Hey everyone, Thank you all for reading my story and taking interest!
So there will be a little time jump in this chapter.
-The situation with Hadley has been dealt with.
-Nina is 6 months pregnant.
-It's now February and things are budding for the couples of Firehouse 51.
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Previously…
"So, did you and Capp catch Hadley tonight?" she asked.
She had a feeling that's what he was up to. She knew Kelly and she knew there was no way he was going to leave this alone and let Arson Investigations deal with it. Hadley made it personal when he went after Mia and Katie.
He looked down at her confused. How the hell did she know? "I had a feeling. I knew there was no way you were going to let this go, it's not in your nature" she said.
He smiled down and kissed the top of her head, pulling her closer to him. "We put a tracker in his car. We are going to track him, so we can get ahead of him for once. I'm tired of being two steps behind him all the time" he informed.
She nodded and snuggled closer to him. She wrapped her arms around him and held him for dear life. "Please promise me you'll be careful. You have a family to come home to now" she said putting her hand up and sticking out her pinky.
Kelly laughed and crossed pinkies, "I promise princess. I will always come home to you and our daughter" he replied kissing their joined fingers.
"Good, because there is no way your daughter is going to let you leave her now" she teased.
Kelly laughed, "don't worry princess, I'm not going anywhere" he confirmed with a kiss on her forehead before falling asleep.
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Chapter 14 – Love is in the Air
A month later…
With the situation with Hadley dealt with, things were starting to go back to normal around the firehouse. Nina was progressing in her pregnancy, now 6 months pregnant and was starting to show.
Everyone was excited for the new baby to come. They loved having someone to spoil. It was a new addition to the firehouse family.
No one was as excited as Katie though. She already deemed herself the favorite, bestest cousin ever. She promised to help Nina with everything baby related.
Clarke on the other hand, had something else on his mind entirely. He went out and bought Nina a ring. It was a customized ring, made from his old Marine Corp one. It was petite, Heart Shaped Diamond Engagement Wedding Rings Set W Round & Pear Diamonds In Pave Setting (1.20 Ctw).
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It was the perfect ring for her. Now came the hard part, asking for Kelly's permission to marry his sister. He thought about asking Benny, since he was her father, but they don't get along and he has no relationship with Nina. Kelly was the most obvious choice for something like this.
He knew it wasn't going to be easy. Nina and Kelly had been through hell and back together and had a close brother/sister relationship. They depended on each other to be there for the other, not that Clarke was going to steal her away, but he just knew it wasn't going to be a cake walk.
It was freezing when Kelly made his way into the firehouse. He could only imagine what chaos this shift would bring if it was an arctic February day outside. People liked to do crazy things in the cold.
While Kelly was changing into his uniform, he noticed Jeff Clarke coming his way. The Marine looked nervous. That was odd. Clarke was never nervous; hell, he was never emotional, let alone nervous. Kelly knew it had to be something important.
"Severide" he greeted.
Kelly nodded, "Clarke" he replied.
It was kind of amusing to watch the other man so nervous. It was not like him at all.
"You know I love Nina right?" Clarke started off.
Kelly looked at him confused. Of course he knew he loved his sister. "Yeah I know. What's this about? Is something wrong with Nina or the baby?" he was worried.
By this time, the guys had gathered around. They had heard the statement and were curious. At first, they didn't really get the whole Nina/Clarke relationship, but anyone with eyes could see that they belonged together.
"No, nothing is wrong. I know I am really bad at this," Clarke stated before taking a minute to gather his thoughts, "I am trying to ask you for permission to ask Nina to marry me. I know you typically ask the dad, but since she and Benny don't really get along…" he trailed off.
Kelly was in shock. Obviously he knew that eventually they were going to have to get married. They are going to have a baby, and they have been together for what seemed like forever, but marriage made it real. He didn't want Clarke to take Nina away from him, no matter how childish it sounded.
It's been the two of them since they were little and he didn't want to give that up yet. Sure he had a lot of relationships, and now he was with Mia and Katie, but Nina was the one person he could always count on to be there. If she married Clarke, she wouldn't be his rock anymore.
Everyone was waiting for Kelly's answer. They were anxious to see if he gave his permission or not.
"I'll think about it" he mumbled before walking away. He went straight to his office and shut the door. He needed some time to get his head in order.
Clarke let out a defeated breath and slumped on the bench. Shay walked over, sat next to him and rubbed his back for comfort.
"Don't take it personally. They have been through a lot and learned to depend only on each other. He just needs time to realize that she isn't going anywhere by marrying you" she explained.
"I couldn't get her to leave her brother if I tried" Clarke added.
"Don't worry Clarke, I'll call Mia and get him straightened out" Gabby replied, as she pulled out her phone.
Everyone knew that besides Nina, Michelina was the only person able to pull Kelly out of his funk.
Both Nina and Mia were in Mia's office going over charts. The ER was really slow so they wanted to do something productive. Besides that Nina was hungry, so they retreated back to the office.
Nina was scarfing down food like there was no tomorrow and she'd been starving for years. Mia laughed, "I remember those pregnancy cravings. I drove my roommate nuts" she stated.
Nina glared, "I feel like I am a cow and I am only 6 months. It's horrible, I can't stop eating. I'm always hungry" she replied.
Mia laughed, "Yeah, I get that. Don't worry; it's only going to get worse. As the baby grows, you get more weird cravings. I remember once, I made my roommate in med school, Mike go out at 3 am. We were studying the digestive system and I wanted a peanut butter sandwich with pickles, shredded cheese, mayo, lettuce, tomato and mustard" she explained, laughing at Nina's scrunched up, disgusted face.
"That's gross; I hope mine aren't that bad. I am convinced, by the end of all my hormone jumps and cravings, Jeff is going to up and leave me" she teased.
Mia scoffed, "yeah right. That boy loves you more than anything" she replied.
Nina smiled big, "I know" she confirmed.
Mia laughed at her confidence in the answer. As unlikely a couple you would think they were, Nina and Clarke were perfect for each other. Much like Michelina and Kelly, they were like yin and yang to each other. Clarke being the tough, quiet, strong, broody type; while Nina being the complete opposite.
"I'm really happy for you Nina. You seem really happy" Mia observed. Nina couldn't keep the smile off her face.
"I really am. It's like the first time in forever that one of my relationships actually went right. I really can't believe that I got this lucky, and I know that no one believes me, but Jeff really is just a big teddy bear once you get to know him" she stated.
Nina's grin was contagious. Mia couldn't keep the grin from spreading to her. "Good, you deserve to be happy. As for Clarke being a teddy bear…well, I'll take your word for it dollface" Mia teased using Clarke's nickname for her.
Nina laughed and threw a fry at her. That only made Mia laugh harder.
RING! RING!
Both girls looked at their pagers. It was Mia's. She put down her chart and grabbed her phone off her hip. "This is Dr. De Luca" she answered, taking a calming breath to stop laughing.
"Hey Mia, it is Gabby. I know Nina is with you. Don't say my name. Clarke asked Kelly for Nina's hand in marriage and Severide froze. Clarke doesn't want you to know. We need you to get Kelly to be human again" Gabby informed.
Mia looked over at Nina, who was looking through her chart, completely oblivious to the conversation Mia was having that could possibly change her life forever. She knew that she had to keep a straight face and be null of emotion, because she didn't want to give anything away.
"I'll be there in 20 minutes" she replied before hanging up.
As she grabbed her coat and bag, Nina looked up at her curious. "What's up? Where are you going? Do you need my help?" Nina asked, ready for action.
Ever since she found out she was pregnant, her friends, family, and coworkers were treating her like she was made of glass. She was a trauma surgeon before she got pregnant and she was still going to be afterwards.
Mia couldn't help but smile. "No, thank you. I can handle this on my own. I have to run out to take care of a few things. Do you need anything while I'm out?" she asked her friend.
Nina took a minute to think. "Oh, can you bring me back some honey barbeque ribs and some wings. Ooh, make sure you get some extra honey mustard, ranch and some sour cream" she ordered.
Mia laughed, "You say I have gross cravings. You are disgusting" she teased.
Nina stuck her tongue out laughing, "You are just jealous" she retorted.
Mia chuckled on her way out, "I'll be back in a little bit, you okay here by yourself?" she asked.
Nina nodded, "yeah, I'll be fine. I think I'm just going to hide out here though" she replied.
Mia nodded in understanding. She could tell there was something bothering Nina, but she didn't know what it was. She had an idea that it was maybe Clarke's weird behavior, since he was nervous to propose.
"Okay, I'll be back" she stated before walking out the door.
After signing out and letting the nurse know that she was going on break. She made her way to the firehouse.
As soon as she walked in she could tell tensions were high. Clarke was slumming at the Squad table and everyone was walking on eggshells, in fear of Kelly's wrath. He was mean when he was frustrated. She put her stuff down in the common room and walked over to Clarke.
"Hey Jeff" she greeted.
He looked up and nodded at her. She sighed, took a seat next to him and wrapped an arm around his back. "Don't worry, Kelly is just scared. He is not thinking with his big boy brain right now. He's just flashing back to their childhood. Let me talk to him and give him some time" she comforted.
Jeff nodded, "thanks Mia" he replied.
Mia rubbed his back in comfort before walking up to the officer's quarters. She could see Kelly roughly going over his paperwork and jamming drawers from his desk. Mia knew this was hard for him. She smiled and knocked on the door.
"WHAT!" Kelly yelled to whoever it was. He wasn't in the mood to deal with people.
Mia walked in and stood in the doorway with her hands on her hips. "You know, you are going to break that drawer if you keep slamming things" she teased.
Kelly whipped around and noticed Mia. "What are you doing here?" he asked.
Mia put her stuff down on his bed and walked over to sit on his lap sideways. Immediately Kelly wrapped one arm around her back and the other over her thighs. Mia wrapped her arm around his neck and played at the hairs there.
"You are kidding right? I got a 9-11 call about Jeff's proposal" she informed.
Kelly played with the hem of her scrubs. He wanted to avoid this topic. "He asked for my permission to marry Nina. I mean I know logically that I should agree. I mean they are having a baby and they have been together for years" he vented.
Mia nodded in understanding. She needed him to vent. Mia also knew that if she was quiet enough, he would get it all out.
"Babe, I know you and Nina have been through a lot. We all know that it was just you two for such a long time. I mean, I remember when you first came to stay with us in high school. You wouldn't even let her stay in my room alone" she teased.
He laughed, "Yeah, well I wanted to make sure she was okay. She didn't know anyone but me in the house and I didn't want her to be scared" he justified.
"Kelly, she was 8 years old. She was old enough to understand the difference" Mia retorted.
Kelly just pinched her sides, "she's still my sister and I can't lose her. I couldn't then and I can't now" he brought things back to Jeff and Nina.
"Kelly, he loves her with all he is. Your sister is head over heels for Jeff Clarke. Remember how scared she was to tell you that they were dating. She knew it would be hard for you. She loves you Kelly. Babe, you are always going to be her brother. That's never going to change. She can move on with Jeff because she knows that no matter what happens, you are going to be there to pick up the pieces. She knows that you are going to be there for her. You are never going to lose her Kelly. Just the opposite. You are going to be closer to her than ever" she reasoned.
Kelly just listened to her and really processed the information. He knew what she was saying was true, he just needed to really understand it. He let out a big breath and looked up at her nodding, "I know. I will always be there for her and that's not going to change no matter what her last is" he finally realized.
Mia smiled and leaned down to rest her forehead against his. "There's the rational Kelly Severide that I know and love" she teased. Her grin was contagious. Kelly's grin grew that his dimples started to show.
He put her arm around her neck and pulled her down so her lips met his in a kiss. He has missed her. They haven't been together in a long time.
Mia sighed and let her tongue trace his bottom lip. Kelly groaned and opened his mouth to let his tongue battle with hers, him winning. Kelly lost all train of thought. All his restraint flew out the window the second her tongue hit his lips. He put his hands on her waist and turned her around so she was straddling his lap, legs on either side of his on the chair.
He wrapped his hands in her hair to hold her close. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pushed as close to him as possible in their current position. He moved one of his hands from her hair to reach under her scrubs to the small of her back.
She moaned and pushed closer to him. She pulled back, trying to regain her breathing. She rested her forehead against his. "Kelly, we can't do this here" she reasoned.
Kelly was beyond seeing reason. He shook his head, "yes we can" he reattached his lips to her neck. He literally pulled her hair back to give him room to nuzzle her neck.
She moaned and tilted her head back to give him more access. Kelly moved his hands up her back, moving her scrubs top up. Before she could put her hands up and pulled her top off, they felt buzzing.
Kelly pulled away and looked at her curious. She reached down to her waist and pulled up pager. She opened her phone and answered the page, "This is Dr. De Luca" she answered trying to keep her breathing under control.
Kelly wasn't' going to let anything stop him. He wrapped his arms around her back and pulled her close so he could suckle her neck.
"Hey, it's me Nina. We need you back here. Eric is here with someone from his team and they only want us to deal with it" Nina informed looking at her ex-boyfriend standing in front of the desk with his jumper on still.
"Okay, what's the damage? Is it totally bad?" she asked, getting back into doctor mode.
"No, we have some burn damage, but he crashed so we are worried about internal bleeding. You know the firefighters in this district. They are big babies. As soon as they came in, they called for me and you" Nina teased, earning a smirk from Eric.
Mia couldn't help but laugh, "okay, I'll be there soon" she replied before hanging up. She looked at Kelly and he knew that look immediately. He groaned and let his head fall onto her shoulder. "Seriously?" He asked.
Mia pulled off his lap and smiled, "yes I am serious. I need to get to the hospital. You're sister needs my help with an incoming trauma" she informed, keeping that fact that Eric was there out of the information.
Kelly didn't need to freak out about Eric and his sister. He needed to focus on Jeff and Nina. "Fine, I guess you can go and save someone's life" he pouted.
Mia fixed her clothes and smiled at his reaction. She leaned down and gave him a quick peck. "Go make up with Clarke and you'll get rewarded later" she informed.
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At the hospital after Mia left, Nina got a page from the ER. She groaned and reached for Mia's phone off her desk. "Hey Maggie, it is Nina. What's up?" she asked.
Maggie looked over at the firefighters in the lobby and the lieutenant standing at the desk. He wanted answers and he was very specific when he came in. He asked for her by person.
"Hey Nina, I know you aren't feeling well and are on your break, but I have a fire lieutenant here asking for you personally by name" Maggie informed.
Nina was scared that it was her brother or Jeff. She was worried that something was wrong.
"Okay, I'm on my way" she replied.
She grabbed her stethoscope and ran out to the lobby. She ran right up to the desk. "Maggie, who is? Kelly or Jeff?" she asked.
Maggie looked at her confused. She shook her head, "neither. It's another fire lieutenant. He came in with his team" Maggie pointed over Nina's shoulder.
Nina looked at her confused and turned around to see who she was talking about. Nina put her hands on her hips and glared when she saw who it was.
As soon as Eric's guy was in the ambulance, he told them to take him to Chicago Med and ask for Nina Severide and Michelina De Luca. He didn't want anyone else treating his guy. He trusted Mia and Nina and he needed someone he trusted.
He had the nurse page Nina and Mia. She told him Mia was out of the hospital on her break, so she just paged Nina. It only took a few minutes for her to get to the ER. Eric watched her walk in, with her pink scrubs and her brown curly hair up in a messy bun. She used to wear her hair like that a lot when they were together.
He saw her reaction when she heard that Kelly and her boyfriend were okay. The nurse never said who it was, she just said a fire lieutenant. He could only smirk at her glare. She was a feisty one, just like he remembered.
She picked up the chart and looked it over, sighing when she saw how much damage this firefighter managed to get himself into. Secretly, she was glad Eric was okay. They might be in the past, but he was still a friend. She still cared about him.
After looking over the chart, Nina knew she couldn't handle this by herself. She knew that he wouldn't trust any of the doctors on call, so she did the only rational thing she could think of, she called Mia. Once Mia was filled in, she was on her way, so Nina started the work up. That way, they would be ready once Mia got there.
She took a breath and walked over to Eric and his team. "Chief Bradley" she called out, announcing her presence.
All the guys stood up and walked over to her, huddled around their Chief and Lieutenant. They were worried about their brother in arms.
"I'm Nina Severide, I am the trauma nurse treating Mark Huck. I have looked over his chart and can safely say, he is in for a long road ahead of him. I need to know if you had contacted any of his relatives or his next of kin, because it wasn't listed in his file" she informed.
"Yes, I called his sister and she should be here shortly. You said Severide, as in Lt. Kelly Severide, Firehouse 51? Benny Severide's kid?" he asked.
Nina couldn't help but smile. All the firefighting guys knew each other and their families. They knew the ins and outs. "Yes, I am Benny Severide's daughter and Kelly is my brother. I have contacted a trauma doctor, who, ironically enough is Kelly's wife, so there should be no problems in the trust department" she replied.
The chief smirked at her retort. She knew how they worked in the firefighting business. Trust and loyalty were a must. She also knew that they wouldn't have any problems with her or Mia since they were connected to Kelly.
The chief nodded and Nina took that as permission. She turned around to grab the chart from the desk and make her way into the room, when she felt a hand at her shoulder. She turned to tell the person off, when she saw it was Eric.
"Hey, what's up?" she asked.
"Is Mark really going to be okay? I mean he has a wife, 3 kids" he informed.
Nina hugged the chart to her chest and sighed, she couldn't lie to him. Never really could. "The burns aren't that bad. We are keep an eye on his lungs and any internal bleeding. We don't want any of the soot to get into his blood stream. That would make our job a nightmare" she informed.
Eric slagged. He knew she wasn't telling his chief the whole story. She liked to stay positive and keep a positive outlook on things, but Eric was realist. He needed to know the whole story in order to process it.
Nina took his hand and let him over to the side. She stood in front of him and held his face in her hands. "Hey, listen to me. I am not going to let anything bad happen to him while he is here. And Mia is a great doctor. She knows about the bond you firefighters have with each other. She knows how important it is to make sure Mark makes it through this. You just have to believe that he will" she comforted.
Eric couldn't help but let a few tears fall, smiling as she wiped them away. "How can I possibly be positive right now? I saw him fall Nina. We were clearing out the second floor and he was joking around. Telling everyone how is daughter spent 3 hours on the phone with a guys from her class and she's in the 3rd grade. He was in the middle of telling us what he was planning on doing to the guy when his radio cut out. I turned to see him fall two stories onto burning wood. The next thing we all heard was his pass alarm. If I could have gotten to him sooner, if I pushed him out of the way…." he explained what happened.
Nina held her tears back and shook her head, "no, hey, don't do that. Don't try to think of what you could have done. And don't you dare think that you should be in his place" she reprimanded.
"I should though. I have no one here. Nothing tying me here. He has a family to live for" Eric replied.
Nina let a few tears fall, she couldn't help it. "Don't you dare say that! You have you parents, you sister, your firehouse, me…you have all of us to live for. Do you honestly think if it was you on that gurney, I would be so calm and positive right now? No I would be a freaking tornado in here, making sure you got the best care, to bring you back. Then when you got back I would kill you myself for being so reckless" she teased, making him laugh a little.
"Promise me he'll be okay?" he asked.
She smiled, "I promise" she gave him a quick hug, "I promise" she repeated in his ear, squeezing him one more time, before pulling away and going to assess the injured firefighter.
Once Mia got there, she saw all the firefighters in the lobby and knew that's where she needed to be. She spotted Eric and walked over.
"Eric" she called.
Lt. Whaley got up and greeted her with a hug. "Thanks for coming Mia" he replied.
She smiled, "don't mention it…literally" she teased.
Eric laughed and nodded. He knew what she meant. Kelly would freak if he knew she was helping them. Ever since his sister messed up with Severide, things had been strained between them.
He led her over to his chief. "Chief Bradley, this is Dr. De Luca" Eric introduced.
Mia put her hand out, "Chief" she greeted by shaking his hand.
"De Luca, as in District Chief Danny De Luca?" he asked.
Mia smiled, "yes sir. I am his daughter" she replied.
"Well, between a De Luca and a Severide, our man is in good hands. You do what you have to do doctor. I want my man back in one piece" informed.
Mia nodded and went back to the exam room. Nina was already done with her exam. She already had the chart updated and the orders ready for the tests.
After looking over the chart, doing her own exam of the patient and looking at the test results, Mia concluded that the patient needed surgery. The fall cracked his ribs and ruptured his spleen. She had Bobby and George prep him for surgery so she and Nina could go and update the family.
By the time they got back to the lobby, Mark's wife and sister were already there. "Maria, Bianca, this is Dr. De Luca and trauma nurse Nina Severide. They are treating Mark" Eric introduced.
"Please, is my husband going to be alright?" Maria asked.
"Yes, he is going to be just fine. I have done my exam of the patient and ran all the necessary tests. From his images, we can see that the spleen has ruptured, but he can live without it. He'll just need to be on antibiotics for the rest of his life, but it's livable. His ribs are cracked, those will be wrapped and taken care of. Right now though, with your consent, we need to get him into surgery to remove his spleen. Time is of the essence. The longer the wait, the higher the risk of infection" Mia informed them all as detailed as possible.
Eric and the guys let out a breath of relief. Their guy was going to be okay. It was nothing too life threatening.
"Okay, do what you have to do" Maria gave her consent.
Mia took off to get scrubbed up and Nina stayed with the family. She had Maria sign the consent form and made sure they were all okay. She wanted things to go by the book.
As she was waiting with the firefighters, she noticed Eric shifting in his chair, holding his stomach every time he moved. He didn't think anyone noticed, he tried to be discrete. He shifted one more time, trying to hide the wince of pain and looked up to see if anyone saw him, only to catch Nina Severide glaring at him.
She glanced from his stomach to his face. He knew he was busted. That girl is like a human bullshit detector. She knew when you were lying a mile away.
She got up and walked over to sit next to him. "Please tell me I am wrong and you didn't injure yourself today" she whispered.
Eric smirked, "you're wrong and I didn't injure myself today" he condescended.
Nina glared at him and took his hand to help him up. "Chief, we'll be right back. I need Eric to fill out some paperwork for me regarding the call today for our records" Eric looked at her in disbelief. The girl, who could sniff out lie, could fool you like a bandit.
Chief Bradley looked between the two of them suspiciously before nodding his permission. He knew that there was nothing going on with his lieutenant and Ms. Severide, because then Benny or Kelly would be hounding his firehouse.
Nina took his hand and led him to her office. She shut the door and undid the blinds. This looked compromising enough. She didn't need word getting back to Kelly or Jeff.
"Take it off" she pointed to his shirt, as she gathered her supplies. She had an idea of what was wrong with him already.
Eric sighed and carefully, not without wincing, took off his shirt. His face scrunched when he heard Nina gasp. That was really saying something. She's a trauma nurse and for as long as he's known her, she doesn't scare easily…but hearing her gasp, he knew he was in trouble.
Nina walked over, she had her gloves on and started pressing around the big bruise covering the left side of his abdomen.
"Why didn't you say anything?" she asked.
"Huck had the brunt of the injuries" he replied, hissing when she pressed a little harder.
"You have a bruised rib. Nothing is broken, as far as I can tell. I am going to grab a PUM, portable-ultrasound machine, to take a further look and make sure you don't have any internal bleeding. Lie down and wait for me to come back" she led him to the couch and helped him lay down.
Nina ran into supply closet and grabbed a portable ultrasound machine, a bp cuff and a thermometer, before sneaking back into her office. Eric couldn't help but laugh at the precautions she took. "You know, we aren't in high school anymore. We aren't trying to hide from Severide. You can be seen with me" he teased.
Nina set up the stuff on the floor next to the couch. "Shut up! You think you're in pain now. You don't want word getting back to Kelly or Jeff about this" she said as she applied the numbing cream to his bruise.
"Okay, this is going to hurt, but it's a numbing medicine for the ultrasound" she said as she pulled out some syringes and some lidocane.
She knew it hurt. Some of her patients used to tell her it felt like someone was burning them alive. She wiped the area with alcohol, before inserting the needle.
Eric was lying down with is arms out at his sides, so the only thing he could hold onto was her thigh. Once she pinched the needle in, he tensed and squeezed her thigh.
"Just relax, the burning should go away soon" she replied.
He watched as she looked over his ribs and pressed around his wound. She looked so focused and concerned. He knew she loved doing what she was meant to do. She finished the ultrasound and turned to put the wand back into its place on the machine before turning to look at him.
She noticed the look on his face. "What?" she asked.
He smiled up at her and shook his head. "Nothing, I just realized why you love this job so much" he said.
She looked at him curious. "You belong here Nina. I never really understood why you wanted to be a nurse and not go all the way into medicine and become a doctor. Now I know why you wanted to be a nurse. You care for people. You like the one on one connection. You are right where you are supposed to be" he observed.
Nina looked at him with a smile on her face. "You got all that from me giving you an ultrasound?" she teased.
He laughed, only to wince and hold his ribs before Nina pushed him down. "Don't tease me. I am trying to say that you were right all those years ago" he replied.
She smiled and nodded. She didn't know what to say. Nina stood up and helped him sit up a little so his abdomen was arched off the couch.
"I am going to have to sit on…I have to…uh…" she got flustered. He wasn't sitting on an exam table, so she didn't have the leverage, so she had to straddle his lap to wrap the bandage all the way around his body.
He smirked up at her blush. "I would give anything to know what you are thinking right now" he said.
She blushed further. "Shut up! You aren't on an exam table so this is going to be a little difficult for me. Just don't think too much into this okay" she warned as she put her hands on his shoulders and straddled his thighs.
To an observer, it looked like a very compromising position. She was straddling his thighs and he was shirtless, but they both knew what it was.
"Keep your arms up so I can wrap this around your ribs" she said as she leaned over and packed the bandage on his ribs. She took his hand and had him hold the bandage so she could wrap his ribs.
Once she was done, she secured the wrap, she pinned it and sat back admiring her work. She pressed around his wound. "Does this hurt?" she asked.
He shook his head, "Nah, I'm just sore" he replied.
She replied and got off of him. "That's expected. I wanted to wrap it tight so your ribs get back into place. They should once the swelling goes down. If you are still hurting after 4 weeks, come see me" she instructed.
He nodded and put his shirt back on. He wasn't going to come see her. They both knew it. If anything, he would come and ask for someone else.
"I'm serious Eric. If you are still sore and hurting, come see me" she pressed the issue.
"Your boyfriend won't like that very much" he brought up the elephant in the room.
"I don't care. You are my friend and were a big part of my life. Jeff gets that. Now don't be a stubborn ass and make me call your firehouse asking how you are doing because you know I'll do it" she shut down his protest.
He smirked and walked over to her. He caressed her cheek. "I hope Clarke realizes what a treasure he got with you" he said.
She looked down and blushed when she looked back up at him. "Don't say that Eric" she replied.
He caressed her cheeks, "Don't hide. You are a gift, an angel and he better know it" he reassured. Nina smiled and nodded, "he does. He treats me right Eric. Actually, we are having a baby. I'm about 6 months along" she informed him.
He smiled down at her. She always wanted to be a mom. He pulled her forward and gave her a hug. "That's great Nina. I am so happy for you. You are going to be a great mother" he kissed her cheek.
She let out a little sob and hid in his chest. He smiled and wrapped his arms around her and rubbed her back in comfort. "Why are you crying, this is supposed to be a happy time" he said.
She pulled back and wiped her tears laughing. She slapped his stomach. "Shut up! I'm emotional" she replied.
He laughed and buttoned up his shirt. "Don't worry. You are going be a great mom" he said.
She smiled, "thank you. Now let's back out there before they think we are up to something" she led him out of the office.
They got back to the lobby to see Mia already talking to the guys. She was already in her scrubs, her hair in a messy bun, looking tired. Nina knew she missed the surgery. Eric and Nina walked over and stood with each other.
"How is Mark?" Eric asked.
Mia looked between the two of them suspiciously before clearing her throat. "Well, we did a splenectomy and took out his spleen. We took a good look around and he is clear for internal bleeding. He's on antibiotics via IV, which he will have to continue for the rest of his life. He should be just fine. He can go home tomorrow morning. We just need to monitor him overnight" Mia informed.
Nina nodded, "you don't have to worry. He'll be fine. He just needs a few weeks of rest" she added.
Once the firefighters were satisfied, they began to filter to see Mark in his room. Eric pulled Mia and Nina aside. "Thank you girls for everything. If you ever need anything, you know where to find me" he said before giving each of them a hug.
"Be happy and call me if you need me" he whispered in Nina's ear.
She smiled and nodded, "right back at you" she replied.
He laughed and made his way to his colleague's room with the rest of his firehouse. Once they were out of sight, Mia rounded on Nina.
"What the hell was that about?" Mia asked.
"He bruised his ribs and didn't tell anyone. You know we can see when people are hurt, so I caught him wincing. I took him into the office and wrapped his ribs. We started talking and we just rehashed everything in the past and I told him I'm pregnant" she vented.
Mia nodded, "Okay, so how did that turn out?" she asked.
She knew it was hard for Nina, but they needed to get things out in the open. "It was okay. I broke down, of course. He said he was happy for me and that Clarke better treat me like the treasure that I am" she relayed what Eric said.
Mia wrapped her arms around Nina. "It's okay. You needed to hash everything out Nina. Just be honest with Clarke" she said.
Nina nodded, "want to come with me to the firehouse?" she asked.
It was settled, the next morning after the girls finished their shift, and they made their way to the firehouse. After Mia's talk, Kelly finally gave Clarke his permission to marry his sister, so Jeff was ready. He was planning on doing the proposal when they got home over a nice romantic dinner. He was not expecting her to show up at the firehouse.
Mia and Nina parked behind each other outside the firehouse. Mia could tell that Nina was nervous. "Don't be nervous" she tried to comfort her sister-in-law.
Nina and Mia walked into the firehouse and right up to the common room. "Hey guys" Mia greeted as Kelly came his way over and wrapped his arms around her.
She wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned up to kiss him quick. "What are you guys doing here?" Kelly asked.
"You sister needed to see Jeff" she replied.
Kelly looked over and watched the whole scene unfold.
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Jeff looked at Nina shocked. He was not expecting to see her there. "Hey babe, what's going on? What are you doing here?" he asked as he greeted her with a kiss.
"I need to talk to you" she said.
Jeff nodded. "I know. You know I planned to do this later but I guess now is as good a time as any" he said.
He grabbed her hands and let out a deep breath. "Nina Marie Severide, you have become my savior after I back from the Marines. I don't know how I got you in my life, but I am so happy that you are my girlfriend. I am really nervous right now, I talked with Kelly last night and asked his permission to ask for your hand in marriage" he started.
Nina had surprise written all over her face. She had tears in her eyes and she couldn't help but let the emotion flow.
"I know what you are thinking and no, this is not because of the baby. I am asking you to marry me because I love you and I want us to be a family when our baby is born" he added.
Nina sobbed. "Yes, of course I'll marry you" she agreed.
Smiling, Jeff put the ring on her finger and stood up to wrap his arms around her waist. Nina wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a big kiss.
"I love you soo much Jeff Clarke. You are my dream come true" she said against his lips.
The guys stood back and watched. They were waiting for the perfect moment. Once they saw Jeff put the ring on her finger and their kiss, they knew it was the best moment.
"YAY!"
"WAY TO GO CLARKE"
They heard from the guys. Nina and Jeff turned around and smiled. They had their arms wrapped around each other.
"You are going to be part of the family now Clarke" Mia teased.
"Poor you Clarke, you are going to be related to Severide for the rest of your life" Shay teased.
"Hey, I am a good brother-in-law" Kelly defended himself.
He stepped out of Mia's arms and pulled Clarke into a man hug before going to his sister.
He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her close. "I am so proud of you Nina. You are going to be a great mother and a wonderful wife. Just remember though, I am always going to be there for you. Any time" he said kissing the top of her head.
She smiled and let out a laugh, "thank you Kelly, for everything. You have always been my rock. The most stable guy in my life. I just don't want that to change. I don't want you to think that just because I'm marrying Jeff, doesn't mean you are going to lose me. We are always going to be batman and robin. Always and forever" she teased.
That got everyone to laugh, "Always and forever princess" Kelly reassured. No matter what, he was always going to be there for his sister.
Mia looked on and smiled. She picked up Katie from the couch and carried her as she watched everyone else be happy for Nina and Clarke and Kelly.
"I guess it's true what they say, LOVE IS IN THE AIR!"
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Thank you all for reading! I hope you enjoyed. I am going to try and speed things up in the upcoming chapters.
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