Title: Scenes
Author: ZombieJazz
Fandom: Chicago PD
Disclaimer: I don't own them. Chicago PD and its characters belong to Dick Wolf. The character of Ethan has been created and developed for the sake of this AU series.
Summary: A collection of one-shots/scenes using the characters as represented in the AU established in Interesting Dynamics. The chapters currently represent scenes happening immediately after So This is Christmas. As I continue to update, they'll just provide one-shot snap shots into the characters' lives and likely some recasts of scenes from the show. This series focuses on Voight and his family, as well as Erin Lindsay's growing relationship with Jay Halstead. This is not a linear narrative with a beginning-middle-end. It's just scenes.
SPOILER ALERT: There are MAJOR spoilers in this collection from Interesting Dynamics and So This is Christmas.
THIS CHAPTER IS SET AFTER CHAPTER 45 - MCFLURRY. It will be moved in about 24 hours to reorder.
"Hey!" Erin heard Ethan shout, and glanced up from her magazine just in time to see the Nerf football Jay had been kneading bored in his hands bounce off her baby brother's head and go scuttling across the floor – Bear chasing after it.
"We aren't watching another episode of this garbage," Jay put to him, her eyes shifting to the television to see that Ethan had most definitely started another episode of the show that she'd been ignoring for the past two episodes. Actually – she'd been ignoring it from the opening credits of the first one he'd put on.
It was proving to be a long afternoon. She should've known it was going to be.
Hank had called her late morning and ordered – not asked – her to come over and help him take down the top bunk in Ethan's room. He'd gruffly provided, "I'm fucking done hitting my head on the thing." She knew that Hank could more than manage ripping the bunk bed apart on his own. That if he was really that worked up about it – he would be in there tearing the room apart right that instant. So she could kind of see where this was going.
She was being summoned to give him a break from Ethan – for whatever reason. Not that he was likely to tell her the reason. But she could also summarize the possibilities on her own. The main being that Ethan was a kid and sometimes he could be a little much. And as patience as Hank was – he also wasn't a very patient man. Sometimes he needed to step away or he knew he'd say or do something that he'd regret when it came to being a single dad to his youngest.
So she'd come over – dragging along Jay, despite his protests. He'd been pretty committed to his intentions to sit on his ass all day staring at the television. Super Bowl Sunday. Erin really couldn't give a shit about whether she saw it or not. But she'd offered up half-assurances that 'how long could taking apart a bunk bed take?' and that they'd be back long before the actual game started. She could see him still hesitating on if he was going to come with her or just keep his ass planted on her couch. But he'd come. She suspected mostly because he felt weird staying alone in her place – even though she wasn't sure if he should. Maybe he should? She wasn't sure she liked leaving him alone in her place. Or anyone for that matter. It was her space. Her place. It had her things. She was likely still a little possessive and untrusting about things like that after how she'd grown-up until her teens. Maybe Hank tossing her bedroom on a pretty regular basis until she was about 17 had something to do with it too. Even though she understood why he did that. And he never took anything – beyond things she wasn't supposed to have in the first place and had been stupid enough to bring into his house. Even cigarettes and booze were a no-no. He had usually left a mess for her to clean-up, though. But that was part of the point of the whole thing. And she was always expected to clean it up immediately. But she'd always been expected to stand there outside the door while he tossed it too – so he could measure her body language and facial expressions. He still read her too well. Or he was just too good at that generally. But it'd definitely contributed to her distaste about leaving people alone in her space.
She thought Jay got that. That he felt a little weird being in her space alone too. Among her things. Even though he was there more and more. Because she was generally more comfortable spending her downtime in her own space than his tidy but slumming it apartment.
Anyways, even if it wasn't staying at her condo that he was uncomfortable with, she also suspected he didn't feel like going back to his place – even though he'd repeatedly told her that his TV was far better than hers. Clearly, though, her condo was far better than his for multiple reasons. Whether he was ready to admit that yet or not.
It had ended up being Jay who helped Hank rip apart the bed and hump it down to the basement. Not that she wasn't capable of doing it. Hank just seemed to think she'd be better at keeping Ethan out from underfoot and based on the way his dad was snapping at him at that point in the day – she'd accepted that was likely the best course of action. So she'd sat with him at the dining room table trying to get him to at least think about some geography project that he seemed unwilling to focus on at all.
It'd been a little funny listening to Hank bark orders at Jay at the top of the stairs. She knew that's just how Hank was. But she could feel Jay biting his tongue even from where she was sitting. He hated taking orders, which was kind of funny considering his military service and then becoming a cop after that. She'd seen more than once how his face and body language changed when he was being told how to do something – how to work. Especially if he'd initiated something on his own or felt that he knew better – or that his way was better. He had issues with authority. She understood. She did too. So maybe it was a little funny she was a cop too. But her issues with authority were more expected. Jay's time with the Rangers – you'd think some of it would've been knocked out of him and he'd had learned how to just obey and take an order without having that aura radiating off him when a command was issued. He thought his own judgment and morals superseded most people's most of the time. And maybe it did – but not always. Though, she was pretty sure he didn't need to be told how to dismantle a bunk bed or carry a mattress or deal with the plastic and tape to get it wrapped up and protected from dampness, water and dust.
But the two of them had made short work of the bed. Jay likely just wanted to get it over with. Taking Hank's boss tone at work was one thing. Dealing with it in his off-time was another. Another thing Erin also understood. She hated when she got one of his dad lectures – 'this is the way it's going to be', 'do it now', 'you're going to listen' tones – outside of work too. It often made her feel like he still treated her like a little girl. Or worse – he still didn't trust her. Not as his daughter, not as an older sister and not as an adult.
But the effort to get the bed ripped apart quickly had clearly been part of the plan too. Because when Hank had reappeared and again – more ordered than asked, that she/they stay with Ethan while he went out to do some groceries – again so he could do it without Ethan underfoot and slowing him down. She'd been pretty whatever about it. They were there anyways – babysitting Ethan during a grocery trip wasn't exactly a big deal.
The thing was that Hank had left on this grocery trip almost three hours ago now. Even if Hank was doing his thing where he didn't actually go to the grocery store – he went to the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker and talked up everyone in the store before buying his single item at each place – he was taking a long time. Erin had pretty much figured out that he'd likely be coming home with groceries but that before he'd gone to do any of them, he'd likely gone over to the social club to have a coffee and read the paper and play a couple hands of cards – alone – first. But she acknowledged he needed that sometimes.
Hank had never been particularly good at taking time for himself. She supposed most parents didn't really get that luxury. Or at least the good ones. Or the ones that weren't Bunny – in the very least. Technically, Hank did take time away from his family. A lot. But then it was about the job. The city. Actually taking a time-out? Or doing something for himself? That didn't happen often. Even the social club debatably wasn't exactly his own time. He kept up his connections and presence there for a reason too – that had little to do with the cheap beer, boxed wine or other men to play cards with.
But he'd definitely been even worse about taking even that time – his networking, his street talk, his tough guy prowl – since Ethan had been home. She knew some of that was just because even with her helping out – big time – that being the parent on his own was a lot given what his job was. Balancing the needs and time commitments of the job with the needs and time commitments for a pre-teen kid was a tough scheduled to get to mesh. Add in Ethan's medical appointments and therapies and need for extra help with homework and learning – even Erin could see Hank living like he was in a pinball machine some days. Just bouncing from one thing to the next. He'd been starting to look a bit more ragged with it too. His salt-and-pepper brown crop was starting to look a lot greyer than it was eight months ago.
So if he needed a couple hours away from Ethan – she'd give him it. It wasn't like he asked for it often. Not that he'd exactly asked this time either. But that was Hank.
"Maybe you should be thinking about starting dinner rather than watching more Master Chef Junior," she muttered at her brother. "Saw your chore chart. It's your day to cook."
"How can I cook when he hasn't come back with groceries yet," Ethan mouthed at her.
He was in fine form that day. Erin could really see why Hank needed a break before he rang his neck. There was a whole lot of teenaged snark coming out of his mouth. Attitude. Almost none of which she was willing to attribute to him being in pain or not feeling well or his medications. It was just him being a brat.
And it'd sounded like he'd been being bratty most of the weekend. He'd already complained at her about what a hard ass Hank was being that weekend and yelling at him about 'everything'.
Everything had apparently included the fact he'd been lax about his chores during the week because he was 'tired', that he hadn't brought down, sorted and started his laundry before going to his Robotics Club meetings on Saturday morning and then had been lazy about doing it when he did get home in the afternoon to the point that he had the drier going at night rather than hanging it up – one of Hank's pet peeves. He also hadn't taken Bear out on any of his walks or dealt with any of the poop pick up in the backyard that week – apparently. And, he was pulling the 'tired' and 'not feeling well' card near nightly too, meaning he wasn't keeping up on his augmented learning plan and now he wasn't even trying on his geography project. Apparently Hank had already sat with him to try to coach him through coming up with an idea and doing some research for the poster-board display he needed to get done. So, yeah, Hank had been a little annoyed with him. And he'd handed out his usual consequences and punishments to little avail apparently.
"You could start the prep with what's in the fridge," Erin said. "What are you making?"
He gave her another look. "Are you staying?" he asked bluntly.
She shrugged at him. "I don't know. Maybe."
"That's not fair," he said. "Then I have to make for four people – not two."
She gave him a look. "Boo-hoo. I cook all the time for you."
"You order take out," he said. "Or give me cereal. Gross cereal."
"Don't been an ass," she warned sternly.
"Well, I don't want to cook yet," Ethan protested.
"You should go do prep or go do your homework," Erin pressed more firmly. "And maybe Dad won't be quite as pissed with you when he walks back in the door."
"He's in a fuckin' bad mood," Ethan muttered.
"Hey," Erin said and stood from her chair, pacing over to the couch while rolling up the magazine and swatting him in the thigh with it. He grabbed his leg and gave her a hurt little boy look. "Watch your mouth," she warned him.
"You swear all the time," he protested.
She shook her head. "We're all supposed to be cuttin' back on that. And if I told your dad that word came out of your mouth while he was out, your allowance would be disappearing."
"He's already put all of it in the charity jar anyways this week," he pouted loudly.
"Maybe because you haven't been doin' anything that deserve you getting any kind of allowance from what I hear and there's other kids and families working a lot harder than you this week who could really use a hand up," she pressed at him, batting his legs away so she could sit down next to Jay. She'd spotted something she wanted to show him.
"You sound like him!" Ethan spat at her.
She grunted some acknowledgement while she paged through the magazine again, trying to find the page she was on. "Likely because sometimes you need tough love," she muttered at him, "to get you to listen."
"I'm tired!" he protested louder and kicked one of his heels into her thigh.
She glared at him, grabbing his ankle and holding it tighter. "Do not kick me," she warned. He glared at her and she tossed his foot aside. "You know this tired card is only going to work so often," she mumbled at him.
"I am tired!" he argued.
She found his eyes. "And maybe you're tired because you're doing too much," she said firmly. "You know, I told your dad that he shouldn't be encouraging you with this Robotics stuff."
"I LIKE ROBOTICS!" Ethan yelled at her that time and crossed his arms.
"Hmm," she acknowledged. "But I saw how exhausted you were that first week back and I told your dad you were going to run yourself into the ground."
"SO?!" Ethan protested.
"So maybe if you're so tired it's too much for your right now," she put to him.
"IT IS NOT," he pressed back at her.
"No?" she asked. "I sort of think it is. Because this week – you sure have been acting tired. You've been grouchy. You've had an awful attitude. You've been talking back. And your dad is only going to put up with that so long – especially when you aren't doing your chores around here and you aren't keeping up with your schoolwork."
"Dad said I could do Robotics," Ethan protested like that explained everything.
"Hmm," she acknowledged again. "Yeah. But I know your dad pretty well and if you aren't handling Robotics and you're getting behind at home and school and you're so tired you aren't acting like Ethan – you guess what's going to go first?"
"THAT'S NOT FAIR!" Ethan spat at her.
She shrugged. "Oh, your dad will make it fair. Just keep you from going to the practices until you're rested up and caught up with school. But what happens if you miss too many practices, Eth?"
"I don't get to play at the matches!" he moaned at her.
"Hmm," she acknowledged. "And if you don't play certain matches – what's that mean?"
"That I might lose my spot and might not get to go to City or State or Regionals or Nationals!" he whined so hard she thought he might cry.
She shrugged. "Yea," she acknowledged and looked back to the magazine. "So maybe you might want to go and work on some of your chores or that project. Or if you're really that tired – maybe you should be going upstairs to take a nap."
"You're so mean!" he pouted at her. "I'm just watching TV."
"No, you aren't," Jay said and flopped over her and reached up Ethan, grabbing the remote out of his hand and tugging on it until he let go. "I'm watching some of the pre-game programming."
"No one wants to watch that!" Ethan groaned at him.
"Umm … yeah, I'm pretty sure your dad is going to want to watch it when he gets back," Jay said, flipping the channels around.
"Football sucks!" Ethan moaned.
"So all the more reason to go do something production until Dad gets home," Erin said, having finally found the page she was looking for and flopping the magazine into Jay's lap. He glanced at it from his channel flipping. "What do you think of that?" she asked, tapping her finger on the page.
He gazed down at the magazine for a moment. "It's a woman in a dress," he muttered and looked back to the screen. "I guess she's OK."
Erin rolled her eyes. "I meant what do you think about the dress?"
Jay glanced at the page again. "I don't know much about dresses."
Ethan squirreled around on the couch at that and flopped against her shoulder – apparently having already forgotten he was pissed off with her and bored. But Erin was flipping to another page and flashed it at Jay too.
"I kinda like that one too," she said.
Jay gave it another glance, as he got onto the channel he wanted, and grunted some acknowledgement.
"They're wedding dresses," Ethan announced and looked at her with big eyes. "I thought I got to help you pick?!"
"Yea …" Erin muttered, flipping through some more pages. "I'll take you with me one day when I actually go to the store. I'm just looking at the magazines right now."
Ethan's finger hit a page as she was paging through. "That one's neat."
"Umm … no," Erin said shaking her head in some disgust. "I'm not looking for anything that big and fluffy."
"But it looks like feathers," Ethan added – like that was a selling point.
"Yeah, I'm not trying to look like a bird," she muttered.
"You know a lot of scientists think that birds evolved from small carnivorous dinosaurs," Ethan provided like that was a selling point.
"Also not trying to look like an evolved dinosaur," she said.
Ethan made a little sound of disappointment at that and leaned looking more at the magazine as she turned the pages. She saw that Jay was looking now too – though more at her than the magazine.
"What?" she asked.
"You're buying a dress?" he said.
"Well, I need to wear something," she muttered.
"Yeah … wear that …" he said, gesturing at the jeans and Henley she had one.
She snorted and gave him a look. "I don't think so," she spat.
He shrugged. "It's just a civil ceremony at the court house. Wear whatever."
"I'm not getting married at the court house," she put to him, giving him a horrified look. "Civil ceremony – fine. Court house – no. You know how much time I've spent in court houses? I'm not starting my married life in one."
Jay gazed at her with some perplexed horror. But Ethan interrupted on his behalf.
"You should get married at Wrigley Field," he offered. "Like on the jumbotron. That'd be so cool."
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's just for engagements," Erin muttered.
Ethan leaned over her to look at Jay. "You should've done that!"
But Jay was just gaping at her and not cluing into the humor behind the fact her baby brother had just suggested she dress like a bird … or a dinosaur … at their wedding … and that the ceremony be performed at a Cubs game. He was seriously missing out.
The door opened and Hank clomped in, stamping the snow off his feet. "E, got the ingredients for Sriracha drumsticks and collard greens. How's that sound?" he called out aimlessly from the front door.
But Ethan just sat up straighter and gazed toward the doorway. "Dad, don't you think Erin and Jay should get married at a Cubs' game?"
Hank poked his head into the entranceway, shrugging his jacket off his arms. "Yea, sure," he said absently. "If that's what they want."
"That's not what I want," Erin muttered.
"It'd be soooo cool!" Ethan protested.
She just snorted at his insistence as Hank wandered into the room with a couple grocery bags in hand – not nearly enough to justify his length absence. But not explanation was given as to why he was gone so long and she didn't press the matter.
"You wedding planning rather than project planning?" he put to Ethan, gazing at the pre-game special on the TV screen that Jay had seemed to have forgotten he'd put on. "This starts at what … 6:30, right?" Hank muttered. He looked at Jay when he didn't answer and then glanced at her and the magazine in her lap.
"We're picking out Erin's dress," Ethan informed his dad.
Hank grunted and took a step over to the couch and looked at the page she had open upside down.
"What do you think of that one?" she put to him.
He grunted again. "As long as I don't have to pay for it," he muttered and nodded at her. "You pick up some magazines?"
"Burgess gave them to me," she mumbled.
Hank just grunted again at that and started to trudge out of the room. "Magoo, get off the couch. Your day to cook. Going to show you how to do these chicken legs."
Ethan looked at her – letting out a little huff. But apparently she'd given him enough of a lecture about the thin line he was walking these days that he wasn't going to argue with his dad. It might be the first time in about a week he'd been smart enough not to put up a front with him. So at least Hank could thank her for something later. Not that he would.
He got up and followed after his dad, Bear quickly taking his warm spot on the couch and huddling up to her, seemingly wanting to be part of the wedding planning too.
"You seriously got those from Burgess?" he said after a long silence.
She shrugged. "Yea, she's not using them now. They're expensive."
"And they're likely like jinxed or something," Jay put to her lifting the corner like it was contaminated.
She gave him a condescending look. "It's not jinxed. We both knew her and Adam weren't going to last. It's better she got out of it before they dropped all that money on the wedding. Among other things …" she muttered.
"Yeah, exactly," Jay said. "All that money. I thought we were doing a civil ceremony."
"We are," Erin shrugged.
"Well, I thought we were going to do it cheap. And small," he pressed at her more.
She gave him a look with some annoyance to it. "Yea," she agreed. "But I'm not doing it in a court house. And I'd like to wear something that doesn't look like I just got off shift."
"So you're going buy like a $2,000 dress?" he pressed at her.
She glanced at the page. "I think this is actually a $8,000 dress." He gaped at her. "I'm just looking," she said. "I might like to get like a $400 dress, Jay. Maybe. I haven't gone to a store. I don't know how much these things are. It's not like I'm Googling it or watching Say Yes to the Dress."
"Four-hundred dollars?" Jay put to her. "Look, we could take everyone out for dinner for less than that after."
She snorted. "Where are you planning on eating after this ceremony? Because I'm pretty sure it's going to cost more than $400 to feed everyone."
He gaped at her even more. "Who's this everyone? I thought it was like Voight, Ethan and my brother."
She shrugged. "You're going to want to invite more people than your brother."
"Who?" he pressed.
"Mouse," she suggested.
He shrugged at her. "He's my best man. He's not a guest."
"I thought your brother was your best man? And I thought we were just going to call them 'witnesses'."
"Whatever," Jay muttered. "I'm closer to Mouse than Will. Mouse is standing next to me. And he's basically family."
Erin shrugged. "OK, well, if you're inviting Mouse because he's 'basically' family then I want to invite some people who are basically family too."
"Like who?" he demanded.
"I should at least invite Justin and Olive. And Henry," she said.
He open mouth gaped at her. "You've spoken to him like three times since Christmas," he huffed. "And he didn't invite you to his wedding."
"Because they did it as a civil ceremony in a court house," Erin provided flatly.
"Exactly!" Jay pressed. "So Voight, Ethan, my brother and Mouse. That's enough."
She shrugged. "And Alvin and Platt."
"What?" Jay gaped at her again.
"C'mon," Erin said. "They've known me since I was like fourteen. They know you. They're like Hank's family too. It will be fine. It will be nice."
"OK …" Jay said, slumping back into the couch and gazing at her. "So know you've got … potentially seven people coming to this thing. And I've got two?"
"I'm sure there's other people you want to ask," she said.
He looked at her. "Do you see me hanging with some wide pool of friends that I'm unaware exist?" he put to her.
She frowned at him but he just rubbed his face. "So where is it that you want to do this thing?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. I guess it depends on when we're doing it."
"I thought we said the fall," he put to her.
She nodded. "Yea," she agreed. "We just haven't set a date yet … so …"
He just looked at her with more disbelief – even though she'd been the one who'd been hesitating on putting a date on it because she knew as soon as they did there'd be other discussions to be had with Hank – as their boss – and decisions to make about their future in terms of their careers. And that part of this she just wasn't ready to delve into yet. Looking at wedding dresses – kind of fun in a little girl fantasy way. Even though it wasn't really a fantasy she'd ever had. Having to make big decisions about what their future careers would look like and talk about it with Hank? That didn't fall anywhere within her definition of a good time.
"Outside might be nice in the fall," she said.
"Outside," Jay looked at her. "In Chicago. In the fall." He rolled his eyes.
"OK, fine," she muttered. "Then let's at least do it somewhere that serves a decent meal." He looked at her in more disbelief. "A girl's gotta eat."
He rolled his eyes. "She's always hungry …"
And it's true. She was. And really – the longer they took to sort any of this out, the hungrier she got to get it sorted. The more she started thinking on bigger terms and not this little hidden away ceremony that no one came too. She didn't want to be flashy. That wasn't either of them. But she also wasn't going to hide away. They'd come too far for that.
AUTHOR NOTE: Another chapter was posted before this tonight — Chapter 51, Special. Please be sure to go back and check it out.
Also any feedback on how you think Easter would play out (or how you'd like to see it play out), in terms of if Hank would take Ethan to visit Justin/Oliva/Henry, if Hank would go and Ethan would stay home with Erin/Jay or if Hank would stay home and have the weekend at home with Ethan.
