Wow. Chapter 45? I never thought this story would ever be continuing this far. But I hope you all enjoy this one!
Chapter Forty Five
"You comfortable?" Matt asked as he kneeled on the bed behind her, lotion in hand. Gabby was lying on her side in the middle of the bed, surrounded by a mess of pillows, all of which were supporting different parts of her body. Along with the typical pillow holding her head, she had one between her knees, along with one behind her back and another supporting her belly. Although her nearly 22-weeks pregnant stomach wasn't massive, she was definitely growing, her round bump prominent. And along with her expanding waistline came all sorts of aches and pains, which is where Matt came in to help.
He'd been giving her little massages here and there throughout her pregnancy, usually focusing on just one area; whether it be her feet, her legs, or her shoulders. But after extensive research and some trial and error, he had become masterful at giving her a full body massage, and Gabby absolutely loved it. Not only did it feel amazing, but she loved the intimacy that came with it. Even though she was still feeling the effects of her increased energy levels, and her and Matt were most definitely taking advantage of it, there were some times she didn't feel in the mood for their extracurricular fun. But these moments with Matt helped her feel just as close to him. And she always made sure to properly thank him for everything he's done for her, which, admittedly, Matt thoroughly enjoyed. To no surprise, he'd been more than patient with her, always letting her take the lead, always respecting the times when she was too sore or too tired to engage in their fun. And he was always very attentive, doing whatever she needed, whether she asked for it or not. He had been incredible to her and their child, and she made sure to let him know just how much she appreciated it.
"Very." She replied with a grin, her hand resting over her bare stomach. Clad in only a pair of underwear, Gabby was ready for this massage, more than ready to have Matt's hands on her, rubbing away all the tension her body held.
It was the same process every time, Matt starting by placing a kiss to her head, and one to her stomach, before getting to work. He started with her shoulders, focusing on her tense muscles there, applying just the right amount of pressure each and every time. He spent more than enough time there, before he moved to her back. He had quickly found out that this area was what hurt her the most, their growing baby putting a lot of strain on her back, especially near her waist. So he always made sure to focus on this area the longest, relishing in the content moans he'd occasionally hear from her as he hit an overly sore spot. He spent the most time on the base of her spine, transitioning from using his thumbs to pressing into her muscles with the heel of his hand. There had been once or twice he'd spent nearly half an hour just on her back, but he didn't mind. It was the least he could do, after all she was doing for them. When he finished up with her back, he'd slowly make his way down to her legs, working her sore calves before ending with her feet.
The entire process took around an hour, Matt finishing as he did every time by rubbing oil over Gabby's belly. He knew he couldn't actually massage her stomach, but he took any opportunity he could to touch her stomach. At first he'd just used the regular lotion that he applied generously to the rest of her body, but then one day Gabby had come home with this massage oil she'd heard helps with stretch marks, and started having him use that over her stomach. Truthfully, Matt loved the marks, it was amazing to him how her body was able to adapt and protect their child, but he also knew Gabby wasn't a fan of them. So he never really said anything, except for the times she was feeling down about how she looked and he made sure to remind her how beautiful she was. It was in those moments he would praise her for her appearance, admitting to her that he found her stretch marks sexy, which always got a smile out of her. Gabby had never been one to worry about her weight, she was confident in herself and always had been. She was never the type to base her worth on the approval of others, but he knew that pregnancy could do a number on anyone. That the drastic changes to her body in such a short amount of time could be hard, and sometimes she needed the extra reminder that he still found her incredibly beautiful, which he was always more than happy to give her.
"Feeling better?" Matt asked as he crawled up the bed back towards her head, smiling when he saw the relaxed look on her face. He began slowly massaging her scalp, his grin widening as she sighed deeply.
"I feel amazing, thank you." She murmured, focusing on the feeling of his hand pressing into her head, relieving any remaining tension in her body.
When he finished, he placed a lingering kiss to her temple, Gabby's hand coming up to rub over his cheek for a few moments before he pulled back.
"Happy to help." He responded, placing his warm palm over her stomach.
Matt made himself comfortable, getting off his shins and sitting down beside her back, facing her head as he gently stroked his thumb over her belly, watching her as she laid there with her eyes closed.
"She's moving around a lot." Gabby spoke softly after a few quiet moments, turning to look at him, seeing a wide smile appear on his face. "I think she knows it's you, she always moves like crazy whenever you're here." The look of pure joy covering his face was enough to bring a few tears to her eyes, Matt's gaze moving to her stomach. "She's already a daddy's girl."
"I can't wait until I can feel her." He murmured, continuing his slow movements across her belly.
"It'll be any day now." Gabby reminded him, Matt nodding with a smile.
They sat in the comfortable silence for a little longer, Matt's eyes glued to her stomach while Gabby relaxed, her eyes closed as she focused on the feeling of his warm hand over her skin. It wasn't until Gabby's stomach rumbled that their peace got disturbed, Gabby opening one eye to see Matt staring at her with an amused grin.
"I guess baby's hungry." He responded, Matt leaning down to place one last kiss to her bump before getting up. "Is there something you want?" He asked, moving towards the dresser.
"Would you mind making me a smoothie?" She asked with a shy smile, Matt chuckling as he shook his head, pulling out one of his t-shirts for her to wear before walking back towards her.
"Of course not."
Matt came around to her side of the bed, holding his hands out for her to grab onto, slowly helping her up into a sitting position, moving the pillows out of her way. He handed her the shirt, capturing her lips in a quick kiss before heading for the door.
"Just give me a few minutes." He told her before leaving the room, turning right into the kitchen to begin making her drink.
Gabby had been all about smoothies recently, it had definitely been a craving of hers over the last few weeks, which led to Matt making his fair share of drinks for her. Her appetite had been a force lately, and while it was better for her to consume smaller meals, that led to her being hungry every couple hours. But they'd soon discovered that her having a smoothie between meals had really helped satiate her hunger, and they'd found a few healthy ones they cycled through so she wouldn't get tired of them, Matt more than happy to make her one whenever she asked.
He had just finished pouring her smoothie into a glass when she emerged from the bedroom, his shirt hanging just over her hips, Gabby walking towards him with a thankful smile as he handed her the drink.
"Have I mentioned that I love you?" She asked him, taking the smoothie and downing a sip.
"A few times, yes." He responded with a soft chuckle, moving to place the dirty dishes in the sink, knowing they could be dealt with later. Walking back towards her, Matt grabbed her free hand, slowly leading her towards the living room. The two made themselves comfortable on the couch, wanting to enjoy their relaxing afternoon together before returning to shift tomorrow.
Matt looked up from his seat at the table in the common room, smiling as he saw Gabby walking towards him. "Hey there." He spoke softly, Gabby flashing him a smile.
"Hey baby." She responded, coming to stop by his side, bringing her hand up to run her fingers over the back of his neck, teasing the skin along his hairline.
"How was they call?"
"Easy, guy stabbed himself in the leg." Matt's eyebrows raised in question, Gabby shrugging. "He was a little high, we never got an answer as to what he was doing, but we got him to med easily enough. He was having a great time."
"Well, that sounds interesting." He replied, Gabby scrunching her nose, nodding.
"You staying here for a bit?" She asked, glancing towards the table, earning a nod from him. "Alright, I'm gonna get a snack real quick then I'll join you."
"Want me to make you something?" He asked immediately, pushing his chair back slightly.
Chuckling softly, Gabby shook her head, leaning down to place a soft kiss against his forehead. "I can do it, thank you though." She whispered, pulling back after another quick kiss, rubbing over his neck until she was out of reach, walking into the kitchen in search of something to eat.
Within five minutes, Gabby came back to the table, placing down a plate of apples, peanut butter, and a few crackers. Before she could even sit down, Matt swiped a cracker from her plate, shoving it into his mouth. Gabby's lips parted slightly as she raised her eyebrows, Matt smirking as he chewed on the food.
"Really? Taking food from a pregnant lady?" She questioned, Matt swallowing before responding.
"I can get you and our baby more crackers." He told her, Gabby rolling her eyes before taking a bite of her food.
The two fell into comfortable conversation, Matt stealing a few more of her crackers, Gabby swatting his hand away harshly each time.
"Quit taking my food." She said again, unable to stop the grin from forming on her face as he stood up. He shook his head, walking towards second shift's food cabinet, pulling out the box of crackers and carrying it back to the table. He got out another handful, placing them down onto her plate, putting the box down in front of her as he stood beside her.
Gabby's narrowed gaze found him again as he took another cracker from her plate, Gabby playfully hitting his stomach. "Matt, you just got the box, why are you taking mine?" She questioned in amusement.
"We share everything else." He replied with a shrug, putting another cracker into his mouth.
Before she had the chance to respond, Matt's phone started buzzing on the table, his eyes widening as he saw who was calling him. He quickly snatched the device off the table, bringing it up to where it was out of her line of sight, not wanting her to see the caller ID. Her eyebrows furrowed at his quick movements, her gaze moving from the phone back to him, a curious look on her face.
"Who's that?" She questioned as Matt began moving around the table.
"Oh, uh, it's no one. Just a client I've been waiting to hear from." He spoke quickly, flashing her a small smile before heading from the room, Gabby watching him in confusion as he headed for the garage.
"Hello?" He answered the call, looking around the garage, seeing most of squad at their table, along with a few members of 81 by the rig.
"Hey Matt." Jemma replied, Matt moving towards the door, heading out back. "Matt?"
"Sorry, yeah, I'm here." He responded, making sure the door closed behind him before leaning against the brick wall.
"Is this a bad time?"
"No, no it's fine. I was just with Gabby, so I had to go somewhere else before I could talk." He explained.
"Oh sorry. But that's actually why I was calling, I wasn't sure if you'd gotten anywhere with your plans for everything?"
"Yeah, I've been trying to find the right time. I know it's been a few weeks since I talked to you, but I think I know when I want to do it." He told her, and he could practically hear the smile on Jemma's face.
"Alright, when's the big day?" She asked excitedly.
"The day after my next shift. Gabby doesn't work that one with me, which I think will be better. I'm already a nervous wreck thinking about it, and I know she'll definitely be able to tell something's up."
"That sounds good, I'm so excited! And I know it's normal to be nervous, but you have nothing to worry about. She's gonna say yes, probably before you can even finish." Jemma joked, earning a laugh from him.
"Yeah, I know she'll say yes, but I'm still just anxious." He replied, his conversation getting cut short as he heard the bells go off, signaling all companies to a house fire. "Jemma, we just got called out, I gotta go. But I'll text you the details and everything, alright?"
"Okay, sounds good. Be safe."
"Thanks." He replied, hanging up as he walked back into the garage, seeing Gabby coming out from the firehouse. Her pace slowed as she saw him walking in from out back, her curious eyes landing on him, Matt flashing her a warm smile.
"Everything okay?" She questioned as they began walking towards their rigs, Matt nodding.
"Everything's perfect." He responded, Gabby's eyes flickering over his face, trying to read him before they separated. But she didn't have time to question him now, that would have to wait until later. Right now, they all had a job to do.
Gabby stepped down from the rig, the paramedics having just gotten back from the hospital, the three of them thankful to finally be back at the house. Their house fire had taken up a large chunk of the afternoon, 61 just having finished dropping off their victim. Luckily, no one had any life-threatening injuries and everyone in the small family would be fine.
Dawson walked slowly behind Foster and Brett as all three of them headed for the double doors. As they got closer, she glanced over to the squad table, seeing Severide there with a few of his firefighters. She still wanted to talk to Matt, and see what was going on with him, but she figured it couldn't hurt to check in with Severide first. If anyone else here knew what had Matt acting differently, it was his best friend. Changing her path, she began walking towards the table, catching Kelly's gaze.
"Hey Dawson." He spoke, putting his newspaper down as she came to a stop in front of him.
"Hey, can we talk for a second?" She asked, Kelly nodding as he pushed himself up from his recliner, following her as she walked over to stand by 81, distancing them from everyone else.
"What's up?"
"Do you know why Matt's acting weird?" She questioned, seeing a look of confusion fall onto his face.
"I didn't know he was acting weird." Severide commented, Gabby shrugging lightly.
"He's been a little secretive today, hiding his phone and stuff. He got a phone call earlier, said it was for construction but he didn't want me to see who it was, and he went and took the call outside. It's just a little weird, I didn't know if you knew what was going on."
"Maybe he has a mistress." Severide teased with a smirk, Gabby scoffing as she rolled her eyes, punching his arm. "Ow! What kind of crazy pregnancy strength…" He groaned, rubbing over the sore spot left where she had just hit him.
"So, I take it you don't know." She replied lightly, Kelly shaking his head.
"No, sorry Dawson."
"It's fine, it's probably nothing anyway." Gabby responded, flashing him a small smile before walking past him, heading towards the entrance to the firehouse.
Glancing back to her, Severide walked to the first set of double doors, heading down the hallway towards the bunkroom. He walked inside, soon finding Casey, the man coming from the other direction, his steps slowing when he saw Kelly.
"Hey Sev." He spoke, moving towards his office.
"Hey, uh, can I talk to you for a minute?"
"Sure, what's up?" Matt asked, Kelly coming to stand in front of him.
"Is there something you're hiding from Dawson?" Severide questioned bluntly, Matt's eyebrows furrowing in confusion, clearing waiting for more of an explanation. "Gabby thinks something's going on, she said you were acting weird, something about a phone call I guess… Then I may have joked about you having an affair."
Casey's eyes widened, his face hardening as he punched Severide's arm harshly.
"Ow! What the hell, did you two plan that or something?" He questioned exasperatedly, clutching the arm that had been punched twice in the last five minutes.
"Why you would you say anything like that? She's already been feeling insecure lately, Jesus Kelly." Matt groaned, Severide squeezing his sore arm.
"Well, how was I supposed to know that? I thought it was funny." He responded, Casey rolling his eyes. "Now spit it out. If it were anyone else, the way Gabby makes it sound, you're acting like a guy with something to hide. But I know you're not cheating on her, so what is it?"
Sighing heavily, Matt ran his hand over his mouth, nodding towards his office. Severide followed him in there, closing the door behind them, standing against the windows while Matt leaned against his desk.
"I'm proposing to Gabby again."
"Fucking finally!" Kelly nearly shouted, Matt shushing him instantly.
"God, keep your voice down. It's not like she knows yet." Matt replied quietly, glancing out into the bunkroom, seeing they were still alone.
"I was beginning to think you chickened out." Severide responded, ignoring his comment.
"No, of course not. But there's kind of been a lot going on if you haven't noticed." Matt replied, Kelly crossing his arms over his chest.
"So how are you gonna do it?"
"I'm doing it here. Nothing flashy or anything, Gabby doesn't care about that, but it feels right to do it here. I just have the wedding band, I figured I could get her another engagement ring if she wants, but I don't need to do some big grand thing, that's not the part she'll care about."
"No, she won't." Severide responded with a grin.
"Maybe I'll surprise her with a new ring later on, but right now I think the wedding band is enough. I'm just… I'm tired of not being her husband anymore… I'm planning on doing it the night after next shift, I've already enlisted Jemma's help getting her here. That's who I was on the phone with, what Gabby was talking about. I was talking to Jemma, that's why I'm acting a little weird. Cause if Gabby knew who I was talking to, she would surely be suspicious about why Jemma was calling me and not her." He explained, Kelly nodding.
The two were unable to get another word in when his office door whipped open, Matt standing up straight as he saw Gabby in the doorway, her narrowed gaze flashing back and forth between the two men, seeing a near-guilty look on Matt's face, and a sheepish one on Kelly's.
"So I take it you know now?" Gabby asked Severide, Kelly shrugging his shoulders, releasing a soft laugh.
"I'm not getting in the middle of this." Kelly responded, holding his hands up in defense.
Gabby's gaze landed on Matt, seeing the slight apprehension in his demeanor, Casey flashing her a smile. Taking a step inside his office, she crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at him.
"What are you hiding?" She asked, Matt's smile widening.
"I'm not hiding anything."
Gabby glanced back and forth between the two of them, shaking her head, clearly unimpressed. "You two are terrible liars."
"I love you." Matt responded quickly, Gabby lightly scoffing.
"Mhmm. I'm sure." She replied, Matt reaching out his hand towards her, encouraging her to walk to him, Gabby huffing out a breath before moving towards his desk, coming to stand by his side. Resting against his desk, he wrapped his arm around her waist, placing his hand over her covered stomach, rubbing against her gently.
Ever since her stomach began to grow, she'd noticed Matt doing that a lot, almost absentmindedly rubbing over her stomach. It was something she came to realize was a calming mechanism for him, something that relaxed him.
She wasn't too worried about whatever he was hiding, she was more curious than anything else. If Matt wasn't such a terrible liar, she probably would've just left it alone. But she was intrigued to what had him suddenly acting so off. She didn't think it was anything bad, but it was clear he was hiding something.
"Anyway," Gabby spoke, grabbing Matt's attention. "I was just coming to check that we're still going shopping tomorrow."
"As long as you're feeling up for it, yeah." He responded.
"Shopping for what?" Severide interjected, Gabby glancing to him, Matt continuing to rub his hand over her stomach.
"We're gonna start looking for some of the baby's stuff; crib, car seat, stroller, stuff like that." She answered, Kelly nodding.
"I figured as long as you're able to get enough sleep tonight, we could just go straight from shift. But if not, we can go home first, let you take a nap, then go out in the afternoon." Matt continued, Gabby turning her head to face him. "But really it's what you feel up for, I'm good with whatever."
"Okay, well I guess we'll just figure it out in the morning."
"Whatever you say, gorgeous." He responded with a wide grin, Gabby's eyes narrowing playfully, wearing a matching smile on her lips.
"I'm gonna figure out whatever you're hiding, you know." She commented, Severide laughing as she leaned forward, placing a quick kiss against his lips. "You two go back to talking about whatever it is." She spoke, pulling herself from his grasp.
"You can stay." Matt told her, Gabby shaking her head as she went through the doorway.
"I'm good, wouldn't want to interrupt your time with Severide." She replied, before heading out of the bunkroom. Matt looked back to Severide, seeing Kelly wearing a sly smirk.
"Yeah, you're gonna have to do this soon, or she'll figure it out." He said, Matt blowing out a breath as he shook his head, knowing his friend was right.
"So, do you know what we're looking for?" Matt asked as they walked hand in hand through the shop, their pace slow as Gabby seemingly got distracted by every item around her. It ended up being late in the afternoon before they were able to get out of the apartment. Gabby had a rough night at the firehouse, not so much because of the calls, but she was having a hard time getting comfortable. She was up and down most of the night, whether needing to get up because of a cramp, or needing to go to the bathroom.
Matt had gotten a few hours of sleep before he'd woken up to go to the bathroom, and he saw her walking back and forth in the locker room. After some debate, he convinced her to come to his bunk, Matt grabbing the pillows from her bed before moving into his office. He'd helped her get as comfortable as possible, surrounding her with pillows. Gabby didn't like the idea so much, knowing Matt would now have to sleep out in the bunk room, but soon after she got settled, 81 was called out to assist with an apartment fire, a call that kept them out most of the night.
By the time they got home this morning, they were both exhausted, the two of them falling into bed almost immediately. Matt slept until around noon, but Gabby didn't rise until almost two. Knowing she'd still need to eat, Matt suggested they just do it another day, but Gabby didn't want to. With her working her shift at the SAS tomorrow, and Matt being on shift the day after, she didn't want it to keep getting pushed back. So after a quick late lunch, they got ready and left the apartment.
"I think I know which car seat I want, but I want to see everything they have." She answered, Matt nodding. "Good news is, we'll only have to buy one car seat, cause there's not really anywhere to put our girl in your truck." She commented.
"Oh yeah, I hadn't really thought about that." He mused as they turned down an aisle filled with car seats and strollers.
"It'll save us a few hundred dollars." She spoke.
"Yeah, I guess. Although down the line, might be something to think about upgrading. And if we decide to have more kids, we'll definitely need me to be able to take them places."
She looked up to him, a wide smile resting on her face. "Oh, we're definitely having more kids." She spoke, her words bringing a smile to his face. "We're gonna figure out the best way for us, but… if I'm here, we're not stopping at one." She replied with a wide grin, Matt leaning to place a kiss against her forehead.
"You're gonna be here, and we're gonna have a house full of children... Or at least two." He spoke confidently, his tone comforting as she nodded.
"Hi, is there anything I can help you with today?" Gabby and Matt looked over as a sales associate came up to them, a bright smile covering her face.
"Hello, we're actually here looking for, well a lot of things, for our baby." Gabby responded, her hand instinctively resting on her bump.
"Well, first of all, congratulations to you both." She spoke with a warm smile, glancing between the two expectant parents. "Is this your first?"
"It is, yeah." Gabby replied, matching the woman's smile.
"If you don't mind my asking, how far along are you?"
"About twenty two weeks."
"Getting an early start on things, that's smart." The employee spoke, Gabby nodding.
"Yeah, we didn't want to leave anything till the last minute. Figured it couldn't hurt to get this stuff done early." Her words earned an agreeing nod from the worker, the girl's smile never falling.
"Do you know what you're having?"
"A girl." Matt spoke up, unable to stop the grin forming on his face.
"That's amazing, congratulations you two." She told them again. "Well, my name is Olivia. I can help you all navigate your way through here, if you'd like. Or if you just have a few questions, I can help with that you. Whatever you need."
"That would be great, actually. We're a little out of our element here." Gabby admitted, earning a nod from Olivia. "Oh, and I'm Gabby, this is Matt." She introduced.
"It's nice to meet you two. Now, do you know what kind of car seat you all were looking for?"
"Well, I've looked around a lot, done some research, but everything seemed to be pretty similar across the board."
"Definitely. You really can't go wrong with any of the brands we sell here, all of them are incredibly safe. It's mostly just going with what works best for you all. There are the convertible car seats, those are incredibly popular, and they really work with your child until they're able to be out of a booster seat. Those can save you some money. But then there's also the ones that we call travel systems, which essentially means you can transfer the baby straight from car seat to stroller. There's no moving them out of the seat. And those typically last through toddlerhood. And then you always have just the regular car seat, but I, personally, would recommend one of the first two. I myself used the travel system for my son, and I love it. But it's really just what you all want for yourselves."
"Can you maybe show us one of each? Which one you recommend for both, so we can look and figure it out?"
"Of course." Olivia replied, moving around the aisle.
With a little help from Matt, they got the two boxes next to each one, Olivia beginning to go over the pros and cons of each one, the couple listening intently.
"Why I ended up going with the travel system was because I'm still able to use it now. My son is almost three, and I'm still able to use both the stroller and seat for him. It's been a great investment for our family, and we haven't had any issues with it. It's able to be a car seat carrier, as well as an infant stroller and toddler stroller. It grows with your child and it also cleans very well, which is helpful." Olivia spoke with a grin, Gabby laughing softly.
"Would you be okay with this one?" Gabby asked, glancing towards Matt.
"Yeah, absolutely. I like that we won't have to also buy a stroller. But it sounds great, I'm fine with it if you are."
"I think this is the one I want." She spoke, Olivia nodding.
"Okay great, I can get one of my coworkers to get one taken up to the front for you all until you're done. What else are you looking for today?"
"We definitely want to buy the car seat today, but we also need to look for a crib and I guess a rocking chair of some sort. I'm not sure we'll buy it all today, but we want to see some options."
"Sounds great, our cribs are a few aisles towards the back, if you all want to go ahead and start looking, I can get this up front for you and meet you back there."
"That would be great, thank you." Matt replied, grabbing Gabby's hand before walking towards the back of the store.
"So, you're happy with the one you chose?" Matt asked as they moved, Gabby nodding with a wide grin.
"Definitely. You?"
"Mhmm. I think it'll be great. Little girl's gonna love it." He commented as they got to the cribs.
Thankfully, the crib selection wasn't nearly as much of an event as choosing a car seat. They were all pretty standard, it was mostly just the color and design they were looking for. In the end the chose a grey crib with an adjustable mattress, and within seconds of moving towards the chairs, they found a glider that matched perfectly.
"This is really comfortable." Gabby commented from her seat, Matt smiling at her, nodding in response.
"We can get it, if you like it."
"You sure we're not spending too much? I know we didn't really intend to get all this stuff at once."
"It's fine, babe. We're gonna have to buy it eventually, might as well give me plenty of time to put it all together." He joked, Gabby rolling her eyes.
"Please, you'll have this stuff put together in a day, you'll be too excited to just leave it." She teased.
"So, you all want to purchase this today as well?" Olivia asked, Matt nodding.
"Yeah, we do." He answered.
"Excellent. Before you leave, we can set up a schedule for delivery of the glider. I'm not sure what kind of car you all are in, but we can also deliver the crib if needed." Olivia spoke.
"Yeah, let's go ahead and have the crib delivered. We came in my truck, we have the space, but it's getting it inside that might pose some problems. I don't have anyone to help me carry it, so if we could just do delivery on that as well."
"Of course. And I'm gonna go ahead and throw in a waterproof mattress cover for the baby's bed free of charge. Trust me, it's a lifesaver." Olivia spoke with a smile.
"Thank you, that's really nice, you don't have to do that."
"It's not a problem. Is there anything else you all were wanting to look at today? Do you all have a dresser for the room? Truthfully, I don't recommend buying a changing table if you do, it's honestly not worth the money, but you'll need somewhere to change your baby."
"We have a dresser in there, yeah."
"Alright, well then I recommend just getting a changing pad, if that works for you all."
"Yeah, we'd rather not spend money on stuff we don't need." Gabby responded, Olivia nodding.
"Well, you all have made a great start today, at some point I'd recommend getting some sort of swing or rocker, as well as some sleeper or bassinet if baby is going to be in your room for awhile. You most certainly don't need to get all that today, but we sell all of those items here if you want them."
"We'll definitely be back for whatever else we need, you've helped us so much. We really had no idea what we were doing when we got here." Gabby spoke lightly, Matt reaching out his hand to help her get up from the chair.
"I'm happy I could help you guys. My son is the best thing that's ever happened to me, I'm so glad you two will be able to experience that with your little girl."
Gabby flashed her a smile before looking towards Matt, seeing him wearing a similar content look.
It had been a long couple hours of shopping, and they were both ready to go home, but they felt better knowing they had gotten some of the things their little girl would need. It made it all the more real, and Gabby couldn't wait until the nursery was completed.
Gabby glanced at the large box sitting by the wall that was holding their car seat and stroller, knowing Matt would have his hands full putting it together at some point. But for now they both wanted to relax, Matt appearing from the bedroom clad in his boxers and a t-shirt, moving to join her on the couch. He collapsed down beside her, letting out a heavy breath, an amused look covering her face as she turned to him.
"You alright?" She questioned lightly, Matt smiling.
"I'm good, that box was heavy. Today was long." He spoke in choppy sentences, Gabby's nose scrunching up at his demeanor. "But I'm so glad we got that stuff done. Little girl's gonna keep me busy getting all her things ready."
"I am too. It was a lot of money, but we need all of it. And I feel better knowing all that stuff will be ready before she even gets here. One less thing to worry about."
"Definitely." He breathed out, glancing towards the TV, mindlessly watching the show Gabby had turned on.
They sat in silence for a few moments, Gabby sipping on her water while Matt rested by her side, feeling her eyes on him every couple of minutes.
"Speaking of our little girl…" She started, gaining his attention as she muted the television. "Have you thought about any names?"
A wide grin fell to his face, Matt pushing himself up to have a better view of her, his body facing hers.
"I have, I'm guessing you have as well." He replied, Gabby nodding shyly. "Tell me what you're thinking." He prompted, watching as her eyes fell down to her lap.
"Well, there's a few first names that have really stuck with me…" She spoke softly, Matt reaching out for her hand, holding it in his. "I really like the name Sofia." Matt's smile widened as he heard the name, Gabby glancing up to see his grin. "I don't know, I just think Sofia Casey sounds nice."
"It's beautiful." He responded instantly. "I love it."
"Me too. I also love the name Madison, maybe we could call her Madi for short."
"Madison Casey…" He murmured, the grin staying on his face. "I love that one too."
"What about you? What names have you been thinking?" She asked, Matt shrugging.
"Well, they're not nearly as good as yours." He started, Gabby squeezing his hand, encouraging him to answer. "First off, Gabriela Junior is a contender." He spoke with a smirk, Gabby rolling her eyes, moving her leg up to gently kick against him before resting her feet in his lap.
"I'm being serious, Matt." She whined, earning a chuckle from him as he began rubbing her feet.
"I know, I know... I've always thought Mia was a pretty name, but I'm not sure."
"No, I really like it." Gabby assured him with a gentle smile.
"I've always liked the name Grace, too. And Paige. But I don't know, it's very stressful naming a person." He spoke, Gabby chuckling softly.
"Yeah, but it's also exciting. I think we've got a good selection to choose from." She responded, Matt nodding as he continued rubbing her feet. "How about this, how about you choose two of yours, we'll have my two, and then we'll go from there."
"Sounds good." He replied, thinking for a moment before continuing. "I'm gonna go with Paige and Mia." The smile that appeared on her face told him she approved of his selection, Gabby nodding excitedly.
"So Paige, Mia, Sofia, and Madison… We've got some great names to choose from."
"I think so, too." He agreed softly. "What about middle names?" He questioned, seeing a look he couldn't read flash in her eyes. "Something wrong?"
"No, no… I've just been thinking about that. Since I found out I was pregnant, really, but especially since we found out she was a girl…" She spoke, Matt's eyebrows furrowing.
"Okay, what are you thinking?"
"Would you be okay with having her middle name be Elizabeth?" Matt's features softened at her quiet tone, a sad look covering his face. "I just… I would like to name her after Shay. I wish she was here to see this, because God she would've loved this kid. But I only want that to be her name if it's okay with you."
Matt remained silent, Gabby watching him closely as he gently moved her legs from his lap, crawling across the couch. He leaned forward to place a soft, meaningful kiss to her lips, feeling her relax against him, soon deepening their movements.
He pulled back first, giving her a soft smile, seeing the tears shining in her eyes.
"Her middle name should be Elizabeth, Shay would've absolutely loved it." Matt responded, Gabby nodding with a watery smile. "I would give anything for her to be here for you right now, but I know she's watching over us. Although she was probably banging her head against the wall there for awhile when we couldn't get our shit together," Matt's words elicited a laugh from Gabby as she wiped the water from under her eyes, "but I think that's the perfect choice."
"Thank you." Gabby whispered, kissing him again before he sat back down on the couch.
"There's nothing to thank me for." He responded, Gabby nodding softly. She adjusted her position on the couch to lean into his side, Matt wrapping his arm around her shoulders, Gabby resting her hand on his thigh.
"I'm so excited to meet her." She murmured, Matt putting his hand over Gabby's that was resting on her stomach.
"Me too. I love her so much already." He replied, placing a kiss to the top of Gabby's head. "I love both my girls so much."
Gabby smiled, digging herself deeper into his embrace, the two falling into a comfortable silence as they both held onto their child, unable to hide their excitement at the thought of meeting their little girl.
"Hey Kelly, you got a minute?" Casey called as he jogged down the hallway, meeting up with Severide just outside the common room.
"What's up?"
"Gabby and I got the crib and a bunch of stuff for the baby. It's supposed to be delivered at the beginning of next week, would you be able to help me get that furniture out of the guest room sometime this weekend?"
"Yeah, of course. You all still need to keep it at my place?"
"If that's okay with you, yeah. I mean, we can get a storage unit if we need to-"
"Nah man, there's no need. I don't mind holding onto it, I just wanted to check."
"We really appreciate it, I know Gabby didn't want to get rid of it. So maybe we could do that on Saturday, if that works for you?"
"Absolutely. As long as there's beer."
"We don't have it at home right now, but I can get you some. I might even throw in pizza." Matt responded, Severide clasping his shoulder.
"I like the way you think." Kelly responded, glancing around before turning back to Matt, wearing a sly grin on his face. "So… tomorrow night's the night huh? Finally gonna make an honest woman out of Dawson again." He spoke lowly, Matt rolling his eyes.
"That's one way to describe it, I guess. But yeah, tomorrow night." Matt replied, blowing out a choppy breath.
"I'm happy for you, man."
The bells rang throughout the firehouse, catching Casey's attention as 81, 61, and squad 3 were called to a house fire.
"Do you have time for this one? Gabby's appointment is today, isn't it?"
Glancing to his watch, Matt nodded. "Yeah, but it's over two hours from now, I should have plenty of time." He responded as they headed for the garage, moving towards their respective rigs.
Gabby tapped her foot against the ground as she sat in the waiting room, unable to keep herself from watching the door. Her appointment was starting any minute now, and Matt had yet to show up. Gabby knew he wouldn't have been late if he had any say in the matter, considering he'd triple checked the time of her appointment before he left for shift this morning. She knew the times her appointments fell on shift days, it was always hard to get away, but so far neither him nor her had any issues getting here. She was sure he was just stuck at a call, and he'd be here as soon as he could, but with this being the shift this week that she didn't work, she had no idea what was going on. But she knew, until told otherwise, she shouldn't worry about it. There was no reason to think he wasn't okay. She just knew he'd be upset missing their ultrasound.
"Gabby?"
Gabby turned towards the sound, seeing Amanda standing in the doorway to take her back, the woman wearing a soft smile. Standing up from her seat, Gabby spared one last glance to the door before walking towards the nurse.
"Just you today?" Amanda questioned as they walked to the scale.
"Matt should be on his way, he's on shift right now."
Amanda nodded in understanding as she typed in the number before leading Gabby back to the room.
"Well, whenever he gets here, we'll bring him back. I'm sure he'll be here in a few minutes." Amanda offered with a small smile, Gabby nodding.
They went through the typical process, Amanda taking her vitals and asking her the routine questions, putting all the information in her chart.
"Alright, well we'll get your ultrasound done and then get you back with Dr. Tanner. Have a good day, Gabby."
Once Gabby was alone in the room, she pulled her phone out, frowning when she saw she had no missed calls or texts from him. She quickly dialed his number, putting the phone to her ear, her frown deepening as it rang to his voicemail. Sighing heavily, she sent him a quick message asking when he'd get here before she put her phone back in her purse, relaxing back onto the table as she sat alone.
It took nearly ten minutes for the door to open again, Gabby perking up at the sound, only for her smile to fall when she saw it was just Julie, the ultrasound technician.
"Hi Gabby." She greeted, Gabby forcing a small smile.
"Hi."
"No Matt?" She questioned, getting the machine ready as Gabby prepared her clothes.
"Not yet, I think he just got stuck at work."
Julie nodded with a knowing smile, sitting down on her stool.
"Do you want me to wait a few minutes?" She asked with a sympathetic smile, Gabby thinking over the question before ultimately shaking her head.
"No, it's okay. I haven't heard from him, I think he's still on a call. I don't want you guys to get backed up because of me." She decided, Julie nodding understandingly before applying gel to the doppler.
"Alright, well we'll be sure to take some extra good pictures for him to look at later." Julie responded, Gabby nodding with a grin.
It was impossible for Gabby to see her little girl and not immediately be filled with joy. But there was a small part of her that was sad, knowing that this was the first time Matt wasn't here to experience this with her. She knew there'd be many more doctors appointments, but she also knew how special each moment was for the both of them during this pregnancy. He would hate that he missed this, and she hated that he wasn't here. It felt wrong to do this without him, but she didn't have a choice.
Within twenty minutes, Gabby had finished up her ultrasound and was sitting in Dr. Tanner's office, waiting for her doctor, but her attention was solely on the device in her hands. She still hadn't heard anything from Matt. Gabby had called him three more times, each time it going straight to voicemail. With each unanswered call and text, her concern only grew. The one thing keeping her from full-blown panic was that she hadn't heard from anyone at 51. Had something happened to Matt, they would've called her. She just wished she had the confirmation that he was alright.
"Hello Gabby." Dr. Tanner greeted as she came into her office, smiling warmly at her patient, Gabby nodding slowly. "I heard you were one short today, Matt's at work?"
"Yeah, I mean, I guess. I haven't been able to reach him, and I know he could be on a call, but it's been awhile, and had a call come in close to the appointment he wouldn't have gone, but- yeah." She breathed out, nerves radiating off her body as she rambled.
Dr. Tanner frowned slightly, seeing how worried Gabby was.
"I'm guessing that's why your blood pressure was a little high." She mused understandingly, Gabby taking a deep breath. "I can't imagine how nerve-wracking this situation is, but I'm sure Mr. Casey is fine. Until you know you have a reason to worry, I need you to try and stay as calm as you can. It's not good for you or your little girl."
"I know, I'm just… this isn't like him. And I can't help but think something's wrong."
"That's understandable, but just try and stay calm. If not for you, then for your baby. I'm sure he's just stuck at work. Feel free to keep your phone out while we talk, in case you hear from him, but right now I want to focus on you." Dr. Tanner spoke, Gabby nodding as she placed her phone in her lap.
They went through the usual routine, Gabby trying her hardest to focus on Dr. Tanner's questions, but it was hard, with her mind constantly pulling back to Matt. In the forty five minutes she'd been in here, she never heard a word from Matt, or anyone, and by the time they finished up, she was nearing complete panic. But she knew she had to try and stay calm.
"Alright Gabby, I'll see you in two more weeks." Dr. Tanner spoke, Gabby nodding with a weak smile as she stood up. "...Still no word from Matt?"
"No, not yet. I'm gonna go to the firehouse, see what's going on."
"Yeah, that's a good idea. Just to give you some peace of mind. Tell him I'm sorry I missed him." Gabby nodded before heading for the door, beginning the walk towards the front. Before leaving the office, she quickly made her next appointment, barely saying a goodbye to the receptionist before she left.
As she walked through the lobby, she called Matt again, sighing deeply as it went to voicemail for the umpteenth time.
"Hey Matt, I just finished up at my appointment. I'm not sure where you are, or if you're just stuck at a call or something, but I'm getting worried over here. Call me when you can, alright? I love you."
Hanging up the phone, she shoved it back in her pocket, pushing open the door to head outside. She barely made it out the door when she stopped dead in her tracks, her heart dropping into her stomach when she saw Boden standing against his car, accompanied by Brett, the two clearly waiting for her to be done.
Tears filled her eyes, Boden's gaze locking on her, the man pushing himself off his car the instant he saw her. Slowly, she forced her feet forward, Boden and Brett walking towards her quickly, the looks on their faces causing her body to fill with dread.
"What happened?" She asked quietly, her voice shaky as a lone tear escaped down her cheek, watching as Boden took a deep breath before answering her.
"He's in the hospital, Dawson."
… Uh oh. That's not good.
We had a lot going on in this chapter. Looks like Matt had his proposal all planned (we'll have to see what happens with that), Gabby and Matt got some things for the baby, and well as narrowed down some names. A lot of good things happening, but you'll have to wait and see what happened to Casey.
I'm beyond excited to hear your thoughts about this chapter, especially what you all think of the names, and what you might think happened to Matt. I hope you all enjoyed it! Until the next.