The soup simmered gently in the pot, releasing a heavenly scent as the steam curled in the air. Severide smiled, satisfied how it was turning out, as he placed the lid back on the pot to allow it to keep cooking.

They had been low on groceries, planning to go on a run before Casey had ended up in the hospital, so Severide had to get creative to make a great meal. By luck, they had had everything he needed to make his mom's famous soup. It didn't have a specific name, mainly composed of what vegetables you had on hand, but it was hearty and she had made it every time Severide was sick. It had become a comfort to him and it was one of Casey's favourite dishes that he made.

At the thought, Severide glanced at the still shut bedroom door. It was nearing six am and he would have to give Casey another pain killer soon, aiming to not have a repeat performance of earlier.

He had checked on him an hour after their fight, satisfied when all he saw was a tuft of hair as his body raised and lowered rhythmically in a sound sleep.

Severide could only hope that soup and an apology would be enough to get him back in the good books; he never liked when the two of them fought. They had enough tension at work, Casey's rank of Captain sometimes playing on Severide's need to be in control, so when they were home he liked to have a peaceful time together.

A soft beeping sound interrupted his thoughts, alerting him that the soup was done and it was time to give Casey his meds. Walking over, he shut the burner off as he grabbed a tray. Placing a bowl down, he ladled the soup in before adding a glass of water, a spoon, and a few crackers to bulk up the meal a bit. While it was a bit unorthodox to be giving Casey soup at six am, Severide knew it was something he would eat and that was all that mattered. Casey hadn't eaten since he arrived home from the hospital, almost a full twenty-four hours. He needed strength to heal and this was going to give him just that.

Carefully picking up the tray, Severide crept into their bedroom. The sun was just starting to rise, engulfing the room in a soft orange glow.

He placed the tray on their dresser before he gently sat next to Casey.

"Hey, sleepyhead. It's time for your pill." He said, rubbing his hand over Casey's back to help wake him up. He was sleeping on his right, his injured shoulder free from pressing against anything.

Casey scrunched his nose like always, slowly maneuvering himself so he was lying flat on his back, careful to not put too much pressure on his bad arm.

He blinked a couple of times before settling his gaze on Severide's face. His expression was unreadable causing Severide's heart to pump faster.

"Case...what I said earlier. I didn't mean it. I'm just so worried about you and I let it get in the way of my emotions. I promise that-" He stopped talking when Casey raised his good arm, placing his right hand on Severide's face. He began tracing his thumb over his jawline, something he liked to do when they were laying in bed together.

"Sev," he began, a forgiving look on his face, "I know. I shouldn't have gotten mad either. It's just, you know, with my past…" His face darkened, a haunting look taking over before he brushed it away, choosing to focus on tracing his thumb over Severide's lips instead. "I can be sensitive when it comes to this stuff, but I love you and I'm sorry I scared you."

Severide grabbed the hand tracing his face, squeezing it as he leaned down and kissed Casey, feeling their anger toward one another melt away as the love they felt replaced it instead.

Reluctantly, he broke the kiss apart, leaving a pouting Casey in his wake.

"Hey, I was enjoying that!"

Severide grinned, backing off the bed to retrieve the tray he had brought in.

"I'm glad, but we can continue that later. For now, I come bearing gifts."

He watched in delight as Casey's eyes lit up. "Is that your mom's famous soup? God, I love you."

Severide placed the tray on the empty side of the bed before he reached over and helped Casey sit up. Making sure to avoid the arm in the sling, he hooked his body on Casey's good side so that he could slide up the bed without moving his arm. When he was in position, Severide grabbed the tray and placed it in his lap.

"First," he said, grabbing the pill off of the tray, "I want you to take this."

Casey raised an eyebrow but did what he said, popping the pill into his mouth before washing it down with the water Severide had provided.

"All done. Can I have my soup now?"

Severide laughed. "Yes, you can have the soup. And you better eat all of it or you'll have to answer to me!"

"Yes mom, I'll make sure I finish all of my soup."

To Severide's delight, Casey had indeed finished all of the soup. After an hour of them just laying in bed together, he had even admitted that he felt good enough to do something. The painkillers were keeping the pain at bay and after eating a real meal he had gained more energy than Severide had seen in days. The colour had come back to his cheeks and he just had a generally healthy look, one that gave Severide hope that the worst had come and gone.

They were now sitting in comfortable silence, Severide leaning against the headboard with his eyes closed, just enjoying the peace, when Casey spoke, causing Severide to jump slightly at the sudden noise.

"I need a shower."

Severide opened his eyes, turning to look at Casey.

"A shower, huh?"

Casey turned, grimacing as he ran his hand through his hair. "My hair feels like an oil slick and my body is all itchy. Everything feels gross."

Severide sat up, getting off the bed to make his way to Casey's side. "Okay, then a shower you shall receive. Well, more like a sponge bath. You're not supposed to submerge your surgery site to water in the first week."

Casey smirked. "I didn't realize you had become a doctor in the short time I was in the hospital."

"Oh, shut up. I listen when people tell me things."

Helping Casey off the bed, they made their way to the bathroom. Turning on the light, he helped Casey sit on the toilet lid allowing him to get everything ready.

Leaning over the tub, he turned on the taps and adjusted the water so that it was just right, plugging the tub so that it began to fill.

"Wait, you're really going to give me a sponge bath?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, I was being serious," Severide said, grabbing a few clean towels from under the bathroom sink.

"You need a bath," he shrugged, "so I'm here to help."

Casey hesitated and Severide knew his aversion to being cared for was flaring up. He knew he needed to change the atmosphere, make it more comfortable so that Casey would agree.

He set the towels next to the bath before shooting Casey a seductive look. "Plus, you know, I'll take any excuse to get you naked."

Casey's face turned red as he jokingly hit Severide.

"Oh come on, you know you love it too."

Casey didn't say anything, but Severide saw the way he smiled.

Turning off the taps, he tested the water once more to make sure that it wasn't too hot, before helping Casey out of his sling. Once that was removed, they worked together to get Casey out of his shirt and pants so he was left wearing nothing but his boxers.

"Before you undress completely, I need to remove your bandages. They need to be changed anyway, which I'll do as soon as we're done with the bath. That sound alright to you?"

"Yup. The sooner I get clean the better," Casey said.

"Good. Now hold still while I take these bandages off."

Tilting Casey's neck slightly upward, Severide carefully peeled the bandages off, going slow as the residual blood caused the gauze to stick. Casey didn't move, but Sevreride could feel him tense as the inevitably sore spot was touched.

"Good news," Severide said, throwing the soiled bandages in the trash, "your incision site looks good. No signs of infection."

"At least something is going my way." Severide could hear the bitterness behind the statement.

"Don't worry Case. You'll be good as new in no time and back doing whatever it was you did as a Captain," he teased, knowing that talking about Casey's rank like that was a sure-fire way to annoy him.

"Oh, you bet your ass I will, Lieutenant."

"Okay, okay, let's just get you in the damn bath."

Casey laughed, a sound Severide hadn't heard in a while as he finally stripped his boxers.

Holding his right arm, he lowered Casey into the tub and smiled when the blonde relaxed, enjoying the warmth of the water.

"Now this is heaven," he groaned, resting his head against the tiled wall.

Happy that Casey was relaxed, Severide picked up one of the washcloths before soaking it in the water, squirting a good amount of soap on the cloth before he began rubbing it gently over Casey's skin.

Starting on his good arm, he began at the hands, making sure to get underneath his nails before he continued up the arm, scrubbing every inch of skin. Casey kept his eyes closed, but Severide could tell he was enjoying the treatment, the permanent small smile on his face saying more than words could.

Replenishing the soap as needed, he made his way across all of Casey's body, getting every area until he finished with Casey's left arm. Folded against his chest to keep his shoulder in the correct position, Severide carefully grasped his hand, moving it enough to get the washcloth around the lower part of his arm.

Casey twitched in his grasp, making Severide immediately pause his actions.

"Did I hurt you?" he asked.

Casey shook his head, reassuring Severide he hadn't done anything wrong. "No you're doing an amazing job, Sev. Guess I'm just a bit apprehensive about moving this arm."

Severide could sympathize. When he had had his surgery to fix his neck fracture, he had been scared to even move his head the first while during recovery. Eventually, the fear went away as the injury healed and he knew that Casey's range of motion would return with time.

"I'll be careful, I promise."

"I know," was all Casey replied with, letting Severide know that he was able to continue what he was doing.

Resuming from where he had paused, Severide made his way up the injured arm until he got to just below the incision site. Knowing it had to be cleaned, but in a much gentler way, he grabbed a fresh cloth and wet it straight from the tap, squeezing a small amount of soap into the material. Rubbing it around, he let it foam a bit before it was ready.

"This may sting a bit," he warned Casey, not wanting to surprise the man and cause him to jerk his shoulder. "But I need to make sure that the stitches stay clean."

Casey shut his eyes further in anticipation, grabbing onto his knee to steady himself. "I'm ready. Do what you need to do."

Severide nodded, even though Casey couldn't see, before he squeezed the cloth over the site, letting the soapy water gently rinse the wound of the crusty blood that had formed. Casey winced, letting out a small shaky breath, but stayed still as Severide continued cleaning the wound.

Grabbing the corner of the cloth next, Severide moved around the stitches with precision as he wiped away any lingering grit. When he was satisfied that the area was clean, he turned the tap on once more and used his hands to flush the area, completely removing any last soap residue.

With that done, he focused on washing the soap from Casey's body next, lowering the shower-head so that he could spray it off, continually minding the stitches so they wouldn't get any wetter.

With the soap gone, he got Casey to move forward so that he could soak his hair. Once it was wet enough, he grabbed the shampoo off the ledge and lathered it into his hair, grinning when Casey groaned in pleasure.

"That feels amazing. I could sit here all day."

"I bet," Severide said, continuing to work the soap into his hair. When he was sure he had gotten every inch of his head, Severide rinsed his hair for the final time before turning off the water completely and draining the tub.

Once Casey was out of the tub, Severide helped towel him dry before he wrapped it around his waist and pushed him onto the toilet seat once again. Looking and smelling a lot better, Severide could see how much Casey's mood had improved from being clean. He must have been staring as Casey gave him a funny look, tilting his head in confusion.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked.

"Sorry, I just got lost in how handsome you look sitting there. All clean and naked."

Playing along, Casey leaned into the mood.

"And what are you going to do about that, Lieutenant Severide?"

It took all of Severide's will to not grab Casey in his arms, his will to kiss the man overpowering his need to take care of him. But the caring side ultimately one, knowing that if anything were to happen because he was careless, Severide would never forgive himself.

"Not now," he practically growled, knowing that Casey was teasing him on purpose. "First I need to bandage you up and then how about we head back to the bedroom and finish this conversation there."

"Lead the way."

Making sure to still be careful, Severide bandaged Casey's arm in record time before he carefully put his arm back in the sling.

With more energy than he had seen in him in days, Casey stood up as soon as he was done, kissing Severide hard before he pulled his shirt off with surprising ease for using only one hand. As soon as it was off, they stumbled out into the hallway and back into their bedroom, having more fun with each other than they had had in weeks.

After an eventful day, Severide once again found himself in the kitchen as he made dinner. Casey was stretched out on the couch, watching the game as he waited for Severide to finish.

Just as he was finishing the final touches on the chili he had made, having ordered groceries after he and Casey had had their fun, his phone rang.

Wiping his hand on a nearby towel, he saw that Hermann was calling.

"Hey Hermann," he answered, watching as Casey's head turned to look at the name.

"Severide, how are things with Casey? We haven't heard anything from you guys in a while."

"He's good. Finally starting to get on the mend."

"That's great to hear. Now listen, the guys at 51 are getting together tonight at Molly's around eight o'clock and I know they'd love to see you guys. Do you think Casey would be up to come for a bit? You don't have to stay long, just pop in for a quick hello."

Severide felt his chest tighten at the love that everyone from the firehouse displayed. Working together for so long they had all become one giant family.

Looking over at Casey on the couch, Severide knew that the interaction with his friends would do him some good.

"We'll be there."

Parking the car, Severide turned off the ignition and glanced over at Casey.

"You sure you're up for this? I know I'm the one that agreed, but I don't want to push you past your limits. If your shoulder starts acting up or you want to go home, just tell me and we'll leave right away."

Casey gave him a reassuring look. "I'm good, Severide; I want to do this."

"Okay, then we go."

They both got out of the car, Severide shivering slightly as the cold air hit his face. Luckily they had gotten a spot right out front, making the trip to the front door short.

As soon as Severide had pushed it open, a rush of heat hit him in the face followed by a chorus of cheers.

"Casey!" Hermann yelled, grinning from his position behind the bar.

"Hi everyone," Casey sheepishly called, not used to getting all of the attention.

Everyone from 51 made their rounds, patting Casey on the back and telling him how good it was to see him. Severide could tell that Casey appreciated their warm welcome, the smile on his face never wavering.

Sitting at the bar, everyone finally settled down and went back to the conversations they had been in before they arrived.

A beer was suddenly set in front of Severide and when he looked up he was met by Kidd's smiling face. "On the house. Just make sure you don't tell Hermann."

Severide smiled, tipping the beer toward her in thanks before he took a sip. While he was the designated driver for obvious reasons, he knew one beer wouldn't hurt.

He expected Kidd to move on, going back to her duties behind the bar, but she just continued to stare at both him and Casey. Thankfully Casey didn't notice, as he was invested in a conversation with Brett and Foster, most likely talking about his time in the hospital.

Severide raised a curious eyebrow at the look she was giving him, not knowing what was going on in her mind.

"What's that look for?"

She shook her head. "Nothing. It's just, uh, you two look good together. That's all."

Severide felt panic well up inside, not used to the fact that everyone knew they were dating.

"So uh," he coughed, clearing his throat before he continued, "Chief was telling the truth then. You all know we're together."

Kidd barked out a laugh, getting the attention of a few people in the bar. With a smirk, she turned to look at the rest of the 51 crew.

"Hey guys," she called, "how long have we known these two idiots were together?"

"I called it from day one, '' Brett said, laughing when Casey choked on the water he was drinking.

"I didn't see it at first, but as soon as Brett pointed it out, it was all I could see," agreed Cruz, earning a murmur of confirmation from the rest of the people around him.

"Yeah," Kidd piped up, grinning slyly as she spoke, "Maybe you should make sure no one is around before you start making out in the showers the next time you want to hide a relationship. That might help."

Severide could do nothing but laugh with everyone else. Maybe they hadn't been as subtle as they had thought.

The night continued like that, letting all of the stress and anxiety Severide had been feeling slowly leave as he continued to have a good time with his friends. Casey seemed to be having a good time as well, joking with everyone and generally being comfortable in their presence.

It was only after they had been there for three hours when Severide had a feeling that things weren't quite right. The bar had quieted down as more people left, leaving only a handful of them to talk in low voices. Severide had been talking to Stella about what it was like as a new lieutenant when he felt Casey start to fidget next to him.

Seeing that Severide wanted to focus on Casey, Stella excused herself to go wash some glasses before Hermann had her on mopping duty for the next week.

As soon as she left, Severide turned his attention to Casey, concerned at what he saw.

While Casey had looked healthy and energized when they had arrived, that had since faded leaving him hunched over and pale, his right hand clutching at his left arm.

"You feeling okay, Case?" he asked, putting a comforting hand on his back.

Casey's tired eyes met Severide's face. In full view, he looked even worse. There were dark circles under his eyes and his face had an overall sick look to it, a sharp contrast to how he had looked earlier.

To make things worse, Casey's response was sluggish and slurred. "I don't know. M'head hurts and m'arm."

Severide felt his face crease as his worry blossomed. Casey had taken a painkiller before they had come, leaving an hour before he was due for another one. Plus, his pain had been better today with him accidentally going an hour over his scheduled time earlier without even noticing.

Reaching up, Severide placed a hand on Casey's forehead to check for a fever. Relief washed through him when he was met with cool skin, but the fact that his head and arm were hurting him had Severide worried.

"What do you mean your arm hurts? Do you mean your shoulder or your whole arm?"

Casey blinked, processing the question before he finally answered, taking his time to pronounce each word. "My whole arm is kinda throbbing," he said simply, looking more pitiful as time went by.

Hoping that it was just from over-exertion, doing too much in one day, Severide decided that the best course of action would be to go home and get Casey into bed.

Helping the sick man up, he placed Casey's coat on his shoulders before mouthing to Stella that he was taking him home. She looked concerned, but nodded, motioning that she would talk to him later.

Getting Casey to the car proved to be more difficult than Severide expected, as Casey was losing his strength faster than he thought.

Moving as quickly as he could, Severide got him into the car and buckled up before he ran over to his side and slid into the driver's seat. He turned the car on right away, blasting the heat so that Casey wouldn't get cold.

Casey was hunched against the window, eyes shut in pain as he continued to clutch his left arm.

"Matt," he began, letting Casey know he was serious by using his first name, "you're starting to freak me out. I feel like I should be taking you back to the hospital. This isn't normal."

Casey cracked his one eye open. "No hospital. M'just tired. Overdid it."

Severide let out a deep sigh, knowing that Casey would never agree to get checked out. He weighed his options and finally settled on an agreement.

"Alright, no hospitals. But if your arm starts to hurt worse or you develop a fever you can't stop me from bringing you."

"Okay," Casey agreed, sinking further into his seat.

Severide put the car into reverse, backing out of the spot before putting the car in drive and heading down the road and back to their apartment. Something told him that he was making a big mistake.