Hope you like it!
Shay ran through the doors at Chicago med beside Gabby's gurney. She was pushed back by doctors and found herself in Kelly's arms. She sobbed into his chest. He held her tightly. He kept her stood up until they reached the waiting area. She sat hunched over in one of the plastic chairs. Boden walked over "Kelly?" He said. The guys all appeared. "Chief" Severide said. He stood up.
"Where's Gabby?" Herrmann said. Shay looked up at him "she said she was fine... she went to her place to get some stuff and she was gone too long" Shay whimpered "we went after her and when we got there she was just lying there" she started to sob again. Severide held her close.
"She was just lying there Kelly she was just led there"
"She's gonna be fine" Kelly said softly
"What have the doctors said?" Matt asked
"Nothing yet" Severide sighed "let's just stay positive"
"Shay she's going to be ok" Mills said, sitting down.
Shay nodded. She managed a small smile. Firehouse 51 sat together. It didn't seem like two minutes since they had been sat there waiting for Shay. Boden was kicking himself. He should have made sure she was checked properly. His job was to protect his people. In his confusion about the crash he had let Gabby slip through the cracks and now she was in critical condition. As he was starting to get lost in his thoughts Dr Halstead appeared. Shay stood up. Severide steadied her.
"Gabby needs an operation on her brain" he said. Shay gasped and gripped Kelly's hand.
"She has a bleed there and we need to stop it" the doctor said "she is currently ventilated. It's touch and go" he sighed
"Can we see her?" Shay asked tearfully
"I'm sorry" the doctor shook his head
"Please" Shay begged "please let me see her"
The doctor took a deep breath. He looked at the desperate faces of firehouse 51. "Two minutes" he said. Shay nodded and followed him. She stopped as she saw Gabby. She was led in one of those unflattering gowns. She had her ventilation tube in the throat. IV lines were attached to her left arm. She was grey. Her chest rose and fell in time with the machines. Shay stood next to her. She looked over the bruising and the cut on Gabby's face.
"Oh Gabby" she said "oh why didn't you tell me"
She held Gabby's hand. The monitors beeped repeatedly. She wiped her cheeks and smiled "you've got this baby don't you worry about anything else now just think about getting better" she said quietly "I love you". She kissed Gabby's cheek "see you soon" she said. The doctors walked in "I'm sorry we have to go"
Shay nodded and let go of Gabby's hand. The crew all watched as her bed was wheeled down the corridor. There was a silence that washed over the group. This had rattled them. Shay looked at them all. Casey nodded sombrely. He looked around at his men. "Alright guys" he said "she's gonna be in surgery for a couple of hours so let's all go and get some sleep. We can come back when she's out"
They all nodded and headed out. Shay didn't move.
"Shay come on" Severide smiled "we can come back in a few hours I promise"
She looked at him "what if something happens"
"Someone will call. Shay you need to rest ok you haven't slept since shift"
"I don't care"
"Shay she would tell you to come home"
Shay stared at him "ok" she whispered
"Right. Come on" he smiled and led her to the car. When they got back to their place Kelly fell asleep on the couch. Shay paced around for half an hour before flaking beside him. She awoke with a jolt two hours later and checked the time. 11:30 am. She shook Severide "she's gonna be out soon"
"Shay they said it would take at least four hours"
She nodded "I know"
"So why are we going now"
"I want to go to her place and get her some clothes" she said quietly "she did it for me"
"Ok" he yawned. He pulled his jacket on and they walked to the car. When they got to Gabby's place Severide undid the bolts holding the door up. Shay stood inside. There was a stain from the blood. Shay stared at it. Severide pushed her in the other direction. She stumbled forward. After a few moments she managed to focus again. She walked into Gabby's bedroom. She smiled as she saw Gabby's black dress. She stroked the smooth material. She could smell Gabby's perfume. The scent was familiar and comforting. Before she got upset she grabbed some bedclothes and a couple of tops. She grabbed a few other pieces.
Severide was cleaning up the blood. He sighed and dried the floor. He saw Gabby's phone still lying on the table. He put it in the bag Shay brought down. She nodded. There was an eerie silence that made Shay's skin crawl. She just expected Gabby to appear. To open a bottle of wine and sit down on the couch before complaining about the shift or Molly's or how Mouch always forgot to walk Pouch, anything. Even just sit in silence. Anything had to be better than her not being there. They drove to Chicago med. Shay was silent the whole way there. Casey called Severide "hey pal I'm gonna go round and fix Gabby's door seeing as you kicked it in" he said
"Cheers buddy. That's good of you"
"Anything for one of our own" he said
"Yeah" Severide sighed
"Is there any news?"
"No me and Shay just reached the hospital. We're still waiting. I'll keep you updated"
"Thanks" Casey said. The call was ended.
Shay paced around. Kelly watched her. After a few laps he pulled her onto a chair. She buried her face in her hands "Kelly I've never felt like this about anyone, I... I've never been so scared of losing anyone"
"You're not gonna lose her Shay"
"Kelly you heard them! Touch and go!"
"Shay she will be fine. She's Dawson"
"Kelly what if she isn't" Shay said "what if she gets brain damage and doesn't remember me? What if it goes wrong and she can't be a firefighter any more?"
"Shay you can't think like that"
Her blue eyes met his. She searched for hope. He held her hand "it's all gonna work out Shay I promise"
She nodded and leaned back. She bounced her leg up and down. After what felt like years to Shay the doctor walked out. Shay practically ran through him trying to get over to ask how it had gone.
"She made it" he said, pulling off the hair cover
Shay gasped "thank you" she said "thank you so much"
"She's still sedated and ventilated. We won't wake her up until the swelling reduces but surgery went as well as we could have hoped"
Shay grinned "so she's going to be ok"
"There are no guarantees with an injury like this but the signs are positive"
Shay nodded "can I see her?"
"Not yet"
"When?"
"When she's settled in recovery. Just wait here for now"
"Ok" Shay nodded
"Thank you" Severide said, shaking his hand
"Just doing my job"
Severide smiled. It was a line he used frequently.
He called Casey and Herrmann, who called Mouch and Mills, who called Cruz and Otis and soon enough they were all gathered in the waiting area. They all hugged Shay, who's newfound optimism lifted spirits. Boden appeared. Shay smiled. Severide watched his best friend cheer up. He didn't want her to get crushed if Gabby wasn't absolutely fine but he wasn't going to say anything, not yet. After twenty minutes Shay couldn't wait any longer. She walked down the corridor. A nurse smiled "go on"
Shay pushed open the door. She looked at Gabby. She still looked beautiful, even with her head wrapped in gauze and her face purple and bruised. Shay gently held her hand. A lump rose to her throat. She let tears roll down her cheeks. She wiped them with her other hand and laughed slightly "oh if you could see me now". She wasn't expecting a reply but the lack of response from Gabby amplified how serious this was. She frowned "listen to me Gabriela Dawson you don't get to leave me now ok. You take all the time you need but make sure you remember to come back. I can't do this without you ok. I need you, you know what I'm like, you're my rock, my grounding, and of course my drinking partner; you know the guys can't keep up" Shay smiled. She closed her eyes and recalled Gabby and herself sitting in Molly's a few months ago and Gabby, drunk as heck slurring "Leslie Elizabeth Shay... you are a terrible influence", before downing two more shots. Shay, equally as drunk had fallen off her stool and kissed Gabby's cheek "and you love me for it". They hadn't even been dating then, but they had loved each other. Everyone had been able to see it. But that's just how it was, you don't know how much you love someone until you think you're going to lose them.
"God I need you to stop me being so miserable" Shay smiled looking at Gabby's closed eyes "but there's no rush I'm sure I'll be able to cope with Severide for a few days" she gripped Gabby's hand.
As the hours ticked by Shay felt her eyes dropping shut. She tried to resist it but eventually she fell asleep. The guys in the waiting room were asleep, in various uncomfortable positions. The doctors and nurses smiled "that's one tight group" April remarked
"Yep" a nurse replied.
It was 11pm. They weren't on shift for another 33 hours. That's how it worked. 24 on 48 off. It created messed up sleeping patterns but none of them would change it for the world. Gabby's monitors beeped steadily. She remained stable. Doctors checked every 20 minutes. One kind nurse draped a blanket over Shay. Her eyes fluttered open at 8am. She wondered where she was and then upon looking at Gabby it all cane flooding back. She sighed, she had wanted Gabby to be awake. She knew it was impossible while she was ventilated, because she wasn't supporting her own airway. She decided she would talk to Gabby, just in case she could hear it. Although she knew it wasn't likely, in fact it was impossible, she just didn't want Gabby to be lonely. "Morning my love" she said softly "it's 8am which is far too early for me, but you know that. You're doing good. Your vitals are stable, which is good. Maybe they'll take you off ventilation today. But they'll have to do a scan before that-" she was interrupted by a knock on the door. She looked around and saw Herrmann.
"I don't want to interrupt I just wanted to check how things were going"
"Stable" Shay nodded
"Oh and here's a coffee" he smiled and placed a plastic cup on the small table. Shay smiled gratefully. He squeezed her shoulder "when you feel hungry Cindy's brought enough to feed a small army seeing as we've all started camping here" he smiled. Shay laughed "see Gabby we're all here. And we are all ok so don't worry" Shay smiled.
"Look I'll sit with her for a bit you go grab some food and get a bit of fresh air" Herrmann said
"I don't wanna leave her" Shay said
"I'll be here" Herrmann said reassuringly "plus I need to have a word with Dawson here about raising my blood pressure like this"
Shay smiled and stood up. She stretched.
"Thank you" she smiled. Herrmann nodded. He sat down. Shay walked back down the corridor. She smiled "she's stable" she nodded. The guys all smiled. Cindy hugged her "you get a croissant in you" she smiled
"Cindy you're the best" Shay smiled. She bit into the pastry and realised how hungry she was. Wow. Severide watched as Shay smiled and hugged him "Kelly's she's gonna be fine I just know it"
"What did I tell you" he smiled. She nodded and winked "thank you" she said sincerely. He nodded.
She walked back into Gabby's room but stopped by the door.
"Gabby I know you can't hear me really but just in case I just want you to know that you are missed, ok and we tease you at work but you're family, real family. And I'm sorry we can't get in touch with Antonio but we're all here, every single one of us, even Mouch has moved from the couch! And there's a woman called Leslie Shay who needs you so you just hang on ok Dawson. That's an order" Herrmann said. He turned around and quickly wiped his cheeks when she saw Shay. She smiled. They both just sat quietly for a moment. Shay took Gabby's other hand. Herrmann looked up "Shay me and Cindy are here for you too" he said "it's hard watching someone you love be in here"
"Thank you" Shay nodded. She looked at Gabby "we are gonna be just fine" she smiled "I just know we are"
"That's the spirit" Herrmann nodded.
A young doctor walked in "we need to take Gabby for a scan" he said "to assess the swelling"
"Then you can take the ventilator out?" Shay said enthusiastically
"Maybe" he smiled, encouraged by her optimism. The nurses started moving the bed. As she was wheeled out the guys all stood up. Shay reassured them quickly "just a scan" she said. Everyone relaxed. Shay sat down and ate another pastry. She smiled cheekily at Severide who shook his head and laughed.
"What?!" She said "it's the stress" she joked. He laughed at her and also took another. They all sat talking. Gabby was wheeled back. The doctor approached. "The swelling has gone down considerably. So yes we are going to try to remove the ventilator. But it's not always successful first time" he said
Shay nodded "so when will she wake up"
"Hopefully in a couple of hours if this goes well"
Shay nodded "can I come?"
"I'm sorry you need to wait here. I'll come back as soon as I can"
"Ok" Shay nodded
"Thank you doctor" Boden said. They all gathered around.
The doctor gently started disconnecting machines, then stopping, watching her vitals, then carrying on. He took a deep breath and started to remove the ventilation tube in her throat. He moved slowly and carefully, not wanting to send her into shock. The tube slid out. The team of medics watched as her vitals fluctuated. Then they stabilised. Shay was gripping Severide's hand. He was amazed by the strength she was holding it with. She was nervous. He knew. The doctor reappeared and Shay pulled Severide up. The doctor smiled "she's supporting her own airway" he said. Shay let out a breath she hadn't realised she was holding. Cruz shook her shoulders. She grinned and walked back into Gabby's room. The firehouse crew all sighed happily and sat down. Things were looking up. Finally.
Thanks for reading