A/N: I truly don't know what inspired me to continue this fic. It's nearly complete and I decided that it needed closure. I know it's all a moot point, since it was non-canon all along and Foster isn't even on the shows anymore, but here we are anyway. I hope some of you are still interested, and I hope you enjoy it. Only a couple more chapters after this one. Thanks, as always. WARNING for language.
As Foster and Casey reapproached, Emily noticed the smirk on Brett's face, though no one else at the table seemed to. For a moment she became irritated; the idea of Matt and Sylvie making up a ploy behind her back was a little too close for comfort. Why couldn't they mind their business? Even if Sylvie wanted to talk to her about it (privately), why did she have to involve Matt in her nosiness? She watched as Brett caught Matt's eye and nodded, silently asking how it went. Matt just shook his head subtly.
Foster was struck by a wonderful, terrible idea.
If they wanted to play, she could give it right back.
"Hey, Casey, aren't you going to ask her?" Emily nodded, straight faced as she handed Upton her drink.
Casey's brow furrowed, completely confused, wondering nervously where Foster might be going with this, worried that it was about Brett.
"What do you mean?" he asked quietly, all of the eyes at the table on him.
"Oh, you said you wanted to ask Hailey something, right?"
Foster was so casually believable that she frightened herself for a minute. She felt Hailey tense beside her, clearly uneasy.
"Oh!" Matt nearly choked on his drink as he side-eyed Sylvie, silently pleading for some sort of out. "Um, no… it was nothing," he lied, poorly, not able to come up with any ideas so quickly, with so much attention on him.
"Yeah, remember? You said you and Brett here were talking and you wanted to ask Hailey a question," Foster grinned at them, an evil glint in her eye.
"We just wanted to make sure you were okay!" Brett piped up so fast that it startled them all. "I mean, with the stuff that went on tonight," she nodded intensely.
To say that Upton was skeptical would be an understatement. She saw right through them.
"Why wouldn't you just say that? Brett, you already asked if I felt better…" Hailey said through gritted teeth, shifting in her seat uncomfortably at the outright lie. She did work Intelligence, after all.
"We just didn't know if you'd wanna get into it, or just forget about it, you know?" Brett said, convincingly.
"Yeah, we were just worried," Matt nodded.
"Well don't be," Hailey spat, standing from her seat roughly, causing the stool to scrape across the floor. No one had ever seen this side of the detective (the admittedly more common side) when she was around Foster before. "I'm out. Thanks for a great fucking time."
She had her coat on and was out the door before Foster could take a breath.
Brett, Casey, Kidd and Severide all looked beyond shocked. Foster didn't notice that, though, as she was already headed for the door.
"Hailey, wait!" Foster yelled as she saw Upton's back stomping down the sidewalk with speed.
No reaction. If anything, Hailey walked away faster.
Feeling tears burning her eyes, Foster broke into a sprint, desperate to catch up.
"Hailey!" Foster pled as she reached the woman, close enough to touch her arm.
"Stop!" Upton screamed, turning to face Foster with a look of pure hatred. "Leave me the fuck alone, Foster."
She could see tears in Hailey's eyes and felt her own start to fall. Hailey hadn't called her 'Foster' in a very long time.
"Hailey, please…" Emily broke, watching as the woman roughly wiped a tear from her eye and turned her back, looking defeated and weak. "Let me explain…" she barely managed to choke out.
"Explain?!" Upton nearly shrieked and her spun back around to face Foster, stepping up to her aggressively. "Yeah, Foster, why don't you fucking 'explain'? What the FUCK was that in there?"
Foster backed away slightly with each step, Upton roughly in her face and frightening her.
"It was—" Foster stopped herself, so desperate to reach out to Hailey that she had NO idea what she was going to say. How could she actually explain? "It was kind of a joke. It wasn't about you. It was, Casey and Brett pissed me off, and—"
"Excuse me?! Excuse me, Foster? It wasn't about me?" Hailey scoffed. "Sure as hell seemed like it was about me, since everyone was lying to my face. I'm a god damn detective, Foster. You think I can't tell when someone is full of shit?" she challenged, though she physically retreated slightly.
Foster shook her head at her own stupidity as she brushed another tear away from her face. She didn't want to lie to Hailey. She wasn't going to. But she was so fucking scared.
"They played a joke on me and I wanted them to pay for it. But then they got awkward and it turned into a bigger thing than it was," Foster sighed out, resting her head on the brick wall behind her, defeated and near sobs.
"How the fuck does that have anything to do with me, Foster? And don't tell me that it doesn't," she said, her voice still held so much hatred, but she had softened, very slightly.
Foster slammed her eyes shut and forced herself to breathe. She knew she had to be honest, but she really wished that she and Hailey could have eventually had this conversation on their own terms, when Hailey didn't have that look of loathing in her eyes.
"Casey asked me if he could ask you out. If I thought you'd go for someone like him."
The words came out so quiet and sad. Upton's eyes widened and she almost smirked, finally starting to have an idea of where this was going. Hoping that she did.
"And?" Upton asked, stepping forward a little and lowering her voice, tears still stinging her eyes.
"And I went the hell off!" Foster exclaimed, much more loudly than she intended. "I told him hell no, you wouldn't go for him. I was so fucking angry, Hailey. The idea of…" she trailed off, realizing just how passionate she was being.
"The idea of what?" Hailey asked quietly, leaning on the wall next to Foster.
Foster shook her head, emotional and overwhelmed.
"But then, he like, smirked, and I just got angrier and I asked him what the hell was so funny…"
"Why was it funny, Emily?" Hailey said seriously, pointedly calling her by her first name.
Foster's breath caught. 'Emily.' That one word caused relief in her. She thought Hailey might just understand.
"Brett told him to ask me that. To see how mad I got. How jealous I got," she sighed, rubbing her eyes. "So I turned it around on him. I wanted to see what he came up with when I told him to ask you what he wanted to ask you."
"Didn't work out so well," Hailey rolled her eyes, scoffing.
"No, it didn't. But I promise you, Hailey, that's all it was. It looked like we were being shady, but it wasn't like that."
Foster chanced a glance into Upton's eyes, relieved to find that they had softened. There was still sadness and perhaps some mistrust, but she hoped no more hatred.
"What would you have done if he asked me out?" Hailey asked quietly, seriously, as she held Emily's gaze.
Foster, though surprised by the question, sincerely thought about her response.
"It depends. What would your answer have been?" she asked, looking so intensely into huge blue eyes that her heart picked up speed at the passion the moment held.
"I think you know the answer to that," Hailey said uncomfortably, looking away to nervously brush the hair out of her face.
"No, Hail. I don't. I hope that I do, but I don't."
Hailey nodded, glancing back at Emily for only a moment. Truthfully, if Casey had asked her out, she would have been so uncomfortable that she probably would have walked out. She certainly didn't want to date the man, but she also couldn't stand being in uncomfortable situations. And with Emily right next to her…
"I probably would've freaked out," she admitted softly, resting her head against the wall and shoving her trembling hands into her pockets, but not removing her gaze from Emily. "It just would've been so awkward, you know. And with you sitting right next to me…ya know?"
"Do you want to date him?" Foster asked, knowing the answer but needing a more direct response from Upton.
Hailey rolled her eyes at her friend and shook her head shyly.
"No, Emily. I don't want to date him," she said resolvedly.
A smile came to Emily's face before she even realised.
"Look, Em, it's been a really intense night and I really want to get home," Hailey said, though her voice was soft and almost regretful. She watched Foster's expression fall instantly. "No, no- look, We're good, okay? I don't want you to be upset and overthink. It's just late, it's been an exhausting night and I just feel overwhelmed, okay?" she admitted quietly, staring at the ground, feeling weak.
Emily nodded, touching Hailey's shoulder to gain back her gaze.
"I understand, Hailey. I really do. You never have to worry about being vulnerable with me, okay?" she said softly, running her hand down the woman's arm and to her wrist.
Hailey stayed quiet but smiled slightly.
"And you know you don't have to lie to me about stupid shit, okay?" she smirked, raising an eyebrow.
"I didn't—it wasn't stupid shit, Hail. It was kind of really important shit," Foster argued but couldn't help but chuckle at the mere conversation.
Upton bumped Foster's shoulder affectionately, their knuckles accidentally brushing with the movement.
"It was important, Em. But it shouldn't have come up this way," Hailey said seriously, brushing her hand against Emily's again.
"I know. When I upset you…" she trailed off, unable to find words strong enough to express. She shook her head as tears built from the memory and the adrenaline still running through her. "I'm so sorry I upset you."
"I'm sorry I yelled at you," Hailey looked at the ground.
"You had every reason to," Foster defended, bumping her arm. "You were kind of terrifying, though," she added with a chuckle, eliciting an offended gasp.
"You deserved it!" Hailey exclaimed through a laugh.
"You just said I didn't!" Foster countered, both laughing fully now.
"I did not! I said I was sorry, not that you didn't deserve it!"
Hailey rested her head on Emily's shoulder as laughter racked both of their bodies. It took solid moments for the laughter to subside, a quiet calm coming over them.
"I really am sorry," Foster said quietly, wrapping her arm around Upton's as they stood side by side.
"So am I," Hailey nodded, releasing Emily's arm.
Hailey held Emily by the wrist for only a few seconds before she trailed down, gently entwining their fingers. Emily looked at their hands, seemingly in awe, as their fingers softly danced against one another. It felt like lightning.
"Go get some rest, let yourself breathe. I'm so sorry that the night was so rough," Emily said, squeezing Hailey's hand.
"Don't worry, Em," Hailey smiled into her eyes. "It got a lot better.
