AN: Kind of nervous about the storyline for this chapter. When a similar version of it played out in season 1 of the show it made me uncomfortable as a woman to see the narrative of false accuser used as a plot point. Especially given the statistics on false accusations. Thank you as always for following and favouriting and reading. I truly appreciate your comments and reactions to this fic. It was really supposed to be a ten chapter wonder...

Shay had been right all along. Tara was insane. Once Dawson had given an honest assessment to the higher ups of her skill, Tara accused Lieutenant Campbell of sexual harassment and attempted rape. It sent a shockwave through Firehouse 51. This was just the kind of bad publicity CFD didn't need. And no one at 51 had seen Campbell do anything with Tara. Never mind talk to her. But no one knew him well enough to vouch for him so the brass tried to push Campbell for an apology. Mouch did what he could but warned Campbell about the repercussions. And then the poor man had told Boden he was gay to save himself a long drawn-out trial and eventual dismissal. Had produced pictures of his also in the closet lover and stifled terrified tears in Boden's office and then Shay had been brought in to counsel him and really, really Shay wanted this shift to be over because what in the actual hell.

Boden had sworn her to secrecy about Campbell's sexuality. She didn't see why. Once the brass knew it was going to be all over the firehouses. Some men would inevitably treat him differently. It sucked but Campbell already knew all about people's prejudices. She'd tried to smile and tell him it was okay but in the frat life culture of firefighters, homoeroticism was still an awkward locker room taboo and the man's career as a firefighter was over whether he wanted it to be or not. He might not get run out of 51 but he was only here as relief. He'd saved himself from jail time and demerits on his record but lost out in the end anyway. Today sucked. She wanted a shot or ten but knew Kelly'd had another doctor's appointment during this shift and he might be okay for partial weight bearing on the leg which would be great news. She wanted to hear all about it as soon as possible.

"I said it's fine Casey."

Shay looked up from her crossword puzzle to see Dawson stalking to the laundry room in a tank top with her shirt dripping coffee in her hands and Casey following behind with apologies. That dynamic sure had changed with a quickness. Whatever patience Dawson had ever had for Casey seemed to be locked up tight and he was trying everything in his power to fix it. Shay could have laughed if it wasn't so sad. Those two were friends. Really sweet friends in spite of Dawson's crush and Casey's inability to be anything but stalwart and steady. To take his time and plan every next move and how it would work out like a chess match, Shay admired his consistency. It was how he'd gotten his mother out of prison finally and back home which had to be daunting and his best friend was putting up her guard and being nice and pleasant and distant in a way he wasn't prepared to accept.

Her fault, she suspected. Dawson didn't want Casey to find out about had occurred with Kelly and her politeness and casual manner were a deflection. A way to control how much it hurt when he did, inevitably, discover what was what. Nothing really stayed a secret in the firehouse. Not for too long unless you were Boden and Severide Senior and the latter uncorked the bottle just long enough to get a punch from Mills before everyone went back to their respective corners. She figured Kelly didn't have the full story or she would know it. Which reminded her, Benny was supposed to visit and she needed to clean Kelly's room for his stay. Wasn't that going to be fun. Two Severides, one grouchy, one mean and little old Shay in the middle. She'd stay at Angie's when she could.

"Tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing is wrong. I'm just covered in coffee"

"I could-"

"Please. Please. Do not touch me"

It was her tone as much as anything else that had Shay up and out of her seat. She'd been stuck in the middle between Dawson and Severide which had sucked but now it felt like she was on the outside looking in at every interaction her partner had with each man and she didn't know how to help her.

"Hey Dawson, grab my spare shirt. We need to do a run". They didn't but just looking at Casey and Dawson's tableau hurt. There she was backed up against the washing machine, her hands in front of her while Casey tried to move in. It didn't look bad or anything. Plus she knew Dawson could hit when she wanted too. She'd just never hit Casey. Never forgive herself if she did and the way things were going, it was bound to happen. Dawson was standing in a tank top in the not so cozy laundry room and losing her temper. Shay saw it. Saw the way Dawson's nostrils flared and her eyes watered. How she looked up at Casey as though to say Now? Now is when you push and try? When I say something?

Dawson looked over at Shay with a quick nod then headed to the locker room. Shay gave Casey an awkward smile before sliding back and away with her hands shoved in her pockets. Maybe now she'd get some answers about what was going down with the blond lieutenant.

"I still love him you know? That's not going anywhere." Dawson sighed "But he doesn't trust me and I don't trust him. Kind of like how Mills doesn't trust me I guess. And Matt just makes it harder."

They were sitting in the ambo, parked up with milkshakes and burgers and Dawson was staring out at Lake Michigan while Shay examined her face for any clues to where the conversation was going.

"Harder how?" and Dawson snorted. A cynical look passing over her face before she took a look pull on her milkshake. Shay was all ears, her nose crinkling with confusion.

"Casey didn't really start trying in our friendship until I told him no. Until I set boundaries and now he's fighting them with all he's got and trying to take us back to whatever it was when I'd just hang around and wait for him to notice all my effort."

"Do you want him to stop fighting?" Shay was genuinely curious. Dawson had such a thing for Casey. Always had. To hear her complain about his attention was different. Shay didn't really want to think about why this was happening now. She sipped her vanilla milkshake and waited for Dawson to respond. This was another change she was not prepared for, Dawson had never criticized Casey. She had complained and pined and shown up day after day with her big brown eyes and sucked Shay into their unrequited love story every single time. Although Shay called it unresolved sexual tension. Shay kept it real even if she did think they would be great together.

"I want him to think. To seriously think about what it is he wants from me. I'll cop to being more than emotionally available if he'll cop to being anything but until he needs something and I bound into view."

It was an astute observation and one Shay didn't think Dawson would ever make when it came to Casey. She liked him too much and Shay had always teased her to just tell him the truth, to lay it all out there. To just ask him out already when Hallie skipped town. But she had, and he'd given her "it's not the right time" brushoff which was both decent and infuriating. They were firefighters and paramedics. Every day they saw lives cut short before their time. Waiting on anything seemed too cruel but Dawson had taken it in stride. Told Shay it was probably because he was adjusting to life with his mother out of prison, not that Casey had told her that, and he was feeling overwhelmed and he wanted to have enough time and space to give her what she needed. Again, none of these were Casey's words.

This was all Dawson's interpretation of the brief if sweet interlude where he'd been flirty and present but pulled in all sorts of directions by his mom and Heather and whatever else he did that wasn't about her. And that was all before her deal with Voight...

"So… what now?"

"You mean after the milkshakes or with Casey?" Dawson joked before she took a huge slurp.

"Either. Both"

"Eh. We'll adjust. We have to. He's my friend and I won't just give up on that. He just needs to meet me halfway more. You wanna tell me why you were in Boden's office? Again."

And like that the conversation was over. Shay really didn't want to ponder the motivation behind Dawson's shift in perspective on Casey. As far as she was concerned they were going a step in the right direction if Casey's earnest attention was anything to judge by. Dawson's reasoning made sense. She wasn't trying to make him sweat or punish him. She wasn't deflecting to protect herself from the eventual Severide fallout. She'd just come to the conclusion that if he cared as much as he said he did then proof was necessary. She'd already played all her cards and had the mileage on how much she cared to back it up. Shay wasn't sure there was anything Dawson wouldn't do for Casey.

"Can we talk about how I was right about Tara?"

"Here we go…"

They bickered like old times and it was fun. While she drove back to the station, Shay taunted Dawson for wasting too much time trying to shape crazy into competent and Dawson snarked back about all the crazy Shay had fucked. Which to her chagrin, was very very accurate and then they were talking about Angie and her tongue and Dawson was laughing so hard Shay nearly stopped the ambo to slap her back before she choked. Everything was good. Everything was better than good and Shay knew she'd help Campbell anyway she could when the cards got dealt and he knew which way as up. She was lucky in some ways and she knew it. She'd help a colleague out anyway she could.

Boden was in his office and very concerned about the welfare of Firehouse 51 once news broke about Campbell. A sexual harassment training was already being scheduled in the upcoming shift because of Tara Little's allegations and it looked like he might need to schedule additional workshops on diversity awareness as well. It was hard. He wasn't naive. He'd been a black man in the Navy SEALS during a time period where the Black Panthers and MLK Jr and Malcolm were all fixing to change things and the military was not known for its progressive views. Police and fire departments were much the same way. He knew he'd never get higher than Battalion Chief and he was okay with that. Used to be men that looked like him couldn't even walk through the front door. He loved his firefighters. Loved his job and he would take care of each and every one of them until the day they dragged him out by his very grey curly hair. He wanted to do right by each and every one of them until he did. But what to do about Campbell? He suddenly felt a little guilty for being distant, for not wanting to get attached to a man who was replacing a subordinate he thought of like a son. He was beyond relieved that these accusations had not been leveled at Severide. Kelly, with his impossible charisma and long list of flings would have made a juicy target for Miss Little. For the little that he knew of Campbell even before he confessed his sexuality, it seemed odd to lay accusations at his feet.

He didn't want to think about why she might have done it. From what he could gather in Shay's derisive tone earlier in the shift, the girl was no paramedic. Not one made for a busy inner city firehouse serving a population of millions. And Dawson had failed her after a trial period more than generous by her own rigid standards. Dawson had been wary in some unconscious way about the girl no doubt and given her ample opportunities to prove herself. She wasn't exactly a hindrance during the Lapthrop Homes accident but she certainly didn't excel in crisis mode either. It was good that she was gone and it would be even better when her allegations were proved false and the higher ups took away the administrative position they'd carved out to keep her quiet. What a fucking mess.

Still, when all of what he knew was shed to light, 51 would still be down a very needed firefighter and with the way his house looked right now, he was sure they wouldn't get a quality substitute. Boden sighed. He wasn't sure what the brass was thinking at the moment but it could not be good.

His phone rang and he was so reluctant to answer he forwarded it to his secretary's desk. She could take a message. He was too tired to deal with any more bad news.

"Chief…" he sighed and looked up at Connie's beaming face. "You'll want to take this call. I promise."

Boden hmmmed and Connie laughed a little before closing the door so he could have his privacy on the phone. Boden picked up the receiver grumpily.

"Hello?"

"Hey Chief,"

"Severide," the first genuine smile of the last several hours streaked across his face. "How are you Lieutenant?"

"Bored out of my mind sir" and Boden chuckled at the younger man's frankness.

"No doubt. No doubt. Is that why you're calling? To check in and make sure we're all still alive down here?"

It felt good to joke for a moment. Solemn and severe as he was, Boden appreciated the joy some of his men brought to the firehouse. He just wished they wouldn't engage in such silly pranks and dares during work hours and get them all under the scrutiny of the brass. Severide seemed to be in good spirits which spoke well for his progress. "You should come visit. No need to hide just because you're injured Kelly. You know that."

"How about I come by and help with dispatch?"

"Kelly…"

"I got cleared for light duty Chief. And I can't stay home and watch soap operas. I am not that guy"

"So you'll come in and actually catch up on your paperwork?"

"Eh. I'll help out arson investigation and probably teach a course at the academy too."

"Sounds like a plan Kelly. Do you need any accommodations for the crutches and cast?"

"Uh… a chair and no oil spills?"

Chief laughed quietly. The firehouse was never pristine but they did have protocols around work safety hazards even if the guys did leave a mess. He'd make sure the men got a refresher course. Seemed like all he'd be doing for the next several hours was scheduling training class after training class. At least this one could make him smile while the men groaned. He wasn't letting Severide get re-injured from some water spilled on the floor. That simply would not do.

"We'll do our best. See you at 9am sharp for the morning briefing Lieutenant"

"Later Chief"

Severide chuckled and Boden could hear the glee in the younger man's voice so keenly he wanted to laugh again. He wasn't even going to step into a fire truck and the man sounded happier than the last time they spoke in the hospital. He was as close and as far away from a fire as he had ever been in the last two months but, he supposed, being in the firehouse was different. Helping the best he could was probably better for Severide than watching their jobs on the evening news and feeling impotent.

"Connie!" he called out. Her response was so perfectly smug but he couldn't fault her. She had been right of course. "Get me the latest schedule for who's in the dispatch room the next three days. Severide needs to be read in on updated procedure"

Connie began her search and Boden went back to scheduling another training for his men. He thought of what else he could do to keep Kelly occupied as the weeks of rehabilitation progressed. Perhaps some community outreach might be in order in the local schools, with an able bodied assistant no doubt. Maybe Mills would be amenable. He frowned. The air still hadn't cleared between him and Mills but he could not be less surprised by that fact. Learning your parents were fallible was always hard and he was more than a little culpable in Mills' disillusionment. Boden sighed. Well there goes that happy feeling.

Severide knew he was going to look absurd walking into 51 in a boot with one crutch under his arm but he didn't care. Well, he did. But his pride wasn't enough to keep him sitting in a cab outside. He really missed driving his car but apparently driving with a broken leg meant if you had an accident they could deny your claim and he'd already had one accident. Best not to tempt fate. Shay didn't know he was coming in. Maybe it was silly but this was a good surprise not a bad one and he wanted to see her face light up like everyone else's when he, sigh, hobbled in. She and Angie had left early for breakfast. It was nice seeing Shay be happy in that respect. Angie was a girl's girl. Talking colours and light and explaining art in a flurry of hand gestures and words that sometimes made it really hard to take her seriously. Shay loved it though and he loved Shay so there they were.

It was ten minutes before briefing time. He knew he was cutting it close but he also kind of wanted to make an entrance. So sue him. He paid the cabbie and hopped out, go bag precariously held on one shoulder. He, quite sadly, couldn't remember the duty hours for dispatchers so he'd brought the bag just in case. If no one else killed him for doing too much Shay definitely would. He figured he'd drop it by the break room door on his way in. He made quick work of the driveway and entered through the side door by the trucks. So far so good. He could hear Chief's voice booming. He wasn't sure if Chief would tell anyone he was coming. He didn't actually ask him to keep it a secret but…

"Mr. Severide! If you would like to remain a lieutenant get your butt into my briefing room right now!" of course he did. Chief's face was set in that half stern half distant way he got when he was trying not to show he was pleased in the wrong moment. He had to grin at that, Chief was Chief after all. A good man to have in your corner.

"Yes sir Chief!" he would have tipped a salute but that was doing it too brown and he dropped his go bag and took the round of backslaps and cheers with aplomb and found to his surprised delight that the only free seat was at the very front desk next to Bri who was looking at Shay who was shaking her head like I didn't know! and no, Shay wouldn't know a couple of things if he had anything to say about it. He tipped a nod to Casey because rank always called to rank even if they were still pissy at each other. And then he turned to Chief with a smile as he leaned his crutch against the desk. Bri's leg was shaking next to him and he couldn't be too obvious but… he lined his thigh up against her thigh as though he was adjusting his boot and let out a deep long breath while he rubbed his hand down his leg, pinkie touching her calf as he went. She went perfectly still and upright in her chair but he felt her take a deep inhale slow and steady as well. He leaned over the desk, hands clasped in front of him and looked around.

"Sooo. What'd I miss?"

Thanks for reading!