Here's the next chapter for you all! I hope you enjoy!

Chapter Forty Seven

"Jesus Severide, be careful. We're trying to keep that furniture." Matt chastised from his seat in the corner of the room, Kelly glaring at him as he and Antonio worked on taking down the bed frame. "Gabby will kill you if you scratch it."

"I didn't come here to be berated." Severide spoke, wiping the sweat from his brow.

"I know, you came here for the pizza." Matt responded quickly, earning a chuckle from Antonio.

"Yeah, which still isn't here… I'm starting to feel a little used." He replied as Matt adjusted the ice pack wrapped around his knee. He had done it himself because Gabby was still out, and although it wasn't terrible, it definitely felt more secure when she did it.

"Gabby's coming back soon, Sev. And she'll have pizza with her."

"And beer?" He asked hopefully, Casey scoffing as he shook his head.

"No, I didn't ask Gabby to buy beer when she's almost twenty three weeks pregnant."

"But she's not the one drinking it." He mumbled, Casey rolling his eyes as he adjusted himself in his seat, grimacing at the movement. "And I remember being promised beer."

"Yes, well if I remember correctly that was about thirty minutes before I fell through a floor." Matt responded with raised eyebrows, almost challenging him to complain some more.

"...Fair enough." Kelly gave in as he and Antonio placed one side of the railing against the wall. "Although I'm not entirely convinced you're not faking."

"Yeah, maybe you just didn't want to have to do all the heavy lifting." Antonio joined in, Matt chuckling.

"Trust me, I'd love to be helping you guys, but I'm pretty sure Gabby would kill me."

"She would." Kelly added while Antonio took a long drink of his water.

"She got mad when she saw me walking without the crutches this morning, I don't think she'd take too kindly to me lifting anything."

"Didn't your doc say you could ditch the crutches after a couple days?" Antonio asked, Matt nodding.

"He did, he said once the swelling went down some and it wasn't as painful that I could try and walk around some, but Gabby didn't like it. She went and got the crutches and made me use them." Matt explained, slowly stretching out his leg. "I know I scared her, and she doesn't want me to hurt myself, but I'm gonna have to try walking on it if I want to get back to work."

"Maybe that's her masterplan." Severide responded with a grin, Matt raising his eyebrows. "I mean, what's the best way to keep you from getting hurt in a fire? Don't go into the fire."

"She's not trying to keep me from working, Sev. She's just afraid of me hurting myself. It was a miracle I didn't tear something in my knee, she just wants me to be careful."

"I don't know, Dawson is sneaky." Severide spoke with a grin, Antonio chuckling as they started getting back to work.

"So let me make sure I have this right, after Kelly and I finish getting all of this out of here, him and I are the ones who unload it at his place?" Antonio asked, Matt smiling sheepishly.

"Yes, but there's pizza." He spoke quickly, Antonio shaking his head. "I am sorry about this, I know this isn't exactly how you planned to spend your Sunday, but the baby's stuff is coming tomorrow and we need all this out of here... I really appreciate your help."

"It's alright, I know none of this has really gone according to plan."

"No it hasn't, I was supposed to have beer." Severide complained again, Matt rolling his eyes as both men ignored his comment.

"Do you know anything about when you can get back to work?" Antonio asked, Matt shaking his head.

"I was hoping it would only be a few shifts, but I already missed yesterday and I don't feel much better. And Gabby's so worried, she took off shift too, I'm not sure I can convince her to go back until I'm cleared." Matt replied, earning an understanding nod from Antonio.

"How are the burns?"

"They're pretty uncomfortable." He answered with a grimace, Antonio wincing. "They're still red and they're blistering. It's definitely ugly, I'm just hoping Gabby doesn't mind the scars because I'm pretty sure my back is going to be messed up forever."

"I'm sorry, man. But we both know all she cares about is you being here."

"Yeah, I know. And it definitely could've been worse, I know I got lucky. I just hate having to be off work, and Gabby being off. Especially with the baby coming, it's just not something we planned for." He spoke, blowing out a breath.

"You two will be fine, hopefully you'll be able to get back soon. Or, at the very least, convince Gabby to go back. Even though you of all people know how hard it is to get her to do something she doesn't want to do." Antonio joked, earning a knowing chuckle from Casey.

"Believe me, I know." He laughed.

"Speaking of Dawson," Severide spoke up, gaining the attention of both men. "What's the plan now for everything?" Kelly asked, Antonio's eyebrows furrowing.

"Plans for what?" He questioned, Matt sighing heavily.

"The proposal." Severide answered.

"You're proposing?" Antonio questioned, his eyes widened in surprise.

"You didn't tell him?" Severide asked before Matt could get a word in, Casey shaking his head.

"I am proposing again, yeah." Matt breathed out, Antonio nodding slowly.

"How long has this been in the works?"

"Well, I got the ring back before Christmas…"

"Oh.. wow."

"Yeah.. Pretty much the second I knew she was coming home, I wanted to propose again, but I decided to wait until we had cleared the air with everything. I didn't want to get married again until I knew we were both on the same page, and ready to work through our problems. And them the pregnancy and everything, it just kept getting pushed back. Then I was planning on doing it the night after my last shift, but then we all saw what happened there… so now I'm just waiting until I'm more mobile, and can give her the proposal she deserves."

"Wow." Antonio breathed out, still a little stunned.

"I'm sorry, I should've told you. Everything's just been so crazy and I've been more worried about making sure she doesn't find out than anything else."

"No, it's fine. I guess if I had thought about it, I should've known you two would be getting married again, but it never really crossed my mind." He responded, Matt nodding. "And this is what you both want?"

"We do. She never should've stopped being my wife, I know I screwed that up, but we talked about it when she first got back. We still see each other as husband and wife, that hasn't changed. We just need to make it official." Matt told him, Antonio nodding with a small smile.

"Can I see the ring?"

"Yeah, of course. Sev, it's in the top drawer of the dresser, can you get it?" Casey asked his friend, the man standing right beside the furniture. After directing him to its precise location, Kelly pulled out the small box, handing it to Antonio. "It's not much, it's just a wedding band, but I think she'll like it."

"She'll love it." Antonio replied as he looked at the ring. "It's perfect, Casey." He spoke, closing the box before looking back to his former, and now soon to be again, brother in-law. "So what's the plan now?"

"Well, I was thinking-" Casey got cut off by the back door closing, his eyes widening as he waved his hand, silently telling the men to hide the ring.

"Matt?" Gabby called out, Antonio tossing the box back to Kelly, Matt's heart dropping as he threw the box, Casey still frantically waving his hand, trying to get them to move faster. "Matt?"

"In here, babe." He called back, taking a deep breath as Kelly got the dresser closed, turning around and leaning against it just as Gabby came into the doorway. "Hello beautiful." Matt greeted, heat rising to her cheeks as she looked around the room.

"You guys seem to have gotten some work done while I was gone." She commented, her eyebrows furrowing as she stepped inside, seeing the near guilty look on Kelly's face, and the blank one on her brothers. "You guys alright?"

"Oh they're fine, they've just been complaining all morning." Matt responded with a soft smile, waving her towards him.

"Ahh, well there's pizza and some beer in the kitchen." She responded, Kelly blowing out a thankful breath.

"You're a godsend, thank you." Kelly spoke, heading out of the room.

"Beer?" Casey asked, Gabby shrugging as she got to him.

"I got a lot of looks, but I knew Kelly wanted it." She spoke.

"I love you Dawson!" Severide called from the hallway, the three left in the room chuckling as Antonio walked towards her.

"Thanks for lunch, sis." He spoke, placing a kiss to her head.

"Of course, thank you for giving up your day to help us." She replied, Antonio nodding before heading out of the room, leaving the expectant parents alone.

"Hi." Matt spoke, reaching out for her.

"Hey." She responded, Matt patting against his good leg, encouraging her to sit down in his lap. "You sure you can handle me and the baby? We're pretty big these days." She commented, Matt shaking his head, patting his leg again.

"Nope, you two are perfect." He replied, Gabby lightly scoffing as she turned to sit down, Matt wrapping his arm around her growing waist, guiding her down onto his lap. "How are you doing today?" He questioned once she was settled, Gabby placing her arm around his neck, being mindful of his burns.

"I'm feeling okay, a little tired but good." She answered, Matt resting his free hand over her stomach, rubbing softly against her shirt.

"Good. And how's our girl?"

"She's good, excited to be back home with her Daddy." Gabby replied, Matt grinning as he glanced to her stomach.

"I'm glad you're back home, too, little one." He whispered, patting her stomach before returning his attention to Gabby. "You get all your errands done this morning?"

"Mhmm. I got your prescription for more of your burn cream, and I picked up some groceries. And I couldn't help myself and I got some more things for baby." She responded, scrunching her nose up lightly.

"That's fine, I can't wait to see what you got."

"And how are you feeling? How's the knee?"

"Sore, but alright."

"You've been staying off it, right?"

"Yes ma'am." He responded, smiling warmly. Her grin grew, Gabby's eyes tracing over his face. In the days since the accident, his body had definitely shown signs of the brutal beating it had taken. Bruises had appeared over most of his body, Gabby unable to look at any part of him without seeing multiple spots of purple or yellow discoloration. His eye had really swelled up the first few days, Matt barely able to open it for a while, but it was slowly starting to return to normal. It was still swollen, as was his knee, but everything was slowly healing.

"And how is your back?"

"It kind of hurts, but I'm okay." Gabby frowned, nodding slowly as she began playing with the hair on the back of his neck.

"Anything I can do for you?" She asked, Matt shaking his head, leaning forward to place a soft kiss to her lips.

"Just take care of yourself and the baby." He responded after they separated, Gabby nodding before standing up.

"Well, baby wants some food." She spoke, grabbing his crutches from against the wall, Matt slowly getting up, putting pressure on his leg. "Be careful." She warned, holding out the crutches, but he shook his head.

"I am, but I gotta start trying to walk on it." He told her, reaching down to pull the ice pack off his knee, checking to make sure the brace was secure before he slowly started moving. Gabby watched on in worry, picking up his arm, wrapping it around her shoulders. "I'm okay, babe." He assured her, but she felt him grip her shoulder firmly.

"I know, but just let me help you." She responded, their fingers locking over her shoulder as they slowly moved. She knew he wanted to do this himself, but the last thing that would help them was him overdoing it and injuring himself further. She didn't want to put her arm around him, knowing that would hurt his burns more than it would help him stay steady, so she opted to just let him use her body as support, the two walking slowly to the door. "How much does it hurt?" She asked as they got into the hallway, silently wishing he hadn't chosen the longest walk in the house for him to start walking without his crutches.

"It's more uncomfortable than anything else. I know nothing was broken or torn, but it feels really weak." He admitted, Gabby grimacing as she placed her hand on his stomach.

"If you need to stop, tell me. Don't push yourself." She reminded him, the two continuing their walk into the living room.

"Look at him, he's a mobile man." Severide called from the kitchen table as Matt slowly came into view.

"I'm surprised you let him walk that far, Gabs." Antonio joked, leaning over to pull out the chair at the head of the table, Matt slowly sitting down, his breathing slightly labored as he got settled.

"Well, he did good." Gabby spoke, rubbing her fingers through Matt's hair before placing a kiss to the top of his head.

The four friends enjoyed their meal, Severide and Antonio eating quickly, not wanting to waste too much time and have this task drag into the evening. Matt had only been at the table for all of ten minutes before they ran off back towards the soon to be nursery, Gabby sitting with him while they enjoyed their lunch, talking through the cursing and complaining they heard coming from the guest room.

It was barely an hour later when Severide and Antonio had finished getting the last of the furniture into the truck, Matt having moved to the couch after his meal so he'd be able to elevate his leg.

"Alright, we got all of it." Severide blew out as he and Antonio walked back into the house.

"We really appreciate you two doing this." Gabby spoke as she slowly stood up from the couch.

"Of course, sis."

"Yeah, it wasn't all bad. Although we have yet to get all this up to my apartment." Severide replied, Gabby chuckling.

"I'll let you two handle that." She responded, the men saying goodbye to Matt before Gabby showed them out, Casey waiting patiently as he listened to Gabby say her goodbyes to her brother and Kelly.

He heard her shut the back door, going and shuffling around the kitchen before she appeared again, holding a new ice pack and his pill bottle.

"I'm not hurting too bad right now." He told her as she came to sit next to him, Gabby beginning the process of securing the ice to his knee. She undid his brace, hearing him sigh in relief as it loosened, Gabby running her fingers over the deep purple bruising covering his skin.

"Yeah, but you've had a big day, I don't want you hurting all night." She spoke, bandaging the ice to him.

"...I don't think I want to take it." He murmured, Gabby glancing towards him with a raised eyebrow.

"Is everything okay?" She questioned, leaning back into the couch, making herself as comfortable as she could, resting her hand over his thigh.

"Yeah, I just don't want to become dependent on them or anything. I can handle a little pain, I'd rather that than continuing to take them." He spoke quietly, Gabby nodding as she rubbed her thumb over his leg.

"I'd never make you take them, it's your choice and I know you're the one who has to deal with the effects of them. But if they help you, I don't want you to be afraid to use them." She responded as he looked to her, Gabby flashing him a supportive smile. Matt had always been mindful when it came to medication, Gabby knowing his dad's problems with substance abuse were always in the back of his mind. "If you'd rather just take some aspirin, that's fine. I just don't want you to be in pain, but it's whatever you want."

"I think I'm just gonna hold off, I'd rather try and cut back on them now."

"Alright." She replied, leaning forward to place a soft kiss against his temple before she got up. "But just please take one if you need it."

"I will. I promise." He responded, Gabby grabbing his pill bottle before heading back into the kitchen, grabbing him a few pills from the cabinet.

She reappeared within a minute, Gabby handing him the milder medicine when she got close enough, Matt flashing her an appreciative smile before swallowing the pills, Gabby sitting down next to him.

"You wanna see what I got for the baby?" She asked, opening the plastic bag she'd brought in with her.

"Absolutely." He responded, resting back into the couch as Gabby began pulling tiny clothes from the bag.

Slowly, she began showing him each item, Matt holding onto each one as she handed them to him, his hands cradling the small material. Gabby had gotten four different onesies, as well as a blanket and then a few pacifiers.

"I saw this, too, and I had to get it." She spoke, handing him a small blue blanket covered in firetrucks.

"She's gonna love it." He replied, Gabby pulling out one last thing from the bag, Matt eyeing the item curiously. "Planning her career already?" Matt asked with a grin, Gabby shaking her head as she held the stethoscope in her hands.

"No, I saw this at the pharmacy and decided to get it. I was thinking we could try to see if we could hear her heartbeat, since you weren't able to be at the appointment." She spoke softly, Matt's grin widening as he began nodding enthusiastically. "Alright, let me try and find it first." She told him, placing the stethoscope in her ears.

"Can you feel where she is?" He asked, Gabby nodding.

"Yeah, she's right here." She responded, tapping against her lower stomach, a little left of her belly button. Matt's hand instantly flew to the area, Gabby chuckling as he lifted her shirt up, placing his palm against her skin.

Gabby let him have his moment, watching as his smile grew even bigger when he felt her move against his hand.

"Babe, I'm gonna need you to move if you want me to do this." She eventually spoke up, a light laugh escaping through her lips as he looked up to her.

"Oh right, sorry. I just got excited." He replied sheepishly, Gabby rubbing her hand over his scraped cheek.

"Don't apologize, if you want to feel her for a while, we can wait."

"No, I want to hear her." He responded, pulling his hand back as he watched Gabby began searching for the heartbeat, moving the stethoscope around her stomach.

With each passing moment, Matt felt a bit more defeated, thinking they wouldn't actually be able to hear it. But then he saw the smile light up over her face, Gabby turning towards him with excited eyes.

"Can you hear it?" He asked, Gabby nodding quickly.

She saw his eyes light up, Matt glancing back towards her stomach. Even though she would be perfectly content listening to the sound of their baby's heart beating for the rest of the night, she didn't want to keep Matt waiting any longer.

With one hand keeping the cold metal pressed against her stomach, she used her other to remove it from her ears, handing it over to Matt, who eagerly put the stethoscope in place.

His already wide smile grew even more, a look of complete love and joy filling his features as he listened to the rhythmic thumping in his ears. It was faint, definitely not as loud as what they could hear during the ultrasound, but he could feel it. And it filled him with an indescribable warmth.

Gabby sat there quietly while he had a moment with their little girl, Matt placing his hand on the other side of her stomach, rubbing gently over her skin while he listened to the steady beating.

"I love you so much." He whispered, his eyes glued to her stomach. Gabby felt tears pricking the edges of her eyes as he spoke, blinking quickly as he looked up at her. "I love you so much, too." He spoke, his eyes shining as he leaned towards her, kissing her passionately.

When they pulled back, he rested his forehead against hers, Gabby holding onto the back of his head as they connected, both of them enjoying their intimate moment.

"Thank you for this." He murmured, feeling her fingers run over his scalp. "This was the perfect surprise, thank you." Matt spoke again, Gabby nodding before pulling her head back from his.

"We love you." She responded quietly before carefully resting her head on his shoulder, making herself comfortable so Matt could listen to their little girl's heartbeat for as long as he wanted.

"Are you sure you don't mind?" Gabby asked for the tenth time that morning as she stood in front of the mirror, adjusting her ponytail.

"I'm fine, Gabby." He responded from his position on the bed, stretching out his knee. "You've missed enough time already, just because I can't work doesn't mean you shouldn't." He reminded her, Gabby glancing over to him, seeing the concentrated look on his face as he moved his leg.

It had been a little over two weeks since Matt's accident, and things weren't exactly going to plan. A knee sprain that should've only kept him sidelined for a shift or two had now kept him off the job for what was about to be five shifts in a row, and he was nowhere near being able to return. His scrapes and cuts had all basically healed; there was a small red scratch still lingering on his side, but that would most likely be gone in a few more days. Most of the bruising was long gone, aside from a particularly nasty one on his chest, and his eye had almost returned to normal. The burns, which at first had been Gabby's biggest concern, were all healing well. His new skin had started to cover his wounds, and while they were still tender, they didn't hurt him as much anymore. Everything was going according to plan.

Except for his knee.

They had gone back to see Dr. Williams a week ago, and he told them that it was sometimes normal to have some lingering pain, and that it might just take a little extra time for him to heal. He'd been given some stretches and exercises to do, just to keep his leg strength in tact, but Matt was getting restless. And Gabby couldn't blame him.

She couldn't imagine how frustrated he was, with his knee causing him so much pain but there wasn't really anything anyone could tell him to explain it. Two weeks out from his accident, it was normal to still be experiencing discomfort, and Gabby assumed he would have still been wearing the brace at this point, at least for work, but this was something neither of them had expected.

The pain in his knee was near excruciating some days, it being bad enough that at times he would voluntarily use his crutches instead of toughing it out. The first time Gabby had witnessed that, him opting for his walking aid instead of just doing it himself, that's when she realized just how much pain he must've been in. And it didn't seem to be getting any better.

"I don't mind to miss one more." She spoke, sliding her hand over her bump as she turned towards him.

"No, you should go." He replied, glancing up from his knee to her. "We're not even sure how much longer you're gonna be able to work anyway, I don't want you missing time because of me."

"Alright, if you're sure. But really, I don't mind. I know Boden will understand."

"Gabby, it's fine." He spoke shortly, Gabby nodding as she turned away from him. Shaking his head, his eyes fell closed, Matt releasing a heavy sigh. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." He apologized, waving her over to him. Slowly, she moved towards the bed, placing herself down on it as Matt reached for her hand. "I know you're just trying to help, I shouldn't have snapped at you. I'm just so frustrated with all of this, and it's not getting any better." He responded, Gabby smiling sympathetically as she brought her hand up to run over the side of his face.

"I know this has been hard on you."

"It has, and I know I haven't been the most fun to be around lately…" He mused, Gabby shaking her head.

"You fell through a building, Matt. I think that warrants a little frustration from time to time." She replied. "I just wish there was more I could do to help you."

"You've done more than enough. If anything, I wish you'd do less. I know this whole thing has stressed you out, and you've been taking care of me when you should be taking care of yourself… I should be taking care of you and I can't. At least not in the ways I want to." He murmured, taking a deep breath.

"I'm fine, Matt. I mean, yes, your massages are greatly missed," She spoke with a grin, "but you need to focus on getting yourself better. I'm alright. You heard Dr. Tanner yesterday, I'm doing great." She continued, Matt nodding knowingly.

When they had gone to Gabby's 24-week appointment yesterday, it had been quite the spectacle as Matt crutched his way into the office. They had been there enough times for everyone to know them, and to see him stumbling his way around was a shock to most of them, but they all were polite and tried to help the expectant parents when they could. After dealing with the frustration of his knee, he wasn't too happy with people helping him with things he could do himself, but he knew they all meant well.

"Yeah, I know. You and our girl are doing great. I just want to keep it that way." He breathed out.

"We're fine, and you're gonna be fine." She assured him, leaning forward to place a soft kiss on his lips. "I gotta get going, but I'll call and check in a little later, okay?"

"Sounds good." He responded, Gabby kissing him again before standing up. "Stay safe out there."

"I will. And I hope you have fun here. I can only imagine what big plans you have for today." She teased, Matt smirking.

"Oh, yes I have a big day of sitting on the couch ahead of me, it's gonna be great." He replied lightly, giving her hand one last squeeze before she slipped from his grasp.

In truth, he did have plans for today, but they were things he couldn't share with her.

"Call me if you need anything. I'm sure I could get away long enough to stop by if you need me."

"I will, but I'll be fine. Have a good day." He spoke, Gabby leaning down to place a kiss to his forehead before heading for the door.

"Love you." She called, Matt watching her until she was out of sight.

"I love you too." He responded, listening as she moved around the kitchen, Matt releasing a breath once he heard the door shut.

When he was sure he was alone, Matt slowly swung his legs off the bed, grimacing as his unbraced knee moved.

He did have big plans for today, as well as tomorrow night. And he wasn't gonna let his knee stop him from doing what he'd been wanting to do for months.

He'd been waiting for the perfect moment to propose again, but with the stall in his recovery, he soon realized the perfect moment could still be months away, and he wasn't ready to wait that long.

He was proposing again, and he was doing it tomorrow night. He had already talked to Jemma and Severide, and gotten everything planned. He knew it wouldn't be exactly as he envisioned, but he was tired of waiting. He was determined to do this now.

But today there was something else he needed to do first, and he knew he couldn't tell Gabby. Because she would've insisted she come with him. He needed to go and get answers, he could fill her in later. Right now, he just needed to know what was going on.

"Hey kid." Herrmann greeted as he walked into the common room, seeing Gabby sitting at the table.

"Hey Herrmann." She responded as the older man came and stood across from her.

"How's Casey feeling?" He asked, resting his palms on the back of the chair in front of him.

"About the same." She spoke with a grimace, Herrmann sighing. "His knee is still nagging him."

"Have you all gone back to the doctor?"

"Not since last week." She replied, taking a sip of her water.

"Well, maybe it couldn't hurt to check again. There might be some small tearing or something the scans missed. I'm not sure what else would be keeping him out this long." He mused, Gabby shrugging.

"Yeah, I'm not sure. I'll talk to him about it tomorrow." She responded, feeling her phone begin to buzz in her pocket. Pulling it out, she shot Herrmann an apologetic look before answering it. "Hey Jemma."

"Hey girl, I'm not interrupting anything am I?"

"No, you're good. I'm at 51 but I'm free, what's up?" She questioned, Herrmann giving her a smile before heading to the couch.

"I was wondering if you'd wanna go out to eat with me tomorrow night? I need your advice about something, figured we could talk over dinner."

"Uh, yeah that shouldn't be a problem, as long as Matt's feeling okay. Are you alright?" She questioned.

"I'm fine, just wanna talk. I'll stop by and pick you up tomorrow around 7?"

"Sounds good. I'll see you then."

"Bye Gabby."

Dawson hung up the phone, sliding it back into her pocket as she blew out a heavy breath. She wasn't sure what Jemma wanted to talk to her about, but Gabby didn't have time to dwell on it as the bells rang throughout the firehouse, sending them out on their first call of the day.

Matt twiddled his thumbs as he sat on the exam table, the gown itching his skin as he waited in the white room, his head hung to the ground. He'd been here for over an hour, his back beginning to ache as he waited for his doctor.

Despite being so adamant about not telling Gabby about his plans, now that he was sitting here alone, he couldn't help but wish she was here with him. If she knew about his appointment, she would've skipped shift with no hesitation, and he didn't want her missing any more time because of him. But sitting here by himself, a part of him wished he told her. He hated being here alone, especially when he didn't know what kind of answers he'd be getting.

The sound of the door opening snapped him from his thoughts, Matt looking up as Dr. Williams walked inside, a soft smile on his face.

"Hello Matt."

"Hi." He responded, swallowing thickly as he sat up straight, wincing as he skin pulled a little.

"Well, looking at your scans, I've got some good news and some bad news." He prefaced, Matt nodding. "The good news is everything still came back clear, there's nothing indicating any tears or fractures, nothing that shows any problems." He spoke, his face falling slightly. "But that's also the bad news. Since we can't find anything wrong, I can't explain why you're still having so much pain." He finished, Matt blowing out a heavy sigh.

"Okay, so what does that mean for me?"

"Well, we have a few options here. There is a chance that your body is still trying to recover from the trauma it suffered through. You might just need more time. Have you ever had any extensive sprains like this before?" Dr. Willams asked, Matt shaking his head. "Alright. So it could just be that, it's hard to tell." He spoke, sitting down on the stool. "Tell me, what exactly does it feel like?"

"My knee feels weak, sometimes like it will just snap if I put too much pressure on it. And it's a sharp pain, under my kneecap."

"Does it hurt all the time?"

"No. Mostly when I'm walking, especially if I've been up for awhile. I'll sometimes get jolts of pain when I'm lying down, but not always. From what I can tell, it's mostly just sporadic." Matt explained, Dr. Williams nodding.

"Well, right now I don't have much of an explanation as to what's causing your pain. Functionality wise, your knee is fine... Worst case scenario, there might've been some nerve damage in your fall. If that's the case, the only thing I'd be able to do for you is some pain management."

"So this might never go away." Matt spoke defeatedly, Dr. Williams breathing deeply.

"That is a possibility, yes."

"How would that affect work?" He questioned quickly.

"Honestly, if it is chronic pain we're dealing with, it would just be what you could manage. Your knee, from a structural standpoint, is fine. You could work, if you we can get your pain controlled."

"How would we do that?"

"Pain medication, to start." Dr. Williams spoke, Matt sighing deeply as his eyes fell closed. "But we're not at the point of chronic pain yet. It's only been a couple of weeks, your body might still just need some extra time to recover." He continued, Matt looking back up to him. "For right now, I'm just gonna send you home with some new pain medications. They're a little stronger than what I gave you before, but nothing too crazy."

"Do I have to take them?" Casey questioned, Dr. Williams eyeing him for a moment.

"Well, no. I can't force you to. But I want you to have them, in case you need them." He spoke cautiously, sliding his stool closer to the bed. "Is there a reason you don't want to take them?" He questioned carefully, Casey taking a deep breath.

"I've just seen what that stuff can do to people, I don't want to take them if I can help it." He responded vaguely, Dr. Williams clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth.

"I understand the concern, medication can be tricky. But, for your quality of life, it might get to the point where you'll need them. But, again, we're not anywhere close to that yet. Hopefully, this will resolve itself on its own." He spoke, offering him a small smile. "I would still feel more comfortable with you having the medication, as long as that's okay with you. You don't have to take it if you don't want to, but that way you'll have it, just in case."

"That's fine, I don't mind having them in the house, I just wanted to ask." He responded, Dr. Williams nodding, thinking over his next words carefully before speaking.

"I didn't notice anything in your file that would indicate problems with medications… Have you struggled with substance abuse in the past?" Dr. Williams asked, Matt taking a deep breath. "I know it's hard to talk about, but I need to know Mr. Casey."

"No, it's fine. Not me, no, I haven't… But my dad did, so it's just something that's in the back of my mind, I guess."

"I see." Dr. Williams replied sympathetically. "Well, if you'd rather not have them, I can prescribe something a bit milder, but I'm not sure how much they'd help with the pain. It's up to you, but the fact that you're already so cautious about it, that tells me I don't think you'll have much of a problem getting off of them. But it's up to you."

"I'll go ahead and take them, just incase." Casey responded, Dr. Williams nodding as he handed him the prescription.

"I'd like you to come back in a few weeks, especially if you're not doing any better. But hopefully it won't come to that." He spoke, Matt nodding.

"Alright."

"I'll get your paperwork, and get you an appointment scheduled, you can go ahead and get changed and I'll be back in a bit."

"Thank you." Matt responded, the man flashing him a small smile before disappearing from the room, leaving Casey alone.

"Hey girl." Jemma greeted from her seat in the car, Gabby flashing her a smile as she climbed inside. "How are you? How's the baby?"

"We're doing good. Leg cramps are a bitch, though." Gabby responded, Jemma chuckling softly. "She's also using my bladder as a punching bag, but we're good."

"That's good." Jemma replied, pulling away from the curb.

"What about you? How are you and the boy?" Gabby asked, subtly trying to prompt Jemma into talking about whatever she needed advice on, but the woman just smiled, keeping her attention on the road.

"We're great." Jemma spoke with a smile. "He's doing good, work is going well for both of us. Everything's pretty great."

"Good, that's good."

"What about you, how's your boy?" Jemma questioned, Gabby releasing a heavy sigh.

"He's… I'm worried about him." Gabby spoke, earning a concerned look from her friend.

"Why? What's going on?"

"It's just everything with his recovery, it's not going that well. He's having a really hard time with his knee, and he's trying to deal with that."

"I'm sorry, Gabby." She murmured sympathetically.

"It's alright… It's just I can tell he's struggling more than he'll tell me, but he doesn't want to admit it." Dawson sighed, Jemma frowning.

"Was he at home? He could've come with us, gotten him out of the house." She offered, even though she knew the answer to her question.

"No, he's not there. He's actually been gone most of the day, he's with Kelly, I barely saw him except this morning… But I think it'll be good for him instead of just sitting around the house. He's been so down lately, I'm hoping spending some time with Severide will help him."

"I'm sure it will." Jemma told her, turning down the street.

"Where are we going, anyway?" Gabby asked curiously, recognizing the street.

"Oh, uh, it's a new place." Jemma spoke with a shrug, Gabby merely nodding.

The two fell into a comfortable silence, Gabby's eyes furrowing as they turned down the street to the firehouse, glancing towards her friend. Her confusion only grew when she saw Jemma smirking softly.

"Okay, you're acting weird, what's going on?" She asked, Jemma remaining silent as she pulled into the driveway of 51. "Jemma, what is this?" Gabby asked as her friend came to a stop halfway up the driveway. From their positioning, she could see partially inside the garage through all the open doors, enough to notice all the rigs were gone, but she couldn't see much more than that.

"Just go in."

"What?"

"Go inside." Jemma prompted, Gabby's eyebrows furrowed as the younger woman leaned over her, opening her door. "Go." She gently nudged her arm, Gabby's confusion only growing as she slowly slid out of the car.

"And what now? You're just gonna leave me here?"

"Believe me, you'll be fine. Now go inside." Jemma replied, Gabby huffing out a breath as she shut the door, shooting her best friend a glare before heading up the driveway.

As she got to the entrance of the garage, she glanced around, breathing deeply as her hand rested on her stomach, Gabby taking a few steps further into the empty room. She wasn't sure what she was supposed to be doing, or why Jemma just left her here, and she didn't really know where to go.

"There you are." Gabby's eyebrows raised as she heard Matt's voice fill her ears, turning towards the sound to see him stepping out from the double doors, a wide grin covering his face.

"What are you doing here?.. And what am I doing here?" She questioned, unable to stop the smile on her face as she began walking towards him, her eyes moving to his legs, watching as he walked with a slight limp. "You should be on your crutches, Matt." She warned, Casey shaking his head as he slowly moved across the room.

"Nope, I refuse to be on my crutches for this."

"For what? What are we doing here? Where is everyone?" The questions left her mouth as soon as they came to her mind, Matt smirking as they met up with one another in the middle of the room.

Silently, he reached for her hands, grasping both of hers in his, his grin widening as he caught her gaze.

"Hi." He murmured, Gabby's smile growing, feeling her chest fill with warmth at the sight of him looking so happy.

"Hi." She responded with a laugh, her eyes moving around the empty room before landing back on him. "What are we doing here?"

"We're here so I can fix something that never should've been broken." He prefaced, Gabby's eyes narrowing in confusion, looking down as he dropped one of her hands, digging into his pocket.

"What? Matt, I don't-" Gabby's words got caught in her throat as she saw the small box in his hands, tears filling her eyes instantly, her wide eyes looking back up to him, finding his shining gaze on her.

"I can't exactly do this the right way, I can't get down on one knee, unless you don't mind if I stay down there, but this will have to do." He spoke with a chuckle, Gabby laughing through the tears in her eyes. Her gaze moved back down to the box as he held it out in front of her, her breath hitching as he opened it, tears streaming down her face at the sight of the silver band. "I know it's not as snazzy as your old one, but I had planned on giving you this at Christmas, and, you know that didn't work out." He saw the look of surprise that flashed over her face, Matt assuming her shock came from him having this planned for so long, but he didn't question it. "And then we found out about the baby and everything there, this kind of got pushed back. Then I had it all planned out, I got everything ready and then I had the accident and well, now I'm just tired of waiting." He spoke, shaking his head, wiping away the tear that had fallen down his cheek. "But I want you to have this, for you to be my wife again. You never should've stopped being my wife, I should've fought harder for you. But we can't change what happened, all I know is that I'm thankful every damn day that you came back to me… That we're getting another chance together; you, me, and this baby. You're my world, Gabby. I want- need you to be my wife again, I know I've said it before, but nothing makes sense without you. You make everyday worth it, and I don't know how I got so lucky for you to love me and for you to choose to be with me, but I'm so glad you did. I love you so much. I love you more than I could ever tell you. I love you more than anything else in this world… except maybe now our little girl. But even then, she only makes me love you more." Tears were freely streaming down both their faces, Gabby biting down on her bottom lip as she kept her eyes on him. "I know we've had our struggles, we've gone through so much. And I can't promise that everything will always be perfect, but what I can promise you is that I'll never, ever give up on us. I know what it's like to live without you, and it was the worst thing I have ever experienced. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, I want things to be right. I want us to be married again." He told her, his voice firm despite his emotions overwhelming him. "I love you so much. I always have, and I always will… Gabriela Dawson, will you marry me?"

Gabby frantically nodded, biting back a sob as she saw the look of relief that flashed over his features, his smile lighting up his entire face.

"Yes! Yes, of course I'll marry you." She responded excitedly, stepping towards him and capturing his lips with hers, the two meeting in a passionate kiss, Matt placing his hand on her waist.

"I love you so much." He murmured against her, feeling a joyous sob escape her lips before she kissed him again.

"I love you, too. I love you so much. I can't wait for you to be my husband again." She responded quietly, Matt wiping the tears from her cheek. "Let me see the ring again." She spoke suddenly, Matt holding up the box as she took it out, her eyes shining with admiration as she held it.

"I mean, technically it's just a wedding band, I don't have an engagement ring-"

"I don't care." She responded, looking up at him with a wide grin. "Put it on."

"Now? I mean, we're not married yet."

"I don't care." She repeated, Matt releasing a chuckle before grabbing the ring from her, Gabby holding out her hand.

Slowly, Matt slid the band onto her ring finger, fresh tears falling down her cheeks as she held her hand up. She couldn't explain the feeling of seeing that ring on her finger again, but it made her feel whole. It felt like everything was finally back in place. Soon, they'd be married again, and she'd never felt more content.

"I love you." He whispered again, brushing a few strands of hair from her face, Gabby leaning into his hand.

"I love you too. Now, come on Mr. Dawson," She teased, grabbing his hand as he let out a loud laugh. "I believe some celebrations are in order." Gabby spoke with a gleam in her eye, Matt's eyebrows raising as he grinned, nodding knowingly as they began slowly walking out of the garage, both looking forward to getting home and celebrating their engagement properly.

Well, there it is. The long-awaited proposal. I hope you all liked it!

I've gotten some reviews asking about what the plan is for this story, wondering if I'm planning on continuing it once the baby is born. And truthfully, I hadn't really thought about it. Considering my original plan for this story was for it to be about ten chapters, and end once Gabby got back, I never imagined it would be going this long. So I guess what I want to know is would you all like me to keep it going past the birth? I'm still not sure what I'm going to do, but if I think I can find a good story to tell, I'd love to keep it going for at least a little bit, if you all would want that. Just let me know!

I'm eager to hear your thoughts about this one! Thanks for reading!