Hello hello! Here's the next chapter for you guys!
I absolutely loved seeing your reactions to the last chapter, you all are seriously the best. I hope you enjoy this one as well!
Chapter Forty Four
"Are you sure I can't do anything to help?" Gabby called from the living room, Matt placing the lid back over the pot on the stove before walking towards her, coming into her view as he responded.
"All I need from you is to stay there until our guests get here." He replied, throwing the dish towel over his shoulder.
"But I'm feeling better, I can at least help you set the table." She tried to compromise, Matt shaking his head.
"I've already finished it. I just need you to stay put. I'm glad you're feeling better, I want you to stay that way." He spoke, earning a reluctant nod from Gabby before he moved back towards the kitchen.
It had been a few days since their last appointment with Dr. Tanner, and in those days Gabby had definitely started feeling a little worn down. She was still feeling better than she had earlier on in her pregnancy, but the fatigue was starting to set back in a little bit. That, combined with her back pain and leg cramps, left her a bit more irritable than normal, which led to Matt trying to take over more of her tasks around the house. He wanted her to take it easy and not have to worry about things, so he was doing what he could for her around the apartment. Starting with this dinner.
Checking on the food in the oven, Matt smiled in satisfaction at how it was coming along before continuing the process of getting ready for dinner. Soon after their appointment, they quickly began discussing who they wanted to share the news with first. They'd managed to avoid the questions about the gender during their most recent shift at the firehouse, the couple not wanting everyone to know just yet. They had come up with a small group of people they wanted to tell first, it just took some time to find a night that would work for all of them.
Antonio was the first person that came to Gabby's mind, she was set on him being one of the first to know about her and Matt's little girl. Him and her father, she wanted them to know first. Matt had chosen Severide to join their small dinner, and then Jemma had rounded out the group. They were beyond excited to tell everyone their wonderful news, but these four were who they wanted to share it with first.
"You think they're gonna be excited?" Gabby's voice flooded into the kitchen, a small smile falling onto Matt's face.
"They're gonna be thrilled. I can't wait for them all to know about our baby girl." He responded, stirring the sauce before turning the stovetop on low. "I just hope I can hold on and not blurt it out the second they get here." He mused, hearing her chuckle from the other room.
"Surely you can wait a few more hours. We've known for days already and you haven't said anything." A sharp knock interrupted their conversation, Matt walking towards the living room, seeing Gabby get up from the couch. "We're almost there, don't ruin the surprise now." She teased with a grin, heading for the front door.
"Gabriela!" Ramon's excited voice flooded through the apartment as she pulled the door open, bringing his daughter into a warm hug. "Oh my, honey, look at you." He spoke in awe, marveling at his daughter's growing baby bump, the tight shirt hugging Gabby's body making it stand out.
"Hi dad." She responded before moving her attention to her brother. "Hi Tonio." She spoke, pulling him in for a hug.
"Hey sis, how are you feeling?" He asked as they walked inside, Gabby closing the door behind them.
"I've been alright, just the usual pregnancy symptoms are kind of kicking my butt. But I'm excited to have you guys here tonight."
"Look who I found." Matt's voice filled the room as Gabby turned to look at him, seeing him and Severide walking into the living room.
"Hey Sev." She greeted, the firefighter coming to give her a hug, rubbing her back as they embraced.
"Hey, sorry I kind of snuck in the back. Hey Antonio." Severide greeted, earning a nod from the detective, the two shaking hands.
"Kelly, you remember my dad, Ramon." Kelly nodded, flashing the man a bright grin as they exchanged pleasantries, Gabby's attention moving towards the door as she heard knocking.
Silently, she walked towards the noise, pulling open the door to see Jemma on the other side.
"Hey, sorry, I know I'm late." She apologized, Gabby waving her off as she let her inside.
"You're fine, everyone else just got here." She assured her, the paramedics stepping into the busy living room. Matt had disappeared from the room, most likely putting the finishing touches on dinner, Severide in deep conversation with Ramon, the two men laughing. Gabby waited for a break in their discussion before stepping in, grabbing their attention. "Hey, sorry to interrupt. But dad, I want you to meet my partner, Jemma." Gabby introduced, the young girl smiling softly. "Jemma, I know you know my brother, Antonio."
"It's nice to see you again." Antonio spoke, smiling warmly at her.
"And this is my dad, Ramon."
"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Dawson." She greeted, the older man smiling.
"It's nice to meet you, too. I've heard nothing but great things about you. You seem like an amazing young woman, I'm glad my Gabriela has you looking out for her." Ramon spoke, rubbing Gabby's back, feeling his daughter lean into his side slightly.
"Oh, well Gabby's the amazing one. I swear, I've learned so much from her in such a short amount of time. You have have one incredible daughter."
Ramon nodded in agreement, leaning to place a soft kiss to the side of Gabby's head, holding onto her.
"Yes I do." He murmured, Gabby smiling up at her father as Matt reappeared.
"Well, it's definitely not anything as good as Gabby can make, but dinner's ready." Matt spoke with a grin, the guests beginning to file into the kitchen, finding their seats. Matt ended up at the head of the table, Gabby to his left, sandwiched between him and Antonio. Ramon was directly across from Casey, Jemma and Kelly claiming the spots on the other side, all ready to dig in.
Their night was full of laughter and fun, everyone enjoying themselves as they ate and talked, their conversations never stalling. While they sat there, Gabby had to force herself to sit back and take a moment to soak this in, spending this quality time with those closest to her, knowing there was a very real possibility that she wouldn't be able to do this for much longer.
She didn't want to dwell on it, not wanting to put a damper on what had been an incredible evening with her family and friends, who were practically family. But it was always in the back of her mind, almost like a reminder to enjoy her time while she could.
It took getting to dessert for Gabby to finally give Matt the signal that they could share the news, Matt placing his fork down as he glanced around the table.
"So, uh, there's something Gabby and I want to tell you guys." Matt's words caused the other conversations to halt, everyone looking towards him. "I know you all know this, but Gabby and I go to a lot of doctor's appointments. Well, at our last one, we were able to find out what we're having."
The room went quiet, everyone staring between Gabby and Matt expectantly, waiting for one of them to reveal the great news.
Matt glanced back towards her, their grins matching each others as he gave her a nod, silently telling her to tell them.
Taking a deep breath, Gabby reached for his hand, looking back towards her family, a few tears shining in her brown eyes.
"We're having a baby girl."
Elation filled the room, gasps of shock and joy being heard around the table as Gabby released a watery chuckle, feeling Matt squeeze her hand.
"Oh, mija." Ramon murmured, his hands coming up to cover his mouth, pure excitement radiating off of him.
"I knew it!" Severide responded, rubbing his hands together, a wide grin covering his face.
"I'm so happy for you guys." Jemma breathed out, tears of her own filling her eyes.
Antonio was the only one Gabby couldn't read. He hadn't said a word, he'd only stared at her as his eyes filled with tears.
"I know you've always wanted a nephew, hopefully a niece will be okay, though." She joked, trying to gauge his reaction.
Antonio shook his head, a light laugh escaping his lips as he turned towards her, wrapping his arms tightly around her back. Gabby dropped Matt's hand, holding onto her brother securely.
"I'm so happy for you, sis." He breathed out, placing a kiss to the side of her head, Gabby having a hard time fighting off the tears in her eyes threatening to fall, her grip on him tightening. "This kid is so lucky."
A few tears escaped down her cheeks, Antonio rubbing her back before they pulled away, Gabby wiping away the water under her eyes.
"Thank you." She murmured, glancing towards Matt when she felt his hand on her thigh, rubbing soothing motions over her leg, a warm smile on his face.
"You all wanna see our last ultrasound?" Matt asked, knowing Gabby would want the attention shifted away from her while she was more emotional than normal, Casey earning nods from everyone in the room. He pushed himself up from his seat, placing a quick kiss to the top of Gabby's head before moving towards the kitchen, going in search of images.
The rest of the night was filled with laughter, excitement, and the occasional tears, Gabby feeling a sense of warmth and comfort being in the presence of some of the most important people in her life.
Matt's eyebrows furrowed as he was slowly pulled from his slumber, the tired man keeping his eyes closed in hopes of falling back asleep. He wasn't sure what had woken him, something had disturbed his rest but he couldn't pinpoint it. It wasn't until he heard the noise again that he opened his eyes, blinking to try and adjust to the dark room.
His eyes moved to the source of the sound, looking towards Gabby, seeing her resting on her side facing away from him, occasional hisses and groans escaping through her lips as Matt watched her press her hand into her hip.
"Gabby?" He questioned softly, leaning over to turn on the lamp before sitting up in bed, trying to get a better view of her in the dimly lit room.
"Hey, sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up." She murmured, Matt frowning as his eyes ran over her face, seeing the grimace covering her features.
"What's wrong?" He asked softly, placing his hand on her bare thigh, rubbing gently across her skin.
"Just the ligament pain again." She breathed out, Matt nodding slowly. He moved his hand up her thigh to her waist, gently nudging her hand away from her hip.
"Let me." He spoke softly, Gabby moving her hand to her stomach as Matt began pressing down in between her belly and her hip, Gabby biting down on the inside of her cheek roughly. It hurt, but it was a good pain. It was a pain that told her he was helping the problem. "That's not too much, is it?" He questioned, Gabby shaking her head.
Gabby laid there as he massaged her hip, releasing a few involuntary groans as he used long strokes against her muscle, slowly relieving the ache.
"Is this worse than usual?" He questioned after nearly ten minutes of helping her. How this routine had usually gone was Matt would massage her hip for a couple minutes, get the confirmation that Gabby was feeling better and he could stop, or he'd continue anyway, just because she enjoyed it. But he had yet to see a physical response that her pain was gone, and he could feel under his fingertips that her muscle was still tight.
"Yeah, I've never had them this bad before. It's definitely feeling better, but it's like it stops and then comes back." She explained, Matt glancing from her face to her hip.
"And you're sure that's normal?" She nodded in response as Matt continued his movements. He didn't care to continue massaging her muscles, he'd give her as many massages as she asked for. It was the pain that was concerning him; he didn't want her to be in pain, and he didn't know what this prolonged pain meant for the baby.
"It's not a constant pain. It comes and goes, which is normal. Dr. Tanner said as long as it's not continuous then it's fine. It just hurts like a bitch." She gritted out between clenched teeth, Matt feeling her muscles tighten under his touch again.
He would do anything for her not to have to go through this, Matt hating to ever see her in any amount of pain. Unfortunately, that had been a common occurrence as of late, her ligament pain coming in waves. But she handled it like a pro, Matt helping whenever he could.
"Let me call Boden, I can tell him you can't come in today." He spoke quietly, Gabby shaking her head.
"No, no I'm okay. The pain will go away soon."
"Yeah, but I know even once it does, you always feel achy and sore for awhile afterwards. It won't be a problem, everyone knows you have to take it easy." He tried again, Gabby sighing softly as she gently pushed his hand away, slowly beginning to sit up, Matt placing his hand on her back to help the process.
"Matt, I love you, but I don't need to stay home. I'm fine. Plus, we're supposed to tell everyone what we're having today. I can't let you have all the fun alone." She responded, turning her body so her legs were hanging off the side of the bed. Matt threw the covers off himself, standing up and walking over to her side of the bed, crouching down in front of her, resting his palms over her knees.
"We can tell them next shift. You're what's important here, I don't want you working if you shouldn't."
"I promise you, I would tell you if I didn't feel up to going in. But I'm good." She assured him, her hand coming out to rest over his cheek, rubbing her thumb against his skin. "Now, I'm gonna go get in the shower. Would you like to join me?" She questioned with a raised eyebrow, Matt sucking in a deep breath before his eyes moved towards her stomach, reaching his hand out to rest over her bump.
"Your Momma can be quite persuasive, kid." He murmured, caressing her stomach for a few moments before ultimately giving in. "Fine." He spoke, lifting his head up to look at Gabby. "But no funny business." Matt warned, standing back up, holding out his hands for her to take, helping her up off the bed.
"Not even just a little?" She questioned, trying to hide her amusement as she flashed him a challenging smirk, Matt feeling his mouth go dry as he swallowed thickly. Her hands let go of his, reaching and pulling the large t-shirt from her body, dropping it casually on the floor as she left herself exposed to him, his eyes roaming from her face down to her filled out chest and stomach. Matt forced himself to take a deep breath, his action proving useless at steadying himself as her hands moved to his waist, toying with the edge of his boxers.
"You're not playing fair." He replied, his voice barely above a whisper.
Gabby's smirk grew as she snapped the elastic waistband against his skin, teasing her fingertips over his hips. "I have a feeling you don't mind." She spoke softly, leaning up to place a kiss against his lips, Matt groaning as he felt her bare chest against his. "I'll see you in there." She whispered against his mouth, sliding past him as she moved for the bathroom.
Matt sucked in a deep breath, discarding his boxers as he glanced towards the time. His smile grew as he followed after her, their early morning giving them all the time they needed and more to enjoy their shower together.
"So, I believe before we finish up today, Casey told me he and Dawson have something they wanted to share." Boden spoke from the front of the conference room, Matt nodding as he pushed himself up from his seat beside Gabby, waiting until she got up as well, following behind her as she walked up towards the front of the room.
"Well, we have some exciting news." Matt spoke, placing his hand on Gabby's lower back, rubbing over her t-shirt.
"Exciting for some of you, others might be disappointed depending on how much money they lost." She replied, her narrowed gaze shifting between Herrmann and Severide, her look earning snickers from around the room.
"Oh yeah, Dawson's got the scary mom look down." Cruz joked, Gabby scoffing lightly as Matt chuckled at her side.
"But, anyway, we wanted to tell you guys that… we're having a baby girl."
Cheers erupted around the conference room, Herrmann being the first one up to come and hug Gabby, rubbing her back as they held onto one another.
"Oh my God, this amazing." He spoke excitedly as he pulled back, stepping out of the way so others could get a turn to hug her, Herrmann moving to Matt, patting his back. "You're gonna have a little carbon copy of Dawson, I already know it."
"I know." Matt breathed out, unable to stop the wide grin forming on his face. "It's surreal, I'm so excited."
He looked towards her as Boden brought her in for a hug, Brett patiently waiting for her turn as Gabby got passed around through the firehouse.
"That's great news, congrats Dawson." Foster spoke, bringing Gabby in for a quick hug before Severide got to her.
"Congratulations again." He told her, kissing her cheek before hugging her tightly "I'm so happy for you guys."
"Thanks Kelly." She spoke quietly, giving him an extra squeeze before pulling back.
A crowd had settled around the expectant parents, Gabby finding her way back to Matt's side, her eyes bouncing around the group.
"Okay well now I'm just curious, in this baby gender pool you all had going, who picked girl?" She asked with a raised eyebrow, Kelly unapologetically shooting his hand up, his action prompting others to do the same. Along with Severide, Brett, Otis, Mouch, and Boden all raised their hands, Gabby glancing to Matt as he slowly lifted his in the air, a sheepish grin on his face. Rolling her eyes, Gabby turned back to the group. "Wow, so most of you went with boy huh?"
"Yeah, but a little girl, that's incredible. I can't wait to meet her. Although Casey's definitely gonna have his hands full with the both of you." Herrmann teased, laughs being heard around the room as Matt placed a kiss to her temple.
The group began dispersing, Gabby turning to look at Matt as they stood with Severide, Herrmann, and Brett, everyone else having either left or started talking amongst themselves.
"So, you really bet on us having a girl?" She questioned, Matt flashing her a bright smile.
"Well, I chose correctly, didn't I?"
Shrugging, Gabby leaned back into his side, wrapping her arm around his waist. "At least you got us some money out of it." She murmured, earning laughs from the small group around them.
Casey was at the table in the common room, enjoying his lunch as he sat with Severide. It was a little past noon in the firehouse, the room comfortably quiet as a few firefighters enjoyed their food, Matt waiting for ambo to get back from their call before he made some for Gabby.
Only a few more minutes passed before he heard the door open, Matt looking up with a wide grin when he saw Gabby walking in, Brett and Foster following behind her. But his smile soon fell, being replaced with a frown when he saw the grimace on her face, Gabby not even looking his way as she turned the corner to head down the hallway.
"Is she okay?" Matt asked, standing up from his seat.
"She's been dealing with that pain again." Brett answered, Matt sighing heavily. "It started just as we were leaving, we had her sit out halfway through the last call. She didn't appreciate it much, at least not at the time, but she was really struggling."
"Thanks you guys." He responded, rubbing his hand over his mouth before sliding past them, turning into the hallway, heading in the direction she went. Glancing through the glass door into the bunk room, he didn't see her anywhere, Matt continuing down the hallway, walking into the bathroom.
When he got inside, he saw the first stall door was shut, Matt moving to the counter, leaning his weight into it as he waited for her to finish, his arms crossed over his chest.
It only took a few moments for Matt to see the stall door open, Gabby's movements pausing momentarily when she saw him standing there, flashing him a weak smile before she walked towards him. He watched her closely as she began washing her hands, Matt pushing a loose piece of hair behind her ear before moving to stand behind her, looking at her in the mirror.
"What's wrong?" He questioned softly, Gabby taking a deep breath, meeting his gaze through the mirror as she turned the water off.
"It's just the usual." She murmured, Matt moving his hand around to the front of her hips, starting on her left side as he began massaging the area, pressing his fingers into her skin.
"Is it worse than this morning?"
She shook her head, her eyes falling closed as she focused on the feeling of his movements, taking deep breaths as his methods helped the pain pass. A low groan left her lips as he increased his pressure, Matt placing a soft kiss to her shoulder.
"Can you do the other side?" She asked softly, Matt nodding with a small smile, releasing his grip and bringing his other hand up to her right side, repeating the process, pressing down in between her protruding stomach and her hip bone.
He had only just started when they heard the bells ring throughout the house, signaling 61 to assist at a car accident. Gabby sighed heavily, beginning to turn around in his grip.
"Stay here." He told her, Gabby's eyebrows furrowing, shaking her head lightly.
"I'm fine."
"Gabby, I'm serious." He replied, moving towards the door, disappearing through it, Gabby grimacing as she felt another pain shoot through her hip.
Matt hurried through the hallway, moving into the garage through the first set of double doors, seeing Brett and Foster heading for the ambulance.
"It's just you two on this one, guys." He called across the garage, the women turning to look at him.
"Got it, Casey." Brett responded, opening the driver's side door. "I hope she feels better."
Matt gave her a nod before heading back into the firehouse, following the familiar path to the bathroom, pushing the swinging door open to find Gabby where he left her, leaning into the counter.
"Turn back around." He spoke softly, Gabby complying as she turned to face the mirrors. She watched as Matt came up behind her, resuming his previous methods, Gabby breathing steadily as he worked.
After a few focused moments, Matt moved his hand around to her back, bringing up his other one as he began massaging the back of her hips, knowing how sore her body was.
He continued on for nearly ten minutes, feeling her relax under his fingers as he did what he could to help her, Gabby wearing an appreciative smile when he dropped his hands.
"That's about all I can do right now, but tomorrow night I can give you a better massage." He spoke, Gabby nodding as he pressed a kiss to the back of her head.
"I'm looking forward to that."
"I've been doing some research, to find the best way to give you a massage. I mean, I think I've done alright so far, but with our little girl, I wanna make sure the both of you are safe." He responded, Gabby's chest filling with warmth at his words. "I think you're gonna enjoy it, though." A proud grin fell across his lips, Gabby turning around to face him, his hands instinctively going to her waist.
"Thank you." She whispered, placing a soft kiss to his lips as he rubbed up and down over her sides.
"You don't need to thank me, it's nothing." He responded. "Plus, I have a feeling I'm gonna like it, too." He spoke smugly, Gabby shaking her head in amusement, Matt pulling back from her, reaching for her hand as he began leading her from the bathroom.
Silently, she followed him to the bunk room, Matt taking her to his office, nodding at her to sit down on the bed.
"I'm gonna get you some lunch, any requests for a beverage?"
Gabby shook her head. "Water's fine. But remember-"
"Smaller meals, I know." He interjected, Gabby smiling as he moved towards the door. "You rest, I'll be back."
Gabby watched him as he left, making herself comfortable on his bed while she waited for him to return. Sometimes she still doesn't know how she got so lucky, to love Matt and for him to love her back, but all she knew was she felt thankful for him every day. There was no better person, no better man for her to spend the rest of her life with, for her to bring a child into this world with, and there wasn't a day that went by where she wasn't eternally grateful that they found their way back to each other.
And she was determined to make the most out of whatever time they had left.
"So, what time are you meeting up with Antonio?" Matt questioned as they walked through the hallway hand in hand, the couple having just finished up their shift at 51. It had turned into quite a busy one, 81 and squad 3 called away most of the night to help with an apartment fire, while 61 had been sent all over the city throughout the night. Gabby helped when she could, but a few times she had to stay back, her body reminding her of its limitations. She felt guilty for Brett and Foster having to carry some of the extra workload, but they had constantly assured her it was fine, that she needed to take care of herself before she could take care of anyone else.
"In about an hour, I think." She responded.
"That'll be good, you all getting to spend some time together."
"Yeah, I feel like I really haven't seen him much lately. Hopefully your daughter can settle down a bit to give me a break." Gabby replied lightly, Matt glancing down to her stomach.
"She's moving around a lot?"
"Most definitely."
"I can't wait until I can feel her." He murmured, Gabby squeezing his hand tightly.
"Soon enough." She reminded him, Matt nodding as they continued walking. "So what are you gonna do with your freedom today? With no hormonal pregnant lady to boss you around?"
Matt shook his head, placing a quick kiss to the side of her head before responding. "I mean, I'm not completely free, you're only gonna be gone a few hours." He teased, Gabby pinching his side with an unamused look on her face, Matt shying away from her touch. "But no, I'm probably just gonna hang around the apartment. Maybe get some laundry done."
Gabby nodded with a smile, unable to respond when she saw Herrmann step out from the common room, the expectant parents slowing their steps, eyeing the man curiously as he stared at them with a grin.
"Uh, can we help you Herrmann?" Matt asked, the older man waving them towards him before he stepped back into the room, Matt and Gabby glancing to one another as they walked towards the common room, their confusion only growing when they saw the entire house standing there.
"What's going on?" Gabby asked, Herrmann holding out a thick envelope, Gabby reaching for it slowly. "What is this?"
"We were talking, and we decided that you two deserve the money from the pool about your baby."
"What?"
"Yeah, I mean, we just started it as fun, but we want you all to have the money. It was Severide's idea."
"Herrmann, Kelly, we can't accept this." Matt spoke, Severide shaking his head.
"Yes, you can." Kelly spoke.
"Kids ain't cheap, believe me. We want you all to have it." Herrmann replied.
Tears pricked the edges of Gabby's eyes as she dropped Matt's hand, stepping forward to give Herrmann a hug. Casey moved towards Kelly, bringing his friend in for a thankful hug.
"Oh, don't cry on me kid, I'm gonna start crying too." He spoke lightly, Gabby chuckling as she pulled back.
"Thank you all, really. You all didn't have to do this, but we appreciate it so much."
Herrmann waved her off, Gabby glancing around at the bright smiles shining back at her. "It's the least we could do for you guys."
"This is really gonna help us, I don't know how to repay you guys."
"Nah, none of that." Herrmann replied with a wide grin. "All we need from you is you and the little rascal coming out of this okay."
Gabby nodded, biting down on her bottom lip before bringing him into another quick hug, holding onto the older man a little extra tight, her actions expressing more than her words ever could.
Matt tapped his fingers on his warm coffee mug, steam lifting into the air as he glanced around the little coffee shop, checking his watch once more before returning his gaze to the other customers.
He'd been approached by workers a few different times, all of them asking if he needed anything, but each time he declined. He wasn't here for the food, or even the coffee. He was here to talk to someone, and he was here because there was no chance of Gabby running into him.
The sound of the door chiming grabbed his attention, Matt smiling when he saw the woman he was waiting for enter the shop, her looking around until her eyes landed on him, a soft smile coming to her face. He stood up as she approached him, Matt bringing her in for a quick hug before they sat down.
"Thanks for meeting me here, Jemma." He spoke, the paramedic flashing him a wide smile.
"Of course." She responded, glancing around. "I was a little surprised to hear you wanted to meet here. Where's Gabby?"
"She's, uh, spending the morning with her brother. I actually asked you to meet me here so you and I could talk." He said, Jemma sensing his nerves from across the table.
"Alright, what do you wanna talk about?"
Matt downed a large gulp of his coffee, grimacing as the hot liquid slid down his throat, sighing heavily before gaining the courage to answer her question.
"I'm gonna ask Gabby to marry me again."
A huge grin spread across her face, her eyes shining with joy. "Matt, that's so exciting!" She responded cheerfully, Matt smiling as he nodded.
"Yeah, it is. It's been long enough... I know you're aware of everything that happened between Gabby and I, but I'm tired of her not being my wife anymore. I made a lot of mistakes, I lost her when I didn't have to, but I've been given another chance and I'm not letting her go again."
"I know you all went through a lot, but I've seen how much you two mean to each other." She spoke comfortingly, her hands resting on the table. "Gabby is going to be so excited. I'm so excited and this isn't even my proposal." She rambled jokingly, Matt chuckling softly. "So, what do you need from me?"
"Well, I need your help with Gabby." He replied, Jemma waiting for more information. "I'm gonna propose to her at the firehouse, and I need you to get her there."
"Alright." She spoke, a soft smile on her face. "What made you choose to do it there?" She questioned, Matt breathing in deeply.
"The first time I proposed to her, I did it at the firehouse." He answered, Jemma's smile widening. "But, uh, that day ended up being pretty awful for everyone, so I decided to propose to her again a few months later."
"What happened?"
"...I'm not sure if Gabby's ever mentioned Shay." Realization settled in on Jemma's face, her smile turning into a frown as she nodded.
"She has, yeah. I know she was Gabby's best friend, and that she died on duty." Jemma replied, Matt nodding solemnly.
"Yeah, the day I proposed was the day of the call when we lost her." He explained, sadness shining in her eyes. "Gabby never got the chance to answer me before we got called out, and that's when it happened. That day turned awful so quickly, the proposal wasn't a priority at that point. My focus was just helping her through losing her best friend, so it took awhile for us to get back to that mindset. And she ended up being glad she didn't answer me on that day, anyway. She didn't want to associate the day of her engagement with what happened to Shay." Matt spoke, Jemma nodding understandingly. "But I want to propose to her there again. It's where we met, it's where we fell in love. I want to give her a proposal there that's a good memory."
"That sounds like a great idea, Matt. I know she's gonna love it." Jemma responded. "Do you know when you're going to do it?"
"Well, in the next couple weeks, definitely. If Gabby's okay with it, I'd like us to actually be married before our daughter is born."
"Oh, knowing Gabby, she'd go get married to you tomorrow if she could."
Jemma's words brought a smile to his face, Matt blowing out a breath.
"Yeah, I hope so. I know she wants this, but the idea of proposing again is still nerve wracking."
"Have you gotten a ring? Or are you just gonna use the first one?"
"Oh, no, I got her a new one. She, uh- after what happened to her in Puerto Rico, she didn't have her rings anymore." Matt told her, Jemma nodding with a sad, understanding smile. "I actually bought it back before Christmas. I had planned to propose then, but there were some things that came up and I couldn't. I didn't mean to wait this long, but then with the baby and everything, I kind of got sidetracked."
"Gabby's not gonna care, she's just going to be excited to be married to you again. Trust me, she's gonna love whatever you do. I'm just glad to be apart of it."
"Of course, you were my first thought when I started planning this. I mean, I briefly thought about Kelly. I took him with me to get the ring, and he hasn't stopped asking me about it since, but I know if Severide was sent to go get Gabby, she'd definitely think something was up. Or worse, she'd think something happened to me and I don't want that." He replied, Jemma shaking her head.
"Yeah, that definitely wouldn't be good. But you can trust me with this, I'll get her there."
"I know you will. I appreciate your help."
"Anything for you guys." She responded with a bright smile, Matt returning the gesture before taking another sip of his coffee, feeling as if a weight had been lifted off his chest. He'd been thinking about this for weeks now, the ring hidden in their apartment seemingly imprinted in his mind. He wanted to propose, he wanted to be married to her again as soon as possible.
Now all he had to do was find the right moment.
Matt pulled open the top drawer of the dresser in the guest room, moving aside the extra sheets they had stored there, reaching to the back to pull out the small ring box he'd had hidden there for months.
Holding it in his hands, he slowly opened it, his smile widening as he caught a glimpse of her ring shining in the light. The band wasn't all that different from her first one, but he hoped she would still like it. He just couldn't wait until the day it was back on her finger and not stuck inside this box.
The sound of the front door closing snapped him from his thoughts, Matt's head turning to look towards the guest room door as he frantically shoved the ring box back into its hiding place, making sure to cover it well before quietly shutting the drawer.
"Matt?" Gabby's voice flooded through the apartment as he headed towards the hallway. "You home?"
"Hey." He greeted as he came out of the guest room, seeing Gabby still in the doorway.
"Hey there, what were you doing?"
"Oh, just looking around, trying to picture a nursery in there." He covered smoothly, a content smile falling onto her face.
"Come up with any ideas?" She questioned, sliding off her shoes, placing her purse down on the entryway table before walking towards him, Matt meeting her halfway.
"Just that we should probably start thinking about getting the room set up." He spoke, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as he led her to couch, making a mental note to move the location of her ring before they started work on the nursery. "I know we have some time, but it couldn't hurt to get it done sooner rather than later." He continued, sitting down with her on the couch.
"Yeah, I agree. I mean, our little girl will be in our room for a while, but the last thing we're gonna want to do when we're running on no sleep with a newborn is have to set up a nursery." She responded, Matt grinning.
"Definitely not." He agreed, Gabby adjusting her position, leaning her back against the edge of the couch, facing Matt as she placed her legs in his lap, a shy smile resting over her lips. Releasing a soft chuckle, Matt understood her silent request as he began massaging her feet, Gabby blowing out a soft sigh. "How'd your morning go with Antonio?"
"It was good to spend some time, just me and him. My feet are killing me though, and my legs." She replied with a knowing smirk, Matt shaking his head lightly, moving his hands up to her calves, beginning to rub her sore muscles. "What about you? Get any laundry done?"
"I actually fell asleep." He spoke with a sheepish grin. "Guess last shift took more out of me than I realized."
"Yeah, it was a busy one. I'm glad you were able to get some rest." She responded, straightening her arm out across the back of the couch, running her fingers over the side of his head as he soothed the aches in her legs. "So, what do you think we should do for the nursery?"
"A crib would be a good start." He responded quickly, Gabby rolling her eyes as she flicked his ear, his shoulders scrunching up as he laughed. "Ouch." He joked, flashing her a small smile before going back to his task. "But, in all seriousness, I'm not sure what to do with the furniture in there. I guess we could sell some of it." Matt mused, glancing towards her. "I mean, cause even in a few years when baby girl is in a bed, she won't need a queen size one."
"Who knows, she might love it." Gabby responded with a laugh, earning a chuckle from Matt.
"Well, if she's anything like her Momma, I'm sure she would." He teased, sliding his hands up and down her shins. "But we can figure it out. If you'd rather keep it, I'm sure Sev wouldn't mind holding some of it in his extra bedroom for us."
Gabby shrugged, nodding slowly as she spoke. "Yeah, we'll figure it out. The dresser can stay, we could always just have you stain it to match whatever we decide to go with… if you don't mind."
"Of course not."
"Maybe we'll just hang onto the bed for now, in case we decide to use it down the line. It's a nice bed, I'd rather not sell it if we don't have to."
"Okay, I'll talk to Kelly. If he doesn't mind to keep it for us, I'll get him to help me take it apart and move it. One day whenever you're feeling up for it, we can go and look at cribs, car seats, stuff like that."
A soft yawn escaped her mouth, Gabby nodding slowly. "Sounds like a plan." Seeing her exhaustion, Matt gave one last rub over her legs before turning to face her, holding her feet in his lap.
"What do you say about you getting into the bath while I make us some lunch? Then after we eat, maybe we can lay down and take a nap."
"Would you be able to sleep again?"
Matt shrugged, gently lifting her legs as he slid out from under her, resting her feet down on the couch while he stayed seated on the edge. "I can try, but even if not I don't mind to lay there till you fall asleep."
A soft smile graced her face, Gabby nodded as he stood up. "I won't say no to that."
Matt chuckled softly, leaning down to place a quick kiss to the top of her head, leaving her seated on the couch while he headed for the bathroom, beginning the process of getting her bath ready.
So, we definitely have a few different things going on. To all those who have kept asking about the ring and Matt proposing, I definitely didn't forget about that, as you can tell. More on that will be coming up in the next couple chapters.
I hope you all enjoyed this one. I'm sorry it's a little shorter than normal, there was originally one more section to this chapter, but I decided to move it to the next one, I felt that it fit better there, so I apologize for the length. But I can't wait to hear what you all think, thank you so much for reading and sticking with me and this story. It means everything to me.