A/N: I know I know it's been over two weeks, I'm sorry I had this chapter almost done and then I lost the entire thing and since then I've been too tired or too busy or in too much pain to be able to re-write it. I've been in the hospital, I've been in pain. If you guys are going to read my stuff longterm, this is going to happen from time to time. As I am posting this I am also working on the next two chapters and they should be up within a few days. I just got back from warped tour so that's another reason why it's so late. I will be leaving for the beach on Thursday of next week , So I am going to try and put these two chapters out at least, if not 3. Again I apologize, I am very sorry. Eh. There is also a time gap, so I'm sorry and please don't hate me for that. I really love you guys and your feedback and I hope you'll stick with me because I am going to see this story to the end I promise. I own way too much nail polish, A head full of 'Vampire Red' hairs, and 16 pairs of headphones that I can never seem to find. :3 I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, Im not sure if this Is super characteristic of the characters but for some reason I thought it would be cute. I work hard on every chapter I write and I hope you guys don't hate the direction I lead the story. Enjoy.
*Three and a half months later*
Erin is sitting criss-cross in her chair at the end of the day. Instead of finishing up paperwork, she is absent mindedly fiddling with her locket as she reads through some previous emails from Jay. They make her smile, and a few even make her blush. She glances over to Ruzek who pulls Kim's chair next to him and puts her feet on his lap. He scrolls on his computer with one hand as his other rubs her calf. Kim had gotten kicked the day before during an arrest and she now has a nasty bruise. Erin chuckles as she thinks about what Voight's reaction would be to what she just saw. He had become more lenient but not that lenient. She turns back to her computer and resumes getting lost in reading emails and smiling to herself.
"What are you smiling at?" Voight asks, startling Erin.
"What? Nothing at all." Erin says sheepishly. "Just finishing up paperwork."
"Mhmm. Right." Voight clears his throat before speaking up. "Seems like everyone is pretty much done for the day, why don't we call it a night?" he says before heading into his office to grab his things.
Erin stands up and leans back and then bends at the waist stretching out her spine. She closes her emails and shuts down her computer. She casually unclips and drops her gun and badge into her desk drawer before she locks it. She walks over to Adam and Kim who are doing the same.
"Whatcha guys up to tonight?" Erin asks casually.
Adam and Kim look at each other and shrug before answering. "Nothing really, just a boring Thursday." Adam answers.
"Well Jay is suppose to Skype me tonight, and I was wondering if you guys would want to come over. I'll get pizza and a six pack. I need you guys to help me…surprise him." She says throwing them an excited look as she slides her jacket on.
"Surprise him how?" Adam asks, intrigued.
The trio starts walking out of the unit together. "Well Ruzek, how do you feel about losing your pants?" Erin asks him with a wink.
Adam raises his eyebrows in surprise before he smirks. "Well you've got me curious, so I guess we're in."
"This is going to be so much fun." Erin says with a laugh.
An hour later Adam and Kim walk in hand in hand, Adam has a twelve pack of Saranac in his free hand. Erin had gotten home about five minutes before, with two pizzas, one with sausage and pepper and the other half cheese and half with ham and pineapple because its Kim's favorite.
"We found these two walking into the building, figured we would invite 'em up." Kim gestures toward Nadia and Antonio who walk in right behind them. Nadia and Antonio had been getting along very well the past few months. Antonio had lost the light in his eyes there for a while and it was good to see him smiling and having fun again.
"Good, I invited them, they're gonna help too." Erin says with a smile.
"Got the goods. " Adam says holding the beer up in the air.
"Nice. I got the food. Kim I got your favorite. "She says with a smile.
"Yay!" Kim bounces over to the kitchen, grabs a slice, and shoves it in her mouth.
"Someone's hungry." Adam comments with a smirk which earns him a glare.
He opens five bottles of beer on the counter, and hands one to everyone before taking a sip of his own. He goes to the cabinet to grab plates and piles three pieces of sausage and pepper pizza. He takes a generous bite and makes delighted noises as he chews, "Tony's?" he asks with a mouthful.
Erin murmurs an "mmhmm" as she continues to eat her piece. Nadia starts on her second piece of cheese and Antonio reaches for another slice of pineapple. Ruzek goes in for another two pieces which makes the girls laugh.
"Slow down there, fatass." Erin says with a chuckle as she takes a pull of her beer.
"So what time is Halstead supposed to be calling?" Antonio asks as he takes a swig of beer.
Erin looks at the clock "Shit, probably within the next few minutes. Why don't we go chill in my bedroom and ill let you in on what we're gonna do to surprise him." She says grabbing another slice of pizza and nodding toward the group to follow her.
"Bring more beer!" she says chuckling, "You're gonna need it."
"Oh great. What did you sign me up for?" Antonio unenthusiastically asks Nadia.
"FUN! We're gonna have fun." She answers, pulling him by his shirt.
Adam sets the beers on the computer desk. He takes off his shirt and unbuttons his pants letting them fall to the floor. He does a belly flop onto Erin's bed and pats space next to him.
"Come on Antonio, you know you want to." He says with a wink making everyone laugh.
Instead of taking him up on his offer, Antonio grabs a throw pillow and throws it at Ruzek's face. After taking off her shirt and pants as well, leaving her in her underwear and bra, Kim takes the space next to Adam.
"I can't believe I'm doing this." Antonio says, taking off his pants.
He sinks down into the big, comfortable chair by the picture window that looks over their beautiful city. As soon as she's done getting her foot unstuck from her very tight jeans, he leans over and grabs Nadia's hand, pulling her into his lap.
Erin sits down at her computer and signs on to Skype. She is relieved that Jay isn't online yet.
"Here," she throws her phone at Adam. "Put this on that docking station there, and get the song ready."
"Yes master!" he says with a salute, making Erin salute him back, only with a very particular finger.
"I just want to make him smile, and having you guys do this will make his week, I promise." She says with a sigh.
"We know, that's why we're here." Kim says softly, smiling at Erin.
They settle into casual conversation, talking about the case that they are currently working on and the Cubs game they are planning to catch this weekend together and then Adam starts cracking jokes. The beer must be getting to her head, because Erin is laughing pretty hard at Adam's not so funny knock- knock jokes.
The Skype ringtone sounds through the room, making everyone more excited and considerably louder. Erin checks her reflection in her mirror before shushing everyone and turning towards the computer. She takes a deep breath and answers.
It takes a second to load before Jay's face pops up on her screen, making her heartbeat pick up and her smile spread from ear to ear.
They look at each other for a few seconds before Jay speaks up, "Hey Beautiful."
"HeLLOOO HANDSOME." Kim's slightly tipsy voice travels over from the bed, which makes Erin mockingly glare at her and stick out her tongue.
"I'm sorry," she says with a chuckle. "Hi." She takes a moment to look at him, his facial hair had grown in some which made him look scruffy. 'And really sexy.' Erin thinks to herself. "I miss seeing your face." She says with a sigh.
"Tell me about it. It's hell not getting to see your face every day." He says with a smile. "So what's going on over there tonight? Burgess sounded a little tipsy."
"She is. We're having a sleepover." She says with a wide grin, knowing how he feels about her 'ruining' his image of sleepovers. His image of a sleepover equates to girls sitting around in their underwear, jumping on beds, and having pillow fights.
Jay frowns, "Oooh, so much fun." He says sarcastically. "You ruined sleepovers for me forever." He pouts his lower lip dramatically.
"Oh don't look so sad. We actually have a surprise for you."
"What kind of surprise?" he asks visibly intrigued.
"You'll see." She says, signaling off camera for someone to press play.
Nelly's "Hot in here" starts to flow through the speakers. Erin pulls her shirt over her head, earning her an eyebrow raise from Jay.
'So hot in
So hot in here
So hot in'
She positions the camera towards the bed where Nadia and Kim are jumping on the bed in their underwear. Erin dances backward and hops onto the bed with them. They jump around to the beat, and Erin grabs a pillow and knocks it into Nadia. Jay leans back, folding his hands behind his head. Erin smiles because he seems to be enjoying the show.
'I was like, good gracious ass is bodacious'
Adam and Antonio make their way in front of the camera. Dancing around and blowing kisses at Jay, who is cracking up. The sound of his deep chuckle mingles with the music. Antonio takes off his shirt and throws it towards the camera. Adam is trying his hardest to twerk to the beat. The girls are still jumping, but sporadically because they are bent over laughing. Jay continues laughing which makes Erin's heart soar; she hasn't heard him laugh this hard in such a long time.
By the end of the song everyone has abandoned dancing and they are all just laughing hysterically, mostly at Adam and his "twerk power".
"Holy shit" Jay laughs, trying to catch his breath. "That was awesome guys."
"We know." Nadia comments
"We really miss you man." Adam says in a serious tone.
"I miss the hell out of you guys too. I'd give anything to be back behind my desk in our unit."
"I bet. I'll keep the seat warm for you." Adam says with a laugh.
"I don't know about you all, but I want more pizza." Kim says herding everyone out of the room giving Erin a wink.
"That was great." Jay says to Erin when the room clears out.
"I'm glad it made you laugh. I haven't heard that laugh in a while, I've missed it a lot." She says with a smile.
"I miss you a lot. I'm glad this tour is almost over. "
"I'm glad too. I want my partner back." She says, pouting her lip.
"Speaking of getting people back…" he trails off hesitantly, "I need to talk to you about something."
Erin gives him a quizzical look, "Yeah sure. What's going on?" She asks seriously.
"A guy, a friend, from our unit was captured during one of our missions by a small group of Afghani insurgents." He says in a somber tone, running a hand over his face. "We waited a few days to hear from the Colonel about a rescue mission, after talking to him Sergeant Grayson said that the Army isn't going to back a rescue mission because of the lack of knowledge of this particular group. They would rather see him be tortured or killed than to even try and save him."
"That's horrible, Jay. I'm sorry." Erin says somberly.
"Well, Grayson wants to do it anyways." He says, "Off the books, strictly voluntary. He wants me to head the group." He takes a breath before continuing. "I'm thinking that I'm going to do it."
"No." Erin says vehemently.
"I cannot let this guy die because the white shirts are too corrupt to put any money into a rescue mission." He says, clenching his jaw. "How would you feel if I was the one who didn't get rescued? How would you feel if it was my life?" He asks heatedly
"Don't you dare!" Erin says, raising her voice. "We are talking about your life, Jay!"
"No we are talking about an innocent man dying because no one was willing to go out on a limb and try to save him. I cannot leave someone behind, I cannot live with that!" Jay says, voice rising.
"Don't you fucking get it?" Erin chokes out, tears in her eyes. "I cannot live without you."
"Erin…" he takes a deep breath, trying to keep his emotions under control. "I'm going to be fine. But I am going to do this. And when it's over? I'm going to be coming home, to you." He says delicately.
She takes a shaky deep breath. "You better. I mean I know I can't stop you. You and your morals."
"Yeah me and my morals." He says with a small laugh. "And no you can't stop me, I'm sorry. But these next 3 weeks will fly by and I'll be home before you can even blink." Jay says with a slight smile. "But right now, I need to go and you have to go hang out with our friends."
"Yeah I know." She says, wiping tears from her face. "Please Jay, please be careful." She pleads.
"I will, I promise. You be careful too, partner." He smiles at her, "I'll be home soon."
"I'll be here waiting." She smiles, even though tears are still running down her face and she gives a small wave before he ends the call.
Once it disconnects, Erin walks to the bathroom and sits on the edge of the tub. She lets her tears fall freely for a few moments. It had been a long 6 months without Jay here, and it's gotten harder the more her feelings have grown.
Kim walks into the bathroom and squats down to Erin, "I heard yelling, what's going on?" she asks, concerned.
Erin wipes her face and rolls her eyes, "He's heading some off the books rescue mission." She says with a shaky voice. "I mean I totally get why he's doing it, but it's also really dangerous." Erin takes a deep breath. "Kim, I need him to come home." She says dropping her head
"He will," Kim says softly as tears roll down Erin's cheeks. "Hey look at me, "she puts her hands on Erin's face, "He is coming home, I promise."
"I know." She says quietly as Kim pulls her into a hug. "Come on, let's get you a drink." Kim says, pulling Erin up.
"Yeah, a drink would be great." Erin sighs.
Kim lets out a laugh, "You know what else is great?"
Erin looks at her quizzically.
"The game of twister that Adam and Antonio are playing in their underwear right now." Kim says, smiling wide.
When Erin walks into her living room and sees's Adam and Antonio entangled on the twister mat, she throws her head back in a genuine laugh.
"I love you guys," She says, wishing that the missing piece of their group was here.
Two weeks later, its mid afternoon and it's been a scorcher of a day for mid-October. The sun had been beating down on them all morning as they canvassed the river walk for members of the Russian mob who had been snatching up young kids to sell into human trafficking rings.
They are standing around the office talking about what leads they have, what phone records they could pull up, and what surveillance cameras have caught on their suspects.
A few days earlier Atwater had made fun of Erin for ripping her pants during a take down, and as punishment Voight was making Kevin wait hand and foot on Erin. So far, Erin was enjoying having someone to organize her paperwork and get her lunch. His most recent task was to get the entire team iced coffees.
He walks up the stairs, juggling a tray of iced coffees.
Ruzek laughs and Kim throws him a glare before going over to help Kevin.
"How's my bitch-boy doing?" Erin asks with a laugh.
"Ha-Ha, funny" Kevin says, handing Erin her coffee.
"Thank you though, seriously. This coffee is really hitting the fucking spot." She says, taking a sip. " I can't believe how ungodly hot it is outside."
"I know, I should have worn my booty shorts." Adam says which makes everyone laugh.
"I will pay you money to never have to see that." Voight says from behind him.
"How much are we talking?" Adam asks
"I would pay anything not to see your hairy ass cheeks hanging out of booty shorts, Ruzek." Voight says, making everyone chuckle.
Erin's phone rings, dragging her away from the conversation. She walks over to her desk and picks up her phone.
"Detective Lindsay," She answers.
"Detective, I am Master Sergeant Bloom," He takes a breath "I am calling because you are listed as next of kin for Corporal Jay Halstead."
Erin's heart drops "What happened?" She asks forcefully. She takes a deep breath and braces herself for what he may say.
"As of Tuesday, October 13th at 15:00 hours, Corporal Jay Halstead has been classified as missing in action. Measures are being taken to insure his safety and the safety of his unit. Once they have been found, they will be flown back to the states. You will be notified of any changes in status. " He drones on about procedures and support groups but Erin has stopped listening.
"Thank you for telling me," She interrupts before dropping the phone onto the receiver.
The sound catches Kim's attention and when she sees's Erin's ghostly white face, she rushes across the room, "Erin, what's wrong?"
Erin stands up and walks to the front of her desk. Her knuckles are white as they grip her coffee cup.
At this point everyone is looking at her concerned, "What is it kid?" Voight asks her gently.
"As of Tuesday, October 13th at 15:00 hours," She repeats, "Corporal Jay Halstead has been classified as missing in action." She says robotically.
She hears everyone gasp, and she stands there trying to process the information that she just relayed.
"Jay is missing," She says when the realization hits her. A heartbreaking noise leaves her throat as uncontrollably she starts to sob. Her coffee cup drops from her shaking hand and her knees buckle underneath her as she falls to the ground.
A/N: Soooo? I hope it wasn't super predictable. Like I said, this chapter was very hard to write/word so I'm sorry if some parts sound bad or something. I'm trying my best. But I am now on a roll and I should be updating with the next chapter within the next day. I hope this wasn't too predictable either, I tried to keep it under wraps so hopefully you guys didn't see this coming from a mile away? I dunno. I'm sad because I heard that linseride *cringes* will be a thing through all of season 2, so that will definitely be fueling my fanfiction because I NEED Linstead in my life. Anyways, let me know what you guys thought? I hope you didn't hate it. Okay, and sorry again it took so long to get up. I really do apologize.