Hello there everyone! I hope you all are doing well, and having a great week so far. I've got the next chapter here for you all, and we're gonna get more into Casey's decision and everything he has to figure out, so I hope you all like it. I'm very excited to hear what you think.

Thank you all so much for reading, and I'll see you all next time!

Chapter One Hundred and Fifty Three

"Here you go, babe."

Casey looked up from his phone when he heard his wife's voice, the man noticing the small smile on her face before he caught her gaze, Gabby holding the glass of water out towards him as she moved towards the couch.

"Thanks baby." He replied, carefully taking it from her before she sat down on the couch beside him, Gabby curling her legs up underneath as she faced him, while Matt took a slow sip of his drink, before placing it down on the end table. "...How much longer till we need to pick up Caity?" He questioned as he glanced back towards her, that soft smile returning to her face before she reached her hand out to rub over the back of his head.

"We've got about half an hour until we need to leave." She answered him, while her fingers continued to move through his short hair. "Although if Sof doesn't wake up before then, I might have to send you out on your own." She added as her eyes flashed to the baby monitor on the coffee table, where they could both see their youngest daughter napping peacefully in her crib, a slight grin tugging on Casey's lips as he leaned back into her touch.

"Well let's hope she's up before then, or those dance moms will be all over me again." He teased, Gabby rolling her eyes as a light chuckle left his throat, the woman beginning to scratch her fingers against his skin before she spoke up.

"Yeah, yeah I think you'll be fine." She joked back, Casey shooting her a knowing look before he faced forward once more, the light air around them slowly shifting when his gaze moved back down to his lap, Gabby following his line of sight before taking a slow, steadying breath. "So… you get anywhere with all this while I was gone?" She asked him carefully, as she knew that before she left him a few moments prior, they'd been talking over everything having to do with his possible promotion. Though their conversations hadn't gotten very far, at least not to this point.

It took him a moment to respond, Matt clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth while tapping his hand against his leg, as Gabby stayed quiet in an effort to give him time to answer.

"No, uh… not really." He finally spoke, Casey tearing his eyes away from his lap to find Gabby watching him, the smile on her face encouraging him to match her expression. "I'm still kind of where I was at ten minutes ago when you were last over here." He added on with a slight gleam in his eye that was hard to miss, Gabby scoffing softly before she nodded.

"Well, I can leave again if it'll help you focus." She offered, Matt immediately shaking his head before reaching out to rest his arm over her bent legs.

"Not a chance." He responded, Gabby grinning softly before she nodded once more, the woman continuing to scratch the back of his head while watching him draw in a deep breath. "I just… it's hard to think over everything, you know?" He told her, Matt rubbing his hand along the side of her leg as a means of distraction. "I feel like there's so much to consider here, and I don't want to make the wrong choice." He finished, Dawson grimacing slightly.

"Baby, I don't know if there's a 'wrong' choice to make, necessarily." She told him honestly. "The only way it could be wrong is if you're doing it for the wrong reasons, or if you do something you don't want to do, because you feel like you should." She continued on, Casey breathing in deeply before looking back towards her. "But as far as you actually doing this… you becoming a Chief, and taking over Boden's job, there's no wrong choice here. It just has to be what you think is best."

"But I'm not sure what that is though." He reminded her, Gabby looking over him before she nodded. "That's the entire reason we've been having this conversation for days, I don't know what's best for me with all this… And I'm not the only person to consider here, either." He countered quickly. "Because this is about us, and our job would affect all of us, especially you." Casey continued on, the two locking eyes for a moment. "I've heard Boden talk about this job, I've seen how much he has to put into it, and it would be an adjustment. There would be a lot more I'd have to do, which means there's more you'd have to do, too."

"And I don't mind doing that." She assured him, Matt drawing in a slow breath as she shot him a small smile. "I know it'll take some time to adjust to this, I know it means you'll be busier, at least for a while. And I know I'd have to pick up some of the slack with the girls, and everything here, until things get a little more settled… But I don't mind doing any of that, babe."

"I know." He murmured, giving her leg a gentle squeeze. "And that's not even what I'm concerned about so much, I know everything here would be fine. That the girls would be fine… Hell, it's not like I'd be going anywhere, but…"

"You'd be working more hours, or at the very least you'd be bringing work home with you more often than you do now." She said, Matt huffing out a breath before he nodded. "So you're right, it would be an adjustment for us… There would be some things we're not used to, but none of those are deal breakers." Gabby spoke, seeing him wince slightly.

"Technically, yeah, they're not… But a part of that is I'm not sure if this is a good idea because of everything you just said. Because even though we could handle it, it would change things around here, and probably give me less time with the girls. And I've said from the beginning, with them being so young, I'm not sure all of that is worth it over this… I just hate the idea of being away from them more than I am already." He breathed out honestly, those words being some that Gabby had heard a lot over the past couple days. But she knew exactly why he kept focusing on it, because he had a valid point.

"But then there's the other side of that, like we've talked about too, how this job would be a little safer for me." He continued on before she had a chance to get a word in, Casey just doing his best to clear up his thoughts that had been a little jumbled over the last few days. "And because of the girls- and you, that's maybe a reason I should do it, so I wouldn't be running into a burning building every time the bells go off." He told her, Gabby nodding slowly while he continued his methods of rubbing his hand over her leg, the wife knowing it usually helped in keeping him grounded. And quite frankly, it was helping her as well.

"Well, I mean you know what I think about that, and how I do think that's something to consider, babe." Gabby finally spoke when it was clear he was done, at least for the moment, the sound of her voice gaining his attention. "And you know all I want is for you to be safe, but I also wouldn't want you doing this just because of that. Because I know you're always as safe as you can be." She told him, Matt nodding slowly in response. "And I know you're wanting to do what's best for us, that we're your priority here… But you've gotta prioritize yourself too, Matt. There's so much more that goes into this decision than just me and the girls."

"I know." He said softly, Casey swallowing thickly before he continued. "I know we've talked over all of this so much, more than just you all… About if the workload and the job is something I actually feel ready for, if a promotion is even something I want, or if I'd be crazy to not accept it. If I could even think of passing this up because headquarters wants me to do this." He spoke quickly, before a slight grimace started to appear over his features. "Then there's also the part about how this job destroyed so many of Boden's relationships, that I…" He cut himself off, Gabby immediately shaking her head as she didn't like where his mind was going.

"Baby, that wouldn't happen to us." She assured him almost immediately. "If you did do this, I know it would change things for a bit, but this job wouldn't tear us apart, I think you and I both know that." She reasoned, Matt nodding back at her strongly. "And I mean this with the utmost respect, but babe, you're not Boden. We're not him."

"No, I know that. And I'm not worried about anything happening to us, but I do know it'll probably be stressful. On me at least, which then puts stress on you, and the girls, and so it's been on my mind. But it's more than that, it's… there's just so much to take into account here." He spoke disjointedly, seeing the understanding look in her eye as she rubbed her hand along the back of his neck. "There's so many sides to this, so much uncertainty, and that's exactly why I feel so lost right now, because I… I don't know what to do." Casey admitted, missing the look of sadness that flickered in his wife's eyes. "Cause it feels like every time I find a reason for why I should do this, there's something telling me I shouldn't. Or vice versa."

"I know, baby." She sympathized gently, Casey drawing in a slow breath before he continued.

"And it doesn't help that I'm not used to feeling this way." He continued on, Gabby knowing he just needed to get all of this off his chest. So she let him. "I've always been pretty sure about things, things that I know I want… Like with you, and having a family with you. Even though it wasn't easy, I knew that's what I wanted. I never doubted it. And it was the same with me being a firefighter." He spoke softly, his eyebrows furrowed slightly as he did his best to voice what was going on in his head.

"I've known forever that I wanted to be a firefighter, just like I knew when I wanted to become a Lieutenant. There was no hesitation there, I just knew it was right for me. And then the Captaincy… that sort of was a surprise. And it was definitely an adjustment for us, but when it happened, I still knew it was what I wanted. I wasn't expecting it, but once the opportunity was there, I had no doubts about it. But with this now, I- I don't have that same feeling. And I'm not sure why."

"Matt…"

"And that alone, me being hesitant, that makes me wonder if I just shouldn't do it." He cut her off, Gabby taking another deep breath as their eyes locked on one another. "Because if I'm not completely sure about this, then there's a reason for it." He explained to her, Gabby pausing for a moment as she looked over him, like she was trying to figure out what to say.

"Alright, let's just… Let's take this back, for a minute." She finally spoke after gathering her thoughts, Matt meeting her gaze before he nodded. "I know there's a lot to take into consideration, a lot that has you second guessing whether this a good idea or not, and I completely understand that. I know you just want to make the best decision you can, for you and for us, and I love for you it. But let's just take this one step at a time, okay?" She started, Casey sucking in a deep breath as he waited to see where this was going.

"You and I, we've talked over all this so much. And we keep coming back to the same place, so I feel like we need to just go back to the beginning of this, and what we're actually trying to figure out here… And that's if you actually want this job." She told him, watching as he hung on every word she said. "It's been a little over a week since Boden talked to you about this… you've had time for the initial shock of this to wear off. And time to really think this through, so let me just ask you this… Leaving out all the uncertainty, and what you think is right or wrong, is there any part of you that actually wants this job?"

Casey's face remained blank while he took in what she was saying, Gabby keeping her curious eyes on him as she gave him a moment to truly process her words, before she continued on.

"Because I know we've talked over the pros and cons, and how you feel about it, but you haven't actually told me if this job is something you truly want or not… So if it was as simple as saying yes or no, would you want to do it?" She rephrased, Gabby only able to hope she was helping him as she stroked her thumb along the side of his neck. "Because if you don't, if you only are considering this because you feel like you have to, or because of us, then we don't even need to be having this conversation anymore, babe. You can't make yourself want this." She reminded him, Casey releasing a soft sigh before his eyebrows narrowed in thought.

"...So do you actually want to do this? Is there any part of you that wants to take this on?"

Matt stayed quiet for a few seconds, the husband taking her words to heart as he thought over everything she was saying, and everything they'd been talking about for days, Casey trying his best to look past all his worries and give Gabby an answer to her question. The same question he'd wrestled with a lot over the past week, Matt's eyes falling closed for a moment before he finally spoke up.

"...Yes."

A soft smile formed over her face at his response, Casey opening his eyes to find her watching him before she gave him a slow, yet encouraging nod, that being enough for him to keep going.

"There is a part of me, a big part of me, that wants to do this." He told her, Gabby nodding once more as she rubbed his neck gently. "But, I don't know, there's also a part of me that's still unsure." He admitted, earning nothing but a soft, understanding look from his wife as he knew he could be completely open and honest with her. "There's just so much going on in my head, because this would be the biggest change in my career, probably ever. And it's a lot to try and wrap my mind around… That, and I don't even know if I'd be good at it."

"You would be." Dawson spoke without an ounce of uncertainty, the strength in her words causing him to meet her gaze once more, before she gave him an affirming nod. "I know you would be, I don't doubt that for a second. You'd be an amazing Chief, and the house would be lucky to have you… I know there's a lot you're second guessing right now, but your ability to do this job shouldn't be one of them. Because I have all the faith in the world that you can do this." She said, Matt unable to stop the small smile that formed over his lips at the sincerity of her voice, as he knew she completely believed everything she was saying.

Which helped him believe it, too.

"If this is what you want to do, you'd be amazing at it, baby… But it has to be what you want." She reminded him, Matt biting down on the inside of his cheek before he nodded. "But if it is what you want, if you want to do this, then I say you should do it… We'll figure the rest out, we always do. But if you want this, I want you to do it, Matt… And I'll be by your side every step of the way."

Their eyes were focused on each other while she spoke, that soft, loving look shining back at him causing a soft smile to form across his face before he slowly nodded, his hand squeezing her leg gently as a sign of gratitude as her words of encouragement continued washing over him.

But he didn't get a chance to respond before they heard whining coming from the baby monitor in front of them, Gabby and Matt both looking in that direction just in time to see Sofia standing up in her crib. Though she wasn't exactly content to stay still and wait for her parents, as within seconds she started trying to climb out of her secure bed, the little girl doing what she could to lift herself up over the railing, though she wasn't having much luck.

It was something she'd been doing every so often lately, Sofia pushing her limits as she always did, and trying to get out of her crib by herself. Even though the parents had the bed lowered as far as it could go, she still tried to escape. And she'd even been successful a time or two, Matt and Gabby learning very quickly to keep some extra blankets and pillows down on the floor in front of her crib just in case she managed to get out before they could get to her.

And by the looks of it now, she was bound to be successful again.

"I'm gonna go get her before she hurts herself." Gabby spoke with a soft smile, both parents knowing their talks of Matt's possible promotion were now on hold as they needed to look after their baby, Casey giving her a similar look back before he nodded.

"Alright babe… Though, you know, with as often as she's doing that, it might be time to think about getting her an actual bed." He suggested as she pushed herself up off the couch, his hand sliding down off her body when she moved, before Gabby glanced back towards him. "I know we talked about waiting until she was two, but her birthday is in about two months anyway… It might be something to start thinking about." He said, Gabby mulling over his words before she nodded.

"A room makeover would be fun." She mused, Casey chuckling softly before he shook his head. "But we can talk about it a little more later… I'm not sure if she's quite ready for it, but maybe she is. She's close, at least." She told him, Matt nodding in response before Gabby continued on towards the stairs. "I'll be right back, babe."

"Alright." He said, just before she started heading up to the second floor, Matt drawing in a deep breath as his eyes moved back towards the baby monitor, seeing Sofia still trying to get out of her bed.

But even as he watched her on the small screen, his mind couldn't help but feel a thousand miles away, as his and Gabby's conversation was still clouding his thoughts. Though it felt different now, at least a little bit, as his wife's words had been able to give him some much needed clarity to this entire thing.

Enough clarity to help him finally realize what it was he truly wanted, even if he still wasn't entirely sure it was the right choice.

Dawson held her plate and cup securely in her hands as she made her way over to the long table in the common room, the firehouse buzzing as everyone was digging into their lunch while she sat down in her usual seat beside Casey, Gabby merely listening to all the different conversations happening around her as she settled in.

"Here you go, babe." She finally spoke as she placed the extra piece of cornbread on Casey's plate, as he'd requested it from her when she went to get her food.

"Thank you." He responded with a soft grin before taking another bite of his meal, Gabby nodding in response before she dug in as well.

"Aye, so how long is Kidd gonna be gone today?" Herrmann spoke up, Gabby looking down towards the end of the table towards the older man.

"She should be back in an hour or two." Severide answered, Christopher nodding in response.

"And she's at some training thing?" Cruz pressed.

"Kind of, it's basically a class for some of the new recruits, but they're letting Kidd run them through the drills." He explained, Kelly knowing their friends were just curious as until they arrived this morning, hardly anyone in the firehouse knew Stella wouldn't be here for the start of shift. "It's to help her get more practice being in charge and leading firefighters… Casey set it up for her a few days ago."

A few eyes in the room moved towards Matt, who had just finished up a bite of his lunch, before he gave them all a sturdy nod, Casey taking a sip of his drink before speaking up.

"Yeah, one of my friends over at the academy was talking about it, and I figured it would be good for Kidd to get some extra practice in… With more people than just us here." He explained, Severide nodding in agreement as Gabby watched him with a soft look in her eye.

"That's nice of ya, Casey." Herrmann responded, Matt shrugging slightly.

"Yeah, you're such a great Captain." Cruz teased, Casey waving him off as a few laughs were heard from around the room. "Though you better be careful, if you help Kidd out too much, she might come in and steal your job." He added on, the firefighters around them continuing to laugh at Joe's words.

But his joke hit a little harder to Matt and Gabby, given what all was going on. Especially because they hadn't had a chance to continue their conversation from the day before, as they'd had a busy evening and morning with their girls. But Cruz's words held a lot more weight than he realized, more than anyone else in the house would've realized, as there was a chance it might not even be Casey's job here for much longer. Though now wasn't the time to dwell on it.

"Yeah, yeah, we'll see." Matt played along after a moment, before glancing towards Gabby, the two sharing an understanding look as the rest of the house moved on to another topic.

But seconds later their conversations were interrupted as the bells rang out above them, calling the entire house to a structure fire, everyone quickly shoveling a few more bites in before they all got up and headed out towards the garage, knowing there were people in need of their help.

"Casey, how's it looking?" Boden's voice filled the radio as he stood outside the burning building, the Chief doing his best to navigate through the chaos of all the firetrucks and paramedics around him, as multiple houses had been called to help with the surging fire.

"It's bad in here, Chief." The Captain's voice came crackling back, Gabby looking up from her patient towards the structure when she heard him. Though she quickly pushed down her worry and returned her attention to the person needing help in front of her, as she knew she had a job to do.

"Alright, I'm giving it a minute, and then you get out." Boden ordered strongly, the older firefighter unable to ignore the sinking feeling in his gut about this call, all of them knowing just how bad it was the second they got here. And those feelings only worsened the longer they stood here outside this building. "Help who you can, but 60 seconds and you're out. And I mean everyone… Squad?" He reiterated, Gabby unable to stop the little bit of relief that filled her system knowing that her husband would be out of that fire soon.

"Got it, Chief." Severide spoke back.

"Yeah, we'll be out… You heard him, 81." Casey said, before they continued on with their search, while 61 helped who they could outside, the near dozen paramedics called in all working together in an effort to save as many lives as possible.

But while they were working, a sudden explosion went off above their heads, glass and debris falling down onto the ground before Gabby and Jemma both ducked at the loud, unexpected noise, Dawson doing what she could to shield her partner until the worst of it was over.

"Are you okay?" Gabby asked, Jemma immediately nodding as she glanced back at her.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm good, are you?" Norris questioned, the two paramedics still trying to gather their bearings as Dawson nodded back at her, before her head snapped back towards the building.

"81!" Boden shouted into the radio, pausing for a moment to see if he got any sort of response before he continued. "Squad 3! 81, anyone, can you hear me?!"

"We're good, Chief." Severide coughed out, before Herrmann's voice soon followed.

"Yeah, we're fine… We're coming out. The smoke's bad in here, it's hard to see." The older firefighter added on, Boden clutching his radio tightly as Jemma and Dawson both got themselves up off the ground.

But while Jemma moved to check on their patient, Gabby couldn't help but hesitate for a moment, her eyes focused on the burning building with smoke bellowing from the broken windows.

"We're almost there- Wait, where's Casey?" Herrmann continued, Dawson's spine straightening the second those words left the firefighter's lips.

"Casey's not with you?" Boden asked quickly, his eyes focused on the deathly scene in front of them.

"He was right behind us before the explosion, but I don't-" Herrmann's voice began to cut in and out, the static overpowering his words as Gabby slowly felt her throat beginning to close up, those anxious feelings flooding her system as she clutched her radio a little tighter.

"Dawson…" Jemma spoke, Gabby's eyes falling closed before she took a slight step backwards.

"Right, right I'm sorry, I can help-"

"No, we're fine." Norris assured her, Gabby drawing in a deep breath before looking towards her. "Go." She urged, Dawson not needing to hear another word before she hurried over towards Boden.

"Casey, report!" Boden spoke roughly just as Gabby got to him, the complete radio silence on the other end causing her stomach to sink.

"Let me go back and find him-" Severide tried, but Boden soon cut him off.

"No, you all get out."

"Chief-"

"Now!" He ordered with as much intensity as Gabby had ever seen, Boden painfully aware of who was standing right next to him. But he couldn't think about it that way, Dawson continuing to watch on as the building went up in flames.

"But Chief…"

"I'm fine, Chief."

The second Casey's rough voice came through the radio, it felt like an entire weight had been lifted off of Gabby's chest, her eyes falling closed in relief before she forced herself to take a steadying breath.

"Casey!"

"I'm good, I'm good- There was a little girl, but I got her." Matt coughed out, as the rest of 51's firefighter's began to hurry out of the building, thick black smoke following after them. "We're almost out." He added, just as another roar of fire shot out from the top floor.

"Hurry, Captain." Boden told him, as he reached out to place a supportive hand on Gabby's shoulder, the woman taking another breath before she looked towards him, Boden nodding strongly as he patted her arm.

"I'm coming." He responded, before his radio went dead, Casey clearly more focused on getting outside than keeping everyone updated. And in this moment, Dawson was thankful for that, her eyes staying peeled to the entrance of the building while 51 continued to come out.

"Severide, is everyone okay?" Boden asked, Kelly nodding as he got over to him.

"Yeah, we're good… We're all fine." He spoke once his mask was off, the man sucking in deep breaths of fresh air before looking towards Gabby. Though she wasn't focused on him at all.

The seconds continued to pass by, Gabby still not seeing any sign of her husband coming out of that building, while squad and truck started to get checked over. And the longer she stood here, the more nervous she started to feel, as her mind couldn't help but expect the worst.

But before she was left waiting too much longer, a figure she'd recognize anywhere emerged from the building, Dawson releasing a breath she didn't even realize she was holding as Matt hurried his way far from the building, Gabby, Boden, and now Norris- even though Dawson didn't even realize she was over here, all going to meet him.

"Casey, are you okay?" Boden was the first to ask, Matt immediately nodding as he handed off the little girl to Jemma. From first glance alone, she looked to be a little younger than Caitlyn, Gabby just glad he'd been able to find her as Norris quickly took her over to the rig to get her on oxygen.

"I'm good." Casey spoke, his voice a bit horse as he worked on getting his mask off. "I'm fine." He assured them, Gabby's eyes raking over him out of habit as Severide grabbed his mask and his helmet, giving Matt the space to get some air.

"You sure?"

"I'm sure." He promised, his eyes locking on Boden before he turned to Gabby, seeing his wife less than a foot away from him as she looked over his form. "...I'm fine." He repeated, his voice much softer this time because of who he was speaking to, Gabby drawing in a deep breath before she nodded. "I promise, I'm alright." He added, but he was barely able to get the words out before she wrapped him up in a tight hug, Casey blowing out a heavy breath before hugging her back.

"I'm fine, baby." He murmured, Severide clasping him on the shoulder while he and Gabby held onto each other, the two of them taking this moment for each other after the unnecessarily close call.

But as they stood there, Casey couldn't help but notice that Boden hadn't gone anywhere, the feeling of someone watching him hard to ignore before Matt slowly looked up towards his Chief while keeping his arms around Gabby. But when they locked eyes, he saw something he wasn't expecting; he figured Boden would be angry with him, for disobeying orders and going back, even if it was to save a child. That they had these rules in place for a reason, and he was about to get an earful from his boss, that certainly would've been deserved.

But there was none of that, none of what Casey was expecting. Because as Boden stared at him, there was only one thing shining in his eyes.

And that was pride.

Boden was proud of him, for what he'd done.

And that look told Casey more than words ever could.

Gabby rolled out her neck after she hopped down out of the rig, her aching muscles making themselves known as they began to stretch her arms out, the paramedic slowly moving around the back of the rig before meeting up with Jemma.

"Well, that sure was an eventful one." She mused, Gabby shooting her an unsure look before they continued towards the firehouse.

"That's one word for it." Dawson responded, Norris nodding softly as they navigated their way around the rigs. "I'm just glad everyone's okay."

"Yeah, me too… I'm glad Casey's okay." Jemma replied pointedly, as she knew this call had been a little tougher than Gabby wanted to let on.

"I am too." She told her, her partner reaching out to rub her arm for a moment before Gabby's phone buzzed once in her pocket, Dawson beginning to slow her steps slightly as she looked to see who had texted her.

'Can you come to my office when you get back?'

The message from her husband caused her eyebrows to furrow slightly, before she locked her phone and slid it back into her pocket, Gabby unsure of what he was wanting her for. But she wasn't going to wait to find out.

"You good, Dawson?" Jemma asked when she noticed her friend had practically stopped walking, Gabby glancing up towards her before she nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine… You go ahead and head in there, I'm gonna go see Casey for a second." Gabby replied, a knowing look covering Norris' face before she responded.

"Say no more… After what just happened on that call, you two have fun." She replied lightly, in an effort to take her friend's mind off the intensity of their call, Gabby releasing a soft scoff before she broke off from their path and started heading towards the far set of double doors.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's not what you're thinking." Dawson called after her, Jemma laughing once more before the two friends went their separate ways, Gabby taking the path she knew by heart towards Matt's office.

The hallways were practically deserted, as well as the bunk room by the time she got there, Dawson figuring the entire house was likely inside the common room as she looked over to see her husband sitting at his desk in his office, the door partially open while he worked on what she could only assume was his neverending piles of paperwork. As she walked closer to him, it was hard to really get a read on him as his back was to her, but from first glance he seemed to be fine. Though after that intense call today, she wouldn't have been surprised if he was a little rattled, Gabby not entirely sure what she was walking into as she slowly opened his door.

The sound caused him to look up, Matt flashing her a warm smile the second he saw her before he turned around in his seat, Gabby mimicking his expression as she walked the rest of the way in, before closing the door behind her. "Hey babe… I didn't realize you and Jemma were back already."

"Yeah, we had just gotten back when you texted me." She replied, seeing the understanding look that flashed over his face.

"How'd the drop off go?" He asked, Gabby nodding slowly before she moved closer to him, Matt widening his legs slightly as she came to stand between them, before resting her weight down against his desk.

"It went well, we got our patient there okay." She assured him as she reached out to run her hand through his hair, Matt smiling up at her as he leaned into her touch.

"Good, that's good." He replied softly, Gabby's eyes tracing over his features while she stroked her thumb along his temple. "I'm glad they're all alright."

"Me too." She responded, Casey reaching his hand out to rest over her thigh before she spoke up again. "...Everything alright with you?" Gabby questioned, her words gaining his attention as he drew in a deep breath. "I know that call was a lot, if you need to talk about it."

"No, no I'm good." He promised, flashing her the signature Casey grin before giving her leg a squeeze. "I'm fine, like I told you. That's not why I wanted to talk to you… I mean, yeah, it was a pretty intense call, but I'm alright. We've all experienced worse." He told her, Gabby nodding in agreement as her hand slid down to his shoulder.

"Then what is it?" She pressed, the wife unsure of what to expect. But the smile that stayed on his face told her it wasn't anything bad, her eyes shining back at him as she waited for him to respond.

"I, uh… I wanted to talk to you, because I think I finally know what I want to do." He breathed out quickly, like he couldn't wait to tell her any longer, her eyebrows raising in surprise before she nodded encouragingly. "I pretty much knew after our conversation yesterday, but then with everything that happened together out there on that call, it just… it solidified it for me. For a lot of reasons… But all of it, it's made me realize what I want." He prefaced, Gabby watching him as her body shifted slightly closer to his before he finally continued. "And I've decided that I want to do this."

A proud smile was already forming over her face before he could even get the words out, Matt's own grin widening as she gave him an assuring look.

"...I want to be a Chief."