Thank you so very, very much for all the lovely comments on the first chapter. Later than planned as I really wasn't too well yesterday. Hope you enjoy this and next and final chapter hopefully up tonight/tomorrow at latest x

"Thirty-four," states Vanessa out of nowhere from where she's sat on the bench in a van across the street from a liquor store they've been watching for the last couple of hours, camera in her hand.

Jay, with headphones on his head, the monitors in front of him, looks up from his cell and glances at his temporary partner, his expression confused.

"Huh?"

"That's the thirty-fourth time you've looked at your cell since we were in the bullpen 5 hours ago."

"No way," Jay protests, "Also, shouldn't you be focusing on what's going on at the liquor store instead of surveilling me?"

"I can do two things at once, Jay," Vanessa states then with what Jay realizes is the ghost of a smile she adds, "Avoidance noted of the issue though."

"The issue being that I've been trying to contact one of my CI's so focus please."

He shoots her what he thinks is a suitably authoritative and intimidating look, and she gives all the illusions of listening and it falls silent in the van again.

Just their breathing and the occasional sound of the camera. It's too quiet.

"Besides, all I was doing was making sure her first day went okay, you know like partners do that kind of thing."

"Okay, sure that's one way to look at it."

Jay sees her raise her eyebrows up and down fast, a smirk on her face, but there's no trace of any reaction by the time he looks at her.

"It'll be a long few weeks if you keep tabs on how many times I look at my cell, Rojas, that's all I'm saying."

Vanessa lowers the camera and turns to Jay, her expression serious but warm.

"I'm not teasing or not honestly Jay, just an observation. I miss her too."

She raises the camera again, conversation apparently now closed even as Jay steals a glance at his cell a couple more times in the last hour of their time in the van before Kim and Kev take over.

As first days go, it wasn't too bad, Hailey thinks as she drops her coat onto the chair by the desk area in her hotel room.

Her second day in New York, but the first full day over.

She raises her arms up above her head and stretches, moving her head left to right to ease the stiffness from reading reports most of the day.

She loosens the bobble in her hair, pulls her fingers through easing out the knots in her hair and turns the coffee machine on.

Five minutes later and she's sat on the bed, legs outstretched, the tv on with the sound muted and sipping at the coffee. A decision to drink coffee probably not the best given it's already past 9pm, but now, it's what she needed.

Her cell rings as she finishes her second sip, and she grins at the caller ID.

"Hey Vanessa, how are you?"

"Hey roomie, I'm okay. The house is so quiet without you. The plants say hi, I say hi, how was your first day?"

"It was strange being the new girl again. It seems okay. A lot of reading today, got out a little too. It was fine. How about you? How was today?"

"Not the same without you I think everyone was still a little shocked, but at least Jay's not shooting daggers of fire toward Sarge anymore."

There's no need for Hailey to shut her eyes to imagine those exact looks and it brings a smile to her face before she asks, "How are you holding up?"

"I'm okay, still thinking there's a lot more to you ending up there than any actions just you took but I know you won't tell me, yet anyway, so I'm going to do my best here and keep this place looking great for when you're back."

Hailey sidesteps Vanessa's words, realizing that Vanessa probably expects no response and there's no sense going back, at least with her anyway, instead casually as she can she asks.

"Who d'you get partnered up with?"

"He hasn't called you yet to complain?" Vanessa laughs into the phone.

Memories come flooding back even without Vanessa saying who it was, she doesn't need to. To a few years ago and the early days. Jay's changed in so many ways from the closed-off and damaged Jay he was, mostly for the better, but this change happened so fast, it's no wonder he's reacting.

"No, he hasn't, was he that bad?"

"Nah, he was okay except your cell must have blown up the amount of times he was looking at his today."

"He messaged me twice. I messaged him back to let him know I was still alive at 2.30 but that was the last time."

"Huh, maybe he wasn't lying about his CI, anyway, he was okay, we were doing a stakeout in the van today and it was all good."

Hailey relaxes hearing that, just as the phone beeps signalling another call waiting and she pulls the cell from her ear, sees the caller ID and for a moment, she thinks of saying to Vanessa that she'll call her back in a little while but Jay can wait, Vanessa's every bit as important, integral to her life.

Also very good once again at proving how intuitive,even telepathic, she is.

"I got a million and one other questions Hail, but you sound tired so I'll sign off now and also I'm doing it now before Jay tries to call and curses me for keeping you on the line."

Hailey doesn't tell her it's too late, instead she replies, "He can curse all he wants. I love you, we'll talk or message in the next couple of days, I got a feeling it's about to get busy here and Voight and the criminal fraternity of the city are bound to keep you all occupied over the coming days too."

"I make you right and I love you too, Hailey." Vanessa replies, "Kisses from everyone here."

The call ends leaving Hailey on her hotel bed, staring around the room, willing herself to believe that the next few weeks will be fine trying to fight this feeling that's like she's so far away from the shore, out on her own and knowing just the person to call to calm her at least for a little while.

Jay tries to wait 'a cool' number of seconds before he presses the button to accept the call on his cell.

Screw being cool, he thinks as he presses the button and hears her voice, trying not to let the smile show too much in his voice.

"Hey Upton."

He can almost hear her eye roll, affectionate though he knows it'll be.

"Hey, how was your day?"

How was his day? Good question. Better than yesterday for sure, but still hard because every time he was back in the bullpen her absence emphasized each time he looked up, looked around him, tried to fix his attention on his computer screen but found his gaze wandering back to the empty chair.

"It was different," he settles for then adds, "You've trained Rojas well."

Her laugh makes him smile that she got his tone, though she sounds tired. He tries not to sound concerned, to sound like he's anything other than concerned about his partner.

That's all this is.

"And you? They good people there?"

"I'm okay, just trying to figure out whether to stay in this hotel room or move to an Airbnb but not sure I'll be here often enough to care that it's soulless, and yeah they seem good, the guy I'm partnered with, he's tall."

"Oh yeah, that's the best you can say for him, he's tall?"

"Jay, I saw him for about an hour today. I'll report back with a full run down tomorrow so you can run a background check and all that on him, 'kay?"

Hailey's tone is teasing, and it makes Jay smile.

"Haha funny, I'm just watching out for you as best as I can from here."

"I know."

He hears the hesitation, the slight breath she takes before she continues, can guess what she's about to ask.

"Everything okay there?"

"With Voight?"

"Yeah."

Jay takes a swig of beer before he answers, setting the bottle back onto the table in front of him, "He knows how I feel. I know he thinks he's done the right thing, there's nothing we can say for now except that we both agree we want you back in one piece."

"It's not a war zone, Jay, it's New York City."

From anyone else, the words could sound mocking and teasing and in a way they are, Jay knows they are but also the gentle tone that's there too, the acknowledgement that Jay has been in war zones, in cities smaller than New York and faced danger at every turn.

"We still want you back in one piece, not a scratch."

"Sounds like a challenge, how about you take that challenge up yourself Jay?"

"Touche," Jay responds with a grin.

"Sorry, couldn't resist."

He hears her yawn, and it's as contagious down a phone line as it is in person.

"I should let you go try to sleep."

Her yawn's louder this time and he can't make out what she says, except for her apology at the end and he smiles at it.

"Stay safe, Hailey, tell the tall guy, he'll have me to fight with if he doesn't help you stay that way."

"Yeah cause that wouldn't sound crazy if the first thing I said to him tomorrow was that."

"Okay well, just say it in your head."

"Goodnight Jay."

"Goodnight."

The call sustains him for all of about forty minutes before he's looking at his cell again, trying to figure out ways he can tie the latest case they have somehow to New York before he gives up and consoles himself with the fact that at least it's another day down before she's back.

A week passes in a blur for Hailey, she's relieved that she didn't check out of the hotel because as soulless as it is, it's at least convenient and central and the room's clean each night and at 2am, 3am, 4.30am, she's grateful for it.

Each day, she receives messages from Vanessa and Jay. The others too, aside from Voight, check in.

She responds to them as quickly as she can, apologizing for not getting the chance to reply earlier but reassuring them that yes, she is alive, and she's doing well.

She is.

This team may not be her team, it makes them no less brilliant. No less capable and despite her misgivings, despite the circumstances and the way she ended up here, she's learning.

Agent Zidan or OA as everyone calls him is a good partner too. It's difficult though and she'd almost forgotten how long it takes to mould yourself, to adjust to fit in with someone else, the person you need to have at your back too.

Being the newer one is such an unfamiliar role to her these days.

It's a bigger change too because Hailey doesn't know New York like she knows Chicago. It's not her domain. She may be quick to learn, but her head's full of information about the case as it is so she has to trust OA.

OA who she learns was a Ranger too. Fought in Iraq rather than Afghanistan, though.

OA who's as quick-witted, quick on his feet and with his brain as Jay. OA who's partner just left on an undercover assignment, overnight.

It's as though Voight knew.

The 'clear lines'' Voight had mentioned? He wasn't lying. They account for everything. It at least makes everything easier to follow when you're starting out.

She wants to feel like all this is worth it, like this education, this punishment will count for something. She puts her all into finding out what else she can learn from it, all the while realizing it probably won't show until she returns to Chicago.

Every evening, or sometimes the early hours, her hand hovers over Jay's name in the contacts before she reasons that talking to him makes it harder, makes her feel the distance more.

The comfort of hearing his voice not so clear now that she's not able to simply jump in her car and check on him, talk through the stresses of their days with him so instead every time she sighs as she places the phone on the bedside table and falls asleep in her clothes again.

Each morning, she wakes up to a message and today's no different:

This is your friendly reminder to keep safe, Upton. Xx

Somewhere along the line Jay graduated to two x's at the end of his messages. Sometimes he even plays fast and loose with the emojis.

Each morning she replies and each morning she's helpless to stop herself smiling when she gets a different emoji in response.

It carries her through till around lunchtime even though half the time she doesn't see the messages till later, knowing that he's sent one, knowing that Rojas has too, it makes her feel less cut off.

And she takes Jay's instruction to keep safe seriously, as if not just her life depends on it, as if the connection she has with them will break if she doesn't.

"Jay, it's just a bump so quit fussing." Rojas snaps at Jay as he asks her again if she's okay, trying to resist the temptation to feel the bump at the back of her head because each time she does, she feels a little more nauseous.

"He knocked you out, Rojas, so it's not just a bump and it's not fussing to make sure you don't lose consciousness again and before you argue I am staying here all night to monitor you as directed."

That said, Jay steps back into the kitchen brokering no further argument as he pulls two glasses from the cupboard and turns the tap for drinking water on, filling both glasses and walking back to where Vanessa's sat on the couch, a blanket now covering her, he hands a glass to her and sits down on the chair next to the window.

"You need food?" He asks.

"Not hungry, but if you are, Hailey has a bunch of menus in one drawer in the kitchen."

"I'm okay thanks."

Jay replays the events of earlier in his head. No one had done anything wrong, the guy had the element of surprise that was all, a matter of two seconds was all it took for him to strike at Rojas. Fortunately, this time, it wasn't a gun, instead a harder than normal push or shove that had Vanessa hitting the ground harder than her head could take.

Jay's seen the result of things like that before though, where the result of something so innocuous was final. He doesn't have to make a call that would bring Hailey back so much faster, and he's grateful that's the case.

It's over the halfway point of Hailey being in New York, it's been enlightening at both how fast and slow time can pass. Fast because the case they've been working on has progressed faster than Jay or anyone had expected culminating in the events earlier and slow because though it's getting easier, more comfortable partnering with Rojas, it's still not as easy as with Hailey.

Rojas is younger and compared to her Jay's like some kind of jaded veteran cop. Listening to her talk enthusiastically about this or that even despite the recent setback makes him wonder if he was ever like this or whether the army had knocked the childlike enthusiasm from him. Watching the spark of interest and joy in anything, even the mundane, like stakeouts it's refreshing even though it makes him extra cautious, extra wary and on his guard for her.

Hell, she'd even tried to bounce up straight after she'd got hurt earlier. A sharp glare from Jay and a shake of the head from Voight had stopped her at least.

She's stopped commenting on the time he spends on his phone though, which has been less anyway as Jay's settled into this new temporary normal.

Maybe it's been easier because Jay knows that Vanessa misses Hailey too. Vanessa talks about her a lot and even if Jay doesn't join in, he enjoys hearing about the side of Hailey that he knows exists, has seen himself occasionally but recognizes is an altogether different version of Hailey to one he's most familiar with.

"Spending the night here in Hailey's place probably feels like it would happen a different way than this, right?" Vanessa suggests interrupting his thoughts, her tone innocent but even in her mildly concussed state, her eyes sparkle.

Jay arches an eyebrow, feeling himself redden.

"Drink your drink Rojas," he instructs, trying to ignore the way her stare is burning holes in him as he turns his attention back to his cell.

"Food for thought though, huh Jay?"

Jay looks up, meets her gaze, measuring Vanessa for any clues, any hints she's playing with him again. Instead, all he sees is kindness, a soft smile and understanding. He would say she's learned it from the best except the more he gets to know her, the more he realizes Rojas gets people because from an early age, she had to.

To survive, she had to get the measure of people and Jay's familiar with how that goes, knows Hailey is too, but it's different altogether for the younger woman sitting across from him now.

He nods, and he's not even surprised as he does because it's true. Even if what she'd said was in jest, there's a truth to it.

A truth that he still fights to push away because it's inconvenient. It's tugging at and playing with the barriers he's built for himself without even realizing it. He tries not to think much of what happened at the hospital because those days are shrouded in darkness, of memories he has to push down for his own sanity and his recollection as a result is probably skewed.

Except it's not, it's crystal clear and as much as when he thinks of those days he remembers mostly the pain, he also comes back to her fragile smile and the way his stomach had done a flip only to crash when the sound of his cell had made her think again.

"Wake-up calls come in all shapes and sizes, sometimes they're for the worse, sometimes they come disguised as awful things but end up being all you could need to figure stuff out."

Even if Jay was about respond, Vanessa pulls the blanket higher over her body and shuts her eyes so Jay stays silent and in the chair for a moment before he gets up, picking up his glass and Vanessa's walking past the mirror in the hallway pausing to glance at it, seeing how tired he looks before his attention shifts to the photos on the shelf.

There are photos scattered around the ground floor of the house. Hell, he'd held the box containing some of them when they'd all helped Hailey and Vanessa move in.

His own apartment has some photos, but they're older ones. As though his apartment is a monument to times he was unafraid of displaying the people that counted in his life, even if overtime they ceased to be a current part of it.

He picks up the middle frame, one of him, Ruz and Hailey who's leaning into him. All of them smiling, all of them unaware of what this shit show of the last few months would bring them all.

He places the frame back onto the shelf and walks through the kitchen, placing the glass on the counter, turning the coffee machine on, choosing the coffee he'll have before he sighs and rubs his hand over his chin, shaking his head.

Resisting the urge to reach for his cell as it's late and New York's an hour ahead, reasoning that it's only just over a week now and he'd be the same about any of the others had they been his partner for so long, wouldn't he?

As he walks towards the rear of the house, opening the door and pulling it to quietly so he doesn't wake Vanessa before he reaches for his cell, unlocking it and opening up her name in his contacts list and she answers within two seconds, he feels a familiar smile appear as her voice warms him even in the cool of the night as he hears her voice and that's all the answer he should need.

Should being the operative word.