OK, this is the first time I'm publishing something I wrote, so please be gentle hahah. This is just a fluffy one shot I hope happens some time down the road, preferably later on season 9 because they need to make it up to us for episode 9x02's ending lol. Enjoy!
- Hey! Busy? – Sylvie knocks a couple of times on Matt's quarter's door even though it is opened. Sitting on his desk, he stops paperwork and admires the fact that she still does that, even though she knows she is more than allowed to barge in anytime.
- Never – he says, pulling her in with a large smile. She closes the door quickly before sitting on his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck.
- So, I need a favor. Like, a big favor – she asks, after a quick kiss.
- Ok? - he can see a playful expression on her face, so he knows it's nothing serious.
- Scott just called. He has a business conference this weekend, and his babysitter bailed last minute. Fell off a bike, broke her leg or something.
- Ouch. So, I'm guessing it is big sister to the rescue?
- Yeap – Sylvie smiles faintly and observes his expression carefully – I was hoping you'd want to come with. I know it is last minute, but Scott said he didn't know who else to call. And, actually, I want to go. I haven't seen Amy in forever.
Matt laughs at her soft excitement and at the memory of her little sister Amelia. They've been calling her Amy since she herself started to speak a few words but couldn't pronounce her name beyond the first syllable.
- Sylvie, you know I love Amy. And more importantly, I love you. Of course I'm coming.
- I love you too – she drops another quick kiss on his lips – which is why I should give you one more chance to back out before you fully commit. Amy is almost one and half now, let me remind you. – they both chuckle - Are you sure you're willing to spend the weekend watching over my toddler sister with me?
This time, he's the one who kisses her whilst keeping his hands at her waste.
- Tell me how much time you need to pack after shift, and I'll be ready.
That's good enough for her. Of course, the bells decide to go off right at that moment, forcing her out of Matt's strong arms against her will. Stupid bells.
She gets up and walks towards the ambo thinking she's the luckiest girl in the entire world.
- Scott?! – Sylvie was surprised to see the familiar face waiting outside the Firehouse just as her and Matt were leaving to go pack for the trip to his house in Rockford.
- Hey! I hope you don't find me coming here too intrusive.
- We're always happy to see you and this little princess – Sylvie takes Amy from Scott's arms and the little girl buries her head on her big sister's shoulder, giggling.
- Is everything ok? - Casey smiles as he shakes Scott's hand, and then proceeds to grab Amy's things, which include a car seat and a dipper bag.
- Yeah, well, I mean, my bosses decided to squeeze in a meeting before the conference, so I had to change my flight to an earlier one. At least they payed the re-scheduling fee. In any case, I have to be at O'Hare in half an hour so I had to drop her early. I hope you guys don't mind.
- Not at all – Casey assures him, smiling at the little girl in Sylvie's arms.
- Thank you so much for doing this – Scott smiles at the couple in front of him, and they can see how genuinely grateful he is.
- Please, it is our pleasure – Sylvie smiles and leans back to look at Amy – we're going to have so much fun, aren't we? Aren't we? – Sylvie tickles Amy's belly with one hand and she burst out laughing in the most adorable way.
A car parks on the driveway to the firehouse and honks.
- That's my ride. Ok, bye baby girl! Daddy will be home soon, ok? I love you! - Scott kisses Amy's forehead and then pats Sylvie's arm - Thanks Sylvie!
- Bye Scott! – she answers with a smile.
- Thanks Casey - he then shakes the firefighter's free hand once again.
- Any time! – Matt retributes the gesture with a smile, and once Scott walks away, places said hand on Sylvie's back, and the three of them watch him get in the car, waving and smiling.
Once he is gone, they start walking towards Sylvie's car. He still has a hand on the small of her back and is now talking to Amy. The little girl is shy at first, but soon after Matt starts playing with her, she once again laughs and giggles adorably.
She tries not to, but it is completely impossible for Sylvie not to think that for any random bystanders passing through them at that moment, they look a lot like a family. Like a lot. The thought of a mini human being as cute as Amy that is half her and half Matt sends all kinds of goosebumps from her heart to her body.
With Amy already around, packing takes a little longer than expected, and they know they won't make it to Rockford before night falls. They decide to take Sylvie's car instead of Matt's truck, which was the original plan, but wouldn't fit Amy properly. The road to Rockford is not very busy and the weather is good. Amy's calmly distracted in the backseat with Sylvie's tablet in her hands, which also means she's picking the soundtrack for the trip. Scott warned them that she was addicted to Christmas songs since they started talking about it at home, right around the beginning of December - about a week ago - but they didn't fully understand what he meant until this road trip.
- You know, I've been thinking – Matt speaks as Amy presses play on Five Little Elves for the tenth time – maybe it is time to get a new truck.
Sylvie frowns her forehead as she thinks of a response.
- Really? Why? I thought you loved that truck. You've had it for like, forever.
- Yeah, I thought too. But actually, I've been thinking that the reason I kept it during all these years is because it was comfortable.
Sylvie can't refrain her "yeah, ok" expression, and he laughs at her face.
- Not like that. I mean, it did the job nicely during construction gigs, took me where I needed to go, it was paid for, you know, it was something I could count on. It was familiar. Selling it and getting a new one would involve a bunch of work and uncertainty that you know I'm not exactly good at dealing with.
Indeed, she does know that. After everything they've been through, better than anyone probably.
- And what made you change your mind? – she asks kindly.
- I'm not sure. – he reflects on her question for a moment - Can't think of one thing specifically. I've just been feeling like it's time to do this. What do you think? – he glances at her with a contemplative expression.
- You would definitively not get a complaint from me. – her tone of voice has both of them giggling – But really, your gut is usually right, so you should probably trust it. I know I do. – she answers kindly.
Matt smiles at her before continuing.
- I'd still need a truck, but maybe it wouldn't hurt to get something newer, more comfortable – he glances at her quickly with a teasing expression and Sylvie chuckles. Matt then quickly glances at Amy through the rear-view mirror. She is now listening to a Christmas version of "baby shark", shaking her head and short golden hair to the rhythm of the song, with a huge smile on her face. He turns his eyes back to the road before adding nervously – maybe with a backseat.
Sylvie feels those same goosebumps from earlier, and wonders if Matt has had the same thoughts as her. She doesn't look at him as she answers, and her voice sounds just as nervous as his.
- A backseat would be nice.
They both share a knowing look and smile as Casey once again glances at her quickly, his eyes filled with something that looks a lot like hope. It amazes both of them that even after a relatively long time together, they are still able to make each other feel like teenagers with a crush when it comes to certain topics.
They haven't discussed marriage and kids openly up to this point, but Sylvie knows as much as anyone who's known Casey for a while that he's always wanted the marriage and kids package deal. She herself loves kids, and her failed engagements could not rip the romantic out of her, and Matt knows that too. The "when" of it all is what they haven't talked about, apart from occasional hints like this one, and that is when their inner teenagers come out to play.
In any other relationship, this would actually concern her. But with Matt, this nervousness doesn't come from a place of immaturity or lack of communication skills. They had those issues in the beginning of their relationship, surely, but now they seemed to have learned their lesson. They're not perfect, of course, but it's been working. If and when the time comes to really talk about it, they will. But probably because they both know, even if unofficially, that they are on the same page on this particular topic, referencing it feels more like that childish excitement on Christmas morning, when it's time to open the presents, or the night before, trying to spot Santa on the roof.
Jeez, they've been listening to way too many Christmas songs.
When the car suddenly gets quiet, Sylvie looks back to find a peacefully sleeping Amy in the backseat. Her little hands have let go of the tablet in her sleep, and it is basically hanging on her lap. They both laugh quietly and sight relieved as Sylvie gently removes the tablet away from the little girl and covers her with a small blanket that was waiting for this moment by her seat.
When they park in front of Scott's place, it is already dark, as predicted. The house looks pretty much the same, except for the Christmas decorations, which are quite impressive. There are Christmas lights hanging above the front windows, the front door's ceiling as well as wrapped around the light post, bushes and the small tree right beside the path to the front door, where a beautiful Christmas wreath is hanging.
Surprisingly, the interior of the house is even prettier than the outside. There are red, dark green, yellowish and white pillows on the couch and wreaths in almost every door, as well as a huge Christmas tree in the living room and Christmas lights everywhere.
- I can see now where Amy got her Christmas addiction from. – Casey jokes as he enters the house holding their bags.
- Well, yes, but this isn't Scott. This is Amy's grandma, Helen. She moved in when Scott was too swamp with work, but this time of the year she always goes to his sister's house in Florida. Clearly, she doesn't like the cold, but she loves Christmas.
- Smart woman. And this is impressive. – Casey observes the little details around them, like the holiday scented candles and the Santa stamped cloths on the kitchen.
- It is – Sylvie's love for Christmas is proportional to her hate for Halloween. Walking into that house makes her feel warm and fluffy in an almost embarrassing way.
She tells Casey to settle their bags in the guest room. Scott said they could have the master bedroom, but neither of them feel comfortable with it.
- I know you're extremely tired and probably super hungry, but it is almost Amy's bedtime, and she still needs a bath, so... - Sylvie's about to point Matt towards the remote and tell him that he can relax while he waits for her to put the little girl to bed, but he has no intention of doing so.
He doesn't even wait for what she has to say next, and grabs Amy in his arms as she tries to rush by them. She laughs hysterically at the surprise movement. She has been super electric since she woke up from her nap in the car and has been running and babbling like crazy since they entered the house. According to their previous experiences with her and to Scott, this adrenaline peek is, ironically, an indicator of when she's tired and ready for bed.
- Well then, we should probably get started on getting this sleepyhead clean, huh? Something doesn't smell so good. – Casey sniffs as if trying to smell something and then makes a funny face. He repeats this sequence a few times, and Sylvie mimics him, which has Amy bursting into laughter yet again.
Julie was right. He is terrific. While they walk towards the bathroom, Sylvie's eyes become watery as the image of her mother pops into her head. She imagines that somewhere above, Julie is, like herself, smiling down at them, but especially at the man taking such great care of both her girls.
There's something about men being sweet and loving with children that turns most women on for some reason, Sylvie's very aware of that. But Matt Casey being sweet and loving with Amy is a whole new level of attraction for her.
Bath time is a bliss. Matt and Sylvie kneel by the bathtub, taking turns between washing Amy and entertaining her. Inside the warm bathtub, the little girl plays around with rubber toys, splashing water onto the walls and the two adults taking care of her.
Scott warned them that she sometimes gets fussy during bath time, so Sylvie had the genius idea of playing some Christmas songs on the background, which apparently did wonders for Amy's mood.
Once they've finished cleaning her, Matt stays behind to organize things in the bathroom and Sylvie takes her back to her nursery. She places Amy on her changing pad, on top of a dresser in her room. After spreading baby lotion on Amelia and changing her diaper, Sylvie opens the second door and reaches for a cozy onesie pajama.
As soon as she finishes buttoning it, Matt walks through the door.
- I need to warm up her bottle. Can you brush her hair and… you know, keep her calm?
They both chuckle as Matt nods positively and walks towards the dresser simultaneously as Sylvie walks out of the room.
He smiles and pushes Amy up to seat. She looks at him lazily and smiles.
- I'm going to brush your hair ok? – he grabs the comb and stars pushing it down her short and fine golden hair. Amy's last peek of energy strikes her as she tries to play around with the comb. She takes if from Matt's hand and points it at him.
- Oh, you wanna brush my hair? Ok. – he lowers his head down to the baby, leaving both his hands on each side of her changing pad.
Amy pushes the brush up and down his scalp. Matt doesn't exactly have a lot of hair, so it doesn't make a lot of difference. It doesn't take long though before the comb is also brushing his face.
- Ah… ok – he says, as he closes his eyes – thank you!
Amy smiles and throws the brush back on the changing pad. She starts rubbing her eyes slowly at the same time her brows furrow, and Matt takes the hint that she is about to get fussy.
- Come on, sleepyhead.
Matt picks her up and cradles her, his left forearm and hand supporting her head and back, whilst his right hand offers Amy her pinky and then moves to her back as well. She molds in between his arms and chest quite comfortably, even though she's starting to get a bit too big for this.
Sylvie walks in with the bottle ready, and Matt sights relieved.
- The pinky bought us some time, but I could feel she was about to snap – he says, once again making both of them chuckle. Matt removes the pinky from Amy's mouth, who starts to cry almost immediately, but stops just as quickly when he gives her the bottle. He shushes her anyways and cradles her softly as she slowly drinks her bottle, smiling when she calms down again.
Matt sways gently from side to side with Amy on his arms. When she finishes her bottle, she's already half asleep. Sylvie places a quick kiss to her forehead and observes as he slowly walks over to her crib and lowers her down. He smiles and observes her for a moment, still bend over her crib, his thumb gently caressing one of the babie's cheeks. And at this point, Sylvie's pretty sure her ovaries are exploding inside her. She's trying not to get ahead of herself, and if it weren't for the fact that he has no idea what is going on her mind, she'd say Matt was determined to make it very, very hard for her not to do that.
They exit the room quietly, lowering the lights on their way out. Immediately after Matt closes the door behind them, Sylvie frames his face with her hands and pulls his lips to hers. The kiss is more intense than he was expecting, which causes him to gasp, and she unapologetically takes advantage of his parted lips.
It takes only a few seconds for Matt to catch up to her rhythm, and he eventually takes the lead as well, pinning her to the wall right beside Amy's bedroom door, his hands caressing up and down her back and, occasionally, lower.
Sylvie is forced to pull away for some air, but Matt's firefighter's lungs hold out longer than hers. He barely takes a breath before burying his mouth on her neck, kissing it senselessly, which makes her pause to breath useless as she starts panting again.
- Okay sir – Sylvie pushes him away, over pronouncing the "o" but maintaining her voice low so as to not risk waking up Amelia – if you're going to keep doing that then we should probably get some food first. If I'm going to pass out, let it be for the right reasons. - she smirks at him, feeling bold. Matt pulls back against his will, looking at her with an expression that is the perfect mix of amused and wolfish.
- To the kitchen it is, then. – He whispers, staring at her for a few seconds before, without warning, gripping her tights and lifting her up. Sylvie wraps her legs around his waist and they both laugh as he walks them towards the kitchen.
The next morning, Casey wakes up a little after 07:30. It takes him a few moments and blinks to realize the spot next to him where Sylvie was sleeping is empty now. He can't help a few red flags going up in his head as most of the times this happened before it meant bad news. He's starting to wonder what is going on when Sylvie pokes her head through the semi-opened door, a curious expression on her face.
He quirks a brown at her and when she notices he's awake, a wide smile instantly spreads across her face and she walks in with Amelia on her arms, both still in their pajamas. She climbs back into bed with him, settling Amelia in between them.
- Weekend morning snuggles became a tradition for her as Scott usually has to rush out in the morning during the week, so I thought we keep it up, but I didn't want to wake you. Good morning! – she smiles excitedly and places a quick kiss to his lips.
Oh, silly him! He should have known better. Yes, waking up in bed alone had almost always meant bad news – but then again, it had never happened before with Sylvie. Bad news are not really her thing. He sits half-up on the bed, leaning against the headboard, and Amelia apparently takes it as a cue to go hiking on his chest.
- Nah, this is on ray of sunshine I don't mind waking up to. – he says, while Amelia gives him a lingering, curious look before burying her head on the crook of his neck, melting both him and Sylvie at once. He gently rubs his hand up and down her tiny back, reciprocating the gesture best he can.
It doesn't last long though, and she goes back to exploring the space between them, giggling and blabbering non-stop. She crawls towards the bed foot, and as she starts to get too further away, Casey pulls her back by her foot, sliding her backwards gently. The baby is surprised by the movement and she laughs hysterically, which causes Sylvie to do the same. Amelia insists on crawling away, and Casey repeats the move. Soon enough, all three of them can feel their cheeks hurting from laughing so much.
- We should probably get some breakfast going – Sylvie says, catching her breath – Scott always says it isn't a very good idea to let her get too hungry. – she makes a funny face to emphasize her point, at which Casey smiles – he's lost count of how many of those he's had on this morning, and it's not even 09 am yet.
- Well, that's something you and chief Boden can bond over, huh? – Matt jokes as he picks up Amelia from the bed after getting up himself.
Sylvie chuckles at his remark.
- And Stella, too. She already has two of them on her side.
- Ah, who are we kidding? She's got all of us rapped around these little fingers!
Matt plays with said little fingers all the way to the kitchen, pretending to eat them with his lips. When they get there, Sylvie starts to transfer some berries from their box on the fridge to a small bowl to give to the little girl.
- Do you want me to lay out some toys for her to play with while we cook?
- Actually, you can settle her down on her feeding chair over there, I'm going to give her some snacks – she is now peeling and chopping a banana to add to the mix.
Amelia doesn't love the chair at first but doesn't mind it as much after Sylvie gives her the little bowl with fruits. She snacks on them using her tiny hands skillfully.
Matt and Sylvie go back into the kitchen, keeping an eye on her from where they are standing. Right after she finishes her snacks, Amelia gets fussy, so Matt picks her back up. She points towards Sylvie, and he walks back into the kitchen with her on his arms.
- Do you want to help big sissy cook? – Matt says, looking tenderly at her.
Amelia smiles but doesn't take her eyes off of Sylvie. Well, he can't blame her for that. He himself barely manages to do that whenever he is around her.
- She has a lot of energy in the morning and loves participating in the breakfast making fun. Scott has been trying to get her a tower because, well, it isn't exactly easy to manage cooking whilst holding a baby all by himself.
- A tower? – Casey has a question mark on his face and Sylvie finds it absolutely adorable.
- Oh, you know, that thing that kind of looks like a ladder, but it has like a platform on top where the baby can stand, so that they are on the same height of the countertop…
- I definitively don't know what you are talking about, but it sounds smart.
- It is. And practical. – Sylvie agrees – He's been trying to get one, but he's been so busy lately he never gets around to it. Here – she turns to Amy with a spoon of butter – do you want to help me put this in the pan? Just turn it over there.
Matt leans in a little so that she can get closer to the stove. Amy grabs the spoon and turns it upside down over the pan. The butter doesn't fall immediately, so Sylvie grabs her little hand and shakes it. The little girl giggles as she watches the butter detach from the spoon and fall into the pan, melting quickly.
- That's it! Great job Amy! – Sylvie smiles and praises as she spreads the melting butter on the pan.
- MasterChef! – Casey smiles and shakes Amy in his arms a little.
The rest of breakfast follows more or less the same rhythm. Casey holds Amy and stays close to Sylvie, who allows the little girl to help whenever possible. She gets especially excited about the pancake flip, and even though she can't help with this specific step, she seems to have just as much fun watching it. Sylvie tries to really go all out with the flip, making it as high as possible, and occasionally one or two pancakes land on the stove instead of the pan, but that's ok. They all just laugh it out and she quickly picks up whatever is salvageable and resumes cooking it.
After the pancakes are done, Sylvie lets Amy decide and pour whatever toppings she wants, and it doesn't take long before they are all sitting down and enjoying fluffy pancakes with maple syrup, chocolate chips and berries together.
After breakfast, Matt insists on doing the dishes (after all, the only thing he truly helped with was holding Amy and watching her have fun helping Sylvie, which is no work at all) while Sylvie plays with Amy oh her playroom.
From his spot on the kitchen, he can hear the two of them laughing and playing together, as well as an occasional funny sound coming from a toy or a book, which is how he finds himself smiling - and even giggling at times - like a complete idiot while doing the dishes on a Sunday morning. Heck, with that soundtrack he'd wash all the dishes in the world every single day.
And that's when it hits him.
That is, when it truly and undeniably hits him. He's thought about it before, sure, but the last 24 hours from the moment Scott dropped Amy off at the firehouse to right now felt a lot like an actual sneak peek of what the future might look like (and the weekend isn't even over yet), and he's here for it. He's so damn here for it. He loves this woman like he's never loved anyone ever before, and whatever he can do to make sure that possibility becomes a reality, he will. Now.
Casey sets the last plate on the dish drainer and immediately pulls his cellphone out of his pocket, nervously pressing the buttons to make a call.
- Yes! Of course, are you kidding me?! I'm on it! Of course, I'll be discrete, I'm a professional. Ok. Ok, bye!
Stella hangs up with a huge smile on her face and a squeal.
- What was that all about? – from his spot on the kitchen island, a semi-woken up Kelly gets curious and amused at his fiancé's excitement while sipping on his coffee.
- That was Casey – Stella says slowly – he has decided to propose to Sylvie, which means I'm in charge of finding out what her dream ring is, and you are in charge of keeping your mouth shut. Until she says yes, anyways. Then it is mission best man round 2! - Stella holds her arms up celebrating, even though none of it has actually happened yet.
Severide chuckles.
- About damn time!
- I know, right?! And hey, if he proposes soon enough, we could actually start thinking about a double wedding! I mean, we four are each other's best man and made of honor respectively so it only makes sense! Can you imagine the blast?! Of course we'd have to wait this stupid pandemic to be over, but then, we could get that DJ from Cruz's wedding to play and have the…
Kelly smiles and looks at Stella but doesn't actually hear what she is saying. They'll have enough time to figure out all of those things later. Right now, though, the only thing he can truly think about, as he observes with what he is sure she herself would define as heart eyes, is how freaking lucky he and his friend are. Happiness has never come easy for them, and it never lasted, but these two wonderful women do make each of them happy. Truly happy. Happiest.
And he's got a feeling neither of them are going anywhere. Ever. He knows he isn't, and neither is Matt.
Next shift, Sylvie's phone bips indicating she's got a new message. She unlocks her screen to see a text from Scott.
"Thank you so much for the tower Sylvie! You guys really didn't have to! Merry Christmas!"
Following the text, the cutest picture of her sweet baby sister standing proudly on her tower, helping Scott with what looks like a cake recipe.
Sylvie is confused for a little while. She didn't buy them the tower. She gets why Scott would think that, but if she didn't then who did?
The mystery doesn't last long, and funny enough, it's the job that gives her the answer she is looking for. The bells go up, calling Truck 81 to respond to a traffic accident, and as it does, Matt Casey runs pass her, not without touching her shoulder gently and smiling. Of course. What took her so long? He probably made the damn thing himself whilst she was napping with Amelia later that Sunday. She smiles back affectionately at him and then texts Scott back.
"You really should be thanking Matt! But he's too modest to own up to his good deeds, so don't mention it! We love you guys! Merry Christmas!"
They do love Scott and Amy, and she loves Matt. She doesn't care if she's getting ahead of herself, she's done dancing around it. This is the man she wants to spend the rest of her life with, and she's ready when he is.
This is it guys, I hope you liked it! Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! God bless!