Chapter Two

Kelly Severide emerged from the bedroom on the phone. By the sound of it, he was talking about the upcoming baseball season and organizing at day at the park. Stella gave a quizzical look and mouthed, who, to Kelly.

"Mouch," Kelly said to Stella. Her eyes widened and she extended her arm in the direction of the phone, hand outstretched.

"Hold on Mouch, Stella's got something she wants to say." Kelly handed the phone to her.

"Hey Mouch, you worked with Chief Hawkins, right? Good man?" Stella said into the phone. She listened to him recount Hawkins early interactions with the crew, and what he did for Brett at the paramedicine hearing. A smile spread across her face.

"Well, Hawkins is in the hot seat today. He's been seeing Violet, and well, brass caught wind of it and he's in front of a review board today. I told Violet I'd go and show some support. You in? I've already roped Kelly into it," Stella smiled then, pulling the phone down off her chin mouthed the words sorry, which made him laugh and roll his eyes.

"Good, give Hermann a heads-up too. Violet might be heading to Molly's to wait out the verdict. Thanks." She hung up. "Oh sorry, did you want to keep talking baseball?" she asked, handing the phone back to him.

Severide laughed, "No, I'm good. So, what am I doing exactly on my day off? Sitting at headquarters at someone else's performance review hearing?" He grimaced.

"Let's say were showing up of one of our own," Stella responded.

"Hawkins isn't part of 51," Severide said.

"We're not showing up for him. We're showing up for Violet." Stella scooted up to Severide and gave him a charming smile to seal the deal.

"Yes, Ma'am," Severide said, kissing her cheek in response.

"I'm going to text Ritter and Gallo, see if they are in too." She pulled out her own phone and began scrolling through.

"Organizing quite the field trip for everyone," Severide said, pouring coffee for himself.

As Stella typed out a text to the two young firefighters, she smiled.

"Someone's got keep this house in line," she smirked.

Across town, two young off-duty firefighters checked homemade beer brews and bickered about bottling. Their phones buzzed simultaneously in their pockets. Gallo, with hands full over a brew bucket, ignored it. Ritter pulled his phone and read the text from Kidd.

"Did you know that Violet was seeing Hawkins?" Ritter asked.

Gallo froze over the bucket.

"Um, yeah, well, no." Ritter stared at him, confused by the very not straight answer. Gallo sighed.

"You could tell he was into her, I mean he's worked two shifts with her, what chief does that?" Gallo hoped that was all Ritter needed.

"I can't believe she didn't tell me. Well, I guess it's not a secret because Kidd says Hawkins is in front of a review board today. Someone ratted them out."

Gallo's face fell. Ritter studied his face. "Did you rat them out?" Ritter said raising his voice.

"What? No!" Gallo responded defensively. "I didn't even know they were together, I just suspected it. Well, until the other day at Molly's." It dawned on him now who might have ratted out Violet and Hawkins.

"What happened at Molly's?" Ritter asked.

"I guy I know from another firehouse said he saw Hawkins making out with one of our paramedics at Med," Gallo looked at Ritter in a serious way. "He had a chip on his shoulder about the ambo jumping the line to get their heater fixed. I bet it was him." Gallo may have felt like poking at Hawkins and Violet, but he didn't like someone outside their house doing it. The exchange didn't sit well with him then, and it didn't now.

"Kidd and Severide are going to show up in support. She wants to know if we are in." Ritter said.

"I don't know if I can do that," Gallo said. He didn't know Hawkins, but he hated him. It didn't make sense, he knew that, but it was how he felt.

"Come on Gallo, I know you and Violet had your thing, but maybe it would go a long way in making amends with her if you showed up. Be a bigger man." Ritter said with sincerity.

Gallo thought for a minutes and realized the relationship between Hawkins and Violet must be further along than he thought, and if he wanted to keep Violet as a friend, he'd need to show it. Even if he hated being there, he should go.

"Okay," Gallo relented, "tell Kidd we're in."