Chapter 20

When Jay opened the front door, all was quiet in the apartment. "Hailey? Hails?" He knew she was home because her Jeep was in the parking lot. He didn't hear the shower running, but as he approached the couch, he found his beautiful wife fast asleep. She looked so relaxed that he decided not to wake her yet. He changed into sweats and heated up some leftovers.

When the aroma of garlic toast didn't get Hailey up, Jay jostled her shoulder. "Hailey, dinner's ready."

Slowly, she opened her eyes and sat up. "What? I didn't hear you come in. I was only going to relax for a few minutes."

"No worries. Come on, let's eat."

They sat at the kitchen island and Jay told about his day in court. Hailey nodded and asked the occasional question. She took one small bite of the garlic toast and put it down. Jay looked at her strangely.

"Are you okay? I know Platt has the flu. You kinda look like you're getting it, too." He reached over and put his hand on top of hers.

Hailey took in several deep breaths. "Jay, I need to tell you . . . uh." She grabbed a paper napkin as she slid off the barstool and ran to the bathroom. Jay quickly followed her. He held her hair away from her face as she threw up her few bites of dinner. Then she slumped to the floor with her back to the wall. Jay ran a washcloth under cold water and handed it to her.

"Is that it?"

"I think so," she nodded.

"You were about to tell me something," he said. Then his eyes fell on the 2 pregnancy kits at the end of the vanity. His mouth dropped open. "Hailey, are you, uh, oh my God, are you pregnant?"

"According to that little stick in the trash, I am. I took the test this morning. I wanted to do another one when you were here. Sometimes you might get a false positive."

Jay nodded thoughtfully. "Okay, sure. But I thought we were pretty careful most of the time."

Hailey managed a little laugh. "Key word – most of the time, Detective Halstead."

Jay laughed, too. "Yeah, I do seem to remember a couple times where we got a little . . . frisky, Detective Upton-Halstead."

Hailey looked up at him with a smirk. "Is that what the kids are calling it now?"

"You're funny," Jay said. "So, how do these things work?" He picked up a kit and read the back of it.

"I pee in a little cup, insert the stick and wait three minutes. And trust me, that's a long three minutes."

Jay grimaced. "I bet. Well, I'm ready anytime you are." He held out his hand to help her up.

"Here's the thing – I can't pee if someone is watching." She cocked her head to the side.

"Copy that. So, I will step out here in the hall and give you all the privacy you need." He backed out of the bathroom and closed the door. His heart rate escalated as he paced up and down the short hall.

After a minute, the door opened. The little cup with urine sat on the counter. Hailey held the stick out to Jay. "Do you want to do the honors?"

"Absolutely!" He dropped it in and set his watch for the required time. They perched anxiously on the edge of the tub. Jay took Hailey's hand and smiled. "I know we hadn't planned on kids so soon, but it is what it is."

"Right," she said quietly. "But how are we going to have a baby with the kind of work we do?"

Jay wrapped his arms around her. "I admit it's a scary idea. But Hails, we are not the first cop couple to have a baby. We'll figure it out. I promise."

His watch beeped and he picked up the stick. Again, the result was unmistakable – POSITIVE. It was almost like a neon sign to Jay.

They looked at each other. Jay smiled broadly. "We're having a baby!" He embraced Hailey tightly and lifted her off her feet. "We're having a baby!" he said again.

"I take it you're excited," laughed Hailey.

"Damn straight I'm excited! Aren't you?" He set her back down.

Hailey frowned slightly. "I am, but Jay, I'm terrified at the same time. I want to go to that urgent care center down the street and get a blood test. That's more accurate. I already checked. They're open until 9.

He looked at his watch. It was only 6:30. "Let's do it." They all but ran out of the apartment.

Two Hours Later

To an outside observer, it appeared Jay was watching a Blackhawks game. In fact, a million different thoughts were zinging through his head. The guest room will turn into the nursery. Wonder what color Hailey would like to paint it? Oh man, she will hate being out of the action at work. Probably need to increase my life insurance. How do you change a diaper?

Hailey dozing on the couch, her head in his lap. His right hand gently massaged her belly. "I can't believe there's a little Halstead in there," he said. The whole idea boggled the imagination. Only minutes before, the doctor from the urgent care center had called to confirm the pregnancy.

Without opening her eyes, Hailey said, "Excuse me, I think you mean a little Upton-Halstead." Jay chuckled. "Of course. My bad. You hear that, little one? Always listen to your mother."

"You are really getting into the whole fatherhood thing," said Hailey as she yawned.

"I want to do this right, you know, be a better father than my old man was."

"You will because you are a good man, Jay Halstead. You really do 'serve and protect.' Hailey swung her feet off the couch and stretched her arms over her head. "I have to go to bed. I'm completely exhausted and I didn't do anything strenuous today. Who knew pregnancy could be so tiring?"

"Only every woman on the planet who's ever been pregnant," said Jay. Hailey tossed a throw pillow at him.

"Get ready to deal with weird food cravings," she said ominously.

"What? Like mint-chocolate chip ice cream at midnight or pizza at 2 a.m.? Bring it!"

"You know, a lot of husbands gain weight along with their wives during pregnancy," Hailey pointed out.

Jay frowned. "Yeah?"

"Oh yeah," said Hailey.

"Something to remember," said Jay as he clicked off the TV. "I'll have to start putting in extra time at the gym." Then he had a bright idea. "And I can teach our little peanut how to play golf."

"Ugh," mumbled Hailey. "What about how to clean a Glock?"

"That, too."

Hailey did not immediately declare her pregnancy at work. She knew once it was out there, she would be put on light duty. She and Jay had already had some intense discussions about it. For a few weeks, she managed to get the morning sickness out of the way before showing up at the District.

But not this morning. She came up to the bullpen while Jay dealt with some paperwork down at Platt's desk. As usual, Voight was already on the phone. From the sound of it, he was not a happy camper. Must be talking to the Ivory Tower.

Hailey turned on her computer and felt her stomach beginning to churn. Oh no. She plucked a couple crackers from the plastic container in the bottom drawer and hurriedly stuffed them in her mouth. For several seconds, she thought that would take care of the nausea. But she was wrong. She jumped up and ran to the bathroom.

Voight caught the motion in his peripheral vision. Looks like it's time for another confrontation with the Detectives Halstead. He suspected she might be pregnant a couple weeks ago because she seemed tired and not quite as focused.

Hailey returned to the bullpen as Jay was coming up the steps. Jay could tell from the look on her face that she'd had another bout of nausea. "You good?" he asked in a low voice.

"I'll survive," she said.

Voight came out of his office. "Morning, Sarge," said Jay.

"Morning." Voight looked at them for a long moment. "Is there something you two need to tell me?"

Jay and Hailey shared a quick glance and then Hailey blurted, "I'm pregnant."

Voight smiled. "I thought so." He hugged Hailey. "Congratulations. That's wonderful news, the best I've heard recently."

Jay broke into a huge grin. "Thank you. It was unplanned, but we're happy."

"And nervous," said Hailey.

"Sometimes the best things in life are unplanned," said Voight.

"Sarge, I know this is going to complicate things here in the unit . . ."

Voight cut him off. "Jay, my job is to worry about staffing; your job is to worry about baby names."

The following day, Hailey and Jay were at Med to interview witnesses to a robbery and carjacking. Hailey was talking to an elderly Hispanic woman who was leery of white male cops. Jay said he would go catch up with Will. He had been out of town for a conference and didn't yet know he was going to be an uncle. Plus, Hailey hadn't found a doctor, so Jay decided he'd help her out.

"Will, I need a doctor recommendation."

The elder Halstead brother looked up from his laptop at the nurses' station with raised eyebrows and a smirk.

"Hello, Will. How are you, Will? Good to see you, Will," he said in a sing-song voice.

Jay inhaled and exhaled forcibly. "Sorry. How are you, Will? Really."

"The usual – tired, overworked, in need of more caffeine." He paused and narrowed his eyes.

Jay thrust his coffee cup toward him. "Here."

Will frowned. "You want me to imbibe CPD cooties?"

Jay's eyes rolled up. "Come on, man. I just bought it at the Starbucks in the lobby. My lips have not touched it."

"Fine. Thanks. I still have another four hours on my shift." He took a welcome gulp. "Why do you need a doctor recommendation? Are you sick? Because you look just like you always do. Well, maybe a little more antsy."

Jay looked around at all the people coming and going. "Is there a more private place to talk?"

"Now you're scaring me. Okay, let's try the doctor's lounge."

They walked down the corridor and around the corner. Fortunately, the lounge was empty. Jay couldn't wait any longer. "We're pregnant! I mean, Hailey's pregnant, but you know, I'm part of it, too."

Will was genuinely surprised. "Yeah, I know how babies are made and now apparently so do you!"

"Shut up," laughed Jay.

Will could think of only two times when he'd seen his brother this animated. The first was when he was named captain of the high school soccer team and the second was less than a year ago when he and Hailey got married. He smiled broadly. "That's awesome. I'm happy for both, or maybe I should say, all three, of you. How far along is she?"

"Not sure. She hasn't found one of those, what do you call those docs who treat pregnant women?"

"Obstetricians."

"Yeah, that's it. I'm sure you know a good one."

"Of course. There's Ellen Bautista, Jeremy Parker, Caroline Singh and a couple others. Really, they're all top-notch. I guess it's just a matter of determining who's taking new patients."

Jay hurriedly scribbled down their names in his little notebook. "Thanks. I'll let Hailey know. Can you believe I'm going to be a dad?"

Will laughed. "That's what happens when people behave like rabbits."

Jay could only shake his head. "If I weren't so excited, I might be offended."

"You? Offended? Never," laughed Will. "Seriously bro, I'm excited, too. I get to be Uncle Will."

Jay's phone buzzed with a text. "Okay, Hailey's finished with her interview. We gotta get back to the District."

"Speaking of the District, have you told Voight?"

"Yeah. Yesterday. You know he's big on family, so he's glad for us, despite all the challenges it will bring." Jay sighed. "Anyway, Baby Halstead is coming to a District near you."

"That's the spirit," added Will.

Early in Hailey's pregnancy, she got a call one evening from her older brother saying their father had suffered a massage heart attack and was at Med. "It's really bad, Hailey," said her brother.

Barely an hour later, he called back to report that their father had passed away in the emergency room. "They worked and worked and worked on him, but he was too far gone." Hailey sat on the couch in stunned silence. Jay put his arm around her shoulder and said, "Do you want to go to the hospital? For your mom and brothers? I'll support whatever decision you make."

"I'm glad he's gone. I know in one way that's a horrible thing to admit, but he did a lot of horrible things to our family."

"I understand," said Jay soothingly. "It's entirely up to you. But I don't want this to distress our little family."

Hailey instinctively touched her abdomen. "Mom doesn't know about our little peanut," she said with a sad little smile.

Jay pulled her into his lap so he could wrap both arms around her. "I'm sure that would be a big comfort and encouragement to her." Hailey began to cry softly, but after a few minutes she got herself under control. "You're right. She'll be thrilled about the baby."

"Okay," said Jay.

"Let's go then, before I change my mind," she sniffed.

As the weeks progressed, the two detectives had numerous discussions about possible names. They had decided not to learn the baby's sex, preferring to be surprised in the delivery room. The guest room, now the nursery, had been painted a lovely shade of blue just because they both liked it.

"In the old days people had no choice but to wait," said Jay one evening. "Today, everything is on-demand."

Hailey gave a little laugh. "You sound like a Luddite."

"No, I'm not opposed to technology and instant replays. I mean, we couldn't do our jobs without it. But what's wrong with anticipation?"

"Absolutely nothing," said Hailey. She was standing at the island flipping through a magazine. "So, we've decided on names, right?"

Jay was unloading the dishwasher. "I'm happy with our choices."

Behind him there was a sudden gasp from Hailey. "That's good because my water just broke."

"Water . . . broke," said Jay. He tried to recall how he'd heard those two words used in the same sentence recently. Oh yeah, those classes we took at Med.

Then Hailey doubled over in pain with an anguished cry. "Contraction?" asked Jay.

"Yeah," she panted.

"Okay, we got this. We know what to do . . . I think." He was already breaking out in a nervous sweat.

He grabbed his phone from the coffee table. "I'm calling Will."

"Will?" said Hailey in disbelief. "Will is not my OB!"

"Right. What was I thinking? I should call Dr. Bautista. Nice woman. I like her," rambled Jay.

Hailey's face contorted as another contraction gripped her. "Jay! Focus! I'm . . . uh, I'm having a baby here!" she exclaimed.

"Not here here, I hope."

Hailey gripped the edge of the island and practiced her breathing exercises as Jay began timing the contractions. "Your due date is still a week away," said Jay.

"Babies have their own timetable," said Hailey. Jay ran his hand up and down her back for reassurance. "Maybe I should do that breathing stuff, too," he said.

"It can't hurt," said Hailey.

Five minutes of panic ensued as Jay talked to the doctor and scrambled to locate his boots and keys. It was a good thing Hailey's hospital bag was already packed and sitting by the front door. Before long, they were in the truck and headed to Med.

While Hailey was being checked in, Jay sent quick texts to Will, Mrs. Upton and Voight. We're having a baby! was all he wrote. He figured that said it all.

A nurse was wheeling Hailey into a room to change into a gown and get hooked up to various monitors. Dr. Bautista arrived, examined her and reported she was 5 cm. dilated. "You're half-way there," she said cheerfully.

Hours Later

"Okay Hailey, it's time to deliver this baby," declared Dr. Bautista after her latest exam.

"Thank goodness," sighed Jay. He wasn't sure who was more relieved at this news. He felt about as wrung out as Hailey looked.

"Jay, you're still coming with me, right?" asked Hailey.

All night long he'd been psyching himself up for the big moment. "Of course. I'm an Army Ranger and a cop. I think I can snip a little cord."

Hailey nodded. "I know you can."

While Jay was getting dressed out, Hailey had a moment to speak to the anesthesiologist. "Can you keep an eye on my husband? He doesn't do well in hospitals."

"I understand. A lot of big, tough guys can't hack it in here. It's the whole blood and needles thing."

Then she noticed the tattoo on his upper arm. "Were you in the Army?"

"Yes, ma'am. Rangers."

She breathed a sigh of relief. "So was Jay."

The doctor smiled. "There you go. Brothers in arms."

The Big Reveal

Twelve hours after Jay and Hailey got to the hospital, eight-pound, four-ounce Athena Miranda Halstead arrived. Her names honored Mrs. Upton's mother and Jay's mother. Jay was able to cut the cord and lay her on Hailey's chest. She had wispy blonde hair and, for the moment, blue eyes. They knew that could change in the coming weeks.

"You did an outstanding job there," said the anesthesiologist to Jay.

"Thanks. But it was Hailey who did the hard part. She's a rock star."

"Where's your phone? I'll take a picture for you." The doctor peeled off his gloves and snapped a couple pics of the new family.

Jay immediately sent them to Burgess and Platt. He'd never hear the end of it if he didn't.

That night, everybody from Intelligence and 51 came to visit them bearing flowers, balloons, fruit baskets and stuffed animals. Of course, Will, Mrs. Upton, Hailey's brothers and their wives were already there. Mrs. Upton brought a tiny gold Greek cross on a chain for Athena. She murmured something in Greek as she kissed her new granddaughter's forehead.

Athena was passed around and exclaimed over as everyone tried to figure out who she most resembled. Eventually, some people said goodnight and drifted out. Will had now returned since his shift was over.

"May I?" he asked Hailey, who had finally gotten to hold her baby again.

"Of course," she said as she handed Athena up to him.

"What a little doll," he cooed. "Remember, I'll be the fun uncle. If daddy says no, you come ask uncle Will."

"Hey, don't try to turn my daughter into a wild child," laughed Jay.

Even Voight was a kinder, gentler person when he held her. "She's beautiful," he said when he handed her back to Jay.

"Come on, everybody. Let's get out of here and let the Halstead family get some rest," he said as he herded the Intelligence crew toward the door.

Jay walked out to the hall as they said their goodbyes. "Guys, thanks for coming," he said.

Voight was the last one left. He removed a fat envelope from his jacket and pressed it into Jay's hand.

Jay looked at him skeptically. "Sarge, I can't accept this."

"Yes, you can. Set up a college fund for your little princess. I opened one for my grandson the week after he was born." He could tell Jay was about to argue with him.

He put a hand on Jay's shoulder. "Jay, you are the closest thing to a son that I have since Justin died. It gives me joy to do this."

Jay nodded slowly. "Very well. Thank you. It's extremely generous of you."

"You're welcome. Now go be with your family." Voight turned and walked away. Jay stared after him, overwhelmed by the unexpected gesture.

The Halsteads had been at home for three weeks and were settling into their new normal. One night, Hailey came into the living room after her shower and saw the sliding glass door to the balcony open. She heard Jay talking to the baby.

"Athena, you see that full moon up there? Actually, those silly clouds are in the way right now. But you exist because of another full moon. You see, several months ago I was standing in this same spot. That's right, this exact spot. That's when I realized I was in love with your mom. I think I'd always known it on some level, but that night it became real."

From the darkened living room, Hailey was on the verge of tears. Her life was complete. She had Jay, their adorable baby girl and finally, a better relationship with her mother. She took a deep breath and stepped onto the balcony.

"Jay."

He looked up and smiled. "Look, here's mom," he said to Athena. She answered with a little gurgling noise.

"What you said just now . . . it was beautiful." Then the tears spilled out.

"Babe, why are you crying?"

"I don't know. I guess because I'm so happy. Happier than I ever thought I could be."

"So am I. And every word I said was true," said Jay.

"I know." They were quiet for a moment as they gazed at their daughter. "Hey, maybe we should call Athena our little moonbeam," said Hailey.

He nodded and smiled. "I like that. I'll tell her this story again when she grows up."

The clouds suddenly shifted to reveal the full moon.

THE END

10-8-2021