A/N: Hey all! This is a pretty big one, but I really can't wait to hear what you think :) ;) All fun, right? Let me know your thoughts! And thank you all for reading and supporting me and this story, sending you all big virtual hugs!
Jay lightly jogged down the stairs from the bullpen with two goals in mind: pizza and Hailey. She'd called him earlier to say she had a craving for beer, so he was all too happy to volunteer to pick up pizza on the way home. Grateful they were calling it a day before six, he didn't have to worry about eating too late and having insomnia. He was only broken from his thoughts when he heard his name being called. Slowing before he could reach the doors, he turned to face Trudy and say, "Yeah?"
"You haven't moved recently, right?" she asked.
"Um." He took a few steps closer to her desk and answered, "Right; still at the same apartment. Why?"
Trudy nodded and stapled whatever papers she had in front of her. "Okay, I'll be there in a little bit. What's for dinner?"
Jay's eyes widened and he froze in the middle of the floor. "Sorry?" he said, "Dinner?"
Trudy sighed, "Yes, dinner. Can you not hear?"
"No, I…I can hear," Jay stumbled, "Why are you coming over?"
"Dinner," Trudy answered. She then gestured between the two of them and added, "This whole needing to repeat myself thing happening is not going to fly later tonight. I have to talk to Hailey, so pull it together."
"Oh," Jay breathed. His eyes widened after a second and he repeated, "Oh! Is everything okay?"
"I need to talk to Hailey," Trudy repeated before sitting down at her desk, "I'll see you later."
Jay chewed his lip as he accepted the answer: she wasn't telling him, or, at least, she wasn't telling him without Hailey present. He slowly walked backwards toward the door while keeping his eyes on her. When she still wouldn't look up at him, he sighed and turned to walk outside.
The brisk air briefly distracted him causing him to tug the zipper up further on his coat, but it couldn't complete erase everything swimming through his mind at the moment.
After getting Psári, something about Hailey shifted. It wasn't necessarily a good thing like a new, positive outlook; it was more like she turned a corner. Being asked about the bruises and then confronting her fear about becoming her mom seemed to motivate her even more. In the past few days, she worked harder at staying busy while at home: she painted more, joined an online yoga program, and started going to therapy. She was fully taking control of her life and he couldn't be more proud.
He tried holding onto that pride the entire drive to Bartoli's and then back to his apartment. He didn't want to waste time worrying about what Trudy could be telling them that night even if it was eating at him the entire time.
The smell of Bartoli's pizza in the small apartment was one of Jay's favorite things. The only thing that made it better was Hailey sitting to his left wearing the same Blackhawks hoodie he'd given her days before with a beer in her hand.
"So tell me, what's she like?" she was asking him between bites of her dinner, "It's been like two weeks, you've got to have a good idea of her by now. Good cop? Too green? Wild? Rude? Nice? Good jokes?"
Jay snorted and wiped his mouth before saying, "Ready to get back out there?"
She groaned and took another bite. Once she swallowed, she said, "Don't get me wrong. All this mental health stuff is great and sometimes my ribs still twinge when I bend down, plus there's this damn cast, but I'm getting antsy. I need to get back out there, so until then, I'm going to be living through you."
"Ah," he laughed. Sipping his beer, he said, "She's good. There have been a couple times where you can tell she's pretty fresh, but she's no rookie. She's got a big heart and she gets along with Kim, so it works out."
Hailey nodded along saying, "Good, good." She took a long drink then asked, "Think I'll like her?"
Jay smirked against his pizza and hummed, "Yes."
She elbowed him then scoffed. "I'm just curious," she said.
"Clearly," Jay laughed.
She quietly mocked him before finishing her slice just as there was a knock at the door.
"That'll be Platt," Jay sighed and got up.
"Platt?" Hailey's eyes followed him over to the door. "Why's Platt here?"
"Hey, Trudy," Jay said quietly as he opened the door for her.
"Why so glum, Halstead?" Trudy said while walking into the apartment.
"Because I'd really like to know why you're here," he replied.
"Hey," Hailey said with a smile, "I wasn't expecting you. What's up?"
Trudy ignored her and put a piece of pizza on a paper plate before sitting on the bar stool Jay had just abandoned. "What's Jay told you about Rojas?" she asked.
Hailey raised an eyebrow and glanced at Jay staring in disbelief. "Um," she quietly began, "He was actually just talking about her. Can't wait until I can meet her."
Trudy nodded and bit into her pizza. Jay and Hailey quietly joined her in eating their dinner. As they ate, they kept making eye contact with each other trying to figure out what exactly was going on. While Jay may have felt like a bundle of nerves and anxiety, Hailey was more confused than anything.
Finally, Trudy finished her food and let out a long breath. She turned to Hailey and said, "I got a call from Darlene earlier, and your case has been moved up to tomorrow."
Both Jay and Hailey stopped breathing or making any noise. Darlene was Hailey's lawyer appointed by the district. Trudy highly recommended her and brought her on very early on. While Jay hadn't been directly involved in working the entire case, he had spoken with her enough about what exactly he'd seen upon entering the condo that he felt comfortable around her.
Unfortunately, he hadn't been planning on seeing her for a few more days, maybe even a week, and by the look on Hailey's face, she felt the same way.
"Tomorrow?" she breathed, "Why...why tomorrow?"
"His lawyer is insisting on it, she said they have all their details and don't need more time to prepare," Trudy explained quietly.
Jay scoffed and crossed his arms. "I can't believe he has an actual lawyer," he mumbled, "It's disgusting."
"What's disgusting is I know she's going to try and shame me," Hailey mumbled.
"But it won't work," Trudy said, "You have nothing to be ashamed of."
Jay nodded and added, "It was all him. You did nothing wrong."
Hailey shook her head with pursed lips.
"Nothing," Jay repeated. He waited for Hailey to look at him to raise an eyebrow and repeat as he'd done the past couple weeks: "You're strong. This was not your fault."
Hailey swallowed then nodded. She picked up her napkin and began crumbling it in her hands.
"We're going to get through this," Trudy said, "This is the last step."
"I know," Hailey whispered.
"And we'll all be there," Trudy continued, "Everyone's prepared their part. We've been ready for weeks now. Have you been?"
Hailey nodded again.
"Then we're going to knock this out of the park," Trudy said softly, "You keep your chin up and you lean on us. Just like I told you back in the hospital. We are on your side and we will not let you lose."
"Thank you," Hailey whispered.
Trudy squeezed her arm before standing up. "I'll let Darlene know I told you so she can send all the information your way. I wanted it to come from me."
"I appreciate it," Hailey replied.
Trudy gave her a slight smile then walked back to the door.
"Thanks for coming," Jay said.
Trudy nodded and leaned forward to whisper, "Keep an eye on her. It's going to be okay."
Jay nodded and held the door open for her.
Once Trudy was gone, Hailey got up to begin putting the few leftover pieces of pizza in a bag.
"I can do it," Jay said softly.
"I need to do it," Hailey snapped.
Jay froze in his spot at the door and watched her practically toss the pizza in the bag. She then shoved it in the fridge before washing her hands off and walking from the room. He could hear her in the bedroom going through the closet. With a thump, he knew she had her suitcase out.
He quietly walked in the room and said, "Hailey."
She didn't look up from her suitcase, but her hands shook as she sorted through the outfits she'd kept in there.
"Hey." Jay knelt next to her and grabbed her good wrist. "Look at me," he whispered.
She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head.
Jay waited while rubbing his thumb over her wrist just as she'd done to him days before. Her skin felt so soft under his fingers; he knew her other wrist wasn't going to be the same in a few weeks. He'd had enough casts and braces to know how gross everything was upon getting it off. The sound also always bothered him, so he made a mental note to go with her and hold her free hand just for support.
If she wanted him of course, he didn't think he should force himself upon her.
Now, on the other hand, he figured he needed to. She was putting up walls that were going to hurt her in the end, and he refused to let that happen.
Finally, she opened her eyes with unshed tears in them and whispered, "I can't lose."
"You won't," Jay said quickly, "I refuse to let that happen."
She visibly swallowed then sat back on her heels without pulling her hand from his. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and nodded. When he could again see how blue her eyes really were, she said, "Will you practice our testimonies with me?"
"Of course." He smiled at her and pushed her suitcase to the side so they could sit against the side of the bed together.
For the next hour, they quietly reviewed everything Darlene had told them to talk about and any question they thought could be asked. They tried playing the part of the defense attorney and came up with various questions in attempts to throw the other person off. By the time their legs had fallen asleep, they'd gone over much of what they wanted to say, but then they made their way into bed despite the early time and continued talking everything through. They discussed Hailey's makeup and if she needed to cover anything up, they debated if driving together was going to hurt them, and they expressed any worries they had.
Jay was just as determined to win as Hailey was, but he knew that the key to winning was to keep Hailey calm and help her feel confident. If Hailey was confident, then they were set for success. He whole-heartedly believed that.
So if they stayed up for hours thinking of all possible angles until he could no longer keep his eyes open, Jay was okay with that.
He was okay with anything that involved making Hailey happy.
When Jay woke the next morning, Hailey wasn't in bed. He wasn't completely surprised, but at the same time, he didn't like that it was barely seven in the morning and she wasn't there after she usually had been "sleeping" until he'd get up.
She'd tossed and turned almost the whole night long after they'd stopped talking. Every time he'd woken up, she'd been in a different position assumingly trying to get comfortable. It was only a few hours before when he had dragged himself out of bed to the bathroom that he decided he'd had enough and decided to do something about it. Upon his return to bed, she was laying on her back with her eyes wide open staring at the ceiling, so he'd grabbed her fingers poking out from her cast. The movement had startled her, but she quickly relaxed and even scooted closer to him. With a smile, he closed the distance and tossed his arm over her shoulder and brushed his fingers over her hair until she finally fell asleep.
Just like their first night.
There was something domestic about those last few hours that gave him some sort of glimpse into their potential future - if that was even a thing. Living with Hailey for over a week reiterated to him that being friends was where they were best. It was simple and worked. They had fun watching TV together at night, occasionally argued about doing the chores, and could sit in silence in the morning without feeling awkward. Their routine was welcomed. It felt like that normalcy Hailey had been craving with Tarik.
Tarik.
Jay groaned quietly and sat up in bed to press his hands to his eyes. The trial was in a few hours, so he needed to get ready. He'd been briefed that he probably would have to talk on what he'd heard on the phone and what he'd seen when he first arrived, but it still wasn't something he exactly wanted to talk about yet.
Not when Hailey still had traces of bruising along her face and arms. His anger was still right at the surface, and he wasn't quite sure he had the ability to contain it. He knew he needed to, but he certainly didn't want to.
The shower was running, though, so he pulled himself from bed to make Hailey breakfast. That was something he wanted to do.
By the time he'd finished making two spinach and onion omelets just the way Hailey liked them, she was walking out of the bathroom angrily balling up her pajamas dressed in a big t-shirt and no pants with her wet hair already dampening the grey fabric she was wearing.
"Morning," he said as she passed.
She ignored him, though, and walked into the bedroom. He could hear her rummaging around for something before she made a loud noise and something crashed.
"Hailey."
He dropped the towel he'd been using to dry his hands and hurried into the bedroom. Hailey was sitting on the bed with her head in her hands and her suitcase knocked to the side.
"What's going on?" he asked slowly.
She groaned then looked up to repeat what she'd said multiple times the night before: "I need to win today. I need this."
"I know." Jay nodded and picked up the suitcase before kneeling in front of her. He waited to meet her eyes to say, "You will."
Hailey sighed, "You don't know that."
"I know that Platt worked her ass off to get a solid case," Jay said, "All of them did, but she went all in. I know because she handed off a bunch of her crap on me to keep me busy."
It got a tiny smile out of Hailey as she nodded.
"I also know that we spent a lot of time last night talking every possible question and angle through," he continued, "If everyone else is at least half as prepared as we are, then we are set to win."
"Thank you," Hailey whispered.
Jay nodded and lightly rubbed her knee. He debated his words and figured he should have admitted something the night before. It hadn't seemed super important at the time, but now that he was bragging about everyone else and reminding her that he hadn't worked the case as much as he'd wanted to, it sounded like a good time to tell her the truth even if he was nervous for her reaction.
"I, uh, haven't officially told you, but I was taken off the case that first day," he said quietly after a moment, "Maybe you knew or figured, but I figured I should tell you that I may have made a poor decision when I got back to the district."
Hailey's smile widened which she tried hiding by biting her bottom lip. She hummed and tilted her head to the side.
"I may have punched him…multiple times," Jay explained, "Not professional, but it felt damn good."
Hailey breathed in then reached out with her casted hand to lightly touch his cheek. "Platt told me the day after my surgery. I think she was hoping the pain meds I was on would soften the blow," she said.
"Smart woman," Jay chuckled.
"She didn't need to soften the blow though," she continued, "Because it made me happy. Unprofessional, yes, but…very happy. Men who…men who…"
She trailed off and looked down at her hands. Jay followed her gaze and noticed her raw fingertips from what was most likely excessive picking. He frowned and lightly grabbed them.
With a soft squeeze, he said, "People who hurt women and children deserve nothing but a solid one-sided fight where they lose."
Hailey lightly wiped her eyes then breathed in and asked, "Are you saying you won?"
Jay smiled slightly and nodded. "I'd say I did. Would have won even more if Kevin minded his own business."
Hailey laughed and reached out to again brush her fingers on the side of his face. Standing up, she took another deep breath then said, "My pants are wrinkled."
Jay raised an eyebrow and gave a pointed, teasing look to her bare legs.
She laughed again and shoved his shoulder so he fell back on the rug. "My dress pants," she corrected, "Damn suitcase."
"I've got an iron," Jay chuckled, "Go eat your breakfast; I'll take care of it."
"You sure?" Hailey asked despite already walking backwards out of the room.
"I'm sure." He waved her on and watched her walk out before standing and grabbing her navy pants from the ground.
As he walked to his laundry closet for his iron, he could still feel her fingertips on his cheek. As if her fingers were ice, they left a trail on his skin. There was no doubt she could feel the stubble he'd debated shaving the night before, and he briefly wondered if it bothered her. Did she have a preference to what her boyfriends looked like?
Of course not, she'd dated Adam.
Jay smirked to himself while smoothing out her pants on the ironing board. Spraying the starch to them, he reminded himself that while he hadn't shaved last night, he was nowhere near Adam's level. And yet, like Adam had said, the two of them were on different levels. Adam would never have what he had with Hailey.
It wasn't a friendly shoulder squeeze like he'd been used to - it was his face. She'd done it twice. This was slower than just falling into bed together after a stressful day. It wasn't some sort of way to blow off steam.
She wasn't Erin.
She wasn't Camilla.
She wasn't any of the girls he ever met after the war.
She was Hailey.
And this was new. It was slow. It was real. It was good.
He wasn't going to rush any part of this because he truly wanted to hang on to every word. If by some chance they never did get past the friend zone, what they had was still special. It was deeper than anything he'd felt before, and whatever it was…he was never letting it go.
Hailey was his light that he never wanted to turn off.
"All right," he called out, "Pants are ironed!"
Hailey walked over and instantly smiled. "Thank you," she said as she accepted them, "I'm gonna lay them on the bed. I'll put them on once I'm ready."
Jay nodded and turned the iron off. "Did you make a final decision on the makeup?"
"Not wearing it," Hailey easily answered, "They need to see what he did to me and how it's still here."
Jay's eyes flickered to the fading yellow bruises on her jaw and the still light purple ones across her forehead and near her eye. He nodded slightly and swallowed against his dry throat.
Hailey moved past any tension in the air by asking, "What're you wearing?"
"You want to pick it out?" he lightly teased.
Hailey sucked in a breath then nodded and brushed past him into the bedroom.
"Hailey," he said as he followed her, "It's going to be okay."
"We need to make sure," she said with one hand rifling through his closet, "Where's your dress uniform? Preferably the Rangers one, but I'll take either."
"Hey, hey." Jay stepped forward and gently grabbed her cast. "Hailey," he repeated, "We don't need to put on some facade, we just need to tell the truth. The truth is on our side."
Her eyes darted across his face as his words sank in. It was close to a full minute later when she nodded and relaxed. "Okay," she breathed.
"Thank you," Jay said softly.
"I still want to pick out your tie."
"That's fine."
"And black suit jacket, I'm wearing navy. We can't look like we're matching."
"I can do that."
"Thank you."
If Hailey planned on showcasing the lingering effects of the assault, she knocked it out of the park: the black cast on her wrist didn't blend into her suit jacket and she'd pulled her hair half up to highlight the bruises still darkening her jaw and forehead. She looked beaten, but strong and recovering. So different than she'd been days before, she wasn't hiding anything that had happened to her. She radiated confidence.
Jay walked alongside her into the courthouse feeling nothing but pride with each step they took. He didn't even pay attention to anyone around them. All he could focus on was Hailey and what she was about to do.
The peace she was sure to bring herself.
"Jay, Hailey."
They turned to see Kim, Adam, and Kevin walking down the hall toward them.
"You look great," Kim continued once she reached them. She grabbed Hailey's left hand and gave it a tight squeeze.
Adam clasped Jay's shoulder then reached out to hug Hailey quickly as Kevin nodded at them both and gestured toward the courtrooms.
Together, the five of them walked with Hailey leading the way, Jay and Kim just a step behind her followed by Adam and Kevin. Mere feet behind them, Voight and Trudy had entered the building and were making their way to the courtroom as well.
Jay couldn't help but smile as Hailey pushed opened the doors.
They were doing this…
And they were going to win.
"There's a fifteen minute break, and then your case will be brought to the stand," Hailey's lawyer, Darlene, explained. She was mostly talking to Hailey, but everyone else sitting around her was also on the edge of their seats listening to every word.
"This would be a good time to grab a quick drink, maybe go to the bathroom. Just calm your nerves. We have the facts on our side," she continued.
"I think I'll take you up on that," Trudy announced while standing, "I need to stretch my legs. I'll be back in a minute."
Darlene patted Hailey's hand then turned to sit back in her seat to continue looking over her notes.
"What about you?" Jay whispered, "Bathroom? Water?"
"I, um, bathroom I guess," Hailey said and stood, "I feel fine, but just in case."
"Of course." Jay watched her walk out still filled with confidence before sinking into the bench.
"She's got this," Kevin said quietly in his ear, "Everything's going to be fine."
Jay stiffly nodded and looked down at his hands before lightly pulling at the hair tie still tight around his wrist. He tried keeping his thoughts positive because he really did think they were going to win, but this fear that he knew Hailey also had kept gnawing at him. Crazy things happen all the time no matter how prepared they were in court.
Al's case flashed in the back of his mind causing him to internally wince. There was no way Hailey could be the one who ended up in jail, but now it was an unnecessary fear. Could something potentially backfire and cause her to be sent to prison?
"Hey, it didn't start yet?"
Jay looked up to see Vanessa sliding onto the bench next to Kim. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why're you here? I didn't realize Platt gave you the day off too."
"Just want to support," she said simply with a smile, "I know I haven't met Hailey yet, but I figured we could maybe celebrate her win later."
Kim nodded and said, "I'd love a drink."
"I think that's a good idea," Kevin added.
Jay turned back to Vanessa to say, "Well, thanks for coming. She's in the bathroom right now."
"Who is?" Trudy asked while sitting back down from her walk.
"Hailey," Adam answered.
"I didn't see her, and I was just there," Trudy said.
Jay missed everyone's eyes turn to him because he shot off the bench. She'd said she was going to the bathroom, so why wasn't she in the bathroom? He'd trusted her, but now he feared that her own worries could have caused her to leave.
Rushing through the building, he looked in each courtroom thinking maybe she'd stopped to watch another case to get her mind off of what was soon going to happen. The problem, though, was that she didn't have much time to do that.
And then he heard him.
"I didn't mean anything by it."
"You took my gun from my hand and hit it to my skull. How-"
"It was the heat of the moment!"
"Go to hell."
Months before, Jay had stood frozen when Tarik had grabbed Hailey's wrist. Just weeks before, he'd missed out on intercepting him from beating her.
He refused to let it happen again.
Walking around the corner, he saw Hailey and Tarik arguing near the drinking fountain. They were about two feet away from each other, which was about twenty feet too close in his eyes. He cleared his throat and said, "Hailey."
Her head snapped to him and, while her eyes were still blazing with anger, her shoulders visibly softened. Her hair had fallen from its hair tie and was hanging in her face, but still barely hid the bruising obvious around her eye.
"Jay," Tarik breathed as he took a step back from Hailey.
Jay put his hand out toward Hailey and said, "Come on. Trial's starting soon."
She stiffly nodded and began walking toward him. Before she could get far, though, Tarik said, "This is exactly why I called you a cheater."
Hailey spun around and lunged at him just for Jay to shoot forward and grab her waist.
"Hailey!"
"Hey!"
"Hailey, no!"
Adam and Kim were suddenly there shoving themselves in between them while Kevin helped Jay pull Hailey back further.
"You don't want to do it," Jay whispered to Hailey, "He's not worth it."
"He's disgusting," she hissed back, "He deserves to see what it feels like."
"And he will," Kevin said with another shove to Jay's chest pushing them all backwards another step, "But you let the other prisoners determine that."
"You come near her again and it will be the last thing you do," Adam snapped at Tarik.
He scoffed and made sure he was looking at Hailey as he said, "Wouldn't dream of it. Guess our break-up was for the best. She can't be trusted."
Hailey clawed again at Jay and Kevin's arms, but said nothing while trying to break free.
Jay turned, though, and glared at Tarik as he spit, "One more word and I'll kill you myself."
Whether it was the words themselves or the memory of Jay's fists hitting his face, Tarik turned and walked away without a word.
"You good?" Kim asked Hailey.
She nodded and brushed her hair from her face.
"What the hell happened?" Jay whispered.
"Just needed some water and he was there doing the same thing," she mumbled.
Jay nodded while keeping a hand on her elbow to steady her.
"We have about three minutes before we need to be back in there," Adam said with a glance toward his watch.
"Give me a second," Hailey breathed.
Kim, Adam, and Kevin reluctantly walked away with Kim holding Jay's eye contact while the guys looked at Hailey.
Once they were gone, Jay asked, "What happened to your hair?"
"Rubberband snapped in the bathroom," Hailey said quietly.
Jay nodded and slid her hair tie from his wrist.
Hailey raised an eyebrow, but still accepted it.
"Put your hair up," he explained, "We can't let him win. Show it off."
It earned the smallest of smiles from Hailey as she gathered her hair into a ponytail.
"Did he touch you?" Jay asked while scanning Hailey over.
"Just a tap on the back," she answered.
Jay's anger flared again and he spun around to see if Tarik was anywhere nearby.
"I'm fine," Hailey said quietly.
Shaking his head, Jay took a few steps toward the end of the hall to again look for Tarik.
"Jay."
Hailey's hand was then on his lower back, and he could feel her shaking slightly next to him.
"I'm fine," she whispered, "You're the one who just stopped me from hurting him, I'm not going to let you do just that."
He closed his eyes briefly then turned to look down at her. "Right," he said, "Sorry."
She shook her head while slipping her hand in his. "He deserves to feel pain, but Kevin was right: that's no longer our responsibility. All we need to do is make sure he loses."
Smiling slightly, he nodded and squeezed her fingers. "We've got this," he whispered.
"Together," Hailey said with a nod.
"Ms. Upton, before the night of October 3rd, did you ever feel like you were in danger around Mr. Melton?"
"I realized a couple weeks before that night that perhaps we weren't as compatible as I'd thought."
"Did you ever feel like you were in danger?"
"No, no I did not."
"Then why plan to break-up with him?"
"We weren't compatible."
"How so?"
"He didn't respect my boundaries and did not like my choice in friends."
"Such as who?"
"My work partner."
"Detective Halstead, you've been on the job now for a long time, correct?"
"Yes."
"And Intelligence for how long?"
"About seven and a half years."
"Have you ever been called to a house where domestic assault had occurred?"
"Yes."
"And do you usually just grab the victim and leave the scene of the crime?"
"No."
"So why did you do so with Ms. Upton?"
"Mr. Melton, did you expect that Ms. Upton was going to break-up with you on October 3rd?"
"No."
"Were you invited to her house that night?"
"No, she'd told me she had plans."
"So why did you still show up?"
"I knew we needed to talk about our relationship."
"Why?"
"I suspected she was cheating on me."
"With who?"
"Jay Halstead."
"Sergeant Platt, can you define premeditated murder for us?"
"Premeditated murder is when the offender plans to commit murder prior to seeing his or her victim."
"Did anything in Mr. Melton's apartment suggest he was planning on killing Ms. Upton the night of October 3rd?"
"No."
"Officer Atwater, can you explain to us what a typical scene will look like if someone committed a murder within a home?"
"There's typically a lot of blood if the offender hadn't cleaned up, but if they had, then it could look like a normal house. If some sort of poison or drug had been used, though, again, it would look normal."
"And by normal, you mean...?"
"That nothing had happened."
"And how would you describe Ms. Upton's house upon your arrival? Was there a lot of blood suggesting a murder or was it 'normal' by your standards?"
"Hailey's house was a mess. There was glass everywhere, a hole in the wall, and there was blood on the floor."
"Enough to suggest someone had been killed?"
"Perhaps."
"Hailey, can you describe to the court what your childhood was like?"
"I grew up in an abusive home. My father would get drunk and it often ended in him hitting my mother, my brothers, or myself."
"When you left your home, what did you picture for yourself?"
"Something happier. A life with someone who would respect me in ways my father didn't respect my mother."
"Do you believe that Mr. Melton has some of the same characteristics of your father?"
"Now I do."
"When did these thoughts begin?"
"Well, his jealousy and insecurity reminded me of my father before we broke up, but how he was screaming that night…he reminded me of my dad."
"Jay, talk us through your thoughts when you opened up Hailey's door and saw her there on the floor."
"I was terrified. She wasn't moving and I could see blood near her. The scariest part was seeing her gun at the top of the stairs. I didn't know if she was alive or dead."
"So what did you do?"
"I went over to her and checked her pulse and picked her up to take her to the hospital."
"Why didn't you search the house for Mr. Melton?"
"Hailey's safety was more important."
"Did anyone tell you to just go to the hospital?"
"Yes. Sergeant Platt."
"So then why, Tarik, would you show up at Hailey's house after she specifically told you she had plans?"
"I needed to see what she was doing."
"Okay. So you showed up at her house and she wasn't there, why didn't you leave?"
"I wanted to talk to her."
"About what?"
"Her involvement with her partner."
"Jay."
"Yes."
"Why that night, though? Why couldn't you wait until the morning?"
"She blew me off."
"And that made you angry?"
"Well, yes."
"I'm sorry to ask you to define something again, Sergeant Platt."
"It's okay."
"Ms. Rowling asked you to define premeditated murder, but I'd like you to explain to us what attempted murder means."
"Attempted murder is when a person tries to kill another human being."
"Is it necessarily premeditated?"
"No."
"So could it be possible that someone can go to another's home with the intention to simply talk, but then end in trying to seriously harm the person? Perhaps hoping in the moment that the other person will die?"
"That is possible."
"How did you find out about Hailey, Kevin?"
"Jay called me as he was driving to her house."
"To her home, yes, that's exactly what Jay told us. So did you know then what you were going to find when you arrived?"
"No. I don't know if Jay knew either. He just knew that something had happened between Hailey and…and Tarik."
"Based on his phone call, what did you expect to see that night?"
"I expected to see the results of a fight. I didn't expect to see the blood on the floor or her gun. That was a bit scary. Hailey's strong, but she's still smaller than Tarik. It looked like he did some real damage to her."
Jay sat on the bench with his hands shoved between his thighs as he waited for the jury to file back into the courtroom. He didn't know what the results were going to be. At times, he was confident that Tarik would be charged guilty on all counts. At others, he felt for sure they'd walk out of there having only won the two charges that Tarik pled guilty for. While those would feel successful no matter what, they'd feel even better when paired with a guilty for the attempted murder charge.
Hailey glanced over her shoulder at him, but her face was blank. She'd whispered to him moments before that she was nervous. Like him, she wasn't as confident anymore that they were going to win.
He nodded at her and tried to smile, but had a feeling it looked more like a grimace. Try as he might, he didn't know if he could hide his fear and nerves.
Hailey sighed and turned back to the front of the room just as the last juror sat down.
"Here we go," Kevin breathed to Jay's right.
He rubbed his face then grabbed at his wrist for the hair tie he'd gotten used to playing with any time he was nervous forgetting he didn't have it anymore. Whether it was at work or in the quiet of his bedroom with Hailey sleeping next to him, he would absentmindedly pull at the hair tie and let it snap down against his skin. Now, though, that hair tie was in Hailey's hair perfectly showing off the fading bruises on her face. He hoped it had worked.
On his left, Kim seemingly mistook his nervous grab at his wrist as a need to hold hands because she then placed her own over his and gave a soft squeeze, but he didn't fight her and let her cool fingers hold onto him.
While he knew Hailey's nerves were tenfold and that his own were also through the roof, he knew everyone else was also hanging on by a thread. Kim needed something to hold on to and while he didn't love it, he wasn't going to argue.
His eyes darted around the courtroom as the judge explained what was about to happen and began the formalities of finally closing this case. The first juror stood, a short and plump man with a round face and square glasses. He'd seemed rather serious throughout the entire trial and made notes on a legal pad. Jay couldn't get a read on him and had no idea what to expect.
"As a reminder, the defendant has already pled guilty on the counts of domestic assault and assaulting a police officer, so we are only asking for the final count. On the count of attempted murder, how do you find the defendant?" the judge said. She folded her hands together and gave all her attention to the jury.
The plump man cleared his throat before saying, "Guilty."
Jay closed his eyes and felt his body flood with relief.
"Oh my god," Kevin whispered.
"She did it," Kim breathed.
It was the last thing he heard as Jay leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees and press his hands into his eyes. He thought he could cry. Tarik was going to jail. He was going to be out of their lives for a very long time. It was over.
Hailey was safe and her life could go back to normal. She didn't need to have this anxiety or worry anymore over Tarik coming after her again. She could move on with her life. While leaving the hospital might have been the first step in her recovery, this was for sure the next. Her nightmare could come to an end.
Kevin placed his hand on his back and said quietly, "It's all over."
He nodded and grunted in acknowledgement. He didn't trust himself to look up because he could feel tears of happiness pricking at his eyes.
Hailey was safe. He kept repeating it over and over and over in his mind. Hailey was safe. She won. She did it.
"She lied! None of that actually happened. She lied!"
Jay's head snapped up at Tarik's screaming. He seemed to be having a mild panic attack and was desperately trying to change the judge's mind as his lawyer tried getting him to quiet down.
The two officers in the room hurried over and began putting handcuffs on him, which just spurred on his fight.
"It was Jay. It was Jay! He's the one who hurt her. Arrest him!"
Jay stood and glanced over at Hailey who was staring at Tarik with wide eyes. The judge banged his gavel against his stand to no avail. The room was filled with chaos as the jurors were led away and Tarik's lawyer continued telling him to stop talking.
Hailey, though, was rooted to her spot. She was standing next to Darlene who was whispering to her. Jay couldn't hear the words over all the noise, but he wanted to because if he was close enough to hear, then he was close enough to Hailey to get her out of there.
He shoved past Kevin and darted to the front of the courtroom to reach over the barrier and roughly grab Hailey's left hand. "Let's go," he said.
"See? See! She was cheating on me. I didn't do anything wrong. She deserved it. She deserved everything that happened to her."
Jay's blood boiled at Tarik's words. He dropped Hailey's hand and slowly turned to face Tarik.
"Did you notice she wasn't wearing the bracelet I gave her?" Tarik yelled at the judge, "She took it off that night! She deserved to feel all the pain I gave her."
"Come on!" The taller of the two officers at Tarik's side jerked him forward and began leading him out the side door.
Jay's jaw set and he moved to follow only for a hand on his elbow to pull him back. He turned to see Voight at his side.
"You're not going down there," he said gruffly, "Grab Hailey and let's go."
Jay swallowed the anger nagging at his throat and nodded before reaching out to Hailey once more. Her fingers were shaking in his, but she gratefully walked around Darlene to follow him down the aisle. Kevin and Adam were waiting for them at the door and led the way outside with Trudy and Vanessa right behind them.
"Where's Kim and Voight?" Hailey quietly asked once they'd reached the fresh air.
"Staying to talk to the judge and then walking out with Darlene," Trudy explained.
Hailey nodded and rubbed at her face.
"You did it," Adam said with an attempt at a smile, "You won."
"Yeah," Hailey breathed, "I won."
"Proud of you," Kevin said and gently nudged her shoulder with his fist.
"You were incredible on the stand," Vanessa piped in, "I'm excited to work with you next month."
It finally earned a smile from Hailey and she replied softly, "I look forward to it."
"Anyone want to get a beer later?" Vanessa asked, "I feel like you could all relax for a bit. I'll buy a round."
"Knew you were a good addition to the team," Adam said with a wink.
"It sounds fun," Hailey said softly, "I'd like to get to know you more too."
Vanessa smiled and replied, "Great. Molly's?"
"Always a good time," Kevin concluded.
Jay wasn't paying much attention to their conversation, though, and was instead continuously glancing up at the courthouse before he leaned down to whisper in Hailey's ear: "Let's go home. I want to get you out of here." He had absolutely no desire to see Tarik ever again.
"And if you stay any longer, I have a feeling you're going to run back in there," Trudy pointed out with a raised eyebrow.
Jay sucked in a breath and admitted, "Yeah, probably."
"Why would he just start yelling like that?" Kevin asked with his eyes following Jay's up to the courthouse, "Wasn't helping anything."
"Because he's weak and thought it'd get him the win," Adam said.
Trudy shook her head and lightly nudged Jay. "Get out of here," she said under her breath, "He'll be coming out soon and I don't want either of you nearby when he does."
Jay nodded and gently tugged Hailey's hand.
"Thank you all for coming," Hailey said before they walked away.
"We're proud of you, Upton!" Kevin yelled.
Hailey smiled and lightly jogged with Jay over to his truck. Once inside, she pulled her hair from the ponytail to once again toss it in his cup holder before slumping into the seat. "Oh my god," she breathed.
"You did it," Jay said as he started the engine.
"We did it," Hailey corrected.
Jay smiled at her before driving away.
Hailey stayed quiet the entire time, so Jay chose not to disturb her. He knew he was exhausted himself. The entire trial had been draining. It felt like there hadn't been any pause to think until the jury had gone away to deliberate.
If anything, he actually felt more drained now than he had as he waited for the jury's decision. Tarik's parting words haunted him now. He'd accused him of being the one who hurt Hailey, which was something he partly agreed with. Had he stepped up sooner or gone to Hailey's when she didn't answer the phone the first time, maybe he would have saved her. He wasn't the one who raised a fist to her, but he hadn't stopped or prevented anything from happening. It wasn't the first time the fear had crossed his mind, but it stung even more having Tarik himself scream the words in front of so many people.
He had screamed so many words, but that was the statement that kept replaying in his mind. That lie hurt to hear. He never ever would have imagined hurting Hailey or any other woman, yet the thought of someone accusing him of such was like a knife in the back. All he wanted was to forget it had been said, but he didn't think he would. At least not for a while.
Hailey, on the other hand, seemed to have been mulling over something else Tarik had said because they had been driving for about five minutes when she asked, "Where's the bracelet?"
"What?"
"The bracelet. He mentioned the bracelet. I forgot about it, but I gave it to you that day. Where is it?"
Jay breathed in and glanced at her as he answered, "In my drawer at home. Do you-"
"When you park, go in and grab it," Hailey interrupted, "I need it."
Jay raised an eyebrow and he whispered, "Hailey."
"I need it," she repeated, "We're not going to just sit around and wait for Molly's tonight, we're doing something else. I need that bracelet."
"Okay," he answered quietly, "We can do that."
Hailey didn't reply and turned to look out the window.
With the damned bracelet in hand, Jay hopped back in the truck and passed it over to Hailey. She took it without word and just squeezed it within her fist.
"Where to?" he asked quietly.
"A bridge. Doesn't matter which one, it just needs to be along the river."
Jay raised an eyebrow, but nodded and pulled out of the parking lot. It wasn't a long drive, and yet it gave him just enough time to debate all the possibilities as to why Hailey would want to go to a bridge along the Chicago River. In part, he wondered if she'd push him in. Maybe she was angry that he'd kept it from her for so long. Just like he'd done after that first week, he'd truly forgotten that he had the bracelet in his bedside table. It wasn't something he thought about often at all. Maybe Hailey had forgotten about it as well and thought he had known about it. Yes, he'd known about it, but no, he hadn't thought about it in a long time. He almost began defending himself, and then he looked down at Hailey's tight fist on her lap and decided now was not the time. He'd give her the chance to explain her thought process first before defending his actions.
He barely had the car in park near the Columbus Bridge when Hailey was jumping out onto the sidewalk. She quickly moved along the pedestrian walkway until she was in the middle of the bridge.
Jay briefly wondered if she was going to jump, which just spurred him to jog faster over toward her. Once at her side, he easily caught his breath and asked, "What're you doing?"
Hailey didn't answer, though, and just opened her fist to look down at the bracelet. It obviously hadn't changed in the months since she'd received it, and Jay thought it still looked just as stupid as he originally thought that morning she'd showed him.
She squeezed her eyes shut as her fingers wrapped back around the bracelet.
"My mother once told me never to hate anyone," she murmured a minute later with her eyes trained on the water, "But I truly think I hate him."
Jay let out a breath and nodded. "You have the right to," he said softly.
"I won that case and he still found a way to ruin it for me," she continued as if she didn't even hear him, "All that yelling for what? It wasn't going to change anyone's mind. Once you're found guilty, you're guilty." She sniffled and rubbed her fist under her nose. "He's such a dumbass."
Jay couldn't help but chuckle as he leaned forward against the bridge railing. "Got me there," he whispered.
Hailey looked down at the bracelet in her hand again and flipped it around to examine the black rope and tiny silver T. She shook her head before trying to pull it over her cast. With a soft grunt and one tear escaping down her cheek, she yanked it hard enough to break it.
The silver T fell to the sidewalk, so she bent down to pick it up. She gave it one last look before throwing it over the edge of the railing. It hadn't even hit the water yet when she threw the rest of the bracelet in as well.
Gripping the railing, Hailey squatted down with her eyes squeezed shut. She took several deep breaths to steady herself.
Jay frowned as he watched her. After the day she'd had, he wasn't quite sure what the right thing to do was. If it had been him on trial and getting rid of the last piece of an ex, he had a feeling he'd want to be alone; however, he wasn't quite sure he wanted Hailey to be alone.
The next best thing, though, was to give her time. She was still squatting near the ground, so he ignored his dress clothes and sat down on the sidewalk next to her. He crossed his legs and stared out at the water. There was a soft breeze coming up from the river sending a chill through him, but he didn't say anything. Even with the frozen sidewalk under his legs, he didn't move. He'd sit there all day if it meant Hailey wouldn't feel alone.
After a few minutes, she shifted onto the ground next to him and slipped her shoes off. To his horror, she scooted a few inches closer to the edge of the bridge and dangled her feet over the edge. She sucked in the cool air then whispered, "I'm free."
Jay's eyes flickered to her feet swaying above all the water. He cleared his throat and nodded. "How's it feel?" he asked softly.
She smiled out at the river then turned to him and said, "Damn good."
Jay chuckled and shook his head. He looked back out at the water and stared at it for a moment before deciding to join Hailey and stick his legs through the railing.
"This feels good too, doesn't it?" Hailey asked.
"Little scary," Jay said with another chuckle.
Smiling, Hailey nodded and said, "I used to do it when I was younger. I loved going to bridges. Maybe that makes me sound crazy, but they always have a nice view. They also kind of amaze me. We've already talked about science not being my best subject, and physics counts in that. I'd just walk for blocks until I could find a bridge then hang out there for a couple hours. Sometimes I'd paint, but sometimes I'd also just sit like this. My feet almost feel weightless."
"Guess they do," Jay said as he lightly kicked his feet in the wind.
Hailey leaned back against her left palm and closed her eyes against the breeze. She hummed softly and that's when Jay realized how free she really was. For the first time in weeks, there wasn't stress haunting her eyes. Her bruises seemed a little lighter and her smile was slightly bigger. She really was free. It was over.
"I'm proud of you," he whispered.
Hailey turned to look at him and smiled. "Thank you," she said softly, "I'm proud of me too."
Jay chuckled and nudged his shoulder to hers.
"And another thank you for everything," she continued, "You've been the most supportive person in the world. You even gave up your bed for me."
"Hey, I'm still sleeping there, I didn't give anything up," Jay said with a wink.
Hailey smiled and shook her head. "Can you accept the thank you?" she asked.
He laughed and shrugged, but still replied, "You're welcome. What're partners for?"
Hailey bit her lip over her smile then raised an eyebrow and whispered, "You're more than just my partner, Jay."
His stomach felt like butterflies were swirling around and his breath got stuck in his throat. That could mean any number of things, but he wasn't quite sure he knew what he wanted it to mean. Yes, she'd just thrown out Tarik's bracelet, but did that really mean she was ready for him to tell her he liked her? What if she was just thinking they were friends, was he okay with that? What he did know was that she was right: they were more than just work partners whatever that may be.
So he swallowed and quietly admitted, "You're more than my partner too."
Hailey smiled at him – a big, genuine smile that sped up those same butterflies in his stomach – then turned back out to the water. She continued kicking her feet in the air in silence until she seemed to have had enough. Scooting backwards again, she slipped her heels back on then stood up with the help of the railing.
"Home?" Jay asked from his place on the ground.
She nodded and put her left hand out.
Smiling, Jay grabbed it and stood up. He ended up being closer to her than he anticipated and was just about toe-to-toe with her. Looking down at her, the air was once again stuck in his throat. Her hair swirling in the wind and her eyes bright with freedom, she looked beautiful. She was becoming his Hailey again – she was finally recovering.
As if it had a mind of its own, his hand reached out to gently tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
Hailey closed her eyes as his fingers brushed her cheek and her head tilted into his touch.
"I meant it," Jay whispered, "I really am proud of you."
Hailey blinked slowly and looked up at him.
"I know I keep saying it, but I am," he continued with his fingers cupping around her jaw, "You're so strong and…you're right, we're not just partners."
His confidence grew with each breath they both took. So close together, he could practically feel her chest rising and falling against his with just the river breeze between them. He needed to tell her. He couldn't keep it to himself anymore – not when she finally found her strength and freedom again. He trusted that everything was going to be okay.
"You mean more to me than just work," he said. His voice returned to just a whisper and part of him wondered if she could hear him there on the bridge even with the short distance between them. Clearing his throat, he said, "Even though we haven't spent every single day inside and out in the bullpen together, you're still here with me and letting me stick around. We're figuring it out and I couldn't be more grateful. I like you being in my life and I'm really happy to be in yours."
"Jay," Hailey whispered. She put her hand over his on her cheek and took another step toward him. Her casted hand swung slightly forward and brushed against his free hand. With one more swing, she hooked her pointer finger around his and pushed up on her toes.
Her eyes were suddenly right there just above her lips so incredibly close to his.
He knew it – she had to have felt the same way as him. He'd been right.
Her blazer brushed against his suit jacket and he could feel his tie bunch up slightly on his chest.
He'd waited months for this moment. What started as pretending to date to avoid awkward bar encounters was becoming something real.
Her head tilted in and just when he closed his eyes in anticipation of her lips on his, a soft buzzing hit his belly.
"Oh."
Dropping his hand, Hailey stumbled backwards and quickly worked to get her phone from the inner pocket of her blazer. Her cheeks were flushed as she glanced at the screen then answered the call saying, "Hello?"
Jay let out the breath he'd been holding and took his own step backwards.
She was going to kiss him. It wasn't his imagination. She was actually going to kiss him here on the Columbus Bridge on a cool October day. It was actually going to happen. No more dreams about what her face would look like centimeters from his or how her breath would feel mixing with his own against his lips. He experienced it for real.
He just didn't get to finish it.
He was so caught up in the haze of almost kissing Hailey that he barely registered her saying, "Are you serious? Oh my gosh, thank you. Yes, I-I'll take it. Thank you."
Blinking his eyes quickly, he focused back on how Hailey was now, not just seconds before.
She put her phone back in her pocket then softly explained, "That was your landlord. I submitted an application last week and an apartment opened up a few floors above you. I can move out of your place next week."
