A/N: Hey, everyone! Hope you're all doing well despite the tragedies we're living through. Hope you all continue to stay well and safe (especially if you're out there standing up for the causes that matter most).

Happy reading!

angellwings

"Then my heart stops, like a beat drop.

It's a symphony when you sweet talk,

Make this quiet town, feel electric loud.

When the lights going down,

Every word out of your mouth,

Is like music."

-"Music" by Kelsea Ballerini

The house coordinates just before the end of shift. Severide and Casey are going to talk to Cunningham. Herrmann is going to the hospital to keep them updated on Baby Boden. She and Kidd are going to focus on being there for Shay. With the assignments handed out, they all split up.

"Do you mind if I go out with Pete for breakfast first?" Sylvie asks. "I'll be over at Shay's as soon as I can but Pete wants to talk and I've put him off long enough."

"Please, take your time," Stella says with a dismissive wave of her hand. "With all the doom and gloom around the house lately, you deserve a meal with your guy."

Sylvie sighs and pastes on a smile. She doesn't have the heart to tell Stella that Mills may not be "her guy" for much longer. "Thanks. I'll call you when I'm on my way."

A few minutes later Pete pulls up at the curb. She hops in the passenger seat and away they go. Sylvie directs him to a cute little diner that she and Shay like to frequent when they have a chance. They make small talk on the drive over, but Sylvie still resolutely avoids looking him in the eye. She doesn't want to know if he's looking at her any differently.

They find a table and sit in near silence until they order. Once the waitress is gone, there are no more excuses to keep them from talking.

"Oh, the detectives gave this back to me today," Pete says as he slides a small wrapped package across the table. "You never got to open it."

"Right," she says as she hesitantly opens the package. It's strange seeing something from before they were taken. That feels like a lifetime ago. She smiles softly as she opens it to reveal a hula dancing shark made for the dash of a vehicle. "What's this?"

He shrugs bashfully. "What we are is still new but I wanted to buy you a Christmas present that would...make you smile. Something to keep us from taking ourselves too seriously, you know? I thought you could put it on the dash of 61. If you want, that is. You don't have to."

"Oh no, I definitely will. Shay will love it," she assures him. "Thank you."

She doesn't meet his eyes again and, based on his sigh, he notices.

"Sylvie, I know you're mad at me for saving that guy's life but—"

"I'm not mad," she says quickly. He thinks she's mad at him? He did nothing wrong. "I swear I'm not. You did the right thing, Pete."

"Then why can't you look me in the eye?"

"Because...you must think I'm awful now. I asked you to kill a man. How could your opinion of me not change after that? We're first responders. A thought like that is never supposed to enter my mind," she answers him truthfully.

She can't have him thinking he did something wrong. He was wonderful. She was the one who crossed a line. Not him. His hand reaches across the table and encloses around hers, squeezing it encouragingly.

"I gave you the chance to clamp that artery and you didn't do it. That's what counts. Besides, he and his buddy were trying to kill us. You may be a first responder but you're also human. You didn't act on it and that's the only thing that matters. You can't beat yourself up over that," he replies. He brings the back of her hand to his lips before continuing. "I don't blame you for having the thought, Brett, and you shouldn't either. Is that really why you've been avoiding me all this time?"

She winces and nods. "Yes, I'm sorry. Honestly, a part of me keeps waiting for whatever we're doing to end horribly...because you're just too-"

"Too what?" He asks when she abruptly ends her sentence.

"Too nice, Pete," she says with an exasperated sigh. "I told you I'm not used to dating nice guys and I guess I thought there was no way a good guy like you would still want me after-"

"After you did everything you could to survive a life or death situation? You didn't do anything wrong, Sylvie. I don't care about any of that. What I do care about, though, is you," Mills tells her with a wide smile.

God, his eyes are so big and brown and honest. His touch is warm and his smile is...the final nail in the coffin. She's done for. She's hopeless for Peter Mills. This moment right here is the end of her resistance to him and his many charms. She stands from her side of the booth and joins him on his side. She nudges his hips with hers as she squeezes in next to him. He doesn't question her or try to argue. She places one hand on either side of his face and then pulls his lips to hers.

She feels him smile against her mouth before he leans into the kiss. His arms go around her waist to bring her closer. They don't take it much farther then a couple of deep kisses. It's hard not to be aware of how on display they are in such a public place.

"Forget breakfast," she tells him, pressing her forehead against his as she pulls back from the kiss. "Take me home, Pete."

His eyes widen in surprise and his smile turns wolfish. "Are you sure?"

"I am. I care about you too and I'm tired of waiting for this hypothetical third date to take the next step," she confesses with a confident nod. "We'll drop cash on the table, including a little extra tip for the waitress's trouble, and get out of here."

His hesitance from earlier is short lived. His reply makes it clear she's convinced him. "Your place or mine?"

"Whichever's closest," she replies while slipping out of the booth to grab her purse and her coat. She knows Pete offered to pay but it's her idea to leave before they eat. She drops enough cash for her half and then some on the table before he can tell her not to.

He follows her lead and pays for his half. No change needed. He grabs her hand and they hurry out of the diner. She laughs teasingly at him as he fumbles with his key fob, causing a delay in unlocking his car doors. Her place is closer and with Stella at Shay's they have plenty of privacy.

She unlocks the door and nearly trips over a box while she scrambles to yank him against her. Stella's still unpacking. Well, unpacking the little she could sneak out of her and Grant's home without him noticing. Stop, Sylvie. No worrying about Stella now. This is about you and Pete.

He wraps his arms around her waist and kicks her door shut behind him, backing her into the room with his lips connected to hers. The kisses deepen and their hands wander. She struggles with her coat as they stumble toward her bedroom. She has to violently shake her sleeves out of the arms for it to finally fall away. Pete laughs into her mouth and, god, that felt amazing.

She feels jittery and nervous but his laughter on her lips soothes a bit of it. Yes, this is a big deal for her. What's happening with Pete is different from any other relationships she's had to this point. But this is still the same Peter Mills she's flirted with and kissed dozens of times before. This is the same Peter Mills who went to hell and back with her during that kidnapping. He's seen her at her best and her worse and still wants her. Nothing that happens in this moment can take that away from her.

She pushes his coat off of his shoulders and then throws it on the couch with hers. She pulls back from kissing him to slip her fingers into the belt loops of his jeans. She aims a sultry smile at him and nods toward the door behind them.

"This is my bedroom."

His eyebrows lift and his smile tilts. "Is that so?"

She nods and hums positive confirmation. "Would you like to see it?"

He nods emphatically. "Very much so, yes."

She laughs brightly and tugs him along behind her. "I thought you might."

She's still nervous but the jitters are gone. In their place is excitement and hope. This might be new, but she can already tell it's going to be a hell of a lot of fun.

She hates that she has somewhere to be immediately after being with Pete. But it can't be helped. Shay needs her, and Mills completely understands that. When she tells him about the possibility of the fire and collapse at the apartment building being an arson, he's visibly upset as well.

"I'll come with you," he tells her as they get dressed. "Maybe we can stop by the store on the way. Comfort food always helps in these situations. For me and my family, at least. Losing Gabby was hard on everyone but especially Shay and Casey. I'll do whatever I can for them...and for Gabby."

God, he's amazing. She pulls her shirt over her head and then ambushes him with several grateful kisses.

"I think stopping by the store sounds like a wonderful idea," she tells him when she arches back to look at him. "You are the absolute sweetest. You know that, right?"

"It's what they would do for me," he says with a light blush. "Besides, Gabby was important to me too. And that explosion caused by that fire took more from me than just a good friend. It took away something I've wanted my whole life. If it turns out to be arson then I want to know and I want to help."

Sylvie bites her bottom lip and gives him an apologetic glance. She runs her hands up his arms, over her shoulders, and then stops when they land on his jaw. Her thumbs caress his cheeks as she speaks.

"I'm sorry about Squad, Pete. I know that's been a hard adjustment for you."

He brings his hands up to cover hers and leans forward to place a soft kiss to her forehead. "Thank you. But I think I'm doing okay with it."

"More than okay," she assures him. "Having worked with you for a couple of shifts, I can promise you that you're a damn good paramedic." There's a beat as they exchange warm smiles. She pats his cheeks softly and then removes her hands. "Now, we'd better get going. Stella's gonna be wondering where I've disappeared to."

They finish cleaning up and dressing and then Sylvie calls Stella to tell her the plan. She and Mills are stopping at the store for groceries. They'll be making lunch and dinner. Casey and Severide will need comfort food too, whenever they make it home.

She lets Pete decide what to make. He's the professional. She does, however, make sure to purchase a couple of six packs of Casey and Severide's favorite beer. When they make it to the apartment, Shay buzzes them up. She quirks one brow at the two of them as she opens the door. She points Pete toward the kitchen and then yanks Sylvie into the living room.

"Oh my god, you had sex," she whispers harshly with a deeply satisfied grin. "You and Mills slept together, didn't you?"

Sylvie's eyes widen in shock. "How the hell did you know that?"

"Please, when it comes to sex no one can get anything past me," Shay tells her with a teasing roll of her eyes. She smirks at Sylvie and then playfully bumps her shoulder with hers. "Good for you, Farmgirl. Mills is a catch." There's a pause, but Sylvie knows it won't last long. She knows what question is coming next. "How was he?"

"Shay!" She admonishes.

"Oh, come on! I need the distraction."

She bites her bottom lip in the hopes of disguising her giddy smile. She fails disastrously.

Shay snickers at her. "That good, huh? That smile is practically glow in the dark."

"Let's just say, there will definitely be plenty of encore performances," Sylvie admits with a blush.

"That's my partner," Shay says with an approving glance. "Get all you can whenever you can, I always say."

Stella walks into the room, spots Mills in the kitchen, and then rushes over to the two of them. Her eyes flick from Sylvie to Pete and then back again.

She leans toward Sylvie and Shay to speak in a hushed voice. "You totally slept with him, didn't you?"

"Oh Jesus, is it written on my forehead or something?" Sylvie asks with a wry chuckle.

Stella makes a show of glancing at Sylvie's forehead before answering her hypothetical question. "Nope. You just have that post sex sparkle happening. God, I bet he's great in bed. I mean just look at those shoulders. Oof. You are one lucky woman, my friend."

"Trust me. I'm aware," Sylve admits with a soft smile.

She's been unlucky every other time before. She sees that now.