A/N: Finished writing chapter 30 tonight! So you guys get 26! I'm holding off till midnight so there's technically been a day between my last post and this one lol. IT'S CHICAGO FIRE NIGHT, PEOPLE. JOE CRUZ IS GETTING MARRIED. How we feeling?
Anywayyy. Enjoy this chapter!
Happy reading!
angellwings
CHAPTER TWENTY SIX: We're Hopeless
It's their last day before another shift — Sylvie's penultimate shift on light duty, thank god — and she finds herself with a dull throbbing headache. Thankfully, she had enough self control last night to prevent any other repercussions. All she has to do is pop a couple Tylenol and she'll be right as rain. She wakes up snuggled into Matt's side with his arm loose but protective around her. She presses a featherlight kiss to his jaw before slinking out from under his arm and out of the bed. She throws on leggings and steals his CFD hoodie.
She needs water, coffee, and Tylenol. STAT.
When she wanders into the kitchen and living room area she finds Severide at the stove, standing in front of a skillet. He's got a spatula in one hand and a mug of coffee in the other.
"Morning," he greets with a smirk. "How's it going?"
"Not sure," she grumbles. "Not till I take something for this headache and dose myself with caffeine."
He points the spatula at the mostly full coffee pot. "Help yourself." And then nods toward the cabinet next to the refrigerator. "Tylenols over there."
"Bless you," Sylvie replies dramatically. "Matt is so lucky to have you."
He chuckles at her. "I'll be sure to tell him you said so."
"I'll tell him myself," she offers. "Just give me a half hour, at least."
Sylvie quietly makes her coffee, grabs a bottle of water, a couple of tylenol, and then sits on a stool in front of the island.
"Stella's still out," Kelly offers with an amused snort. "How much did she actually drink last night?"
"Honestly? I have no clue. I lost count after a certain point," Sylvie replies with a hoarse chuckle. "She had a lot of fun. That's for sure."
"Looked like you both did," Severide says with a smirk.
She grins. "Not as much fun as Stella and Foster."
"True enough," he says laughingly. "Scrambled eggs?"
"Please," she answers. "I'm famished."
"Casey still asleep?"
She nods and bites her lip to keep from grinning. She wore him out last night. She has a feeling he'll be asleep for a while. "He was pretty tired."
Kelly snickers and gives her a knowing grin. "Yeah, I bet."
She rolls her eyes and glares playfully at him. "Shut up."
"I probably don't need to tell you this," Kelly says as he looks back over his shoulder at her. "But he's really into you, you know."
She blushes and tucks a loose hair behind her ear. "I do know that, and the feeling's definitely mutual."
"And I know I also don't need to tell you that he's not had the best luck over the last several years."
There's a protective edge to his voice that contradicts his easy body language, and she immediately sits up a little straighter as if fortifying her posture for a fight. She doesn't want to fight with Severide but if he intends to intimidate her, he won't. She wants what she and Matt have started and no one will scare her away. Not even Kelly Severide.
"I remember," she answers with a solemn nod.
Kelly turns and places a plate of eggs and bacon down in front of her. "I'm tired of him being told instead of asked and I'm damn sure tired of him giving more than he ever gets back in return."
Severide's blue eyes have turned flinty and harsh with a warning. One she reads clearly, even if it's in between the lines.
"I don't plan on making any decisions for him, Kelly," she assures as she meets his eyes dead on. "And I have no intentions of withholding anything either. He deserves a partner, and I know that. Trust me."
His narrowed eyes and downturned mouth relax and transform into a mirthful stare and a bright grin. "Damn, I know you're serious if you're first naming me."
"What's happening with Matt isn't something I take lightly," she tells him before she releases the nervous breath she'd been holding. "So, hell yeah, I'm serious."
"Good," he says with a crooked smile. "That's all I needed to know."
"Speaking of protecting our friends," Sylvie says as she spears a bit of egg onto her fork. "What exactly are your intentions with my Stella?"
"Your Stella?" Kelly asks in amusement.
"My friend, my Stella," Brett clarifies quickly. "Don't avoid the question."
"My intentions are to make her happy by any means necessary and to try to be the— what did you call it? Oh, right —partner she deserves. Satisfied?" He asks with a smug smile.
She squints at him for a quiet beat before finally nodding. "Yes, good enough for me."
He shakes his head and laughs softly at her as he turns back to the stove. "You know, I think you're gonna be good for him, Brett. I really do."
"I hope so," she replies softly before digging into her breakfast.
She's halfway done with her food when she and Severide hear shuffling from behind them. She turns her head and sees an adorably rumpled Matt approaching. He's put on sweats and an old worn t-shirt. He runs a hand through his hair that barely does anything to the small tuft in the front that sticks straight up. She smiles fondly as he comes to a stop next to her blinking groggily.
"Morning," he mumbles.
She chuckles and leans up on the stool so her lips can reach his cheek, giving him a quick kiss. "Morning."
"Breakfast?" Kelly asks as he reaches over his head and grabs Casey a coffee mug.
"Uh, yeah, thanks," Casey says as he takes the mug and heads toward the coffee maker. He's barely glancing at where he's going so she suspects this is all entirely muscle memory. Matt is absolutely the cutest, even half asleep.
Once he's got his coffee he takes up the stool next to her and then leans into her to press his lips to her temple in soft kiss. His left hand holds his mug while his right skims up and down her back. It's a casual gesture he's not even consciously doing. She adores how affectionate he is, even if it was initially unexpected. Like her, he's a caretaker. Between her job and her previous relationships, she's gotten accustomed to taking care of others. Which means she feels a bit of awe any time Matt does even the smallest thing to try and care for her. Kyle used to try to take care of her, but with gestures that accidentally came off as patronizing. She knew that was never his intention, but that's always how it felt. Somehow, Matt finds a way to take care of her that doesn't make her feel any less capable. She has no idea how he does it.
Severide sets a plate down in front of Matt and then excuses himself to check on Stella.
"After breakfast," he says as he lifts his fork. "We should talk."
"Talk?" She asks worriedly.
"Nothing bad, I promise," he says urgently.
She picks up her last strip of bacon and focuses a concerned stare on him. "When one half of the relationship says 'we need to talk' it's not usually good so you'll understand if I still worry, right?"
A muted chuckle escapes him as he answers her. "I get it, but I promise you it'll be okay, and I don't make promises I can't keep, remember?"
She sighs nervously but eventually nods. "I remember." She finishes up, washes her dishes, and then trails her hand across his back as she passes him to head toward his bathroom. "I'm gonna take a shower while you finish up. Meet you in your room?"
He nods as he swallows and then gives her a reassuring smile. "Absolutely."
Her anxiety must show on her face because his eyes turn warm and soft before he steps away from his breakfast to pull her into his arms. His hands settle on her waist, causing her hoodie to ride up just a little. The feeling of his skin on hers begins to soothe her before he ever speaks.
"Relax, okay?" He says with a soft grin. "It's just something that's been on my mind about us. Not the end of the world."
Her hands find his forearms and trail up them to rest on his shoulders. "You're sure?"
"I'm sure," he repeats. "Don't stress."
"Usually, I think you know me too well, but if you think there's a way for me to not stress about this then maybe you don't know me at all," she says with a derisive snort.
He sighs, but his face is clearly more amused than exasperated. Leaning in, he rests his forehead against hers. "I'm happy. You know that, right?" He asks with a slight furrow in between his brows. "I'm happier than I've been in a long time and I have no plans to give you or us up anytime soon. I need to know you know that."
"I suspected," she says as a pleased blush spreads across her cheeks. "But it's nice to hear it all spelled out like that." He releases a sound that's a mix between a scoff and a snicker before she continues. "I'm happy too, and I really don't want to let you go either. Not until we find how far we can take this — maybe not even then."
"Good," he replies with a relieved exhale. "As long as we're on the same page. Now, go shower. I'll clean up in here. And we'll talk."
She nods and pries herself away from him. Already, she feels a hell of a lot better about whatever it is he has to say. It can't be as bad as she first imagined. He's made that clear.
By the time he finds her in his room later, she's showered, dressed, and feeling a lot more relaxed about things (thanks to the hot water) but she's still wary. As much as she wants to, she can't shake the caution in her heart.
He shuts his door and sits down next to her on the foot of the bed. He takes her hand and laces their fingers together before bringing her hand to his lips.
"We talked about what happens after the case a little the other day," he begins. "But you've also been taking about something else this entire time — about wanting things to get back to normal—"
"Normal, plus you," she interjects. "Just so we're clear."
He chuckles and nods. "Got it." His face sobers before he goes on. "I don't think we can wait for the case to be over to get used to that. You and I started when nothing was normal. We have no idea what that looks like for us together. And I was thinking, the best way for us to figure that out is for both of us to get back to our pre-wreck routines."
Her eyes narrow as understanding dawns. "You mean spend more time apart, don't you?"
"We went from friends to living together in a week," he explains. "Going from living together to dating is going to be strange and I just think spending a little time apart now we'll help us with that. And I'm not saying we never see each other. I'm simply saying we make time for the things we used to do and the people we used to see." He pauses with a hesitant concerned glance. "Does that make sense?"
She totally gets it. In fact, she's been worried about the exact same thing. But he looks so nervous that she can't resist teasing him at least a little.
"I mean, I have been wondering how you managed to procrastinate on your construction and remodeling work," she says with a playful admonishing glare. "Such a slacker, Matt Casey. Really, I expect more from you."
For a moment, he looks genuinely wounded but then he catches the slight upward tick of her lips and rolls his eyes with a frustrated groan. "Jesus, Sylvie. That was cruel. You really had me going for a minute."
She laughs and then releases his hands to frame either side of his face with a gentle hold. "I'm sorry. I couldn't resist. You looked like you thought I was going to go off on you. Or storm out or something." She leans toward him and places a light kiss to the tip of his nose before smiling affectionately. "I get it, Matt. I truly do. I've been worried about all the same things."
"Really?" He asks with a hesitant smile.
"Really. I just wasn't sure what to do about it or how to bring it up. I didn't want it to be taken the wr—"
"—the wrong way," he finishes for her with a dry chuckle. "Yeah, I can relate."
"Don't you think it's funny that we said early on we weren't going to move too fast and then somehow that's exactly what we did?" She asks him with a small smirk.
"We're hopeless," Matt replies laughingly. "But at least you didn't put off paying jobs. I have really got to get back to work."
"Maybe not, but I did put off Chloe. I promised to help her with wedding planning and the last couple of weeks I've given her excuse after excuse," Sylvie admits. "You're definitely not alone. We both need a little space. When are we starting this?"
Matt gives her a thoughtful glance and slides further back onto the bed. He grabs her arm and pulls her with him. They don't stop until their backs are resting against the backboard.
"After next shift," he answers.
She's not sure why he chose that timeframe, but she likes it. It gives her plenty of time to enjoy him just like they are. Too attached and moving way too fast.
"I'm good with that," she agrees.
"Me too," he replies as he wraps an arm around her shoulders and tugs her closer, pressing a kiss to her temple. "It gives me a whole day to make out with you."
She laughs and twists in his hold to get a good look at his sinful smirk. It's an expression just for her. She loves it. "Matt Casey, you sure know how to show a girl a good time."
