A/N: This is a long chapter that probably should have been split into two, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. The rest of 51 makes an appearance in this chapter, and you'll get to see how they react to Gabby's diagnosis.

Kelly was concerned about Gabby. It had been two days since she'd had her final chemo treatment before surgery, and this one had taken a toll on her. Up until now, she'd struggled with nausea and fatigue for a day or two, but by the third day, she would be feeling more normal. That hadn't been the case this time. He'd heard her throwing up in the bathroom as he'd been leaving for shift, and had gone to check on her, offering to call off so he could stay with her, but she'd insisted she was fine.

At her appointment on Wednesday, Gabby's oncologist had been concerned about her platelet count as well as her white blood cell count. He'd informed Gabby that her platelet count would need to improve before he would schedule the surgery. He'd assured her that a few weeks off of chemo would help and told her to come back in a couple of weeks for blood work, and, if her platelets were high enough, she'd be able to schedule the surgery then.

Kelly pulled his phone out of his pocket and sent a quick text to Gabby. Just checking in; how are you feeling?

He was concerned when several minutes had passed and he hadn't gotten a reply. He considered calling her, but before he was able to, the tones sounded. Squad 3. Person trapped. 1123 Roosevelt Road.

Kelly shoved his phone into his pocket as he headed for the squad. He tried to reassure himself that Gabby was probably just sleeping, and that was why she hadn't answered him.

When they arrived on scene, Kelly couldn't help but roll his eyes at the sight that greeted them. It was an old firehouse that had been turned into an event space, and one of the guests had obviously had a bit too much to drink, despite the fact that it was barely after noon. He had decided to climb on the taxidermized bear that had been mounted onto a platform, but the bear hadn't been able to hold his weight and he'd become trapped beneath it when it toppled over.

Squad quickly got to work freeing him once Kelly had gotten the rest of the guys to stop laughing. Thankfully the daredevil hadn't been injured; the ambulance that had been assigned to the call with them had quickly checked him over and determined that he didn't need to be transported.

"Hey, Severide, do you think we could convince Boden to let us have a taxidermized bear as a mascot?" Capp asked from the back of the squad as they headed back to the firehouse.

"No; I know," Cruz jumped in, laughing, "we should convince him to let Truck 81 get a taxidermized goat!"

Kelly rolled his eyes at his crew's antics, doing his best to ignore them. He still hadn't heard from Gabby, and he was getting concerned. "Hey, Tony, we're taking a detour. I need to swing by my place," he instructed. Tony glanced over at Kelly, surprised by the request, but quickly rerouted them towards Kelly's apartment without question.

"Stay here," Kelly instructed his crew when they pulled up outside of his place. "I shouldn't be long." He hopped out of the squad, ignoring the jokes that Cruz and Capp were cracking about him just stopping to grab a beer, and made his way inside his apartment building. Once inside and out of view of the squad guys, he picked up the pace, quickly making his way up to his apartment and unlocking the door.

"Gabby?" Kelly called as he walked into the apartment, scanning the living room and kitchen. When he didn't see her, he checked her bedroom, hoping to find her in bed asleep. When she wasn't there, Kelly felt panic rising up inside of him. Where was she?

Kelly pulled out his phone and called Gabby's phone. He heard ringing coming from inside the bathroom and felt relief wash over him. "Gabby?" he called, knocking on the door, which was cracked open slightly. "Hey, you okay?"

Kelly waited a moment for an answer before gently pushing against the door to open it a bit further, but he was met with resistance. "Gabby?" he called, the panic he felt evident in his voice. "Gabby, open the door!"

When he still didn't get an answer, Kelly pushed against the door, harder this time. He finally got it opened just enough to poke his head inside the small bathroom. The sight that greeted him only increased the panic he felt. Gabby was lying on the floor, passed out. Her back was towards the door, blocking it from being able to open.

"Shit," Kelly yelled. He quickly keyed his radio. "Squad 3 to Main, I need an ambulance to 2147 South Lumber Street, Apartment C. I have a female victim in need of medical attention."

"Copy that, Squad 3."

"Capp, Tony, Cruz, I need you up here, now! Bring the Sawzall," Kelly called over the radio. He then turned his attention to Gabby. "Hang on, Gabby," he murmured. He debated trying to force the door open, but decided against it, not wanting to risk hurting her, especially since he had no way of knowing how she'd fallen.

"Lieutenant?" Cruz called minutes later as he, Capp, and Tony entered Kelly's apartment.

"In here!" Kelly called. When the other three men entered the bedroom, Kelly quickly filled them in. "Gabby's in the bathroom; she's unconscious on the floor, and she's blocking the door from opening. Tony, I need you to use the Sawzall to cut the door off its hinges. Cruz, Capp, be ready to grab the door."

To their credit, the men jumped into action right away, no questions asked. As soon as they had the door out of the way, Kelly was inside the bathroom, kneeling next to Gabby. "She's burning up," he said worriedly, checking her pulse. It was there, but it was weak. "Main, where's that ambulance?" he called into his radio, his frustration evident in his voice.

"We're here, Severide!" Brett called from just inside the apartment. She and Violet quickly made their way to the bedroom. When Cruz, Tony, and Capp stepped back to give them room to get into the bathroom, Sylvie gasped. "Gabby?" She looked at Kelly. "Severide, what's going on?" she demanded as she knelt down on the bathroom floor next to her former partner.

"She has stage three ovarian cancer," Kelly filled her in. "She had a round of chemo two days ago; it was her final round before surgery. Her platelets and white blood cells were both low." He looked at Brett, his eyes filled with worry. "She's burning up, Brett."

Brett nodded. "Violet, get a line started." She quickly slipped the blood pressure cuff onto Gabby's arm. "80/60," she stated, frowning. "Pulse is 55." She quickly took Gabby's temperature. "102," she announced worriedly. "I think she might have passed out from dehydration, but I'm worried about a possible infection." She glanced up at where Capp, Cruz, and Tony were standing, their faces reflecting the worry and shock she was felt but was trying hard to hide. "Help me get her on a backboard," she instructed before turning her attention back to Gabby and slipping a c-collar on her.

They all worked together to quickly get Gabby on the backboard and carried her to the waiting ambulance. Kelly quickly hopped into the back after Brett had climbed in. "I'm going with you," he insisted.

Brett nodded, knowing from the look on the squad lieutenant's face that there was no use in arguing. Considering he was the only one who knew Gabby's history, having him with her would be helpful. "Okay," she replied simply.

The ride to the hospital took only minutes, but to Kelly it felt as though it took hours. How could he have been stupid enough as to leave her alone today when he'd known she still wasn't able to keep anything down? He should have insisted on staying with her. And the fever; the fever had him worried. He knew from what the doctor has said yesterday that her chances of catching something was much higher with her low white blood cell count, and her body wouldn't be able to fight it as easily.

"Kelly, what happened?" Brett asked softly.

Kelly knew she was asking about more than just what had happened today. He sighed, running his hand over his face, surprised when it came away wet with tears. He hadn't even realized he'd been crying. "Umm…" Kelly began, trying to gather his thoughts and focus on what Brett had asked. "Uh, four weeks ago, I decided to wait outside of Med to see if I could catch her. You were so sure that you'd seen her and she still wasn't answering my phone calls. I saw her as she was coming out of Med; she tried to ignore me at first, but I made her stop and talk to me. She, uh-, she got sick and was really tired, so I drove her back to the motel she was staying at, and she promised me that we'd talk the next day. I went home that night and started putting the pieces together in my mind.

"When I hadn't heard from her by noon the next day, I started to get worried, so I went back there. When she opened the door…she looked awful, and I just blurted it out, asking her if it was cancer. She told me about it then, but she made me promise not to tell anyone else," Kelly informed Brett. "The only person who knows is Boden, and that's only because of needing to switch a shift and needing time off for her surgery."

Brett nodded, not trusting herself to speak. Gabby had cancer, and she had kept it from all of them. While she was hurt, she also couldn't help but feel that it was their own fault. If they'd all kept in better touch with her, if they'd shown her that they still loved and cared about her, maybe she would have trusted them with her secret. "How long has she been staying with you?" the blonde paramedic asked finally.

"She moved in with me the next day," Kelly responded. "The motel she was staying at…it wasn't good. I couldn't just leave her there."

Before Brett could respond, the back doors of the ambulance were being thrown open by Violet. Brett and Kelly jumped down and helped Violet pull Gabby's gurney from the back, pushing it through the ER doors.

"What do we got?" Will Halstead asked as he grabbed the foot of the gurney and helped guide it towards.

"33 year old cancer patient, stage three ovarian cancer. She collapsed at home. She's dehydrated, BP is 80/60, pulse is 55. She has a fever of 103," Brett informed the doctor. "Will, it's Gabby Dawson."

Will's eyes flashed to the face of the patient for the first time when he heard Brett say her name. "Okay, in here," he ordered, guiding them into a treatment room. "Who's her oncologist?"

"Dr. Fleishman," Kelly answered. "She just had a treatment two days ago and her platelets and white blood cell counts were low."

Will nodded. "Page Dr. Fleishman," he ordered a nurse, who nodded and quickly left the room. "Okay, let's transfer her. One a count of three. One, two, three."

They shifted Gabby onto the hospital bed from the gurney and slid the backboard out from under her. Violet and Brett began guiding the gurney out of the room, but Kelly hung back, not wanting to leave Gabby. "Severide, I need you to wait outside the room," Will ordered. "I promise I'll update you as soon as we know something."

Kelly nodded reluctantly and stepped outside of the treatment room, leaning against the wall beside it. He closed his eyes, leaning his head back against the wall and pinching the bridge of his nose, trying to regain control of his emotions. Finding Gabby like that had scared him, and the thought of her having an infection now when her body was weak and unable to fight it…it reminded him of Anna, of losing her. He couldn't lose Gabby like that.

"Lieutenant?"

Kelly opened his eyes at the sound of Cruz's voice and the feel of a hand on his shoulder. "They're working on her; that's all I know right now. They paged her oncologist."

Cruz nodded. "Do you want us to call Boden…?" he asked hesitantly, unsure of how to handle this situation. In a normal situation, he wouldn't have hesitated to call the chief and rally the rest of the firehouse to wait at the hospital. But this was far from a normal situation. He knew from the looks on the faces of the others that had been at the apartment that afternoon that none of them had known about Gabby's cancer, either. He wasn't sure how or why Kelly knew, or what to do now that he and the others knew.

Kelly sighed. He'd made a promise to Gabby that he would keep her secret, and he had broken that promise today. He knew he hadn't had a choice, but he still felt guilty. It had been her secret to tell, and she should have been able to tell it in her own time, but that choice had been taken away from her now. He shook his head, "I'll call him," he informed the younger man, pushing himself up off of the wall and pulling his phone out of his pocket before walking out of the ER.

"Kelly, what's going on?" Boden asked, having heard Kelly's request over the radio for an ambulance to his apartment. "Is Dawson okay?"

"I don't know, Chief," Kelly replied honestly. "I found her passed out in my apartment. She was burning up. We're at Med now, but I don't know anything yet."

"What do you need from me, Kelly? What can I do?" Boden questioned. "Do you want us there?"

Kelly thought for a moment before answering. He knew once Boden showed up with the rest of the house, there would be no more secret; they would have to be told about Gabby's cancer. "Yes," Kelly said simply. As much as he hated breaking his promise to Gabby, he knew that she would forgive him eventually. The secret couldn't stay a secret any longer. She would need her firehouse family by her side; they both would.

Chapter 6

Boden stopped to gather himself before walking into the common room. He knew it was full of firefighters who were extremely confused and worried about the fact that 61 had been called to the apartment of their squad lieutenant, and he also knew that the news he was about to tell them was going to be almost as difficult for him to tell them as it would be for them to hear.

"Listen up," he called as he stepped into the common room. "I know you all heard 61 being called to Severide's apartment, and that you're all worried. I have something that I need to tell you."

"Is Severide okay, Chief?" Herrmann asked, his concern evident on his face.

Boden nodded. "The ambulance wasn't for Severide; it was for Gabriela Dawson. She has been back in Chicago for a couple of months now, receiving treatment for cancer. She's been staying with Severide, and today found her passed out at his apartment. She's been taken to Chicago Med, but I'm afraid we don't know much more than that right now," he informed them apologetically, "just that she has a fever and that she's being examined."

Boden looked around the room, his heart hurting at the shocked and pained expressions on the face of his firefighters. Herrmann and Mouch were the two most visibly affected, as they were the only ones out of those gathered that had actually known Gabby. But the others had heard more than enough stories about Gabby to feel as though they knew her. "Load up, let's go to Med," he told them.

When Will Halstead walked into the waiting room to give them an update on Gabby, he found a room full of anxious firefighters waiting for news.

"How is she?" Kelly was the first to spot the doctor, jumping up from his chair and walking quickly over to him.

"Gabby was severely dehydrated, likely from the chemo side effects," Will began. "We believe that is what caused her to pass out. Unfortunately, we also discovered that Gabby has an infection that her body is struggling to fight due to her low white blood cell count. We're giving her antibiotics to help, and we're admitting her so that we can monitor her more closely."

"But she's going to be okay, right?" Kelly asked anxiously.

Will looked around at the faces of the firefighters, many of whom had worked with Gabby for years before she'd left for Puerto Rico. He'd seen so many of them come through the ER after various injuries related to their jobs and had seen how tight-knit they all were, which is what made this so much harder. "If we can get her white blood cell counts up, then I have every reason to believe that she'll pull through," he replied, choosing his words carefull.

Kelly heard what Will was saying, but he also knew from his experience with Anna what the doctor wasn't saying. If Gabby's body wasn't strong enough, if they couldn't get her white blood cell count up, the infection would take over her body, just like it had Anna's.

"Can we see her?" Boden asked from behind Kelly, placing a hand on his lieutenant's shoulder.

Will nodded. "She's awake, and we're getting her settled into a room now. Once we get her settled, she can have visitors," he replied. "But only two at a time for now."

Once Will had gone back through the doors to the emergency room, Boden turned to the rest of 51. "Alright, you heard the doctor. Kelly and I will stay here; the rest of you, load up and head back to the house." He held his hands up as protests rang out. "You can come back in the morning if you want, but for now there's nothing more that you can do here."

Slowly, reluctantly, the firefighters stood up and began to file out of the waiting room until it was just Brett and Herrmann left with Kelly and Boden.

"I'll send Cindy by with some food for the two of you," Herrmann informed the two men. "No need for you to eat that hospital food." He turned to leave but hesitated for a moment before turning back. "We'll pass the boot at Molly's tomorrow night for Gabby. I don't wanna poke my nose where it's not need, but I'm guessin' the medical bills are probably piling up."

"Thanks, Herrmann. I'm sure she'll appreciate that," Kelly assured him.

Once Herrmann was gone, Brett, who had been hanging back, walked over to them. "I-, uh, I wasn't sure what I should tell Matt…" she began hesitantly, her voice trailing off as she tried to figure out exactly what she was asking.

"I'll call him," Kelly assured her gently. He knew how sensitive of a topic Gabby had been when Casey and Brett had first gotten together, and he knew this couldn't be easy on the blonde. While she had gotten over her initial insecurities, Gabby having cancer complicated things. He knew that, as much as Casey loved Brett, he still cared about his ex-wife and would likely not respond well to hearing the news. It wasn't fair to Brett to put that burden on her.

Brett looked visibly relieved for a moment, before looking ashamed for feeling so relieved. "Thanks, Severide," she told him.

Once Brett left, it was only Kelly and Boden remaining in the waiting room. "I can call Casey for you," Boden offered, but Kelly shook his head.

"I appreciate it, Chief," he informed the older man, "but I should be the one to do it. I need to call Stella, anyways, and fill her in on everything that's been going on."

Boden looked surprised. "Kidd doesn't know about Gabby?"

Kelly shook his head. "I promised Gabby that I wouldn't tell anyone, and I had every intention of keeping that promise. That included Stella. She's been so busy with Girls on Fire that she didn't need the distraction anyways. Now, though," Kelly sighed. "She's going to try to insist on coming back, and as much as I want her here, I'm going to have to convince her to stay. Gabby's biggest reason for not telling people was that she didn't want to be a burden. She'd be devastated if Stella gave up Girls on Fire for her."

Boden nodded understandingly. "I'll stay here while you make the calls; I'll come find you as soon as there's news."

Kelly headed outside and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He stared at it for a few minutes, trying to decide who to call first. He finally settled on calling Casey first, knowing that talking with Stella would exactly what he would want if the call with Casey went the way he suspected it would.

"Hey, Severide," Casey answered his phone within the first couple of rings. "Aren't you on shift today? Is something wrong? Is Brett okay?"

Kelly was relieved that Casey had answered. He hadn't thought to ask Brett whether or not he was on shift today. "Casey, it's Gabby," he stated, knowing it would be best to just come right out and say it.

"Gabby?" Casey asked before Kelly could continue, confusion and concern filling his voice. "Why are you calling about Gabby? Is she okay?"

"Matt, Gabby has cancer. She's at Chicago Med and she was admitted today with an infection." Kelly paused, wanting to give Matt a chance to process what he'd just been told before continuing.

"Gabby-, Gabby's in Chicago?" Matt stammered, grasping onto the easiest part of the statement to wrap his mind around. "Kelly-"

"She came back about eight weeks ago," Kelly informed him gently. "She has stage three ovarian cancer. She just finished her last round of chemo treatment before surgery, but her platelets and white blood cells were low, so they were delaying surgery. Wednesday was her last round of chemo, and it really took a toll on her body. I found her passed out in the bathroom this afternoon and Ambo brought her here to Med."

"She's going to be okay, though, right?" Casey asked, his voice breaking. "She's going to pull through?"

"Will Halstead treated her. She was dehydrated and has the infection, so they're admitting her so they can keep a closer eye on her," Kelly explained. "He-, uh, they're concerned about how weak she is and how low her white blood cell count is. He said if they can get her white blood cell count up, she'll pull through."

"If?" Casey questioned. "What are you saying, Kelly?"

Kelly fought to maintain his own composure upon hearing the fear in his friend's voice. "I'm saying we won't know anything for a while; chemo's been rough on Gabby's body. But she's strong, Matt. She's a fighter. We both know that. She'll pull through," he said, as much to convince himself as it was to convince Casey.

"I'm coming there," Matt stated emphatically. "I want to be there."

Kelly sighed. He'd known this would be Casey's reaction, and he hated himself for what he was about to say. "Matt…you need to stay in Portland. Gabby wouldn't want you to come here, not right now anyways."

"I don't care, Kelly; I'm coming!" Casey insisted.

Kelly knew what he was going to say next would only make Casey more upset, but he also knew it was the only thing that would convince him to stay in Portland. "Matt, I've known about Gabby for almost six weeks. I didn't say anything before because she made me promise not to tell anyone. She was trying to do it all herself, all while living in some dump of a motel, all because she didn't want to be a burden on anyone. The only way I was able to convince her to let me help her and to move in with me was to promise her that I wouldn't tell anyone else." He pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "I had to break that promise today to get her help, Matt. She's going to be hurt enough by that. I can't let her be hurt more by validating her fear of being a burden. I need you to stay there in Portland. Do it for her, please."

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a couple of minutes before Casey responded. "You'll call me if there's any change? And you'll keep me updated?"

"Yes," Kelly promised him. "I'll let you know as soon as there's any news." He paused and then added, "Hey, Matt? You may wanna call Brett. She didn't know either until she responded to the call today, and I think she's pretty shook up by the news."

"I will," Matt replied. "Thanks, Kelly. Thank you for being there for Gabby, and for taking care of her."

"She's my friend, Matt. I wouldn't dream of doing anything else," Kelly assured him.

Once Kelly hung up with Matt, he took a few minutes to gather himself to call Stella. As much as he wanted and needed to talk to her, he knew how close she and Gabby had been. This news wasn't going to be easy on her.

"Hey, Kelly, what's up? Is everything okay? I'm in the middle of a class," Stella answered.

"Stella, I need to tell you something," Kelly said gently.

Stella was immediately on high alert. She knew Kelly was on shift today, and there was only one reason he would call her and insist on talking to her after she told him she was in the middle of a class. "What's wrong?" she asked. "Who is it?"

"It's Gabby," Kelly replied, and he proceeded to fill her in on everything that had happened over the past six weeks.

"I'm comin' there," Stella insisted. "I'll be on the next flight to Chicago."

"Stella…" Kelly began. This was going to be much harder than telling Matt not to come, because he'd give anything to have his fiancée here with him. He'd give anything to have Stella by his side as they waited to see if Gabby would pull through. "You can't come," he told her. "Gabby would never forgive herself if you gave up Girls on Fire for her."

"Yeah, well, I'll never forgive myself if she dies and I'm not there!" Stella exclaimed. "Kelly…it's not fair for you to go through this yourself. Especially not considering the past."

Kelly knew that Stella was referring to Anna. "I'm not going through it by myself; not anymore," he stated. "I have our firehouse family. Now that they all know, they'll be here. I promise I'll let you know the minute something changes."

"Kelly…two years ago we lost Otis without getting the chance to say goodbye. I can't lose Gabby like that," Stella cried. "I just can't."

"I know, baby," Kelly whispered. "I won't let that happen; I promise." Kelly glanced towards the doors to the hospital and saw Boden step outside. "Listen, I'll keep you updated; as soon as anything changes, I'll tell you. But right now I have to go, okay? I love you."

Kelly hung up the phone and headed towards his chief.

"Gabby's in a room and can have visitors now," Boden informed him. He took in Kelly's red eyes and tear stained cheeks. "I'm assuming Casey and Kidd both know now?"

Kelly nodded. "It took some convincing, but they're both staying put for now. I told them I'd keep them updated."

Boden squeezed Kelly's shoulder as they walked towards the elevator. He'd seen the toll keeping Gabby's secret had taken on his lieutenant over the past several weeks, and he was proud of Kelly for doing whatever possible to keep his promise to Gabby. He was relieved, though, that the rest of the house finally knew. He hoped that having others to share in the burden would help take some of the weight off of Kelly.

"Chief, she's lost a lot of weight; the chemo has been rough on her," Kelly warned Boden as they approached Gabby's room. "She's not the same Gabby she was the last time she was here in Chicago."

Despite Kelly's warning, Boden couldn't help but feel shocked when he caught sight of his former paramedic through the open door. She looked gaunt and haggard, and the hospital bed nearly swallowed her small form. His heart broke at the sight. Gabby had always been full of life; she'd been the stubborn one, the rules breaker. To see her looking like this, so weak and helpless, broke his heart.

Kelly knocked on Gabby's door before walking in. "Hey, you," he called softly. "You gave me quite the scared today," he informed her, sitting down in the chair next to her bed.

"Sorry," Gabby whispered, opening her eyes and turning her head towards him.

"There's someone here who wants to see you," Kelly informed her, turning his head to look at Boden, who was still standing hesitantly in the doorway.

Boden stepped into the room, walking to stand behind Kelly.

"Chief," Gabby murmured, mustering a small smile. "Thanks for coming."

"I heard my favorite former paramedic was in town and had to come see for myself," Boden replied, forcing a smile.

"You're not supposed to play favorites," Gabby chided.

"Sometimes I can't help myself," Boden told her, earning him another smile.

Gabby turned her attention back to Kelly. "Everyone knows, don't they?" she guessed.

"Yeah, they do," Kelly responded. "I stopped by on the way back from a call to check on you. Cruz, Capp, and Tony were with me, and 61 was the ambulance that responded," he informed her apologetically. "And Boden filled the rest of the house in."

Gabby nodded slowly. "It's okay; I knew it couldn't stay a secret forever," she assured him.

"Casey and Stella know, too; I called them," Kelly told her. "They said to tell you that they're thinking of you. They're both pretty worried about you."

"No need," Gabby whispered. "I'm going to beat this."

Kelly reached out a hand and gently brushed it over Gabby's hair. "I know you are. If anyone can beat this, it's you," he replied with much more confidence than he actually felt.