Mercy

"He's lost a lot of blood." That phrase was stuck in her mind since Will informed them. Jay was still in surgery and she had no clue if she was gonna see him again. "He's lost a lot of blood." Hailey was a wreck. She was. After her conversation with Vanessa, she reconsidered everything in her mind. She loved Jay indeed, she didn't know how that happened or why but it did and she couldn't lose him. He sat there eating her gyro when the older Halstead showed up. Immediately, she left the food on the chair next to her and got up quickly, worry written all over her face.

"Hey." Will said quietly. "The surgery is over."

"And?"

"Dr. Marcel repaired the artery. He's gonna be fine…. Although he's gonna be sore for a while."

A smile was pinned on the woman's face. She wanted to hug Will, Marcel or whoever was involved in Jay's rescue.

"Can I see him?"

"Sure. He's asleep but it will be good for him to have someone by his side when he wakes up. Especially two people."

The way to Halstead's room seemed endless for both of them. They felt like their shoes were stuck on the floor and couldn't move even though they reached the hospital room in a matter of minutes. Jay was on the bed asleep, an oxygen cannula was placed under his nose in order to help him breathe, an IV line stuck on his arm a small bandage to one of the cuts on his face and a huge bandage on his incision although the latter was covered by the gown he was wearing. Hailey smiled when she faced him. The steady beeping of the heart monitor gave her hope. Her partner would be healthy.

"He's gonna freak out when he wakes up." She exclaimed approaching his bed.

"That's the only sure thing, he's gonna start complaining about everything. The doctors, the nurses, the mask, the beeping of the monitor, about me…"

"I am glad he is okay."

"Yeah me too," Will replied when his beeper went off. "I gotta go, I'll pass by in a while." He left the room taking a last glance at his brother.

Being alone in there, Hailey stared at her injured partner. He looked nothing like the time she found him, he looked like an angel on that bed, his face was calm, his body relaxed. She stood there a few minutes and grabbed his hand rubbing it peacefully being careful not to remove the oximeter from his finger. For the first time in her life, she was happy, really happy.

An hour later, she was still in there, waiting when he heard a groan coming from her partner.

"Jay?"

"Hmmm…"

"Hey, are you okay?" She asked not expecting an answer.

"Hmmm. Hurts…" He exclaimed raising his right hand in the air, feeling the cannula on his face trying to remove it.

"Don't do that."

"Where am I?" His voice was still hoarse from earlier.

"Chicago Med. Remember what happened?"

As soon as he adjusted to his surroundings, he looked at her. "I got shot. In the shoulder."

"Chest."

"Right… I remember you, Voight, Kim, Adam, you in the ambulance screaming my name but nothing more." Closing his eyes for a moment, he took a deep breath. "When can I go home?"

Hailey laughed. "You should ask your brother about it."

Jay felt awful. His whole left side hurt like hell, his body felt sore, he had trouble in moving. He wanted to scream but considering he was in a hospital, he preferred to stay silent. Taking a peak at his partner, he sat up a little feeling the pain rising all over his body. "I'm glad you are here."

"How are you feeling?"

"Like I was asleep for a year."

"You needed some rest."

"Hailey?"

The woman stared at him with a suspicious look knowing exactly what he's gonna say.

"You know I hate hospitals."

"I do."

"You gotta get me out here." His innocent puppy face was more than enough to make her laugh once again. Even since his eyes opened she had no reason to worry about anything. Everything was going to be alright.

Hank visited too not for long but it was enough for the young detective to realize how much respected he was on the unit.

Now he was alone with one of the surgical department doctor and two nurses who assisted her by checking his vitals, his breathing, pulse on the monitor, blood pressure and temperature. After checking his lungs, herself, she checked his wound for any signs of infection just when a familiar face walked in creating a smile on Jay's face.

"Brother, glad to see you awake. Dr. Collins how is our patient?"

"Stable. I'll leave you alone. Page me if you need anything." With those last words, the woman left.

Silence filled the room for a couple of minutes as the older Halstead stood at the edge of the bed glancing at his hurt brother. Will was a wreck when they announced him what had happened, when he watched the ambulance stopping in front of him, when his only family was rushed in Baghdad, when Marcel told him that there was a possibility that he wouldn't make it. However, here he was alive and awake. It was considered a miracle by the doctors but Will knew better than anyone that his brother wouldn't give up so easily. He was a soldier after all.

"Will?" He heard Jay's voice calling him.

"Yeah?"

"Are you okay?"

"Says the man who is stuck in a hospital bed." The doctor joked. "How are you feeling?"

"The truth? I feel terrible."

Jay could notice the sadness on Will's expression, his worry, his fear, his red eyes.

"But I'll be fine eventually." He continued closing his eyes.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, you don't have to worry about me. I'm strong as a rock. Although… You could do something for me. For example, you could discharge me like right now."

A laugh escaped from Will's mouth as he stroke Jay's hair. "Yeah, that's not gonna happen."

Jay sighed. He remained quiet for a while staring at his brother who was now pacing back and forth in the room, playing with his phone. He still seemed frightened, upset, anxious like he had just lived the worst nightmare of his life. The man wondered what really had happened to him. Yes, he remembered his team above him, Hailey screaming his name, the paramedics checking him out, the oxygen mask on his face, his teammates comforting him, his last-minute conscious but after that, nothing… Nothing until he woke up and noticed his grinning partner. But why was she happy and Will seemed like he was going to have a breakdown? "Hey Will…" He asked getting his attention. "What really happened to me? Please don't lie."

"For a moment out there, I thought I was gonna lose you." Will stood by his side again. "When they called us I lost the ground beneath my feet. I didn't even know that you were kidnapped. The moment they brought you in was unforgettable. You were unconscious barely breathing, bleeding to death. Later, Marcel told me that the bullet grazed an artery and you almost died in surgery."

"Oh.." No words could come out of the young police officer's mouth. All those people were mentally tortured because of him. "I am sorry."

"Sorry? I should apologize to you, I am your big brother and I couldn't protect you." The tears that he held back started falling wetting his scrubs.

Jay wanted to cry too, he hated seeing his brother sad. He felt disappointed in himself. As he was about to speak, he heard a ringtone.

"It's for you." Will handed him the phone.

"Bro?"

"Tony?"

"Hey bro, I learned what happened? You okay?"

"I'll be if they let me go home…" He joked.

"Classic Halstead… Don't make me come down there and lock you in the room."

"How're the Bahamas?"

"Good, you should pay me a visit as soon as you recover."

"If Will, doesn't act like my mother."

"I have to go now, duty calls."

"Bye."

He hadn't spoken to Antonio in months since he left the district and honestly he never thought they would interact again. His friend's concern touched him.

The sun had finally set for the day, at least that's what the clock on the wall said, he had no visibility outside. He was currently alone in the room, bored, unable to do anything. From what he heard the team was preoccupied with a case involving Kevin's brother so no one would visit him till the next day and Will's shift hadn't ended yet. He made an attempt to leave the bed but he was pushed back by a shocked Crockett who ran immediately by his side.

"Jay, what are you doing?" He pushed him back gently, reconnecting his oximeter, the monitor cables and the cannula parallelly checking his skin tone hearing the groaning from the young patient.

"What were you thinking?" Marcel yelled.

"Sorry…"

"Anyway, I came to see how your incision. Any dizziness? Nausea? Sweating?" He asked as he lowered the gown, checking for any signs of an infection.

"No, I am good, just tired even though I was sleeping for hours."

"The sedatives are kicking in slowly; they will help you sleep through the night without feeling any pain."

"Thanks."

The doctor looked at him with curiosity.

"For saving my life. I owe you."

"I just did my job but a beer at Molly's wouldn't be a bad idea."

Both of them laughed.

Soon, the doctor exited the room, being replaced by another familiar figure. Trudy Platt.

"Chuckles you are alive." She exclaimed kissing his forehead. "Miss blondie and Mr. Red hair doctor wanted to stay with you at night, however, both of them were dead tired so I sent them home. I guess it's gonna be you and me."

"Bad idea," Jay whispered yawning.

"I am going to pretend, I did not hear this. Get some rest, Jay, you need it. Also, it does seem to me that your partner cares about you more than you think." Finishing her phrase, she noticed the already sleeping detective. "Goodnight Jay."

Here are some scenes I would love to see in episode 10. I am sad that we didn't get a brotherly moment but I am glad that Hailey almost admitted her feelings to Jay. So, it was really difficult for me to write this one considering my hand injury but I knew I had to do it. I hope you like it, thank you for your comments, likes, follows.

Love ya,

~The Fourth Bionic~