Chapter 43: Why we're good together.
Jay/Hailey. Set after series 7. At Kim and Adam's wedding, Jay and Hailey finally confessed their feelings and spent the night together and now they are back in Chicago and hiding their relationship from their friends.
Next chapter! Jay and Hailey go away to the cabin for a week. Please enjoy and review :).
I do not own Chicago PD or any of the characters.
The next week, Hailey and Jay were lucky enough to have a week off. The whole unit did, so the two of them made plans to go to the cabin. The last time they had been there, it hadn't gone well, so, this time, they were determined to make it work. Kim and Adam had given Jay, Hailey and Kevin all about their anniversary. They hadn't found out the gender of their baby and Hailey could tell this was because Kim was still slightly struggling with her pregnancy. She was happy about it, but she still remembered the pain of having a miscarriage. Hailey didn't know what the felt like, but she did know what it was like to have fear running your life, thinking about her father. Now, she and her mum met up every couple of weeks, for dinner or lunch, and it was nice to have that connection. The rule was that Hailey's father was never mentioned. Hailey knew, no matter what, Jay supported her, and Hailey knew that her mum also understood this.
In the locker room, Hailey turned to face Kim and asked, with a small smile, "Kim, how are you feeling?"
Kim kept facing the locker as she just replied, "I'm okay. I can't believe Adam and I have been married for a year! It's crazy!" She paused, then turned to face Hailey as she added, "I hope you and Jay enjoyed your anniversary, too."
Hailey smiled and tilted her head to the side slightly as she replied, "Yeah, we did, thanks. It was a very low-key evening." There was a silence, before Hailey said, "Kim, if you ever want to talk, you can just call or text me any time, you know?"
"Thanks, Hailey. Are we on for dinner next week?"
"Of course we are, have a good week off, Kim."
Hailey loved waking up next to Jay, with his arms around her and, as soon as he knew that she was awake, he greeted her with a kiss. "Good morning. Waffles, coffee, then we'll set off?"
"Sounds perfect, partner." Hailey smiled and kissed Jay on the lips, before she slipped out of the bed and pulled her hair into a high ponytail as she went to the shower as Jay made breakfast for the two of them. There was no doubt that Jay was the best at cooking. He was also defiantly the tidiest and that was due to his time in the Army. His apartment, compared to Hailey's house, was so tidy, but Jay didn't spend much time there, anymore. Most of their time together was at Hailey's house and, for Jay, this was a big step. It was such a sign of trust and love and Hailey loved that, because Jay made her feel that safe and loved, too.
After breakfast, Hailey and Jay went to Jay's apartment to get his suitcase and clothes for the week, then they drove to Wisconsin. The cabin was isolated, remote and peaceful and the couple were so happy about being there for a week. As soon as they were there, they both changed into warmer clothes. Jumpers and jeans, because there was snow. Hailey had brought her own clothes, but she wanted to wear Jay's and Jay thought she looked great in his clothes.
Outside in the snow, in their coats, hats and gloves, Hailey and Jay walked, until Hailey started a snowball fight, which both she and Jay enjoyed more than either of them, as adults, wanted to admit. Hailey's blue hat highlighted her blue eyes as she smiled as she won the snowball fight and she walked over to Jay, throwing her arms in the air. "I win, partner! Pay up!"
Smirking, Jay asked, "What's the payment, Detective?"
Hailey loved her face closer to his as she replied, "It's a kiss."
Jay rested his head against hers and looked into Jay's eyes as he nodded. "Now, that I can do." Their lips met and they looked into each other's eyes, before Hailey wrapped her arms around Jay's neck and Jay held her close. As they were kissing, it started to snow. It was beautiful, but they were so happy together they didn't notice until they started to walk back to the cabin.
That evening, Hailey found pictures from Jay's childhood. Pictures of his mum and Will. Jay's face was freckled and he was smiling in most of them and Hailey smiled at the pictures. She could see how close he was to his mum and she knew how much Jay missed her. He didn't talk about it much, but Jay didn't have to talk for Hailey to know what he was thinking. It was the same for what Hailey was thinking. Jay just knew. They had those instincts from being partners for so long.
After dinner, they were sitting together on the sofa, with blankets and the fire because it was so cold. Hailey's legs were resting on top of Jay's and their hands were resting together. Out of the blue, Hailey asked, "Did you ever come here with Erin?" In hindsight, Jay knew that his relationship with Erin had been toxic and it didn't come close to his relationship with Hailey. His love for Hailey was unlike what he had ever felt.
Jay shook his head and replied, "No. She never came here." He was silent for a while, before he continued, "I tried to get her out here a couple of times. When we were together, but she didn't want to. It wasn't the life she wanted."
"Even if being here made you feel better." It wasn't a question, but Hailey gave him a soft smile. She tilted her head. "You didn't bring any of your medication."
Resting his head against the back of the sofa, Jay nodded. "Yeah. I don't need it when I'm out here. It's so peaceful. No noise, no sounds to trigger the PTSD or anxiety." He shook his head. "Erin never quite… got my PTSD. How serious it was. She never took the time to look at it. Or even ask me about it."
With a wistful smile, Hailey readjusted where she was sitting and rested her head on the back of the sofa, resting her head next to Jay and her legs next to his. Their feet were touching. In a soft voice, she said, "I don't think she'd recognise you now, Jay. I trusted you from the day I met you, but I don't think she would've thought you could be like this. So calm and steady. It'll always be there, I know, but… it's so much better than it was."
Jay smiled and kissed her hair as he whispered, "That's down to you, Hailey. You challenged me. You didn't let me off the hook. You made me see a counsellor and that helped me get better. Helped me to accept it'll always be there, but I can control it."
Staring at the ceiling, Hailey whispered, "I don't think Garret would recognise me now."
If Jay hadn't been next to her, he would have missed it, but he offered her a small smile and just said, "I know you loved him."
"I did, but, back then, I was so different from how I am now. I was fueled by anger, anger at my dad and I was so desperate to prove myself as a cop. That undercover messed with me so badly. Over what Booth did and… what he almost did." She titled her head to look at Jay as she said, "You didn't let me off the hook with that, either, Jay. You challenged me on that, for my own good, and you had my back, at a time when I needed it the most. You really are my best partner ever and the best friend."
"Maybe that's why we became such good partners. Why we trusted each other. We both have our issues, but we're not going to let them beat us." Jay smiled as he added, "And it's why we're so good together." He kissed her temple and Hailey closed her eyes.
Hailey kept her eyes closed and one of her hands found Jay's and she squeezed it, before she opened her eyes. Her eyes were looking into Jay's, as they sat together with their heads next to each other. She smiled as she looked into his green eyes and said, "Yes, we are, and we're here, together." Their eyes connected before the small gap between them closed and their lips met and, in between kisses, Hailey whispered, "I love you, Jay, so much."
In her ear, Jay whispered, "I love you, too, Hailey Anne." They both smiled and made their way to the bedroom.
For the rest of the week, both Hailey and Jay relaxed, away from the city, away from work, enjoying spending time together in a relaxed way. They went outside in the woods and the snow and ate pizza and watched Netflix together, snuggled together on the sofa in the cabin as the snow fell outside. As Jay woke up on the last morning and he saw Hailey in his arms, he smiled. He had never been happier, and he knew that he didn't want to live another day without waking up next to her. There was something he needed to ask her. It would be a big step, but it seemed right, for both of them, and he was sure that Hailey would agree.
