cheers, standing up after she does, "I expect an invite."

"Of course," she nods eagerly, "you and your plus one," her eyes briefly flash down at her cell and she sighs when she reads the time on the screen, "I should be going."

"Your visit was so short."

Aly hands the baby back to Jay, "I only stopped by on the way to the airport. My parents kept asking me did I pay you a visit, so I figured since you were on the way, I might as well stop."

"Well you don't be a stranger. Visit more often."

"Yes sir," she salutes.

Halstead maneuvers the baby onto his hip as he follows his oldest friend to the front door. She gives Erin a wave and vows to get to know her better, see the fire in her that stole Jay's heart. Jay opens the door and Aly hugs her friend one last time, patting the baby on her small hand as a farewell gesture before leaving. By the time Jay is back in the living room, his wife is spreading out the baby's blanket on the floor in front of the couch while the aroma of the cooking food becomes stronger, more appetizing. Jay glances up at the score on the screen and shakes his head; first Danny's team lost and now it looks like his team will be doing the same, however there is still plenty of time and opportunity for the Cubs to catch up. As he lays the baby down onto her tummy –for her daily tummy time- his eyes focus on the television, "What? Are you serious? Babe…did you see that play?"

Erin snickers, shaking her head, "I was more focused on the fact that she just rolled from her tummy onto her back."

"My baby working those muscles," he asserted, rolling her back onto her stomach, "Ha! Look at her go!" He laughs as she rolls from her stomach onto her back once again. Scooping her up right afterwards, he takes another seat on the couch, "There is no way I can focus on the game while watching her," he places her onto his knee as he tunes back in to the baseball game. She's leant against his chest and her hands begin toying with her bare feet; the socks she removed earlier haven't been placed back onto her feet since she'll only pull them off again. Haven pulls her hands away from her toes and inserts a few of her fingers back into her mouth, "Come on man!" Jay shouts out, completely frustrated and annoyed, "What is this?! You can't be serious right now! Did they even come to play?! That play he just made was-"

And even though he's still angered and wanting to continue his rant and shout at the television, he hears the most innocent, heart-warming laugh imaginable. It's coming from the four month old sitting on his lap. She's looking at him, laughing loudly, heartily and enthusiastically. His expression watches her with wide-eyes. And when Erin curiously walks into the living room after hearing the laugh, she stands and watches in shock, however the baby's laugh stops by the time she's in the living room. Halstead averts his eyes from the baby to his wife, "Did you hear that? Please tell me you heard that."

"I did," she nods eagerly; tossing the dish rag over her shoulder as she approaches, "Do whatever you did again!" This time, instead of looking up at the television as he rants, he's watching his daughter, "What kind of play was that? My nephew made a better run for first base than the professional did! It's ridiculous! Did they even train during off-season?! I mean, how could-" and that's when the laughter starts once more. It was this simple act that gave her the greatest pleasure and provided her parents with the absolute joy in hearing her laugh. The sound of her laugh was good for the soul. It's a melody to their ears; a tune they didn't mind hearing on repeat. She's giggling, laughing loudly with her mouth wide open and dimples piercing into her cheeks. When it starts to sound like her laugh is dwindling down, Jay starts ranting and raving about the game again; it sparks another burst, a round of chuckles that causes for her hands to fly up and down.

Erin recorded the whole thing –sending it out to the team and Annie the second the video ends. It doesn't take long for her cell to start ringing, a video chat call from Burgess coming through and she excitedly answers. The choppy image of her best friend appears and she waits for the signal to completely connect before she starts talking, "Hey!"

"Oh my gosh," Kim's face is all the way in the camera; she's up extremely close, "I want to see it live! Show me."

Lindsay turns the camera around, "Do it again Jay."

"If we lose this game it's obviously because they keep putting him in the in-field! They need to just bench him; let him practice a little more! It's ridiculous! You would think he has never played a game of baseball in his life!" And that's all that was needed as the baby starts chuckling again. Burgess sighs and appreciates the view, even going above and beyond to run her cell to Adam so he's able to watch. Kim begins laughing along with the four month old, "Next time I see her, it's going to be my mission to make her laugh. That is just so awesome!"

"I'll see you at work tomorrow," Lindsay says, turning her camera to face her, "I need to go check on dinner." As Erin disappears back into the kitchen, Jay tunes into the game, realizing that while he was so busy making the baby laugh, the Cubs had caught up. The game was tied and would be ending soon. With his eyes glued to the television screen, he hands the baby back her teething ring and she resumes gnawing upon it.

By the time the soup is done, the game is officially over –the Cubs won. Jay is happy, holding up his daughter's hand and high-fiving her. The chicken noodle soup is complete, Erin tried a sip and it tastes divine. All just seems so right in the world. With his forearm wrapped around the baby's stomach, flushing her back against his chest, Jay heads over to the table. He takes a seat as Erin sets a bowl down in front of him, "Today seems to be a great day; we got to see Danny, Aly came for a visit, we heard Haven's first genuine laugh, you made your tasty homemade chicken noodle soup and the Cubs won!"

Erin sets her bowl down and takes a sip, "The only thing that could have made this day better was if Danny's team won."

"…then it would have been perfect," he sighs, blowing the soup on the spoon before taking a bite. With the baby on his lap –now more active than she's been in all her months- she attempts to reach for different things on the table. First the salt, then the pepper, then his napkin and once Erin moves all of that out of her reach, she tries to reach for his spoon. She wants anything her little hands can touch.

"She's trying to get into everything," Erin laughs.

Jay nods in agreement, "Just wait until she starts walking and simply moving something out of her reach won't work anymore." The two take another yummy bite as they watch their daughter stare at them. Haven wants the spoon in her dad's hand; it's the simplest of things that she wants –a spoon, an empty box, while her toys remain scattered around in different places. He takes another bite and looks down at his daughter as he chews, "I want to try something."

When he rises from his seat, Erin skeptically watches him. She sets her spoon down when he unexpectedly hands her the baby. She observes him as he goes to wash his hands at the kitchen sink, dry them on a paper towel and then walks back over to kneel down in front of her and the baby. One lone brow rises in curiosity on Erin's face as she questions, "What are you doing?" He doesn't answer; she watches him dab his finger in his bowl of soup before bringing it to the baby's mouth, giving her a taste, "The doctor didn't say we can start her on table food. She doesn't even have any teeth," Erin angles her head to take a peek at the baby's reaction.

"I didn't give her any actual food to chew. It's just the liquid. I wanted to give her a taste."

She can only see the side profile of Haven's face, "How does she like it?"

"Her face is curious. She's so used to the taste of milk that she's trying to understand what the heck she tastes now," Jay scoops the baby from his wife's arms, sets her down on his lap and dabs his finger to give her another taste. This time Erin gets a better angle to look at. And after the second taste of the soup's broth, Haven starts kicking her legs; it's yummy. It appeases the other growing taste buds on her tongue.

"Alright, that's enough," Erin informs, standing to go to the refrigerator, "Let's stick to the bottles of milk until we get a thumbs up from the doctor. And she needs to start sprouting teeth," she grabs a bottle and takes it over to the microwave.

"I feel two teeth babe," Jay announces, carefully feeling around her gums, "They're slowly but surely coming through."

Erin rinses her hand and rushes over, "Let me feel," she runs her finger smoothly over her bottom gums, "Aw my baby about to be flashing us a two-teeth smile," she withdraws her hands and retreats to the microwave once it starts beeping. As Erin distractedly checks the temperature of the milk by dripping a few drops onto the back of her hand, Jay absentmindedly gazes off and watches her. He doesn't see Haven reach out clumsily for the spoon in his soup bowl and when her hand wraps around the handle of the spoon and withdraws it, splashing a few contents of his remaining soup onto his lap, he looks down, noticing as she struggles to put the spoon in her mouth and gnaw on it. He slides it from her hand, "Thank you," he looks up at his wife, "this little girl will put anything and everything in her mouth."

"That's all babies," she responds, handing her husband the bottle, "yesterday though, during tummy time there was a penny on the floor and I took it from her right as she was about to pop that thing in her mouth."

Jay multitasks; he positions the baby on his lap, her back leant against his chest and one of his hands balance the bottle as she drinks up her dinner while his other hand spoons soup into his mouth, finishing up the remainder of his own food. As the baby drinks her bottle, Erin notices her eyes flutter open and close, fighting against the daily foe –sleep. Lindsay grabs a few crackers to dip into her soup, "So, Aly…"

"What are you getting at?" He squints suspiciously.

"I kind of, sort of, officially met her."

"I'm an idiot," he slaps his free hand against his forehead, "I'm rude. I didn't introduce you two."

"It's okay. I'm pretty sure you'll have another opportunity. And we're adults," she reminded, handing him the crackers, "We introduced ourselves."

"What did you think of her?"

"We didn't get a chance to talk much. I did hear her compliment my baby though."

Jay grins, "Yeah, she called her gorgeous and pretty."

"And she said she looks like her mother; that's the absolute sweetest compliment."

He finishes the last spoonful of his soup, "Don't let it get to your head. Depending on who you ask, who she resembles varies."

"If you're talking about Jennifer then you should know she only said that to spite me; it isn't true," she shrugs, standing to gather their empty bowls, "More people have said Haven looks like me than you. I hate to say it babe," she walks over to the sink, "but the kid looks like me."

"I'll take care of the dishes and putting the food up since you cooked."

"My domesticated husband," she sighs, covering her heart jokingly, "I'll put the baby down to sleep and then take a shower. It's already pushing on ten."

Swapping the baby for the dishes, Jay approaches the sink. His wife disappears upstairs, humming softly into her daughter's ear as Haven continues losing the battle against the unfair power of sleep. As he cleans the dishes in the sink, he hears the shower water turn on; he dries them afterwards and puts them away. He wipes down the table, tosses the rag onto the counter and turns off the lights. After turning off the television and the light in the living room, he slowly makes his way up the stairs. His wife has the bedroom television on; she's standing in the center of the room watching it as she dries her hair. Dressed in his navy blue t-shirt, it fell loosely to the top of her thighs and he crossed the room to stand behind her, wrapping his large arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder, "Where's the baby?"

"On the bed," she whispers, eyes remained drawn to the television, "They're talking about Tyler, especially since his trial is coming up."

Glancing over his shoulder to peek at the baby sleeping on her back in the center of their bed, surrounded by pillows just in case she rolled over in her sleep and he turns back to his wife, pressing his lips against her cheek, trying to distract her from the news report, discussing the intricate and serious details of his case, "I'm going to take a shower. You should find a movie for us to watch. I don't feel like watching any of that garbage."

Lindsay nods as her husband pulls away, "I'll see what else is on TV," she continues using a towel to dry her dripping wet hair, "They weren't saying much anyway. They offered him a plea deal, one he didn't deserve, but fortunately he didn't take it. He's actually going to try and fight the case, plead innocent as if I'm not going to take that witness stand and call him out on what he tried to do to me and my baby! If Tyler thinks he's walking out a free man, he has another thing coming, I swear."

Jay didn't respond; he simply leaned forward and gave her another kiss on the cheek, immediately calming her down. Closure will eventually come. She continues her sessions with Dr. Charles and once Tyler is sentenced and locked away for good, closure and justice will officially be served. As Lindsay crawls into bed and gets comfortable, she hears the shower water cut on. She lifts the remote and starts flipping through channels, already knowing that nothing is on at this time of night, but in order to appease Jay and clear her mind of the trial, she searches anyway. She searches so long and so intently that she doesn't even notice Jay walking out of the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around his waist, covering the lower portion of his body. She takes a quick look, averting her eyes from the television and over to him as he searches through the dresser for a pair of boxers, "If you keep looking at me like that, we're going to have to put her in the nursery," he whispers, sensing her eyes staring into his back.

Erin crawls out of bed, "Let's put her in the nursery then."

In seconds she's out of the bed, moments after that she's carefully scooping the baby up in her arms, being careful not to wake her and then minutes after that she's carrying her out of the room and into her barely used nursery. Haven still sometimes wakes up in the middle of the night and it's easier for her parents to appease to her wants and needs when she's right beside them instead of down the hall. Arriving to her baby girl's nursery, Lindsay leaves off the light and uses the nightlight to guide her into the room; she slowly lowers the baby onto her back and situates her comfortably in the center of her crib. After pulling up the thin blanket and covering her opened legs and arms that are spread out above her head, Erin presses a kiss to her daughter's forehead, lingers her lips against her skin until she hears a breath to calm her motherly worries. Sometimes they found themselves continually checking on her breathing when she's asleep because she sleeps so quietly and soundlessly. Erin grabs the baby monitor from the corner of the nursery and holds it as she leaves the room, cracking the door behind her as she leaves.

Her maroon painted toes softly press against the carpet in her walk down the hallway to the master bedroom. The baby monitor is gripped in her hand as she approaches the threshold of her bedroom door and when she arrives she finds her husband no longer standing with a towel tied around his waist. Now he's standing in the center of the room, towel crumbled up at his feet and grinning flirtatiously at her. She sets the baby monitor down onto the dresser beside her and without wasting anymore time, she crosses the room and practically grabs her husband's face to pull him towards her, kissing him and holding his face in her hands as she rises to the tip of her toes. Without separating his lips from hers, he lifts her up and her legs wrap around his waist as he continues to kiss her hard. He carried her over to the dresser and sets her down upon it and while he remains standing between her legs, his hands wrap around his shirt that is covering her body and they briefly separate so he's able to pull it up over her head. Dressed in only a pair of underwear, she sits before him, vulnerable and waiting for his lips to make contact with hers once again.

Jay stares at her; he takes a moment and really looks at her. Her hair is tumbled and wild over her shoulders from his hand running through it. Halstead groaned, staring as she licks her lips and bashfully smiles at him as if she's even capable of being shy. She bites down onto her bottom lip, and gives him a sideways smile, revealing light dimples in her cheek, "What are you waiting-" and she doesn't get a chance to finish as Jay grabbed the back of her head and sealed his lips against hers, answering her question without any words involved. Her cell phone rings in the background and neither of them separate nor pay any attention to it. No indication from them that either of them even heard the ring. And it eventually rings until it goes to voicemail. And seconds later her voicemail notification dings, signaling someone left a message for her to check later. They carry on; she gasps when he begins trailing kisses down her jawline and along her neck. Erin breaths out, "I love you so much."

He draws back, taking her in once again, "I love you too…more than words can explain." She suddenly pulls his head down for a kiss, one that is hard, desperate and hungry and he pulls her towards the edge of the dresser. Their kissing isn't sensual or passionate; it's full of lust and longing. It's not slow or delicate, but rough and aggressive. His hands trail up her arms, flushing her body up against his; his hands continue its path up to her hair, tangling his fingers in the damp strands of it. He feels her teeth bite down upon his bottom lip and if it's possible, he presses his body against hers even more, until her cell phone rings once again. They ignore it again, allowing it to ring and ring until it goes to voicemail. And when they both finally assume that whoever has called has finally received the hint, they call again. She's frustrated. She just wants a moment alone –a moment of peace- with her husband. Between work and being parents, they rarely had time to just focus on their relationship. Yes, they've gotten back into their sex life but it's normally slow and sensual when they're making love. Now, it's sex, strictly sex, just to let loose and clear their minds. Against her wishes she draws back and looks at her phone beside her on the dresser, "It's Annie," her head falls forward and rests on his shoulder.

"Answer it," he tells her, but she hesitates anyway. She doesn't want to answer it. She wants to finish what they started. With her red, plump from kissing lips, she pouts, "I'll call her back."

"I'm not going anywhere," he replies, grabbing his boxers and pulling them on, "Answer it."

"Are you sure?" She asks, her phone continually ringing, "I can let it go to voicemail."

"She'll only call back. And she normally doesn't call back to back unless it's important."

She nods and picks up her phone, "You're right," she answers and puts the device to her ear, "Hey Annie. What's up?"

"Erin," her friend's voice wavers; it sounds broken and fragile. It's filled with sadness and it sounds as if Annie is on the verge of crying. She hears her sniffing and taking deep breaths, struggling to calm herself down. And second by second her walls slowly fell and Erin hears her sobbing on the other end of the phone.

Lindsay hops down from the dresser, "Annie, what's wrong?" She balances the phone between her ear and her shoulder as she grabs a bra out of the dresser, "What happened?" This perks up Jay's attention as he continues to get dressed while listening to his wife's end of the conversation as she hooks her bra around her chest.

"I'm outside your house. Can you come get the door?"

She glances at the time, "It's almost midnight. I have work at eight in the morning."

"Please. It's an emergency."

She grabs her discarded shirt and pulls it over her head, "Here I come," the shirt falls to her upper thigh and she reaches into the dresser to grab a pair of loose fitting shorts, "Annie is at the door. She wants to talk to me. She probably had a fight with Todd or something."

"Send her away," he simply states, tying the drawstring of his sweatpants.

"You know I can't do that."

He sighs disappointedly, "I guess I'll finish getting dressed then."

Erin grabs his upper arm and pulls him towards her before placing a kiss against his lips, sighing within his touch and peppering another kiss against the corner of his mouth before pulling away. She backs out of the room, watching him crawl into bed and grab his phone to entertain himself until his wife returns. As she walks down the stairs of her house, she finds herself on cloud nine; she wants to help Annie with whatever problem plagued her at the moment and then she wants to return to her husband and get some sleep, especially since she has to be up in the morning to go to work. Erin walked to the door and unlocked the bottom latch before swinging it open, becoming face-to-face with her childhood best friend, the woman standing before her with tears running down her bruised and battered face, "Annie…" Lindsay felt a shortness of breath; her eyes focus in on a drop of blood running down her lip, "What…what happened to you?" She gathers her voice and pulls Annie inside her house, shutting and locking the door after she enters, "What…what happened to your face?!"

"It's uh…it's a long story," Annie whispers, eyes cast downward to avoid eye contact, "I just need a place to stay tonight. I needed to get away. Can I crash here?"

Erin doesn't answer; she barely registers what Annie said. She's too focused in on the silent tears, the dried blood and the dark bruises upon Annie's face, "JAY, get down here! PLEASE! NOW!"

They hear his feet running along the carpet upstairs; he jumped up at the sound of his wife's voice. He doesn't bother to grab a t-shirt, he simply runs out of his bedroom and down the stairs, holding the baby monitor and only coming to an abrupt stop when he sees her, when he sees the state Annie arrived in. He can tell she has been crying; her eyes were welled up with a despondent look that begged for help. It aged her; the bruised welts on her wrists turned dark purple with each passing second –they look painful and the appearance of them will only worsen in the coming days. The making of a darker and disgusting bruise started to appear around her left eye, it was swelling up and by tomorrow morning, it'll be swollen shut. Annie sees their eyes taking in every injury visible by the naked eye; she doesn't speak or say anything, she silently grabs the collar of her turtle neck and pulls it downward, revealing a dark bruise lining her skin. With the back of her hand, she wipes the dried blood off her lip, preparing to speak but Jay's voice sounds before hers can, "Annie, what happened?"

"I was an idiot," she admits, unsteadily walking further into the house; they follow behind her.

"Annie," Erin says through gritted teeth, gently grabbing her friend's shoulders, forcing her to make eye contact, "who did that to your face?"

"You're going to be mad."

"I'm way past being mad! Did Todd do that?"

"Todd?"

Erin glances over her shoulder to answer her husband's question, "Her boyfriend."

"No," Annie quickly answers, pushing Erin's hands off her shoulders, "he would never hurt me."

"Then who?" And suddenly it clicks; Erin takes a step back, wrapping her arms around her lower waist, "Wait," she shakes her head in disbelief, "Did Charlie do that?"

Annie doesn't speak. She doesn't give a verbal answer, but her silence tells Erin everything she needs to know. She's pissed, undeniably angry and enraged. Jay remains speechless behind his wife. He quietly sets the baby monitor down onto the table beside him, trying to find the words to respond. It's no secret that Jay absolutely hates Charlie; he'll never forget the stories Erin told him about her childhood, involving him. He feels bad for Annie, having a child with a man that she hates almost as much as Erin does. However, Travis is an adult now. She doesn't have to communicate with Charlie anymore; if she doesn't want him in her life, he shouldn't be. And while Jay stands, lost in his thoughts, he doesn't realize that Erin disappeared upstairs until she's storming down the stairs, zipping up her jacket, "Jay," he looks over at her as she searches her purse for her keys, "watch the baby and Annie stay here. I'll be back."

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" Jay crosses the room, approaching his wife.

"I'm going to find him and beat the shit out of him Jay," she answers calmly, saving all of her anger for Charlie, "I'll show him what it's like to be beaten."

He grabs her arm, "You're not leaving!"

"I sure as hell am!" She snatches her wrist out of his grip.

"And when he hits you, then what?"

"I'll hit him back!"

"He's bigger than you, taller than you and two times your size!"

"The bigger they are, the harder they fall," she quips.

"You're staying here because if he puts his hands on you then I'll have to get involved!"

"We're already involved Jay! He hit Annie!" Erin shouts, pointing over at her best friend who is now seated at the dining room table, "Look at her face, her neck, and her wrists! He hit her!"

"And he'll get what's coming to him because Annie will press charges, right?" Jay looks over his shoulder, watching Annie continue to refuse eye contact.

"It was a big argument," she whispers, her hands fumbling in her lap, "I said some things that I shouldn't have. Let's leave it alone."

Erin drops her keys back inside her purse, and slowly, angrily approaches her friend, "Please don't tell me you're about to make excuses for him."

"I hurt his feelings!"

"For fucks sake Annie, do you think that gave him a right to hit you?!" Erin yells, unintentionally releasing the built up anger on her, "Go take a look at your face in the mirror."

"I don't want to."

Jay walks into the nearby bathroom in search of the first aid kit, "I can call the police. I can have them here as soon as possible. We can even keep it under wraps." he calls out.

"I don't want you to."

"Please Annie," Erin finds herself pleading, removing her jacket and draping it over the chair.

"He's Travis' father and they're starting to reconnect. I can't do that to Travis."

"Travis wouldn't want to see you like this!"

"Erin, what would you do? Put yourself in my shoes! Let's just drop it!"

"Charlie is an adult. Travis is an adult. He's old enough to understand and I'm pretty sure if he knew that his dad did that to your face, he would understand."

"You don't understand!" Annie jumps up to her feet, pointing her finger and waving it around in Lindsay's face, "You just don't understand! You don't! That's my kid's father! He already has daddy issues; I don't want to contribute to that! So because you don't understand, I would appreciate it if you save your advice."

Erin nods, crossing her arms over her chest, "Then why did you come to me? Why come to my house? What do you want?"

"I want to spend the night. I don't want to go home," Annie's voice breaks.

"You know you can spend the night."

"Thank you."

Erin sighs, wanting to drop it but finding it absolutely too difficult to do so, she speaks up, "I'm your friend. I just want to help."

"And I appreciate that, but I don't need it. Just give it a rest," Annie asserts, sighing in relief when Jay reappears holding up the first aid kit, "Thanks Jay," he stoops down in front of her after she sits and starts cleaning off her face.

"Annie, if my kid were in this situation," Erin attempts again to get through to her friend, "I would want her friend to try her hardest to help my baby out in every sense of the word. I can't just sit back and do nothing! I'm sorry…I can't. So yes, you can stay here tonight, yes, we'll clean your face up, but no, I won't drop it, no, I won't leave it alone and no, I can't just give it a rest. I've never been that type of person! You of all people should know that! And Annie, when will enough be enough? Let me and Jay help you! If this was our kid-"

"Erin, the difference is I'm not your fucking kid, I'm not Haven!"

She instinctively gets defensive, "I sure as hell know that because I wouldn't be having this conversation with her! He would be in jail having charges pressed against him as we speak!"

"He's my son's father!"

"And that doesn't give him any right or privilege to hit you!"

This argument wasn't over; it would have continued even longer if the baby's cries didn't blare out through the baby monitor. She grabs the baby monitor and clenches it in her hand, before slamming it down onto the dining room table and storming away, "You stopped me this time Jay," she shouts, stomping up the staircase, "but I swear nothing pisses me off more than an abusive relationship!"

He closes the first aid kit, "I agree. I just don't want you getting hurt or put in the middle of this!" Halstead temporarily leaves Annie's side to retrieve a bag of frozen vegetables out of the freezer for her to hold it up to her eye. While she holds the cold bag of broccoli against her eye, she watches him take a seat, avoiding eye contact and waiting for his wife to rejoin them. Annie dramatically breathes out and sets the bag of frozen vegetables down, "I know you want to say something," she readjusts the frozen bag against her eye, "You've hated Charlie this whole time. You almost didn't even hire me because of him."

"What's the point of saying something if you're not going to listen? Why waste my breath?"

"Erin is just…going overboard."

"Can you blame her?" He interrupts irritatingly, "Look at it from our end. You show up at our house late at night with your face bruised and bloodied. Charlie did that; the guy who made you and Erin's life miserable growing up did that. And you're upset with her for caring about you, for trying to help you out," he leans forward, staring into her saddened eyes, "Erin doesn't get that mad, that upset about many things. If she does, then that's how you know she really cares. You're mad at the wrong person."

Struggling to remain at ease and calm, Erin carefully lifts the crying baby from her crib. She supports Haven's head with one hand and her bottom with the other, "Hi baby," Erin coos, bringing the baby up to her chest, resting Haven's head above her pounding heartbeat. The second she's in her mother's arms, she immediately relaxes and her crying stops. Haven carefully lifts her hand and raises it to rest upon her mother's mouth and Erin jokingly gnaws upon it, sparking a hardy chuckle from her daughter. The laugh takes away the simmering anger in Erin's chest; it clears her mind of the argument brewing downstairs. Erin gnaws upon the baby's hand again and she chuckles even harder. You wouldn't even think the baby had been asleep minutes ago due to how hard the little girl is laughing. She hears their voices grow louder downstairs, reminding Erin of the serious matter at hand. Erin turns the alert baby around in her arms, resting the infant's back against her torso and ensuring her head is supported by her chest. One arm is under her bottom, the other is across her stomach and she steps out into the well-lit hallway, chuckling lightly at her daughter's disheveled appearance.

Even with the innocent smile on her face, Haven still looks like she had just woken up. What few short strands of dirty blonde hair she has is wild and tossed above her head. The baby yawns and the innocent smile finds its way back onto her face –it's natural. She's such a happy baby regardless of whether or not she had enough sleep. As her mom carefully walks barefoot down the stairs, her curious eyes take in her surroundings. She hears Jay and Annie's voices increase in volume as their disagreement continues to spew loudly, "Hey," Erin interrupts, stepping off the last stair, "baby in the room; let's tone down the vocals a bit."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to disturb you or wake her up," Annie whispers, ashamedly, "I just want to do what's right for Travis, is that so wrong? I know you're trying to help and I love you for it. I want nothing to do with Charlie, but when I put my foot down and tried to kick him out, he did this. It's just easier to go along with what he wants."

"…even if it makes you unhappy?"

Annie nods to answer Erin's question, "As a parent, our children's happiness should come before our own. It's one of the many sacrifices we make as parents."

"And you know I agree with you," Erin replies, walking further into the kitchen, allowing Jay to take the baby as she turns to face her friend, "but not when it comes to this. Your child's wellbeing should come before your own, yes, but not at the expense of your safety and your health. And Annie, you keep forgetting Travis is an adult, he just turned 19. He can handle it. Give him some type of credit. I understand –or at least can try to understand- protecting your child when they're Haven's age or under a certain age, but it comes to a certain point in time where you need to do what's right for you, not Travis. He'll be fine either way."

When Annie opens her mouth to rebut, argue and respond, a hard knock on the front door interrupts her, it silences her and makes her forget everything she was about to say. The panicked expression on Annie's face tells them who is at the door and storming out of the kitchen, leaving Annie and Jay behind, she rushes to the door and swings it open, "You have a lot of nerve showing up here! How did you even find out where I live? How did you know Annie would be here? Did you follow her?"

"That's not important," Charlie calmly whispers; he smells of cigarette smoke and alcohol and he aged for the worse, looking much older than the last time Erin saw him, "I'm here for Annie."

"You're joking, right?"

He notices Annie and Jay approach, but he pays no mind to anyone but Annie; he smiles at her, his eyes feeling bad for what he did. He wants to say something to her, apologize or hug her or something, but Lindsay remains standing in his way, preventing him from entering, "Erin, I don't want you involved. I'm warning you to stay out of it."

"Or what?"

For a split second he pulls his eyes away from Annie in order to rest them upon the sleeping baby in Jay's arms. Her head was rested in the crook of his neck and his large hand rubs continuous and soothing circles in her back. Charlie smiles before averting his eyes back to Lindsay, "Cute kid. When did you have her?"

She smiles, it's dark and a bit threatening, "Charlie, you really don't want to go there."

"Go where? I didn't say anything to imply that. I simply just complimented your daughter," he mockingly retorts, angling his head to get a better look at her.

"What happened to bettering yourself? What happened to being a father your kid could look up to? What happened to changing your ways?"

"I have changed my ways," he argued.

"If that's even remotely true," she asserted, grabbing Annie and pulling her forward, "then why the fuck did you do that to her face?!"

Jay steps in, noticing the look painted on Charlie's face. He uses his free hand to pull Annie away from the door, quickly hands her the baby, completely unmindful of the sleeping infant. She stirs and Annie steps away from the door to rock her back to sleep. Jay pulls his wife away from the door next before taking over her position, "Alright, get out of here."

"What? It's your turn now?"

Halstead stressfully pinches the bridge of his nose, "It's too late to be doing all of this. Come on, guy to guy, man to boy, let's not do this today."

"I just want to talk Annie; I love her. Don't you understand? If the situation was reversed, wouldn't you want to talk to Erin?"

"The situation would never be reversed, you see because," he pushes Charlie away from his front door, "I wouldn't hit her. I wouldn't hurt her. How fucking blind are you to not see the damage you've done? Get out of here," he shoves Charlie back again, "Get the fuck out of here and don't talk to her, don't look at her, and don't come anywhere near her. If you do-"

Charlie smugly interrupts, "What are you going to do?"

"You don't even want to know."

And Charlie doesn't test him further; he simply backs away and shouts out, "Annie call me!" He smirks and winks at the girls as he turns and walks away. The door is slammed shut and locked behind him and Jay angrily kicks it before turning to face the girls, "If he comes back, let me know," he watches Annie walk away, calming down the woken baby; he waits for Annie to disappear out of the front room, and tugs his wife over, "I don't think it's a good idea for Annie to watch Haven anymore, at least for right now."

"That's pretty sudden; do you have a backup option? We have work tomorrow morning."

"Lexi offered to watch her again," he whispers, "She can use the extra money since she got demoted. We can hire her until we find someone more permanent."

Lindsay worriedly responds, "How am I supposed to fire my friend? How am I supposed to do that after today?"

"You don't have to; I quit," Annie announces, revealing herself under the threshold of the kitchen. Her presence was made known and her eyes avoid contact as Jay walks over to take the sleeping baby from her arms.

Erin approaches, looping her arm through Annie's and leading her upstairs, "Are you sure?"

"Don't think I didn't appreciate the job," she positively asserts, walking into the master bedroom alongside her friend, "If I had the option I wouldn't, but your little girl comes first for you…and as a mother, I understand that. It's what's best."

Annie's arm is released as Erin walks over to give her friend a pair of her unused pajamas. Most of the things Erin wears to bed belong to her husband so the pajamas she actually does own haven't been used or haven't been used as often. She follows Annie out of the room, maneuvers past her husband as he brings the baby into the master bedroom and trails behind Annie to the guest room. She feels bad for kind of, partially firing her closest friend, but it needed to be done. And by the look on Annie's face, she starts to feel even worse, "You know," Erin speaks up to earn Annie's attention, "That doesn't mean you can't come see her whenever you want. Just because you're no longer her babysitter doesn't mean you're no longer my friend."

"I know."

"And it's temporary, just until the whole Charlie problem is solved."

She lays the pajamas out on the bed, "Well I can help with that. I'm going to go to the station and press charges against him in the morning." And suddenly Erin's arms swallow her into a hug. She holds on tight and presses a kiss against the side of her friend's head, being mindful of the bruises appearing alongside Annie's face. She hears Annie sniffle, suppressing her tears and she whispers into Erin's ear, "Thank you…thank you for being you and always calling me out on my bullshit. You're an amazing friend."

"That's what friends are for."

Erin pulls out of the hug and momentarily rests her hand against Annie's shoulder. She has work in the morning and it's quickly approaching two in the a.m. Leaving her friend in the guest room, she closes the door behind her. Lindsay wipes her eyes, hits the hallway light and heads towards her bedroom. After closing the master bedroom door behind her, she shimmies out of the pants and crawls into bed, being careful to not wake her sleeping daughter. Jay is already lying down in the dark bedroom while the baby silently sleeps between the two. Erin lays down and snuggles into her pillow; her hand reaches out and gently caresses the few strands of hair atop her baby's head, "Jay…" she whispers.

He groggily answers, "Hmm."

"What would you do?"

Jay rolls over onto his side to face her, "What do you mean?"

"If that was Haven; what would you do?"

He takes a moment to think because in all honesty he wouldn't know what he'll do, especially out of anger. He doesn't know how his rage will make him act or what actions will result from him seeing red. Jay sits up in bed, thinking much harder for an answer before deciding to stick with the truth. He glances at his wife's silhouette in the dark room and replies, "I honestly don't know. I'm actually afraid of what I may do. I was pretty pissed at Charlie for hurting Annie and she's your friend…to think of someone doing that to her, my daughter, I can't wrap my mind around it. I can't formulate a clear and rational thought process to be able to without a doubt answer by saying arrest him or press charges. I can't do that. I can't say that. If I do, I would be lying. I wouldn't give him the easy way out by throwing handcuffs around his wrists and bringing him in, I'll probably beat his ass…might even kill him."

"And I wouldn't even stop you," she remarks, cuddling up to her daughter's side, laying on the right as Jay cuddles up to the left of Haven, "There's so much evil in the world. There are bad people with bad intentions everywhere. I just want her to stay this age and this size for as long as possible. We may not be able to protect her forever, but it doesn't mean we can't try."

"I've never been angry enough to hit a woman. We've had some pretty big arguments, but I never, not once, thought I could hit you."

"And that's one of the many reasons why you're nothing like Charlie."

"He was so smug about it too!"

"Fortunately," Erin asserts, closing her eyes and curling into her pillow, "Annie has decided to go forward with pressing charges. We'll take pictures as evidence and then write up a formal statement. Our best way of keeping Charlie away from her and prevent him from hurting anyone else in the future is through the law."

He rolls over onto his side and rests his hand upon her hip, being careful not to disturb the baby, "We won't have to worry about something like this happening to Haven because we're going to give her so much love, confidence, support, protection and guidance that a coward would think twice about hurting her. She has two cops as parents and Voight as a grandfather," he whispers, "and not to mention, the rest of her village is full of cops and sergeants, she's covered. She's definitely covered," Jay murmurs again but hears no response from his wife. He takes a look at her to find her peacefully asleep, breathing even and composed; his words relaxed her enough to doze off. And he decides to follow after her, thinking of his own words, finding enough comfort in them to fall asleep as well.