Chapter 23 – The Cheek
A week later Lexi walked in to Molly's and went directly to the bar. Lexi had spent the last nine days at the hospital with Jay whilst he recovered. Sleeping on the cot in his room had not done her back any favours. Will had told her Jay would probably be released in a few days, so she had decided it was time for her to get the apartment above Molly's cleaned and in some form of liveable space to allow her to move in.
Lexi planned to spend her days working on the apartment, cleaning, painting and whatever else needed doing, then spend her nights at the hospital with Jay. If the place wasn't ready by the time Jay was released from the hospital she was going to stay with Burgess for a while. Kim had offered Lexi her spare room, Lexi had declined not wanting to get in the way of Kim and Adam, although Kim had assured her, she could stay if she needed to.
"Hey Gabby" Lexi smiled leaning over the bar to kiss her cheek. "Can I take a look at the apartment? I just want to see what I need to buy and what not"
Gabby smiled broadly "Yeah of course" Gabby told her throwing down the towel she had been using to clean glasses, "follow me"
Lexi walked the length of the bar following Gabby as she went through the corridor by the kitchen, turned right and stopped by a large locked door. Gabby used her keys and unlocked the door stepping over the threshold she explained. "You can access the apartment from the street through this door" Gabby pointed to the door to the left of her. "Saves you walking through the bar if you don't want to".
"Perfect"
There was about 10 foot of space at the bottom of a set of stairs that led up to the apartment. "This set of keys is for you" Gabby advised pressing the light switch on the wall illuminating the stairs and the small landing at the top.
"Great thank you" Lexi waited for Gabby to go up the stairs.
"Why don't you go up first" Gabby suggested smiling handing Lexi the keys.
Lexi obliged and began climbing the timber stairs, they creaked as Lexi's steps echoed in the small space. Lexi unlocked the door with Gabby standing eagerly behind her. Lexi stepped through the door and did not expect what she saw.
The apartment was clean, tidy, and decorated. The door they had entered through was in the middle of the apartment. To the left was a small bright kitchen with red accessories, a breakfast bar with two red leather stools split the kitchen from the living room. A grey three-seater sofa and a red arm chair faced a small rectangle coffee table and a 40-inch flat screen television that was mounted on the wall.
Lexi looked at Gabby for answers "it was Kelly's idea" Gabby smiled "well we all chipped in, including your friends at the CPD but I decorated, if you don't like anything I won't be offended if you change it"
"It's all gorgeous" Lexi turned right and walked towards the bedroom, she could see a double bed with a black wrought iron headboard with small fairy lights wrapped around with a night stand either side of the bed through the door.
Gabby walked in front of her leading her in to the bedroom "There's no bath but Matt put in a new shower" she explained as Lexi followed her. A triple wardrobe stood by the large window of the bedroom beside a 5-draw dresser, the bathroom was to the left of the bed. Lexi poked her head through the door turning on the light. It looked like Matt had put an entire new bathroom suite in not just a shower. "It's pretty sound proof up here when the doors are closed downstairs" Gabby assured her.
"I don't know what to say" Lexi said sitting on the bed and running her hands over the soft fabric of the purple decorative blanket that was thrown over the bed.
"Kelly told me purple is your favourite colour" Gabby told her as she saw Lexi looking at the purple chair that sat in the corner of the room. "I saw that and thought you'd like it"
Lexi stood and hugged Gabby "thank you, it's all beautiful"
"Told you she'd like it" they both turned to see Kelly leaning on the door of the bedroom.
"I'll give you two a minute" Gabby told them walking around the bed towards the door.
"Thank you again for everything Gabby" Lexi called after her following her out of the bedroom. Lexi crossed the hall watching Gabby descend the stairs and walked in to the kitchen.
Kelly followed her "the fridge and cupboards are fully stocked" he told her taking a seat at the breakfast bar "figured you'd be sick of hospital food by now"
Lexi opened the fridge to check what he had bought, all her favourite foods were there, cans of Pepsi, bottles of Corona and the essentials. "Thank you" she told him pulling out two bottles of Corona and twisting off the caps. "For all of this" she elaborated pushing a bottle of beer across the surface to him.
"That's what friends are for." he smiled taking a swig of his beer.
Lexi took a long drink from her bottle, the cold liquid felt nice as it travelled down her throat, she had been drinking awful coffee for over a week now, it was nice to have something with flavour.
"How's Jay?"
"Good, he should be out in a couple days, doctors said he's making great progress, no lasting effects from the whole spleen thing, just got to wait a few more weeks before he can get his cast off"
"He good with you quitting and moving out?"
"What is this Kelly?" Lexi asked a little annoyed with his interrogation. "What's with the surprise visit? The questions?"
"Wooooo" Kelly said surprised at her outburst. "I was just being friendly. But I can see I've hit a nerve."
"Don't give me that shit" Lexi advised him finishing off her beer. "You've obviously heard something and you're just fishing for information, so just ask me whatever it is that you want to know."
"Okay, I may have overheard a conversation about a photo of us in my apartment" Kelly offered.
Lexi exhaled through her nose and clenched her jaw, the intelligence unit, more than likely Adam, he liked to gossip, must have been discussing the case or said photo at Molly's and Kelly had overheard. Kelly didn't need to know about the photo, Calvin had been following her at the time not Kelly. "And?" she questioned
"Did Jay see it?"
"Yes, but he already knew about it" Lexi crossed her arms over her chest, she didn't want to be having this conversation with Kelly. "I told him"
Kelly nodded "Is that why you moved out? Are you and him not together anymore?"
"What me and Jay are or aren't, is none of your business" he was beginning to piss her off and her tone of voice reflected that. Was he going to gloat? Be happy that he had split them up?
"I don't wanna fight with you Lex" Kelly began getting up from the barstool and walking around to stand in front of her "I'm not trying to be an asshole but if I'm the reason you're not together, that you're not happy, I'll tell him it was all me. I'll tell him I made the first move"
Lexi shook her head, she felt a little bad for being angry with him, he was trying help, in his own way. "You don't need to do that. I've already told him what happened, he knows everything."
"I'm sorry" he told her softly. "I promise from now on, I'm going to respect your decision, you chose him, I get that. I'll back off"
Lexi didn't know what to say. She had chosen Jay over Kelly, not only because Kelly had cheated, and she knew she wouldn't be able to trust him again, but because she loved Jay and always had.
"Thank you" Lexi smiled "I appreciate that"
Kelly reached in to his pocket and pulled out a silver chain, he held it up in front of Lexi allowing her to see it clearly, on the end of the chain was her engagement ring. "I want you to have it." He told her.
"Kelly…" Lexi sighed and walked away from him standing in front of the sofa she turned to look at him again. He had just told her he was backing off, now he was giving her the engagement ring back. "Please don't…."
Kelly interrupted her "Shay picked it out for you, it doesn't have to mean what it meant before. You don't even have to wear it, I just want you to have it" he placed it softly on the counter top and walked out of kitchen, she listened to him close the apartment door, descend the stairs and close the door at the bottom stairs before she moved to pick it up.
She examined it remembering the moment Kelly proposed when she was on the Ferris wheel with Shay. She smiled at the memory then walked to the bedroom. She walked to the bed and hooked the chain over the middle post of the headboard.
Two days later.
"There she is" Jay smiled broadly watching Lexi enter his hospital room. He sat on the edge of his hospital bed, his left arm still in its cast resting on his leg. Will stood in front of him and smiled at Lexi too.
"Wow I'm impressed you actually managed to dress yourself." Lexi joked seeing Jay was dressed and ready to go.
"He told me he's been faking it this whole time" Will contributed to her joke. "He just liked you dressing him"
"More importantly, undressing me" Jay winked at her. Nothing had happened between Jay and Lexi whilst he had been in the hospital, their relationship had been strictly platonic, but they had found their flirty banter again.
Lexi laughed at them both, the Halstead brothers were trouble when they were together. "So, is he all clear to go?" Lexi asked.
Will nodded. "Yes, please, get him out of here. He has all his medications and instructions."
Jay stood from the bed and hugged his brother. "Thanks for everything bro" Jay told him patting his back as he broke the embrace.
"I'll speak to you later" Will told them leaving the room.
"Ready?" Lexi asked.
"I'm so ready to get out of here" He sighed loudly "I can't wait to sleep in my own bed. Although kind of sad I won't be waking up next to you"
Well just say the word and that can change – Lexi thought but didn't say aloud, she didn't want to force him to make any decisions. "Just think of all the extra room you'll have" She smiled
"No using my bathroom to dry your clean underwear" Jay agreed walking closer to her.
"No fighting for the covers"
"I didn't mind that so much" he told her putting his arms around her waist and pulling her in to him "it meant I got to do this"
Lexi put her arms around his neck and cuddled him. She wanted to tell him that she missed him already. They hadn't spent a day apart since he had been in the hospital, she had spent every night with him, only left to do a few hours at Molly's then returned to him, it wasn't as if she was never going to see him again but she already missed lying with him on the hospital bed watching movies on her laptop, playing board games to pass the time, walking the corridors in the middle of the night when they couldn't sleep, talking about everything and nothing at the same time.
The sound of someone making siren noises broke them apart laughing as they did. "Your carriage awaits Sir" Adam entered pushing a wheel chair too fast and sliding it to a halt as if he had done a handbrake turn in a car.
"I am not getting in that" Jay laughed shaking his head.
"Well if you won't take it" Lexi said picking up Jay's bag from the bed "I will" she said sitting in the wheelchair and putting the bag on her lap.
"Hold on tight" Adam said turning the chair round and running out the door with her, Jay followed laughing as Lexi told Adam to slow down before he crashed.
Jay sat slumped on his sofa. He had been home from the hospital for a few hours. Lexi had taken him home, she helped him unpack his bag and get settled back in. When he had assured her, he didn't need anything else she had left letting him get some rest, he hadn't wanted her to leave but he didn't want her to feel like she had to stay.
Lexi had left, and Jay had lay on his bed for a moment, happy to be home, he hadn't intended to fall asleep, but he woke three hours later. The apartment was so quiet, he didn't like it, it didn't feel right without Lexi there.
Jay had taken a shower, put a pair of grey sweat pants on and then sat on the sofa, watching the tv without watching it. He picked his phone up from the coffee table and typed a message to Lexi.
Jay: Daytime tv sucks!
Lexi: Ha-ha, read a book. Expand you mind.
Jay smirked at his phone, he looked towards the few books on his shelf and grinned as he typed his reply.
Jay: The only books here I haven't read are your copies of 50 Shades of Grey.
Lexi: Read it, you might learn a thing or two. Lol *kissing face emoji*
Jay: I never heard any complaints from you. *winky face emoji*
Lexi: Lol. No complaints here. 50 Shades of Halstead *winky face emoji*
Jay: Knew it, Mr Grey ain't got shit on me!
He waited for a reply and got nothing, he put his phone back on the coffee table and stood to get a drink from the kitchen.
He poured himself a glass of orange juice, he really wanted a beer but wasn't allowed to have any alcohol with the pain meds and antibiotics he was taking. Jay heard keys rattling in his front door, he walked to the hallway and looked left to the front door as it opened to reveal Lexi with a pizza box in hand. "Pizza, Game of Thrones boxset and alcohol-free beer" she told him smiling holding up a six pack of beer bottles.
Jay smiled at her, she knew him too well. He was happy to see her, he had missed her, it had only been a few hours, but he had really missed her. "Alcohol free beer sounds disgusting"
"You'll have to let me know" she smirked closing the door. "I'll be drinking the actual beer in your fridge" she confessed walking through in to the living room.
Lexi sat on the end of Jay's sofa with Jay lying down his head in her lap, his legs over the sofa. The credits of the fifth episode of Game of Thrones began rolling up the screen. Lexi stretched her back, putting her arms above her head, her shoulders cracked audibly. "Ow" she groaned. "I swear my back will never recover from that hospital camp bed."
Jay sat up on the sofa reminding her, "I did tell you to come back and stay here". After spending a few nights in the hospital Jay had tried to convince Lexi to go to his apartment to get a real night's rest. He knew she wasn't sleeping well in the bed Chicago Med had provided but being Lexi and being stubborn she had refused to leave him.
It wasn't only that she didn't want to leave him, it was also because she felt a little weird staying in his apartment, without him, and when they weren't a couple.
"I cannot wait to sleep in a normal bed" Lexi told him standing up and pushing the stop button on the DVD player remote control.
Jay stood up beside her. "There's a perfectly good bed just in there" he pointed towards his bedroom. "You know you don't have to go, you can stay, spend the night"
Lexi knew what he was implying. She knew if she stayed, they would end up in bed together, or worse they wouldn't end up in bed together and it would just confuse the already complicated situation they were in. She didn't want to force anything, if something were to happen between them, she wanted it to happen naturally. She didn't want to put pressure on either of them.
Lexi smiled at him then walked through his apartment towards the front door. "Do not watch any episodes without me!" She warned.
"I promise I'll wait for you" he told her following her to the door. "Just don't make me wait too long" he kissed her right cheek.
AAARRRGGGHHH! The cheek Jay, really? The cheek? What am I your sister? – Lexi thought but didn't air her opinions. She wanted to kiss him, she looked from his eyes to lips and wet her lips a little, then thought better of it. Kissing him wasn't the right thing to do, it wasn't the right time. She knew the image of her kissing Kelly was still fresh in his mind and she feared if she kissed him, he would reject her. Lexi pulled her gaze from his lips and turned to open the door telling him. "I have a shift at Molly's tomorrow, but I'll be finished at 8"
He held the door open as she crossed the threshold. "It's a date"
It was progress she supposed. "Night Jay" she turned and walked towards the stairs.
"Night Lex" he closed the door and leant against it looking up at the ceiling. "Really Jay, the cheek!"he spoke aloud to himself in his empty apartment "You should have just kissed her" he sighed shaking his head at his own stupid behaviour.