Timeline: Early alternative season 7; but Upstead is together and Rhodes is still at Med.

Completed: Apr. 26, 2020

"Hey, Vanessa," Hailey calls out to her roommate one day in late September as they are heading to her car to drive to the district.

"Yeah?" Vanessa answers looking over to her roommate.

"I just wanted to give you a head's up since it's getting close to cold and flu season. If you get sick be careful around Jay."

"Is he okay?" Vanessa asks concerned about her new teammate.

"Yeah, he's just immunocompromised from an accident when he was serving overseas," Hailey answers, hoping Jay won't get mad at her.

Three weeks later, the flu is making its rounds through every department in the 21st district: its latest victims is the intelligence unit. Kevin was the first to go down, followed by Adam two days later.

While Kevin called in after first becoming sick, Adam attempted to tough it out for a few days before Voight finally sent him home.

Almost a week after the flu first invaded the intelligence unit, Kevin is back and Hailey notices that her partner seems off– and not in a normal something is bothering him way.

"Upton, Halstead, go back to the scene and see if you can find anyone who may have security footage," Voight tells the two detectives of the unit.

Hailey and Jay grab their jackets and walk to the exit of the intelligence bullpen. Once out of earshot of the team, Jay turns to Hailey asking, "Do you mind driving?"

"No, what's wrong? I normally have to fight you to drive," Hailey asks concerned.

"I'm just kind of tired," Jay tells her reluctantly as they reach her car.

"Okay, well, it's a long drive so you can rest your eyes on the way if you want," Hailey offers as they get into their respective seats.

"Thanks, but I'm not that tired. I'm just not awake enough to drive," Jay tells her tiredly.

The ride is quiet, Jay shutting down any conversation that Hailey tries to start. When they get to the scene, the two start going door to door hoping to find someone who has cameras pointed to where their homicide took place. The more people they talk to, the more that Hailey notices the congestion and scratchiness in Jay's voice.

The seventh door that they knock on brings luck, as the owner has a security camera facing that way. While it isn't much because of the distance from the scene, it is better than what they had an hour ago.

After thanking the owner for the copy of the video, the two detectives climb back into Hailey's car to drive back to the district. "Are you feeling okay? It sounds like you're getting sick," Hailey asks him while at a red light.

"I'm fine," Jay tells her.

"Okay, but if you start to feel sick and want to go home, I'll give you a ride," Hailey tells him.

Jay nods, closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the headrest.

The next time Hailey looks over to see Jay has dozed off.

As Hailey pulls the car up to the district, the change in motion wakes Jay up.

"What happened?" Jay groggily asks when he realized they are outside of the district.

"You fell asleep," Hailey answers before asking her own question. "Are you sure you're okay?" concern in her voice.

"Yeah, just tired. I'll crash early tonight if I can, and I'll be fine tomorrow," Jay answers more awake.

"Okay, but remember what I told you earlier," Hailey tells him, wishing her partner wasn't so stubborn.

Jay nods before getting out of her car, waiting for her to do the same so they can update the rest of the unit.

The video isn't much, but the team takes their time to carefully analyze it, not wanting to miss anything that could possibly help their case. Their effort on the video pays off when they spot a partial plate on a vehicle of a similar description.

Using the database, they are able to find out who the owner of the car is, a Christopher Daniels. Sending Kevin and Kim to collect Daniels, the two detectives and Rojas work on his paper trail to give them a head start in case he is their murderer.

While working on their computers, Hailey notices that Jay has developed a dry cough. Looking over to him, she notices that he also looks like he is running a fever. Hailey knows that he won't admit anything, so she decides to just keep an eye on him for now.

Half an hour later Kim and Kevin return to the bullpen after dropping Daniels off in one of their interrogation rooms.

Voight comes out of his office and announces, "Kevin, Kim. I want you to handle the interview. Vanessa, you'll observe it with me. Jay and Hailey dig into his contacts, I don't want any surprises."

Everyone goes to their assigned task, Voight and the three offices going to the interrogation room, leaving the two detectives in the bullpen on their own. Hailey looks over to Jay to find him squinting at his screen like it is giving him a headache, deciding to put him out of his misery, Hailey crosses the short space between their desks.

Bending down so she is at eye level with him, she calls his attention, "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," Jay tells her unconvincingly. His voice cracking and his eyes have a fevered glaze.

"Babe, tell me the truth, it's just us," she coaxes.

"I think I'm getting a cold," he tells her reluctantly.

"Mmm-hmm," Hailey murmurs while feeling his forehead with her hand. "You're burning up, Jay, it might be the flu."

"I get fevers with colds, ever since the accident," Jay reminds her.

"I know, but I don't like how warm you feel. How 'bout you take some Tylenol and then lay down in the break room for a bit," she offers.

"No."

"Jay, rest for a while. I'll wake you in a couple hours and if you feel better you can get back to work."

Knowing he's not going to win, Jay reluctantly agrees. Hailey grabs the bottle of Tylenol before walking with him to the break room. She grabs a mug, filling it with water so he can take the medication, handing him the two pills. After making sure he's settled on the couch, Hailey goes back to the bullpen, closing the door hoping that he will actually sleep for an hour or two.

Forty minutes later, the rest of the team come back. "How did it go?" Hailey asks.

"Where's Jay?" Kim asks, noticing the other detective is missing.

"Break room. He's burning up, but won't admit he's getting sick. I told him to lay down for a little and if he felt better the could get back to work."

Kim nods before telling Hailey what happened, "We broke him in twenty minutes. Got his statement and he's being processed as we speak."

"Leave Jay," Voight tells Hailey. "Finish your reports and you're done for the day," he tells the team noting it's already six o'clock.

The team, minus Jay, get to work on their reports wanting to get out of there for the day.

When Hailey finishes her paperwork almost an hour and a half later, she pulls out her phone to text Will before waking Jay.

Are you working?

Yes. Between patients, what's up?

The flu is going around the district. Last week it hit our unit with both Kevin and Adam. I think Jay has it. Should I bring him to Med or take him to an urgent care?

Bring him here, I want to check him out for myself.

Okay, be there in twenty.

Hailey puts her phone in her pocket before going into the breakroom to grab Jay. Walking up to him, she sees that he is shivering even though he is wearing his hoodie still.

"Jay, time to wake up," she whispers while rubbing his back.

"Hailey?" Jay asks tiredly.

"Yeah, how are you feeling?"

"Not great."

"I talked to Will and he wants me to bring you in."

"No. No hospitals, I promise I'll rest."

"Sorry, we're not chancing it. He wants to see you for himself," Hailey tells him as she helps up from the couch.

"Wait. What about work?" Jay questions confused.

"We closed the case. We were just doing our reports."

"I need to do mine."

"You can do it later," Hailey tells him leading him out of the bullpen, leaving her car keys with Vanessa so she can get home, knowing she's probably going to end up staying with Jay.

Just like she told Will, the two arrive at Med twenty minutes later. Parking Jay's truck, Hailey text Will to let him know that they are there before exiting the vehicle and walking towards the entrance.

Will spots the two as they enter the ED. Going over to them he does a mental exam of his brother, "Treatment six is open," he tells them while leading them to the area.

After Jay gets settled on the bed, April comes in to take his vitals. "102.4," she reads after scanning the thermometer across his forehead. "Have you taken anything for that?"

"Tylenol two and a half hours ago," Hailey answer for him before turning to Jay. "How were you standing?" He just shrugs his shoulders.

"Okay, Dr. Rhodes will be in soon," April tells them.

Not five minutes later does Rhodes appear in Jay's exam room.

"Detective Halstead, what brings you in this time?" He asks while putting on a pair of gloves.

"Hailey and Will worry too much," Jay tells the black-haired doctor.

"You have a compromised immune system since you lost your spleen when you were overseas," Will tells Jay.

At the same time, Will is scolding Jay, Hailey tells Rhodes, "The flu is going around the district and it hit our unit last week with two people. Jay's immunocompromised, so we're being careful."

"Okay, how long have you been feeling sick?"

"This morning," Jay answers after getting a look from both his brother and partner.

"We can do a rapid flu test, but it might be too early for it to be detected," Rhodes tells the sick detective.

Jay only grunts in response.

Rhodes grabs a rapid flu test kit before giving the instructions to Jay. "Tilt your head back," Jay does as he is told and Rhodes places the swab up his nose. When he is done with the first side Jay rubs at his nose. "Okay, are you ready for the second side or do you need a second?"

Jay answers by sneezing three times into his hands. "I'm good," he answers after a second.

Rhodes repeats the same thing with the second side causing the same reaction from Jay. "Results should be back in fifteen minutes," he tells the group before leaving the room.

"What're your symptoms?" Will asks wanting to make sure Jay isn't developing pneumonia.

"I'm fine."

"Earlier he said he was tired, he has a fever, dry cough, I'm guessing a headache from the way he was looking at his computer at work, sounds congested and like he has a sore throat," Hailey informs Will of what she noticed.

"Classic flu symptoms and you've been in close contact with two people who've had the flu," Will tells Jay before turning to Hailey. "Are you staying with him?"

"Yeah, unless you want to instead."

"I can't. Just started an eighteen-hour shift."

"Okay, we'll be fine."

"Thanks, I'll write you a list of what you should probably get," Will tells her as he walks out of the room in search of paper and a pen, leaving the two detectives alone.

"You don't need to stay with me," Jay tells her.

"I'm staying. You would do the same."

Twenty minutes later both doctors are back in the room. "You tested negative, but since you've been around two people with the flu in the last week, it's most likely that it's too early for it to be detected. I'm going to prescribe Tamiflu for you, especially since you're immunocompromised. Twice a day for five days."

"Hailey's going to stay with him," Will tells him.

"Okay, you too Hailey. Once a day for ten days to help prevent you from catching it too."

"Feel better, Jay," Rhodes tells him before leaving the room.

"Here," Will hands Hailey the list he made. "Try to get him to eat when he takes it. If he takes it with food, the less likely it will upset his stomach. And if he gets too uncomfortable because of the fever put a lukewarm cloth on his head; if it's cool it could make him shiver and bring his fever up more. Call me if you need anything or if his fever lasts more than three days."

Hailey thanks Will before leaving with Jay. On the way to his apartment, she stops at a pharmacy to get the prescriptions filled and to grab the items that Will listed for her.

Hailey leaves Jay in the car while she gets what is on the list. Hailey goes to the pharmacy to get the scripts filled before she walks around in search of the items on Will's list. Hailey grabs two bottles of blue Pedialyte, crackers, a joint pack of DayQuil and NyQuil, cough drops, and apple sauce. By the time she finds everything on the list, the scrips are filled.

After checking out, Hailey returns to the truck to find Jay asleep leaning against the window. After carefully getting in so to not disturb Jay, Hailey starts the truck and drives to her next stop, a deli near Jay's place.

Hailey goes in and orders a container of soup for Jay and gets herself a sandwich, before finally taking Jay home.

Once inside his apartment, Hailey leaves Jay on the couch so she can get their food. "Here, eat this," Hailey orders Jay handing him half a bowl of soup with one hand and her own sandwich is in her other hand.

"Not hungry."

"You need to eat something so you can take the Tamiflu."

Jay forces himself to eat what she gave him before taking the pill with some of the Pedialyte. Seeing that he is falling asleep on the couch, Hailey suggests, "Why don't you go change and lay down in your bed?" Jay only nods going to his room.

Hailey takes her time putting away the items she picked up at the pharmacy. Deciding to check on Jay, Hailey slowly opens the door to check on him to find in wearing a heavy hoodie bundled under many blankets.

Sighing, Hailey goes over to him knowing she has to wake him. "Jay, wake up, Babe," she whispers.

He slowly opens his eyes, "What?"

"Too many layers. You need to lose some."

"But I'm cold."

"You only feel cold because of the fever," Hailey tells him while helping him sit up taking the hoodie from him along with all the blankets but the sheet and the comforter.

"Hailey, I'm freezing. Give me some blankets back," Jay asks, not caring if it sounds like he is whining.

Hailey places a hand on his head, "You're still burning up. You can have some back once you're fever goes down."

"Stay?" Jay asks. "You took my blankets away, stay, please?"

"Okay," Hailey answers climbing next to Jay on top of his remaining blankets. Jay lays down resting his head in Hailey's side falling to sleep.

With Jay sleeping, Hailey decides it wouldn't hurt if she took a nap as well.

Hailey wakes up an hour later with something really hot in her side an hour later. Realizing that it is Jay, she grabs the thermometer she brought in to his room from the medicine cabinet in the bathroom. Placing the device in his ear she gets a reading of 103.2, almost a full degree higher.

"Jay, baby, wake up."

He gives an incoherent mumble.

"Jay, you're burning up. You need to take something."

"'m 'wake."

"I'm sorry, do you want Motrin or NyQuil?"

"NyQuil," Jay answer while coughing.

Hailey goes to grab the desired medication along with Pedialyte and a wet rag. Hailey comes back a moment later with the wanted items.

Breaking open the packet, she hands him the two pills and the bottle, "Here, try to drink some Pedialyte."

"Don't feel like it."

"You need to drink. I don't want to take you back to Med for dehydration to get IV fluids."

With the threat of an IV, Jay drinks enough to satisfy Hailey for now. Taking the bottle back, she has Jay lay back down and wipes his face and neck off with the rag. Jay moans, the rag feeling good on his hot skin.

Hailey then lays the rag across his forehead, leaving it there. "Does that feel better?" she asks.

"Yeah, thanks. Lay with me?"

Hailey lays back next to Jay, hoping both the medicine and the rag will help bring his fever down.

The next morning, Hailey wakes up to find Jay still sleeping. Looking at the clock, she decides to let him sleep for another hour before waking him for more meds.

Hailey spends the next hour going through both her personal and work e-mails. Hailey feels Jay shifting next to her, "Hey, how're feeling?"

"Hot, sick," he croaks.

"Okay, you can have more Tamiflu and DayQuil, but you need to eat something first," Hailey tells him, frowning at the heat radiating off of him.

"No, food. Just the meds."

"You need to eat to take the one. I can make you toast or eggs," Hailey offers.

"Eggs," Jay answers not wanting to think of how toast would feel on his throat.

Hailey makes the egg and brings in the meds to Jay's room. After giving Jay the meds, she takes his temperature again getting reading of 102.6. Jay spends most of the day sleeping, only waking up to use the bathroom or when Hailey makes him eat to take the medicine.

On the fourth day, Jay's fever finally goes below 101. And it takes another two days for his fever to completely break. As Jay slowly gets better he migrates from his bed to the couch, staying up for longer periods of time.

"How are you feeling?" Hailey asks the day before he is supposed to go back to work.

"Better, really. I just hate that I get so sick because I don't have that one organ."

"I know, and I hate seeing you so sick. Are you sure you're ready to go back?"

"Yeah, I need to. I'm going crazy."

"I know. I love you."

"I know, thanks for taking care of me. I know I'm not the easiest person to deal with when I'm are sick," Jay tells her, still afraid to tell anyone that, fearful that they would leave him, but he says it with his eyes.

"Come on, let's go to bed. I might need to retrain you, it's been a week since you were at work," Hailey teases him. The two go to bed and Hailey is glad that she's no longer sleeping next to a furnace, but at the same time is going to miss spending this much time with him once she goes back to her own home.

A/N: Sorry this is late (just past midnight on Sunday instead of Saturday), but if you read my other story you know the end of the semester is kicking my butt. This is my first published attempt at romantic Upstead. I have another one planned towards the end, so let me know if you want more like this or want platonic Upstead. I also feel like I rushed this ending, but I wanted to get this chapter out. Because this is Fiction, I added Rhodes because as much as I like Marcel, I miss Rhodes on Med and his friendship with Will.

Conversions:

102.4= 39.1

103.2= 39.6

102.6= 39.2

101= 38.3

Chapter Question(s):

heartofwaldorf- Chapter 8- I really like your story, such an original one. I do have questions: how did you come with this idea of 26 chapters hurting one character? And are you going to write (in this story) about hurting another character or just Jay? Can't wait to read the next chapter!

Answer: Je suis contente que tu aimes mon histoire. (I hope that's right, it's been a while since I had French). The idea of A-Z hurting a character isn't really an original one, it can be found in probably all fandoms. I think the original part in my chapters for this story are some of the scenarios that I put him in, examples being B, D, E, and later on M, O, P, Q, R, and S. For ones that other people have used, the letter A being an example, I try to put my own style into it. While some people might hurt the different characters in the show, but I am only focusing on Jay.

floopdeedoopdee- Chapter 8- ...I really liked in this story how you focused somewhat on Jay's abandonment issues. I would love it if you could do a story around that with some angsty whump and whumpy whump. Maybe Hailey and Voight or heck, the whole team can be mad at him about something, even a misunderstanding, and he feels alone and because of it he goes through an injury or illness by himself...

Answer: I already have nine different unpublished stories that I have ideas for, five of them being for Chicago PD including the Deaf Jay Fic, but your prompt is too good to pass up. So once I finish pre-writing the rest of the chapters for this story, I will turn your prompt into a short 3-5 chapter story.

asian-ninja- Chapter 8- ...side note, not sure if this helps your decision trying to keep certain aspects canon, but the show runner/producer did recently say that Hailey and Jay are falling in love with each other. take that as you will I guess?)

Answer: I did see that, after I posted the chapter I believe. I just want to keep them as in character as possible, so I want to be careful in how I write them. I feel like Hailey and Jay are the only two characters I have semi-down and Will and Vanessa I feel like I'm getting close to getting to how to write them. I'm not the biggest fan of Voight, Ruzek, or Kim so I either avoid writing them so they don't seem out of character or in Ruzek's case (in Man's Best Friend) I make them the bad guy. And Kevin doesn't get a lot of screen time, so I'm having a hard time getting him right when I write him in my stories. So, a summary of my rambling is that I want to make it authentic to the show to not make it seem out of character in how they would be if they were in a romantic relationship.

Also sorry if this chapter seems like bad timing due to current events, but this was planned since last fall when I started deciding what each letter was going to be.