Chapter 5
The oven timer went off just as the doorbell rang. Hailey pulled the mostaccioli out of the oven, hearing Ellie scurrying excitedly to the door. The lock clicked and the door swung open, Ellie beckoning Jay into the house.
"Ellie, you know you're not supposed to answer the door," Hailey scolded as she walked around the large kitchen island to join them.
"But I knew it was Jay, you said he was coming for dinner," Ellie explained, slightly preoccupied as she attempted to climb Jay's body, a new routine of theirs.
In the past month of Ellie being here, she had grown quite attached to Jay, and he to her. He doted on her and she knew he had her wrapped around her little finger. There was hardly a day that went by that he didn't come over to visit her, and he paid for the days he missed, always having to do something special to get back into her good graces after 24 hours apart.
Thankfully, for the past week he had been here every day so Ellie was ecstatic that the streak was continuing tonight. Hailey had warned her that he might not come after they had finished a tough case at work, but then not fifteen minutes later, Hailey's phone was ringing and Jay was telling her he was on his way.
"Paperwork all done?" Hailey asked as Jay came further into the house, Ellie clinging to his shoulder like a monkey.
"Almost," he replied. "I still have to finish some of the court paperwork but that won't be needed for a while. The report's all done so that's really all I cared about."
Hailey nodded in agreement. She knew Jay hated doing paperwork, so the fact that he had finished his report was impressive. She suspected he didn't want to have to revisit this case after today.
"Beer?" Hailey asked, gesturing to one she had already opened for herself so he would know he wouldn't be drinking alone.
"Yeah, thanks," he agreed. The partners didn't drink very much anymore, as had been their old routine. Now they were almost always with Ellie and neither of them liked drinking around her very much. After today though, Hailey figured they both deserved a couple beers, Jay especially.
She pulled a bottle out of the fridge, handing it across the island to him. He accepted it with a nod of appreciation, twisting off the cap and taking a sip. It was ice cold, just the way he liked it.
Ellie had relented with her climbing and run back to the living room to resume playing with whatever she had been before he arrived. This had become their usual routine. Ellie would usually give Jay and Hailey their time before dinner to chat and then after dinner she demanded their attention, wanting to either play a game or watch a movie or do something else that involved all three of them. They always obliged to whatever request she made.
"Smells good," Jay said, gesturing to the pasta sitting on the stovetop.
"Well pasta is the one things that's hard to screw up, even for me," Hailey admitted. She had never been much of a cook, as Jay knew, but since she had taken in Ellie she had tried to commit to cooking for them at least three times a week. Jay occasionally took a turn cooking as well, usually grilling as he didn't have the patience for much else.
They worked well together getting meals ready usually. Jay grabbed the plates out of the cabinet, handing them to Hailey for her to dish out the mostaccioli before handing them back to him to set out in their designated spots on the counter.
"Ellie, come and eat!" Jay called out to the living room, hearing her scurrying feet in response. She came running, climbing up onto her usual stool. Hailey took the seat next to her while Jay settled on Ellie's other side around the corner of the counter and they all tucked into their meals.
They kept the dinner conversation light as usual, talking about what Ellie had done that day with the nanny and Owen. They had continued to share Maddie, the nanny, as Natalie and Hailey had both agreed that it was nice for the children to have a companion their own age and Maddie was happy to have both of them. Maddie took turns at each of the kid's houses for convenience and to give the kids equal opportunity to spend time in their own usual environments.
After dinner, Ellie decided she wanted to watch a movie tonight, and head out to the living room to pick one out while Jay and Hailey cleaned up from the meal. Hailey packed away the leftovers in Tupperware containers while Jay rinsed the plates and loaded them into the dishwasher, wiping down the counter where Ellie had smeared pasta sauce.
"How are you doing?" Hailey asked, watching him as he moved around her kitchen. He was focused on his tasks, but Hailey could tell he was more withdrawn than normal. "I know this case wasn't easy on you." She knew cases involving military personnel were always especially difficult for Jay.
He finished wiping the counter, tossing the paper towel in the garbage before turning to face Hailey, leaning back against the counter.
"I knew him," Jay said finally, shifting his eyes up to look at Hailey.
"The victim?" Hailey asked, mirroring his position on the counter across from him, arms coming up to cross against her chest.
Jay nodded. "I never served directly with him, but our platoon ran into his a few times in Kandahar. He and Mouse worked together a few times on some tech stuff for us. I didn't remember him until we talked to the wife and she showed us his medal. He and Mouse both got that for what they did on that op."
Hailey sighed. "I'm sorry, Jay." Jay nodded in appreciation.
"It's been over ten years since I was there, but cases like this... I close my eyes and it's like I'm back there. I can feel the sun baking down on us, smell all the sewage that came with life without running water," Jay confessed.
"Have you talked to Mouse at all since he left?" Hailey asked. She had never met Mouse, but she knew how close he and Jay were from all the stories her partner told her about him. She knew it had been hard for Jay to see his friend go back there.
Jay shook his head. "Not in a while," he told her. "I got a letter from him about six months ago. He had just re-upped. He should be getting a leave between tours, but I don't know if he'll come back here for it. A lot of guys just stay somewhere over there. It's easier than coming home."
"Did you?" Hailey asked. She knew he had served two tours.
"I came home during a leave on my second tour because my mom got sick, but before that, no I hadn't come home," Jay said, and Hailey could tell that he probably carried around some guilt about that; not coming him to visit his mom in the few years she had left of being healthy.
"Can you call him? I don't really know how that works," Hailey said. It was true, she really had no idea how things worked in the military, only little things that Jay had told her over the years.
"Calls are pretty hard to arrange unless you're family," Jay explained. "Soldiers can arrange to make calls home a lot easier than getting calls themselves."
"You could write him a letter, right?" Hailey asked.
"Yeah, I guess," Jay said half-heartedly. "It would probably take up to a month to get to him."
"Well, still it might make you might feel better," Hailey said. "Checking in on him."
"Yeah, maybe," Jay conceded.
"Do you have any other friends from that time you could talk to?" Hailey asked. He never really mentioned anyone else from overseas other than Mouse.
"Not really," Jay said. "A lot of the guys we served with never made it home. Others are still there. Mouse and I were some of the only ones to come home, and then he went back again."
Hailey nodded in understanding. She hated seeing Jay like this but was glad he was talking about it instead of shutting down her questions, as he had in the past.
"There's a support group at the VA I've gone to a few times," Jay continued. "They meet once a month. Maybe I'll go to the next one."
"Yeah?" Hailey asked. She had never heard him mention it before but was really glad to hear it, although she didn't want to push him.
Jay smiled slightly, seeming to understand her surprise but also knowing this was definitely something Hailey would support.
"It's your fault really," Jay said, and Hailey gave him a confused look. "A few years ago I would have just dealt with the flashbacks and the triggers on my own, probably lashed out at the unit cause I couldn't handle it. Then you waltzed in and forced me into therapy and now I'm actually volunteering to go to support groups."
Hailey laughed at his assessment. She didn't really think about it too much since it had been so early in their partnership. They had hardly known each other back then. As they stood together in her kitchen though, Hailey wondered what would have become of them if she hadn't pushed him to do therapy or if he hadn't continued with it. They might not be standing here together today, and certainly wouldn't be as close as they now were.
"I want to watch The Incredibles," Ellie said, coming out of nowhere. Hailey had almost forgotten she was there, off in her own little world with Jay.
"Ok, I'll make some popcorn," Hailey said, giving her daughter a squeeze before releasing her and doing as she had promised. Ellie grabbed Jay's hand and led him out to the living room. She pushed him down onto the couch, climbing up to sit right next to him, leaning into his side.
Hailey watched them as she waited for the popcorn in the microwave. She didn't know what she or Ellie would have done without Jay the past month. Hailey had been lost when Vanessa had come home from meeting with her old sergeant and told her that she was asked to take on another undercover assignment. It was long term, just as her previous assignment had been with Darius Walker, and Vanessa had been excited about it. Hailey knew the young cop liked working in Intelligence, but she also knew she was the perfect undercover candidate. She had no family to keep her from fully committing to an undercover role.
Jay had really stepped up once Vanessa had left on the undercover. He visited as much as possible so Ellie had someone other than Hailey to feel close to. He of course also supported Hailey, both at work and at home. He had gone in to work early with her on the day she told Voight, sitting at his desk right outside the sergeant's office. He had been correct in telling her that Voight would understand, would support her. She hadn't told the rest of the team for another couple of weeks, still trying to adjust to it herself. They had been super supportive as well, offering to help her in any way they could. Hailey had yet to introduce Ellie to them yet though, partly because she didn't want to overwhelm Ellie with a lot of new people and partly because she was enjoying having her all to herself, and of course Jay.
Hailey and Ellie had finally found a good balance together. They were fully comfortable living alone together in their house now. Hailey had gotten so used to having her she couldn't imagine her life before the young blonde had come back into her life. She made every day better and Hailey found herself smiling more than ever before.
"Mommy, come on, it's starting," Ellie called from the couch, shaking Hailey from her daydream. She grabbed the popcorn from the microwave and poured it into a bowl before hurrying out to join her daughter and partner on the couch. Hailey snuggled up close to Ellie's other side on the couch, very aware of how close she was to Jay owing to her daughter's tiny stature between them.
As they watched the movie, they kept the popcorn bowl on Ellie's lap, their hands occasionally brushing together as they both reached blindly for another handful of popcorn.
There was no denying the growing tension between Jay and Hailey that had yet to be addressed. They spent almost all of their time together, both at work and at home. Hailey knew Jay had become a father figure in Ellie's life, which was perhaps what gave her the most pause when thinking about voicing her feelings for Jay out loud. She couldn't help but think about the repercussions for Ellie if she and Jay did start something and then it didn't work out. Ellie would be devastated, and Hailey couldn't bear hurting her like that. So instead, they continued on the way they had been; working together, spending time together, sharing longing glances, but neither one willing to cross that line.
Hailey hardly paid attention to the movie. She could hear Ellie's giggles and excitement next to her, which made Hailey smile, but for the most part she tuned out the movie and cast her thoughts to Jay. She shot glances at him throughout the movie, wondering if he was experiencing the same inner turmoil. Her heart raced every time their hands touched over the popcorn bowl and Hailey found herself wishing they could stay entwined. For all of her time spent denying her feelings for her partner to Vanessa, she knew now there was no getting around them. She was head over heels in love with Jay. The only good thing about Vanessa being gone on her undercover was that she wasn't around to gloat about it.
When the movie ended, Hailey didn't even realize it. The credits were playing for a few minutes before Ellie climbed onto Hailey's lap, surprising her. She smiled down at her daughter and was about to ask her how she liked the movie when Ellie put a finger to her lips and then pointed over at Jay.
Hailey followed her daughter's finger and nearly melted at the site of Jay out cold on the couch next to them. His feet were up on the coffee table in front of him, arms crossed against his chest, head tilted back against the top of the couch. His mouth was open slightly but he wasn't snoring.
Hailey had never seen her partner asleep before other than on her dark phone screen and found herself enraptured by him. He looked so peaceful. She knew this week had taken its toll on him. He had been the first one at the office every day, last to go home. She suspected he hadn't slept much as a result.
Hailey pulled her gaze away from Jay and back to her daughter who was smiling at the sleeping Jay. She suspected Ellie probably found it funny, always having seen Jay as this strong man who was now curled up on their couch. Hailey smiled back at Ellie and gestured for her to stay quiet, pointing up the stairs.
Ellie climbed off her lap and headed upstairs, knowing her mother meant for her to start getting ready for bed. Hailey stood up gently from the couch so as not to disturb Jay. She grabbed a blanket from the back of the armchair and softly laid it over him. He stirred slightly and Hailey stayed very still, hoping he wouldn't wake up. Thankfully, he simply curled the blanket tighter around himself and then settled back into his slumber.
Hailey smiled down at him for another moment before heading upstairs to get herself and Ellie ready for bed.
A/N: Thanks for all the support on this story so far. I hope you like this chapter with a slight time jump to keep things moving. Reviews appreciated.