[A/N: A quick little write-up for the Crossover. I know a lot of people were down with the "lack" of Upstead, but hopefully this fills the void briefly. I'm sure they'll be back to full power in the coming weeks. I actually did rewatch the PD portion, and I have to say, it's not so bad with Jay & Hailey. Writing is definitely a little off, but we get some nice moments with them, and them teamed up. Just remember folks, good things all in due time! ;) Thanks for all the reads and lovely responses as always!]
Jay was heading over to Med to see Hailey with his head swirling with emotions. They were on the brink of an apocalypse and his team and the entire city needed his mind fully in the game to catch this bastard, but all Jay was thinking of at the moment was the potential that Hailey could be at risk. And the fact that he put her there if so. He wishes he could go back and instead of calling her to check on the grad student, that he met up with her and they did it together. Maybe then Hailey wouldn't be in this predicament, or at least it would be him instead of her behind the plastic jail of fear she was in.
When he got down to the Quarantine section, he saw her before she turned around to notice him and his heart physically ached. He just wanted to wrap her in his arms and never let go… not only would that not be professional though, it would also put everyone else in greater risk. So he sighed and choked out her name, announcing his arrival.
"Hailey…"
"Hey! Did you finish interviewing the lab personnel yet?"
Leave it to Hailey to go straight into work-mode, seemingly not caring at all about her own well-being. Her selflessness being one of the main things he loved about her. He decided to just play along for now.
"Yea, no red flags, we're checking out alibis."
"What about people that had access to the labs? Vendors, security guards, cleaning staff?"
"The lab keeps an electronic visitor log-in, so we're just going through it."
There's commotion in the other quarantine pods behind Hailey and she turns around to look at it sadly.
"Awe man…" she drifts out.
Jay sees this as his moment to shift briefly. Now is definitely not the place to get into an emotional conversation, but he has to at least let her know slightly how he's feeling.
"Hailey…" he slowly starts, making her turn around to face him again once she hears the tone in his voice.
"I'm so sorry I got you into this."
"Jay, this isn't your fault. None of us could have known she was infected, or predicted that she'd collapse on me."
"Yea, but I should have been there… I'm your partner… no matter if Voight has us ride together or not. I should have gone with you and had your back."
"What good would that have done? Then maybe we'd both be in here and down more man-power to stop this psycho."
Jay looks at her sadly. "I just won't be able to forgive myself is something happens to you…" he drifts off before he starts to get too emotional and bows his head. Hailey stares back at him with a small, cheerless smile.
"How any times do I have to say it Jay, we'll be alright…"
She reaches her hand onto the plastic, waiting for him to look back up at her. When he finally does, he places his hand on hers… the plastic barrier a metaphor for so much in their relationship at this point. He knows she's not going to continue to let him sulk; again, selfless Hailey, always putting others before her. So he gives her a small smile back and tries to regain all his composure. She pulls her hand down first, not wanting to break down here of all places. She so wishes she could touch him for real, and not just because of where she's stuck right now. All in due time…
Jay finally speaks again, knowing the moment is over. "Alright, I'm gonna get back to the case, but the second I hear anything, I'll report back."
"Thanks, I appreciate it!" before he leaves her fully, she decides to comment one last thing to bring up his spirits. "Hey Jay… when this is all over, beers are on you!"
Jay can't help but have a real smile for the first time in a couple days. "You bet!"
With that he finally walks away from her, wishing he could stay. If the world was really going to come to an end, she's the only one he wants to spend its last moments with…
Hailey had been so excited when she got the clearance to go back to work. It wasn't even the fact that she found out she was infection-free, she was just glad to be able to get back out there with her team and try to stop this madman. Now, as she's sitting on the roof, waiting to take the shot, this time a role reversal of her fearing for Jay, she can't help but think back to hours before when she walked back into the District. Her team was all so happy to see she was okay, Atwater even leaning in for a hug, but it was the look on Jay's face that stood out. He didn't say anything, just stared at her, an immense gaze of relief and emotion on his face. She casually looked his way, not wanting to make a big deal of it, but just with that one quick look she felt the electric charge, as she always does.
In this instant, she has the fear in her heart that he did all day waiting for her results. He was in there with this nut, and she didn't even have a clear shot to take him out. As Jay had said to her before, if something happened to him, she didn't know what she'd do.
"Sarge, I don't have a shot." She called out to Voight.
Right after saying that, she watched in horror as the monster made Jay cut himself. With an open wound, she knows where this is going and that they have to act fast before Jay gets infected.
"Halstead just cut himself, Sarge, this is flipping! I do not have a shot!"
"Hailey, I need you to get set for a high-diversion shot at the ceiling no joy, repeat, no joy, on my order!"
"Copy!" she quickly replies.
She continues to watch in fear as Jay has now picked up a spray bottle with the bacteria and is aiming it as his cut arm. She holds her breath as Voight finally orders.
"Go now."
She aims and pulls the trigger, hitting the ceiling as her team charges in with the diversion. She watches on as Voight kills the doctor, but doesn't breathe easy again until Jay looks out the window and signals to her his thanks, also announcing that he's okay. She feels her hands shake as she stands up, finally knowing that it's all over, but more importantly that Jay is fine. What a day!
Hours later after she wraps up with Natalie making sure that Amanda will be alright and she's back in the care of her grandmother, she heads over to the bar that Jay and Will are at. The place is packed, but she notices them sitting at the bar instantly. Her heart does a little flutter seeing Jay look at ease laughing with his brother. She just can't wait to be near him.
She makes her way over and stands in between them, placing her hands lightly on both their shoulders to announce her arrival. Jay looks at her and his smile back tells her almost everything she needs to know.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the three idiots who almost all got taken out today!" Will says as all of them laugh genuinely together for what feels like a lifetime.
Jay pulls back the stool slightly for her as she makes her way over to sit next to him.
"I gotta say, my life was way less complicated before you Halsteads entered the picture." She jokes back as Jay flags the bartender over.
"Hey now, I thought I was your favorite partner?" Jay says feigning hurt.
"Oh, you are, but it doesn't mean we're not surrounded by a huge dose of bad luck half the time."
"It's almost as if someone wants to write drama into our lives…" Will agrees as they all have a good chuckle.
When the bartender comes over Jay orders a round of shots for them all. They're all just happy to be alive, and together, none more than Hailey and Jay. They share a secret smile right before they chug down the warm liquid, which doesn't go unnoticed by Will, but he refrains from commenting.
"So where's the rest of the crew? I feel like we owe all you guys a debt of gratitude for catching this son of a bitch." Will asks.
"Voight had no desire to come out, Platt just wanted to go home to Mouch, and Atwater took our new girl to go get rowdy with some younger patrol officers. I don't know what happened to Kim and Adam." Jay responds looking at Hailey.
"I think they both just decided to go home too…" she lets it hang a little as she says it and her and Jay share a knowing look.
"Oh, well, looks like we'll be drinking for all of them! Cheers!" Will says as another round of shots get delivered and they gladly throw them back.
They sit there for a while longer throwing them back, just enjoying being able to laugh and reminisce and put this all behind them. As the night goes on, Hailey finds that her and Jay are leaning into each other a little closer than normally… not awkwardly, or even overly noticeable to anyone other than them, but they're definitely a little more bold tonight than they normally are. Their quick glances to each other lingering a little longer too.
"Well Hailey, at least you didn't get taken out by a hangnail…" Will's drunken slurring interrupts them from their thoughts as they smile back at him.
This thought causing Jay to remember again just how close he could have come to losing her, and Hailey feeling the same way about him. He reaches his hand over to lightly put on her knee, wanting to feel that she's real, that's she's here with him. Her reaction one in the same as she places her hand atop his. The moment is quick, but it's a direction to the road they know they're eventually going down once they're finally ready, and they smile at each other assured that they'll be alright…
